Chapter Four: Meet the Crew

I spend the next few hours talking with Jasper as he gives me tips on how to maintain the whole idiot act – say stupid things, act clueless, but not too clueless or my allies will see through the ruse. This could be my only chance to gain the upper hand over the rest of the tributes, and I have to take every advantage I can if I want to make it home.

Before too long it's time for dinner, and the four of us are served another ridiculously large meal full of rich delicacies. I eat quickly again, deliberately this time, just to see the horrified looks that Glimmer and Star throw me. As long as they don't want to be here, they'll leave quickly so that I can continue talking strategy with Jasper. I don't want to look at them, either… I hate to admit it, but Glimmer reminds me of District One, and… well, I can't afford to think about home. I have to focus.

"What else do we need to go through?" I ask Jasper immediately after Star and Glimmer depart. He casts me a warning glance and waits a few seconds before responding.

"I had to make sure they were gone. Anyway, you're a determined one, aren't you? Listen, staying up all night talking isn't going to get you anywhere. Go to sleep, kid, you've got a lot to get through tomorrow. We can talk in the morning."

I frown, but I know arguing will get me nowhere. Besides, I don't want to provoke my mentor, this person who viciously killed seven tributes in his own Games.

Morning comes quickly – too quickly, because I don't want to go through all the pre-Games steps before the arena. I don't see why it's necessary to cover us in makeup and teach us to smile before forcing us to slaughter each other.

As it turns out, I don't even get a chance to go over much strategy for the day with Jasper before I'm shipped off to the Remake Center to be prepared for the Opening Ceremonies. "Don't struggle – your stylist will know what's best. Got it? I know her personally, and I know for a fact that she's much better than the two idiots they gave to District Two this year. The prep team will be irritating, but don't condescend to them or you'll look like an idiot… more than you're supposed to, I mean. Good luck, I'll see you in a few hours." This is all he has time to say before the Peacekeepers take Glimmer and me to our stylists.

When it comes down to it, the members of my prep team aren't as bad as I anticipated. Bejanji, Piloo, and Shivaux may be the most naïve humans I've ever met, but they're harmless. Their nonstop chatter gives me something to focus on besides what they're actually doing, which is making me look like anything but myself.

Maybe the only thing stranger than the way these three talk is the way they look. Each is… um, unique, in their own way. Bejanji has gems implanted all over his body – he looks like a rainbow, sparkling whenever the light catches the gems. Piloo has altered herself to the point where she looks like a penguin – literally. Her skin is pitch black in some places and snow white in others, and her lips have been made to look like a beak and dyed orange. And as for Shivaux… well, he/she (I can't even tell!) has spikes sticking out from his/her head, and is dyed in swirling patterns of green and blue.

After what has to be at least four hours, the prep team calls in my stylist – Lumina, I think they refer to her as. It's about time, I'm sick of being around these brainless idiots. It's as if I can feel my brain cells dying just listening to them.

"Hello, Marvel." I turn my head to face my stylist as she walks into the room, wondering what oddities this one has brought upon herself. When she's standing right in front of me, I can make a fair assessment, and overall, she's not half as strange as I expected. Her hair is so blonde it's almost white, but it's streaked with every color imaginable, and it hangs about halfway to her waist… the odd part is that no part of it is out of place – it's unnatural. But then, everyone is unnatural here. Lumina looks almost… normal, except that there's a strange quality about her… it's almost as if she's glowing, literally. Is it because her skin is so pale that it reflects the light? Did she get surgery where the doctors implanted tiny beads of light under her skin? I'm not sure, but I'm unnerved as her eyes, so brown they're almost black, pierce me. They're a striking contrast to the rest of her bright appearance.

I nod. "Um, hi."

She circles around me, eyeing me critically. I can do nothing but stand uncomfortably until she can pass judgment.

"You'll do," she says finally. "I'm working with Glimmer's stylist, and we have your outfits for the Opening Ceremonies ready, okay? I think it'll go quite well with both of you."

Cautiously, I nod. "Um… thank you?"

At this, Lumina actually cracks a smile. "You don't have to be afraid of me, Marvel. I don't bite. I'm here to help you, remember?"

I breathe a silent sigh of relief – I was afraid I'd have to spend the next week dealing with a stylist who was cold and unwilling to help. "Right."

She rolls her wide eyes. "Let's get you dressed, then."

As it turns out, part of our outfits involve a bit of spray paint… silver, at that. My entire body is completely covered – but the effect is actually quite cool. It's as if I'm shining. Then I'm given a pair of khaki pants and a white tunic that's covered in gems of all colors. My hair is left mostly alone, and I won't be wearing any shoes.

Unfortunately, I'm forced into wearing makeup… not much, but what's left of my dignity after the spray painting is taken away as my face is remade. It's beyond ridiculous.

Too soon, we have to meet up with Glimmer and her stylist and the mentors at the bottom floor of the Remake Center, and then we all head over to the City Circle, where the Opening Ceremonies will be held.

I glance over at Glimmer while she's talking to Star – she's dressed mostly like me, but her tunic reaches her knees, and her hair is woven through with jewels too. She looks nice, I suppose, but somehow all I can think is how much nicer Diamond would look in her place – she'd be smiling, like always, plus… well, I already detest Glimmer.

I blink. Thinking about Di won't help me right now. It'll just depress me, and I need to be focused. Smile, wave. Get through this, and get ready for training. I have to meet my allies tomorrow, and I have to act flawlessly in order to get out of here alive.

I sigh and walk over to pat one of our horses – they're almost blindingly white. Then before I know it Star and Jasper are helping us step onto our chariot, and then we're in front of the crowd. And it's all I can do not to fall over, it's so loud and bright and sudden – Glimmer is flashing smiles at the crowd and I realize I ought to be doing the same. So I force a smile and wave a bit, but I have a feeling that my smile probably looks more like a grimace, my waves no more than minor spasms. So in the end I just look straight ahead and try not to give the crowd any death stares.

At first, I don't even notice District Twelve's chariot enter the circle, but then the crowd's screams become even more deafening than before, so I glance around to see what the hype is.

Um, yeah… they're sort of on fire…

The tributes from Two are starring daggers at them, but I just roll my eyes. Pretty costumes won't help anyone in the arena. I really couldn't care less what they're wearing, because I'll kill them in the end, regardless. The prep team had played the recap of the reapings while they tortured me – it provided an hour's distraction, at least. I'd seen the girl volunteer for her sister, and while I'll admit that takes a lot in Twelve, that doesn't make her a victor. And the boy looks weak – one of the richer kids in the poorest district, it looks like. No one in Twelve trains for the Games. They're no threat.

Jasper may kill me for it later, but I just stand with a bored expression as we complete the loop around the circle and listen to President Snow make his speech. What harm can it do, really? I'm supposed to act like an idiot, and it's not like someone with a high intelligence level is going to doze off while listening to the head of the country speak.

It seems like years before we're dismissed, and Glimmer and I make our way through the enormous crowd to the elevator.

"Well, that was fun," she mutters, throwing a resentful glance in the direction of the tributes from Twelve. I smirk in return.

It's a very short ride – we're on the first floor, being from District One. I don't even bother talking to Jasper; I just head straight to what's marked as my room – I'm exhausted, and it's late. I'll have time in the morning. Training doesn't start until ten.

Believe it or not, I actually get a good night's sleep. The bed is comfortable and the room dark – thankfully, Jasper doesn't feel the need to come yell at me for not consulting him before heading to bed. I do have the sense to order a bit of food before I fall asleep – so I don't wake up starving at three in the morning. But after that, all I do is wash the silver paint off of me before collapsing almost instantaneously.

When I wake up, I do feel decently rested – good, because I've got exactly three hours before I have to be down at training. And I want to get there early – hopefully the tributes from Two and Four will as well.

Almost every year, the tributes from Districts One, Two, and Four have been allies in the Games. We come from the strongest districts, the ones who hold the most power with the Capitol, the ones who generally live much healthier lives than in places like Eleven and Twelve. And, assuming that we're keeping the traditional alliance this year, I'll need to be prepared for whatever the others might throw at me.

When I finally make myself crawl out of bed, I see that Lumina has left me an outfit – a dark blue tunic that, in the overdone cliché, matches my eyes, along with black pants and shoes. I shake my head, exasperated, and head over to the dining hall after changing.

Unsurprisingly, no one else is there. It's still fairly early. So I go ahead and help myself to the buffet that an Avox must have laid out – they're mute servants… my parents told me about them when I was younger. My dad had encountered several when he was in the Capitol for work.

After an hour or so, Jasper shows up. "You're awake?"

I shrug. "I crashed early yesterday."

He nods. "Right. Anyway, you know the strategy for today – I won't say anything, I know Star can be quite cunning and may well be listening to us now. We've gone over this, you know what to do, I'm not worried. Just get out there, don't make a fool of yourself, train with the spears as much as you can, got it? Show the others what you can do."

I nod. "Got it."

Glimmer and Star don't show up until after nine, which makes me think they've been discussing strategy privately… away from the people who would exploit anything they heard.

Meaning me, obviously.

Anyway, by the time Star and Jasper usher us onto the elevator and the doors close on us, it's nearly a quarter to ten. After a ride down that's, of course, as short as last night's, it becomes apparent that we're the first ones to show up. Glimmer nearly sprints away from me immediately, and I suppress a snicker. We wait awkwardly in the small area designated for tributes, waiting.

Four is the next district to show. A giant and a small girl – these are the first of our allies. I nod curtly to them, but no one says a word. It's as if we've silently agreed for our other two allies to arrive before saying anything.

I find myself standing closer to Glimmer by the time Two arrives. Maybe because the tributes from Four are slightly intimidating, maybe it's just that the closest thing that resembles home is each other. But it's as if a second unspoken agreement has been formed… this one between my district partner and I. Tolerate each other for now, because though no trust exists here, tributes from other districts are more likely to betray us… even if those tributes are allegedly our allies for the time being.

The tributes from Two finally join us, and we all stand in awkward silence for at least a minute or so. Then, at last, the menacing boy from two introduces himself hesitantly.

"Hi. I'm Cato."

I suppress an eye roll – that's it? Then the girl speaks, as if to spare her district partner the embarrassment. "I'm Clove."

I sigh almost silently and catch Glimmer's eye. We're stuck with these morons? I ask with my eyes.

She shrugs almost unnoticeably. Evidently, she seems to say.

Glimmer steps forward. "I'm Glimmer," she says, rather more boldly than Cato and Clove. "It's a good thing you two showed up – we were starting to worry that someone else would get here before you."

I'm not sure who "we" is, exactly, but she's right, so I speak next. "Yeah. We all have things to discuss." And we've only got five minutes, thanks to these two showing up later than the rest of us. "I'm Marvel, by the way."

We all turn to Four, and the giant finally speaks. "I'm Zen," he says, and then he gestures to the girl. "This is –"

"I can speak for myself, Zen, thank you," the girl interrupts, glaring. "I'm Shell."

Cato nods. "Okay. It's… nice… to meet you all." Sure. I'll bet he's dying to slit all our throats while he has the chance. "I assume we're sticking to the traditional alliance?" I glance at Glimmer, who looks bored – this is unnecessary. Everyone nods. "Well, then. The first thing we need to discuss –"

"—is Twelve," Clove finishes for him.

I sigh. Really? Do these fools really think that a pair of kids from the coal district will pose a threat to us at all? They're even bigger idiots than I thought.

"Here's the deal, though," Cato says forcefully. "I don't particularly care who kills the boy. He's worthless. But the girl could be a problem." I grit my teeth in frustration. "And you're not gonna like this, but Clove and I have dibs on killing her."

For a second, I don't react, but then I'm furious.

It's not that I really give a damn about killing the girl. She's just another tribute from Twelve, right? Nothing special. It's the fact that Clove and Cato think that they can come here and, as part of an equal alliance, just take control. It doesn't work like that – we don't have to follow them! I can tell, already, that if I'm not killed in the arena, these two may just drive me insane enough for me to simply drop dead.

"Maybe we want to kill her, too. You don't have any right to claim her like that. You're not the only one who hates her!"

Shell has voiced my thoughts almost exactly – most of them, that is. I don't understand why they think the fiery costumes will make so much of a difference in the arena… the girl doesn't look particularly dangerous, and she's tiny to boot. What's the point? But she's right – no one has a right to the kill.

Clove arches her eyebrows, a small smirk gracing her features. "Sorry, that's not how it works. We have dibs on the fire girl, and that's that."

I glare at them. I've taken an immediate disliking to Cato and Clove, and the urge to unsettle them washes over me. "Oh? And how do you know one of us didn't call her before you did?" I ask challengingly.

Infuriatingly, Cato looks amused. "Well, seeing as you can't officially call dibs until the whole alliance is together, and Clove and I have just done that, and you haven't… well, I'd say it's a pretty safe bet."

"Ingenious," I mutter, so quietly that only Glimmer can hear me. She flashes me a scowl before returning her attention to Clove and Cato.

It appears that Clove has done some quick thinking – good thing, because I'm ready to kill her here and now. "Yes," she stammers quickly, "Cato and I have dibs on actually killing her. But no one said we can't have some fun with her before that." Her lips turn up into a feral smile. "We can give the audience a really good show… scare her, of course, and make sure she doesn't die quickly."

My eyes widen, because at these words, a certain girl comes to mind… and then Glimmer seems to read my mind and mention the same tribute.

The girl's name was Violet – a tiny girl from Eight. She made it farther into the Games than those from Eight usually do, but she got cornered by a girl from my own district. And this girl, Opal, killed Violet absolutely viciously… over the course of six hours.

"Remember that girl from Eight four years ago?" Glimmer is saying now. "The year that boy from Four won?"

Clove lets out a laugh for the first time. "Exactly."

We all take a moment to remember, and when everyone comes back to the present, it's as if a new understanding has been formed. "So, Clove and I will do the actually killing, but you can help with everything else," Cato says, grinning. "There'll be plenty to do – trust me."

I sigh, somewhat unnerved. It's apparent that Clove and Cato intend to make themselves the leaders of the alliance – the tributes from Two usually act this way. Anyone who opposes them usually doesn't last long in the arena.

"That's settled, then," Clove says. While she speaks, another pair of tributes walks in – I look at them distastefully.

Cato gestures for everyone to listen. "Here's the plan for today. We'll split up before lunch, then we regroup. Everyone, stick with your district partner. Keep an eye on the other tributes, especially Twelve, got that? Good. See you all in a couple of hours."

I smirk, take Glimmer's arm, and the two of us walk away as the other tributes begin to arrive. The training director walks in and begins to talk us through the stations, but I pay her no attention. "What a load of shit," I whisper to Glimmer.

To my surprise, she snickers. "For the most part, yes. But I don't mind the idea of giving Katniss what she deserves."

I suppose Katniss is the girl from Twelve. "You really care about what she wore yesterday that much? You think it's going to make any difference in the arena? Is that a girl thing?" I snort.

Glimmer glares at me and turns back to the trainer, Atala. She pointedly ignores me until we're dismissed, and I laugh to myself.

This should be interesting.

And there you have it... this is the first time I've had to rewrite a scene that I've already written. I really wanted to make Marvel's impression of Katniss and Peeta different from Clove's, because I'm trying to make him into more of a careless character, one who might underestimate his opponents but the same time not make a big deal out of something like a costume. This chapter also has his first impressions of his new allies... which was fun, and it gets more in depth in the next chapter. Originally it was going to be in this one, but then I realized that I still had the Opening Ceremonies to write and it was already getting too long... so that's next week.

Guys, I'm running out of ways to ask for reviews. The last chapter only got two, which is beyond depressing. I post this stuff so that I can get feedback, but I'm not getting much as of now. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far. I know more people are reading this than that, though, so I'll say this: I really appreciate everyone who has added this story to Favorites or Alert, but it would be even better if you'd take the time to review, too. Getting emails from this site make my day, especially review alerts!

~What the Quell