"Dark Blue"
A/N: Interview time! Enjoy as we see the interviews through the lenses of Ty and Ciera!
~I don't, don't know
What you could possibly expect
Under this condition-so~
Ty Bale, 16, District Three
Ty could feel the spotlight shining on him already. There were five people in front of him, just five minor pit-stops until he got his chance to show all of Panem who he was: a star. He was already number six in the popularity rankings, and with Coira freaking Thompson choosing him as the featured tribute, and with the dazzling interview he's about to give? He could be at number one by the end of the night. Finally he was getting the chance to prove everyone who doubted him wrong. This was his moment, and nobody else's.
Coira Thompson was up on stage, hyping the crowd up, and that was enough to get him at least a little bit nervous. Not for the crowd, he lived for the crowd, but speaking to Coira Thompson? She was his first crush, and even still the thought of being up on stage with her made him a bit queasy. He was used to fighting through nerves, though, and he wouldn't let anything ruin his time in the spotlight.
Julie was quiet for the first time since he had met her. She was fiddling with the sleeves of her dress, biting her lip so that red lipstick stained her teeth as she attempted to look nonchalant, bouncing in place energetically.
"Stage fright?" Ty asked her casually, adjusting the black tie of his classic tuxedo that they had put him in.
Julie glanced over at him, then turned back to the stage. "Just don't wanna say anything stupid is all."
"Just be yourself," Ty said. "You'll say something stupid, but they'll probably think it's cute."
"Testing out your jokes already, huh?" Julie grumbled, adjusting her heels that she had spent the last hour attempting to talk her way out of wearing.
"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for, introducing our very first tribute! From District One, you know them, you love them, you better fear them, it's Vivian Ostera!"
The crowd went wild as Coira's voice echoed through the theater, and Vivian walked out onto stage, a snazzy plum suit tightly fitting them as they held their head high and focused on Coira. It was clear to anyone watching they were nervous, but they hid it well enough.
"I don't need to test my jokes," he murmured back to Julie. "Everything I say is gold."
"Yeah?" She asked in a whisper. "Maybe you can go up there and tie some balloons for them, that'd get them going."
Ty rolled his eyes, and Julie cackled under her breath as the interview for Vivian flew by. They talked vaguely about some incident in their past, and claimed to be a survivor, emphasizing that they were stronger from it and were going to win. When asked about their alliance, they just shrugged and said that they were the strongest alliance in the Games and were ready to prove it.
"Next up, the second part of the District One alliance, the thunderous Troy Magnison!"
Troy instantly cemented himself as a favorite, having the entire audience roaring with laughter within moments. His joyous, almost naive optimism and kindness spread like wildfire, and led to a quieter moment later in the interview when Coira asked about his family.
"My father, my mother, and my sister, Idun. . . they were all taken a long time ago, when I was just a child. But I wasn't, because I was saved. Because I still had deeds left to fulfill on this Earth."
"To volunteer for the Games? To win?"
"To volunteer? Yes. To win? No. I volunteer so that I can fight and die in honor, so that I may rest in the halls of Valhalla and meet my family once again."
The audience gave a reaction of sympathy and shock that Ty felt convinced to mimic. So the strongest contender in the Games, the most fearsome, scary Career of them all, didn't want to win? He went on to explain that he wanted to die fighting warriors, and that was why he had split off from the Careers, and Ty's confusion grew to relief and joy.
"We're actually going to win," Julie said breathlessly. "This dude is gonna kill all the Careers and get himself killed in the process."
"And there's, what, 15 Careers this year?" Ty responded, feeling as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. "Not looking so bad for District Three, huh?"
Troy's interview ended and he was sent off with the loudest applause Ty could remember hearing, his fists held high above his head as he cheered on with them all the way off the stage. Ty could swear he still heard the echoes of the man cheering even as he left sight and the crowd died down.
"Well, following up on that electric interview, we have what might be the most fascinating tribute of this year's cast, everybody give a warm welcome to Lana Birkhead, District Two!"
Ty got the heebie-jeebies watching the young twelve-year old girl walk onto stage. Her hands were held by her sides, clenched as her eyes darted around the room analytically. She didn't seem nervous, but Ty couldn't help but notice the slightest quiver in her legs as she walked.
Weirdly enough Coira didn't bring up Lana's life in District Two even once, not even to ask why the twelve-year-old girl had volunteered. Instead she focused her questions on the Capitol, and Lana answered each time with a quick, short answer in a quiet voice. When asked about her alliance with her district partner and whether she was willing to fight him to win if it came down to just the two of them, she stared back at Coira until the buzzer went off and briskly walked off stage.
"And now, our most popular tribute of the Games thus far, representing District Two, it's Talon Olympus!"
Talon's interview went without a hitch, the man wearing the same casual smirk and nonchalant tone that he always had, and charming the audience with ease. He answered each question deftly, dodging around specifics about strategy and his alliance. When asked about his relationship with his district partner Lana, he shrugged his shoulders and said that he only allied with people he trusted.
Julie took in a shaky breath, bouncing in place as she turned to face Ty. "Any last minute advice, T-Bale?"
Ty shrugged. "Don't embarrass me."
Julie smiled. "'Course not, T-Bale. Let's take it home for team D3, huh?" She held up a hand and Ty hesitantly followed through on the high-five, unsurprised when he felt her sweaty palm make contact with his.
"Give it up for our first of the D3 dynamic duo, the sister of our most brilliant victor, the energetic Julie Novum!"
Julie jogged onto stage, and she spoke so rapidly and excitedly that her nervousness was disguised, with Coira feeding off her energy and bouncing it right back as they talked about everything from her climbing talents to her alliance with me to her relationship with her estranged brother.
"So how do you feel about your odds of winning? Think that you'll make it two victors in the family?"
"Most people probably don't think so, but I don't mind. I'm not ready to go yet. I still got a whole lotta world to explore, a whole lotta life worth living."
The crowd cheered for Julie as she jogged off-stage, waving to them as she left, and Ty felt a pang of something in his stomach. The past few days, he had been thinking of the Games, of what they meant. Julie was a good friend, but they were both competitive, everything they did was a battle. And the Games? Well that was the biggest competition of all. He had been so focused on beating her, he had almost forgotten what that meant.
There was no time to delve deeper into that chain of thought, and Ty shook himself, wacking his head in order to force the thoughts out of his head. It was time for him to shine.
"And now, part two of the dynamic duo from D3, it's everybody's favorite balloon maker and karaoke superstar, Ty Bale!"
His name is called, and something else takes over his body as he walks out onto stage, his body on auto-pilot as he waves and smiles, even flashing a few finger guns at the crowd as he makes his way to Coira. He feels butterflies in his gut, but is able to keep a cool facade, shaking her hand and sitting opposite of her with a few greetings.
"So, Ty, how does it feel to be here? Just a week ago you were a balloon-maker, and now you're standing in front of all of Panem, one of the most popular tributes and sitting with some pretty good odds for victory. Quite a change, huh?"
Ty leaned back into his seat, a smile spreading across his lips at the perfect question. "It's a change, but one I always knew was coming. I've always known I was gonna be a star, and while this wasn't what I was expecting. . ." he shrugged. "It works for me. Spotlight has always been where I belong."
"So, you must feel comfortable in your chances of winning, huh?"
Ty laughed, and shrugged. "Well, I think twenty-four of us are gonna say that so 'yes' might not be super convincing but the truth is the truth. Ty Bale, victor of the 102nd Hunger Games, if you're a bettor, go and lock it in and thank me later for the free cash."
Coira smiled and laughed. "I love confidence. So tell me, you and your district partner Julie have already become Capitol favorites thanks to your electric energy, entertaining banter, and fierce competitiveness. How do you feel about your relationship with Julie? Did it just happen organically because you two are so alike?"
"We're both winners, and we're both born for the spotlight. That makes us two of a kind here."
"So you'll be sticking together in the arena then?"
"'Course, us two are gonna head in there, kick some ass, take out the competition without breaking a sweat and ride it out all the way home. No doubt about it."
"And what about when you've taken out the rest of the competition, and it's just you two?"
Ty paused, his smile still locked in place but only barely held there as his earlier thoughts re-entered his mind. He pictured himself, a bloodied knife in his hand, Julie standing opposite him, a knife in hers as well and a rabid look in her eyes that mirrored his own. He imagined them lashing out at each other, knife sinking into flesh.
Ty blinked, and laughed as he shrugged. "Well, we're both entertainers. So, we'll be sure to give you all something worthwhile."
The rest of the interview went by without incident. Coira asked about training, and he answered truthfully. She asked if he could show him how to make a balloon animal and he promised to show her if she found him at the party later in the night. The crowd was roaring in laughter as his buzzer went off and Coira called his name out one more time. He stood up, and took in the applause, wanted to soak it in and enjoy his moment as the spotlight shone down on him, but he didn't feel anything.
He walked off stage, his smile still in place as that video replayed in his head, over and over again. A bloodied knife. Feral eyes. Reaching for each other's necks, like rabid, wild animals, chasing a golden crown. Chasing another moment in the spotlight.
Dalton and Julie met him backstage, and they exchanged a few congratulations on their interviews before turning their attention to the television that had been provided for their small room. He tuned out District Four, half out of boredom and half from the distraction that still ate away at his mind.
He didn't miss much though, and Julie cracked a joke at their expense that Ty only half-heard. He smiled and let out a short, probably unconvincing laugh. If Julie noticed she didn't say anything. He tuned back in as the District Five interviews started up.
"And now, the enigmatic girl from District Five, everybody please welcome River!"
The interview was an awkward one, the girl only answering in nods and shakes of the head for the first half of the interview. When she finally did speak (and it was the first he had heard her speaking the whole time in the Capitol), she spoke in single words that came thick with an unrecognizable accent. Yes. No. Wanderer. Home. Gone. Survive.
By the time her interview was over there were more questions around her than there were before, and while the audience gave her a healthy amount of applause, they seemed more confused than anything else.
"Representing the other half of District Five, it's Nikola Surge everybody!"
Nikola was the opposite of his district partner, full of big words and charming and suave with his speech. He had the crowd eating out of his hand from the very start, and dodged around any potentially compromising questions, particularly those about his home. While he won over the crowd with his charisma, by the end of the interview there wasn't a single new thing Ty could say he knew about the boy from Five.
"District Six sends a pair of fun-loving tributes, including the lovely Earhart Robertson!"
Earhart walked out onto stage still wearing their pilot goggles that they had gotten from the parade, and looked entirely absent-minded as they did so. Their interview was a jumbled mess, with Earhart seeming unable to keep their attention on Coira, and unable to decipher any idioms that Coira through their way. They unintentionally earned a loud round of laughter after answering "are you and your alliance shooting for the stars in the arena" literally, questioning Coira "why we would shoot the stars, and what we would we shoot them with, and why would we want to when they've done nothing bad to us?"
Despite everything, they gave a solid interview that had the audience rolling in laughter and earned a fairly loud applause at the end of their interview, at least more than Ty (or anyone else for that matter) was expecting.
"And now part two of this alliance of rockstars, we have the wild Julian Clement!"
Julian's interview went similarly, with him managing to steal a few laughs with his jokes, most of which were at the expense of the Careers, and getting more applause than anyone would have expected, but still not enough to make a splash and get noticed over everyone else.
"Not a bad look for you two so far," Dalton mused.
"Whatya think, Ty?" Julie chirped in. "Me and you, dynamic duo of D3, number one and two on the popularity rankings?"
"I'll be number one by the end of the night." Ty smirked. "If you wanna fight it out for number two though be my guest."
Julie laughed and shrugged cheekily. "We'll see. Battle for number one tonight then? I bet I can kiss more Capitol butt than you can."
Ty laughed, and extended out his hand to meet Julie's. "Bet."
Ciera Ocussia, 18, District Eleven
They dressed her in a massive white ball-gown that made walking nearly impossible, and so she stood perfectly still as she watched the interviews go by, secretly wishing she had a chair to sit on. There was no conversation to be had, with Marquise meditating, the girl from Twelve reading from some book that Denver was peering his head over to read along with, and the pair from Ten both having their own respective anxiety attacks they were dealing with. So Ciera stood silently, pretending her legs didn't ache as she waited for her turn.
"District Seven is next, and they brought a couple of heavy hitters, first up from there is the stunning Juniper Lourdes!"
Juniper played the same game she had been playing ever since her arrival, flirting and winking at the crowd and making suggestive, teasing jokes towards the crowd and about her allies. Ciera couldn't exactly call her fake, or an act, but either way it rubbed her the wrong way and annoyed her. It seemed like everyone was busy playing some sort of game. Talon, Nikola, Aphrodite, Logan, Juniper, Udon, Inesa, they all thought they were smarter than everyone else and they were all fake, just hollow, empty people with no real personality to speak of. And the Capitol ate it up.
Juniper left the stage with a resounding applause, the largest since District Three, and her district partner joined the stage with much more tempered enthusiasm while Ciera's thoughts continued to drift.
She had a big decision to make still. Denver was fun. He was smart, and kind, and. . . well, that was it, and that was what she loved about him. He was simple. Smart enough to keep up with her train of thought, clever enough to spar words with her, and kind enough to not try anything slimy. Not so egotistical that he thought himself smarter than her, either. It was refreshing. But the rest of his allies. . . well, she didn't dislike them, but they left much to be desired. If she was looking for a good time, she could do worse, but that wasn't what she was after. She wanted to live, and they didn't offer much in the way of that.
Talon Olympus, on the other hand, offered a much easier path to victory. Out of all the kids trying to play mind games with each other, he was the cleverest of the bunch, and so she could trust that his alliance wouldn't be a total disaster. But while she knew she was smarter than him, she also knew he was clever enough about things that Ciera didn't specialize in to make her worry. If he were lying to her face, she couldn't say for certain that she would know it. And spending a few weeks with a couple psychotic Careers and some manipulative idiots? Not a fun way to spend her final few days.
Ciera barely noticed as Vesa left the stage to little fanfare, and Inesa was called up to replace him.
She glanced back, and saw Denver whisper a few words to Sparrow, who suppressed a smile as she buried herself deeper into the book. The girl had distanced herself from the alliance despite Denver's best efforts, and he had confided in Ciera that it worried him. Ciera tried not to worry about it. She was a good kid, clever certainly, and she didn't deserve to die. But all of them had to for Ciera to make it out, and she wouldn't waste her time worrying about someone who wasn't making it past the bloodbath.
Inesa's interview ended just as quickly as it started, and a smattering of applause was mustered up, more than was usually saved for the outlier districts, but still not much. It was getting to be the time of the night that people started tuning out, waiting for their favorites and otherwise not paying too close of attention. Ciera hoped that she could offer up enough to make her one of the few to steal the spotlight.
"And now, it's the fierce fighter from District Eight, Udon Chang!"
Udon's interview was a disaster. He started off charming enough, clearly working through a script that had been prepared for him during their prep period earlier in the day, but it quickly went off-script and into murky territory when he was asked about his father. He let out a slew of words that would have to be censored, all insulting his father, the other tributes, and very vaguely the Capitol itself.
He earned only a polite, awkward applause as he stormed off stage in a mood. Something Coira had said clearly had gotten to him, and Ciera wished she had been paying more attention to hear what it was.
"Moving on, we have the talkative terror from District Nine, Maya Hoover!"
Maya's was wholly forgettable, the girl offering up some clever comments and funny jokes, but the crowd was so out of it that she wasn't able to get any energy behind her, and she was most likely forgotten by the time she left the stage.
"And you couldn't forget about him, it's Arnold "Arkus" Smitt, the immortal volunteer from District Nine!"
Her district partner was the opposite of forgettable, the whole interview being a trainwreck from the start. Arkus was even more vulgar than Udon, and offensive at that, insulting and derogative to everyone and everything that Coira attempted to bring up. He ended his interview with his trademark claim of immortality, and announced he would prove those that doubted him wrong at the bloodbath, which managed to peek enough interest to win him over some applause.
"District Ten brings us two more lovely tributes, the first of which is Persephone Saskia!"
Persephone's interview followed in the footsteps of Maya's. Though the crowd was paying more attention after the disaster that Arkus' was, she offered nothing to win any interest, deflecting and refusing to answer any questions, and seeming a nervous wreck the entire time she was on stage. She just about bolted out of her seat the moment her buzzer rang.
"And now, the Capitol's very own sweetheart, it's Jamie Curie!"
Jamie had the Capitol adoring him from the moment he stepped on stage, and did nothing to challenge that notion. The boy was the most genuinely kind kid that Ciera had ever met, and it was on full display for the Capitol as Coira recapped the story of him saving the life of a Peacekeeper after Jamie shyly deflected the praise. He had kind things to say about all his allies, Ciera included, who he called "the smartest person I've ever met," which made Ciera smile just the slightest bit, even in the midst of all the nerves that were running through her. Jamie left the stage to the loudest applause of the night, in large thanks to a group of Peacekeepers in the front rows that chanted his name with drunken, enthusiastic support. While her alliance with Denver didn't bring any competent fighters, they wouldn't ever be starved for supplies or sponsors as long as Jamie was alive.
"Everybody give it up for our next lovely tribute to join us up on stage, from District Eleven, please welcome the intellect Ciera Ocussia!"
Ciera didn't realize it was her turn until she heard her name called out to a crowd that suddenly seemed louder than before. Her feet moved on their own accord, and Ciera held in a deep breath as she tried not to break the image that was expected of her. She had to be perfect. Smart, and funny, and humble, and every other positive quality. She had to be all of it.
She greeted Coira warmly as she took a seat opposite her, settling in as the crowd noise simmered down to where she could hear her own heart beating again.
"Welcome Ciera! How have you been enjoying the Capitol so far?"
"The Capitol has provided for me in every way I could possibly hope to ask for," Ciera said, forcing out the rehearsed words in her most pleasant, sincere tone. "The city is stunning, the food is exquisite, and everything about it has exceeded any expectations I could have had. It really is a city of dreams."
"It really is, isn't it?" Coira asked with a nostalgic sigh. "And what dreams are you hoping to see come true over the next few weeks?"
"The same dream I've always had," Ciera answered confidently. "To make my family and district proud, and do what I can to make Panem continue to be the great nation that it is."
"It's always great to see a patriot, especially one as determined and intelligent as yourself! So how exactly do you plan to ensure that it's you that gets crowned victor this year?"
"Well, if I told you all now that would just ruin the fun of the Games, wouldn't it?" Ciera teased. "But I can tell you that my allies are all incredible, and that I've got a few tricks up my sleeve."
"Someone as clever as yourself? I'm sure that you do. So tell us a little bit about your life back home, who is Ciera Ocussia?"
"Ciera Ocussia spends most of her time studying and spending time with her friends and family," she said with a short laugh. "I love my family, and like to spend as much time as I can win them. They're the reason I'm fighting so hard to get back home."
"Sounds like your family is lucky to have you," Coira said warmly. "Everybody, give it up for Ciera Ocussia!"
The applause was louder than she had expected, and a genuine smile slipped onto her lips as she stood up, the only genuine thing that came out of that entire interview. She couldn't hear her own thoughts as she stepped off the stage and stumbled into the back room.
She brought her hand up to her eyes, and realized with a start that she was crying when her palm came back wet. She tore away at her eyes, furiously trying to erase any marks of tears before anyone could see. Not that anyone would, there was no mentor waiting for her, the District Eleven team had phoned it in since day one, not bothering to show up for anything beyond the bare minimum. She was the same as she had been for a long time. Alone.
Time seemed to blink by, and when she finally fought off the tears that were still threatening to pour out, she looked up to see that the interviews were over, Denver being sent off with what was easily the most loud and enthusiastic support of the night.
She heard dress shoes against tile floor as Marquise stumbled into the District Eleven backroom, his eyes red and dry as he stared off somewhere distant. His eyes looked old and tired, like an old man's.
"What's wrong?" She sniffled.
He smiled sadly, looking up at the ceiling as his mouth opened and closed, searching for words that didn't want to come. "Just. . . thinking of the long gone past," he finally settled for. "And you?"
She looked down at her shoes, focused on the brilliant white of them, free of all imperfections, flawless in every way. Her voice barely quivered. "Same"
A/N: And there are the interviews! Streamlined them a bit here but I think/hope it turned out well! I had a lot of fun writing this and the words really flowed out faster than they have in a while. Next chapter we have the party at long last! There'll be 3 party chapters, with the first giving us POVs from Marquise, Earhart, River, and Glory. See y'all then!
PS: Nightly recap (which includes interview ratings - a ranking of the most to least popular interviews) is live on the blog!
Trivia(1 point): Favorite interview?