Beneath the Crystal Sky

by laptop246

Fawn Dogwood is 16. She lives in District 7. She is part of a prosperous scouting troop. She has two little sisters. She is learning a trade. She is being courted. She was never meant to be Reaped. "Scout. Sister. Performer. Tribute. What am I, now? Staring into my own brown eyes, I find that I can't tell anymore." High quality. Works very closely with the original series.

9. II TRAINING

PART II. PREPARING.
CHAPTER 9. TRAINING.

Did you know that the glass televisions mentioned in the last chapter and in this one are actually possible now, and may be possible to such an extent as described soon. Heard of Google Glass? Look it up. It's mind blowing - I want a Google Glass room. No, an entire house made of Google Glass. Haha, when I get published I'll totally do that.

~BTCS~

Like Blight, I am beginning to find that I cannot sleep without nightmares plaguing me. I sit on my bed, bathed in sweat, wishing the room would cool, and staring at the walls. Last night, Maze's face born down upon me with a bright silver, shining weapon. October and Raven laughed loudly as I screamed in pain, withering in the hot air, unable to move or breathe.

I shudder, disliking the fact that I remembered. I glance around the room, looking for something to distract me. According to the room's clock (which we were taught to read only because of the clock in Redwood's square, the only one I'd seen before coming to the Capitol) it is still early morning for the Capitol at least - 7 o'clock. Getting up, I turn to the window-television. "Show me ... show me the President's mansion." Immediately, the bright, buzzing streets of the Capitol disappear to show a regal picture of the President's Mansion, bathed in blackness. I was there, only a few hours ago, in front of all of Panem, smiling and cheering. How did I manage to appear so happy when I am truly so miserable? A line from President Snow's speech comes to my mind, "We salute your sacrifice."

My voice choked, I say, "Show me District 7." The screen changes to the square in Redwood, still playing video even this late, though little to no people are watching the footage at this hour. I search the people's faces, and don't recognize any of the sleepless people. Are they Raven's family? Friends? Seeing even the dismal square, still decorated in lavender, makes me homesick, and the words slip from my lips, "Show me District 7's forest."

Immediately, the sound of the forest is around me, and I stare at the pine trees, tall and stubborn in the mountains around them. Snow is falling gently, lying in the small heaps of snow. A white rabbit shoots out from a heap, bouncing past me. Instinctively, I reach for my knife, but find empty air. Of course, I'm not really back in District 7, I think mournfully. I'm stuck here.

"T-turn it off." The window is a true window again, showing the busy streets of the Capitol. Shaken, I walk to the bath-room and mess with the dials until my room is filled with cool steam, which makes me relax visibly. I enter the closet and touch the screen beside the silver poles. I'll need something to wear to training. "Good morning, Miss Dogwood," the closet greets me. "You are wishing to program your outfit for the day?"

I nod, remembering that the closet will monitor this, and continue without my vocal response. "As the lucky female tribute of District 7 in the 70th Hunger Games, your outfit has already been programmed for the training session today." I blink, surprised. It takes me a moment to recall that, in the past years, all of the tributes matched in the training sessions. "Shall I bring out the outfit now, or would you like to pick something else out for before the training session."

The idea of wearing an outfit for three hours is silly to me - but apparently, in the Capitol, this is a standard choice. "Just bring it right out." And immediately, so quick that I can't register the movement, a black jumper with red-striped shoulders, and the number 7 printed on either shoulders and the back. There are small black shoes made to perfectly fit me feet as well. I remove both, thank the closet, and return to the mist-ed bathroom.

By now, I have figured out how to use the bathroom so that it has become almost an automatic skill. Portia explained how to use it in detail for me, and helped me commit the process to memory, so I now use it without difficulty. I begin with a spray that leaves my skin tingling. When the tingling stops, a soap is squirted on, and water washes the soap down the drain, leaving the floor completely dry. Next, three different kinds of lotion that each benefit my skin in some forgotten ways. The same process is repeated on my face, hands, and feet. Then my nails are clipped, shined, and polished. My eyebrows are pricked and made perfect. My teeth are cleaned and shined. My hair is blown straight, and then curled in the same fashion. Using a hair tie that appears out of my request, I pull my hair back into a perfect poneytail, and stare at myself. Scout. Sister. Daughter. Preformer. Tribute. What am I, now? Staring into my own brown eyes, I find that I can't tell anymore.

"Fawn! It's time to eat!" Emerald bustles into the bath-room, and I retreat from the mirror, looking at her lavender outfit today, which includes seven inch heels. "Oh, good," she says. "you found the training outfit just fine. You look nice today, though, if I may ..." she looks at me pleadingly, but I shake my head.

"No, not today, Emerald," I tell her. "I'm just going as I am, for today, since it's training."

Face falling, my escort reassures me that it's fine, and that I look nice anyway, but I am not fooled - she was looking forward to dressing me up like a doll. I wonder if Emerald always wanted to be a stylist, but somehow ended up as an escort. "Well, let's go eat, then!" Emerald leads me from my bedroom and into the dining room, laden with food. The servants in red, Avoxes, stand around it with their hands behind their backs. Suddenly, smelling the food, I am reminded that I skipped dinner last night. I sit down immediately between Portia and Raven, and load up my plate with the sweat breads.

Blight glances up at me and Raven. "So, today is the first of the tree days of training that is allotted for the tributes. Have either of you considered a strategy for today?"

Raven immediately shakes his head, looking down at his plate in apparent guilt. Blight looks at me expectantly, and I remember what he said last night. I hesitate, remembering my dream from last night, before sighing in frustration and say in a low tone, "Make friends with Maze and October."

Appearing pleased, my mentor nods in agreement. "Establish trust with them - trust is as valuable as food in the arena, and sometimes it is harder to obtain. I also want you to learn something new today - both of you. Focus on what you do not know."

Emerald perks up. "What are you experienced with, Raven, Fawn?"

I glance at Raven, and immediately know that I am to speak first. Closing my eyes, I allow the list of strengths that I've subconsciously built up to roll over my mind like clear water. "I'm good at using knives - really good. After knives, I'd choose an ax as my weapon." Though we aren't allowed to carry axes or knives around, I have become accustomed to the weapons by lumberjacking and scouting. "I've killed coyotes before. I climb a lot while scouting, and I have a really good sense of direction. I'm fast, and I know a good bit about building fires and tying knots."

"You should work on edible plants," Raven's stylist, Clio, suggests. "not many things grow in District 7, right? Because it's so cold?" I nod in agreement, and she claps her hands twice as though congratulating herself.

Blight nods in approval of Clio's comment. "There will be many animals for you to study as well - there may be wildlife you aren't accustomed to seeing in the arena. By the way of weapons, I think that you should try whatever you can get your hands on. Spears, specifically - they are the most common weapon in the arena after knives." He pauses, considering, and scratching the stubble on his chin that appeared overnight. "If I had to wager a guess, though, I'd say that you'd be most proficient in a bow - maybe even a crossbow - or a sword. There's no guaranteeing what will and won't be in the arena, so it's good to be well rounded." He turns to Raven, an eyebrow raised. "And what about you, Mr. Carpenter?"

Raven looks at Blight for a moment, then comments, "By the way of knowledge outside and weapons?" Blight gives this a curt, 'yes.' Taking a deep breath, Raven continues, "I can tie a good knot. Uh ... I'm pretty strong. Not anything like Mason Flint, from District 2." I can tell that he is suppressing the fear from his eyes as he says Mason's name, and a wave of anger washes over me. Suddenly, I understand Blight's point. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't try to protect Raven - poor, weak Raven.

Emerald looks my district partner up and down for a moment, and decrees, "Strong is strong. Strength can be an important factor in the arena. Do you remember, a few years ago, when Shore from District 4 killed his opponents by dropping rocks on them?" I shudder. I do remember that year - it was horrible to watch the children, one after another, get crushed under rocks. Shore was killed in a landslide that he actually created, a great coincidence in the minds of the Capitol citizens.

"You'll be good at hand-to-hand combat, I'd wager," Blight changes the subject quickly. The female tribute of District 7 that year, Oak Autumn, was killed by Shore's falling rocks. "And strength is important, so lifting weights isn't a bad idea. Today, however ... I would focus on survival skills, since you haven't had the chance to work on them before - running, climbing, camouflage, poisonous berries, and so on. You should try some weapons, too - they'll come in handy, even if you are a primary hand-to-hand combatant."

Raven nods in agreement, and we glance at each other. Our schedules for the day sound pretty different - we'll have to split up. Vaguely, I wonder if Maze and October's strengths and weaknesses are similar to ours or not. I return to my plate of food, suddenly very nervous about the training sessions. As I tear pieces of cinnamon bread and let them melt in my mouth, I run through my strengths again, remembering where it is best to hit a rabbit with a knife, where to find the easily footholds in a tree, and what wood is best for a fire that produces no smoke.

After a few minutes, Blight wipes his mouth, and stands. Avoxes hurry to clear his place, and he completely ignores these silent servants. I can't help but look at them with pity, though I know that if I were to dare speak to them, it would only mean trouble for all of us. "Fawn, Raven," my head flies back to face Blight. "Let's go down to the training room."

I nod, wiping my own mouth and standing. Avoxes rush to get my plate as well, and I avoid looking at them, embarrassed as I brush crumbs off of my training outfit. Raven stands beside me, doing the same thing to his identical outfit, and we leave the room with Blight as the rest of the team calls out encouragement to us.

We enter the elevator, and Blight presses the button labeled, 'Training' and the elevator zooms downwards in an exhilarating rush of color, smoothly stopping as a voice announces, "District 5's floor." I blink to re-orient myself as Scarlett Wires, long red hair swept into a poneytail, and young Cabel Atom, looking grim, step into the elevator. They are accompanied by Flame Electric, the victor of the 57th Hunger Games. Flame nods to Blight, and Blight nods back, his eyes sweeping the tribute from this year.

Cabel looks over at me, curiosity covering his gaze. Quickly, I look away. I have too many allies already - I cannot afford to become attached to this small, curious boy. As the elevator speeds down, I study Scarlett out of the corner of my eye. When I see her face, set upon the wall, two words come to me: smart and determined. She could be a formidable foe. I make a note to keep an eye on her. Will she make an alliance with Cabel, in an effort to save him, as I am Raven?

The elevator doors open to a large black room, accented with the color red. Around it are courses for running and climbing, screens to test your knowledge of plants and animals, and dummies to practice weaponry on. Assistants are everywhere, ready to attend to us tributes in whatever way they can. But the thing that I notice last, and that my eyes linger on longest is the balcony where the Gamemakers in their scarlet robes sit, eating, and watching the entering tributes closely. One meets my eyes for a split second, and I lower my own in embarrassment.

Blight nudges me. "I'll see you after training," he tells me and Raven, as we exit. We both nod simultaneously, and the elevator doors close again, taking Blight and Flame back to their respective floors. I turn around, ignoring Cabel and Scarlett, and looking for Maze and October. After a few moments, I find them standing near a station filled with crossbows. I point them out to Raven, and we walk hurriedly away from the District 5 tributes and through throngs of other tributes to reach our allies. We pass very close to Tide, who turns and gives us an admirable smirk, which I return without hesitation, continuing to walk.

When we reach the District 11 tributes, Maze smiles slightly. "Hello, Raven. Hello, Fawn." She seems to be deflated from the state she was last night. Maybe, like me, she hadn't thought this alliance through before being so friendly. Or maybe she didn't sleep well. Regardless, I return her smile and say hello to her and October, Raven following suit.

"Have you thought about what you want to do today?" October asks us, though the question is truly directed to me. We have all grown accustomed to Raven's silence, and have agreed without discussion that I will speak for the both of us.

I nod. "We are supposed to learn new things today," I tell him. "The lists are different between the two of us, so we'll have to split up at some point. What about you?"

October and Maze glance at each other. Maze shrugs. "Seeder and Chaff said to do whatever you wanted to. We'll just tag along for the day, if that's all right." I am positive that she is rethinking the idea of this alliance, now. Are her mentors also insistent upon its benefits?

I smile regardless. "That's just fine."

As October is opening his mouth to respond, Atala, the Capitol woman in charge of the Training Sessions, calls us all to order. We form two circles around her in a crescent moon shape, watching her carefully. Atala is known for her sharp anger, and she knows how to wield weapons better than Victors. "In a few weeks, twenty-three of you will be dead," she informs us. "One of you will be alive. Who that is depends on how well you pay attention over the next three days. Pay attention particularly to what I am about to say. First, no fighting with the other tributes." Sounding almost amused, she adds, "You'll have plenty of time for that in the arena. There are four compulsory exercises, two of which will occur today, two tomorrow, upon arrival, and after lunch. The rest will be individual training. My own advice is: don't ignore the survival skills. Everybody wants to grab a sword, but most of you will die from natural causes - 10% from infection, 20% from dehydration. Exposure can kill as easily as a knife."

Atala provides a small moment of complete silence for this to sink in. My eyes wander around the group, picking out the most dangerous ones. My eyes find the Careers at once, tapping their toes and looking bored. Luster is eyeing a sword like he can't wait to get his hands on it. My eyes fall on Ryder Wheel from District 6. His eyes are calm and collected, which gives me a sense of danger as strong as Luster's. Rye Brown's jaw is clenched with a determination that is also dangerous. Grant Farmer from District 10 looks like he is hanging on Atala's every word.

We are lined up in a seemingly random order, announced by Atala, which puts me beside Pixel Flash from District 3 and Grant Farmer. Atala explains the purpose of this excercise clearly. We are lined before a winding track, she says, which consists of three stages, which will be tackled one by one. The first is based on speed - to see how fast you can run. The second is covered with obstacles that you must manuever your way over or under. The last stage is a pool of water to see how fast we can swim.

Everyone watches with interest as Shyne Luxor, from District 1 and first in line, steps forward. She crouches in front of the line, ready to sprint when Atala gives the word. I notice, out of the corner of my eye, that even the Gamemakers look on with interest. There is a shrill sound, and Shyne is sprinting across the track. As she crosses the other line, the shrill sound fills the room again, and Shyne slows to a stop. Narrowing my eyes, I guess how long the distance was - maybe four hundred meters? Shyne did well, but I think that I can do better. I reach down a stretch my legs, anxious to impress Atala and the Gamemakers.

Barley Harvester, from District 10, is one of the younger tributes at fourteen years old. He looks nervous as he crouches down in a bad imitation of Shyne. When the shrill noise sounds, he hesitates for precious seconds before taking off. He doesn't run too badly, but he either hasn't had much practice or is very nervous, because he finishes in a time significantly longer than Shyne's. After him, Cotton Flinch from District 9 steps forward. Only thirteen, no one is surprised when she trips halfway through the course and finishes long after Barley's time.

I begin to concentrate on stretching instead of watching all of the sprints. I stop and look up, however, when it is October's turn. Unlike Barley and Cotton, he obviously knows what he is doing from the start. His acceleration is immediate, and he blurs towards the other line, finishing a full ten seconds before Shyne did. The Career notes this, sending October a scathing look, but I smile at him.

I only half watch as Rye Brown finishes in five seconds less than Shyne, and as Mason Flint finishes somewhere between them. Cabel Atom follows, his time better than Cotton's. Tide Playa goes next, and matches Shyne's time. After Tide is Pixel, who is directly in front of me. She does almost as badly as the young tributes.

Taking a deep breath, I ball my hands into fists and bend my knees. The moment that I hear the ear-splitting noise, I am gone, rushing through my own self-made wind. About three seconds in, I have reached my full speed and am pumping my arms to speed myself up. I cross the line, still at a sprint, and it takes about twenty meters to stop. I spin around, jogging back towards October with a slight smile on my face - I have missed the physical excercise. October lifts his hand to mine, giving me a high five, and points to the screen above the Gamemaker's balcony, showing all of our times. I was just one second faster than him - I am the fastest yet.

It is hard to ignore the Gamemaker's eyes upon me and October. We have the lowest times, for the moment, anyway. I blush, and give October a smile. He smiles back at me, and whispers, "We've really annoyed Tide and Shyne." I don't dare look over at them, but I can image the glares that I am receiving. The though makes me smile wider.

Grant Farmer makes good time, and Luster Diamond steps up next, looking determined to beat my time. However, he falls a few seconds shorter than Shyne's, and I don't miss the glare I receive from him. Gneiss Mount and Mason Flint also finish after Shyne's time, and I know that I am a marked target now. This worries me, but I push away the thought. Maze runs in an admirable time, which October and I congratulate her on in low voices. Raven follows not long after, not doing as badly as I'd feared. Syren is the last runner, and finishes with a time better than Shyne's, but still larger than October and my own.

We line up again, and this time I am the first, with Jet Rails behind me. I glance ahead of myself at the large boulders, fallen trees, and holes littering the path that I am to run on. I search for disguised rabbit holes, and, sure enough, find some. I ready myself again, arms extended and ready to lift me over the first tree. The shrill whistle sounds, and I sprint towards the tree, lifting myself over it without difficulty. I dart around a boulder and jump over the next branch. I pump my arms for speed again as I avoid a rabbit hole, and hoist myself over another tree. This really isn't very difficult, compared to back home, where you can slip on patches of ice if you aren't careful. I cross the line, jogging back to it and glancing at my time.

Jet Rails doesn't do badly, though she is about thirty seconds short of my time. Her chin raised proudly, she returns to the line and crosses her arms. Chip Drive does very badly - falling several times throughout the course. Scarlett proves herself quick-minded by navigating the course out of speed instead of strength. Mason Flint uses his strength to propel him over whatever is in the way, but neither of them touch my time. Thread Coil falls onto his head, and lies on the ground, stunned, for a moment, before jogging the rest of the course through. Angela Herder, 13 years old, has to maneuver around all of the branches, because she is too small to hoist herself over them. Gneiss finishes at the same time as Mason, and Tide and Shyne's times are similar. Syren's time was shorter than the rest of the Career's this time, but still very high. Luster had the highest Career score in this section.

Raven performs admirably on this course, using his strength to his advantage. Maze doesn't do too badly, either, and appears pleased when she stops beside me. October, second to last, disappoints when he falls into a well-disguised rabbit hole. He doesn't hurt himself, however, and manages to finish the course in the same time that Raven did. No one can beat my own time in this section, either, and I know that the Gamemakers are watching me for sure now.

In the last course, with the pool of water, Tide Playa has the best time, with Syren only .067 of a second behind him. Hestia Flamel finishes right behind them, to everyone's shock. Where could she have learned to swim in District 12? Her partner, Cole Miner, does horribly, wading around the edge where he can touch. Most of the tributes have to do this, as they are scared to drown. Raven sprints around the edge, finishing well, and looking exhausted. Maze swims through the middle, and finishes just short of Raven's time. October is just behind them, he too having waded around the edge.

I am the last in line this time, and have decided to swim through the middle. I watch Syren and Tide swimming, and am determined to use this to my advantage. I won't finish first in this one, but I could still place well overall. I stand at the edge of the pool, waiting for the shrill noise. When it sounds, I launch myself into the water, allowing myself to sink under like Syren and Tide had, and kicking my legs, using my arms, and praying that I wouldn't drown. I could hear the shrill noise from under the water, and quickly swam to the surface, coughing up water as I surfaced.

Maze helps me out of the pool, slapping my back to help me cough up more water. When my eyes are focused, I see that she looks excited. "You got fourth, after Tide, Syren, and Hestia!" she tells me in an jubilent whisper as she leads me towards the warm fans that are drying out the tributes almost instantly, and untangling their hair. "You got first place overall!"

I beam, and whisper to her, "What about October, Raven, and you?" Water is still flowing from me face and hair, and I can't make out the screen above the Gamemaker's balcony.

"October was the best of us, after you," she tells me, keeping her voice low as she turns on a fan for me. "He got eight, after all the Careers and you. I," she straightens her back proudly, "was in thirteenth, and Raven got sixteenth." The warm air blasted over me, and I let out a cry of surprise as the water was evaporated off of me, the warm air surrounding me and untangling my hair. The moment that it's job is done, I lurch forward and turn off the air, nearly choking again from holding my breath.

I ignore Maze's raised eyebrow. "Good job," I tell her, glancing around for October and Raven, and looking to the scoreboard. Following the Careers, October, and my own names and pictures are Grant Farmer, Rye Brown, Scarlett Wires, and Thread Coil. Maze's face smiles next. After that are Ryder Wheel, Jet Rails, and Raven. And following my lowest ranked ally is Cole Miner, Hestia Flamel, Pixel Flash, Angela Herder, Chip Driver, Cabel Atom, and Barely Harvester. I allow a small smile to creep onto my face. I still see Gamemakers looking in my direction, speaking to each other in low voices.

"Good job, Fawn!" I feel a friendly pat on the back, and turn to see October smiling at me.

I smile back. "You did great, too. You would've been right up there with me, too, if it weren't for that silly rabbit hole..." October's face falls at the mention and he shrugs it off. Suddenly, I feel bad for mentioning his mistake, and quickly say, "but your sprinting is amazing."

October breaks a small smile as Atala calls us back to our two crescent moons around her. "You all did admirably on the exercises today, and," her eyes fell on the Careers for a moment, "do not worry - you will have another chance to prove yourself after lunch today. A reminder: sparring with other tributes is strictly forbidden." I notice that there are Peacekeepers stationed throughout the room, ready to break up any fights between us tributes. Just seeing them gives me a sick feeling, reminding me where I am. I firm my jaw and look away, joining my allies as Atala dismisses us to individual training.

"I want to try the running course again," Raven tells us, his face set in determination. "I can meet up with you later."

October shakes his head. "I'll go with you," he offers. "I want to try the second stage again. I don't want to die because of a rabbit hole." I agree - that would be a stupid way to die, being chased by Careers, and caught in a hole. Maze looks to me, silently wondering if I want to do the course again. Honestly, I do want to run again, just for the pure exhilaration of it, but Blight wanted me to learn something new today.

"I'm going to go and try to use a bow," I tell my allies. "Blight says that it's good to be well rounded, so I figured that it couldn't hurt..."

Maze nods in agreement. "It will probably help," she agrees. "Who knows - there might only be bows in the arena!" I chuckle at this, because it is highly unlikely, but Maze seems to have been serious. "I'll come with you," she offers. I nod in agreement, and we agree to meet the boys before lunch.

I glance at Maze's dark face and study her for a moment. She's fairly tall, and well muscled. I'm imagine that she's a good climber from the way that she holds herself. She has kind dark eyes, and when I consider her voice, I think that she must be a singer. "So, Maze," I say conversationally as we stroll across the Training Center, "Do you have any family back home?"

She glances at me for a moment, before nodding. Her voice sounds surprisingly normal as she speaks. "My mother recently died in childbirth, and my father has been dead for two years. I have six younger siblings - four sisters, and three brothers. I ... I'd do anything for them. We live with my grandmother now, but she's old and doesn't remember much anymore - on good days, she'll remember who we are. On bad days ... well, she can't work on bad days." I nod slightly, not wanting to speak and stop Maze from sharing. "I take care of my siblings as best I can - little Colwort is only a year old, and he has to stay home with Grandmother. The other boys, Cress and Flax, are the next youngest, only four and five. They work in the fields, though, running messages from Peacekeepers to the workers." Her eyes are blank, as though remembering home. "My youngest sister is Ambrosia, and she's six years old. She's the shyest, cutest kid on the Earth. Then there's the twins - Fern and Sorrel. They're eight, and they never leave each other's sides. Fern is the baby of the two, and Sorrel will do whatever she can to keep Fern from getting hurt or worried. And then there's Rue. She's eight years old, and she has the prettiest singing voice in the world." With a blush, she admits, "I taught her everything she knows."

I smile at Maze. "I thought that you were a singer."

"How did you know?" she asks. We are nearing the boy station, but I slow our pace, reluctant to stop this conversation.

I shrug in response to her question. "It was something in your voice. Are there Entertainers in District 11?" I can tell immediately from her expression that there are not. "They're people with musical talents that sing songs, play music, and tell stories to their town. In payment, their town gives them the food and clothes they need to survive." I look down, slightly embarrassed as I add, "I was an Entertainer's apprentice." The word 'was' sounds particularly ominous.

Maze's eyes are shining with jealousy. "You have a choice as to what you do in District 7?"

Blushing, I shrug again. "In the moving towns that cut down the wood, sort of. In the wood processing factories, where Raven lives, the only choice you have is who you live and work with. But I live in Sawdust, where we are all lumberjacks. When we are of Reaping age, though, we qualify to be Scouts. I'm in the Crescent Moon Troop, and we search out the areas the Sawdust is about to move to, and to cut back the forest. It's a dangerous job, and we come with life-or-death confrontations on a daily business. But being an Entertainer is kind of looked down upon, since it is such an easy living."

Maze looks more jealous than ever. "And you would've spent your whole live making music for people?" I nod, and she gives me a sour look. "In District 11, we all work in the fields, which are guarded by Peacekeepers. The Peacekeepers assign us our jobs in the fields, and we don't have any say on whether we work in the day or the night." She pauses before changing the subject hurriedly. "What about your family?"

"My father died years ago in a forest fire," I tell her, trying to keep my tone light. "My mother runs the house, and I have two younger sisters - Aria and Creta. Aria acts so old now - she's twelve, and she'll probably join the Crescent Moon Troop soon. Creta's very sweet, and she loves carving little figurines in her spare time. And River Arbre, from another moving town, is courting me." I'm blushing. "He's a Scout, too."

Maze smiles at me, her jealousy still obvious. "That's sounds really nice." She motions to the bows, and I nod. We step towards the racks, admiring the many bows of all sizes. The trainer approached us with a greeting, and points out a bow for each of us quickly. I take the small, black bow in my hands and stretch out the string, testing it. The trainer shows me how to hold it and place an arrow on it.

I stand beside Maze, facing the targets, only about five feet away. Placing the arrow on the string, I draw it up to my shoulder slowly, methodically, as the trainer instructs Maze on how to hold her fingers. Taking a deep breath, I let go of the string. The arrow whizzes just over the target, sticking to the wall behind it. Disappointed, I reach for a new arrow, putting it back on the bow. "Take your time," the trainer suggests. "concentrate on where you want it to go."

Adjusting my stance so that my legs are farther apart, I take another deep breath and raise the bow. I stare at the target, my eyes finding the red center or it. I stare at it, let a breath out, and allow the arrow to slip from my fingers. It darts towards the target, landing directly in the middle.

I let out a little gasp of surprise, excitement flooding through me. I grab another arrow, and repeat the process. The arrow lands right of the target, but my hand is already reaching for another arrow. The next arrow I loose meets the other in the center, as does the one after that. Beaming, I turn to watch Maze, who has hit one into the center and is struggling to do so again. The trainer catches my eye and congratulates me on my progress, removing my arrows and moving the target backwards.

Eager for a challenge, I take my stance and loose another arrow. It is far from the target, but the next catches the edge. I'm learning quickly that trial and error will help me figure out how to do this. My next three also land out. frustrated, I glance over at Maze to find that she's having as much trouble as I am with the far away targets. The trainer tells us, "Don't get frustrated. It can take time to learn." After several more minutes of shooting, Maze and I both manage to hit the center of the targets, to our great delight.

The trainer replaces the circular targets with human dummies, marked red in the spots where vital organs are. We are to aim at those spots. Feeling slightly sick, I take my stance before the dummy, and practice aiming at the various spots - the heart, the hand, the stomach, the knee, and the temple. Once Maze and I have mastered this technique from various distances, we have been at the station for over two hours. The trainer, appearing pleased with our progress, presses a button that makes the dummies run back and forth, and instructs us to shoot them now. "You'll very rarely have a still target," he reminds us.

Bearing this in mind, I stand before the dummies, take a deep breath, and shoot. My arrow misses by feet. Gritting my teeth, I grab another arrow, and let it loose quicker this time. It spirals out of control, around the bow station. I grab another one, firing again and again until, finally, one of my arrows catches one of the dummies' elbows. Maze has already managed to pierce the heart of one, and, encouraged, I begin firing again and again until I can hit them fairly well. When I make contact with one's temple, I shudder, trying not to think about that dummy as a real tribute.

Thanking the trainer, Maze and I leave the bow station, heading towards the edible plants station, where we spotted October's orange head. Sure enough, Raven and October are at the station, and smile at us in greeting. Raven is standing before a small screen projected onto a bigger screen before him. "He's picking out the edible plants," October explains as Raven touches one hesitantly, and it disappears from the screen. October directs Maze and I to a table on which tons of plant models sit, labeled underneath with their names and their benefits, typically, POISONOUS.

Maze's face breaks into a small smile as she studies the plants. Of course, being from District 12, she is probably well accustomed to many of these. Her hands run over the plants, lingering on the Ferns, the Sorrel, and other various plants that her siblings are named after. I begin studying them all, trying to give Maze her space to remember her family.

Raven walks back over to study the plants again, pointing out a few to me in a low voice that he forgot. I nod, thankful for his help. The trainer is standing beside October, watching his progress with great satisfaction. "Wonderful," I hear him say to October. "Only two wrong ... quite good!"

Maze looks up, and sees that October is done. She walks over to take his place by the screen, her fingers choosing the different pictures of plants at iconic speed, her fingers flying across the keyboard. I can't help it - I abandon the table with the models to join her, staring at the screen as the pictures disappear. When she is done, the trainer proclaims it a perfect performance, and Maze beams.

I step forward as the screen scrambles the plants, and take a deep breath. I choose my first edible plant quickly - wild potatoes are common in District 7, as well as radishes and carrots. I find the corn, or maze, and the sorrel, fern, and so on. My hand lingers over the nightlock berry, and I shudder, remembering its fast-acting poison. After finishing about half of the icons, I stop, not remembering any more. The trainer tells me that I did not do badly for a first time, and I smile and thank him.

We leave the edible plants station for the camouflage station. It is edible from the start that none of us are particularly gifted in this aspect, but we spend about forty minutes mixing mud and leaves together. I am satisfied with the way I managed to camouflage a shirt to blend into a forest landscape, and can make a considerable camouflage for a snowy area like District 7 as well.

The shrill sound echoes around the Training Center again, and all the tributes stop what they are doing. I notice an open space in the wall - a doorway - that wasn't there moments ago. Atala's loud voice announces, "Put down your weapons! It is time to eat!" She motions to the doorway, indicating that the food was through it. Then she joins the Gamemakers atop their balcony, glancing at the tributes below and talking to each other.

I glance at October, Maze, and Raven, wiggling my still-camoflauged fingers at them. Maze makes to tickle me with her own, and I dart away with something like a giggle. The trainer motions us to something like a sink. We rinse our fingers in the cool water, and I leave my hands in them for longer than is necessary, relishing the coolness upon my skin. How I miss District 7.

~~BTCS~~

What? Rue ... is Maze's ... WHAT IS GOING ON? That, my friend, is a very good question. Hahaha... I love my fun twists. You are so shocked that you must review now! Hmm ... what do you think of my version of the training center? Fawn's pretty awesome - she has that natural aptitude to weapons that should scare you. I based a lot of this off the movie, not much on the book, because I felt like there was more to elaborate off of in the movie rather than the book. I used Atala's speech word for word. In the book, was there any mention of compulsory exercises? I don't remember ... oh, well, I decided that would be fun to work with.

Oh, in book 2, Katniss said that there was no swimming pool in the Training Center. That's stupid. I never understood why not. So, in BTCS, just assume that there is one. Sorry if this bothers you, but that's just what makes sense to me.