Boy, was I confused. Orren was in Two and Tally in Four. They were only allies, not partners.
Troy Cahill POV
At first I was responsible. I went to the training room and studied medication, just in case I got injured or needed to care for an ally. I tried to learn how to use a crossbow, but I got distracted by Venus and Akari. Ostensibly they were practicing throwing knives, but really they were seeing how close they could get to the attendants without hitting them. As the poor attendants dodged and dove under tables, the head attendant threw them out. After that I was pretty much done and left the room to do some goofing off.
I should have known I'd get recognized right away. I'd already been on television once before, and people remembered Careers. A Capitolite boy with a face full of piercings walked by and did a double take when he noticed me.
"Are you Troy Cahill? Man, you're so total! Can I have an autograph? Can you, like, write in on my arm with your sword?" he asked.
"I don't have it on me right now," I said. "But hey, could you show me around the building? I'm looking to do some partying." The boy's face lit up like fireworks.
"No way! Yeah, come on!" he said. He showed me the Games museum where they kept all the Victors' weapons and all sorts of artifacts. He tried to convince me to get a design at the branding pavilion, but I declined. I had unsavory memories about fire. Somewhere along the line, I learned his name was Ajax.
"I saved the best for last," Ajax said. We took a glass elevator to the roof and he led me to a fenced-off balcony. A man was standing on it sweeping a broom back and forth.
"Hey, we're closed for the night," the man said. I saw a rope coiled next to an iron loop set into the floor and realized what was going on.
"Are you closed for Troy Cahill?" Ajax asked. The man dropped his broom and looked closer at me in the dimming light.
"What? Oh, sorry, sir. Of course I can serve you. And no charge for you and your friend," he said. Ajax obviously didn't think I would have any problem bungee jumping, and I didn't. I might never see him again after this day, but I'd remember it for the rest of my life.
I went first, and the man strapped me into a harness. I looked up at the dark sky, leaned back, and felt my blood rush as the world fell apart under me.
Floki Grimm POV
I wasn't really going to get any better in the Training Room. I was more interested in getting to know my ally better. If we formed a good relationship before the Games began, our alliance would be stronger in the Arena.
I found Whyte in the Training Room being responsible and quickly tempted him away. We saw the sights and explored all the amusements in the Capitol building, from the Victors' Hall to the random zoo in the middle of the building. As boys, we could not deny our nature, and when we stopped for lunch we started a spicy chicken wing duel. It culminated in a very hastily arranged milk chugging duel, and we retreated back to my room after picking up some choice libations. It was difficult for them to refuse us when Whyte is technically like thirty years old.
When we reached my room, we picked a random Games recording and started it up. It turned out to be the Twenty-Fourth, and we set up some rules.
"Sip every time Venus throws a knife," I said as I poured out shots.
"Sip when a Mutt comes," Whyte said.
"Chug when two Careers argue," I said.
"Drain the glass when Venus gets it," Whyte said. Normally I didn't celebrate death, exactly, but there was something about Venus. Death felt natural on her.
By the time we reached the finale I'd forgotten who won, which made it all the more exciting. We drained our final glasses and cheered mightily as Peppermint rose victorious.
"How about we just stay down here for a while," I said as we lay sacked out on the floor.
"That sounds good," Whyte said. He noticed a ball of string by my couch and picked it up.
"What's this?" he slurred. I picked it up.
"That? It's my knitting," I said. I clumsily mimed knitting a row.
"Knitting? What, you a pansy?" Whyte said.
"It's for my little girl. See? It's little booties. She's gonna be so cute," I said. I draped a half-finished bootie over my finger.
"That's pretty neat. I wish I could knit," Whyte said.
"I can show you," I said.
Hours later, after I was finally sober, I looked at the pile of knots I'd created and wondered what the heck I had taught Whyte.
Cierra Daline POV
Steel's stance was perfect. She just kept hitting at the knees and shoulders of the target.
"You're not going to kill anyone like that. Do it like this," I said, and I stabbed my sword into a mannequin's chest.
"Yeah, you're right," she said. She hesitantly swatted at the mannequin's head.
"Wow. You sure showed him," I said.
"I'm sorry. I'm just supposed to serve and protect, you know? It's weird actually trying to kill people," Steel said. She looked so disappointed I tried to cheer her up.
"You're really good at other stuff, though. You know all about leadership and tactics. You're just more of a sergeant than a fighter," I said.
"I'm going to have to be both in the Games," she said. I never would have told her, but I was a little glad she was so hesitant. I never could have betrayed an ally, but if someone else killed her and she couldn't fight back, I wouldn't have to. I'd stay with her and protect her as long as I could, but I had to be prepared for an eventual end.
"Pretend everyone else is an enemy. They're criminals or something, and if you don't kill them they're going to kill a bunch of hostages," I said. The very thought made Steel stiffen, and she glared at the mannequin with righteous fury. She gripped her sword in both hands and swung it so hard the dummy's head went flying off.
"Serve and protect, even if you're protecting yourself," I said. It occurred to me that encouraging Steel like that definitely was not helping myself, but I was just glad to be helping a friend. It was a big mistake volunteering for the Games, but I was stuck with it now. All I could do was make the best of it. If I didn't win, I wanted someone to win who deserved it, and Steel definitely did. She was the only one of us who honestly wanted to improve herself and help others. She shouldn't have been here at all, and she was the only one who would make Panem a better place by winning. I fervently hoped we weren't the final two. I didn't know what I'd do.
Arielle Ermin POV
I spent the first days training tirelessly. I practiced every move and honed every skill I had. I watched clips of group fighting and enlisted two assistants to help me master multiple opponents. I wasn't going to make the same mistake twice.
On the final day of training, I decided to do something different. I could have used a little extra help, so I popped into the sponsorship class to see what was going on. It was pretty deserted, so the handful that showed up were either a lot wiser or a lot dumber than the others.
To my surprise, it was led by a Capitol woman who looked more like an escort than a trainer. She was all dolled up in all the Capitol gewgaws and powders, and she spoke to us like we were prized pets, not gladiators.
"Good morning, students. I'm Andromeda and I'll be teaching you how to gain sponsors. I've drawn up a series of tips just for you," she said. She picked up a stylus and started writing on the wall just like an old-fashioned whiteboard.
"Tip number one: be interesting. We don't want to donate to a boring, uninteresting Tribute. We see the same quiet, uninspiring Tributes every year. We want someone with pizazz, someone with style!"
Yeah, it's not like half the Tributes are boring because they're starving, I thought.
"Tip number two: be grateful. We love seeing a Tribute's face light up when they get a gift. Poker faces are for fights, not presents," the woman continued. See, I would have gotten you a crust of bread, but you didn't smile enough when I sent you that water, so y'all can starve, I thought.
"Tip number three: make us feel included. If you don't like the weapon we sent, try it anyway. You may find you like it after all," the woman continued. I've never used a crossbow before, but I simply must try it before I give up. I'll just go attack that alliance twice my size. Gotta be grateful!
Tip number four was probably really something. Unfortunately, I left before I could hear it. I'm such a terrible Tribute. Entirely ungrateful.
I guess it's a good thing most of the Tributes skipped sponsoring class.
I don't know if everyone can see the requested alliances back in the Tribute list, so here they are:
Steel would like an alliance with Olivine
Floki would like to ally with Hunter and Priscilla
Marley would like to ally with Olivine
Camille wants to ally with Chantal but will take someone else
Looking back, I'm not sure Cierra and Steel are officially allies. If either party refuses, Cierra is just helping Steel because she's nice and wants friends.