Chapter 7- I Am Not A Career
Come in, come in! Thank you to all of you who stayed despite my half-bad lemon. And anyone who is just now reading this welcome to the club! *throws a shirt w/ FINGEL written on the front in green at face of new club members* So as you can tell by the chapter name Angel is not a career, or is she? Uoo alll kow verry weell taht iee kan't speel. ;D WARNING: Will contain spoilers.
Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN THE HUNGER GAMES OR ANY OF IT'S PROPERTIES.
DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU ARE A DIEHARD FANNIE OR GATNISS, YOU UNDERSTOOD THE FANNIE PART IN PAST CHAPTERS, THE GATNISS PART WILL UNDERSTOOD IN THE FUTURE YOUNG KUMQUATS!
O.W.T.S!
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I let out a soft moan as my eyes flutter open. Finnick is staring at me, smiling.
"What?" I ask playfully.
"No screaming last night." He says.
"I guess you stopped the nightmares." I reply smiling. "You really were perfect last night."
"You too." Finnick says. "You need to eat, today I need to you to choose a weapon." Finnick says getting up. He looks like a god. He pulls on his briefs from off the floor, then his robe. I breathe again when I see my costume still on my dresser. No one came in last night. I put my robe on and Finnick and I head to breakfast.
"So Collin is going to go with a trident, how about you Angel?" Alicia asks. She seems to be melting, not so icy anymore.
"I'm not sure, I'm a fast runner, I think I'll just try to find a skill today." Alicia nods.
Everyone here is wearing a sweatsuit with their district number on the back. I've got my hair in a single fishtail down my back. Atala is explaining the rules. The girl from 1 glances at me. Her silver blonde hair is in a single bun atop her head. The boy from 1 seems to have changed his attitude, he's extremely cocky and keeps checking out Glamour. After Atala is done talking we are forced to line up for the only station we are required to do; The Gauntlet. We're lined up in order of district with the girl going first. The Gauntlet is basicly a bunch of platforms of different heights with trainers swinging at you in all directions with padded clubs. The Gamemakers are watching us from their skybox and I know they're taking notes. Head Gamemaker Frigus Sanguinem nods to Atala who nods to Glamour. Glamour jumps onto the first platform as Atala presses the start on her stopwatch. Glamour finishes with a time of 3 minuets 29 seconds. The boy from 1 is next and after about a minuet is knocked to the ground by a club. Atala shakes her head as he walks over to the archery station. The girl from 2 steps up, she's about my height but I've heard she's 18. She clears the course in 3 minuets. The boy from her district is menacing only about an inch shorter than Finnick. It actucally takes him five minuets to come out in one piece. Both twelve year olds from district 3 would barely tip a scale. They both make it out in two minuets though. I'm up next. My heart is punding in my ears and I'm poised to run.
"Go!" Atala's voice bounces off the walls. A slipt second hasn't even gone by and I'm already on the third platform. I jump over a club swung at me and I duck under the next. After seeing how fast I am the trainers give me a little more heat. But I keep going. Ducking and jumping and ducking and jumping and ducking and jumping and done.
"One minuet forty seconds." Atala says smiling. I nod out of breath. The other careers glance at me. Collin finishes with a time of two minutes fifteen seconds. We both agree to stick together incase we're rejected by the other careers. First we go to the snares station where I practice with rope and make knots and snares and nets that impress the trainer. Then it's the firestarting station. I excel at making a fire with flint and kindling while Collin struggles before he nails it. We both head over to the plant identification station where I learn plants that can be eaten and sweep the floor with my knowing of plants that can be used as medicen.
"Where'd you learn all those plants?" Collin asks later as he paints his arm into bark, he's okay but has a few troubles with adding moss.
"Emily my younger sister wants to be an apothocary. So I help her out. I'm really good at stitching and sewing up wounds." I say painting my own arm into a bush with nightlock berries.
"Nice work." Collin says nodding at my arm.
"Thanks." I say. I take his brush and add moss to the left side. "Moss only grows on one side of trees." The trainer smiles at me. I wash away the camoflauge. "I'd like to the ropes course."
"Okay." Collin says. After his arm is back to skin we walk over to the ropes. Collin falls a few times but eventually gets the hang of it. I jump from the ceiling landing my fall. "Angel, we're gonna have to do it sometime." Collin says nodding at the weapons section. I let out a deep breath.
"Let's start with something easier for me." I say. Collin leads me to the wieghts. He throws a shotput, tosses a medicen ball, I manage a few dumbells.
"How about something I'm good at now?" Collin jokes picking up a trident and throwing it at a human dummy piercing the heart. I give him a one-woman applause. The other careers point and whisper at Collin as he throws it again, and again, and again. Then I try, and fail. I try again, it lands in the leg. I come a few feet closer and hit the liver. Then we head over to the swords. I can hit the floor near the target. Collin can hit the bullseye.
"C'mon Granite, he's good." The boy from 2 says to his district partener. Collin helps me throw a trident and I'm skewering the head. I was aiming for the stomach.
"No way with that stick insect following him around. I don't babysit. You and Ringlet are enough trouble." The girl, Granite, says. I have gone from "extraordinary" to a bug.
"I don't know, with the whole 'I'm tied with her for most beautiful tribute' thing maybe we'd get a few sponsers." Glamour offers.
"Can it Glam, you're the sexiest. The girl isn't worth a penny." Ringlet says. I feel like I'm the target that he has just gotten a bullseye with. Ringlet sets down his bow and arrow. The careers go off laughing.
Later that night I'm screaming and throwing things.
"Angel calm down!" Collin shouts.
"I'm going to die! You heard what they said. I'm probably their first target!" I shout back smashing a vase at his feet.
"What is going on?" Bianca pipes tip-toeing in her high-high-high-heeled pumps. She fixes her new blue wig. "Angel, this is no way for a young lady to act!"
"Well I'm not a lady!" I scream at her. "I'm a stick insect! I'm a girl who isn't worth a penny!" I smash a plate to the floor. "I'm a weakling!"
"They didn't call you that!" Collin screams into my face.
"They walked away laughing before we could hear anymore!"
"What in BLOODY HELL is going on in here?" Alicia screams. Everyone goes silent. A glass shatters onto the floor.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought this was try to make a rucus hour!" Finnick shouts sarcastically. Everyone is yelling, even Bianca. I can't handle it. I glance at a decorative jeweled set of knives, then at the painted canvas on the far left wall. I pick up a knife with a curved blade. I let out a loud scream then throw it with a quick hand. Everyone turns to see what I've done to the painting.
"Now look what you've done!" Bianca clucks. Alicia however walks over to finger the spot I've thrown the knife.
"Angel, where were you aiming?" She asks. I shrug. Alicia peels a spot of paint away as Bianca cries histarically. "Try hitting this spot." I pick up another knife, a perfectly straight one, and throw it. It hits the spot perfectly. Alicia continues peeling paint so I can throw the knives. She make the spots smaller as I back up farther, and farther. I hit each spot perfectly.
"I think you just found your weapon of choice." Finnick says smiling.
"You know, I think the painting looks better with the knives in it." Collin says squinting at the painting. Even Bianca agrees. We eat supper without a word and I stay awake watching old tapes of old Hunger Games. An Avox with black hair streaked with purple come in to pick up shattered plates, vases, cups, and glasses.
"I'll help you." I offer. "It was my fault." She nods. After a while I ask her, "Is it hard?" Her eyebrows knit together. "Is it hard, to, to, watch tributes come in each year. Even though you never interact with them?" She nods. "What's your name?" I ask her. She points to her hair. "Ebony?" I guess. She shakes her head then pulls out a clump of the purple streak. "Voilet?" I ask. She shakes her head then points to a vase on the table filled with flowers. "Lavander?" I ask. She smiles nodding her head. "That's a pretty name. I have two sisters at home named after flowers." Lavander nods her head. She points to the TV. I should go back to watching the Games and taking notes. I sit down and hit play watching fourteen year old Finnick skewer the heart of a sixteen year old girl. I finish watching the 65th Games and begin watching some of the 66th but then remember that it was the year Annie Cresta won; that was luck, I need strategy. When I come into my bedroom there's a note on my bed.
Thank you for talking to me.
I haven't had a conversation with someone in five years.
You really are Finnick's first, I was his avox too.
Your secret is safe with me.
P. Snow can't hurt me anymore, I'll never tell.
-Lavander
I throw the note into the fireplace. I want to keep it, but I know that if someone sees it then they'll know what happened between me and Finnick.
"Thank you Lavander." I whisper into the darkness.
...
There's some action! Reveiws are love. Next chapter Angel impresses the Careers. Maybe the Gamemakers too? I'll start making chapters longer soon.