First off, thank you soooooo soooo soooo much to everyone that's reading and commenting :) it means so much to me! I spend a great amount (probably an unhealthy amount) of time developing my plot and characters and all that complicated stuff. Thank you for all the comments, especially!
Yes, Katniss & Peeta and some of the other tributes will be making an appearance (*cough cough*Johanna) and I'm planning on continuing this story through to Mockingjay (if you haven't noticed I this story begins near the start of Catching Fire).
And ummmm yeah I think that's it :D keep commenting! I'm always open to critiques and suggestions!
My hope that all of the occurrences of yesterday were just a dream—nightmare, actually—is crushed. Winnie is outside the door of my compartment, calling out for me. She says it's time for breakfast. And, at the sound of food—not to mention the smell—I get up the motivation to roll (literally) out of bed. I hit the floor so hard that it jostles the sleepiness out of me.
The food from last night is still trying to digest in my system, so I plan to eat slowly. My stomach already hurts at the thought of more food being piled into it.
"Good Morning," Atticus nods curtly. He takes a sugar cube and places it in his tea cup. The smell of all the breakfast selections alone makes me salivate.
"Morning," I reply softly, taking a seat across from him at the big table. Diamante is already in the seat beside me, daintily nipping at a piece of toast. I guess she's just as troubled in terms of digestion.
As Winnie butters a biscuit she says, "We're almost there, you know. Just a few more hours and we'll be arriving at the station! Oh, just wait until everyone sees you both, darlings, you're absolutely adorable! They're going to love you!"
However, Atticus is the only one so far to see my lack of enthusiasum. Winnie begins a conversation about Capitol fashion with Diamante. He chooses to talk to me.
"I know this is not what you were expecting," he says simply.
I look up at him, mid-bite into a piece of bread.
"You don't think you are beautiful?" He asks, puzzlingly.
I shrug.
"Hm… well maybe your humility will serve you well," he smiles.
I nod slightly, not knowing what to say. So I stare back down at my plate filled with food and start to pick at my eggs with a gleaming silver fork.
"Not much of a talker?" Atticus asks, sipping his tea gingerly.
I shrug, "In District 7 there's not much to talk about… besides lumber and trees."
"But such a lovely voice… do you sing? Do either of you sing?" Winnie interrupts Atticus. She's currently checking her tablet-looking thingy.
"I sang lullaby songs to my sister all the time," I say, thinking it's not a big accomplishment.
Diamante shrugs, "I always hated music class, but singing is fun."
She almost squeals for joy, though. "That's wonderful! Any other talents that we can bring to light?" She's tapping on her tablet furiously now, her bright pink nails clicking as she goes.
I shrug. "Not really…" Even Diamante looks lost and shares a confused glance with me. We don't do much because we… well, we can't.
"How do you run?" Atticus asks, raising his eyes from his tea cup to meet mine casually.
Suddenly, a fear comes upon me… will we be required to fight? Why would I have to run? Isn't this supposed to be a beauty pageant?
"Uh… kind of… why?" I ask nervously.
He says, "Everyone thinks there will be physical competitions too—just for entertainment, of course."
Great. Is that a gentle way of saying that I'll be fighting to the death? His face seems far too serene to be insinuating that, though. Surely he would tell me if I needed to worry about staying alive, correct? I would really hope so. I mean, aren't I a reflection of his work now?
"Well you can't be that out of shape, you are from the lumber district after all," he assumes. But I'm not so sure. I may not be out of shape, dilapidated and hopeless… but I'm not a girl from District 1 or 2.
We sit in silence for the rest of the time, listening to the whooshing noises of the train and eating breakfast. So many tastes fill my mouth that I have to take a break in between bites. There's hot chocolate—something that I've only seen in Violet's family's bakery. She's had it before. Until now, I didn't. It tastes just like the chocolate bar that my father brought home after visiting the black market one Sunday, except in liquid form. It warms me, inside and out and makes me feel a little better.
Suddenly, I have a new favorite drink. Though, all we ever drank was water—milk if we were lucky that month.
The bread here isn't like Violet's either. It's thicker, warmer, softer and tastes like butter—something that is very scarce in District 7. Only certain people near us even knew how to make it. So usually, we just eat it dry.
With all these wonderful things being piled into my stomach I almost forget where I'm going and where I've come from.
I'm going to the Capitol to possibly compete for a marriage to Daivat, President Snow's Grandson. I've come from District 7; where my mother, father, brother and sister are probably still crying their eyes out, thinking they'll never see me again.
Winnie tells us there are outfits waiting for us in the tiny closets in our suites. She tells us to shower first. Though, it's easier said than done—at least for me. When I walk into the shower it's like I'm in the control room of the train. There are so many buttons and settings. I don't know which ones to press so I just press random ones until I get the flow of water that I like, at the temperature I want.
It's relaxing, but only for so long. I realize I have to get out and change. I find a simple navy blue dress waiting for me. The fabric extenuates my tiny waist, making my breasts look more substantial and showing off my legs. The skirt of it stops at my knees, leaving me feeling like I did at the reaping; vulnerable.
When I walk out and back into the common area I find Atticus and Winnie sitting on the couch. Their eyes hit me and light up. I tug at a piece of my full head of hair, made only more voluminous by the hot air that was burst out at it in the shower to dry me.
I hear footsteps behind me and turn around to see Diamante standing there in a light blue dress, which makes her bright blue eyes pop. She looks like a vision of absolute beauty. When she comes to stand beside me I realize just how much taller she is than me. Honestly, I don't know how I compete with such a tall, blonde and beautiful girl like her. Were the gamemakers not wearing their glasses or something?
"Beautiful," Atticus says, standing up. "I cannot wait to see what you two will look like all dolled up! Oh, I just have a wonderful feeling, Winnie," he says in the Capitol drawl.
Winnie nods excitedly. "Ardaigh, you look so beautiful, and Diamante, you are absolutely gorgeous!"
I smile. "You said my name right." The words come out of my mouth before I can stop them.
She raises an eyebrow, as if hearing my voice is a shock. "I did? How do other people pronounce it?"
"All wrong," I say with a shake of my head. "The announcer said it like the last part was, 'die'… it's pronounced like, 'day'… 'are-day'."
"Well then," she smiles, "it's good to know I was right."
I don't even get the chance to answer her because Atticus suddenly says, "We are here!"
Diamante—or Dia, as she told me to call her during breakfast—and I look out the windows to see crowds gathering at the station. I can hear the loud cries and shouts of excitement from inside the train.
"Wow," Dia whispers under her breath. I glance over at her awe-struck face. It's the first time I've seen her totally stunned.
"Ready?" Atticus asks us, waiting patiently.
I give him a shrug and follow him and Winnie towards the door. Peacekeepers immediately surround us. I realize these crowds must be just as big as the Hunger Games audience. After all, people in the Capitol are always looking for a new television show to watch. They're always ready for a new set of young people to cause drama that they can watch with snacks and friends.
Upon leaving the train there's the bright light of the sun on the immaculate buildings of the Capitol. People that I don't even know are screaming my name. I flinch at every camera flash that goes off. So many pictures must already be taken of me, why do they need more?
The four of us are ushered into an auto, which I've only seen once in my part of District 7. It's just as luxurious on the inside as the train was. Even though we have to sit the entire ride, it's complete with drinks and snacks and a mini screen to watch news and current events. Though, no one turns it on, knowing full well what will be re-playing.
The reaping seems like it was ages ago. I don't know why but it seems as if time has been twisted in my mind. I'm not thinking straight anymore. I need to get back to my normal self. Hopefully I will before the interviews that are bound to happen. I need to get myself together.
"First things first, you'll be taken to the make-over center," Winnie says, tapping away at her pad. "You'll get the full treatment and by the end of it you'll be looking fabulous!"
"Then we get to relax?" Dia asks hopefully.
She nods, "For a little while. Then, tomorrow you have your first meeting with Daivat—and President Snow. They get to narrow the sets of girls down to one."
"What?" I blurt out before I can stop myself.
She looks to Atticus for help. He says, "You'll be taking a little stroll in the gardens with them. Just a casual interview, that's all."
But the look on my face must be obvious.
"He's not a bad person, Ardaigh," Winnie says suddenly. I really hope that we're not being taped. But just in case, I don't answer back sarcastically.
Dia clears her throat uncomfortably as I simply say, "I know."
We leave it at that until we can get some privacy.
Peacekeepers struggle to get us through the crowds that surround the big building where the Hunger Games tributes are housed and made-over and trained. Once inside, I'm abandoned to be sucked into the make-over center by two girls with matching orange hair and bright green eyes.
"Hi!" One says, "I'm Janie!"
"And I'm Jerri!" Their accents make it sound like the 'j's are 'sh's. Janie, I notice is the one with the birthmark above her lip. I don't see their name tags until they're inches away from me.
I say hi quietly back as the thrust me into a room with a metal operating table and a bunch of equipment. But it's not medical stuff. I see wax. I've only ever used it to get tiny splinters out. It ripped out most of the surrounding hair too. Mother always said that people here use it to get rid of all the hair on their bodies. I always used to think that was stupid because we need our hair to keep warm. It's a survival fact that every District 7 child knows. But now I realize… people here in the Capitol don't need to worry about that.
They rip off—as mother said—hair off of almost every part of my body. They don't even spare me between my legs. That's what hurts the most.
Janie says, "Don't want to see anything if there's a swimsuit contest now do we?"
To which I reply, "What's a swimsuit?"
She just shakes her head and laughs, "You'll find out soon."
Okay, so what is a swimsuit? And why on earth is there a contest for it?
Atticus better spit it out when I get back.
Once the pain and torture is done I'm allowed to see myself. There's a tall mirror in one corner of the room. In my little medical gown, I stand before it. Janie and Jerri leave the room giggling.
My legs are smooth and shiny. The rough, dry, cracked skin is gone. I remember them putting some kind of oil on before and after the waxing. The oil is completely gone now, but I can see that it definitely worked.
The scars on my arms are gone. I remember cooling lotion being put on those. It kind of stung. But now, I see why. There's no trace of bruising or scarring on my body anymore. My skin is healthy and glowing; smooth and silky.
My face is free of the few imperfections I found this morning. They pop up every once in a while. Mother says it's because of the sweating clogging our skin with dirt. Now there's barely a bump.
My almond hair looks different. I see that there are streaks of a lighter hair color in it, like the highlights of blonde that my little sister gets in the summertime except darker. It comforts me a bit and reminds me of her. I'm sure she'll appreciate that. She'll say I look pretty.
There's a knock at the door. "Ardaigh, it's me," Atticus says from outside the door. "You can get dressed in the clothes the girls left you and come out now."
"Okay," I say loud enough for him to hear.
I find a soft, evergreen linen shirt and comfortable pants. They must be my sleep-wear, because I can't imagine doing anything else in them. They're too soft to be day clothes.
Winnie is waiting when I walk out. She smiles, "Beautiful. Now, we can rest."
Atticus smiles warmly as he approaches with Dia by his side. "All ready to go?"
We travel past other make-over rooms where artists like Janie and Jerri are still furiously working on their sets of three girls. We get to casually walk out of there early and go to find our suite.
We're on the ninth floor since the lobby is ground level and the make-over center is the second floor. So, we've got a pretty good view. The first thing I do when we enter the place is rush to the wall made of glass and peer out it. Dia does the same. After all, we've never been this high up before.
I can see everything; the skyline set against the bright afternoon sun; the glimmering water of the fountain in the middle of the Capitol. The mountains in the distance. Every building is shining in the glow of the light. Everything here looks so pure and magnificent. However, in reality I know that this is just a cover for the cold, malicious citizens that live here.
So, we get to rest for the rest of the evening. After dinner we sit in the living area and turn on the huge screen. The news is on, with Caesar Flickerman's smiling face telling us about Katniss and Peeta's tour—among other topics that seem unimportant to me. Though, I would like to meet Katniss and Peeta.
"One of us will get to meet him," Dia says, staring up at the screen in awe. I'm guessing she's a huge Flickerman fan. Although, who doesn't like him? He's a great person, unlike other seriously pathetic human beings that live here.
Winnie breaks my train of thought, suddenly saying, "Stop biting your lip, Ardaigh."
I realize I'm biting my lip—a nasty habit that occurs when I'm under stress. She scolds me, "Here try some more lip balm."
I take it from her and roll it across my upper and lower lip. Then, I turn to Atticus and ask, "Y—you said Snow was going to be there tomorrow?"
He nods. I see Dia tense up beside me. She turns her attention away from the TV and onto him.
He answers with a nod, "Yes. He is going to be involved with the decision making, also."
Well, that's just great.
I'm going to meet the sadistic man, who is the direct reason for the people in my district's suffering.
I guess I'll have to restrain myself from killing him with my own bare hands.
Sorry if this chapter is sort of short, but it's more of a connecting chapter lol what did you think? :D Are you ready to meet Daivat?