Interviews: District Five

Sisco Perry's POV

"Nan Weatherall…Come on down!" She waltzes up to the chair like she's floating through the air.

"So, Nan, what's the most impressive thing you've seen in the Capitol so far?"

"Well Sisco, I really like the buildings. And the food. The Capitol Outfits are very interesting. If I become a victor I might get cat ears or something. Maybe not. I don't know. Actually, probably not. It's really not like me to go Capitol. Not that that's a bad thing! To go Capitol, I mean. I just don't think it's really my style. You know?" She pauses for a breath. She's talking extremely fast and covered the latter in less than thirty seconds. I decide to ask her another question.

"What's your token, Nan?"

"Oh, my token? Well, it's an ovular turquoise stone set on a silver chain. See?" She tucks it out from under her blouse and holds it out for the cameras.

"It's very beautiful."

"Thank you. It was my great-great-great-grandmother's and has been passed down to the women in my family for," she pauses to count on her fingers and breath. "Six generations now, including me. It's very precious and I love it very much and it'd be a shame to lose it or break it or have it blown up or – Ah!"

Nan falls out of her chair onto the stage. She's been sitting on the very edge of her chair for the whole interview.

"Are you okay?" I help her up. She's rubbing her, um, rear end, and I can tell she's trying not to cry.

"Yes, I'm fine. I might've bruised my tailbone, though." Ooh. That hurts. I wrinkle my nose as my tailbone shoots jolts of pain through my body that's not there. I hate it when that happens. I'm not hurt, but hearing about or seeing an injury makes that exact spot hurt on my own body. She sits back down and I can see the discomfort in her face.

"Let's hope that's not the case. It'd be awful if you had to start the Games with an injury that makes it hard to run and sit."

Rrring! Her buzzer sounds and I call up the next girl, Lara Lynn Case.

"Hi, Lara."

"Um, Hi Sisco."

"Why don't you let us know a little about yourself?"

She hesitates. I have the bad feeling that her past isn't all diamonds. "Okay."

She takes a deep breath and begins to tell her horror story.

"When I was sixteen, my neighbor was Mr. Viol. He was old, cranky, rude and extremely mean. He finally died of old age, but I kept seeing him. He was at school, at the kitchen table, at the market, and, most hauntingly, in my dreams. He could touch me there. Transform. He was the cause of my nightmares every night. I decided I would kill Mr. Viol's ghost and be done with it. I carried a knife with me and waited until he was close enough to strike. I was just getting out of school and was walking with my friend Sasha when I saw him. He was standing right next to her, and then moved in front of her. He was laughing his cruel, cold laugh. Sasha walked right into him and he went into her. I didn't want Mr. Viol to take over Sasha's body, so I stabbed her."

She pauses, and the news sinks in. She swallows hard and continues her story.

"When the Peacekeepers asked why I did it, I told them my neighbor's ghost had taken over her body and she was going to kill me. They told me I was a lunatic and locked me up in an Insane Asylum. I'm only allowed out for mandatory things, like reapings."

"Speaking of reapings, what was going on through your head when they called your name?"

"Oh, I think my reaping was rigged so they could just get rid of the great aberration (A.K.A. me) for good."

"So, you weren't scared?"

She shakes her head. "No. If they think they can get rid of me that easily, they're the lunatics. I plan on winning. It's as plain and simple as that. I am coming home."

Her buzzer rings before I can ask what crazy thing she's chosen for a token. "Okay…Lani Tuckerson... you're up.

The girl who walks up is appealing, but innocent. She is twelve and wears a loose baby doll dress, which just adds to the fact that she looks six years old.

She tells me that she's the youngest of five kids. I learn that her parents worked for the Capitol, this being very rare in District Five, but quit due to unfair treatment. Thus, Lani was reaped, their angel, on purpose. The Capitol even went out of their way to send the Tuckerson family a note, warning them, but Lani's parents didn't tell her about the note until the goodbye's.

The audience will hear no more. They're appalled that their government rigged two reapings. The bloodshed was supposed to be random, and the Hunger Games were created for entertainment, not a punishment, according to the clueless citizens of our shining city.

I'm smart enough to know that the Presidents of Panem have been doing this every year for the past 175 years. I've even heard rumors that there's a board of people that vote for which family's child should be picked in each district. Or, which family "deserves" to have their child slaughtered the most.

Sure, I enjoy the entertainment that the Games provide, I mean, who doesn't? But I do think the Games should be completely random. Her buzzer rings and now it's time for the boys!

I don't remember the first one's interview that much, but the last two weren't that bad.

"Ollie Prevo. So, what's your story, Ollie? Is it as juicy as these girls'?"

"No. Or, at least, I don't think so. My mom died three years ago from cancer. I –" he stops and swallows, pursing his lips together and squeezing his eyes shut. A tear trickles down his cheek and I offer him my handkerchief. He accepts it gratefully and dabs his eyes. We sit in silence for a while, and then he resumes his story.

"I miss her so much. I'm sorry," he stops for a moment and collects himself, and then continues. "I really want to make her proud."

We make small talk for about a minute and I try not to bring up his mother again. Then it's time for Daryll Lamat, the final interview for District Five.

"Well, Daryll, tell us what the best part about preparing for the Games was for you."

He thinks for a moment, then answers, "My room in the Training Center. There's an awesome shower, fast room service, and the Avoxes follow your every command. I feel like a King."

We talk about the Capitol and its many wonders before his buzzer sounds and he makes his way back to his seat. Five down, seven to go.