Today was the most important of all the days leading up to the Games. What happened that day would basically decide who would die and who would live. Even though the Games are about being able to take care of yourself with what you've got, you can't survive with just that. You need Sponsors; they'll give you supplies that you need, but don't have and can't find. Not everybody gets Sponsors though. You need to have three things; charm, promise and a high training score. In order to have a high training score, you need to have a talent.
The Tributes were scored on a scale of 1-12; 1 meaning you'll die before you get 1 centimeter into the Arena, 12 meaning you have the best shot at winning out of everybody (at this point nobody had ever scored a 12). The Tributes have 3 days of group training and 1 session alone with the Gamemakers. The personal session is the most important. All eyes are on you. Other than the Gamemakers, nobody ever gets to see the training; personal or group. Nobody ever knows what a Tribute does to get a certain score until they get into the Arena.
I knew that Katniss would show the Gamemakers her shooting. Therefore I knew that she would have to score at least an 8. The average score for Tributes is 6-8, but Careers always have 9-10s. I didn't know what to expect from Peeta. He didn't exactly look like a killer Tribute. I mean, the guy's a baker. Even though Katniss was the person I wanted to see become Victor, I was most curious to see what little Rue would score. She was so small I didn't have a clue as to what she might do for the Gamemakers.
The square was full of people bustling around, anxious for the score announcement. For once, I wasn't going out to hunt. I had gotten a good amount of game the day before and wanted to go see the Everdeen's. When I got to the their house the screen door was closed, the thicker outside door was wide open. As I walked up to the steps as I had so many times before, I noticed the peeling white paint. It had been like that for a while, but Katniss' dad used to do all of the house improvements. Since he was gone, the house aged naturally.
"Hello?", I shouted through the screen. "One minute". 's voice yelled back, filled with depression. When she walked up to the door, her dirt smudged face lightened into a small smile. "Nice to see you, Gale. Are you taking the day off from hunting", she asked. "Yeah. I wanted to spend some time with Prim and you. Is that all right"? "Of course. Come on in". was always kind to me and let me come over whenever I wanted to.
I had to giggle the frame of the screen door a few times to get it to open. Even though the Everdeen's house needed a few renovations, it was homey. Plus, it was no worse than ours. I sat down at the kitchen table and gave me a cup of pine needle tea. Prim was at school for the day since the announcement wasn't until later in the day. The two of us sat in silence for a while. I decided to think about something that I hadn't let myself think about until then. I let my mind wander to the night of interviews. Peeta had told Katniss that he loved her. Or that he had at least had had a crush on her since the first grade. The question was, did Katniss like him back? If she didn't then everything was all right (except the part where my best friend was going to her forthcoming death). If she did, well then the odds were (once again) not in my favor. Just as I decided to leave the subject alone, Prim came crashing through the door. I guess they Everdeens didn't find it necessary to be delicate with the screen door. "Gale", Prim shouted. I guess I was the closest thing to Katniss that she had. "Are you gonna watch the scores with us tonight"? I looked over to to see what she thought. She gave a slight nod of her head. "Sure. If you'd like", I said. "Great"!
After I finished my tea, I ran back home to tell my mother that I was going to watch the score announcement at Katniss'. She had no problem with it, as I assumed. When I got back to the Everdeen's, I took a seat on their sagging couch along with Prim and . Within five minutes they had brought up the Capitol seal along with Panem's anthem. When the song ended, the emblem disappeared and was replaced by Caesar Flickerman's face. "Welcome! Welcome! As I'm sure you all know, tonight is the all-important score announcements"! Cheers and applause exploded form the Capitol crowd. There are many differences between the Capitol and District 12, but I think the biggest one was always the reaction to the Games. Capitol citizens would erupt with cries of joy, while District 12 remand silent with an occasional sob. "First up, is District 1's, Marvel scoring a 9"! Caesar gave the Sponsors a few seconds to think about the score. Is he the right person to Sponsor? Should I bother spending my money on him? "Next up is District 1's female tribute, Glimmer, scoring a 9"! Another period of time for Sponsors to think and applaud. "Catoe, District 1's male tribute, scores an outstanding 10"! Clove, Catoe's district partner, Clove, follows suite scoring a 10, too"! On and on Caesar went. "District 11's, Rue, has scored a 7! Looks like there's a lot more to that little girl than w meets the eye". Finally he came to District 12. "Peeta Mellark from District 12 has scored an 8"! People in the crowd applauded, but I really didn't see anything to celebrate about. I mean, he only scored one more point more than little Rue. So either she had an amazing talent or Peeta was as strong as a 12 year old girl. "Last but most certainly not least, Miss Katniss Everdeen has scored…," Caesar hesitated moment. It looked like he thought that there was a mistake of some sort. After making a decision Caesar continued, "An 11"!
I had never been so shocked in my life. Not when Katniss volunteered for Prim, not when Katniss rolled out in her chariot on fire, not even when Peeta told the whole country that he loved Katniss. Katniss scored an 11. I turned to look at and Prim. Their eyes were the size of golf balls and it looked like they might be having some flies for dinner. For once District 12 and the Capitol were the same, for a second. Everyone, everywhere was silent. Then the television erupted with noise. Cheers, woots, clapping. You name it. The only thing that I was able to say was "Oh. My. God".