A/N: I want to give a shout-out to VividlyCloudyDreams, who has been loyally reviewing every time I update. Also, I realized I never put a disclaimer. I do not own the Hunger Games or Mags, but I do own the rest of the characters so far.
The next day of training follows the same basic routine as the first. After breakfast, Isidora leads us down to the Training room. Kai and I meet up with the careers and practice with weapons and fighting. I perfect my knife-throwing and pick up some basic sword skills. The others use spears, tridents, and axes, but all are a little bulky and heavy for me to use with ease.
I quickly learn my size also disadvantages me in weightlifting and hand-to-hand combat. Despite this, I am able to learn a good choke hold from the instructor in the latter department. Kai, Osten, Kim, Blade, and I sit together at lunch again. I get to know them better, but I still don't trust them.
When my cousin and I greet them in the morning, Osten throws an arm around me and says, "Good to see you, Mags!" At lunch Kim comments something along the lines of, "We've got it- final five right here!" Kai seems excited when they say things like this, amounting it to the fact that they are trustworthy, but I notice something else that really bothers me.
It's the way only the muscles in their mouths move rather than their whole face. It's the way their eyes dart either down or to the left when I talk to them. The subtle body language of a liar.
I think back to a sunny morning in District Four that must have been nearly five years ago. That morning, I woke up at my aunt's house after spending the night. Kai and Marilla were still sleeping, but little Hallie was already awake. We walked out onto the tiled floor of the kitchen and sat in a chair that faced the counter. I pulled Hallie into my lap as I asked my aunt what she was making for breakfast.
"Fried oysters. Do you like those? I could always make something else if you don't want it," she said kindly.
"No, that's fine. I like oysters," I lied. Truthfully, I hated oysters and could not get past the slimy texture, but I didn't want to incovenience my aunt in any way.
My uncle, who was putting on his boots and preparing to go out to his boat, walked over towards me and scooped Hallie up.
"Make some rolls," he said. "Mags is lying. She's just trying to be polite."
I looked at him in amazement, but when I opened my mouth, I said, "No, really, it's okay."
"Nonsense," my uncle said as he hoisted Hallie onto his shoulders. "Let me let you in on a secret, Mags. It's something that has helped me get far in life."
"What's that?" I asked.
"Being able to spot a lie. Sometimes its easy to read people and sometimes its difficult, but body language will always give them away. They'll try to turn away or force a smile. An even easier way to tell is the eyes. A liar can't look you in the eye."
"They say eyes are the portal to the soul," my aunt chimed in. "A person can fake an expression, but their eyes will always say what they're feeling."
I believe that, even now. A person can lie, but eyes can't. Body language can't. It's subconscious.
I can see it immediately in both Osten and Kim. Blade is a bit harder to read. He is usually quiet around me, but him and Kai are good friends. They are the youngest in our group and share an interest in spears. Maybe its just his similarity to Kai, but I find myself trusting him slightly more than the other two.
I'm scared of getting too close to One and Two. I don't want to be obligated to ally with them in the arena, but something tells me my free choice has already dissipated. After lunch, I say I want to go work on survival skills by myself. Reluctant to leave the combat stations, they agree. I head back over to fire-making and camouflage.
Every few minutes, I look around the room to see what others are doing. There are a few others besides those in my group who are decent with weapons, but most of the tributes look like lost sheep. I see a scared twelve year old sitting by himself in a corner, and the girl from Twelve hurt herself in the obstacle course and is crying. I feel so bad for them, but I know there's nothing that I can do.
A few minutes later, I notice the girl from One struggling in the knots station. I do a quick sweep of the room and see the careers and Kai are occupied with target practice. Curiosity wins over me and I walk over to the girl.
"It helps if you double knot it for more support. My name's Mags," I say, crafting a knot for demonstration.
She copies my actions and ends up with a much better knot. Her eyes meet mine with caution. Tributes from One usually have hair so blond that its almost white and bright blue eyes. Osten fits this description, but this girl's hair is more of a golden brown, like mine, and her eyes are a deep hazel.
"Why are you helping me? I thought you were friends with Osten and District Two," she says in a way that sounds accusatory.
"I'm not sure if you could call us friends," I admit. "It wasn't exactly my choice to join the group." Once again, I scan the room to make sure the others don't see me talking to their sworn enemy. Then I add, "What exactly happened between all of you, anyway?"
Her expression relaxes a bit. "I lost a brother about seven years back to these Games. I told Osten that training and volunteering is just asking for death, and he got really offended. It's fine though; I want nothing to do with that group anyway."
She looks hard into my face, trying to see if she has offended me as well.
"I understand," I comment. "Honestly, I feel the same way. I don't understand how anyone could want to volunteer. Sure, you win money and food for the district, but it's not really worth your life." After a moment, I add, "Sorry about your brother, by the way."
She nods towards me. "Sometimes I feel like I got picked because my brother died, like they're giving my family a second chance or something. That probably sounds crazy, though."
"You don't sound crazy. It's possible," I say, remembering how Alec said the Capitol controls everything. I wouldn't put it past them to rig the reaping.
"You're not like Osten and Kim," she says, studying me hard again. "Why don't you just leave them?"
"It's complicated," I murmur. She still looks expectant, so I add, "Half the reason is my district partner. The other half is I know they will hunt me down if I refuse the alliance."
"That's true," she says with a frown. "Take it from me. I'm Crystal, by the way."
It's good to have a name to call her by besides 'the girl from One'. When I look up again, I see the careers are finishing with their practice and know its time to make my exit.
"I have to go now. I'm really sorry you're in this position because you don't deserve it at all. Good luck in the Games," I say, giving her a small smile before I walk away.
"Thanks. Good luck to you, too, Mags." Unlike Osten and Kim, she looks me in the eyes when she says it.
The afternoon progresses normally. I notice that Isidora keeps shooting Alec and I strange glances from across the living area. She must be wondering about what happened last night when she walked in on us under the covers. We only poked our heads out, so she had no way of knowing we were fully clothed. Besides, we can't exactly explain to her that we were discussing something the Capitol isn't supposed to hear.
Alec walks towards me and deliberately brushes against me. I freeze in confusion until he whispers something in my ear.
"Let's juice this for all it's worth," he purrs.
Isidora has really never done anything to me to deserve us playing a trick on her, but it's too tempting to resist. I nod swiftly and say, "You're right. Last night was incredible."
"Do you want a repeat tonight? We can go to your room after dinner."
"Oh, I look forward to it."
The expression on Isidora's face is priceless. For once, she doesn't say anything. Within seconds, she has pulled a fashion magazine up to cover her gaping mouth. It's obvious that she's trying to listen in for whatever we say next.
I start giggling. Alec directs us over to the sofa and pulls me onto his lap. My heartbeat picks up and I feel like there are butterflies in my stomach, even though I know this is just a prank. It amazes me how Alec can keep a straight face, but then I remember he's been acting since he won his Games. I'm either about to mess this up with laughter or embarrass myself with real blushing, so I bury my face into his shoulder. Just before I do, I catch Isidora's bewildered eyes peering around the magazine.
"I can't take this any longer," Alec says, and I think he's talking about keeping up the joke, but then he scoops me up and runs to my room. When he dumps me on the bed, we both have to use the covers to muffle our laughter.
"That was genius!" I say between laughs.
"It certainly was," he agrees. "But we really should talk strategy now."
"Boo, strategy," I say, making a face like I just tasted a bad food. It's no use though, because the Hunger Games are very real and quickly approaching, and no amount of laughing and playing jokes can change that.
We talk a little about my meeting with the girl from One, but we don't reach any conclusion on what I should do. He leaves me with the vague advice to "trust my instincts" before we transition to talking about the private Gamemaker session. I'm not too worried about scores. My main concern is how to follow my instinct to break away from the careers and run and hide away with Kai. I'm pretty sure it's impossible.
All too soon, the next morning has arrived. We go about our normal training until lunch. From that point on, tributes are called individually for their private sessions. Osten is the first to go, followed by Crystal. As soon as Blade and Kim are gone, Kai turns toward me expectantly.
"So…you and Alec Calder. I told you I knew," he says smugly. Isidora must have said something while we were in my room because we made no effort to continue the charade at dinner or breakfast.
"It was a joke," I say quickly, then attempt to change the subject. "What are you going to show the Gamemakers?"
"Weight-lifting and spear-throwing, but that's beside the point. We were talking about you."
"It really was a joke," I say again, a little more aggressively this time. "We were trying to get a reaction out of Isidora and I guess it worked, considering she told you and Kallan."
He thinks about that. "So it really was a prank.." I wonder if he's disappointed or something, but then he grins widely. "I wish I could've seen that!"
"Yeah, it was really something."
Soon, District Three has finished and Kai is called. I wait patiently for about fifteen minutes before my name is called.
The Gamemakers are on a platform above the Training Center, and all of them are looking towards me expectantly.
"Magnolia Brine from District Four," I introduce myself, then ponder over whether I should have used my nickname. "I go by Mags," I add awkwardly before walking over to the knot tying station. I take out several lengths of rope and effortlessly craft a body-sized net and a noose. Then I walk over to the knife-throwing station and hurl several blades at life-size dummies. All but one of them pierce critical areas marked by red. The one that missed embarrassingly flew past the dummy completely, and I hope it doesn't affect my score too much.
By the time I finish, my hands are trembling slightly out of nervousness, but a majority of the Gamemakers are nodding in approval.
"You may be dismissed," the one who must be the Head Gamemaker tells me.
I nod and walk out the room. Already, I'm beginning to stress and second guess myself. Maybe they wanted to see me use a variety of weapons. I should have shown that I can make a fishhook out of almost anything. I have to repeat to myself that it's over and I've done all I can do. All that's left is to hope for the best.
Kai and Isidora are waiting for me at the elevator. As we ride to our floor, Kai asks about how it went while Isidora avoids eye contact completely. The latter cheers me up as I tell the account to Kai.
Our stylists join us that night as we crowd around the T.V. and wait for scores to be announced. Apparently, the score I get will help determine the outfit I will be wearing at the Interview. We have to make sure the way we are portrayed matches up with what the sponsors have seen from the training scores. I plop down between Kai and Lilith and begin squirming out of both nervousness and excitement.
"Would you keep still?" Lilith shouts at me.
"Sorry, I'll try" I say. I've pretty much accepted the fact that Lilith is moody all the time. Who knows, maybe she is able to focus or design better when she's angry. Even now, her lips are formed into a small pout as she stares at the screen through her glasses.
The Capitol logo decorates the screen and Nathaniel Flickerman appears. Every year, he dyes his skin a different color for the Games. This year, it's red. The red is soft enough to where it isn't too overbearing, but it still looks like he has a very painful sunburn. Somehow, Capitol fashion doesn't surprise me anymore. As always, his hair is jet black and he wears a golden suit.
After a brief introduction, pictures of tributes and scores begin appearing on the television. I'm not surprised when Osten pulls a ten. Crystal follows behind him with a six. Blade and Kim get an eight and nine, respectively.
I inhale sharply as Three is being shown. I figure Kai will score high, but what should I be hoping for? Will I need a high score to impress the careers, or will a lower score get them off my back?
There isn't much time to think. Kai appears on screen next to a ten, and then I see an eight accompanying my name and picture. I let out the breath I had been holding in relief. Eight and ten are good scores. I almost don't notice that my name is listed as "Mags Brine". I'm glad I said something earlier.
Everyone in the room congratulates us. I am extremely happy until it hits me. Scores are out, which means the Interview is very soon. And then after that…
I've been tricking my mind into thinking I have a full week until the Games begin. Those days are quickly ticking away. I will be in the arena in two and a half days.
And I still don't have a plan.