A/N: Thanks to Jemmie for reviewing! The support is greatly appreciated :)
Mentor Profile
Dax Kennedy
Age: 64
District: 5
Hunger Games: 29th, aged 18
Mentored By: Jared Parker
Kills in the Arena: 1
Preferred Weapons: Knives
Tributes: Luke Ford and Yvonne Grady
Mentoring Record: 29 Games/0 Victors
Along with District 11's Chaff Harris and Indiana James from Ten, Dax is in a rare group of victors who haven't managed to bring home a single victor in over twenty-five years as a mentor. The recent resurgence of Districts 1 and 4 has left very few Games open for unfancied winners in the past decade, so the Third Quarter Quell might be Dax's best chance to get a victory in many years.
After all, he's got two chances; like many of the outer districts, District 5 has just three living victors, and so Dax must pull double duty, as mentor to both Luke and Yvonne in this year's Games. Despite the higher workload, it's still a better position to be in than Districts 7 and 11, who only have two living victors, and must rely on the expertise of their district's escorts to raise sponsorship funds, and to provide support when necessary.
Dax won his Hunger Games almost fifty years ago, rejecting advances from the favoured pack of tributes from One, Two and Four and choosing to go it alone in the arena. Demonstrating excellent survival skills, Dax managed to keep himself moving, keep himself alive and in a fit enough shape that when fires finally forced the final tributes together, Dax was in much better shape than his adversary from District 1, letting him win the Games with just one kill.
It's an old phrase that often gets thrown around a lot by the commentary team every year, but Dax's victory was what popularised it: It doesn't matter how many kills you get, what matters is who gets the last one.
Like many victors around him, Dax benefitted greatly during his twenties from the boost in popularity that victors gain in the years following his Games, although in the years leading up to the Second Quarter Quell he began to become more withdrawn, rarely being seen except as a mentor each summer, and occasionally appearing as a part of the highlights of the victory tour broadcast at the end of January each year. His talent - painting - has shown his progression through the years, how his changing styles have shown glimpses into his life through the decades. The past fifteen years? Everything's been in monochrome.
Now approaching seventy, the past ten years have been hard on Dax, whose journey into old age has not been as graceful as it is for some. The experience of the Games lets us see the progress of the victors over the years; for some it is for the better, for others it catalogues a slow decline.
But Dax isn't done yet, not by a long shot. District 5 has made none of the headlines so far in the Games, but with two victors younger than many in the Games and not yet too far beyond their physical peak, District 5 is worth an outside chance. Since the training scores were revealed two days ago, Yvonne's odds have been cut dramatically. A standout performance on stage tonight, and the tributes of Five might be worth keeping an eye out for.
A/N: If you enjoyed this chapter, please review! As ever, constructive criticism is welcomed :)