Cato's POV

"CLOVE!" I scream, reaching out to her, but the faceless white men push her farther away from me. They take her 2 metres away from me, then they drop her as if she is a piece of rubbish. I instantly run over to her, but instead I slam head first into something hard, which makes me drop to the floor.

There seems to be an invisible wall that separates us, unbreakable. I'm panting uncontrollably, sweat trickling down my face. Suddenly, I hear a piercing scream from my right, but when I turn, Clove is already on the floor. She's limp, and she makes no movement at all.

"No..." I gasp, but she doesn't move. She's dead. Minutes later, the familiar sound of the gong rings in my ears, and a black hovercraft appears above us. Clove gets lifted up slowly with a net. "No! CLOVE!" I yell desperately, but it's no use.

I snap my eyes open. I look around, confused at my whereabouts, when I finally remember that I am on the speeding train. My skin is boiling hot, and sweat is forming around my forehead. The nightmare felt so real, I almost believed that it was happening. I shake it off and hop into the shower to get ready for today.

Before I step out of my room, I check the time. 6:47 AM. It's pretty early in the morning, which is unusual for me since I am certainly not a morning person. I slide the door shut behind me, careful not to wake Dolly, Clove or our mentors. However, as I look to my right, I catch sight of Clove.

I'm almost ecstatic to see her, and I resist the temptation to hug her. A flood of relief washes over me. The dream was just my imagination. We both greet each other, and I nod to her and walk left into the dining room.

Surprisingly, Brutus and Enobaria are already there, laughing and talking to each other. They stop abruptly when they realise that we had arrived. Enobaria stops chewing and checks her watch.

"6:55. Good, you're early" She compliments, and beckons us to sit in front of them. Without hesitation, we both sit down, Clove in front of Enobaria, me in front of Brutus. Brutus unexpectedly peers into my face, and I stare at him back awkwardly. Then he starts laughing hysterically, and we all look at him questioningly.

"Looks like someone's had a nightmare!" Brutus finally calms down and carries on with his food. I flush deeply. How the heck did he know that? I cough to hide my embarrassment and start taking food on my plate. I can see Clove looking at me at the corner of my eye, but I ignore her. I don't want to look like a wimp, especially in front of her.

"Okay, so, how do we win?" I ask, stabbing a piece of potato with my fork. I stare at Brutus, who ignores my question and keeps eating. "We need tips now so we don't waste time when we get to the Capitol. Both of us are-"

"You survive," Brutus interrupts, letting go of his knife and fork, "You stick with the pack and survive. People need to fear you, to be out of your sight so they can live. That way, nobody will dare try to ambush or attack you."

I already know this. In fact, this was my first priority plan anyway. I don't need to be reminded the second time. However, I just eat so they can't make any eye contact with me. Usually, the past tributes and maybe tributes from other districts now are comfortable with their mentors - even developing a personal relationship with them. No matter how much I think about it, I doubt that I can follow that way. Especially not with Brutus.

"What if we're alone? What if all the other Careers have died, or we separate? How will we survive then?" Clove suddenly asks. It's the first time she's talked today, other than our morning greeting. Enobaria and Brutus smile, seeing that at least one of the tributes can ask a sensible question. I can't expect any worse from Clove - she's normally our strategist.

"That's exactly why you need to be independent. You can't trust anyone, not even your tribute partner." Enobaria pauses so we both take that in, but I let it fade in my mind, "When you get to train, don't worry about your fighting techniques. Focus on survival. You've already trained in combat in the past 5 years. The Career pack is your armour. They're supposed to make everyone dread your presence, but it doesn't necessarily mean that they will help you to win. And, honey, if you're dying or wounded and there's nobody to help you, the only thing that can save your life are gifts."

Brutus nods, "And to get gifts, you need sponsors. You need to make everyone like you. Although your stylists do most of the work, both of you must act lovable"

I smile in satisfaction and take a sip of mango juice. Easy. I can get some people to like me, hands down. As I look to Clove, I can tell that she's uncomfortable, almost fidgety. It's true, though. Back in District 2, Clove has never made another friend, apart from Syne and I. It could also be why Lou had decided to pick on her the day she won the fight.

"I'm...I'm not the best at making friends" She says quietly. Enobaria and Brutus laughs lightly, and lean forward.

"Don't worry, sweetie, it's not such a big deal. All you need to do is stick with Prince Charming over here, and you'll be loved heaps!" Brutus jokes. I blush slightly and grin.

Before anybody else could speak, Dolly bursts in the room, wearing the most bizarre outfit yet. She points to a window and smiles. "Smile, sweetie! People are dying to take a look at you!" Enobaria whispers something about being in the spotlight to Brutus, but Clove and I are too stunned to hear.

Outside, we can see the Capitol emerging from the distance. My mouth hangs open as I see the luxurious life the unusual citizens live in. Every one of these people looks exactly like replicas of Dolly! Apart from that horrible sight, the buildings and the immense land catches my eye. It looks like a scene that would come from a future sci-fi movie. Even if we're far away from our destination, there are people cheering as we speed past them. I go to the nearest window and start waving at them, starting my new personality.

However, Clove is still infuriated at the Capitol. I take her hand and whisper softly in her ear. "It's time you start acting. Throw your hatred away and put on a happy face, okay?"

"He's right, Clove" Brutus says. I'm quite surprised. How did he hear me? Anyway, this was the first time he's ever agreed with me, and I have a feeling of satisfaction pass through me, "Cato. You should act charming, yet fierce and confident. And Clove, you should be a sweet, quiet girl, yet sarcastic at the same time"

Me and Clove look at each other, and grin. We don't need to act at all. Finally, the train comes to a sudden halt, and we both get ready to step out. The door slides open and a blinding light shines in our eyes, but we adjust to it quickly. We step out, and the crowd swarms over us like bees. I smile and wave, and some girls even scream. Ugh, I hate those type of girls, but I continue anyway. We will be famous throughout the whole world in a matter of hours.

This was particularly fun, yet hard to write, since I needed to include essential information in just one chapter! You can tell that the story's developing :)

Thank you all for the reviews! I just love them so much :3