District One:

Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)

Glint and I step into the train. Finally; we can talk freely. Between the camera men buzzing around the train station, and the jam-packed car ride, we haven't spoken a word to each other. I decide to start the conversation. "So, the career alliance..." I kind of trail off, hoping he'll say something. When he doesn't, I continue. "You're going to be part of it, right?"

Glint makes a noise that sounds a bit like a snort. "Are you kidding me?" he says. "Of course I am."

"Just checking," I say. At that point, our mentors walk in. My mentor is Domitia Redpath. She won the Games by... I'm not even going to say. It was that gross. I was just a little girl when she won, and I remember my parents forcing my eyes away from the television when she... 'attacked' her remaining opponent. I didn't understand it all at that age, but my older sisters made sure to enlighten me. Glint's mentor is Ruby Jenson. He won a few years before I was born. From what I hear, his victory wasn't too out of the ordinary. He was just a classic career who overpowered all the weaker ones.

For the next hour or so, Glint and I chat about our strengths with our mentors. Glint talks with Ruby about the thousands of weapons he can use to kill with, while I tell Domitia about my archery skills. However, with Glint in the room, I don't elaborate a lot. For a while, I've been planning out how I'm going to attack the Games. I eventually discovered the perfect way. I plan to fly below the radar; in career terms, that is. I'll dumb down my archery skills to make me look good, but not extraordinary, and get a score on the low end of the career alliance. That way, no one will seek me out as a huge threat. Then, once the career alliance breaks up, they'll get to see what the true me can really do.

Glint Sulf (D1 M 18)

We have to wait for hours until the recap of the reapings begins. That's one of the downsides of living in District One. At last, they begin. I zone out as our district is shown. I was there; there's no need to see it again. District Two appears. Domitia reminds us to look out for allies as the escort gets ready to draw a female name. She reads the name aloud, but funnily, no one volunteers. That never happens in District Two. A fourteen-year-old girl walks onto the stage. I shake my head. She can't be part of the career alliance. She can't. Alexandrite sees me shaking my head. "Give her a chance," she says. "She could turn out to be really good." Yeah right. The male volunteer does impress me, though. He's very tall. He'll benefit the alliance.

I ignore District Three. They never win, so what's the point? In District Four, for the second time in a career district today, the girl isn't a volunteer. Although, she is seventeen, and looks like she may have a talent or two. The male does volunteer. He looks pretty strong too. District Five is nothing special. Neither are Districts Six and Seven. In District Eight, the girl is a volunteer. So is the girl in District Nine. Good for them; people in the lower districts are finally understanding the benefits of being in the Hunger Games, even if they won't win.

The last three districts aren't memorable. Domitia turns to us. "So, who would you like as allies?"

Alexandrite answers before I get the chance. "Both tributes from Districts Two and Four, and the girls from Eight and Nine."

"What?" I protest. "The girl from District Two is fourteen! Fourteen! And she isn't a volunteer! Neither is the girl from District Four, but we can give her the chance to prove herself since she's older. But a fourteen year old? No way!"

Alexandrite must realize she'll never win an argument against me. She sighs. "We'll talk about this later, with all the careers. Now I'm going to go take a nap." She walks away to her room.

"Me too," I decide. I've heard that the train bedrooms are pretty high-tech. I stand up, and follow Alexandrite out of the room.

District Two:

Mason Riley (D2 M 18)

I have to duck through the train doorway as I walk in with Jessie, our mentors, and our escort. We walk in, and I'm happy to see that the roof is a few inches above my head. I sit down on the couch next to Jessie, and our mentors step in front of us. My mentor is my brother, Coltin. I didn't know he was going to mentor until about two weeks ago. Since there are so many victors in District Two, I doubted he would be picked, but he was. I'm still not quite sure if I'm happy that he's here. Jessie's mentor is very old, and a living legend. Not only did she win the 62nd Hunger Games, but she won the 75th Hunger Games as well. Her name is Enobaria. She's in her eighties; nearly ready to retire, but her fans have kept her going. Her teeth are filed to a point and inlaid with gold. They looked neat when she was younger, but the effect isn't as great with a senior citizen.

We walk in, and my brother speaks up. "You have a few hours until they show the recaps. So go do whatever."

I decide this would be a good time to make sure Jessie knows she's not part of the career alliance. I wait until our mentors and escort leave the room. "So," I say casually. "You aren't going to join the careers, are you?"

"What?" she says. "Of course I want to be part of the careers."

"You're only fourteen. You're not old enough or strong enough."

"Just because I'm not old doesn't mean I'm not strong!" she shouts, her black eyes ablaze. I have to admit, she's kind of scary when she's mad.

"Okay, how about we wait until training to decide if you're in or not," I say. "Maybe, when you have five people telling you no, you'll listen!"

"Fine!" Jessie snaps. She turns around, and storms off into her room. She does have a tempter. I guess that's what tempted her to kill her twin sister seven years ago. She's evil.

Jessie Hart (D2 F 14)

I sit on my bed, anger coursing through me. I can't believe Mason doesn't want me to join the careers just because I'm young! It's unfair! I've done enough training! Just wait until he sees me with my throwing knives. He'll rethink his decision quickly. Although I'm not really excited about killing, right now, Mason's on my kill list.

A few hours later, there's knock on my door. "Jessie," a voice calls. I recognize it as Enobaria's. "The recap of the reapings are about to start." I stand up, walk out of my room, and follow Enobaria over to the main train car, where Mason and his brother are sitting on a couch. I ignore Mason completely, and sit on the other couch.

District One appears on the screen. Both tributes are volunteers; a blonde seventeen-year-old girl, and a strong-looking, eighteen-year-old boy. Hopefully, they allow me to ally with them. When District Two appears, I watch myself get reaped and walk up to the stage. I wish I had thought to look a little braver. Mason volunteers, and we're off to District Three, where a twelve-year-old girl and a eighteen-year-old boy are reaped. The girl won't last long; the boy might. In District Four, the boy is a volunteer, but the girl isn't. Maybe this'll work to my advantage. If they let her in the alliance, they've got to let me in too.

In District Five, a eighteen-year-old girl is reaped. She's looks kind of tough; she could do well. The boy is sixteen. He's very skinny, so I don't know how long he'll last. In District Six, I recognize the male tribute as the brother of Kat Stanley; last year's District Six female tribute. Sadly for him, he's only twelve, and won't last long. The girl tribute might last, though. She's seventeen, though very short. The District's Seven girl is pretty, but looks don't get you too far in the arena. The same thing goes with the male.

The District Eight tribute is a volunteer. I'm sure she could be a career if he wanted to. The boy looks healthy and well-fed. That could work to his advantage. District Nine brings another female volunteer. I'm sure she could also hang with the careers off she wanted to. However, the boy, who's thirteen, is nothing spectacular.

I start to get bored as the District Ten reapings start. The female is thirteen, but something about her aura makes her seem older. Her partner is seventeen, and may do okay. District Eleven looks about average. Neither of them will be victors, but they won't be the first to die either. District Twelve won't get past the bloodbath. The girl is thirteen, the boy is fourteen, and they're both malnourished and sickly-looking. The recaps end, and I realize there's some tough competition this year, with the exception of a few tributes, of course.

District Three:

Jarvis Scholl (D3 M 18)

I walk into the train with Jennette. I can barely look at this little twelve-year-old girl. In a week, she'll be dead. There's nothing I can do about it. I would ally with her, but for my own sake, I can't. She'll just slow me down. There's no use trying to save her if she's already dead. I feel bad saying it, but it's the truth.

Since we have a few hours before they show the reapings again on television, I ask to be shown to my room. It's a lot bigger than I imagined a train car room could be. It's got a king-sized bed, a dresser (filled with clothes), a closet (also filled with clothes), and a nightstand, and there's still enough room to walk around in it. Another door branches off to one of the biggest bathrooms I've ever seen.

Since I have time to kill, I decide to take a shower. I'm also excited to try out a real shower, for once. All I've ever done is bathe in a tub of hot water. I undress and step in. Streams of hot water and mounds of bubbly soap cascade down my body. When I'm done, I step out onto the mat, which triggers some sort of fan that dries my whole body. I grab a towel, and head off to my closet to look for something to wear. I settle on a pair of simple lounging clothes. I'd rather be comfortable than well dressed. I get changed, and lay down on my bed, waiting for the recaps to start.

Jennette Parke (D3 F 12)

Someone taps lightly on my door. "Jennette, sweetie; it's time to watch the reapings. You should probably come see them." I recognize the voice as my mentor, Marlee. She's probably right about watching the reapings. I should see who I'm up against. Maybe I'll find another twelve-year-old to ally with. I find a tissue, and wipe my eyes. Hopefully, they aren't too red. I don't want to look like a crybaby. I open the door, and follow Marlee to the television. The Panem Seal appears on screen, and the program begins.

District One shows up on the screen. I watch two strong, muscular volunteers make their way to the stage. I squeeze a pillow, trying not to cry. How am I going to make it through the whole reapings? District Two comes next. The girl is only fourteen, but her dark black eyes make her even scarier than the two older volunteers. The boy steps up to stage. I think I'm hallucinating. He's a giant. My pillow gets an even harder squeeze. Then, my home district appears on screen. I can't take it anymore. I grab the pillow, and run off into my room, sobbing.

District Four:

Marina Ebony (D4 F 18)

Sheldon and I step into the stage, and each grab an arm chair, as our mentors introduce themselves. My mentor, Sabrina Martyr, won the Games only a couple of years ago. She was eighteen, a career, and beat the others with her brains and strength. Sheldon's mentor is Ohio Ginsberg, and he won the Games in basically the same way. They tell us we've got a few hours until they show the recaps, so we should probably chat with each other about becoming allies.

I decide to take my mentor's advice and talk to Sheldon. "So, we're both going to be careers, right?" I ask.

"You're not a volunteer," he says simply.

Time to carry out my plan. "I was going to volunteer," I say. "I've been training at the training academy since I was a little girl."

I suddenly realize that he's probably been trained at the training academy. He'll know that I haven't been training there. However, he surprises me. "That's cool," he says. "I was trained privately by my dad." I let out a heavy breath. That could have been bad. Now, no one will know that I haven't trained since I was twelve.

Sheldon Thompson (D4 M 18)

Hours later, we sit on the couch, in front of the television. The reapings start, and I begin to look out for allies. District One looks promising; two muscular volunteers make their way up to the stage. The District Two male looks promising as well (mainly thanks to his extreme height), but the female doesn't. She's fourteen, and not even a volunteer. In District Three, the boy is eighteen, but very skinny. His district partner is only twelve. The boy might make it to the final twelve or so, but the girl won't.

The next three districts don't stick out, but District Eight does. The girl is a volunteer, and she looks like she may have done some training. Maybe she'll replace the District Two girl in the career alliance. The District Nine girl is also a volunteer. Her district partner pales in comparison. The District Ten boy is reaped, but he's very muscular. Maybe we'll have a big career pack this year. The program wraps up with Districts Eleven and Twelve; neither of which look intimidating.

Marina speaks up as soon as the program ends. "So, who do we want?"

"I'd say District One, the District Two male, the girls from Eight and Nine, and the boy from Ten."

"What about the District Two girl?" Marina asks. "Can't we give her a chance?"

"No," I say. "She's too young; too weak."

"Okay," Marina says, looking slightly upset. "I'm going to head back to my room." She walks out, leaving me alone with both mentors and our escort.

Looking at the television again, I spot a pile of tapes under it. "What are those?" I ask.

"Tapes of past Hunger Games," Ohio says. "You're free to watch them, if you want."

"Okay," I say. I pick a particularly exciting year, the One Hundredth Hunger Games, push it into the slot, and hit play.

District Five:

Eridan Keating (D5 M 16)

Ullom, our escort, leads Tadalynn and I into the train. After showing us around, she introduces us to our mentors. My mentor, Roque Basset, won at my age, sixteen. In the final four, he started a forest fire. The other three tributes died by breathing in carbon monoxide. Tadalynn's mentor is the only female victor in District Five who's still alive. Her name is Alicia Keats, and she's in her seventies. For the past few years, everyone's been able to tell that she just wants another District Five female victor so that she can retire. I can't blame her. She's been the mentor for thirty years; ever since the previous mentor died. It must be tough to be a mentor for that long, and never lead a tribute to victory.

Ullom suddenly gasps, and tells Roque and Alicia she has to show them something near the front of the trains. The three of them walk out, leaving Tadalynn alone with me. I look over at her, sitting on the couch. She looks fairly tough, and I need to find allies. "Hey, Tadalynn," I say. She looks up. "I was just wondering if you'd like to be allies."

Her expression goes completely cold. "No," she says. "I would not like to be allies." She stands up, and walks out the door to the back of the train, where the bedrooms are. I'm a bit upset, because I know allies are crucial for survival, and I was looking forward to having one. I guess I'll just have to wait until training.

Tadalynn Shipka (D5 F 18)

I sit in my bedroom, thinking about what just happened. Why would Eridan want to be allies with me? We barely know each other. You can't ally with someone unless you're positive you can trust them. I'm pretty positive that I won't want allies at all. You can't trust anyone in the Hunger Games. This is a fight to the death, and you can't rely on anyone else to help you win it, because they want to win as badly as you do.

I lay around in my room for what feels like forever. I get a bit hungry, so an avox brings me some vanilla pudding. When I'm done, I walk back out to the main train car where Eridan, Ullom, Roque, and Alicia are sitting. "You're just in time," Ullom says. "The reapings are about to start."

Sure enough, five minutes later, District One appears on screen. I decide to only pay attention to the strong ones, and I make a mental list of them. All of the tributes from Districts One, Two, and Four are on the list, even though the one is only fourteen. I also add the District Eight and Nine girls to the list, and the District Ten boy. However, I'll still have to watch everyone during training. Sometimes, the most dangerous tributes are the ones who look less intimidating. They fly below the radar, but when it really matters, they come in for the kill.

District Six:

Peyton Stanley (D6 M 12)

Nylah helps pull me up onto the train, since I'm too short to reach one of the bars. She understands what it's like to be vertically challenged. I've decided she's a good district partner. However, I know it's too much of a stretch to ask her to be my district partner. She'd never want to ally with a little twelve-year-old like me. As we enter the train car, I wonder if this was the train Kat traveled in last year. One year ago, she could have been stepping in the same spot I'm stepping in right now.

Pegasus, our escort, introduces us to our mentors. My mentor's name is Manning Wild. He won by tricking the other tributes into believing he was mentally challenged. Nylah's mentor, Leigh Ann Porter, won the 77th Hunger Games, and is one of the few District Six mentors who hasn't turned into a morphling addict. "I was your sister's mentor," she tells me. I see a tiny tear appear in the corner of her eye.

"You've both got about four hours before the recaps start," Pegasus says. "You can go do whatever until that time. Your bedrooms are that way." He points to the back of the train. "See you later."

Nylah Tracks (D6 F 17)

I spend most of the four hours pacing around in my room and playing with my district token; a ring made from old iron I found while working at the railways. I twirl it around my finger as I think about my family; my paralyzed brother Rune. I hope they're okay. At last, Pegasus bursts into my room. "The reapings are starting," he says. "Hurry out."

Sure enough, when I reach the television, the District One reapings are halfway through. The girl, who I assume volunteered, is very strong-looking, and must be at least sixteen. The boy is also older and muscular as well. They'll both be careers. As the program moves on to District Two, something a little odd happens. A fourteen-year-old girl is reaped, and nobody volunteers for her. I feel kind of bad for her, but when she gets a close-up, I realize she has these black eyes that make her really scary. The guy tribute scares me too. He's got to be over seven feet tall! He'll definitely be a career.

District Three is nothing special. The guy might be eighteen but he's super skinny. District Four brings along two future careers. A moody-looking girl and a sixteen-year-old boy are reaped in District Five. Then, my home appears on screen; District Six. I watch myself step up to the stage after Pegasus calls my name. I swear television makes me look shorter. Peyton joins me onstage in a minute. I have to admit, we don't look very intimidating; a tiny, seventeen-year-old girl and a little twelve-year-old. However, I'll show everyone that my stature doesn't matter. From watching the Peacekeepers fight, I know moves that'll give the short person in the fight an advantage.

District Seven reaps a pretty, fourteen-year-old girl, and a handsome, sixteen-year-old boy. They could do okay in the Games. The girl tribute volunteers in District Eight. That's a bit of a shocker. I wonder why she volunteered. Her partner is a sixteen-year-old boy. District Nine brings another volunteer. However, it seems like she volunteered for the little twelve-year-old that was reaped. Her district partner is only thirteen.

District Ten brings another thirteen-year-old, and a strong, seventeen-year-old boy. In District Nine, a pretty sixteen-year-old girl, and a skinny, fifteen-year boy are reaped. Both District Twelve tributes look very malnourished; a thirteen-year-old girl and a fourteen-year-old boy. At last, the program shuts off,leaving me to think about the other tributes. It seems like there's a very odd bunch this year, with the giant and the fourteen-year-old from Two, and the two volunteers from the outer districts. If I want to win, I'll have to keep an eye out for all of these strange tributes.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! It took a little longer than I expected, 'cause I had soccer tryouts, and babysitting, and back-to-school shopping this week, so my writing time was limited. Next chapter should wrap up the train rides, and then we're off to the chariots! :-)