Thank you to all those who favorited this story, have put it on alert, or have reviewed it. I'm so sorry this is late! I started a second job on top of my first one, but I'll do my best to stock pile chapters so I can post them pretty quickly. I can't tell you how much I love this story, and the fact that anyone at all is reading it warms my heart. It's the last day of training, so I hope you enjoy!

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.

She sees them walking in a straight line
That's not really her style
And they all got the same heartbeat
But hers is falling behind
Nothing in this world could
Ever bring them down
Yeah, they're invincible
And she's just in the background

Chapter 8: The Career Alliance

Dinner was going surprisingly smooth after the second day of training. It helped that I hadn't gotten myself in trouble during the day and had stopped Cato from getting in a fight. The only comment Merrick had made was that he wished I could apply that logic to my own actions. My brother was still none the wiser about the fact that I had stayed the night in that district's apartment with that very tribute. It was hard to tell just how oblivious Merrick was to whatever was going on with Cato and me. I assumed that since he hadn't said anything, I was still in the free and clear.

"Since tomorrow is your last day of training, you can go ahead and show your abilities in your best weapon," Merrick said as we ate our dinner. I was caught off guard by the statement, thinking that we would only be allowed to show off for our individual sessions. "You've learned some things in other stations, which is what you needed. Now, you need to show off what you can do. Intimidate your competitors."

The thought of finally showing off what I could do brought a smile to my lips. Even with my stunt of pinning Cato against the wall on the first day, it would be nice to show everyone exactly what I could do when I had a trident in my hands. I wouldn't want to run up against me with one in the arena. We would be completing the obstacle courses as well, which meant I could show off my speed. "No holding back?" I asked, wanting make sure.

"Just don't go throwing your trident at anymore tributes," Merrick said with no small amount of sass in his voice. I was glad to hear him joking about it. It just meant that he was no longer mad or upset about it, which had to mean something was coming from it. "Save the best stuff for the Gamemakers but feel free to let loose tomorrow and show the other tributes what you can do."

What I would be doing for the Gamemakers was still something I was thinking on, only knowing that it needed to be grand and memorable. I needed to stick out of I was going to get a high enough score to bring in sponsors. The whole process of the Games made my head spin, and if I did one thing wrong, I could say goodbye to my chance at winning. Intimidating my competitors was my first step.

"If it's fine with you, Merrick, I'm still going to keep my head low," Crest said, wiping his mouth with his napkin. "It might be better for me to not be seen as a threat. Then they won't think to come after me first, and I can keep an eye on April for as long as possible."

Merrick just nodded, and it wasn't hard to figure out why. Any time the subject that was constantly hanging over our heads came up in conversation, the air got thick with sympathy and worry. Both my brother and I worried that Crest would change his mind one day and fight for his life. It was a horrible feeling to have; there was no part of me that wanted Crest to die for me, but I also wanted to go home. That meant every person that I had met, every person that I had stupidly started to get close to, would have to die in order for that to happen.

We were all pulled from the silence when there was a knock at the apartment door. Part of me worried that Cato had come up, and as Merrick stood and excused himself from the table, I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. The last thing I needed was for my brother to find out there was something going on with me and another tribute, especially when I couldn't even figure out what that something was. The inexplicable pull between the two of us was almost magnetic, and no matter how much I told myself I needed to focus on the Games, when I was around Cato, that pull was almost a physical thing that couldn't be ignored.

I pretended to eat my food while my brother was away from the table, making an effort to disguise the fact that I was trying to listen to the conversation. The door was too far away from the dining room, but I caught little words on occasion. It definitely was not Cato's voice, which put me at ease, but the voice also sounded familiar; I just couldn't quite place it. If it wasn't Cato at the door, I wasn't going to worry, so I went back to actually eating and casually listening to the conversation between Cicero and Xerxes. I chuckled when the conversation took a turn as Xerxes started critiquing Cicero's outfit, causing the stuffy man to huff loudly.

Merrick cleared his throat when he returned, surprising me; I hadn't even heard the door close. "It seems you have made quite the impression, April. This just came from District Two's mentor," my brother said, holding up a piece of paper. It was unfolded, and with the lights shining above it from over the table, I could see handwritten script through it. Merrick looked down at the note, pulling it closer to his face to read it. "'On behalf of the alliance of District's One and Two, April Hylet is formally invited to train with them during tomorrow's session.'"

My mouth opened slightly in shock at the fact that there was even a note at all; I knew exactly whose idea it was to have something like that sent to our apartment. Cato was annoyed that I blew off training with them earlier and was going to drastic measures to get me to do it. Now that Merrick knew they really wanted me, I was sure he would encourage me, or even order me, to train with them. Thankfully, it still seemed that I was avoiding suspicion with my brother, as he seemed oblivious as to what was going on.

"Do you think I should do it?" I asked, regretting the question immediately. Since he thought I was already trying to get into their alliance, he would advise me to take the opportunity.

"You said so yourself, getting in with them might be a good option. It's what I did," Merrick said, taking his seat again. "Which we could use as an advantage. The tributes might think you're copying my strategy, but you won't be."

"I know District One has been studying your Games," I said, thinking of the night before when I tried to stop Cato from beating Marvel. The words slipped from my mouth before I could stop them, and I had to think of something quickly to cover my tracks. "After what I said to the boy from District One, I went to apologize to him, and the 65th Hunger Games was playing on their television."

"All the more reason for you to join them and take them off guard," Merrick said, and I let out a small sigh of relief that he didn't think something was off. "Manipulate them into thinking you're with them for now, and we'll keep Crest a secret like we planned."

The thought of manipulating and not being honest with Cato left me sick to my stomach, a feeling I was completely unfamiliar with. I didn't owe Cato anything and had only known him for less than a week, but that didn't stop whatever was going on between us from making me feel horrible. The only thing I could do was keep reminding myself that if I wanted to go home, no one else could, no matter how I felt about them. Worry must have shown on my face because Merrick walked behind me, leaning down to hug my shoulder.

"Don't worry, Apricot," he said, before taking his seat next to me. "When I was out earlier, your odds of winning were already at six-to-one. The Gamemakers already think pretty highly of you." That number actually made me feel pretty great. "Just show them what you're made of during your session. You'll get an amazing score and intimidate the others even more."

All I could do was nod, still uneasy over the whole aspect of the next two days. Training with the Careers was sure to be quite the experience, especially when it came to Marvel and Glimmer. It was just my luck that I would manage to piss off both tributes from a single district. It was easier to think about how they would react than having to spend the entire day with Cato. "I think I'm going to rest up for tomorrow," I said, wiping my mouth with my napkin before standing. I needed to be alone. "See you in the morning."

Morning came far too early for me, the thoughts from the previous night still weighing on my heart and lingering in my head. Everything that was happening was more overwhelming than I expected; then again, I hadn't expected to like any of the tributes. Katniss and Peeta both seemed like such good people, and whatever I felt for Cato had come at me out of left field. There were also the younger tributes, too many of them for me to handle. Twenty three lives leaving the world were already too many, but the fact that at least a sixth of them were under fourteen made my heart physically ache.

There was a pounding on my door, signaling that I had stayed in the solace of my room for too long. Every day that passed made it harder to want to leave. It meant I was one day closer to starting the Games, one day closer to the chance of dying before my time. If I wanted to make it out, though, I needed to keep my head on straight and not let anyone get any more in my head than they already were. No matter what happened while I was in that arena, I needed to get home.

After I cleaned myself up and dressed for training, I hurried through breakfast, grunting my acknowledgement at anything Merrick said. It was hard to listen when I was trying to steel myself for a day with Cato and the others. Although, Merrick wasn't satisfied until I verbally confirmed that I would be training with them today. I knew he meant well and wanted me to succeed as much as I did, maybe even more, but I didn't realize how hard it would be to have my brother train me for a battle to the death.

"Are you okay?" Crest asked me when we got into the elevator. "You're awfully quiet this morning."

"I didn't sleep well last night," I said, and it wasn't a complete lie. I had woken up every couple of hours feeling uncomfortable and anxious. I was glad it would be the last day of training. "I think I'm just getting more and more worried as we go."

"If there's one person who doesn't need to be worried, it's you," Crest replied, lifting his arm to give my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. The doors opened, and he quickly dropped it. "You're going to be fine. Knock 'em dead."

We were some of the first tributes to arrive that morning, and the few that were there were loitering around a few of the stations. I parted with Crest when I found Cato, picking up each sword from the station and testing their weight in his hands, trying to find the best fit for him. I had yet to try my hand at the sword station, mostly because I doubted I would be much use with one, working better with longer distance weapons.

"You sent an invitation to my apartment?" I asked as I stepped up next to him, picking up one of the swords he had set aside. It wasn't as heavy as I thought it might be but didn't feel quite right in my hand.

"How else was I supposed to get you to train with us?" He asked, twirling the sword that he was holding.

I put the sword down, leaning against the wall next to them. "I told you that I was thinking about it."

"And yet you refused to train with us." He was still looking at the swords, picking them up and staring down the blade before choosing another and repeating the process. It was rather irritating that it seemed he was only half paying attention, something I was sure he was doing on purpose.

"Just because I didn't want to train with you doesn't mean that I wasn't going to be with you guys. All of you are about the weapons." I took the sword that was in his hands, placing it on the table and forcing him to look at me. "What happens if you eat something in the arena that kills you or severely disables you to the point where you're just a sitting duck?" The fact that that was a legitimate concern of mine was another worry all its own. The more I was around Cato, the harder it was to imagine him dying.

He couldn't hide the shock on his face when he heard the distress in my voice. He seemed just as surprised as I was that I was worried for his wellbeing. "Then, what's with you hanging with the two from Twelve?"

"Because they're actually bearable in large doses, unlike some in your alliance," I said, nodding over his shoulder as Marvel and Glimmer walked in. They looked less than happy to see me speaking with Cato, and I could only imagine what the rest of the day would be like. I was thankful that Clove didn't seem annoyed with my presence. She had laughed along with the others, but after Cato's change of heart, she seemed to follow his lead. "Just don't expect me to be too happy about this today."

"I could make it a little more fun for you," Cato said, taking that all too familiar step into my personal space. It seemed to become one of his favorite hobbies quickly.

"And how would you do that?" I asked, looking up at him, not backing down from whatever challenge was sure to come.

Reaching up, Cato tucked an errant hair behind my ear and out of my face. I could feel my face heat up at his touch and knew that was the exact reaction he was looking for. "Let's have a friendly little bet," he said, dropping his hand. "When we do the obstacle course, regardless of whether or not one of us comes in first, the slower person will owe the faster something."

The bet seemed simple enough, but as I mulled over his words, there could be so much that could come from it if the winner played their cards right. "Sure. On one condition," I finally said. "The winner has to collect before we go into the arena." I was sure it wasn't ideal for him, but if I were to lose, I wouldn't want to owe him anything in the arena.

"That's fine," he agreed, and he didn't seem as annoyed as I thought he would be. Even though he had said it was just a friendly bet, I knew Cato enough to know how competitive he was. He held out his hand to make it official, and I just smirked up at him. "Are you kidding me?"

"You really should know better," I said, trying not to laugh as I held out my hand. "It's really not official unless it's a pinky swear, but I'll let it slide this time. We are in front of a lot more people this time." He slid his hand easily into mind and shook it. There was that warm feeling again, and I wondered if he felt it, too."

As the last of the tributes filed in, Atala called us over, informing us that we would be doing the obstacle course over the course of the morning. It would take up a lot of our time, as no one ever knew how fast or slow the tributes would be, so it was better for us to have a later lunch than for training to run later into the day. We started lining up, in order of districts with the girls in front of their district's male tributes. As I made my way to the front, Glimmer knocked me in the shoulder as she walked past me, knocking me off balance and almost sending me to the floor. I regained my footing before I fell, looking up at Cato and giving him a knowing, annoyed look. There was no way Glimmer and I were going to mesh well in an alliance together.

She started off first, taking off as soon as the whistle was blown for her. The obstacle course was around the edge of the gym, going up and over the door for the elevators before going back down to the floor. At first, Glimmer was making quick work of it, but when she got to the area of raised platforms, some of the trainers were there with combat bats, swiping at her legs. One made contact, sending her falling to the ground, but she was up as quickly as she fell, going back through the course. Her feet hit the finishing platform, and as she walked back over, Atala announced her time of five minutes and twenty three seconds. I knew I could at least beat that.

Cato's time was faster than Glimmer's by over a minute. His upper body strength worked in his favor, and despite his large muscular build, he was quick on his feet. None of the trainers were able to hit him as he moved across the raised platform, and he landed on the finishing spot easily. Despite his fast time of four minutes and twelve seconds, I knew if I wanted it badly enough and focused solely on my run, I could beat him.

The District Three tributes were slower than Glimmer, but it felt faster than that because suddenly, it was my turn at the course. I took a deep breath just before the whistle was blown and took off. The first obstacle was to climb up a ramp that led to a set of monkey bars that dipped in the middle, designed to wear out the upper body before getting to the rest of the course. I was able to keep myself from falling and make it across with ease. The climb over the door to the elevator was the hardest, the cargo netting wobbly and hard to keep my hold on. Once I was at the top, the climb down was much easier. It wasn't until I was to the raised platforms that I was really worried. Watching the others time through the course did me no good, because for each run, the trainers got into new hiding places to try and knock the tributes down. The only time one of them got close to knocking me over was at the end, his bat barely missing my foot.

I landed on the finishing mat with a loud thud, my breathing heavy. As I waited for Atala to announce my time, I looked over at Cato, who was smiling like he had already one. Four minutes and twelve minutes was a fast time, but I had felt really good about my run. As it was, I was already a fast person. My run had been seamless, none of the trainers able to even get a hit on me, and I'd kept my footing the whole way. I hadn't been too worried about owing something to Cato outside of the arena, but he was celebrating prematurely, I just wanted to wipe the smile off of his face.

"April Hylet, District Four, four minutes and five seconds," Atala announced.

The smile immediately dropped from his face, and I felt proud of myself. Even if my time didn't hold up against the other tributes, I had still beaten Cato and that was a victory all its own. He had gone into the bet thinking that he would get something out of it, never expecting me to pull out with the speed that I had. My fast time and victory over Cato also lent itself to helping me intimidate the other tributes. If I could beat the big brute, I could beat every single one of them.

Once it was time for the District Five tributes to go, I walked over to the four tributes that would be part of my alliance. Clove seemed almost glad that I would be joining them, seemingly proving my place with them with my run through the course. Marvel and Glimmer were almost seething, hatred rolling off of them in waves. They were easy to ignore when my eyes landed on Cato, whose face was a mixture of frustration and approval. I took my place next to him, looking on as the rest of the tributes started their turns through the obstacles.

Leaning over a bit, I looked up at him with a smile. "I'll let you know when I'm ready to collect that reward," I said quietly, not wanting the others to hear.

"Be careful what you ask for," Cato said, his tone almost teasing. It was always nice to see that side of him.

We were dismissed for lunch after Peeta had completed his turn through the course, finishing with an even five minutes. Eating with Cato and the others was a difference experience than eating with Katniss and Peeta. For the first half of our meal, they talked about who wouldn't survive the Bloodbath, pointing out the frailer tributes and making comments about how they were weak. It was even more apparent that I didn't belong with them when I had nothing to contribute to the conversation. I looked up at Cato and wondered how the guy that I could flirt and joke around with could also be the one making fun of District Five's younger tributes.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you say you two know each other?" Glimmer asked. Her question caught me off guard, but I remembered Cato's story that he had told her on the train.

I took a deep breath as I nodded before taking a bite of my bread. "Our fathers were allowed to trade from time to time. Tools for fish. Fish for tools." I had heard that much from Caesar and Claudius talking on the television. After Cato's father had won his Games, he had used what more money the Capitol had given him to buy many of the forges around District Two. Even though my father got his tools when they were brought by Capitol officials themselves, Glimmer didn't need to know that. "We haven't seen each other in a few years, though."

"You were still in the academy in Four the last time I saw you," Cato supplied, popping a piece of fruit into his mouth. I was honestly surprised at how valid his story could sound to people that didn't know us. Looking at Cato, it was hard to imagine that the bloody, violent killing machine could also have a brain. It was a refreshing surprise.

I had never been so thankful for a meal to be over. Back in the gym, the first thing I went to was the trident sitting on the rack with the spears. As soon as it was in my hands, I sighed, the weight of it comfortable in my grip. It was time to show the tributes what I was really made of and that if they wanted to come at me in the Games, I would be ready. I thought about just hacking at a bunch of dummies, but that could only get my point across so much. Having already done some hand to hand combat, I waited in line at the sparing mat, watching as a couple of others went first. The District Three male was there with a spear, trying his hand at it while the District Eight female had no weapon. I knew I was supposed to be training with the other four, but I needed a break after lunch.

When it came time for my turn, I stepped into the ring, trident ready in both hands. The trainer didn't bother warning me after picking up his bat before coming at me. I blocked his attack easily, pushing him back, my full weight behind the trident. We danced around each other, attacking and blocking as I studied his from. He left his legs exposed when I attacked from above and if I could get him on his back, that would be it. His next few attacks were blocked just as they had always been, and I could see that eyes were starting to land on us, which was exactly what I wanted. I dodged his last attack before bringing my trident up over him. He blocked it just as I thought he would, and I used my weight to push forward, getting close enough to sweep his feet out from under him and hold the prongs of my trident to his chest.

When I looked up, almost everyone was looking at the sparring ring, and I couldn't help but feel accomplished. There was fear in the eyes staring at me.

CATO OC CATO OC CATO OC CATO OC CATO

I should also make mention that this chapter was completely unplanned because I forgot that they had three days of training instead of two haha! So I'll be going back to all my planned chapters after this, and hopefully they'll be better than this impromptu one! Also, it seems like Hadley is the widely adopted last name of Cato, but I haven't decided if I'm going to keep it or not. Thoughts? Thank you guys so much for reading! :)