Chapter 3:

Cresselia has just shown us to our rooms, and I am lying on my bed staring at the ceiling. I should be happy right now that I'm going to the games. But I'm not. I'm just trying to figure out why I'm slightly upset.

Then I realize. It's because my brother Kendall is my fellow tribute. If I live, then that means that my brother is dead. This is all wrong. I've always wanted to be in the games, but not with my brother!

I finally decide to go take a shower before dinner. I head into the bathroom and look at my face in the mirror. I stare at my blonde hair and piercing green eyes. The same hair and eye colors that Kendall has. Except his eyes have a certain sparkle to them. I start crying when I think about the sparkle being extinguished from his eyes.

I carefully take off my necklace and place it on the counter. I just throw my dress on the floor in a crumpled pile, not really caring. I step into the shower and I am overwhelmed by the large amount of different buttons. I just press a random one, simply wanting the feeling of hot water to wash away my tears. But I'm suddenly hit with a blast of cold water. I press more buttons but only result with alternating blasts of cold water and vanilla soap.

At that point, I just gave up hope about having a nice warm shower and get out. Right when I step out, I'm hit with a blast of warm air and I'm dried off. That was convenient. I examine the pad on the floor, and notice there is a similar one on the wall. I press my hand to it and my hair becomes perfectly dry. I guess this is just one aspect of the luxurious lifestyle of the Capitol.

I go back to my room and grab a plain black t-shirt and a pair of jeans to put on. I pull my hair up in a ponytail and head down to the dining car.

When I get there, I see that I am the last one to arrive, and the only open seat is between Cresselia and Stefan. Great. This will be a fun dinner.

"Glad to see you finally made it, Lauren! Now that you are here, we can talk strategy!" I am really starting to get sick of Cresselia being so damn happy. Would it be wrong if I punched her?

But before I could, Stefan starts talking. "The best strategy you can have is to stay alive. Don't side with the careers, even though it doesn't really look like either of you would be wanted in their pack."

Ok, that is just plain rude. Insulting our abilities before even knowing what we can do. "Hey, you shouldn't be judging us before we even tell you what we can do! And did it ever cross your mind that maybe we do have some talent, and might actually be able to win?" There I go again, speaking irrationally before thinking. And now Stefan probably won't want to give me anything from sponsors. So I just turn down to my plate and start eating some of the delicious food.

After a few minutes, I notice that everyone is quiet. I look up and see everyone staring at me. "What, do I have something on my face?"

"That," Stefan begins, "is exactly the kind of spunk I look for in tributes. So, what kind of skills do you have darling?"

I'm not sure why, but him calling my darling just really pissed me off. So I did another irrational thing. I took my knife and stabbed the table right between his fingers. "Don't call me darling." I say with a growl.

Then my stupid brother starts laughing hysterically at me being annoyed by Stefan. I give him an evil look. "What's so funny, dummy?"

But soon everyone except me is laughing. So much for being able to be angry at Stefan.

"OK darling, obviously you are skilled with knifes," Stefan says as he pulls the knife out of the table. "Any other skills you can do?"

"She's very skilled with axes," Kendall says before I can answer. "She's been training for years to be in the games."

Stefan raises his eyebrows, but doesn't say anything else. So we just continue eating dinner with small conversation. Then Cresselia is leading us into another room to watch the reapings.

The tributes from 1,2, and 4 are all large and tough looking. But that's not surprising because they are the Careers.

The girl from 3 looks small and weak. The boy is tall but very frail looking like he has never had a proper meal.

The girl from 5 is 18 years old and looks like she weighs 50 more pounds than I do. The boy from her district is a small 12 year old, and I can't help feeling bad for him. But then I remember that he is my opponent and must die if I am to make it home.

Next it's District 6. There's nothing spectacular about them that makes them stick out.

Then it's District 7, and I see Rosalinda being called, Alessandra on the sidelines begging for someone to save her sister. And then myself volunteering. The announcers are talking about how brave it was for me to volunteer for Rosalinda. Then Chris is called, and Kendall volunteering. The announcers get a bit sad when he says his name and they find out we're siblings.

Then they move on to District 8. The tributes are a pair of 13 year olds, and it's obvious that they are best friends. It slightly breaks my heart, because I know how it feels to be going into the arena with your best friend.

The District 9 tributes look like an average pair of kids, not too strong or scary looking.

The girl and boy from 10 are both tan and have large arm muscles, which I'm guessing is from years of herding animals.

The girl from District 11 looks small and nimble, probably from climbing trees for agriculture. The guy is large, but he seems to have a sweet side since he volunteered for a boy that is 12.

The ones that stick out in my mind are both from 1,2, and 4 because they will be brutal; the girl from 5 looks like she might be like a Career; and the guy from 11 looks like he could easily hurt someone.

Cresselia then has us go off to bed, since we'll be arriving at the Capitol in the morning. I fall asleep but wake up after a couple of hours from nightmares. I go find Kendall and see he is awake too. So I stay in his room talking the rest of the night, just enjoying one of my last few peaceful nights with him before we are in the arena.