AUTHOR'S NOTES: And here are the interviews, in the final night before the actual games kick off. Considering that Cadence is not exactly eloquent and because of the interviews I wanted to cover, I don't actually divulge the full transcripts this time, but hopefully what I provide instead is a suitable alternative.
Happy Reading!

CHAPTER 12: Words on a Stage

Serendipity took the stage, and it was clear from the way the crowds cheered her on that she was already a popular choice. A few coy gestures, a charming smile, and some choice movements and words had the audience fawning over her before Caesar had even begun. The host was old, but still hale. Cadence frankly wondered what was keeping him going. Considering the man had first been instated during the 35th Hunger Games, he was clearly at least 80 or 90 at this point, but with the vibrant look of his hair and suit, coupled with the liveliness of his voice and the notoriety of that smile of his, and he hardly looked a day older than 35.

Whatever the case, the interviewing had begun, and so other than a few hushed whispers from the District 11 and District 12 tributes, most everyone was silent as they listened to what Serendipity had to say. She made a few comments about being stoked for the games and how despite that it was just business. She also made a surprising reference to the District 1 girl from the previous year.

"There wasn't a single man, woman, or child alive that didn't know Vivian Nelson," Serendipity sighed, "She was a great example and role model to aspire to. I try to be like her, but I doubt I'd ever be as cool as she was."

Cadence was surprised at this humble admission. He assumed that she might have just been trying to butter Caesar up and earn Capitol approval, but the more they talked, the more it seemed that Serendipity was being sincere. It was hard for him to trust her, but maybe he was overthinking it. He'd ask Lucia about it after all the interviews had concluded. She always seemed to have an unbiased opinion on these types of things.

Faren's interview was fairly similar except he was a little more like the usual stock that came out of District 1. He was much less intriguing than his partner, and also much less worrisome. Lucia seemed to realize this, and called him out on it.

"You know," she warned in whispers, "often times it's the one you fear the least that turns out to be the most dangerous. Conversely, the one you fear the most will not likely do you in."
"I'm not worried about them doing me in," Cadence pointed out, "I'm worried about them getting you."
"If it's any consolation, I'll make sure to be careful around her then." Lucia shrugged.

Cadence nodded, and listened in on Gabriela and then Nazir. Both of them were fairly similar to one another insomuch that both of them were cool and collected, but also seemed rather ruthless. While Nazir said something similar in his interview, Gabriela's words during her time with Caesar stuck more with Cadence since she said it first.

"It's nothing personal," the dark-skinned girl shrugged, "the Hunger Games are just business."

Even with that thought in mind, Cadence couldn't help but take things personally. If he was alive when someone killed Lucia, he would swear vengeance and make sure whoever made this mistake of killing her died at his hand. He didn't even care what became of himself after that. Lucia gave him a sense of purpose in these games, and while no one else believed him, he was fixated on bringing her home to the point of obsessing over it.

His internal thoughts made him miss most of Chase's interview, but he caught Ratchet's. Caesar said something rather interesting, and even more interesting was Ratchet's reply.

"So there was apparently a saying circulating through the Tribute Tower this week…" he began.

"Oh?" Ratchet raised an eyebrow, her metallic silver dress shimmering with even the slightest movement. "This I've gotta hear."

"Apparently the saying was 'Never trust a Ratchet'." Caesar explained, "How does that make you feel?"
"They're just mad because they know that District 3 will outsmart them like we always do." Ratchet laughed, "there's a reason we've got the 2nd highest non-career success rate, and the 4th highest success rate overall, you know."
Cadence felt slightly vindicated in knowing that other than Districts 1 and 2, the only other district that did better than District 3 in terms of victors thus far was his own home of District 5. Still, even he knew about how wily District 3 tributes could be, especially when they were bold enough to side with the careers. He was pretty sure neither Chase nor Ratchet had done so this year, but he also knew that even the 8s the two had gotten as their training scores weren't enough to really pass final judgment on.

Andraz and Isabela from District 4 disappeared next, and before Cadence knew it, it was his turn.

This was going to be fun.

He was not nearly as awkward as he had originally figured he would be. The conversations kind of were, considering that most of his responses were either one or two word remarks most of the time. However, he did manage to get an amused reaction from the crowd after Flickerman asked him how he felt about representing District 5 in the games.

"I go in and I stab people." Cadence grunted, "I think my role is rather clear."

This surprisingly garnered a lot of support, but perhaps that was to be expected considering the Capitol's fondness of the violent pageant that was the Hunger Games. That was definitely Cadence's stand-out moment though, for the rest of the interview went by without much else in terms of events.
"Ladies and gentlemen…" Caesar announced as Cadence rose to his feet. "Cadence Montoya, District 5!"

That was his cue for dismissal. A moment later, he heard Lucia's name called, and so he stuck around, with full intention of hearing out her interview.

Lucia won the crowds over more than Serendipity by the time all was said and done. Her gentle, sweet, and genuine nature had the crowds swooning over the "District Sweetheart". Her response to Caesar's question about that title basically confirmed it.

"I don't know where it came from," Lucia shrugged, "I just like to help people and listen to them when they need an ear. It's common decency, if you ask me."

Once Lucia was dismissed, she rejoined with Cadence, and the two of them remained backstage on the opposite side of the stage from the remaining tributes, so they could be alone (he did not know if the tributes from Districts 1-4 stuck around, had disappeared into the audiences, or had gone back to their apartments; he did not really care either).

"Did you need something?" Lucia offered.

"I…" Cadence began, "maybe after the interviews. I'm curious about Mani and Sudi, but I don't want to lose you in the meantime."
"I'm not going anywhere, Cadence." Lucia assured him. "let's just wait it out."
And so that was what they did. Kilon and Xandra's remarks sounded a lot like the usual remarks to come out of District 11, and neither one was terribly eloquent. It reminded him of himself, which made him chuckle. Perhaps District 11 could be allies or at least have a kind of truce with District 5. Cadence was willing to go to great lengths to ensure Lucia's safety in that arena.

Sudi's voice was remarkably low, but she seemed surprisingly eloquent, and warned the Capitol of the types of devious tricks that District 12 got up to. It almost seemed like an underhanded warning of rebellion, but if it was, either no one caught it, or no one commented about it. It was true that the district was dangerously close to flat-out rebelling, but it was also true that tributes from District 12, particularly those of the "Painted" variety, were notoriously dangerous in the arenas, despite that most of them didn't win. It was almost like they didn't even care about winning, and that they were just there to further leave an impression.

"What a frightening prospect…" Lucia whispered as Sudi and Mani essentially admitted exactly that, "they're just here to wreak havoc? Do they not care about winning?"
"I think they do," Cadence muttered, "but they're devoted to their antics, and know that eventually the survivors will try to gang up on them. It has happened more than people realize."
"Well, you definitely don't have to tell me more than once to stay clear of them," Lucia reassured him. "I'll stay as close to you as I can tomorrow, Cadence. You know that, right?"
"I assumed as much, but your words are comforting to hear, Lucia." Cadence whispered. "Thank you."
As Mani left the stage and thus brought an end to the interview session for the evening, the District 5 pair returned to the elevator to have dinner and then get ready for bed. For all but one of the children in this tower, this was the last night they would sleep comfortably in their lives. Within less than 11 or 12 hours, probably about 9 or 10 of them would be dead in their own blood. It was a weird realization, but both Lucia and Cadence accepted it at this point: the 94th Annual Hunger Games would start tomorrow.