Updated as of June 18th, 2021

Hello. Welcome to I Volunteer as Tribute.

ONTO THE STORYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Disclaimer: I doughnut own anything. Are you jelly? You shouldn't be ( ._.)

FLASHBACK TO LAST CHAPTER

The tiles of the ceiling stared back at me and remained silent, only re-enforcing the doubt I held for such a fantasy.

I turned on my side and closed my eyes again.

If I was going to do what I hadn't all those years ago, I'd need to sleep, even if my dreams were riddled with nightmares fueled by guilt.

Goodnight, Laurel.

Early morning light seeped through the window of my room, bathing my face with its warm glow and stirring me from my dream. My eyes opened up lazily, finding nothing wrong with being woken up this way. I stretched leisurely and turned on my side, reaching for the warm body of Lily to hold against me. Just the cold silkiness of the bed sheets met my touch, reminding me of how utterly alone I was.

"Up, up, up, Laurel! It's going to be a big, big, big day!"

Effie.

Her annoying peppy voice shattered the small escape from reality my semi-conscious mind had created for me. My eyes widened and I sat up, taking in the lavish decorations and white walls with a heavy heart. I was in the Capitol. Not home. Of course my bed would be empty. How ridiculous for me to assume otherwise.

Stretching out again quickly, I scooted out of the bed and began getting ready for the day. My shower passed without much incident; the many buttons were somehow less intimidating than before. I let the dryer do its job and pulled on my clothes, somehow ending up in front of the mirror. Pausing, I cocked my head to the side and really examined my appearance. My hands went up to my hair, breaking the dark mass up into three sections before twisting them around each other. The end product was a neat braid that laid primly down my front. I smiled faintly at my reflection, longing for Katniss and her odd quirks filling me as I traced the simple design.

My eyes fell onto the ugly mark marring the skin not covered by my tunic, my smile faltering and eventually falling. The puckered skin still looked angry after all these years, even after it had healed. I looked away, my good mood dispersing once again as I absently undid the braid. What was I thinking, letting it go uncovered? I scoffed at my own ignorance and left the room, making sure the blemish was hidden by my hair before heading out for breakfast.

Only Haymitch awaited my arrival when I walked into the dining room. He sat nursing a cup of coffee, dark circles marring the underside of his eyes. I approached slowly, stopping when his troubled eyes flicked up to look at my face. He gestured to the chair across from him, wanting me to sit. I did so cautiously, not quite sure what to make of his odd behavior.

"Can we get some food in here, please?" He called gruffly towards one of the Avoxes. They nodded hastily and shuffled out of the room, presumably to go get our breakfast. I looked down at my hands, a frown pulling the corners of my lips down. Despite all the glitz and glamour people here liked to hide behind, it was obvious the Capitol really was a cruel place.

Haymitch and I were silent as we waited for the Avox to return with our breakfast. He took a few long sips from his coffee, and I stared at my hands, my mind wandering back to my home, and what the twins were up to, and how my parents were getting along. Before long my nails were pressing into my palms, and I had to pull myself back into reality in order to make them stop. Thankfully, I didn't have to explain this oddity to my mentor as the Avox chose just then to bring in breakfast.

I shifted uncomfortably in my chair as she served us, the nagging urge rising to tell her it was okay, that I could dole out the rest of the food if she wanted me to. But, I squashed the feeling down. That's not how things worked out here. You weren't supposed to talk to the servants, at least, not conversationally. I scoffed in my head. These people weren't servants. These poor people had their tongues removed and were turned into slaves. My eyes fell back onto my hands as my upper lip curled, disgusted with the corrupted ways of our government. I was once again brought back to attention when the clinking sound of silverware scraping against a plate started up.

Looking down at my own plate, I noted the abundance of food that, if I were back home, would take a few months of saving up to just buy half of the ingredients needed to make it. Guilt ate away at me as I began eating, unable to stop myself from imagining the looks of longing the other children in my district would show if they ever saw my plate. Nothing was fair in this world. Nothing.

After a while of eating in silence, Haymitch cleared his throat and set his coffee down. I took this as my cue to set aside my empty plate and find out what seemed to be bothering my middle-aged mentor. He folded his fingers and looked at me with a critical eye, and for some reason it felt like we were back on the train.

"Haymitch, is something wrong?" I asked tentatively, bracing myself just in case he lashed out at me. Going against what I expected him to do, the stubbly-chinned victor remained calm, keeping his steady gaze on my face as if he were looking for something in particular.

"Ya know you spar today, right?" He asked suddenly, acting as if I had never said anything. I blinked and sat back, not quite sure what to make of the conversation so far.

"I figured I might. Why do you ask, Haymitch?" I said quietly, apprehensive of his next question.

"I guess I meant something else by that. What I really would like to know is, do you want to spar, Laurel?"

Silence.

He nodded softly, whether to whatever was going on in his head or to my lack of an answer, I couldn't say. Wiping crumbs away from his mouth, he pushed away from the table and stood up, prompting me to do the same. We walked towards the elevator together, and I couldn't bring myself to look any higher than the floor.

The elevator door slid open silently and we walked inside, Haymitch pressing the button to go down. I stared at the colorful patterns on the carpet, tracing the swirling designs with my eyes as I reminisced back to happier times. Back when Katniss and I were finally becoming friends. When we ran through the woods, racing each other to a kill we had made a good ways off. Where we were free from the confines of the dirty streets and could be ourselves. Sure, Gale was usually there to put a damper on the mood with his grouchiness, but that didn't matter. No one could tell us what to do out there. It was just us.

"I'll be watching from the balcony today," Haymitch said from beside me, bringing me out of my thoughts. I nodded, my eyes still not wanting to leave the ground.

"Don't let anything get to ya when you're out there. Just keep yer head on straight and you should do fine. I'll be cheering for ya the whole time, brat," he said, chuckling lightly towards the end. I smiled faintly and nodded, knowing deep down that, while he was trying to cheer me up, his words had no influence on me.

A soft ding resonated around us as the elevator slowed to a stop, its doors gliding open as smoothly as it had the first time. I shuffled out of the lift, about to take another step forward when Haymitch gently grabbed hold of my arm, startling and freezing me in place.

"Remember, you want to have a few surprises up your sleeve when you go into the arena. Don't show off too much, and whatever you do, don't let them see you cry," he said into my ear. My eyes widened and I turned my head to look back at him, eyeing him warily. What exactly did he know? How much did he know? And who would have told him anything anyways?

His grip on my arm loosened and he let go, the elevator doors shutting between us. I stood there staring at where he once stood for who knows how long, my mind buzzing with all these different questions I needed to ask. Did he know? About my past? How? And why would he care?

I shook my head and turned my back on the door, determined to get through this training day without shedding a single tear. I would prove him wrong. I would prove all of them wrong. Serves them right for betting against a little girl.

It seemed practically all the tributes were already crowded together near Atala, some shifting nervously in their place as they stared anxiously at the Careers. I was one of the last ones the show up, but thankfully not a lot of them noticed my appearance. The Careers were their usual, boisterous selves, much to the displeasure and fear of most of the other tributes. Unsurprisingly, Glimmer was once more hanging off of the two Career leaders, 2 and 4, not quite picking up on the disinterest their body language showed at the display. Nice to know that they weren't total pigs.

Hive happened to turn his head towards my direction, his hazel eyes lighting up as he motioned me over. A small smile pulled at his thin lips as I slowed to a stop next to him, a relieved look on his face. Klew popped her head into view from the opposite side of her district partner, a grin spreading quickly as she met my gaze.

"There you are! Where have you been? What took you so long!" She said quietly, bounding to my side with the energy of a puppy. Her rapid fire questioning caught me off-guard, and all I could muster was a small 'uh' before she was off again on another subject. I glanced at Hive, asking with my eyes if she was like this all the time. The tired look he shot back provided all the answers I needed.

"Attention, tributes! All eyes up here!" Atala called loudly, silencing all in attendance, including Klew. Smirking in satisfaction, the tall woman gestured for Sinius to come to her side. The timid assistant did so reluctantly, his legs shaking slightly as he walked towards her. It appeared he remembered the intimidating woman's threats from the day before, as he should.

"Alright, today will go similarly to yesterday, the only exception being that today, the Gamemakers will be watching from the balcony over there," she said, pointing towards a platform on the west wall that hadn't been there before. A buffet table along with several chairs rested on top of it, a steel railing the only thing separating all of it from the training room. How...dangerous, I thought to myself. A tribute could easily hurl something at them and they wouldn't be able to do anything to stop it. I wondered offhandedly how they would be able to cover that up.

"Sparring matches will begin the same time as yesterday. You are now dismissed," Atala said, waiting for the tributes to disperse before turning to Sinius and talking quietly.

"Sooo, where do we want to go first?" Klew asked excitedly, looking between Hive and I as she awaited our answer.

"Could we go to the camouflage station?" Hive said, bowing his head almost immediately in embarrassment. "I-I just thought it might be smart to learn how to...You know, in case we might need it or something..." He said, trailing off as his ears grew redder. Klew chuckled and grabbed his arm, rolling her eyes as he continued trying to explain his decision. She glanced back at me, her brow quirked up in question when I didn't follow them.

"I'm gonna head over to the swimming station for a while. Don't wait for me," I said, turning to go to my own respected station once she nodded.

Once I got there, the expert directed me to a small changing area, where I was able to change into a swimsuit. It covered most of my skin and made me feel at least a little comfortable. The large pool that greeted me on my way out was crystal clear, its green-blue coloring contrasting with the dark grey and metallic design of the rest of the room. A small smile began tugging at my lips as I took a step closer, my skin itching to feel its cool texture envelope me. I crouched down and slowly slipped into the water, not bothered in the slightest by the chilly temperature. My eyes closed on their own accord as I sank down, letting my muscles relax as I slowly went underwater.

Once upon a time, Katniss had taken me to this odd clearing in the woods, complete with an old stone building and a pond. That's where she taught me how to swim, though she never understood why I wouldn't take my shirt off. I got to experience the gentler side of her that day, the side she usually reserved just for Prim. It made me feel a little special, which for me was a rarity.

My eyes burned when I opened them below the water's surface, but I'd come to expect that. What I didn't expect was the obscured outline of another tribute not too far away from where I was. Curiosity got the better of me, along with the need for oxygen to survive, and soon enough I was swimming back up. Blinking the water out of my eyes, I turned and looked at the newcomer, my brow rising slightly as I took in the sight before me.

The stringy-haired female tribute from District 4 was to my left, her eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets as she clung to the side of the pool, hyperventilating. The station expert was trying to calm her down, explaining to her how she would be right there to save her if the girl needed help. I couldn't help but gawk at the display, finding it ironic that the tribute from the only district related to water acted as though the stuff terrified her. Despite the traditional hatred I was supposed to feel towards a Career tribute, I couldn't help but feel as though she really wasn't one. Her Reaping came back to mind, and I remembered how scared she looked on that stage with all those people eyeing her. She hadn't wanted to be apart of this any more than the rest of us had. Maybe that was why I decided to take pity on her.

"Hey, if you want, you could hold onto me if you don't feel comfortable being on your own yet," I said, swimming closer to her.

Her head whipped to the side as she locked eyes with me, her breathing rate slowly decelerating. Despite her current state, her eyes narrowed and she looked me up and down, her pride and upbringing causing her to pull back and sneer. I mentally rolled my eyes, cursing myself for being so kind to a fellow competitor. What was wrong with me? Being kind to fellow tributes would only make their deaths that much more difficult later on.

Before I could degrade myself any farther, the struggling girl nodded slowly, drawing my attention back to her as the suspicious look left her eyes. Her round face seemed much more tender as she edged her way closer to me, her eyes on the pool siding. The expert looked down at me with a grateful smile, but I didn't acknowledge it. Even the experts here couldn't be bothered to help the tributes who really needed it. What was the point of them being around?

I held out my arm for her to grab a hold of once she was close enough, and surprisingly enough she took it. Her grip was strong, expressing the terror she felt even though her breathing had calmed once more. Being careful not to scare her too much, I began moving us gradually around the large pool, keeping my movements even and fluent as to not startle her. I didn't really feel like drowning before the Games started.

As we maneuvered our way around, her grip loosened so that she still had a good hold, but was no longer cutting off the circulation to the arm. She helped paddle slightly, and I couldn't help but feel a small amount of pride at her small improvement. Soon enough, her hold on my arm was almost non-existent as she made her way around on her own. Once she finally gained the courage enough to let go, she beamed at me, the grin so wide on her face I thought it was going to split in half.

Thinking I had spent enough time at the station, I made my way towards the side of the pool, watching her tentatively swim about with a small smile. She still stuck near the wall as much as she could, but at least she wasn't clinging to it. It was nice to think I made a difference for someone. My smile quickly fell, however, as I realized that I may have potentially saved her life at the cost of my own in the arena. Great.

"Um, hi," a sudden voice announced quietly, breaking me out of my thoughts. It was a wonder people found me entertaining at all when I was always lost in my own mind half the time.

Glancing to where the voice had come from, my brow shot up in surprise to see the blonde girl treading water a ways in front of me. She looked away, a blush spreading rapidly on her face.

"Hello," I said, unsure of how to proceed. She seemed to perk up with my response, her face lighting up again with another smile. It appeared her district treated their teeth well, as hers were a pearly white just like her partner's.

"Thank you for, um, helping me with the water. I'm Merida, by the way," Merida said as she glanced away again. I looked at her oddly, surprised that there were still Careers as shy as her around. I immediately scolded myself for thinking that way. Not every Career was the same.

"I'm Laurel, and it was nothing, don't worry about it," I said, heaving myself out of the water. She quickly followed suit, wrapping her towel around her as soon as she could.

"You didn't have to help me with swimming, you know. I mean, what District 4 kid is scared of water? That's like saying a bird is scared to fly!" She joked sheepishly, hugging the towel closer to her.

"It's alright," I said with a chuckle, wrapping my own towel around my body as I began to dry off.

"Wanna know something funny? You aren't anything like I thought you would be," she said offhandedly, a smile tugging at her lips again followed by a small burst of nervous giggles. I stopped drying my leg for a moment to look over at her, my brow furrowed.

"Oh yeah? Why's that?" I asked cautiously, my body tensing for an insult I was sure was coming.

"You're just different than the rest of us. You look intimidating, but you are really kind. You're from a district where they almost never win, yet you take it in stride and, well, it's like you throw it back in our faces for thinking you were weak. Oh! I swear it's not a bad thing!" She quickly corrected herself, looking at me with wide eyes.

"Huh," I grunted, finishing toweling off as I thought about her words. It was odd how much she sounded like Finnick.

"It's just like...You make this whole thing seem less dark. You're, well...You're comforting. At least, you are to me. So, thank you, really." She giggled, tugging at her earlobe as she shifted her feet. I stared at her for a moment, lost for words.

"Well, I gotta go...So, um, bye. Good luck with your sparring match, I'll be rooting for you," she said, shooting me another timid smile before she hurried to go change. I stood there for a moment. What was I supposed to say about that? Who just tells their opponent that?

After changing back into my training attire, I met Klew and Hive at the camouflage station where Hive had been showing significant skill in disguising various things. Klew was more than happy to fill me in on all that I missed out on, not that I asked. Hive humbly showed me what he had learned, his hands able to move intricately with the leaves and vines to make every piece so natural looking it was like they were meant to be there. I told him as much.

"Thanks," he humbly acknowledged, and it was obvious he wasn't complimented often. "My mom's an inventor, and when I was younger she would let me tinker with her supplies...These vines are kind of like the wires she had in her workshop, ya know?"

After I attempted a few of the basics, for example hiding a hole in a wall from outsiders view or a small cave in a bunch of loose rocks, Klew decided it would be best if we moved on. When they came up with the idea of learning how to climb things, I had to tell them farewell once again. If I was going to survive in the arena, I would need to keep a few tricks up my sleeve. So, I instead went to the trident-handling station. It was something I had never used before, and probably never use again, but it was an interesting concept that drew me in as soon as I laid eyes on it. I figured I didn't have to shy away from the weapons now anyways due to my various stints yesterday.

The trainer here was indifferent to my presence, which didn't bother me any. All she did was offer me a trident before going back to filing her nails, something that seemed a tad obnoxious to do, but I just shrugged it off and went to the target area. It felt odd holding a trident in my hands, but it really wasn't that different from an average spear. More top-heavy if anything. Weighing it in my hands to find a good balance for it, I planted my feet. Eyeing the target, I let out a slow breath before inhaling deep. I thought back to Cato's advice at the spear station, deciding it couldn't hurt to use it. Twisting my upper body, I hurled the trident, frowning as it clattered to the floor several feet away from my target.

"Oh! Why, hello there, Mr. Odair. Have you come for some lessons?" I heard purred from behind me. Looking over my shoulder, I met the gaze of the tanned devil himself. The supposed trident expert had put away her nail file to pay him her full attention, and I couldn't help the shiver of revulsion that crawled up my spine. I turned my back on them, retrieving my trident instead of going to her for another one.

"Hello, Mrs. Rydian. No, I'm sorry to say I'm just here to polish my own skills, thank you," Finnick smoothly said to the woman, and I couldn't help but curl my lip in disgust when he called her 'Mrs.'.

"That's too bad, I was really looking forward to it. Maybe some other time, hmm?"

I launched the trident again, letting my disgust with the woman out by throwing as hard as I could. It sunk in right above the thigh, burying itself so far I couldn't see the prongs. The force of impact caused the whole dummy to wobble uncertainly on its stand, but in the end it remained upright. A low whistle sounded off from beside me, Finnick walking forward as he stared at the damage.

"Wouldn't want to be him right now," he said with a smirk, his eyes sliding to the corners to look at me. I raised an eyebrow at him and wordlessly went over to yank the trident out for another toss. I had a bad feeling this was going to turn out just like my encounter with Cato.

"You're not bad with a trident for a first-timer," he said, crossing his arms as I lined up to throw again. I paused, turning to look at him curiously.

"How do you know I'm a first-timer?"

"Because you're really slow on the set-up, and you're always re-adjusting your grip on the shaft, as if it makes you uncomfortable," he said. Then he winked. Did he really just...?

"Oh, believe me fish-boy, I can handle my own when the time comes," I retorted, shooting him a wink of my own. His eyebrows shot up.

"I didn't know you were so bold, Miss Dainton," he said, an amused smile setting itself on his plump lips. I took a step closer and stood up on my tippy-toes, placing my hand lightly on his chest as I got close to his ear.

"There's a lot of things you don't know about me, Mr. Odair," I said, quickly taking a step back and flinging the trident as hard as I could at my newest target. Instant regret filled me as it flew higher than I intended, much higher than any of my previous throws. I bit my lip, resisting the urge to look away until it pierced its target. In a blink, it landed on the floor, the dummy's decapitated head caught in its prongs.

"Feisty and strong, I like it," he laughed, his sea-green eyes glittering with mirth. I shrugged, playing it off as if I'd meant to aim for its head. In my head, I was freaking out. I couldn't do that again even if I wanted to. Gathering up the projectile for a final time, I removed the sand-filled sack from the tips.

"I'm not here to gain your affection," I said shortly, walking over to the trainer who tried to appear like she wasn't eavesdropping on our conversation, but failed big time. He strode to my side, gently taking the trident from my hands and tossing it carelessly at the expert, who barely caught it before it crashed to the ground.

"Hey!" I said indignantly, angry that he had taken it from me, but shocked into silence when his hands came up to rest on my shoulders.

"I want you to remember that not everyone here is your enemy, alright?" He said lowly, his expression somber as he stared deeply into my eyes. I nodded, unaware of what his angle was, but deciding it was better to agree. He grinned, his teeth a startling white against his tanned skin.

"I'm not your enemy either," he said softly, his grin fading significantly until it was just a gentle smile. Despite the part of me that was highly suspicious of him and the Career side of him, I let a faint smile show in response to his.

"I'll hold you to that," I said, removing his hands from my shoulders as I took a step back.

My heart slowed to its normal pace now that there was space to breathe. Too close. He had been too close.

"I'll see you around, I guess," I said, clearing my throat as I moved to leave. He frowned, but nodded.

"Alright, Laurel. Good luck sparring today," he said sincerely, sending me a little wave as I walked away.

"ATTENTION, TRIBUTES! Sparring sessions are beginning in a few moments! Stop what you are doing and head to the mats!" Atala commanded from the head of the room, her assistant Sinius standing mutely beside her.

I met up with Hive and Klew at the mats, where Klew had seemed to have lost her energy and was no longer talking a mile a minute. She did fill me in on their successes at climbing trees, with Hive only falling off a total of six times to Klew's four. I smiled at her innocence, and I wondered what the world would be like if we didn't have these hellish Games. Atala brought us all back to attention with a sharp whistle, ceasing all conversation.

"Alright everyone, our first tributes for today's sparring session are Jaxon Helsing and Clove Kentwell!"

A/N: Hello~ I'm back~

Sorry I took so long...Again...

BUT. I worked out an issue I had been having thanks to the lovely Lexus Ladelle, who helped me work it out very graciously.

Anyway, this chapter's shoutout are tooooo: TheLittlePervert, xenocanaan, fangirlsweunite, ShizukaRen-Hime, and TSCxHG. You guys are so adorable~

And thank you all my old Silent-Watchers and new ones alike. You are all dear to my heart in your own special ways of silenthood.

Okay.

Bye.