I looked out my Urso sized window at the forests speeding past. I tried to count the bird nests we passed, but we were going too fast. If the rebellion had had this kind of technology, I thought, then we would have won no problem. The train was from the Capitol, and it was taking us there apparently, "For the dang opening ceremonies! Go rot in your room." That was how our "escort" had phrased it. His name was Grig and he wasn't really escorting us, he was just in the same train. He had taken us to the train and locked us in our rooms for an hour until I managed to pick the lock. Maybe they would have a locked door to take us to safety in the arena, because then I would definitely win. He hadn't seemed too angry that we had escaped, but when we talked to him, he wasn't very nice. Grig had extremely pale skin, so pale I didn't think it was normal. Maybe he had some type of rare skin disease that also made him rude? His brown dreadlocks ended in pink ribbons and his large head was way too big for his body. So now I was back in my room, trying to figure out what the games would be like.

"Maggie," my father had said, "you'll do fine! After all, you've been fighting in the rebellion for, what, six years?" That was true. And I couldn't say I enjoyed killing them, but I was happy to. But in the games, I would be fighting people my own age and younger. And it wasn't like I had a very good reason to kill them. OK, so maybe I did have the reason that they were trying to kill me, but other than that…not really. And it was televised for everyone to see! Maybe I could just hide out in a tree…

But what if the arena didn't even have trees? Cartwheeler had said that it could be anything from a desert, to a tundra, to a tropical island. I think I could deal with it being a tropical island, because of the water, but a desert? I would die the first day. I sat there looking out the window thinking of all the ways I could die for who knows how long, when I hear a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" I ask.

"Urso."

"Oh," I say, "come in."

He opens the door hesitantly, like he's expecting some giant spider to pop out at his face.

"So?" I ask.

Urso opens his mouth then closes it. I can tell he's been thinking about the Hunger Games too. "Grig gave me some movies he says they watch in the Capitol."

"He actually talked to you?" I ask him as a huge grin breaks out on my face.

"Believe it or not he did," laughs Urso. "He said they're about survival or something, and that it might help prepare us for the games. He said that the games are probably going to be designed to entertain the Capitol, so he thinks they might get some inspiration from the movies."

"What's a movie?"

"Apparently it's like TV, only not everything is real, like they have people pretending to be lost at sea and stuff. Like acting." I nod my head. We used to have monthly plays during the rebellion. Once I played a cow from district 10. He continues, "So you wanna get started?"

The TV is nothing like the one we used to own. It's huge and black, and once again, Urso sized. And it doesn't go fuzzy or have two well-rusted wires sticking out of the top. We sit kind of awkwardly on what my mother used to call a "love seat." And since we aren't in love, or anywhere near that, it's pretty awkward. The first movie we watched was about people trying to climb this humongous snowy mountain. For fun. Who would do that for fun? But anyways, a huge boulder rolls on top of one of the guys arms and he sits there howling in pain for a couple days when a huge snowstorm rolls in. The other guys in his group have been bringing him food and stuff, but right now they aren't here and the guy is probably going to get buried in 10 feet of snow. He tries to roll the boulder off, but it's no use. Finally he resorts to cutting his own arm off, which is pretty blinding, even for me. He finds his group and they find a safe place to wait out the storm. They don't finish climbing the mountain and have to hike back down. It's a little unrealistic, but I've never seen a mountain, or snow, so I guess I know a little more now.

By the second movie I've forgotten about the awkwardness, and am curled up on the love seat. It's about these people whose plane crashes in the middle of the ocean and they're floating out there for days and days. They eat one person (Grig told Urso that it's probably not a very good idea to eat people because the Capitol won't like that), but then they figure out a way to catch fish. Eventually they wash up on some little tropical island full of fruit and animals. They feed some fruit to the animals to see if it's poisonous, which I think is a pretty good idea. One of the fruits didn't affect the animal, but killed one person. That was a good thing to think about. Especially if they have animals like tracker jackers and jabber jays running all over the place. In the end, the island sets on fire and just before the people are surrounded by flames, they are rescued by a search party that saw the fire.

There are about 3 other movies and by the time they are finished, we've wasted this very boring day. They are set in a forest, a snowy wasteland, and a desert. They do help a lot and I feel a little bit more prepared. But I'm still doubting myself.

After a very uneventful dinner full of glares from Grig, I take the first shower to actually clean me in 6 years, slip on fuzzy blue pajama pants and a polka-dotted tank top, and fall asleep under my fluffy chocolate-colored covers.

Oh, Grig...