AUTHOR'S NOTES: And now we get to actually see a bit more of where Lucia and Cadence are coming from as they make their way to and arrive in the Capitol. Updating schedule on this story is still the same,especially since I was suffering from a bit of a writer's block recently and still kind of am. Fortunately, I hope that nothing feels too forced. I was able to write most of this fairly easily.
Happy Reading!

CHAPTER 4: War and Peace

There was not much else that Bethany or Johnny could tell Cadence that he didn't seem to already know, and Lucia had seemingly given up. She knew she was not a fighter, and while it upset Cadence, she was at peace with that aspect. She had lived a shirt life, but a happy life. She knew that they were not going to cater to her in the arena just because she was blind. Hours passed until the sun had gone down. The only thing that broke the silence was when Nephenee briefly popped in to mention that they would arrive at the Capitol the following morning.

"Bright and early!" she had reaffirmed, "so don't forget those smiles!"

"Can I punch her please?" Cadence growled after Nephenee had left, "Just once; I swear."

"Patience…" Bethany whispered. "the time to fight will come, but it is not now."

"It's survival of the fittest out there," Johnny frowned, "The Capitol doesn't give special treatment even to those little 12-year-olds that have never even touched a weapon. They wouldn't give Lucia special treatment just because she's blind."
"All the more reason for me to protect her," Cadence asserted, "remember—there was a year where a kid hardly a couple days older than 12 won the games and killed nearly a dozen tributes on her own."
"I don't want to burst your bubble about that, kid," Johnny sighed, "but she was a genius—easily one of the smartest people in the country. Now, neither you nor Lucia are by any means stupid, but I don't even think you could build a trap network that elaborate throughout the arena."
"Is that a challenge?" Cadence cracked his knuckles.

"If you come out of there alive and in one piece, I don't really care how you do it," Johnny quipped. "I'm just saying that I don't exactly imagine Lucia is keeping that a secret."
Cadence mused about this for a moment, thinking about the silent girl of such few words.

"Tell me something, Lucia," he turned his head to her.

"Hmm?" Lucia raised an eyebrow, turning her head in Cadence's direction.

"I only really heard of your reputation rather than experiencing it myself." Cadence began, "and so I'm curious as to why they called you the 'District Sweetheart'."
"I never understood it either." Lucia shrugged, "All I really did was help people when I heard them need help, and listen to people when they needed to speak."
"She did more than that," Johnny began, "she was therapeutic to some of us. She was famous not just among the victors, but around everyone she met, for this reason."
"I enjoyed helping people." Lucia spoke calmly. "And now it seems that my time has come to an end."

"Not if I have anything to say about it." Cadence asserted, "See, I'm the opposite. I'm the kid a lot of people hate because I don't consider myself a very nice person. You made people happy, Lucia. And as harsh as I often am… I knew that, and think you deserve to go back more than I do. I don't need to be a friendly person to have morals."

"I think a bit of hostility might serve to your advantage in the arena," Bethany commented, "Being ruthless is the name of the game."
"Then again, so is backstabbing," Johnny pointed out, "You'd know, Shanza."
"In the games, you do what you have to do." Bethany began, but Cadence cut her off.

"I will not betray Lucia." He asserted, "I'll end my own life first."
"I'm not saying betray Lucia…" Bethany quipped, "It's not the first time tributes have gotten moody with us mentors. Hear me out—what I'm saying is that you might want to try and form alliances. If formal alliances aren't your thing, go the informal route the way '11 and '12 often do, and have people that will 'save you for last', so to speak."

"Of course," Johnny interjected, "the catch is that every arena is different and so are the tributes that get sent there. So while we're happy to help give you pointers, there's only so much we can do before it comes down to you."

"I'll make sure that's not an issue." Cadence assured them.

Ultimately, the trip from District 5 was not very long, but the trains either took a scenic route or went slower than they did for the farther districts, because they all arrived at the same time and were certainly not equidistant from the Capitol. With it getting late, the mentors and tributes parted ways for their own compartments, Johnny casually warning them not to stay up too late.

"Nephenee won't see a difference," he quipped.

As Lucia and Cadence reached their compartments, Lucia turned to him and sighed.

"I just want to let you know something," she said softly.

"Hmm?" Cadence muttered, showing he was listening.

"You're not as bad a person as you think," she put her arms around him gently, "you just want to have a reason to like someone. You treat people the way you're treated, and you're wary of people. None of those are inherently bad traits."
"And I chase people away." Cadence reminded her.

"Then why didn't you chase me away?" Lucia asked, "my reputation may have preceded me just as Johnny and Bethany's did, but you didn't know any of us."
"Johnny and Bethany are our lifelines, and the links between us and sponsors." Cadence reminded her, "and I aim to receive some gifts if I want to keep you alive."
"But what about me?" Lucia's colorless eyes seemed almost fixated on Cadence's fiery blue ones, "you said you never knew me apart from my reputation."

"And what of it?" Cadence tilted his head this time.

"It goes to show that you don't entirely judge everyone so hatefully," she pointed out, "you judge based on your perceptions. But the fact that you trust me means you believe there are still good people in the world. That's admirable."

"I'm just…" Cadence scratched his head, "not exactly very sociable."

"That's okay; you don't have to be." Lucia smiled, "I just don't want to see you lose yourself to that anger of yours. You're a good person, Cadence."
"And how do you reckon that?"
"You are here now because you wanted to protect someone who could never repay you. If that's not selflessness, then I don't know what is."

With that and a smile, Lucia disappeared into her quarters, leaving Cadence alone as he dressed for bed that evening. He lay there contemplating what Lucia said, and perhaps his hostile outlook was not as harsh as he had originally suspected. Then again, he imagined he would become very bitter without a counterbalance like Lucia in his life, and he hated to think about it. No, he had to make her win, because his life would not be worth living without her in it. He wasn't madly in love with her, but now he realized why Lucia was the "district sweetheart". She really did have all the right things to say to make someone feel better or at least be a lot less hateful. He wasn't sure when he finally drifted off to sleep, but there was not even a shadow of a doubt that Lucia was on his mind.

The next morning, true to Johnny's warning, Nephenee was there to make sure everyone was awake as they approached the Capitol. Cadence, like many other tributes, was weirded out by the purple showers, but calmed down a bit when he realized that the water and chemicals were not in fact detrimental to his health and well-being. Perhaps it would have been advantageous to be blind like Lucia right now. She didn't have any reaction to is, and simply showered like she normally would.

Either way, Cadence nearly smiled when he saw her dressed for the day. The breezy, lighthearted way she carried herself coupled with her almost carefree expression was relaxing to be around, even for someone as bitter and hostile as he was. Naturally, when the train pulled into the Capitol station, the crowds adored her. She didn't make eye contact with anyone, but she smiled and waved, turning her head every direction so that everyone got a chance to see her face.

By contrast, Cadence was much more stoic, and he was much more relieved when they finally got to the tribute tower and made their way to the 5th floor. It was as luxurious as it had been hyped up to be, and were it not there in preparation of a death tournament, Cadence might have actually found this place to be rather comforting.

"Now, now…" Nephenee beamed, "don't go too far, you two! Your stylists will be thrilled to see such a beautiful pair of darlings this year!"

Despite Nephenee's enthusiasm, both Cadence and Lucia were silent. Cadence more because he was introverted and had little to say unless spoken to, and Lucia because she appreciated the silence in a way as well. Both of them were actually contemplating what their stylists would do to them. District 5 was pretty reputable for its usually fairly attractive tributes, as well as being glitzy and flashy due to the nature of their industry. Time would tell, and they had a long afternoon of styling in front of them. As such, both of them took a deep breath and stood up as they heard a knock at the door…