Chapter Three
Each tribute gets two Peacekeepers as escorts as we are led back into the mansion. It feels wrong, being led around my own house, but I know it's for safety reasons. Imagine that, safety for the killers. How wonderful.
I am split apart from the others and led into the meeting room, and am told to sit down and wait for any visitors. I shouldn't try to escape. I should just sit here.
Easy to say when you're a Peacekeeper whose only job is to literally "keep the peace."
I sit with my hands folded, constantly wringing them and glancing back and forth. Just when I think I might be going in without any goodbyes, the door opens slowly to reveal Gerda and Kai. I stand up, accepting Gerda's open arms, and enjoy one of my final moments of intimacy. Once in the Games, it's killed or be killed.
I don't like those odds.
Gerda grasps my shoulders, and Kai looks at me intently. No words are said, but none need to be. We simply say our goodbyes in a different way.
The door opens, Captain Weselton at the door, and the couple turns away to leave. Before he exits, though, Kai whispers something in my ear that I will never forget: "Life's too short to waste another minute." And with that, he walks away, the door closing behind him.
I swallow a forming lump in my throat, and wait to see if anyone else comes. Surprisingly enough, the door opens, and I am greeted by Captain Weselton himself.
"Any words you have for me, sir?" I mutter, watching his brow crease in anger.
He simply gestures for me to follow, and I stand up calmly, letting him lead me to the train station.
As soon as I realize where we are, I have to hold on to myself to keep calm. I clench my jaw and fists, closing my eyes in shock, and hold back the tears. This is where my parents died. The exact same way I am leaving for the Capitol.
A hand on my shoulder brings me back, and I realize it's Anna again. Her eyes are almost vacant, but enough of her is still there to tell me she remembers. I clasp her hand briefly, and let it fall to her side again. The two boys are already on the train by the looks of it, so I nod to Anna and walk towards the gleaming bullet train.
Inside is a lavish car with a table of rich food and elegant drinks. The boys sit on one side of the table, and I can tell they are from that odd poor corner of District One. They stare hungrily at the food, and I can't help but smile at it.
Anna seems happier, as she sits between the boys, and starts up a conversation with the younger. Does she know him?
"Hey, Olaf," she says quietly, squeezing the little boy's hand.
He smiles, his crooked teeth showing, and whispers a response: "Hey."
"You two know each other?" I ask, feeling a bit awkward as I sit on the opposite side of the table.
My sister giggles a bit, then smacks the side of her head. All she does seems a bit muted, as if the stupor of the Hunger Games is still upon her. "I forgot you never really came out of your room. Elsa, this is Olaf, he's Kai and Gerda's little nephew." The boy smiles shyly, and I give a small smile.
"But wait," I say, rubbing a hand to my head, "why haven't they spoken of him before?" I was curious to know about this all-of-a-sudden brought-up nephew.
Anna shrugs. "Never came up, I guess?" She snatches up a croissant and takes a bite out of it. "Wow, these are good."
I'm about to remind her of manners when the escort arrives with the mentor, stopping me from saying a thing.
"Up, all of you," the mentor says, a very thick Russian accent making her sound like a soldier. "Now!" She says snappily after two seconds of delay.
We all rush into a line, Anna nearly falling over her chair as she rushes around to the other side of me. The woman's blonde hair is pulled back so tightly that her skin has also tightened, and her thin eyes are an icy blue. Her upturned nose and cheekbones give her that snobby "I'm so much better than you" look. She walks around us, muttering something incomprehensible every once in a while, and then pulls us up one at a time.
Me first.
I'm yanked in front of her, and she stares right into my eyes like daggers. "Elsa Hirdóttir. Age?" She snaps quickly.
"Eighteen."
She scoffs. "You look like a fifteen year old girl. What do you do all day, sit in your bedroom?"
That hurts for some reason. I squeak out a timid "yes," and she laughs.
"You poor child, we shall she what you really are by the time the Games begin." And with that I am shoved back into line and replaced by my sister.
"Anna Hirdóttir. Age?"
"Fifteen," she whispers, surprised by the woman's attitude.
"Fifteen?" She asks quickly, accepting Anna's nod. "And you are sister of Elsa?"
Another nod. The woman seems please with this. She looks at Anna again, and I realize I hadn't even noticed up until now her outfit. An olive skirt, pleated and covered in embroidery, and a black tank top to match, with a pale green sweater on top. She has also done her hair up, and secured it with a ribbon. Around her neck is a small locket, and she wears tall black boots. A complimentary outfit to mine.
"Anna, you look nimble. Do you have training?"
She shakes her head and answers softly, "No, I mostly ran around the mansion when I was little. It could get kinda lonely in there."
I shake slightly, but try to withhold it. Because of me, she grew up running around the mansion. Because of me, she feels alone. That hurts me even more.
Luckily the woman switches out Anna for little Olaf, who is apparently very flexible and has a big brother who wanted him to go into the Games. That's why his brother didn't volunteer…that sounds awful…would I have done that if I had grown up with Anna more?
No, I assure myself, as the final boy is brought up for inspection. His name is Kristoff, and he is the adopted son of the physicians who tried to help me with my…afflictions. I already feel awful enough watching my sister and me go into a battle to the death, but now others I know or know family of could possibly, and most likely, die on live television.
The Capitol is awful.
The woman stands in front of our line again, and stands even taller. She must be over six feet, though she is nearly thinner than a sapling tree, and has the look of an elf. "I am Electra Romanova, your mentor for these Games. I won the Hunger Games thirty years ago, when I was seventeen. I have trained many victors, and believe this year we shall win again. Although," she says, glancing my way, "we have many hurdles to overcome."
I sigh, turning my gaze downward, when the escort enters again. "What a wonderful, action-packed, fantabulous Reaping! Oh, the viewers will eat this up." His voice squeaks as if he hasn't yet escaped puberty, though his voice is still too high for that. I cover my eyes as he bends over to pick up the remote on a mahogany table, which switches on a television showing all the other Reapings. We are close to the Capitol, so our ride will be short, thank goodness, but that also means that we don't have to watch the actual Reapings, but just the recaps. Electra seats us on a white leather couch, side-by-side, and has us take note of the multitude of competitors. I notice a strong looking boy from Two, a girl volunteer for her disabled sister in Four, the other girl from Four with a fairy-like look, and a girl from Five with way too much hair.
This will be an interesting year.
A gasp comes from the electric-looking escort, and he nearly falls from fake shock. "I haven't even introduced myself!" He moans, squeaking all the while. "I am Placidus Fairbain, your escort for the entirety of the Games, and if you are victor, even longer!" His lightning-white grin nearly blinds me, but his voice slips down to a lower octave at the last word, and I hear little Olaf groan. I can't help but chuckle lightly, at which Placidus huffs. "Yes, Elsa? Do you have anything to say?" I shake my head, covering a grin with my gloved hand, and he nods. Man, Capitol people are so easily convinced.
They'd have to be to enjoy the Hunger Games.
Soon enough, we arrive in the Capitol station unscathed and unharmed. After the scare of the dark tunnel, I'm glad to see that we're still all alive. I take deep breaths as we are led towards the door, trying to brace myself to the surprise.
It still surprises me, though, and my sister has to brace me for the shock. "Just smile and walk towards the building," she whispers in my ear, and I nod, walking forward with a very fake smile on my face.
Only after I enter the building do I realize I was holding my breath. I suck in air with gasps that surprise everyone present, and I have to grin sheepishly as they go back to their fascinating jobs of rearranging papers, pots of something melted, and white robes.
Three Capitol workers rush up to me with huge grins, and I grimace. More Capitol people here to examine me? Great. They walk me towards a wooden table and look me over, nodding and whispering amongst themselves.
Finally they turn back to me, and the smallest one grins a huge, botox-filled grin, looking not at my eyes, but all over. "What are you waiting for?" She asks in a strong Capitol accent, "get those clothes off!"
What have I gotten myself into?
AN/ Oh Elsa, if you only knew what was to come. Enjoy this next chapter of Frostbitten!
Also, I just wanted to say that reviews often encourage me to keep writing, and I definitely don't want to let this fanfic go! I'd love to hear your response on this story ^-^
Watch for next week's chapter coming Wednesday as usual!