Kayla Rakkor, 15, District 9

I wake up with the dawn sunlight through the window, and I blink at the white ceiling.

Where am I…?

Oh. Yeah.

I roll out from under the covers, placing my feet on the floor. Before I stand up, I hesitate. Should I limp now? The cameras are everywhere in the arenas. Does the same thing apply for the Training Center? If the Gamemakers find out that it's an act, will they ruin it for me?

If there are cameras, then they'll know whether I fake it here or not, I realize. I'll have to talk to Vivienne and the others about strategy while I'm here, anyway… So, I'll walk normally when I'm on our floor.

I wander into the bathroom. It feels good to not be dragging my leg around for once. I take a quick shower, wondering at all the buttons but deciding that now is not the time to experiment, and when I come back into the bedroom, clean and dried, I pause. Someone's been in here. A small pile of clothes has been set out on my bed. Had it been one of the Avoxes, the silent servants who'd been around at dinner the night before?

Well, whoever it was, they must have been working on Arrian's instructions. It's a really simple outfit, much like what I would wear at home. A forest-green tunic is the top, and while this fits perfectly, the gray leggings that come with it feel strangely loose. Not loose like they're going to fall off, but the legs are much wider than they need to be. It almost feels like a skirt, in a weird sort of way…

I look at myself in the mirror, and I realize what Arrian has done for me. The extra fabric serves to completely shroud the shape of my legs, and when I slouch and limp it's impossible to see the shape or muscle arrangement of my legs. Even if that boy from District Three were to try to study me, he wouldn't be able to tell that I'm faking!

This cheers me up so much that I limp out to the dining room, enjoying my role.

Bergamot and Vivienne are already eating. The food is set out on a table off to the side, so I grab a plate and serve myself.

"So," Vivienne says as I sit down and begin to chow down on delicious, cheesy scrambled eggs. "Your training officially starts today. A good deal of it will take place downstairs in the gym, but I'll be coaching you up here. It's up to you two whether or not you want to be coached together."

"Together," Bergamot blurts. Vivienne looks at him, and then at me, one eyebrow raised.

I shrug. "What difference does it make?" I say. "He knows my secret already. I don't have anything else to hide."

"Which is exactly why we should be coached together," Bergamot says. "I know your secret, but you don't know any of mine. That's not fair. You deserve the chance to learn my secrets."

I just stare at him.

"That's noble of you," says Vivienne, tucking her long, graying hair behind her ears as she thinks. "Sometimes sponsors like the noble, selfless type. We could work with that when we get to the interviews…"

"What secrets do you have that I 'deserve the chance to learn?'" I ask.

Bergamot hesitates.

"Well… I'm pretty good with a bow," he says.

"Uh, yeah, so am I," I say. Almost everyone in District Nine learns how to use a bow and arrow, as well as making snares, in school. Only the people who work in the town—bakers, carpenters, and such—instead of as hunters are exempt from this education. You'd think that that would give us an edge in the Games, but usually a Career kills us before we can even touch a bow. My father explained to me once that Vivienne won her Hunger Games using just a knife and a long coil of rope that she'd snagged from the Cornucopia while everyone else was fighting. She turned the island that the arena had been into a minefield of snares and other kinds of traps. It was so bad that the Career pack eventually stopped moving around altogether out of fear of triggering one of her traps.

"Oh. Right." Bergamot seems to be genuinely trying to think of something to tell me, which is surprising. Shouldn't he want an advantage, so that he's one step closer to home, and to that girl…?

B and T. Bergamot and…?

"Tell me about the girl," I say. "The one who fainted at the Reapings. She's the 'T' on your bracelet, isn't she?"

"…Yes," says Bergamot. He's rubbing the bracelet again. "Her name is Thalia. She's… wonderful. We've been best friends for as long as I can remember, but recently… Well, recently, she's been more than just that. I love her more than anything."

He squeezes the bracelet, obviously fighting to keep his emotions in check.

"I don't see how that will help you, though," he mutters. "She won't be in the arena."

"No, we're even now," I reply.

He gives me a skeptical look, and the words are out of my mouth before I can think to stop them:

"The hunter is a killer, heartless thing,

Unless the prey does find where his love lies,

For then the hunter cannot strike the blow,

And happy prey is one who does not die."

Suddenly, I realize that both Vivienne and Bergamot are staring at me, and as I turn away from them in discomfort I see that Millie, Arrian, and Calpurnia had come to the doorway at some point during my conversation with Bergamot, unnoticed by me.

Great. Now everyone will think I'm crazy, like the girls at school do.

"Did you just make that up on the spot?" Arrian asks.

I nod.

"It was like poetry," Bergamot says. "That was really good."

I shrug. My words are a quirk, nothing more. What good will they do me in the arena? Who ever heard of someone being talked to death?

XXX

Shimmer Argent, 18, District 1

The one thing that I wish were different about the Hunger Games: District One should have the top floor, instead of the first one above ground level. I should have the best view of the city, not those kids from District Twelve. They practically live in the coal mines, anyway, so they'd probably be more comfortable closer to the ground. Maybe one of them will die of fright from looking out of the window. Then again, that would mean less fun for me.

After an incredibly short elevator ride, Phenom and I are stepping out into a massive gymnasium, even larger than the one back home. I quickly assess the available stations, and I'm almost impressed by the selection. There's anything that anyone could want to learn how to use or do here, but most of it will be useless to me. All I need is a blade.

Some Capitol guy gets up and begins to speak.

"Welcome to your Training. This is where you will learn the skills that you will need…"

I tune him out as I look over the other tributes again, scanning each of them carefully. While nearly everyone's on the older and larger side of the spectrum, nearly everyone from Districts Five onward looks weak. I can't know for sure until I see them train, but then, then I'll know what they're capable of.

Not that I expect them to be capable of much.

"…so, go right ahead!" the man finishes.

I hang back, waiting to see where the other tributes go first. Most head over to the survival areas, but a few brave souls go for the weapons. The Sevens head towards the axe station, no surprise there. The Four boy picks up a spear, and the Twos and Phenom are looking at the swords. But the knife station is relatively popular. A boy and a girl, who if I remember right are from Five, as well as the odd, pale duo from Three are over there, and the instructor is handing them some short daggers. The Five boy, a short, skinny guy, stands in front of the target. His stance is all wrong; he clearly has no idea what he's doing. He throws the knife, and it bounces off the edge of the target. Pathetic.

"Try it again, Tam," the Five girl says, handing him her knife. I walk up and snatch it away as it exchanges hands.

"Hey!" Tam says, but I ignore him, throwing the knife at the target. It sinks into the center with a satisfying thud.

I turn. They're staring. I enjoy their shock. All four tributes leave the station, the Fives nervously, but the Threes with an air of indifference. I don't like their attitude. It will have to be altered.

"You have good aim," says the knife instructor. I fix him in my gaze, and he quickly shuts up.

I pick up two more knives and consider throwing them both at once, but instead I look back at the other weapons stations. The Four boy whips his spear through the air, and it pierces a dummy's chest. The Two girl slashes and stabs at another dummy, while her partner awkwardly holds a broadsword like he isn't sure what to do with it. Phenom is still looking for a sword that will satisfy him.

I cross over to the spears, and I watch the Four boy use the pole of one to knock his dummy all over the place. He's fast, and certainly skilled. Every single hit lands, and he has yet to smash his own fingers or hit himself in the leg.

After a few minutes of this, he sets down his spear.

"What do you want?" he asks flatly, not looking at me.

This makes me angry.

"First, a little more respect!" I snap, sending one of my knives slashing through the air, missing his head by mere millimeters and hitting the bulls-eye back at its station.

"And second…" I reign in my temper and step up to him. He's about an inch taller than me, but I can be intimidating when I want to be.

"Second, I'm forming a pack," I say. "An exclusive pack."

"And are you asking me to join this pack?" he says, keeping his cool, although I can see in his eyes that he's a little unnerved. I can tell that he knows that, if I had altered my aim just a hair, he would be dead now.

"I am recruiting you," I correct. "Now, are you in, or are you dead?"

He shrugs. "Sure, I'm in," he says, holding out a hand. "Lucas Tandem."

"Shimmer Argent," I reply, setting my hand on top of his for a moment before turning away again. No handshakes for me. We're not equals, not by a long shot, and so I won't treat him like one.

But I will let him live, as long as he remains useful.

XXX

Ashley Coralis, 14, District 4

"You'd be surprised by how useful your surroundings can be, both for food and for healing," says the expert at the plants station.

I nod, trying to pay attention, trying to keep my eyes on the table and not letting them wander back to the spears, and to Lucas. He's really starting to scare me. He never smiles, and whenever he passes me he glares and snarls. I'm probably on his hit list already.

"One thing that you'll want to look for is color…" continues the man.

"Mind if we join you?" asks a high, cheery voice.

I turn to see a little, brown-skinned boy and a light-skinned girl who's a bit taller than me standing next to us.

"Of course," says the expert. The boy grins widely at me.

"I'm Briar," he says. "This is Dally. What's your name?"

"Ashley," I mutter. Why is he asking me what my name is?

"You're from District 11," says the expert. "How much do you know about plants?"

"Hmm…" says Briar. "Well, I know that blueberries taste a lot better than broccoli…"

Dally laughs, and I feel a little smile perking the ends of my mouth. What a goofball…

It turns out that Briar actually knows a lot more about plants than it seems. Mostly, he knows what's edible and what isn't.

"We're not allowed to eat anything that we harvest," he explains. "So, Dad taught me what things were good to eat, so that I wouldn't be hungry when I got home."

"That's smart," says Dally. "I don't know much about plants. My dad's the butcher."

"So you probably know a lot about meat," says Briar. "How about you, Ashley? I bet you know loads about fishing. You're from District Four, right?"

"Yeah, kinda…" I say.

These two are really confusing me. We're going to fight to the death in less than five days! Why are they being so… so…

…so nice?

XXX

Landon Meddel, 16, District 8

Get allies. Get allies. Get allies.

Those two words keep running around in my head. That was Alastair's advice this morning, before Gabrielle was awake.

"You want to keep your sweetie alive? Get allies. You need someone that you can be fairly certain won't kill you right off the bat. Someone down there is just as scared as you are. Someone down there is strong where you're weak and weak where you're strong. Find them. Get them on your side. You can always get rid of them later. For now, get them. Get allies."

I pull a plate of salad onto my tray and look around the cafeteria. The only relatively large group is pretty clearly the Career pack. They're the tributes from One, Two, and Four. Well, some of them, anyway. The Four girl is sitting off to the side, kind of near the Elevens and Twelves but not really sitting with them. The Two boy is also by himself, looking pretty angry about something. Most people are either sitting with their District partner, or they're alone. It's very quiet; hardly anyone's talking at all.

The pair from Three are sitting nearby. "Let's sit with them," I suggest to Gabrielle. She shrugs and nods, and we approach the Threes.

"Um, are these seats taken?" I ask, like I would at lunch back home. The Three girl glowers at me, but the boy nods.

"Go ahead," he says. "I'm Erit, and this is Icee."

"Landon and Gabrielle," I say.

As we sit down, I get a good look at them. Erit's pretty good-looking, with light brown hair and blue eyes, just a bit lighter than Gabby's. Icee is incredibly pale, and her hair's so bright scarlet that it must be dyed. Erit seems laid-back, at least in appearance, but Icee is coldly glaring at us.

"So," I say. "Are you enjoying the Capitol life so far?"

"What do you want?" Icee demands. She sounds as cold as she looks.

I sigh. "Allies," I mutter, lowering my voice. The Careers are all too close for comfort.

Erit raises an eyebrow. "Allies?" he repeats. "Why us?"

I shrug. "Why not you?"

"You've both got it wrong," says Icee. "The questing is, why you?" She motions at me and Gabby.

"I thought that you were going to be something interesting, after your little show at the Reapings," she continues. "But you've been bumbling around the survival stations, and she looks like she's going to cry any second now. You'd both hold us back."

Gabby hangs her head. I place an arm around her.

"Icee…" Erit sighs.

"Do you want to win, or not?" snaps the girl.

"Okay," I say. "Let's go, Gabby."

Sorry," says Erit, who at least looks genuinely so.

"Forget about it," I reply as Gabby and I stand up and move farther down the table. Maybe we'll have better luck elsewhere…

"What gives, Icee?" I hear Erit hiss.

"What makes her so special, that a guy would enter the freaking Hunger Games for her?" she replies, not seeming to care if we overhear.

XXX

Carn Hurdy, 18, District 2

Thera laughs at me, again, as I confront the dummy.

"If it were alive, it would have killed you already," she cackles.

I frown and swing my sword at the dummy. The blade makes a probably lethal cut on its chest, but she's right. I waited too long before the strike.

I don't like the sword. Wrestling is much better, but there isn't a station for that, and besides, I need to learn how to use a weapon. Now, if there were a wrestling station, then maybe I could get Thera off of my case.

Maybe Shimmer would stop staring at me, too.

She's standing over by the knives, watching me with that… that stare. That stare that makes me want to punch her in the face and crawl into a hole to cry at the same time. I hate that stare. I hate Shimmer.

But I need her.

She came up to me and Thera during lunch, to tell Thera that she could join the pack. They sat together: Shimmer, her partner Phenom, Lucas from District Four, and Thera. Now she's watching me. Hopefully, she likes what she sees.

But with Thera mocking me every step of the way…

I toss the sword aside and lunge at the dummy, ripping it from its stand and hurling it at Thera, who barely gets out of the way in time. She isn't laughing anymore, which is good.

Shimmer's still staring.

Is that good?

XXX

Briar Tussen, 12, District 11

I stand in the bathroom, contemplating the many, many buttons on the shower. They aren't labeled, but they're in different colors. What to push?

First, I get up on the tips of my toes and push a dark blue button near the top. Water spouts from the showerhead—but it's cold! I jump out with a yelp and quickly push another button, a pink one.

This time, the water turns pink, and it looks thicker. I stick a hand in to test it, and the water feels… silky, almost. I pull my hand back out again, and I look at it closely. I sniff. It smells really nice, like the flowers in the florist shop back home.

The next button, a yellow one, creates bubbles! Big, yellow bubbles! I laugh and grab at the bubbles, which stick to my skin and don't pop. As I try to remove the bubbles, my elbow hits yet another button, and something splashes down on my head. I blink to clear my eyes, and then I look in the mirror. My eyes widen, and I begin to laugh hysterically. A rainbow-colored, bubbly, pink-handed, sweet-smelling thing is staring back at me!

Eventually, my giggles die away, and I turn the normal water back on so that I can wash off the mess.

XXX

A.N.: Whew! Now I understand why lots of authors quit their submit-a-tribute fics! It's a hassle, handling so many characters, trying to get their personalities just right… But fear not, readers, I shall prevail! …I think I'll make the next chapter a little bit shorter, though. :)

And another thing, I know that I won't be able to update between Christmas and New Years.