Hey, laptop246 again. The original plan was for me and Ninnnna to alternate chapters, but that's already slipped. She and I both thought that I, since I am a bit opinionized about the way Estella's family works, should write the visitations, and the scenes on the train/the recap of the Reapings. So yeah, that's what you can expect from this chapter. So don't worry, Ninnnna will have the next chapter - I know you're dying to see her writing! And, please, review and PM!

*Estella Mason's POV*

Kathi entered the room slowly. Peacekeepers shut the door firmly behind her. Kathi stood by the door, motionless, for a moment. I knew she was taking me in, trying to remember this moment. I knew I was doing the same to her. I tried to remember the way her face sat above the delicately embroidered white dress; the way she was still rustling her skirt, though no other part of her moved. But before long, neither of us can take it anymore, and we rush towards each other, crying and sobbing.

"Estella," Kathi sobbed. "You can't - you just can't leave." she hiccupped. "Where will we be without ... without you? No one t-to sing at the dances; no one to dance with."

"It'll be okay," my voice was far away. "Lystra can sing for you at the dances. And you have other friends who like to dance. You can dance with them."

Kathi's sobs were ebbing away, but more tears streamed out of her eyes and she declared, "It won't be the same."

I hugged her tight and whisper, "I know." Neither of us tried to pretend I'll be coming back. I'd do that later, when Sparkle and Issac come in. Kathi was old enough to understand why we trained, why we prepared, and to know that it was fruitless. If the Capitol wanted us dead, then we were dead. Lystra was an exception. The Capitol wouldn't make the mistake of letting us live again. Cletus was all the proof I needed for that.

The Peacekeepers came too quickly to take her away. I hugged her and whispered, "I'll try if you promise me you will."

Kathi's eyes met mine. "'Til my last breath," she swore. And then she was gone.

They let in Issac next. He ran toward me and curled up on my lap just like he had when he was younger. I stroked his short hair and patted his back. I could feel his silent sobs, but he was too ashamed to show me them. When they stopped, he lifted his wet face to look at me. "You'll be back," he whispered. "Everything will be fine." I remembered that it was what I had said to him before the Reaping. My eyes became wet again.

"That's right, Issac," I agreed, showing false enthusiasm. "I'll be back soon. Then you and I can have our own house in the Victor's Village."

"I don't want the house," Issac stared at me. "I only want you." He buried himself back into my lap, but didn't cry this time - only sits there. I paid special attention to the little things about him - the speck of pollen on his ear, his weight on me. And then the Peacekeepers take him away too.

Dad came in. He sat beside me silently, gripping my hand tightly. He'd never been much for words. He said only three words the entire time, and as he left: "I love you." and I returned the words, though I wasn't sure if heard me.

Sparkle's plaits were coming loose. I redid them carefully as she cried on my lap. "I don't want you to die like Colin," she whispered. I started. I had thought that she had forgotten her brother, Colin. She had been only about three when Colin, who had been the District 1 tribute in Lystra's game, had died. At his funeral, Sparkle had told the young President that he had killed her brother. As punishment, Snow had ordered his guards to kill her mother slowly. Lystra beat him to it, making it quick and painless - spiting the Capitol again. She had taken Sparkle off, scared for the child's safety, and legally adopted her.

"I won't," I promised her, though it felt horrible to lie. Because how could I win, when the Capitol (and Cletus) wanted me dead so badly?

When Momma and Poppa came in together, I lost all control I had been holding in. I cried in their arms and they held me, patting my back just like my own parents had sometimes, all those years ago. They whispered condolences to me, and when I eventually stopped crying, Momma announced, "I will start a fun for you, Estella."

I wiped my eyes. "A fund?"

"Yes," her eyes were sparkling with some kind of hope. "I will collect money here in the district, and the Capitol, and we shall sponsor you. You'll get wonderful gifts and you will -" the next words were a kind of snarl. "You will win." Poppa nodded in agreement.

"You would do that?" I whispered.

"Of course," they hugged me. "We're your family." That line stayed in my head long after they were gone and my visitations were over. It was still there when Lystra came to fetch me. I immediately rushed to her, crying, "Oh, Lystra, what are we going to do?"

Lystra put a finger under my chin. "Chin up," she said. "eyes proud. We can figure that out later. Right now, there are reporters outside having a field day. We're going to stop and talk to them." I made a face. "You will be the first tribute to get publicity. It will give you a big start over the rest."

I nodded, drying my eyes on my skirts and taking deep breaths. "Where is Kayton?"

"With Cletus," Lystra answered. "they won't be stopping to talk to reporters, mind you."

I was slightly stung. Lystra and Kayton wanted me to win. They were going to protect me over Cletus. "You'd let him die to protect me?" I asked. In truth, I couldn't help but feel bad for Cletus. He was an orphan, just like me.

Lystra's face became slightly drawn. "I don't want any of you to die," she said. "but if I had to choose, it'd be you." And, with that, we set off into the river of reporters. I smiled like I was thrilled that I was Reaped and told many what an honor it was to be going into the Games in Lystra's footsteps. "We're like sisters," I told one, and then laughed. "It's a family legacy!" I thought I did well with them, but it was so hard to see emotions on their rearranged Capitol faces.

When we reached the train, we found that Cletus had gone to his room. Emerald was still outside speaking to the cameras enthusiastically. Kayton was standing in the entryway, waiting for us. My act melted away the moment I was in the car, and Kayton hugged me gently. "Don't worry," she said. "It's de-bugged. For a while, at least." I released myself from her grip and looked around. The car was refurbished nicer than the houses in the Victor's Village. The walls were the orange color of the Games this year, a color I was finding to be harsh, which was a shame, because I rather liked pumpkins. I would never have admitted it to myself, but I was inspecting the car thoroughly for a sign of Cletus, ready to jump out and kill me. I had to remind myself several times that Cletus would only have to wait for the arena, and then it was fair game. I am safe. For now.

I looked to Kayton and Lystra. We all looked rather different, and nothing like the family we were - Lystra, with her straight and long blonde hair and blue eyes, Kayton with her bright red hair cut into a bob and rebellious green eyes, and me, small quiet, and reserved-looking with my brown skin and eyes, and naturally curly dark hair. "What are we going to do?"

Lystra glanced at Kayton. "We're going to make you win."

"But how?" I asked, "the odds are not in my favor."

"You'll do the same thing I did," Lystra said, with another glance at Kayton. "You'll make a big alliance and stay with them as long as possible. Momma, Poppa, and the others back home will work on raising money in the district. Emerald will get you sponsors. Kayton and I will send you the gifts and make sure you survive."

"You will survive," Kayton promised me. "It's our job to make sure of that."

It's also your job to make sure that Cletus survives, a voice nagged in my head, but I brushed it away. Cletus was insane. He had nothing to go back to but the asylum. I had a family - a life. I had to survive. Suddenly, all the tension and shock came rushing back, and I felt as though I was being crushed under a ton of rock. "I'm going to my room," I told them, trying to keep the note of despair out of my voice. "I need to be alone."

Lystra looked ready to object, but Kayton patted my arm. "It's okay, Estella. Your room is de-bugged as well." she pointed me in the right direction. "we'll come and get you for dinner."

"Try not to think about it," Lystra suggested. "Relax." I doubted that I could do that, but I nodded in agreement and headed into my room, closing the door securely behind me. I stood looking about for a while before flinging myself to the bed and crying for a bit. After that, I felt better. I took my knife out of my skirts, where I always kept it. I drove it to the hilt into the wall, then took it out. It hadn't made it to the other side. I let out a sigh. There would have been something immensely satisfying about seeing the other room. How thick were the walls?

I strolled around the rooms that were mine. For Capitol standards, they are small, but they still included a spacious bathroom, a bedroom, and a sitting room with large windows to show the world outside. The train vibrated beneath me as it began to move, and District 11 was flying away. My chest felt more hollow now that 11 was gone. Was this how Rayne felt about 4 all the time?

Dinner came quickly. I sat between Kayton and Lystra, with Emerald and Cletus opposite of us. No one really spoke besides Emerald, who filled the silence with endless babble about how much Cletus and I would love the Capitol, and how lucky she was to be here, and really what an honor it was, and so on. I concentrated on the endless, delicious food so that I wouldn't have to understand what she was saying. Cletus kept glancing over at me. Every time he did, his face would break into a gruesome grin. I did my best not to show my goose bumps.

Lystra lead me to her private sitting room, and Rayne followed. Emerald and Cletus weren't invited to come, and they didn't attempt to. I don't know where or even if they watched the recaps of the Reapings. But I felt safe when we did, between Kayton and Lystra, with a knife in my skirt and Cletus safely out of the way.

The Capitol anthem sounded and the seal appeared and a Capitol woman introduced the program as the recap. She smiled and commented on what an exciting day it had been. Then the screen flicked to District 1. The girl tribute was hardly on the stage before a savage-looking girl replaced her, not even glancing at the girl chosen twice. "Indigo Stormwell," she said her name is. "for my hair." Her district partner seemed gentler, but I didn't judge him yet. He was a Career, and they usually were tougher than they looked.

In 2, another girl volunteered for a small 12 year old. She also didn't seem at all attached to the younger girl. I could not suppress a shiver when I saw her smirk. She was radiant and destructive - exceedingly dangerous. "Tawny Cadell," she told the Capitol man, who was trying not to appear intimidated despite the fact that he was taller than her. Then she turned to a camera and gave it a look just as piercing as the knives I threw.

In 3, the girl begins to yell at the cameras until the Peacekeepers shut her up. Her district partner was extremely mellow compared to her. In four, a girl was chosen who looked more ... sane that the other female Careers. Her partner fits the male description of the name well. When he announces his name is Tanner, Lystra tenses and tears up.

The tributes soon began to blur together. In 5, a girl volunteered for a younger girl who looked to be her sister. In 6, a 12 year old is chosen, and not replaced. In 7, a girl wearing very old fashioned robes stepped forward, looking thrilled. In 9, the boy chosen is mute.

I watch my own Reaping feverently - the grim way I step forward. The camera finds the rest of my family and shows their faces one by one, since they know us so well. Cletus was chosen. The dread and surprise on my face shows, and, doubtlessly, the entire country is wondering why. Then, in 12, another 12 year old is chosen. She doesn't look at the cameras or any of the people, rather, at her necklace, which is a mirror rather desperately. Her partner is older, but is terrified.

Then the Capitol woman told us a bit about each tribute. The girl from 7's grandmother was a voodoo priestess and she was striving to follow in those steps. I raised in eyebrow to Kayton and Lystra, who could only shrug. District 9, Viveca Celeste's boyfriend died in the Games the past year. District 10, Harper Wesley's twin sister died in the Games 4 years ago, the year before Lystra's games, and Harper had trained to avenge her sister's death. Mine and Cletus's back story was long and extensive, and would have been quite interesting if it wasn't real, and if I hadn't already known it. The girl from 12, Naomi Slater, was in possession of the mirror necklace, which supposedly changed the appearance of those wearing it when they need it to.

Then the seal, then silence. Kayton, Lystra, and I stared at the dark screen.

From behind us, there is a slight noise. We all spun around. My hand took out my knife, and I searched for Cletus. But Cletus wasn't there. I blinked several times and saw that it was only an Avox, looking at me with sadness. In the darkness, I can just make out her bright red hair. "Rayne!" gasped Lystra. The Avox, who was Rayne in disguise, blinked and nodded, tapping the wall - is it bugged?

"No," Kayton answered. "No, of course not." Rayne nodded, and her attention returned to me. She spread her arms apart, signifying that she was sorry of my bad fortune and wanted to know if she could help.

I shrugged in response. "They scared me," I said, referring to the tributes. "Especially that girl from 2 - Tawny, I think it was." Rayne shrugged.

"Did you see any potential allies?" Kayton wanted to know.

I hesitated. In my mind, I was already seeing myself teaming up with the 12 year olds, keeping them safe. But how could I do that? They would have to die if I was to win. "The 12 year olds," I offered. To my surprise, all three of the women nodded.

"I'm glad you said that," Lystra said. "12 year olds often know more than you'd think. They are underestimated so often." Rayne was nodding feverently in agreement. "Any others?"

I shrugged. "A couple, but I won't know for sure until I meet them." I didn't want to meet them, though. I just wanted to go home.

"It's an early morning," Lystra commented. "You'd better go to sleep." I knew she wanted to be left with Kayton and Rayne to discuss strategies for this year's games, so I nodded and left the room.

When I laid in bed that night, I kept seeing the faces of the other tributes in my head, especially the 12 year olds, Tawny, and Cletus. I saw the girl from 3 yelling at the cameras again. I saw Tawny staring my down through the camera. It was a long time until I fell asleep.