Axel Maloney's POV:
I'm really happy I found Sussex as an ally, the two of us practice through the last morning in the training room, trying out weapons and survival techniques. I don't really talk to him much as I know I won't get a response, plus every time I do talk he gives me a strange look which reminds me how strange my untested voice must sound to people.
This all works well till late in the mornings training when I notice we have been joined by a third boy who also doesn't seem keen on speaking.
I can tell he's from Twelve based on the large number on his sleeve but can't remember seeing his name or anything else about him. At first I decide he's shy, that why he's sticking with us, the only two people here who either can't or won't tell him to go away. But the longer he sticks with us, the way he keeps looking at me with this combination of frustration and anger I can see he's holding something in. His silence isn't due to convenience like mine or a permanent thing like Sussex. He's just some stubborn kid on some kind of crazy silent protest.
A stupid idea really, I suppose I get the whole protest thing, the games suck and all, but silence! What a stupid idea, he's just throwing away his chance of survival for no reason. Stupid.
I try just ignoring the kid but Sussex is too kind, he's showing him the proper way to hold a knife now as they practice skinning a rabbit using some strange holographic image. I wring my fake squirrels neck and work skinning that too as I watch the two of them interact silently.
Sussex moves quickly with the precision I'd expect from a guy who used to spend his days butchering animals, while the other kid is clumsy and keeps selecting the good parts of the meat to dispose of.
"You can eat the lung" I tell him after he deletes it from his hologram, "It's bitter but edible."
He nods as he reverses his action and moves the lung into the edible pile. It would be dirty now, I think if he'd really just thrown it on the floor and I wasn't going to be wasting my drinking water to clean off his rabbit lungs.
I had a feeling this kid is a stubborn one and the moment the countdown on the cornucopia hit zero announcing the start of the games we'd be allies until one or both of us were dead.
Grace Bone's POV:
I couldn't stop thinking about that day at the pond where Jase read that stupid book to me the first time, Otho Whites sexy adventures around Panem it may as well have been called. I'd took it from the library after Jace has returned it and stayed up every night reading it trying to gather a little more information on the man Jase had decided must be my real father.
I should have decided it was ridiculous the moment he'd said it, told him that of course my dad was my father but there was a niggle. I'd never really looked like him; I had mothers complexion, mothers eyes, her hair and her figure. Charley used to show me an old photo we had of her when she was a young woman, sometime around the point when he was a baby and Dad first got ill. Taken about a year before I was born. I'd looked for that photo after realising it could have been taken by him, could be the proof I'd needed but I could never find it and never wanted to explain to Charley why I was looking.
"Grace, snap out of it" Ethel snaps, you're staring at Otho again, giving him a good flirt won't help you win the games.
"It won't hurt though would it" added Christine as she blows him a kiss before giggling at her own actions.
"Cut it out both of you" Ethel says "We need to focus on the task"
The task she spoke of was a dull plant identification exercise that Christine was struggling with but I could do in my sleep.
"Ugh no" Christine groaned as a skull and crossbones image indicating death flashes up on the screen "why is that berry poisonous and not the identical one"
"You never seen nightlock before?" I ask her "It's got that slight purple tint while blueberries are bluer"
"I'm going to die" she groans and I wonder again if I'd made a good choice in picking her for an ally.
"I'll be right back" I say to them as I turn and walk in the direction of the toilets. As I walk I look up towards Otho again who looks right back in my direction, and for a moment I could swear he was looking straight back at me.
I turn away and rush into the toilet next to the training hall, the door is guarded by a peacekeeper who lets me in "Five minutes" he grunts.
I fight the urge to roll my eyes at him as I step into the small room, there are two small cubicles and two sinks and not much else, not even a window. I wasn't really sure what the peacekeeper was there for other than to remind me that not even my pissing time was private anymore.
I stepped into the empty cubicle and finish quickly before stepping out to wash my hands.
"Times up little girl" The peacekeeper barges into the room.
"Hey" I protest, I've barely been a minute" but he's not looking at me, instead he bashes on the other cubicle and a cry of "leave me alone" comes from inside.
"I've given you seven minutes" he states and bashed open the door.
"Hey" I protest, "you can't do that in the women toilet"
"Watch me" he says as he grabs the girl from the cubicle, it's the young one from Twelve the one with the floppy arm. I follow them as he shoves her back into the corridor that leads onto the training room "Now go and train".
I follow the two of them out, wiping my wet hands on my trousers.
The girl sobs as she walks slowly behind me back to the room before sulking back into a corner where she thinks she's out of sight.
I look up for Otho again as I cross the floor back to Christine and Ethel, I know a good flirt wouldn't save me from the games ... but his own daughter, could I even dare to suggest such a thing to him. I decided to ask Willow after today's private sessions, which were due start after lunch and as it was ten to twelve I guessed that lunch couldn't be far away. Not much longer to practice then, I didn't really want to be wasting my time on plant identification but decided I needed my alliance more than anything right now so if my newly forming plan failed, I'd have someone to keep me safe in that arena.
Cassius Rhodes POV:
Under the advice of our mentors the careers pack all skip the training aspect of the final mornings training and gather instead in the dining area set to one side of the training hall.
Helios and I have obviously both been vying for the position of career pack leader since day one so we'd decided to make it fair and let the others vote, obviously Olivia will choose me and Cliona will pick her cousin so really it's down to the pair from Four.
"I don't know" says Lysandra, "I don't really know enough about the either of you"
"What do you think we've been training together for these two days for then?" Hellios says with an irritable tone "You should have been deciding who you wanted to lead you then"
"Well I can't very decide which of you morons I trust with my life after just two days" she snaps back
"Don't call my cousin a moron Four" growls Cliona "Anyway why do you think you'll survive anything with that cast, I'm not working with a cripple"
"Just you wait till they take this thing off" Lysandra growls back
"Why wait" says Cliona "I can tie both arms behind my back and still beat you."
"Can we not" I say as simultaneously Hellios grabs his cousin's shoulder.
"Let's save it for the arena okay" he says
I sigh "What do you think Cy? I ask the district four boy. I'd spent most of the training time working with him as Olivia had chummed up with Lysandra. The Four/Two alliance was particularly strong this year and I could see the four of us taking out One pretty early on.
"I think you're a smart guy Cassius" he says "Hellios you're a fighter and you'll need to focus on that in the arena, let Cassius do all the hard thinking"
I smile, that was a perfect answer I couldn't have said it better myself.
"I don't want to be led by anyone willing to stand up for that nutjob" Lysandra says glaring at Cliona "I vote Cassius also"
"Then it's settled" I say with a grin as the first of the other tributes wander into the dining hall for lunch "I shall lead the career pack with Hellios as my second should we need to split up" I say this loudly and bash my fist on the table after I finish and I swear I see some little bloodbath wet her pants. I'm not usually a cruel guy, but I do see this being an awful lot of fun.
Amber Haigh's POV:
As I watch as each of the tributes from the first six districts are called through to the training room for their private sessions and never return to the waiting room, I wonder if this is what loosing people in the arena will feel like. They'll just fade away and never return, Lem nods at me as he goes in first, next I'll go in and after a few minutes I'll never return to this training centre again.
"You alright Amber" Pleb asks as he leans over to speak to me, I hear Auvita muttering beside him so decide not to turn around.
"I'll be fine" I reply calmly, unsure of who else was listening into our conversation.
"Amber Haigh" calls a mechanical voice and I stand up and walk slowly towards the door, as I step through it I hear it slide shut behind me and just like that I'm gone to the others. They won't remember me again not until I come out of this fight alive.
Because I don't plan on dying, now way not this soon anyway, I have my family to think of.
"Miss Haigh" one of the Gamemakers calls down to me "Do you have any skills to show us or are you just going to stand there for three minutes"
I jump a little and run forward "yes sir" I squeak, "May I have the rabbit hologram please?"
Somewhere a technician hears me as moments later a littler of small holographic rabbits appear around the base of one of the pillar in the centre of the room. Grabbing a bow and arrow I remember how Pleb taught me to fire it and aim and fire and ... miss.
The rabbits scatter.
I swear under my breath and re-load another arrow, taking a deep breath I aim at the biggest rabbit, the fattest cut of meat.
I release and the arrow hits the hologram which tumbles over as the other rabbits scatter. I hope that wasn't the mummy hologram rabbit I think as I pick it up and using a small knife skin it quickly and separate out the edible bits, this bit I didn't have to learn, I'd been skinning rabbits since I was four years old. We just usually caught them in traps.
When I'm done I wait to be dismissed but the Gamemakers seem uninterested in me and unsure if my time is over I head towards the fire making station.
"Times up Miss Haigh" calls a voice from somewhere "You may go"
I nod and scarper from the room as fast as I can, unsure if it had all gone to plan or not.
Outside I see Lem waiting for me "How'd it go?" he asks "You use the axes too?"
"The axes?" I reply confused "surely they know I can use an axe"
Lem raises his eyebrows "What did you do then?"
"Shot and skinned a holographic rabbit"
"You get it first shot?"
"Second"
"Hmm.. Not too bad, you might still get a Five for that."
We walk towards the elevator in silence and I wonder is a Five good, it's low, but not too low, middling and forgettable just like I plan on being.
A/N: Hullo, Happy new year all. I hope you liked the new chapter, I'm picturing two more chapters before the games will begin. One for the results show and one for the interviews, missing out the day in-between. Please let me know in a review which of the tributes you like, who you don't like, who you think will win etc. I've picked out the Bloodbath tributes but still have no idea who the winner could be.
Quick roundup of the Alliances for you:
Careers: Cliona, Hellios, Olivia, Cassius, Lysandra and Halcyone (Cy).
Alliance One: Pleb, Lem, Amber
Alliance Two (Silent Alliance): Sussex, Axel and Velorum
Alliance Three: Grace, Christine (Demi) and Ethel
Possible Pairs: Hugh and Mac, Cecil and Auvita.
For now everyone else is going it alone, but who know what could happen in the arena...
(Me I know ;) )
