A/N: Let the capitol chapters begin! I already have the perspectives for the capitol chapters planned, so don't feel bad if you're tribute doesn't receive as many spotlights at some others, that shows no reflection on anything. Just thought I'd let you know. I've broken the capitol down into 11 chapters, so there's still a good while before the games, but I promise these chapters aren't very long, well most of them aren't.
So, without further ado…The First Part of the Train Rides!
Avery Reid- District 1
I twirl the golden earrings between fingers, interchanging them in and out between my manicured hands. I haven't put them on yet, but just stare at them, eyes empty and full of grief. All these years I've dreaded coming home to District One, wanting to go back to the capitol as soon as possible. It's funny, in a morbid sort of way, because now that I am on my way to the capitol, I want to turn and run, even if I have to claw my way home.
My plaid shirt is still opened, unbuttoned and revealing my defined abdominals. My cargo shorts and flip-flops complete the rugged ensemble, meant to impress every girl I meet. There's only one girl with me now, and I can tell I'm the last thing on her mind. I train my eyes on her, I'm sure the purple still gives her the creeps. She's sitting by the window, staring at the landscape that zooms by. I don't know why she even bothers; we're moving so fast that everything outside looks blurry.
That's one thing that amazes me about this ordeal so far, the train. Here we are, in complete silence and comfort, while we are moving over a hundred miles an hour. It doesn't seem to bother either Jemima or Tatyana though, who are both busy with their own thoughts.
"Well I don't think we'll get to know each other if we keep this up," I say to Jemima, who doesn't turn around. I flip my shaggy blonde hair to the right, hoping to draw Jemima's attention to my reflection in the window, but she doesn't even bat an eye. It's not that I want her; I've just never had trouble sweeping a girl off her feet before.
"Don't expect that to work on me lover boy," Jemima says casually, stunning me for a moment. No one's ever resisted my irresistible charm, and no one has ever insulted me. People adore me, and I'm sure the second we get to the capitol, someone will demand I'm exempt from this torture. Then, I'll be able to go back to my days of modeling and advertising. Submerged completely in my daydream, I don't notice Jemima move from her seat to the table, and I nearly miss the arrival of three new people into the train cart.
They're our mentors, the ones before us who have come out of this alive, and I notice one of them is merely older than I am. That's right, Summer Azalea, last year's victor. Summer strides in, her long and tan legs carrying her proudly. Her almond hair drapes behind her shoulders, and her emerald eyes pierce into my purple ones. She is striking, and she smiles faintly at me, then takes her seat at the table in the middle of the cart, my eyes don't leave her frame. Two men sit down next to and opposite of her, both of them in their twenties. District One has more victors, but only three mentors are allowed to accompany the tributes per Hunger Games, and these two men must have been sent in alongside One's newest victor.
"Sorry I couldn't be at the reaping," One of the men says, his voice husky and deep, "I had…business to attend to." He introduces himself as Galaxy Andross, victor of the 41st Hunger Games. Galaxy's hair is stark white, and his eyes match perfectly. He must've had them genetically altered, like mine. He's not too attractive, and his muscles are different than mine. Whereas my perfect figure allows me to sport my huge muscle without looking large at all, Galaxy looks like a walking bull. His neck is buried under the massive amounts of muscle he possess, and his arms bulk out wide. The other man is nearly opposite, looking more like a fox, sly and cunning.
"That'd be Cicero Giordano, he won the…," Galaxy's words are cut off as the door to the train cart slides open, and a woman emerges, tall and lithe, with chestnut hair and stunning blue eyes. A long scar runs down her left cheek, gracing the edges of her and stopping near her chin.
"Sapphire? What in hell are you doing here?" Galaxy bursts out; he's obviously the talker of the group. If my suspicions are correct, than this woman is Sapphire Mallory, another District One victor. I thought only three were allowed, but it doesn't matter, I'm not the one breaking rules here so I could care less. Besides, I've got Jemima to worry about; I still haven't found my way past her seemingly unfazed act.
"Mayor Gamble thought I should tag along," Sapphire answer coolly, "Help out Summer here with her first year of mentoring, and besides, she'll need a woman's company in the capitol, not you two chumps."
Galaxy is about to say something, but Cicero opens his mouth for the first time in this whole conversation, "Good, we'll need all the help we can get with these two."
His words sting me for some reason, and I speak up, "Hey, what is that supposed to mean?"
"Look at you," The man scoffs, "You've got your shirt open and your eyes all enhanced, why I bet you think you're hot stuff. Probably one of those capitol models, the young ones they use for to get the industry going. Your head is so full of hot air you're likely to burst at any moment. Don't think you're going to walk right in and out of the arena pretty boy, because it doesn't matter if people adore out here, once you're inside, all of that changes."
The tirade catches me off guard, and I sink into my chair. How dare he? Does he know who I am? I've got connections all throughout the capitol, everyone adores me, people won't stand up for my innocent death.
"You don't know who I am," I state coldly.
"Neither do you," Cicero retorts.
With that, he gets up and leaves the cart, headed to some other region of the train. With an exhausted sigh, Galaxy gets up and follows him out, probably trying to get him to come back into the room.
"Cicero doesn't have patience for snobby tributes," Sapphire tilts her head in the direction of the exit Cicero took when he left.
"Then I don't think we'll get along," I say, raising my eyebrows at Sapphire.
"Give it a break," she says, rising from her seat next to summer and leaving the cart as well. It's only been a few minutes and already our mentors are giving up on us. Only Summer, Jemima and I are left in the cart, and I can already see the doubt in Jemima's eyes.
"So much for upholding the sparkling glory of District One," she says with a huff. I think her words are directed at the both of us equally, as I can't see her wielding a battle axe any time soon. Jemima gets up from her seat and heads to the exit, but I call out after her.
"We are you going?" I ask.
"To my room," she says indifferently, and with that she is gone. Summer looks across the table at me, biting her lip.
"Hey," I say, giving her a wink accompanied by a swish of my hair. She may be a victor, but I can already tell Summer is falling into my trap. I adjust my position in the chair I'm sitting in so that my flannel falls back, exposing my abdominals and chest. The tiny adjustment catches Summer's eye, and she says something I wasn't quite expecting a mentor to say.
"I think I'll head back to my room, I'll leave the door unlocked," Her words are laced with seduction, and stepping out of her chair she sashays over to the doors, leaving me alone in the cart, with only one thing on my mind.
I wait a minute, then give pursuit. Coming to her door, I can tell it's her room by the small window on the outside, revealing the context of the cart. Summer is lying on her bed, and we make eye contact through the glass. Stepping inside, I remove my flannel, leaving me shirtless. My rigid shoulders and muscular arms are showing now, and I cross over to Summer's bed. She beckons me with a flick of her wrist, and climbing onto the bed, I'm about to throw on some extra charm when Summer grabs my wrist. Flipping me onto my back, she hooks a hand around my throat and pulls a knife to my chest. Completely surprised, I try to scramble away but she applies pressure to my neck, and body starts to numb. Not to where I'm out of consciousness, but to where I can't try to escape any longer.
"Lesson One," Summer says intensely, and I'm hanging on to every word, "Start thinking with your head and not with what's down there." As she says these words, she runs the knife along the edges of my groin and I get the message. Releasing me, I cough a few times, spluttering in a girl's bed. Summer stands up, motioning for me to get out. I barely make it out the door without coughing again, and I realize what Sapphire was talking about when she told me to give it a break. I may be the same Avery I was back in District One, but my charm isn't going to get me out of the arena alive.
Ula Ermin- District Four
It's not the train, or the fact that I'm on my way to the capitol, or even the idea that I might die in a week that gives me the creeps. No, it's not any of those things, its Richard, who just gives my bones chills as he sits and there and tears away the meat off a chicken bone at the table. He doesn't even look like he's tasting any of it, just inhaling whatever is set before him. At least I'm not the only one disturbed, because not far from the table, Dashell stares at the convict with wide eyes. Richard doesn't seem to notice though, as he continues to gorge himself on the fried food.
"God that's disgusting, couldn't you keep your mouth closed?" Dashell finally speaks up, causing Richard to look up at the escort. There's a look in Richard's eyes, something that lets Dashell know he needs to shut up. I don't even think about approaching the boy, he looks manic. I want off of this train.
My desires get me thinking about Dory, and my heart sags once again. I know I convinced myself that I would win this for her, but now, I can't help but think that Dory once sat where I do now. She rode this train to the capitol, and went through the whole process before me. It gives me shudders, to think that my sister went through this, and I wonder if she ever gave up. Sure, she always had the will to fight in her eyes, but did she always believe that? I can't think of her as weak, of course she was strong until the end. I shake the thought from my head, and at the right time to, because that's when Marlene comes in. She's accompanied by her male counterpart, Aqua. Aqua is older, but he still looks strong enough to be a mentor. He probably trained Dory alongside Marlene, the thought wrenches my heart. The whole thing about mentors irks me, because whereas the rest of the districts only get two mentors, District One is allowed to have three, and even that gets bent sometimes. I wouldn't be surprised if ten mentors walked their tributes off the train, holding their hands.
"Ula," Marlene says, drawing me from my thoughts.
"Oh, sorry," I manage to blurt out. I look up at Marlene, and she attempts to smile. I can still tell she's shocked to be looking at me in this train right now, who would've thought another Ermin child would get reaped. It always seems like the unthinkable happens in my life. I wonder who Marlene coped with Dory's reaping; she hasn't spoken much about that year ever since she came back from those games. Oh God, not now, why can't I think of this some other time.
I can picture the boy, raising his trident high over Dory's body. It was her district partner who had killed, he wanted her out of the careers from the start, even said she was too weak for them to her face. Right after the bloodbath, he hunted her down. Her screams, oh how I can still hear them in my head. Every night I hear them, Dory's blood-curling final shrieks. The image replays in mind, the boy stabs downward, oh it's too much.
"Ula!" Marlene shouts this time, and it seems like she's been trying for a while to get me out of my trance.
"I was just thinking…," I say, but she finishes my sentence.
"About Dory, I know." Her words don't shock me, though we don't talk much anymore, Marlene and I always think about her, how she didn't deserve what came to her. In all of my thinking, I forgot about Richard.
"Good, you've finally arrived," he opens his arms wide, welcoming the mentors in. "I was beginning to worry about you, I thought perhaps you might have fallen off the train. How ironic would that be?"
No one smiles at his words, although he finds them funny. While Richard dumps the remainders of his chicken wings into the trash can, I grab some food for myself. I've never had chicken, but I knew what Richard was eating because Dashell told me. Biting into the meat, I don't find it half bad.
"Tastes like fish," I say.
"Most people say it the other way around," Dashell says with a laugh.
"What?" I'm confused.
"Oh never mind, why don't you just chat with your mentors here, I'm sure they've got plenty of stuff to talk about," Dashell waves his hand in the air, turning back to his magazine. He's reading some sort of gossip, fitting for a capitolite.
"Actually, we do have a lot to talk about," Aqua says, looking at Marlene.
"Yes, it seems as if this year's career pack is…interesting," Marlene comments.
"To say the least," Aqua adds.
"What do you mean?" I ask, a bit concerned. I don't know what they mean by interesting, and I grow eager to know who my allies will be.
"Well I bet they don't come more interesting than me," Richard says, his voice waggish.
"Why don't you see for yourself," Aqua puts a small disc into the television that sits in the corner of the room. The screen is black for a moment, then jolts to life. It's footage from the reapings, cut to show only districts one, two, and four.
"That's Avery Reid," Marlene points to the attractive boy with the purple eyes.
"His eyes are purple, I'd consider that interesting," Richard remarks.
"He's a model, works, or worked, for the capitol," Aqua says. "He's strong, built, a good ally to have."
"What about her?" I ask, pointing to the younger girl standing next to Avery.
"That's Jemima, we're not so sure if she'll even be part of the career pack," Marlene answers, doubt clouding her eyes.
"Well then, that's one more for us to cut into little pieces," Richard says, licking his lips.
"God Richard, you literally make me want to vomit," I say, shooting him a look of disgust. His eyes instantly turn to me, filling with rage.
"Do not call me that," he spits.
"What? Richard? That's your name isn't it?" I ask, confusion mixed in with my voice.
"The name is Rip, and it's what I'll do to you if you call me Richard again," he hisses, his teeth forming into a snarl.
Rip. It's the perfect little name to go with his absolutely frightening demeanor. I thought he was horrifying before, but now, he's just plain revolting. There's something about him though, the look in his eyes when he puts on his little show. Call me crazy, but it looks like he's hiding something, almost as if this psycho personality is a charade.
"Since either you or I will be dead soon," I say, no longer afraid of him, just disgusted, "I think I'll call you whatever I want, Richard."
He growls, like the animal he is, and I turn my attention to the screen. Marlene gives me a wide-eyed look, to which Richard snaps his teeth at. Marlene ignores him, and looks back at the television.
"So, we're not betting on Jemima or anything, but District Two is where things heat up," Aqua comments.
"No way, they're siblings?" Richard asks, completely excited. The thought sickens me entirely. What if Caspian was reaped alongside me? I'd die of a heart attack, before I even made it onto the train. I couldn't bear the thought of going into the arena with Caspian, but what makes this scene all the more treacherous is that the girl, Cassia, volunteered after she realized her brother was going in.
"She wants to kill him," I say aloud, causing everyone, even Dashell, to look my way.
"She volunteered so she could kill him," I continue to talk. Richard looks at me, expression blank and eyes understanding. It looks like this situation has drawn some humanistic quality out of him.
"That's what we believe as well," Marlene replies, "So I don't know if they'll both be in the alliance."
"So that would only be four, instead of six," Richard observes, assessing the problem.
"So where do we get more tributes?" I ask, concerned about the situation. Marlene and Aqua exchange a look, and then look back at me and Richard.
"That's where you two come in. You'll be the only pair in the alliance, so we thought one of you should assume the role of leader and then try to recruit more tributes for the career alliance. Look for more balanced ones though, we've got plenty of strength in the four of you already, be it either Nero or Cassia who sticks with the group."
Richard and I understand what we must do, and it's us who exchange looks this time. I look at him, and a smile creeps onto my face. "If you want to be leader," I say, a gleam in my eyes, "Be my guest…Richard."
He looks at me, and there's something about the look in his eyes that isn't so malicious anymore. I think he understands that with our numbers down, the career alliance might not make it past the bloodbath if the two of us don't cooperate. I push my thoughts of Dory and my family aside, and look hard into his eyes.
"Two things," He says, "One, I'm the leader, and Two, only you get to call me Richard."
One word escapes my lips in reply, "Deal."
That was longer than expected. Avery's learned that he can't charm his way to the top, or can he? Will Ula and Rip's deal be received well by the other careers? Thanks for all the reads and reviews, and keep on doing it. Reviews make my day, so be sure to leave one if you are enjoying this story. Onward to the next set of Train Rides!
-AdmiralBobbery