"What are they saying?
Wonder how long they'll be
Why should I worry?
Worrying's not like me."
Avarette De La Lune, 28, Head Gamemaker
She is so done with this job.
This year, His Allknowing-ness President Graymore wants fanfare, a public display. He wants the Capitol to fall in love with the Tributes, root for their favorites and cheer them on with bated breath to victory. At first, Ava figured this was all good and well. He was, after all, the President, and must've been put in that job for a reason, he obviously knows what he's talking about.
But now Ava's got a clearer perspective on things. Not only does Signet Graymore not know a single thing about the Games, he also seems to want everyone else to do his job for him. Meaning Ava's packing her baby into a sling, preparing for the longest day of her life.
Pericles McMaster, the Master of Ceremonies, informed Ava of these newly-christened Private Sessions yesterday. Just her luck, she's in charge of the whole thing, and her duty is to watch twenty-four teenagers stumble over some training equipment for a few minutes. After which, she will rank them on a scoreboard which will be displayed for all of the Capitol to see. This is apparently supposed to rally excitement, and give the Capitolites an idea of whom to look out for and sponsor.
Needless to say, Ava is not a happy camper.
She's never thought of herself as much of a complainer; when the Capitol said, "Ava, you must build an arena of utter destruction and make sure twenty-three children are dead before the end of the month" she readily agreed, despite her doubts. When the Capitol said, "we're leaving the country in the hands of an eighteen-year-old and you need to do what he says," Ava just nodded along and adapted to the change.
But this? It feels like asking a little bit too much.
If she's doing the math correctly, these proceedings will take about four hours minimum, and she's not going to leave Stelle for that long, so the Capitolites will just have to deal with it. It's not like many people will see her anyway; these sessions are supposed to be private, after all.
Maybe she isn't so cranky as she is exhausted. Maybe she's given everything she can and then some to the Capitol without so much as a thank-you. And maybe she has a right to be a little upset.
But that doesn't change anything, does it? Panem is not a place of sympathy, and no matter how much she bemoans the situation, that doesn't change the fact that she's to babysit and grade a bunch of children.
Perhaps some of them will surprise her. She doubts it, though; they've never seen the Games, never even knew the specifics until a few days ago. They're all just scared kids, wandering around this unfamiliar cage. And she can't fault them for perhaps being a little underprepared.
But what teacher isn't mad at their students for not studying for the quiz? Though she supposes they weren't even given the materials beforehand. She wants to blame Signet for that, but can't quite figure out how.
Having delayed for far too long, Ava straps Stelle to her hip and strolls down to the evaluation room, where she takes her seat beside her sycophantic assistants. A glass screen separates them from the Tributes, a small precaution that won't really do much good, and the room is well-stocked with weapons and dummies for them to play with.
Now, she just has to wait and see what they're capable of.
If the girl from One is anything to go by, it's not much.
She wanders in and immediately starts crying, which she continues to do for the first half of her session. She then clasps her hands together and pleads with them in a tiny voice, "can I please opt out of these Games? I want to go home. My parents are rich, they can pay you whatever you want if I can just get out of this. I don't want to do it. Pleeeeease..."
Ava grimaces. "Yeah, thanks sweetie, your time's up."
The other Gamemakers snicker grimly as the girl starts crying in earnest and walks aimlessly out of the room. There's no question in Ava's mind that the girl's going to get a One, or a Two if she's feeling generous (which she isn't.)
The boy from One is another story. As soon as he enters the room, her attention is instantly captured. He is larger-than-life, in both appearance and expression, as he sashays into the room with a giant smile on his face.
"Hi!" he says cheerfully. "I'm Marquis Kennedy."
He then proceeds to show off every single possible weapon he can, with the showmanship of a magician displaying a new trick. Ava finds herself distracted from her worries by the performance—for that's what it is—on the edge of her seat, eager to see what he does next. He sees her watching, enraptured, and smiles at her as he finishes off with the mace, which he does pretty well with. If Ava's being honest, the both wasn't exceptional at one single thing, but he was just so fun to watch. He finished off with a flourish and Ava smiled, taken pleasantly aback.
"Really stunning performance, thank you," she says. She's not exactly sure if it's against the rules to talk to the Tributes, but she doesn't much care.
Marquis smiles, nods and waves, then sweeps into an elaborate bow before walking away, leaving Ava feeling light and refreshed.
Even Stelle liked it; she's smiling ear to ear, staring after the boy as he leaves.
The girl from Two is another disappointment, simply standing there and staring at the panel of Gamemakers until she's almost out of time. Ava sighs.
"Are you planning on showing us something, or are you just gonna stand there glaring? Because I can say for certain that won't help your chances."
The girl shrugs. "Whatever."
Ava wishes she could be so flippant, simply shrug off her job and just... not do it, like these Tributes seemed to be able to.
Though she supposes they won't have much choice in a few days. It'll be do or die, quite literally.
The boy from Two has a sort of charisma about him, but it's much different from Marquis's. This boy is stoic and reserved, but he has an air of easiness about him, something lulling that makes Ava want to relax just a bit in her chair. Stelle follows him with her eyes with fascination as he bows to the Gamemakers, with respect and refinement simply radiating off him. Obviously, he's one of the boys from the Two who worship the Capitol as though it were some higher power, which Ava supposes it is. She is basically God, in a few days, where she gets to influence these kids' actions and choose who lives and who dies. That thought sends shivers down her spine.
His demonstration is frankly terrifying. He is wickedly efficient with the machete and the brass knuckles, and each of his movements display the arrogance of a person who knows exactly what they're doing and what they want. Ava herself is not someone who gets intimidated easily, always preferring to be right in a situation and letting all of the insults from the Capitol roll off her back, but she finds herself in awe of Tremor's performance.
"Thank you," he says curtly, before exiting as efficiently as he walked in.
Impressed, Ava resists the urge to whistle. So far, things are certainly a mixed bag, but she's starting to have higher hopes and expectations for these kids. A new passion thrums within her, as she realizes that this Arena will absolutely have to blow them all away; the Tributes, the Capitolites, and anyone else watching.
Even the President, who will have to watch the Games eventually, will be singing her praises, in awe of her talent. She hasn't felt this way in years, but maybe adding these little flourishes of fanfare and showmanship are working wonders, because Ava almost wants to try, to put herself into these Games.
That scares her. Because the President doesn't even know what he's doing, and yet he's managed to convince even her.
...
Arcadia "Cady" Wilson, 16, District Three Female
This is all fine.
It's hot in the waiting room. The Tributes are all lined up in District order, so Cady is squarely between the boy from Two and the boy from Three. The boy from Three is having a nervous breakdown, and apparently he deals with said nerves by talking a mile a minute.
"I didn't know they'd be testing us!" he says, his voice trembling, not talking to anybody in particular. "Why didn't they tell us, I make robots, I don't know how to use weapons!"
Cady just listens. He doesn't seem to want input or interruption, which sort of reminds Cady of Wren when she's throwing herself into a story or a tirade of frustration. The boy from Two is perfectly composed, his face smooth as marble. He almost looks like some beautiful statue, sitting poised beside her, not looking at her.
It's all going to be fine.
Cady exhales, feeling surprisingly at peace. There's nothing to get worked up about; stressing and sweating won't improve her score, which she knows will be meager in the first place. But she doesn't think about that. A tranquility spreads through her. It's similar to the feeling she gets when she hits a difficult level in a game. All of her nerves suddenly evaporate, and she knows that it'll all be okay.
The boy from Two stands up; it's time for his private session, which means Cady's next.
Her brain kicks into logic mode, as she rolls back her shoulders. What does she have to worry about? It's only a room, where four or five adults will simply be present while she shows off her skills. This is her chance to prove herself to the Capitol. It's simply a celebration of all that she's learned over the past few days.
She just wishes Wren was beside her. They balance each other out so well; Cady's so glad to be allied with her. She just wishes she could shake the inevitable sense of dread that looms over their every interaction.
"Arcadia Wilson," comes the monotone voice of an assistant Gamemaker.
Cady breathes in. Out. In. This is just like one of her arcade games. And she always tops those. It's all going to be fine.
She stands and walks with as much purpose and pride as she can muster, into the adjacent room.
The Head Gamemaker is regal and beautiful, her posture relaxed. There's a baby strapped to her side, cooing contentedly. Cady lets all this sink in you a split second. Then she walks forward, into the middle of the room.
"Hello." Her voice doesn't even tremble. "My name is Arcadia Wilson."
"Go ahead and begin, Arcadia," says the head Gamemaker, in her bubbly voice.
Arcadia walks casually over to the survival station, where she demonstrates starting a fire, identifying different edible plants and insects, and gutting the dummy of a small bird. It all reminds her of nights back home, killing pigeons and roasting them over the fire, where laughter was abundant and they were never too hungry or cold, because they had each other. Those moments are gone now. But maybe not forever.
She then demonstrates a few things she learned during training with Wren, hearing her encouraging voice in the back of her mind. Miss child prodigy, she called her. The words sooth her even more, adding supplementary serenity to her already calm mind.
She throws a few knives, nothing too flashy, then practices with closer combat, dispatching a few dummies. Before she knows it, her time is up.
"Thank you, Miss Wilson," says Avarette. "You're dismissed."
After completing levels in a video game, Cady usually grins and pumps a fist in victory, but that feels unfit for this particular situation, so she just bows quickly before hurrying out.
Her legs start trembling after a moment sitting in her chair. Now that the situation's past, Cady feels her cool logic melt away to reveal her terror. Even if she feels she did good, there's no way of knowing her score until later tonight, and she knows that she didn't do as well as the Careers, or maybe even a few of the stronger outliers like the pair from Ten. She hopes that Wren does well, but she knows she tends to be controlled by her emotions at times. Perhaps that will be to her advantage, though. Cady can't help but think that she'll at least come in handy in the Arena with her calm and strategic mind. She hadn't really thought about it until now; the way she can simply switch off her worries in times of need. Her arcade games were always just a silly hobby, something fun to do with her friends.
But now... well, it's not very hard to compare the arcade games to the Hunger games, which scares her just a little. But it also calms her. Because maybe she's not going into this blind after all.
While many of the other Tributes spiraled into anxiety, Cady simply took charge. That counts for something, doesn't it?
Still, Cady can't help but worry, now that she's not in action. She could die within the first few minutes of the Games. What good is logic in the chaos and violence that is the Games? There's no way for her to know how the Games work, what the Arena will be, and what will be most important to win. She never likes to go into things unprepared.
Still... the way everything seemed to click into place during the private session was exhilarating. She just hopes that it will do some good when her and Wren are struggling to survive. She doesn't like to think about how Wren might die, or about how both of them could be killed and be forgotten. But at least she knows now that she has one trick up her sleeve.
It has to be enough.
...
Naya Illumina, 17, District Four Female
For Naya Illumina, the private sessions are a pleasant surprise. She's been trying to prove herself and make herself seen by the Capitol ever since she Volunteered, and it's been more difficult than she expected with Caldwell buzzing around her like a pesky bug. But there's no way he can ruin this for her, because today it's just going to be her and the Gamemakers. No interruptions, no interference, no chance of Caldwell messing this up.
Unfortunately, he's sitting right beside her, looking far too full of himself for a person who builds sandcastles all day. His eyes are roving around the room, never staying on one fixed place; and oh, just looking at him gets Naya's heart racing with anger.
She tears her gaze away. He cannot ruin this for her. She's so tired of feeling crushed and despondent, unable to say or do anything at the mercy of her father's words. She can't be that person again.
But she knows she isn't that girl anymore. She took charge, as she always does, a few years ago—sold her mother's belongings and the drugs she never used, and took that money to the Training Center, where she worked hard. So, so hard. It won't go to waste.
The boy from Three emerges from the small room, legs shaking so hard that he practically falls back into his chair. Naya sends him a kind smile; though she herself doesn't feel nervous, she can't help but feel just a little sympathetic for those that were taken here against their will, a new twist being thrown at them each day. This obscene amount of luxury and excess never appealed to Naya, and she can't say that she particularly likes the Capitol. But Naya knows that she has to impress them, and convince them, nonetheless. Luckily she has a plan.
She can't help but throw Caldwell a triumphant look as she stands and walks into the room where the Gamemakers await her.
"Good afternoon," she says, standing tall, her voice calm and demure. "My name is Naya Illumina, and today I'd like to show you some of the skills I've picked up over the years."
She swivels to the archery station, where she aims for the stationary targets and lands three subsequent hits, dead center of each target. She eyes the clock and smiles in relief; she's still got two-thirds of her time left.
She makes her way over to another section of the room, where there's a pool which is currently covered. She gestures to a nearby assistant, who quickly lifts the lid to reveal a wave pool.
It seems that Naya finally has the chance to do some good in the world; the universe is supporting her higher calling.
"Do you happen to have a surfboard on hand?" asks Naya.
The Head Gamemaker eyes her quizzically. "Um, let me check."
She speaks into a small walkie-talkie, and a few minutes later, a servant enters with a surfboard. Naya hurriedly takes it, thanking the servant profusely.
This reminds her of the first time she met Caldwell. She'd just ridden a fabulous wave, and was coming in from the tides, nursing a splitting headache, when she accidentally slammed into Caldwell. He'd subsequently knocked into his sandcastle, which crumbled... and that had been the start of it all.
Naya's always loved surfing. Even if it's not a very relevant skill for the Games, it's certainly a unique one, and she hopes that scores her some points.
Naya waits for the opportune moment, then leaps into the pool, crests the wave and splashes down on the other side. She continues surfing with great success, a sense of euphoria overtaking her, until she has just a few minutes left in her session.
She climbs out of the pool dripping wet, and one of the servants hands her a fluffy towel. This is her moment, the pivotal point.
She turns to the Gamemakers and speaks from the heart; from years of being oppressed, saddened by her mother's death, her father's slow slide into oblivion as he pelted her with words and made her feel like nothing. This is her attempt to make a change; if not in her own life, then in the lives of others. She wants to be pure, good, uncorrupted.
She hopes that the Gamemakers see that.
"Today, I would like to speak with you about a very serious problem that plagues our society," she begins. "Back in Four, I love to swim and surf, as you might've guessed. When I saw black water polluted by oil, dead fish that had choked on trash, and plastic bags floating in the water, it made me so sad. Our world is slowly dying, and it is because of our careless actions. As humans who live on this Earth, it is our duty to protect it. We have to answer the Earth's cry for help and take action. As people in power, there is something you can do to stop this barbarism."
As she talks, Naya gauges the Gamemakers' reactions. While the assistant Gamemakers scoff and sip their drinks, Avarette De La Lune leans forward, hugging her baby, her exes fixed on Naya.
A wave of victory sweeps over Naya. At least she's convincing someone. She really must be instilled with some gift, been cut from richer cloth than all those around her, to be capable of such an all-encompassing and glorious mission. No longer is she the timid girl, unable to speak up as her father berated her. No more does Caldwell Kingsen have control over her. Here she is, above it all, making the Head Gamemaker see her, and hear her. Now all she has to do is win, return to the Capitol and be the voice for a beautiful new movement, the saving of the world.
Her Career alliance isn't quite what she' expected. For one, it's all boys, and they seem to have no interest in getting to know their leader. But Naya still hopes to find a confidant, someone who is there for her not because she leads them but because they like her. She'll need support, in the coming days.
But right here, right now, she can't help but feel she's won a small victory.
...
Luz Contreras, 15, District Nine Female
It's almost their turn for the private session now; the girl from Eight stands and walks to her private session with an airy smile on her face. That leaves the boy from Eight, and then Luz will be next.
Of course, she's got a plan. These Games have left her feeling unmoored, unsupported, and a good plan always helps to ground her, so she feels infinitely better knowing exactly what she's going to do in front of the Gamemakers. She looks at Asa, with his full head of curls, his lovely grin, his bright eyes. He is, of course, looking around the training room, probably searching for any threats that he might've missed; or maybe scoping out an escape route, should he need it.
"Hey," says Luz softly.
Asa looks at her, his bouncing leg stilling. "Hi."
"We're almost up. Do you have any plans for what you're going to show the Gamemakers?" Of course, she isn't aiming to pry, her mother taught her better than that. But she always likes talking to Asa; it calms her nerves, to have him listen, and smile that perfect smile of his.
He shrugs. "I'll come up with something. I'll probably end up running. Not from them, just..."
She nods. While she has never been and will never be spontaneous herself, she is completely fine with Asa doing whatever he needs to.
"Are you nervous?" asks Luz.
Asa shrugs again. "I guess... maybe a little. It's not like they can do much to me, not right now at least. I'm assuming you already have a plan."
Luz laughs softly. "You know me well."
They just look at each other for a moment. Luz remembers the first time she saw him; battered and, scarred, wild-eyed. His father right on his tail, with his violence and erratic temper. And she also remembers, in sharp contrast, the moment when Asa brought her flowers a year later. He was cool as a cucumber, strolling up to her, looking earnest and sincere.
She knows Asa; every piece of him. How he first flinched as she tried to tend his wounds, and how they first kissed in the soccer field when they were just thirteen. And now, watching him lean into her, trust her, take refuge in her. As Luz once told Asa, she never pitied him. She'd always been taught graciousness, but never condescension.
She'd hoped their relationship would be something slow and steady and long-lasting, but now she knows that they don't have much time. Either they will both perish, or one will win without the other. And how could either of them cope with such a thing?
The little boy from Eight returns, and Luz stands slowly. She doesn't feel stressed, or scatter-brained, as there isn't much that can shake her practical, level-headed mindset. But she does appreciate the encouraging smile Asa sends her way, the brief squeezing of her hand, before she enters the evaluation room and faces the Gamemakers.
She takes everything in quickly; how they all seem tired and bored, eyes drooping, their disinterest as clear as day. Luz will just have to take them by surprise.
She makes her way over to the stocked medical area, where she checks to make sure everything she needs is there, which it is. Luz has always been a good student, a quick study, someone whose grades are immaculate and well-earned. She just hopes that will come in handy now.
"Today I am going to concoct a poison, which is highly deadly and which works very quickly. Here are all the ingredients I will be using, and why."
As she works to make the poison, using her knowledge of medicine and plants, she thoroughly describes everything she's doing in as technical terms as she can. This is her strong suit; that which is real and concrete, easy to explain, methodical in nature. Before she knows it, her process is over, the poison is complete and her time is up.
Luz smiles one last time at the Gamemakers, who for the most part look mildly impressed, and then hurries back out into the main room where Asa is waiting for her.
He hurries to her side. "How'd it go?"
"Good, I think. I just showed them my medical and plant knowledge by making a poison and describing each of the steps."
He beams at her, looking proud. "I knew you'd do great."
"You'd better go, or you'll be late for your own session."
Asa sighs in playful reluctance. "Oh alright," he says, before hurrying off to his session.
The time passes quickly, as Luz frets over how he will do. She can agree that his best asset is his speed, as he's been forced to be always on the move throughout most of his life. And yet, she knows that running won't work forever in the Arena. Which is why she's been working as hard as possible to learn about weapons, so she can defend herself and Asa, if need be.
And if it gets down to just them, all alone in the Arena? Luz can't avoid thinking about it, and yet she abhors the very notion. She just has to ignore that, for now.
To her great relief, Asa hurries out a few minutes later, with a triumphant grin on his face.
"Well?" says Luz as they begin walking back to the Nine apartment.
"I sprinted a few laps," he says, still breathless. "I would've done something else, but my time was up. Did you see the Head Gamemaker's baby, though?"
"She was cute," Luz admits, smiling. "I didn't have much time to look at her though; I barely made my poison beside the time ran out."
They pull open the door to the apartment and flop down on one of the couches. Scores are to be revealed in a few hours, or so Luz has heard.
Linnet is sitting on the other couch. Over the past few days, Luz has taken quite a liking to her mentor; despite being quiet and very much haunted by the ghosts of her past, she's still forthcoming and ready to answer any of Luz's questions. Linnet smiles when she hears them come in.
"My two favorite people," she greets.
"Hello, Linnet," says Luz, smiling. "We just finished with our private sessions."
Linnet's brow scrunches. "They didn't have those when I was in the Games. It was much more... simple. Unadorned, you might say. A very quick Games, not all of this suspense and fanfare."
Luz swallows. No matter how much the Capitol delays it, the Games are still coming. Her and Asa have to be ready for the inevitable.
Hopefully they score well. If they use their relationship to get more Capitol support, as she knows they should, that will just be another card in their deck. Luckily, Luz already has some tricks up her sleeve. She's not going down without a fight, and she's certainly going to protect Asa for as long as she can.
She knows that she has Asa beside her, and that neither of them are alone in all this. That's almost miraculous in of itself.
As Asa so often reminds her, there can always be light in a dark situation. Perhaps that even applies to the Games; even a realist like Luz can't help but believe that.
...
Everything to Win- Anastasia
We're back to the longer chapters. And friends, I just realized we only have three more chapters after this until the Bloodbath. It's getting real! I was going to showcase the scores in the chapter, but then, well it just got long so I couldn't fit them. So if anyone's curious, here is the full list!
Marquis Kennedy: 7
Tremor Atilius: 8
Arcadia Wilson: 6
Naya Illumina: 9
Caldwell Kingsen: 6
Columbia Novella: 5
Callisto Novella: 6
Dria Isatis: 5
Blade Cassidy: 8
Wren Camphor: 5
Felicia Simmons: 4
Luz Contreras: 7
Asa Trevino: 5
Jacqueline Baylor: 7
Buck Taurean: 6
Alessio Spades: 8
So there you have it! Thank you so much for all the support thusfar, I love and appreciate you guys! Next chapter will be interviews, which will be so fun, however I'm going to be gone for four days this week so I'm not sure if I'll be able to get the update out in time, but I'll try my best! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter.
Much Love,
Miri