Thank you to all those who favorited this story, put it on alert, or reviewed it. I'm really happy with the response to this fic, especially since the Hunger Games is in its 'off season' as you might call it. I probably should have waited to start posting it, but I was to the point where I couldn't let this story set on my computer any longer. I'm super happy with this chapter, and you get to see some feistiness from April today! Also, I know in the books, Finnick won the 65th Hunger Games, but I'm either going to push it back or push it forward one year.

Disclaimer: Sadly, Suzanne Collins owns the Hunger Games and everything involved with it, but I own my characters. So, don't steal them. Please? Thank you.

I will not bow, I will not break
I will shut the world away
I will not fall, I will not fade
I will take your breath away

Chapter 5: Training Day

The worst thing to wake up to was definitely Cicero pounding on my door, yelling for me to get up. I groaned in response, and he seemed satisfied with it. I could hear him move onto Crest's door and give him the same treatment. Pulling myself into a sitting position, I looked around my room, the ocean still going strong on the window. I forced myself to turn it off. I couldn't start out the day with memories of District Four and be sad all day. I had to train today. The Gamemakers would be watching me and needed to be impressed.

I got out of bed and walked into the bathroom. Pulling my hair back and pinning the rest out of my face, I saw my wrists. They were no longer bruised. I touched them and was surprised to find that they still hurt. I moved them around and found only a small uncomfortable feeling. I was happy to find that they wouldn't bother me during training today.

I left the bathroom and saw my training day outfit on the bed. It was a pair of sleek black pants with silver going down the side and a shirt that was black, silver and red, my district number on the back and on both sleeves. I put them on and made my way down the hall to the dining area, where breakfast was being served. Merrick and Cicero were both sitting at the table. While Merrick stuffed his face, Cicero was gingerly eating. Capitols. I sat down next to Merrick as Crest made his way into the dining area, in an outfit the same as mine. He took the seat next to me. We both seemed not-so-eager about the day as we picked at our plates of food.

Merrick put down his fork and looked over at us. He clapped his hand together to get our attention. "All right, you two, today is essential. There are only two important things about your training. You have to make a good first impression and an outstanding last impression, which won't come until your individual scoring, obviously. Don't hang around each other too much, not during training or during lunch. We don't need them knowing you two are in together. Him as a safety net in the games needs to be a well-kept secret. Today, focus more on your second best weapon and survival stations."

"But you just said make a good first impression. How do we do that without showing our best skills?" I asked. I had been looking forward to scaring and impressing everyone with my skills with the trident.

"I didn't say you couldn't use your best weapon, but if you do use it, don't show your natural skill level. Just focus mainly on your second best weapon, and both of you, try something you're not totally confident in. Get a feel for other weapons just in case you don't impress the judges enough for them to give you your best."

"That's comforting," I said, taking a small bite of eggs.

Merrick stood up and put a hand on mine and Crest's shoulders. "You two will do just fine."

Crest and I finished picking at our food before we stood up and followed Merrick to the elevator. As the elevator descended, I began to feel the same nervousness I did on Reaping Day and right before the tribute parade. I would be displaying my skills, not only to the people who would control the arena but to my competition, as well. These people would be sizing me up and vice versa. Even though Merrick had given us advice, I still didn't know if I should play myself as strong as I actually was or play myself to be weaker. Either way, this was going to be very interesting.

The elevator stopped too soon for my liking. We made our way along the halls until we came to the elevators that led to the training area below the building. Crest entered and I started to follow, but Merrick grabbed my arm. Crest nodded to him as the doors shut, and I turned to Merrick.

"You're going to be fine. We all believe in you, Apricot," Merrick said, trying to comfort me.

For the first time, I didn't scold him for using the nickname. "I'll try to believe in me, too, then," I replied, sending him a smile. I leaned forward and gave him a quick hug before turning around and entering the elevator. It descended rapidly, and the doors opened just as quickly as they'd closed, revealing a massive gym filled with weapon and survival stations, as well as obstacle courses and, what looked to be, a sparring ring.

The tributes that had arrived were standing in a semicircle around a Capitol woman. I decided to go with what Merrick said and not join Crest. As more tributes filtered in, I began to look around at them. I had to admit that I was lucky to have been from District Four. Though I was short, I was one of the more sturdy looking tributes. Of course, the tributes from Districts One and Two were far stronger looking than the rest. It was hard looking at some of the poorer districts' tributes. Some were very malnourished, like they hadn't ever had a proper meal. My eyes fell on the last two tributes to arrive: the pair from District Twelve. The boy, Peeta, I believe, actually looked pretty strong. I looked at the girl, Katniss, just as she looked at me. I sent her a small smile, and she seemed genuinely shocked. It made me sad to think of the reputation my district had.

The Capitol trainer, Atala, told us the rules of training that would take place over the next four days. We weren't allowed to fight other tributes, so the sparring ring could only be used with a Capitol assigned sparring partner. After showing us the individual stations, she allowed us to go off on our own. Crest and I didn't even glance at each other before we went to separate stations. I was excited when I saw a trident on the same rack as the spears but didn't go with it straightaway. I threw a few spears at the targets that were set up, hitting each in the spots that lit up. I continued to throw spears of different weight and different spearheads until the trainer told me I didn't need to practice at that station any longer. I looked around the training room, trying to decide what to do next when I spotted Crest. I was happy to see that he had found a mace to practice with. He was actually really skilled with it, using it to hack the dummies to pieces. My gaze continued around the room when I saw Clove place the throwing knives she was just using on that station's table. I decided I would try my luck with that station.

Though I hadn't thrown one in years, I thought it would be a lot easier than it was. I was lucky to hit any of the targets that lit up. What made it all worse was the fact that Districts One and Two were staring me down the entire time, laughing every time I missed, whispering to themselves. At first it was annoying, then I began to feel the anger build inside of me. I tried to control it, but I couldn't help but be angry at their antics. I wanted so badly to prove them wrong, but the more I tried, the worse I got. The laughter from the four tributes standing against the wall near the station continued to grow. On my last throw, I completely missed the dummy that had lit up, and the knife bounced off the wall behind it, not even sticking in. I decided I'd give up that station for the time being. Thoroughly embarrassed with myself, I sat the knives down, sighing as I walked away.

"You should probably just off yourself now," Marvel yelled. "Though, she'd probably fail at that, too."

"What's the matter?" I heard Cato call from behind me. "Too much pressure for you, Apricot?"

That was the last straw. I saw red. It was barely acceptable for Merrick to use that in a sweet way, but for someone I'd just met to use that name in such a condescending tone was another angering matter altogether. As they continued to laugh at the nickname, I marched over to the spear rack and grabbed the trident. I swirled around, not taking long to aim, and launched it straight at Cato, two of the prongs embedding themselves in the wall on either side of his neck, effectively pinning him to the wall he was leaning against.

The entire gym went silent, all eyes darting between me and Cato. He was glowering at me, and I was sure my expression wasn't much different. "You are NOT allowed to call me that!" I yelled, furious, my breathing heavy and ragged. He immediately ripped the trident from the wall, freeing himself. He started to stalk over to me, before two of the guards grabbed my arms, escorting me to the elevators. After being scolded for my actions with a warning that if it happened again, there would be consequences, I was ordered to get some air to cool down before returning to get lunch.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, Merrick was standing there looking very upset. I had to wonder how he had been told that quickly or if he had been watching me train the entire time. Stepping around him, I scrubbed my hands over my face as I found a wall to slink down. He was standing over me instantly.

"Did you really just pin the District Two boy to a wall with a trident?" I didn't grace his question with an answer when he already knew what it was. "April, what the hell were you thinking? Number one, you know you're not supposed to directly fight with another tribute before the Games, and number two, I told you not to show your strongest weapon today." When I didn't respond, he let out an exasperated sigh. "Do you realize how much trouble you could've gotten into?"

"He called me Apricot," I mumbled quietly, not looking at him.

"What?" He asked for clarification.

I looked up at him, still annoyed at the boy down below us. "I was at the throwing knives station, failing miserably. He and the other three from the first two districts were laughing at me, and as I walked away, he called me Apricot." Once I finished my explanation, I looked away again.

I felt Merrick slide down next to me. "April, you really can't keep doing these stupid things. Granted, I'm the only one allowed to call you that." I gave him a very skeptical look. "Okay, you don't like it when I call you that either, but I don't see you throwing tridents at me for it." I sighed, calming down a bit as he spoke. "You can't let them get to you, April. If you let them get to you, they win. And wasn't it you that said there could be a possible alliance? That won't happen if you keep this up. So, just go back in there and ignore them. Can you do that for me?"

I tried not to look at my brother as I mulled over his words. There was just something about the foursome from the first two districts; Cato knew exactly how to get under my skin. It was the most unnerving feeling that someone I had known for three days could see through me like glass. "I guess I can try."

"Thank you."

Merrick stood up, and then turned around to help me off the ground. I knew he was right. I couldn't create enemies before going into the arena, even though that's what they already were. The moment their names were drawn, the twenty-three boys and girls below me had become my rivals, my obstacles. They had become what stood between me and the rest of my life, but I had to put that aside for just a bit in order to extend my life in the arena.

I walked quickly over to the elevators, assuring the trainers that I was calmed down enough, and they took me back to the gym. As soon as the doors opened, my eyes landed on Cato, who seemed to be venting his anger by massacring dummies with a sword. He must've heard the elevator doors open, because he locked eyes with me just as he chopped the head off of one. I made sure my face was schooled, mirroring the anger I saw in his. There wouldn't be any more weapons training before lunch for me, so I made my way over to the snare station, where the two tributes from District Twelve were practicing. The Capitol man showed me the ropes of how to make snares before leaving me to my own devices. The station was eerily quiet, and I could tell it was because the two tributes were wary of me, so I decided I'd be the first to speak.

"You seem to be pretty good at that," I said to Katniss. The look on her face when she looked at me was priceless. She hadn't expected me to say anything, let alone compliment her on her skills. There was no response from her at first, so I decided to try again. "Have you done this before?"

"I…made snares back home…" She seemed reluctant to talk to me at first. I assumed it was because I was from District Four. From what I had always seen of the wealthier districts in the games, if I were from her district, I wouldn't want to talk to me either.

I tried several times to get mine to stay in place, but it wouldn't seem to work. "I'm only used to making fishing knots back home."

She stopped her movements and looked over at her partner, who shrugged before looking back at me before saying, "Why are you talking to me?"

My district's reputation must have been worse than I thought if she was surprised I was even speaking to her. "What do you mean?"

"You're from District Four; a Career," Peeta explained. "Why are you talking to us?"

I looked at both of them, confused by the term he had used. "A Career? What is that?" I had never heard the term before and was curious as to what he was calling me, honestly hoping it didn't have a negative connotation.

"You're a Career. You're from one of the wealthier districts. You've been trained your whole life for the Games, right?"

It all made sense. A Career, one who had made it their mission to conquer the Games. I wouldn't have voluntarily thrown myself into that category, since I had stopped formal training at our academy four years prior to my reaping, but Merrick and Finnick had made sure I would be fully prepared in case the worst had happened. "I definitely haven't been training my whole life. District Four isn't as bad as Districts One and Two."

"That still doesn't explain why you're talking to us," the boy said. "Everyone seems to be keeping their distance."

I had to laugh. "Man, my district really has a bad reputation. I promise that we're not all bad." I put my ropes down and extended my hand to the two of them. "I'm April Hylet. You guys were the ones on fire last night, right?"

"Katniss Everdeen," she said, shaking my hand hesitantly. "Yeah, that was us."

"I'm Peeta," he said, taking my hand in his. "Peeta Mellark."

"Nice to meet you guys," I said, picking my rope back up. "Or at least it would be under different circumstances."

"Is it true that your older brother is your mentor?" Peeta asked, blatantly.

"Peeta!" Katniss hissed, probably assuming that it was a rude thing to ask.

"No worries, Katniss," I laughed, honestly expecting the question more than I had gotten it over the short time I had been there. No one seemed to bring up Merrick. I had to remind myself Caesar would probably ask about him in my interview. "Yeah, Merrick is my brother. He won the 65th Games when I was nine."

"So, you're seventeen?" Katniss asked.

"Yes. I'll be eighteen soon. Funnily enough, we were all born around Reaping Day. Merrick was reaped two days after his birthday, and my other brother Wade had his birthday two weeks ago. Mine's in a week…" I hope. "What about you guys?" I asked as I tried to set another snare, failing miserably.

"We're both sixteen," Peeta answered. "So what are you good at? Besides spearing people to walls…" He let out a chuckle at the end.

"Well, tridents are what I'm good at. Finnick's trained me on them for the last four or five years. Even though I'm hopeless with snares, I've got tons of practice making nets back home." I started knotting the ropes I'd been given into a net. I knew it wouldn't be big once it was finished, but I needed to have something to show by the end of this.

"Is that a common name in your District or are you talking about the Finnick Odair?" Peeta asked, visibly gulping.

"The one and only," I said, laughing a bit. I had never seen anyone react to Finnick's name in person before, just on the television when the Capitol talked about him on occasion. "Everyone is so enamored by him, but to me, he's just Finnick."

"What does your family do in District Four?" Katniss asked, and the question made me smile. Small talk was better than the awkward silence that had enveloped us when I had first walked over.

"My father owns a quite a few fishing boats. He used to fish a lot himself, but with as many boats as he has, he's hired more people to go out instead," I explained as I finished off the small net I had been making. "What about you?"

"Frosting," Peeta said seriously, and I burst out laughing. But when his face didn't change, I looked at him, confused. "My family runs a bakery in Twelve. I frosted the cakes."

Just as I was about to reply, Atala called for lunch, and I was grateful to get some food in me. "It was nice talking to you two. I'll see you guys around."

"You can eat lunch with us, if you like," Katniss said as I stood.

I considered her offer carefully, knowing I wouldn't be eating with Crest per Merrick's orders. It would be good to explore possible alliances if I wasn't going to be part of what Katniss and Peeta called the Careers, so I gave a slow nod and a small smile. It would be nice to have someone to eat with and not skulk in the corner, constantly glaring at Cato and his band of miscreants.

I ended up doing just that, the table of Careers looking over at me every two seconds and obviously making fun of my throwing knife attempts once again. I saw the girl from Two pick up her fork and easily making it stick into the wall, barely making out her praising her "far more advanced" throwing skills. Katniss told me not to let them get to me before making the comment that people got under her skin, too, and she got where my anger was coming from. It was nice to have someone that understood me for once. Before we all left to go back to the gymnasium, Peeta made the comment that my fork was bigger, causing Katniss and me to laugh. I couldn't put my finger on it, but there was something about their interaction that didn't sit right with me; I didn't dwell on it once we were back in the training area.

Having proved just how good I was using a trident with my stunt before lunch, I decided I could give the throwing knives another chance. It didn't matter if I made a fool of myself or not, they knew not to mess with me again. The station was empty as we all walked back into the training center, and I made a bee line for it, determined to show I was at least competent in the skill. Even if it took the rest of the time we had in the training room that day, I would reacquaint myself with throwing knives. After what had happened before lunch, I wasn't as nervous about messing up at the station and being more relaxed was making the idea of practicing with them easier.

I didn't bother looking at the Capitol trainer as I stopped at the table holding the knives; he would stop to help me if I started to make an idiot of myself again. Picking up a couple of the knives and testing their feel in my hand, I chose one of the blade heavy knives first. I didn't bother looking around to see if anyone was looking at me. That kind of pressure wasn't what I needed. They could laugh all they wanted if I screwed up. I would just have to try my damnedest not to let it phase me.

I stepped away from the table with the knives and took my place in front of the targets set up across from me. The closest one lit up red, illuminating the body outlined within the foam. I widened my stance, brought the throwing knife back toward me, and took a deep breath. Aiming for the heart, I started moving my arm toward the target.

"You need to widen your stance more," said a familiar voice.

The sudden words startled me, and my knife sailed through the air before embedding in the foot of the target. I turned around slowly, surprised at whose voice I had heard. Cato was standing there with his arms folded over his chest, and I was surprised that his face seemed almost calm. There was no scowl like I expected there to be after the incident with the trident, and his signature smirk was nowhere to be seen. His gaze was almost analytical, as if he had been studying me for errors.

"What do you want?" I asked impatiently, gripping the handle of my remaining knife a little tighter.

Cato took a couple of steps forward, crossing over into my personal space. I could see the other three from the first two districts at the nearby spear station, glancing over at us occasionally. Marvel and Clove didn't seem too worried, but every time Glimmer looked at me, it was with a glare. I wanted to laugh at her obvious distaste for the fact that Cato was paying attention to me and not her.

"I want you," he said, turning my body back toward the targets and pulling me from thoughts of the other, "to widen your stance. Put your weight on your dominant foot." He pushed my left foot forward with his and pulled my body back so that most of my weight was on my right foot. Some of my training before I left the training center back home was coming back to me as he moved my body into the right position. "Bring the knife…"

"Up by my head," I finished for him. "I remember." There were bits of my training that were still there, and it was hard to admit that Cato was actually helping fill in the missing pieces. I felt him step away from me as I aimed the knife at the heart once more, taking another deep breath before letting it fly.

The sound of the knife driving into the target rang in my ears and a small smile crept up my face. The knife was sticking out just an inch below where I had aimed it, far better than what I had been doing earlier in the day. A feeling of being rather pleased with myself washed over me, but as I turned around to thank Cato, he was already walking back to the other three tributes from his alliance. I schooled my face as quickly as I could, not wanting any of them to see that I was happy with Cato's help. They didn't need to see that I wasn't as furious with him as I had been earlier.

Turning back to the targets, I practiced with the throwing knives until we were dismissed for the day.

CATO OC CATO OC CATO OC CATO OC CATO

And chapter five is done! I think this chapter turned out really well, and I hope I'm going at a thought out enough pace. I hope you can see what kind of dynamic will be going on between the two of them, because I honestly love it. Let me know what you think. Constructive criticism is always encouraged, as are general compliments ;)