Lucent Saccharyn, Head Gamemaker:
It's official: we're down to the Final Eight. That means that I get to have a break this afternoon since Jack Cannon is traveling the districts, conducting televised interviews with the family members of the tributes. He begins in District One, of course, sitting down with Alise Poudret in the District Square. He talks about Oscar, notes his alliance with Livi and his two kills, and asks if she believes her son can win. "Oh, Jack!" she chuckles from behind a curtain of honey-blonde hair, "Yes, yes, a million times yes! District One is such a powerhouse this year, let me tell you! Livi is of course an excellent district partner and ally for my darling boy, but Oscar will be the one to bring home the crown! He has always admired the Capitol so much, you know. It's obvious that he'll pull through in the end, he always does! He has worked so hard for this, you know, and as a mother, it's so incredible to see your child accomplishing his dreams with almost no urging from you at all, despite what attention-seeking fibs he tells to make it seem otherwise!"
She's unpleasantly over the top, and her commentary is made even more insufferable with her feeble attempts to look like the good guy after the revelation that she's abused her son for years. Jack is probably very relieved when Chane Carnelian takes the stage alongside three of his daughters and his grandson. He has a sort of appealing stage presence and keeps cracking jokes, but eventually settles into his chair and gets serious. "You know, Livi's the second-oldest of my girls, and I very much want her to come home safely. She's always been incredibly focused on becoming a Victor, and I know she's capable of winning, but I still worry. I'm getting old, my blood pressure can't take all this excitement!"
"So you do believe she can win, Mr. Carnelian?"
"Of course I do. She's incredibly motivated, and I'm so proud of her for getting this far along. She's got tremendous talent and I can't wait to see her with the crown on her head in a few days. And, by the way, this isn't the last time you'll be seeing me! You'll have to come over here again in seven years when young Velma follows in her big sister's footsteps!" He ruffles the hair of his youngest child, a beaming girl with a smirk very reminiscent of Livi's.
"I'm sure I will, sir. Thank you, District One!" In District Two, Rafe doesn't have any family, so we have Jack interview a few of his closest friends instead: boys named Bennett, Pierre, and Elias. Jack gives them an easy question to start off with. "So, gentlemen, how do you feel about Rafe leaving the Career Pack?"
"He had to," says the one I think is Bennett. "Livi and Oscar got together. Better to leave before the Final Eight, so he's not outnumbered."
"And Pierre, what do you think about his chances of Victory?"
"Once he wins, he'll be pulling so many girls that we'll get six apiece!" Pierre crows. Jack gives a somewhat forced smile.
"So you're confident in him?"
"Of course we're confident. You're not very good at this, are you?"
"I like to think I do alright. What do you make of Rafe's relationship with his district partner?" There's a chorus of mocking laughter, and then the third boy says,
"It's been nice talking to you, Mister Cannon, but you can just ask her parents." So ask her parents he does. Sibyl Maddox, on her husband Gaius's arm, mounts the stage to speak with Jack about her daughter Eliza. He stands nearly seven feet tall, and she, barely five feet high, looks tiny in comparison. Jack's voice is sober, as though telling a grave secret, when he asks his first question. "So, Mr. and Mrs. Maddox, what were your thoughts when Livi Carnelian betrayed your daughter?"
"All betrayal is upsetting, but not all betrayal is unexpected." Mr. Maddox speaks slowly, choosing his words carefully. "The Career Pack this year was very unstable, and it always fractures at some point. We have the opportunity to watch the Games, of course, so we knew that Livi would turn on her eventually. We don't blame Eliza for not noticing the warning signs, but she shouldn't have fallen into their trap so easily. We're very glad she's alright, obviously, but there's not a whole lot that could have been done to prevent it."
"And," adds Mrs. Maddox, "We hope that our daughter can fulfill her true potential as a Victor. This betrayal was a lesson in trust, and she clearly learned from it. She's discovering her independence as a fighter, and it's a brilliant thing to see. We really want her to kill Livi and Oscar, and the other tributes, but we're so happy for her whether she does or not. Eliza has brought great honor to District Two this year." Both Maddox parents say the classic District Two things, with a mixture of praise and criticism, and then we move on to District Four.
Ardledge's parents take a backseat for the interview. The focus is all on Winnie Lush, his fiancée, and their son Adrian. Jack begins by cooing a hello to the baby, and he babbles back at him. "Wynella," Jack asks solemnly, "How are you holding up? I imagine it's been tough." He's expecting this to be a particularly sympathetic interview, and Winnie obliges.
"It's been incredibly frightening. As a parent, I can't imagine how hard this is on Ardledge. I just hope he knows we're here and we're rooting for him." She starts tearing up and blows her nose loudly into a handkerchief. "Sorry."
"The apologies are all mine," Jack replies. "Yes, this is an unfortunate situation. What do you make of the recent injury to your fiancé's wrist? The one inflicted by Eliza during their tussle today?"
"I'm really worried that he lost his dagger and all of his supplies, except for Emily's canteen. Their alliance has lost two members in two days. I'm sure the injury won't be helpful, but the lack of a weapon could cause some real problems. Oh, I hope he's alright!" She sniffles, a couple more tears trickling down her shimmering cheeks.
"Thank you, Miss Lush. Just one more question. If there was one thing you could say to Ardledge right now, what would it be?"
"That Adrian and I love him so much and we need him to come home."
"I wish you all the best. We'll be cheering him along in the Capitol as well." A few final pleasantries, and then we're whisked off to District Six.
Putting the Aramdales on camera isn't telling us much about Quinten, but it sure is generating a lot of sympathy for him. Mary, the mother, is stick-thin, with bones jutting out everywhere. Roscoe, the father, is sunken and has a dazed look to him. Both have the sallow skin and wide, vacant eyes of morphling addicts on the brink of death, so consumed by their drug habit that they're incapable of working and can barely move, let alone prepare meals for themselves. Quinten's life being taken up with work suddenly makes sense–he had to provide for them since they couldn't fulfill their own needs, and now that he's not there to feed and care for them, they're literally starving to death, to the point that there's a real risk of them keeling over in the middle of the interview. If Quinten does become the Victor, he likely won't have any parents to come back to. The interview is an absolute trainwreck. "What do you think of your son's relationship with the late Radley Allaway?" Jack asks.
"Our…son?"
"Yes, your son, Quinten."
"Quinten…Quinten, yes, that does ring a bell. Who did you say he is again?"
"He's your son, Mr. Aramdale. He's a tribute in the Hunger Games."
"The Hunger Games? With the costumes?"
"Sure, something like that. Your son, Quinten, is a tribute this year."
"But surely the Hunger Games aren't for a while? Didn't they just finish? It's been less than a month since that Sage won, and didn't the Head Gamemaker, Landon or something, have some tragic accident the other day?"
"Mr. Aramdale, you seem a bit confused. Langston's accident happened a year ago, not this morning. And Sage's Hunger Games also ended a year ago. Are you quite alright?"
"Who…who are you? You look like that Hunger Games man, the one in the Capitol who talks to the tributes before they go into the Hunger Games. You even look like him. But what reason could you? He? Have for visiting us after the Hunger Games end?" The whole thing is immensely sad. Morphling warps a person's sense of time and memory, and everyone watching knows that's what the Aramdales have been taking. Once Jack catches on to this, he wraps up the interview, trying to get the ball rolling again in District Seven.
He sits down with Amelia Archer in the district square, and Jack delves right into his questioning. "Mrs. Archer, do tell us, how did you feel when your son drank unpurified water and became ill at the beginning of the Games?"
"To tell you the truth, Jack, I was terrified. Before Damon was born, his father died in the Hunger Games, and it felt like history was repeating itself. When he forgot to wait for the water purification chemicals to work, I wondered if his mistake would kill him. He's my boy, you know? I can't protect him from the world, but no parent wants to see their child so sick. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off of my chest when he finally stopped vomiting."
"I see. What do you think about his deadly ambush of Chip Maxen two days ago?
"He was all alone in his little corner of the arena for so long. I knew the calm couldn't last forever. He's doing what he has to in order to come back home."
"And do you believe he will come back?"
"I really want to, Jack, I really want to, but Damon's young. There are older, stronger tributes who could take him out of the running at any moment. I'm sure every family wants their son or daughter to come home, and I'm happy for whatever family does get their reunion. All of the tributes are certainly worthy of winning, and any of them might. The Gamemakers will likely have plans for the finale, and I really couldn't say if Damon's liable to win, but I have no greater wish than for him to succeed." It's easy to tell that Mrs. Archer really loves Damon, and she's definitely supporting him as best she can.
In District Ten, it's revealed that Emily's older brother is at work. Still, Conrad and Stella Parker have come to the District Square to answer questions about their daughter. Both Parkers are badly sunburnt, with red patches on their shoulders and crispy skin that's flaking off of their noses. Ten's southern summers are tough to endure, and since the citizens work outside, they suffer the brunt of the heat. Mr. Parker bounces his knee idly and rubs at his beard, while Mrs. Parker wrings her hands. They've clearly been losing sleep over Emily's absence. Jack gives them a few easy questions to start off, and keeps a light tone throughout the entire interview. "So, Mrs. Parker, what do you think about your daughter being the youngest tribute still living?"
"Honestly, I don't think it matters at this point. Age, gender, training score, predicted placement, district of origin? None of them seem to have much bearing on the results. This year's tributes defied expectations. 'Strong' tributes died in the Bloodbath. 'Weak' tributes beat the odds and made it to the Final Eight. It just goes to show that everybody has a chance. Emily's always been so sweet, but it's clear that she's come this far for a reason. She picked up some skills in the training center, put her feelings to the side, and got her head in the game–rather, the Games–so that she could return to us and stay alive. We're very proud of her."
"I'll bet you are. And Mr. Parker, do you believe she'll secure the Victory?"
"That's a tough question. There's some stiff competition, especially from District Two, and the tributes will have to go through each other if they want to win. Our Emily might not be big or intimidating, but we believe she has the ability to do anything she puts her mind to. So, I would say, yes, absolutely she'll be the Victor."
"Do you believe that will be impacted by her stomach wound?"
"It hasn't affected her too much so far, and it would take a few days for infection to set in. I think that as long as the Games end soon, she'll more likely be fine than not."
There's a jump cut to Jack in a studio, probably still on the hovercraft, judging by the slight wiggle of the frame. "That's all for our interviews, Panem. Stay tuned for more!" He gamely began commenting on the state of affairs, but I was waiting for the interviews to end. I've been carefully monitoring the tributes to make sure they're largely stationary, since it's expected that the FInal Eight survive their loved ones' interviews, but all bets are now off. It's much later than we usually play the anthem and project the faces of the dead, but it will signal to the tributes that they can start moving again.
I'm ready for the Final Six. Are they?
Hey y'all,
Quick Capitol Focus chapter for the interviews. We have four more chapters to go, and I'll be doing two tomorrow and two Wednesday. (I decided it would disrupt the flow of the Games to have Capitol Focus right before the finale). In two days, we're going to have a Victor! I've got a few epilogues after that, but I'm so ready to finally provide some closure.
—LC :)
