A/N: This story now acts as a prequel to the other one I'm working on which is on hiatus, called "The Odds Were Never in Our Favor". In that story Annie has recovered from her PTSD because she never saw her District partner beheaded, which I think is the catalyst that drove her to become unstable. I like how this chapter turned out, but it could have been longer.
If you guys care, I imagined Emmy Rossum as Annie while reading the books, so that's what I'm going with here. I normally don't choose live action versions but if any of you wanted a visual, there you go! Annie is 18 in this story and Emmy was 18 during Phantom of The Opera, so look that up if you want.
Enjoy, and keep up the reviews! :D
Annie opens her eyes to a sea of colors. Pinks, oranges, blues and the stars are still hanging in the sky. She yawns, stretching her arms out and she hits a face. Finnick is lying on the couch, one arm hanging off the side, head tilted back on the armrest, fast asleep. She pokes him and when he doesn't budge she leaves him to go shower.
Her room is pleasantly warm even when she strips down to shower. After hitting a wrong button, she gets a large amount of raspberry shampoo dispensed onto her hands and spends the next hour trying to remember how to work the damn contraption. After drying her hair she finally fishes out a polka dot mint dress with a triangle cut out of upper back from the closet. She ties the ribbon in the front and the other ribbon to bring the triangle cut out together, and ties her hair up in a high ponytail, her curls reaching her shoulder blades. She puts on some flats then walks to the dining cart.
"Mornin'... Annie" Mags mumbles loud enough for Annie to jump back and clutch her chest.
"Mags! You scared me!" Annie says, taking a seat next to the old woman. "what time is it?"
"Eight." Mags says. She has a steaming cup in her hand, and Annie can't help but ask what it is. "Hot... Chalk, late"
"Hot… Chocolate?" Annie inquires. It definitely smells like chocolate. She remembers having it once as a kid. District 4 is able to afford some things that the higher numbered districts can't. She's heard stories about how they are all starving while in 4 everyone has enough to eat. They don't live like the Capitol, but they get by. Mags nods and stands up to get Annie a cup. Mags fiddles with some buttons on the machine, then brings Annie the steaming liquid.
"It tastes just like it did when I was younger, except even better." Mags beams at her, glad that Annie likes the drink.
"Y'know, it's rude to sneak out the morning after." Both women turn to see Finnick leaning against the door frame that Annie came through. Mags turns to Annie and smirks, arching an eyebrow mischievously.
"We feel asleep on the couch after we talked about stars, Finnick."
"So last night meant nothing to you?!" Finnick exclaims with mock heart-break. Annie rolls her eyes, sipping her drink. Finnick takes a seat next to her once he's gotten some food, and chuckles. He's still in his pajamas, or lack of , when Elmas comes in with Percy.
"Good morning, darlings!" Elmas greets them all with a wide smile and looks almost too happy. "We'll be in the Capitol in a few hours." She sits down and puts half a muffin on her plate.
"Oh joy." Percy says with a sarcastic smile. Finnick chuckles but Elmas seems to not catch the sarcasm, or if she does, ignores it.
"Oh, you two will just love it! If only you could enjoy it longer." Elmas sighs.
"I think District 4 has a pretty good chance at winning this year." Finnick tells Elmas. He spreads butter on some toast then chops down. Elmas smiles at him, then turns to the tributes.
"Well, if one of them wins, they'll certainly be some of the prettiest victors!" Elmas says admiringly, "Both of you are so stunning, oh, it'll be a shame when one or both of you dies."
Annie can see Percy get shaking next to her, though she thinks it's due to anger more than fear. "such a shame." he says before taking a bite of his croissant. Annie puts a pancake on her plate and some fruit before pouring syrup onto it. She had pancakes a few times before; her mother would make them on her birthday. Mags gets up saying she wants to do something that Annie can't understand.
Once everyone finishes eating Elmas tells them to get dressed and ready. Percy comes back out a few minutes later, showered and dressed in a button-down shirt the same color as Annie's dress with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of navy colored pants. Finnick and Mags come out a few minutes later, both of them also wearing the mint color of Annie's dress.
"Team." Mags says, and Annie understands that they wore mint to look like a team.
"I only wore what was on my bed." Percy says.
"Who do you think put it there?" Finnick says, pointing at Mags. The old woman beams up at all of them, and the train pulls into the station. Annie and Percy go to the window's, captivated by the strangeness of the Capitol citizens. Annie brings up a hand to wave back at them, not knowing what else to do, and Percy does the same.
"They look so weird." Percy says to his mentors, still waving and smile still on his face.
"They naturals!" Elmas claps her hands, looking proud.
The District 4 team gets escorted off of the train and to the remake center, but not without facing crowds of photographers. Annie smiles as much as she can, but the bright flashing lights are a bit much. Percy smiles from time to time, but still looks imposing and tough. Peacekeepers bring them through the archway which leads to the big double doors of the remake center. There, Mags brings Annie to her room and Finnick brings Percy to his.
"No resist." Mags tells her. Annie nods her head and the door opens, revealing three people all looking as ridiculous as the people Annie had seen she the train pulled into the station.
"HI! Oh, you're just gorgeous!" the woman with short purple curls and dark skin greets her with exaggerated gestures.. The woman gives her a hug and then introduces herself. "I'm Viorica, and this is Woto," she points to the man with the bright yellow knot of hair on his head, who smiles bedazzled teeth at Annie. "
"And this is Hyplo." The other man, with artificially green eyes, and equally green lips waves pleasantly.
"Which of you is my stylist?" Annie asks warily. Mags has left the room and she feels worried being alone with these strange people.
"Oh, sweetie! We're your prep team!" Hyplo says, "We get you ready before Tallulah, your stylist, comes in and, well, styles you!"
"...okay…"
"You'll need to take off your clothing, so we can scrub you down and rid your body of all that hair." Woto says, shaking his head. Annie wonders for a second if they mean the hair on her head as well, but Mags said not to resist.
"You can change in the other room." Viorica says, handing her a towel to cover herself up. Annie takes it and walks into the small room. The artificial light is overwhelming at first but she gets used to it. She strips down and doesn't see the point of the towel anymore, since they are going to be seeing her naked anyway. People are half-naked in District 4 all the time, what with the heat and all the swimming. She walks out, her mother's necklace still around her neck and hands Viorica the towel with a tight-lipped smile.
"You should probably take that off." Viorica tells her.
"Can you put it somewhere safe? It's my token." Annie says.
"Of course!" Viorica puts the necklace in a small box and goes to put it in another room.
When she comes back the three guide Annie to the shower-like thing in the corner of the room. They slather a gritty foam all over her body, which she's sure has taken a good layer or two of skin off along with the dirt once they wash it off.
Once they dry her off, they sit her down at a chair with a small sink behind it, then Hyplo starts to wash her hair, putting all different types of concoctions into it, while Woto and Viorica work on turning her finger and toenails into uniform shapes. Once they're done, they lay Annie down on the cot in the center of the room and start putting a waxy substance on her legs, arms, torso, and underarms. They even put some on her nether regions, which makes her twitch uncomfortably.
"Uh, can I ask what this is?" Annie asks.
"It's wax. It gets rid of your hair." Woto tells her, putting paper on the wax.
"How?"
"Well, we put the wax on, then some of these paper strips," He holds on up before putting it on her leg and pressing down, "Then we wait just a tiny bit, and we," He grabs the top of the paper and in one hard, swift, downward motion, rips it off parallel to her skin.
"SHIT!" She normally doesn't curse too much, but she'll let it slip from time to time, and this is as good a time as any.
"Sorry!" Woto apologizes quickly. "We have to! Don't worry, it'll get easier!" He assures her. She bites her lip and stays quiet for the rest of the process.
The three of them make quick work of the waxing process and when Annie looks at the clock she sees she's been here for three hours. They apply a lotion that stings at first but soon soothes the raw skin that has been tugged at. Stepping back, they admire their work and clap with delight.
"You look even prettier now!" Woto squeals. "I'll call in Tallulah!"
"She is such a classic beauty! What I wouldn't give for those cheekbones!" Hyplo sighs, on the verge of tears. He's shaking his head and smiling, so Annie assumes that he's crying of joy, apparently pleased with his work.
"Yes, but look at her eyes! So big and beautiful!" Viorica argues, gesturing towards Annie's eyes.
"Yes, yes, but her lips are obviously what will enrapture the sponsors! They'll cling onto everything she says!" Woto insists.
"I think that it's a combination of the three." A woman with knee-length lilac hair that come down in waves says, holding the door open for the three. "You three did a wonderful job, you may leave now." She tells them. The woman walks up to Annie and observes her, scanning her eyes over every inch of Annie's body.
"I'm Tallulah, you stylist." she holds out a hand that Annie shakes. Tallulah is young for a stylist, maybe in her mid to late twenties and hands Annie her robe.
"Why don't you follow me into the other room and we'll talk over lunch?" Tallulah smiles. She leads Annie through a frosted glass door which leads to two mauve velvet couches with a chunky coffee table in between. Tallulah sits down across from Annie and presses a button on the side of the table, which causes the top to split open and another tabletop to bring up their lunch.
"I do hope you like chicken!" Tallulah says.
"Yes, thank you." Annie responds.
"Now, about your costume for the opening ceremonies," She begins. "My partner, Opin, is your District partner's stylist, and we were thinking of dressing you two up in complementary costumes." Please, not fish, Annie thinks, please not fish.
"Opin has being wanting to do this for years now but he's been waiting for just the right girl. Originally we were going to make you two some sort of odd fish, but when we saw you and, Percival was his name, right?" She asks.
"Yes."
"Well, when we saw you two we instantly knew that we had the perfect pair!" Tallulah takes a sip of her fizzy purple drink. "We fished out, sorry for the pun, these old costumes that he made years ago and I made some modern alterations based on your body shape and size, but you'll still fit into it like a glove!" She brings up a dark hand, covered in a thin layer of sparkles, to her hair, moving it from her face, and continues. "You'll love it!"
A few hours later, Tallulah puts the last of the pearls into Annie's hair and steps back to admire her work. She turns Annie around to face a large mirror, and the young woman gasps. There's perfectly pinned starfish in her hair and pearls on the seashell bra that Tallulah's put her in. On the side of her face, there are sparkles that reflect light and her eyelashes look even longer than normal. There's a thin layer of pink-tinted gloss on her lips and her long brown hair is in waves down her back with two fishtail braids at the top of her head, but nothing is as breathtaking as the beautiful mermaid tail they have her in. The blue, green, and purple scales reflect light and look so natural that Annie mistakes herself for an actual mermaid for a moment. Rather than two fins at the bottom of the skirt, there are dozens of thinner ones that enable her to walk.
"You look absolutely stunning!" Tallulah wipes a tear from her eye. She pulls something out of a small box and Annie recognises it as her mother's necklace. "It fits the theme." Tallulah smiles, putting around Annie's neck. "Come now, let's get you to the bottom level of the Remake Center. It's essentially a gigantic stable."
She let's Annie hike up the skirt enough where she can walk, but won't wrinkle the fabric or cause scales to fall off. They meet Percival, Opin, and his team at the elevator, where they all look at Annie is awe. Opin comes up to her and puts his hands over his mouth.
"Oh, darling, you're exactly what I've been waiting for! You're perfect, you're a mermaid!" The older man squeals. He's crying and making a conscious effort not to hug her.
"That's what my father always told me. That I was a mermaid." Annie tells him when he calms down.
"Wise man!" Opin exclaims. Percy is dressed as a pirate, complete with a loose blouse, stereotypical pirate boots, and a hat. He even has an eyepatch. Annie thinks that it would've looked ridiculous on anyone else, but the quality of it is perfect and Percy has the dangerous but handsome look of a pirate that the Capitol will adore. They all climb into the elevator, which takes them down to the bottom level. They are some of the first to have arrived and Annie spots their chariot immediately. It looks just like the hull of a ship, there's even seaweed and barnacles on the bottom. Percy gets on first and helps Annie up, where Tallulah adjusts her mermaid tail.
"Oh my, don't you look as pretty as a pearl!" Elmas gasps. She takes a good long look at Annie and starts to cry. "It'll be such a pity if you die!" She redirects her attention to Percy and goes on about how dashing and strong he looks, telling him that the Capitol will adore them both.
A few moments later Mags and Finnick walk up to them and blink a few times. Finnick smells like perfume and Annie guesses that it's from one of his infamous lovers. Both are at a loss for words. Finnick breaks the silence as usual.
"Damn, Annie." He starts to laugh, "Wow!" he looks utterly astonished, as does everyone else. Annie blushes.
"Really?"
Mags nods her head frenetically, beaming up at the girl, She takes hold of Annie's hands and says "So... pretty!"
Finnick looks over at Percy and shakes his head, "You might just look better than I do!" Mags nods at his comment, letting go of one of Annie's hands to hold one of Percy's.
"Knock 'em… dead!" The old woman says.
The chariots start to line up and District 1 goes out first. The gem encrusted garments making them looks like millions of dollars, which is probably the price of them. District 2 looks as fierce and menacing as ever, dressed in bronze armor. District three isn't anything special, just the same odd silver headpieces adorning their heads. Then suddenly Tallulah and Opin shout out "Good Luck!" and the crowds of Capitol citizens are screaming and shouting and in awe of the pirate and mermaid from district four. They look absolutely captivated by the two tributes and Annie hears their names being chanted, and there are flowers being thrown at them. Annie makes sure to catch one particularly pretty bouquet and smiles the entire way to the City Circle. Once all of the chariots are in the loop, the music stops and President Snow comes out on a balcony. Annie can see all of the tributes now and tries not to wince at District 12's costume, or lack of therefore. They are stark naked and covered only in black coal dust from head to toe. On national television. Annie just hopes that they are of age. Snow gives the welcome speech and then the Anthem plays as the chariots are brought to the training center by the highly trained horses. Once the doors close behind the District 12 tributes Annie and Percy are met by the cheerful faces of the prep teams and their mentors.
"You two were absolutely wonderful!" Opin exclaims and everyone agrees. Annie sees Finnick looking at her from her peripheral but when she meets his gaze, he looks away. She also notices the dirty looks that some of the other tributes are giving her and Percy, mostly her. But in the training center with a sudden surge of hope that she might actually be able to win the Hunger Games and go. back. home.
She doesn't care what they think.
A/N: Yay! Chariot times! The interviews are up next! Review please! And feel to PM me with any questions.