Hawk Travers
At last, I watch as Harvest jumps on top of Glint and sends her knife through his skull. It's about time! Once his cannon goes off, I stand up from my comfy chair and walk towards the captain's quarters. The captain and I have been trapped in this hovercraft all day, waiting for the last tribute to die before the final eight. As Tristan Honeybee's right-hand man, It's my job to travel to the districts to conduct the final eight interviews. It stinks, going to some of the scummy outer districts, but the job pays well, and I'm well-known around the Capitol for it. Now that we've reached the final eight, I'm expected get to all of the districts before another tribute dies. Otherwise, the consequences won't be too delightful. Once I reach the door to the captain's room, I knock and wait for him to appear in the doorway. "We're good to go," I tell him when he steps out. He nods and heads for the control room. I turn around and head back to my own.
Back in my own room, I pick up my pile of tribute notes and make a few edits. Once I'm done, I pick up the top page and read it over:
ALEXANDRITE DAZZLE
District: One
Gender: Female
Age: 17
Height: 5'10
Weight: 118 lbs.
Preferred Weapon: Bow and arrows
Appearance: Tall, wavy blond hair, green eyes (very pretty)
Points of Interest: Two kills (Jennette and Rory), in career alliance, training score of eight
People to Interview: Mother (Radiance), father (Velour), three older sisters (Yasmin, Tiara, and Blossom), boyfriend (Topaz)
Estimated Capitol Ranking: 3rd
It doesn't take too long to reach District One, being as it's so close to the Capitol. At last, though, the hovercraft touches down on District One turf. I step out of the hovercraft and breathe the fresh air. District One is my second-favorite district; it's almost as great as the Capitol. I love traveling here almost every year.
A man with sunglasses and a black suit drives me to Alexandrite's house. It's in a fairly wealthy section of town, so I'm pretty excited. Sure enough, when we pull up onto her driveway, I get a view of her beautiful, cream-colored, house. The front lawn is mowed to perfection, and there's a line of perfectly-arranged flowers along the walkway to the front door. It's not the biggest house I've ever been to, but it's certainly not the smallest.
I step up to the front door and ring the silver doorbell. I listen as the sound echoes throughout Alexandrite's house. I hear the sound of multiple shrieking girls coming from within. Those must be her sisters. The door swings open, revealing three beautiful young women in gorgeous dresses. "You must be Yasmin, Tiara, and Blossom," I say with a quick glance at my notes.
"He knows our names!" one of the girls shrieks.
"Of course," I say. "I'm here for Alexandrite's final eight interview. May I come in?"
"Of course, of course," one of the girls says, stepping aside.
I walk through the doors, and Alexandrite's sisters lead me to some sort of living room. Three people are already sitting there. One of the sisters introduces me to the three other people. She has Alexandrite's long blond hair, and is wearing a green dress. "This our mom and dad," she says, pointing to the two middle-aged people sitting on a sofa. "And this is Topaz, Alexandrite's boyfriend." She points to a fairly good-looking young man with brown hair and shockingly blue eyes. "And I'm Tiara."
"I'm Blossum," the sister in a peach-colored dress says. She looks the most like Alexandrite, with wavy blond hair, green eyes, and high cheekbones.
"I'm Yasmin," the last sister says. She looks the least like the others with light-brown hair and hazel eyes. She's wearing a lavender dress.
"Great," I say. "Once my cameramen set up, we'll get started."
I start off by turning towards Alexandrite's parents. "Tell me about Alexandrite's childhood," I say.
"Well, she's the youngest of four," her mom says, "so she grew up as sort of an oddball. Instead of focusing on beauty and fashion, like her sisters, Alexandrite enjoyed reading and training. As she got older, even though she began to get prettier and prettier, she refused to give up training. A few months ago, she announced that she was planning to volunteer, and we went along with it. After all, if she wins, our whole family will be super famous and rich."
"Did you train her?" I ask her dad.
"Nah, she went to the Academy," he replies. "According to them, she's one of the most talented students they've had in years."
"Well she certainly does to be talented," I say. "She's got two kills so far. Does that surprise you?"
"Not at all," her dad replies. "She was always very serious about her training."
"Well in the Capitol, Hunger Games experts and Gamemakers have created estimated rankings for all of the tributes. They've taken everything into account- training score, age, number of kills, and more- and have given each of the tributes a ranking between one and eight. Alexandrite is estimated to place third. What's your reaction to that?"
"I don't know," her dad says. "I think she'll definitely be in the final three, but I think she's got a better shot at victory than most people think."
"Well, I guess all we can do now is wait," I say. I now look over at Alexandrite's boyfriend. "You're Topaz, right?"
"Yes," he replies. "I'm Alexandrite's boyfriend."
"What do you think about Alexandrite's performance so far?" I ask him.
"She's definitely done well," he says. "I am proud of her. Although, something's different with her. I don't know why, but she's not the same girl that she was a month ago."
"Maybe it's the pressure of the Games," I say.
"Yeah, I guess so," he says, but he doesn't look convinced.
"You really care about her, don't you?"
"Yeah, he says, looking down at his shoes. "I just want her to come home."
"Don't you worry," I say. "Alexandrite has already proved that she has what it takes to win." I now look over at her sisters. They all look extremely excited to start talking. "So you guys have known Alexandrite your whole lives" I say. "What was it like having her as a sister?"
"She was always different from the three of us," Blossom says. "She never liked to dress up, or wear makeup or anything like that."
"She wasn't very attractive as a kid," Tiara butts in. "So we kind of just accepted that she'd never be like us. But, she got much prettier when she reached her teenage years."
"We thought she would change then," Yasmin says, finally speaking up. "But she didn't. She ignored all of the hot guys hitting on her and continued reading and training."
"Then she announced she was planning to volunteer," Tiara says. "We were proud of our little sis. After all, if she wins, we'll become famous and rich. If she doesn't win, though, we won't be too depressed. The three of us have each other."
"Although, she has surprised us a little," Blossom chimes back in. "During her interview we realized she's finally started embracing her beauty a little bit more."
"I think all of our years of drilling her to use her looks have finally paid off," Tiara says. "Even during the Games, she started flirting around with her district partner, that Glint boy."
"Now that he's dead, we hope she'll go for Mason," Yasmin says. "It'll make for great television." Out of the corner my eye, I see Topaz dash from the room. A heartbroken look masks his whole face.
The girls seem to be done, so I ask another question. "So what do guys think of Jessie, her other ally?"
Tiara wrinkles her nose. "She's not, like pretty or anything. Plus, she's kind of young."
"She's scary," Blossom says. "I mean, her eyes are literally black holes."
"Yeah she's creepy," Yasmin adds on. "I'm hoping she dies soon."
"Well, I guess we'll have to wait and find out if she does," I say. I think I've gotten some pretty good answers, so I decide to end the interview. "Thanks so much for allowing me to invade your home to interview you today," I say. "I wish the best of luck to Alexandrite."
"We're clear," one of my cameramen announces. I thank Alexandrite's family once more, and then exit her house. I'm driven back to my hovercraft, and we take off, course set for District Two.
As the hovercraft lands, I decide that this will probably be the highlight of my tour. District Two is the only district in which both of the tributes still remain. More impressive than that, the two top-ranked careers reside here. I'm sure I'll have a great time here.
I step out of my hovercraft and look around. Although District Two isn't as pretty as District One, it's still a great district. It's one of the richest ones, and it's home to the most victors. My first stop is the home of Jessie Harte. On my ride to her house, I review my notes.
JESSIE HARTE
District: Two
Gender: Female
Age: 14
Height: 5'4
Weight: 110 lbs.
Preferred Weapon: Throwing knives
Appearance: Straight, waist-length black hair, dark brown eyes (almost black)
Points of Interest: Training score of eleven (How?), three kills (Jarvis, Aria, Cherry), in career alliance, very young, wasn't a volunteer
People to Interview: Mom (Jennie) and dad (Don)
Estimated Capitol Ranking: 2nd
I'm surprised that even with all of my research, the only people I've managed to find that have close ties to Jessie are her mom and dad. I wonder why that is. I'll have to bring that up during the interview. There's so much to ask about Jessie, so I hope her parents will be able to answer it all.
Finally, we pull into Jessie's driveway. Once we're parked, I step out of the car and get a good look at Jessie's house. It isn't very big, but it's not small either. It's pretty average. I walk up to the house and ring the doorbell. A woman with straight brown hair answers the door. "Are you Jessie's mother?" I ask.
She nods. "Come on in," she says. "We can do the interview in the living room, if you don't mind." My camera crew and I follow her through her house and finally reach a nice-looking room with a television and many comfortable-looking chairs. There's no one else in the room except Jessie's mom. "Can we get started then?" she asks after sitting down. She seems to want to get it over with. I motion to my camera crew to begin filming, and we start the interview.
After a short intro, I start off with the question most on my mind. "So it's just you," I say, trying to look sympathetic. "Jessie doesn't have anyone else close to her?"
"Well, there is my husband but he's at work and couldn't make it. He says he's very sorry and wishes he could be here, but his job is very important. Besides that, no. Jessie doesn't have anyone else."
"Why not?" I ask.
"Well, seven years ago, Jessie was climbing a tree with her twin sister, Anjie. It was a high tree, with many branches, and the two of them kept daring each other to go higher and higher. Anjie ended up climbing too high. The branch she was on snapped. She was dead as soon as she hit the ground." Jessie's mom takes a second to wipe a tear from her eye, and then continues. "When word spread of Anjie's accident, the story got twisted around a little bit. Everyone began to believe that Anjie's death was Jessie's fault. They thought Jessie had pushed Anjie off of the tree. The only people who believed Jessie was innocent was me and my husband. We tried to convince people of the truth, but no one believed us. That's why she doesn't have any friends. Everyone thinks she's a bad person. Everyone hates her."
"So do you think that's why no one volunteered?"
"Definitely," Jessie's mom says. "It's sad that they all hate her for something she didn't do."
"Yes, it is sad," I say. "So did Jessie train before coming into the Games?"
"Yes, she did. Right after Anjie died, Jessie asked us to sign her up for training lessons. She ended up loving training. It helped her take her mind off things."
"Was Jessie planning on volunteering when she got older, had she not been reaped?"
"I don't know, but it doesn't matter anymore. She's in the Games now, so that's that."
"Speaking of being in the Games, how do you think Jessie's doing?"
"I'm proud of her, no matter what. I really do believe she has a fair shot at getting home."
"Well, the Capitol believes with you," I say. "They've estimated that Jessie will take second place. Does that surprise you?"
"A little bit," Jessie's mom says. "It's not often that a fourteen-year-old is expected to do that well."
"She does have three kills," I say. "The only other living tribute that has that much is Mason. Plus, she got an eleven in training- the highest score. What was your reaction when you saw her eleven flash onto the television?"
"I was very proud. I'm sure she earned it, no matter what she did."
"What do you think she did?"
"Something with throwing knives, I'm guessing. She's always been good with those."
"Yes, she's proved she can throw," I say. "Now what do you think of her allies, Alexandrite and Mason?"
"They seem like very talented people, but I think it's about time Jessie leaves them. She can't trust them- especially because of the diminishing number of tributes."
"Interesting. So you're saying she can do fine on her own?"
"Yes," Jessie's mom says confidently. "There can't be much time left in the Games. She can push it out on her own for the remaining days."
I can tell Jessie's mom is about done with this interview. She's starting to get a bit emotional. "I have one final question," I say. "What will it mean for you if Jessie wins?"
"I don't even care about the money or anything," she says, tears forming in the edges of her eyes. "I just want my Jessie back."
I pull a handkerchief out of my pocket and hand it to her. "Thank you so much for speaking with me today," I say. "I wish Jessie the best of luck."
As soon as one of my cameramen says we're done, I hurry out of Jessie's house. I think I've bothered Jessie's mother enough. Besides, I've got bigger fish to fry. I'm sure this next interview will be the best yet. Once I'm in the car, the driver starts it up and we're headed for Mason's house.
Sure enough, as I examine Mason's note sheet, I discover his interview will be a fun one. He's got plenty of friends and family, plus tons of interest points.
MASON RILEY
District: Two
Gender: Male
Age: 18
Height: 7'6
Weight: 280 lbs.
Preferred Weapon: Sword
Appearance: Very tall, muscular, tan, short brown hair, hazel eyes
Points of Interest: Three kills (Ryland, Peter, Nylah), career alliance, training score of ten, expected to win, tallest tribute to ever compete, two victor siblings
People to Interview: Family- Mom (Eliza), dad (Dennis), sister (Missy), brother (Coltin) Friends- Ben Warwick, Julius Pilot, Jefferson Jekiya, Avery Kyoto, Travis Wilkins
Estimated Capitol Ranking: 1st
We pull into Victor's Village, and I finally spot Mason's house. I came here just a few years ago for Missy's final eight interview. Since Mason's oldest sister died in the final five, and Coltin is mentoring in the Capitol, Missy is probably the only Riley child I'll get to interview. That's okay, though, because Mason has plenty of friends that I'll get to speak with.
Once we're parked, I hop out of the car and walk up to Masons's front door. After knocking a few times, a familiar-looking woman who looks to be in her fifties answers the door. I recognize her as Mason's mother. "Welcome back to our home," she says cheerfully. "Please come in."
I follow her through a few long hallways and finally reach some sort of sitting room. There's seven other people already sitting here: Missy, her father, and Mason's five closest friends. I take my seat as my crew fiddles with their equipment. Once they're set up, we get the interview rolling.
Once I'm done with my introduction, I talk to Mason's parents. "So what's Mason's story?" I ask.
"Mason was always interested in training," Mason's father says. "As a kid, he'd love to watch his older siblings train. Once he became old enough, we signed him up for training, and we could tell he loved it. After both his brother and sister won the Games, he decided that he wanted to volunteer. So, this year, he did."
"Great," I say. "Now I have a question to ask that many Capitolites have been wondering. How did Mason get so tall?"
"The doctors told us that Mason had some sort of a birth disorder that made him a foot and a half taller than the average male," Mason's mom says. "We haven't looked at it as a disorder, though. He's learned how to use his height to his advantage."
"It seems so," I say. "In fact, he's the tallest tribute to ever compete in the Games. Did you know that the Capitol expects him to win?"
"No, we didn't," Mason's dad says, "but I'm not surprised. He's certainly the strongest tribute left."
"Yes," I say. "He's pretty strong. What did you think of his training score?"
"A ten's pretty good," Mason's dad says. "It's about what we were expecting. Although, an eleven would have been nice- especially because that's what his district partner got."
"Yes, we were all shocked by Jessie's score," I say. "Nevertheless, Mason's still ranked first, so no harm done."
"I suppose so," Mason's dad says uncertainly.
Finished interrogating Mason's parents, I look over at Missy. "What's your opinion on your brother's performance so far?" I ask. "Has he been doing well?"
"I think he's doing fine," Missy says. "It shouldn't be too hard for him to win the victor's crown."
"How do you think Mason's performance compares to yours?" I ask.
"I think he has played somewhat similarly to how I did. He's using his strength and allying with the careers, which is what I did. Although, when I played, I became really close to my district partner. I don't blame him for not getting close with Jessie because she's younger, but I still think he should find someone he can trust more than others. For a while, I thought he might form a little sub-alliance with Glint, but Glint's dead now so it doesn't matter anymore."
"Yes Mason has been a pretty stoic competitor," I say. "What do you think of Mason's three kills?"
"I think he's capable of more," Missy says. "I think Glint got in the way of a few of his potential kills. When I reached the final eight, I believe I had four kills, and Mason is more of a physical threat than I was. His kill list will definitely grow."
"I'm sure it will," I say. I now turn to Mason's five friends, and ask them to introduce themselves to the cameras. I can't keep all of their names straight, so I just decide to ask generic questions to the five of them. "Growing up, was Mason a good friend?" I ask.
"He was the best," one of the boys, wearing a green shirt replies. "Being the sibling of two victors, he was very popular and rich, so I'm glad he chose me to befriend."
"Not to mention, he's seven and a half feet tall," the boy in blue adds. "He intimidates the heck out of everyone- even adults. Whenever someone gives me trouble, all I have to do is mention Mason and they back off."
"That's not surprising," I say, chuckling. "Now did any of you train with Mason?"
"I did," the boy in a striped shirt says.
"Was he talented in training?"
"Very talented," the boy responds. "He was always one step ahead of me in everything. When the trainers announced who they were going to let volunteer, they told me I was the runner up. Basically, if Mason happened to twist an ankle or break an arm the day before the Games, I'd get to volunteer."
"Have you ever been jealous of Mason?" I ask the boy.
"Just a bit," he says. "I was a bit crushed when I found out my dreams of going into the Games would never happen. Also, Mason has two victor siblings and is super rich. Who wouldn't be jealous of that?"
"I guess that's fair," I say. "What do you guys think of Mason's allies?"
"Alexandrite's hot," one of the boys blurts out- the one wearing an orange shirt.
"Julius," the blue-shirted boy hisses at him through gritted teeth.
"Sorry," Julius says, "but it's true."
"What about trust-wise?" I ask. "Do you think Alexandrite and Jessie should be trusted?"
"Definitely not," responds the boy in a dark-colored shirt. "You can't trust anyone in the Games- not even yourself."
"Interesting," I say. "If you could each give Mason one piece of advice right now, what would it be"
"Play to your strengths," says the boy with the stripes.
"Use your head," the dark-shirted boy says.
"Kick some butt," says the boy in the blue.
"Never give up," says the green-shirted boy.
"Hook up with Alexandrite," Julian says, which causes the boys on both sides of him to elbow him in the gut.
Chuckling, I thank everyone for letting me interview them, and close the interview. I thank everyone one last time, and then follow my camera crew outside. We climb back into the car and drive back to the hovercraft. As soon as we're boarded, the hovercraft takes off and soars into the sky.
I'm very upset that I won't be visiting District Four this year. It's my favorite district. I absolutely love the beaches, the scenery, and the friendly people there. This is my second year in a row when I haven't traveled to District Four, so I'm starting to get a bit bummed out. Hopefully, I'll get the chance to go again next year. Pulling out my notes, I discover where I'm going next.
ERIDAN KEATING
District: Five
Gender: Male
Age: 16
Height: 6'
Weight: 125 lbs.
Preferred Weapon: All he has is a knife
Appearance: Skinny, light brown hair, black almond-shaped eyes
Points of Interest: Originally allied with Rory, escaped careers during fight
People to Interview: Family: Mom (Madelyn), dad (Gerard) Girlfriend: Orisha Friends: Altair, Claudio, Linus
Estimated Capitol Ranking: 6th
The hovercraft finally lands in District Five. Stepping out of it and into the car, I hope Eridan lives somewhere rich. Now that I'm past the career districts, I have to worry about this. Since poor kids end up taking out tessarae, I often encounter lots of poor houses when I get to the lower districts. The odds probably aren't in my favor.
Sure enough, when I reach Eridan's house, I'm surprised it still can hold itself up. Broken shingles litter the ground and there's a giant hole in one side of it. I walk up to the door and knock on what's left of it. A pretty teenage girl answers. "Come on in," she says. Even though she's smiling, I can tell sadness lurks behind it.
She leads me into a room with four broken-down chairs and a torn-up couch. I sit down on the couch and look around. Besides Orisha and myself, the only other people in the room are three teenage boys. Where are Eridan's parents? I guess I'll have to save that question for the interview. I can immediately tell that one of the boys doesn't belong here. Instead of wearing dirty, stained, ripped clothes, he's wearing a nice white shirt with a green tie. Despite the fact that Eridan only has two points of interest, I realize that there will be plenty to talk about.
I begin with a quick intro and then start asking some questions. "So you guys are all I've got," I say. "Where's Eridan's parents?"
"Not here," one of the boys says- Altair if I remember correctly. "Eridan left them a few years ago."
"Why?" I ask.
"They didn't love him any more," Altair says.
"So he came and lived here?" I ask, still a bit confused.
"Yes," one of the other boys confirms- Claudio, I think. "Atiar, Orisha, and I were already living here when we took him in. We've become like a family here. We all have jobs, which gets us food and pays the bills. Despite being poor, we all like it here."
"So where do you come into the picture?" I ask the remaining boy. He's the one wearing the nice clothing; I think his name is Linus.
"I was Eridan's friend before he came to live here," Linus says. "Now, I basically help these guys out if they need anything- a shower, some food, a warm place to sleep- anything."
"That's sweet," I say. "What do you guys like to do around here?" I ask, looking around their trashed living room.
"We play in a band," Claudio says. "I play drums, Altair plays bass, Orisha sings, and Eri's on the guitar."
"Oh yes," I say. "Eridan did mention that during his interview with Tristan. Now I have to ask some questions about the Games. What do you think of Eridan's performance so far?"
"He's done well," Altair says. "I'm proud of him."
"He's stuck to his morals," Claudio says, "which is great. He's also made it to the final eight. He's obviously got some sort of talent."
"Do you think Eridan has what it takes to win?"
"Maybe," Claudio says. "Although, he might need some luck."
"Possibly," I say. "What did you guys think of Rory, Eridan's old ally?"
"He seemed nice enough," Altair says.
"I thought he was okay," Linus says. "I hoped he'd be able to help Eri out longer, though. I was sad when he died, but only one can win."
"What did you guys think of his escape from the careers when they attacked him and Rory?"
"He did exactly what I would have done," Claudio says. "Running away was obviously the smarter option. It's certainly paid off, given that he's in the final eight."
"I was nervous for him," Altair says. "But, he got out okay so that's all that matters."
"So the Capitol has ranked Eridan into sixth place," I say. "Do you guys agree with that?"
"I don't know," Claudio says. "It's tough to rank the tributes like that when anything can happen."
"With some luck, I think he can do better than that," Linus says. "All we can do is wait and see what happens.
I suddenly realize that Orisha hasn't spoken once since she let me in the door. She's just sitting in the corner, starring through one of the cracked windows, with a look of sorrow on her face. "Hey Orisha," I say calmly, looking over at her.
"Yes?" she says, seeming to zap out of a trance.
"You really miss Eridan, don't you?"
"Yes," she says, a tear forming at the corner of her eye.
"Do you truly think he can pull off a win?"
"I don't know," she says, "but it doesn't matter." More tears are forming in her eyes. "All I want is to have Eri back. I miss him."
"Well don't you loose hope yet," I say. "The Games aren't over yet. Eridan is still in it." She nods, but she doesn't look convinced. I decide it's a good time to wrap up the interview, so I do. Once the cameras shut off, I thank the kids one last time and take off.
I'm so happy I finally got this chapter up! I've had midterms to study for, though. Plus, I'm completely re-doing my room, and I've still got basketball every day. Thankfully, though, Mother Nature decided to dump some snow where I live, so with the help of a four-day weekend, I found some time to write.
I only did half of the interviews because they turned out to be really long. In fact, this is the longest chapter I've ever posted to this story, being over five thousand words long. I'll try to make the next chapter just as long. Meanwhile, make sure you've voted in the poll because I've already starting deciding the order of deaths. I still haven't decided who will win yet, but I'm slowly narrowing down the choices.
Thanks for reading! :-)