Please enjoy the chapter.

15

Within the first hour I miss Cinna and his team of stylists.

My stylist, a man named Helvius, will not see me until his team has taken all the necessary steps to make me look presentable. Like Cinna's prep team there are three members. There's Viridia who does my hair, Caecilia who does my nails, and Marcellus who will be making sure my eyebrows are "exactly perfect". I don't see a problem, but one look from him and I know I'm a barbarian in his eyes. Other than that, Marcellus has this odd habit of fixating on random features for a second before reality strikes again.

I didn't think it was possible but they're more chatty and gossipy and self-centered than my last prep team. What really angers me is when they ask me to remove my clothing, there is no arguing this time about maintaining my modesty. They are on a tight schedule and I'm held hostage to their whim. At least Cinna's team allowed me to do some of the work myself. The entire time I grit my teeth as they make sure I'm completely up to the Capitol's standards wishing they would hurry up faster. Cecilia can't understand why I would want to cover myself up and the other two eventually pacify her by saying that it must be a 'District Thing'.

I probably should apologize because they hold the chances of my sponsorship in their hands for my "barbaric District ways" but the way in which Marcellus glares at me makes apology seem like a rough pill to swallow. Eventually, they acquiesce and I'm allowed to put a paper thin robe back on which at least satisfies Cecilia who tells me that she's just had a long day waiting to buy makeup and she nearly got here late.

"Well sweetie, at least you're not nearly as bad as people were the previous years." Viridia says behind her green skin in that Capitol accent they all have. "It even looks like you had a previous treatment before this." Viridia says as they approach the mid-point in the procedure.

"Cinna and his team styled me up for a ceremony in my District." I answer.

"OH!" Marcellus says suddenly as he rips off a patch of re-growing arm-hair far too fast for my liking. "You're that girl we saw on television! I only watched that because I heard Cinna's outfits were going to be on display!"

"So at least part of it was broadcasted."

"Yep. That was me." I say through gritted teeth as another swath of my arm is deprived of hair. So, my event had some sort of publicity here in the Capitol. How much and what spin Snow might have put on it is entirely unknown.

There's a general freak out over my confirmation and it takes a minute for them to return to the task of making me 'beautiful'.

"Well if Cinna could make you look that good I'm sure Helvius can make you look better." Cecilia says as she steps back from me and gives me a critical glance.

"Aaaand done." Marcellus says a moment later. "Shall we go get Helvius?" he says excited. The other two bob their heads excitedly in agreement. The prep team practically bursts out the door in excitement leaving the door to slam shut.

I sit their shivering in my robe slightly waiting for this man to come. The room is lit by a single fluorescent light fixture that makes the walls a dark gray and the white floor barely white. The walls are smooth, polished, and it gives me a sense of slight claustrophobia.

The door doesn't open soon enough, but when it does, a man that has to be Helvius steps through. He's about thirty-five and stands about six feet tall with a long nose and a dark pair of amber eyes. His head is covered in a long mane of hair that reminds me of Haymitch Abernathy but much neater. It starts off platinum blond but by his ears it turns pink before transitioning to a crimson shade. He has only minimal eyeliner and other things on which reminds me vaguely of Cinna.

He's not as extreme as I was imagining him to be but at least his clothing isn't outrageous like some of the people I've seen. He's actually dressed more conservatively (relatively speaking) wearing a black suit with a black button shirt underneath with red pants that seem to hug his legs.

I recognize his face and I place it after a few seconds as the former stylist for Districts 3 and 4 for a number of years. There's an internal sigh of relief. He at least knows a thing or two about "fashion".

"You must be Finch." He smiles warmly.

"I am."

"You've probably already figured out that I'm Helvius, your stylist for the games this year. I hear you've already worked with one of my colleagues? Cinna?"

"Yes."

"Splendid! I'll have you know it was I that taught him a few things in the Academy when he was my pupil. It was I that saw his talent and recommended that he be trained." He chuckles. "But it seems now that the apprentice has surpassed the instructor. That green dress you wore was simply stunning!"

"Thank you." I say quietly unsure of how to answer.

"In fact, I was just talking to Cinna about you. In the interest of keeping your comfort you may keep the robe on. The blasted repairmen still need to fix the AC unit on this floor and it's too cold." He scowled. "Stand up for a second please."

I stand up and he takes a walk about me. I silently ask how many more people must stand and examine my body like they're assessing a cut of meat.

"Which dress did you like the most?" Helvius asks after he's circled around me once.

"The green one?" I venture hesitantly. "But my evening dress was gorgeous too."

"I personally was a fan of the evening dress more but Cinna did an excellent job with both." His smile changes to a more serious expression. "You have my condolences however. I was surprised when I watched your reaping. I guess there are something that you can't change about the Capitol." For a moment I watch as a bitter look crosses his face. It's there only for a fraction of a second before it's gone. Had my eyes not been keenly observing his interactions with me, I would have missed it.

"How is Cinna doing?" I ask.

"Excellent as always." He says seizing on to the subject eagerly. "He hasn't told me his plans for tonight but I suspect he's going to be a smashing hit these games. Guess we'll have to figure out a way to beat my own student."

"So how do I look pretty?"

"My dear girl!" he says taken aback. "You already are! What I—and Cinna—believe about our jobs is that it's our duty to help you be more than beautiful. Our job is to make sure we leave the audience with an impression that is carried with you throughout the games. It may be a game, but it's also TV. TV tells a story, and all the winners have a unique story that wins the audience over. So, what story are we going to tell with you?"

I sit silently, not sure of how to answer. He seems to have been expecting this because he gestures to the door.

"No matter." he says decidedly. "Come, let's eat something and chat." He suggests.

I follow him through a door into what appears to be a sitting room. There are three blank walls. The fourth is a sheet of glass extending from floor to ceiling giving us a breathtaking view of the Capitol. Our room has an excellent view of the reservoir lake that I passed on my way to the Capitol.

He presses a button on a low table and our meal appears. I don't know if it's the same for everybody in our building but it looks incredible. The main course consists of chicken with chunks of orange, onions, and peas inside atop a bed of rice with rolls and a honey colored pudding. I decide I will have no problem with gaining weight in preparation for the arena.

This must come as a huge shock to the tributes who come from much poorer Districts. What do they think of this luxury of enormous quantities of food that can be instantly delivered to them at the press of a button? Are they awed? Angered? Does anybody in the Capitol cook? Given their outrageous looks, that answer is probably no. Nobody with that amount of hairspray should be allowed in proximity with an open flame.

"So Finch, as you're probably aware, tonight is the tribute parade which is your chance to make some impressions on the audience. It's customary to have your costume reflect your District's industry."

"What were you thinking?"

"A couple of things. The powerplant worker thing from what I hear is overdone."

"It could be worse."

"Agreed. You could be District 12. Coal plant workers here are even less appealing than Lumberjacks and automotive workers. I don't know what Hershel was thinking six years ago when he decided to strip the District 12 tributes naked and cover them in coal dust." his lip curls in disgust.

"So what else?"

"I heard a rumor you were a messenger...or something to that effect. However intriguing it is, the audience won't know or care enough for that to score you points. They'll just see an outfit that's out of place. I was thinking more along the lines of power."

He makes an odd expression at me, only for me to realize a moment later that he made a pun.

"That was a terrible pun."

"Oh but it's a great idea." he says grinning eye to eye.

"You're going to make me into a power line?" I ask hesitantly.

"Uh...no, not exactly. I got the inspiration from a quick pan they did last year at the Reaping of District Five. Rumor is silver is one of the hot colors of the month."

"We don't do silver mining...that's One's job."

"Not mining, but energy collection."

I have a vague idea what he's talking about and I'm not sure how I feel about it.

A gleam enters his eye. "I think the audience will appreciate it."

"We look ridiculous." Chris says hours later in the basement of the remake center which is nothing more than a giant stable. He almost looks like a different person. A fresh scrubbing and a dozen other beautification tasks later, he honestly looks like he could blend in among the "Townie" kids. I'm not sure what the males need to look beautiful but it has to be less time consuming than my procedures because it sounds like he's been here for an hour longer than me.

"I think it's actually kind of ingenious." I admit as I observe our costumes.

We're both dressed in a silver garment that sparkles and reflects light. It draws its inspiration from the uniform of those work in the solar/thermal power plants back at home. The most notable of these is the Coriolanus 9 Plant. The plant operates by having a giant field of mirrors placed with extreme precision that focuses rays of sunlight on a collection tower. The temperatures from the air can literally cause burns and death if you're not careful. The suits are designed to reflect heat and keep the wearer cool and comfortable when working in the center of a solar field. The part Chris is upset about is a giant looking cone headpiece that surrounds our face. It too is silver and when light catches it, it focuses it towards our face which has a layer of something applied to it so that we look radiant. The effect is similar to seeing it from the air. We're "power plant" workers, but also solar arrays.

"You don't think this is ridiculous?" he asks coming closer.

"Well, a little." I admit. Chris actually seems to be in the mood to talk, probably because he's nervous like I am.

"Hey. It could be worse. We could be dressed in fuchsia like One."

Marvel and Glimmer from One are actually two of the "best dressed" tributes. Underneath a carpet of feathers, they wear silver tunics overlaid with many jewels.

Chris makes a face of utter disgust and I snort.

"Oh no. Never in my life. I'd rather impale myself on a saguaro than put on that thing." he sniffs decisively.

"Why not? You'd look good in pink." I tease.

"I'd rather not be dressed like a flamingo thank you very much."

Whether it's because of nerves or not, we're both laughing and it's the closest I've felt to camaraderie with this boy from my District.

"If we're lucky, these things might actually work and burn our faces off and then we won't have to play the Games." I grin slyly.

"If only." He laments before going off to consult with Helvius' partner Daedric who has appeared and motioned him over.

From all around I see the pairs of Tributes not mingling with the others yet. I suspect they're waiting for tomorrow to do more of the socializing aspect.

Judging by the costumes, this year's tribute parade will not disappoint. I'm interested to see the District 12 Tributes. For once, they're not in coal miner jumpsuits or stark naked covered in coal dust, but rather dressed in fearsome looking black jumpsuits. Cinna has done a fantastic job with these but there's something more about it than what I can see. Both Katniss and Peeta are looking at it nervously. Whatever that surprise is, we'll all see it soon enough.

As usual, District 2's stylist has not chosen an outfit that reflects their specialty of Masonry and Peacekeeping. Instead they look more like gladiators (I suppose given the event it is fitting) or some human personification of deity. Regardless, Cato still looks like he's ready to kill. I catch Clove's eye for a moment but we both look away instantly. Neither of us wants to acknowledge the others presence.

With the exception of One and Two, all of us are visibly nervous to some degree. I'm doing my best to hide it but there are certain things you can't hide like how I'm wringing my hands and messing with the back of my hair that has been put up in a fan shape that helps keep the headpiece in place.

Time passes and the call to mount up comes. Immediately Helvius and the team rush over to give us final instructions.

"You're going to be wonderful!" Helvius says with satisfaction. "Smile and wave!" he laughs. "This is your moment!"

There's a final call for us to mount up on our Chariots and he disappears with the rest of the team to watch us from above. The Chariots are pulled by teams of horses that are so well trained that when the Capitol Anthem starts and the doors open they begin to move into place automatically. I grip the edge of my chariot to support myself and I watch as we come out under the shelter of the Remake center down the Avenue of the Tributes.

There's a roar that comes out for each of the four Tributes ahead of us.

"Relax." Chris says seriously as he observes my arms clutching the railing.

I let go and we emerge onto the avenue.

Instantly the world is filled with light, voices, cheering, and the Capitol anthem blaring over all of it. I gape as I see the enormous crowd of people. There are so many. Caesar Flickerman makes the comment every year how over 100,000 people fill in along the avenue every year to try and get a glimpse of us. That number boggles my mind but here they are in every sort of combination of fashion possible.

There's another roar from the crowd as we emerge and some people are chanting our names. We seem to be more popular than Four ahead of us and Six behind us.

"Smile and wave!" Helvius' voice reminds me. Despite the mixture of fear and awe on my face I manage to put on a small smile and wave to the crowd.

The effect is instantaneous and some people throw us objects. Silver rings, flowers, jeweled objects that litter the side of the avenue. Chris joins me and I think District 5 is being received well. I guess the audience likes Helvius' costumes more than I thought. Hopes rise in me that someone is willing to sponsor a girl like me. Perhaps I might be able to win after all.

I see my face on a screen on the side and we definitely do look radiant. Whatever effect Helvius was looking to capture, he got it. I'm not a fan of attention but tonight I make an exception. I wonder how my family and District are viewing us right now. Edison is probably assembled in the square with the exception of those workers needed at the power plant and factories. Even then, there are screens conveniently provided so that nobody misses the action. All of District 5 is probably cheering and applauding the fact that Helvius has captured the audience's attention almost as much as Districts One and Two ahead of us.

Suddenly a silence falls over the crowd and an even louder issues from the crowd.

I see Marvel, Cato, Glimmer, and Clove all turn around and their smiles turn to scowls.

I risk a brief glance behind and I'm spellbound by the sight of the District 12 tribute trailing fire.

For a moment I'm tempted to jump off and do something to help but there's a precision to the flames and how they trail which tells me it is artificial.

"What on—" Chris trails away as he sees the cameras cut to them on the screen.

"They're coal…" I gasp in realization. Cinna has turned them into human representations of coal.

The realization blows everyone away. Never before has such a display been seen in the Capitol. Why dress them like coal miners when you can transform them into coal? My eyes instinctively are drawn upwards to the left and for a moment I catch Helvius sitting in a special box with all the stylists and mentors. He looks thunderstruck and the sight causes a grin to form on my face. I guess the student has managed to beat the teacher.

The Capitol is now fixated on District 12. Each new section of people we pass grows less and less drawn to us (though some still cheer for us) and District 12 gets all the praise for tonight. The multicolored birds in the stands are going nuts. Everything of monetary value is being tossed at them. Thousands of kisses are hurled in their direction. Several women are ruining their thick layers of makeup with tears. Tears.

I catch another glimpse of Cato's face which goes from shock to anger which manages to deliver another fresh grin to my face. He's visibly struggling to reconcile the fact that a pair of Tributes from Twelve has stolen his limelight.

That's right District Two. It isn't all about you. I smirk.

For a moment I'm concerned for what this means for my own welfare, but then I remember Katniss volunteering days ago. I've been able to make an impression yes, but I will sink into the background. She and Peeta have drawn an enormous amount of attention. While the others focus on them, I will be freer to make my own movements un-watched and unobserved. This girl on fire has unknowingly done me a favor. While the rest of the Tributes return to their waving with diminished vigor, I am now able to hold my head high, put on a calm expression and continue waving.

This continues until we reach City Circle in front of the President's mansion. The Capitol Anthem comes to a triumphal conclusion and I see President Snow himself standing on the balcony. The cameras do one final loop but linger distinctively longer on District 12. Their flames die to embers and the President steps forward. We are situated in the far right corner. To our left District 11 pulls up followed by District 12. Both tributes look awed and thrilled by their fiery debut. Evidently they had been holding hands because they lower a joined fist together. Whether they break apart I can't tell.

"Welcome." Snow holds up his hands to silence the crowd. "Welcome."

His gaze turns to us and scans this year's tributes. I see his eyes land on me for a second. His face is unreadable from this distance but there's definitely something there. Satisfaction? Worry? Regret? I can't tell.

"Tributes, we welcome you."

The crowd erupts into more cheering.

"We salute your courage…" this time he definitely looks at me but again the snake is unreadable, "…and your sacrifice." His gaze rests upon the District 12 Chariot.

It's short, simple, and to the point. I'm glad it's over with.

The doors open and we proceed to the ground floor of the Tribute Center past the President's mansion. Our stylists and mentors have been scurried along to meet us there and they all welcome us.

"Well done both of you!" Aquilina says when she spots us. She kisses us each on the cheek and steps back. "Oh I can't tell you how many people loved that costume."

"What about them?" Chris asks annoyed as District 12 rolls in to be greeted by an ecstatic team.

"Nobody was expecting that one." Daedric, Helvius' partner who's in charge of Chris says. It's obvious from the way he speaks that he doesn't speak often.

"Cinna always had a way of surprising people." Helvius says barely withholding a grin. I suppose it gives me pleasure to see his Student do well, even if we are now technically rivals. Helvius reminds me of Snow with that comment but right now Snow is the last thing I want to think about.

"But all people are going to do is talk about them! What about us? Her? Me?"

"Calm down." Flint says. "You guys made a great impression on a lot of people. So what if people talk about them, they're only drawing the envy of him." He points to Cato who's still smoldering staring at Katniss and Peeta. On a suggestion from Haymitch their crew heads to the elevator on the other side of the room that will take them to their rooms.

"You don't want to be enemies with them." Cynthia adds. "If you're a threat, then they will eliminate you."

"And right now with their anger focused on the those two, you have a perfect chance to get in with them."

"Besides, we have a lovely dinner for you to enjoy!" Aquilina says as if this alone changes everything. In her mind it probably does.

She brings us to a shiny glass elevator with glass windows on one side. There are 12 floors, one for each district, the training facility beneath the ground floor, and a hospital underneath it. The elevators don't move nearly as fast as the ones in the Capitol and it takes me by surprise. It's exhilarating to feel us lifted up dozens of feet within seconds. All too soon however, the ride is over and we are escorted out of the elevator.

"Say hello to your new home!" Aquilina grins.

Our apartments completely blow away the standard of luxury displayed the train. Stone, marble, concrete, plush carpets, leather couches, sharp edges, and geometric figures have come together to create a series of rooms that easily put anything back home to shame. There's a small hallway that opens out to a massive sitting room on our right. The center of our apartment is built around a large column that I assume runs straight up. A massive screen is mounted to the wall with a massive leather couch curving around it. To our left the room opens up with more seating and small columns onto a panoramic window that allows to see the Capitol lit up beautifully. Staircases with space in between each step gracefully descend to allow access to a dining room above and our rooms to the right. The reds and browns and grays and greens all come together to remind me of home.

In that second the luxury means nothing to me and I feel like a much younger girl, lost, abandoned, far away from home. If Chris has similar feelings he doesn't show them.

Aquilina shows us our rooms and tells us to undress from our costumes. The rooms are not as big as my quarters on the train but they come with so many more features. Windows that can zoom in on any part of the city, a shower with more options than I know what to do with, a climate controlling unit that can change the humidity and temperature within seconds. I'm overwhelmed by all of it.

The door opens and Chris pokes his head in. "I'm sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to tell you that you can change the windows to display anywhere in Panem.

"Really?" I said intrigued and sitting up on my enormous bed.

"Do you mind?"

"Sure."

He grabs a remote from my table and sits at the foot of the bed. I scoot up in my costume, the headpiece lying abandoned on the floor, and watch. He presses a button and the scene changes to a city scape in the Capitol complete with moving images of people talking and going about their day. A second click brings up an image of a desert with bristlecone pines and shrubby bushes. A couple Saguaro proudly stand, defiant to the withering heat of the sun.

"That's amazing." I breathe out.

"It gets better." He sighs with a genuine smile on his face. He clicks a different button and a screen pops up listing different locations in District 5."

"I have it set to Rockefeller." He brings a cursor down to the selected town and the image changes to a tiny town with a set of tracks running through it. A large warehouse dominates the center of the town. "But you're from Edison right?"

I nod and he brings up the cursor to Edison. He clicks it and suddenly I'm at the eastern foothills on one of the mountains looking at Edison. The Marius plant sits below with steam slowly rising from a cooling tower.

Beyond that you can see the Administration building and beyond that further, Edison itself.

"How did you figure this out?"

"Accident." He grins again. "Watch this." He grabs the remote to thermostat and hits another button. Within seconds the temperature and humidity adjust so that for a moment, if it weren't for my costume I could totally be back there right now lying on top of the hill overlooking everything.

My homesickness returns again.

"Wish I could go back."

"Me too. There's not really anything to go back to though…but, it's home."

"Can you zoom in?"

"I think so." He shrugs.

I take the remote and figure out how to change the focus and zoom. I manipulate the "camera" until it's centered on the brick walls of my home. You can't see the bottom of it because another house is hiding it from view but I slump backwards. It looks just like it does in reality.

"Home sweet home." I whisper.

"I thought you lived in the Justice Building." He says confused.

"Nope. Other mayor's do, mine does not."

His eyes show surprise but nothing else. He presses another button and it switches to night. The temperature drops accordingly and I watch as windows light up.

"Oh my gosh, that's my room." I say, my hand going to my room.

"Where?"

I point to the leftmost window with a tiny light illuminating my corner like it I leave it every night. It must not be 11:00 which is when I have it set to automatically turn off if I leave it on.

I feel tears tug at the corner of my eyes.

"Hey, uhh…I'm sorry." He says. "I only wanted to show—"

"It's fine. I just want to go home."

"You will." Chris says. "Out of the two of us you're the most likely to go home. Don't deny it." He says putting a hand out in front of my mouth. I close it and he sits back. I'm not in the mood to argue with him.

"I better get ready for dinner." I say looking at my costume.

"Probably."

"Thanks Chris."

He nods and leaves the room closing the door.

I reset the view so now it's the scene from earlier, just cloaked in night. I wonder if it's on a natural daylight schedule.

I open up a dresser looking for clothes and find instead the bag Aquilina gave me earlier. I unzip it and located both the dress and the fox. Satisfied they're both safe I put on a silky green shirt and black pants.

Dinner that night is an enthusiastic occasion where Helvius shares with all of us stories from his previous years as Tribute stylist. I think he's telling them to us to cheer us up from District 12's fiery entrance. Flint and Cynthia remember most of these stories and they laugh with nostalgia. Both of them look the happiest I've ever seen them.

"So explain to us what's happening tomorrow." Chris asks.

Both of them seem to deflate internally when Chris brings them back to reality.

"Well, tomorrow is your first day of training. You and I have already talked about what you should do. Finch, I think you're smart enough that you have an idea. Talk with Cynthia about it before you go to bed." Flint nods.

"Will do."

"My only other advice tomorrow is to find out something about the other tributes. You don't necessarily need to make friends or anything, but watch them, make notes of their strengths. Okay?"

We both nod.

After I stuff myself again and dinner is over, I have a brief chat with Cynthia who doesn't offer much more advice than sticking to passive training skills like snares and fire-building and suggests that I go for knives which I readily agree to.

"Tomorrow you plan to not make yourself visible, correct?"

"Correct."

"Alright, well, don't draw too much attention to yourself in skills. Something tells me you've been thinking of what to learn for a while. Play to your strengths, but don't remember to brush up on your weaknesses. If you can identify those, you can keep yourself alive. Above all, figure out what you're going to show to the Gamemakers in your private session."

I nod.

"Alright. I'll see you in the morning."

With Cynthia gone, I'm free to go to bed. Someone's already collected my costume. It must be one of the silent attendants placed throughout our apartment so I lay in bed wishing for sleep. It's an impossible task with the sounds of home calling me until I reset everything and the window shows the skyline of the Capitol before I'm eventually able to drift to sleep.

Training begins next chapter! Thanks for taking the time to read.

-theotherpianist