Marino Cortez (Abyssa Deluge), 18

District 4 Male

I'd seen some pretty fancy places, but the Capitol train definitely took the cake. The train car was decorated in pale gray and mint, with plush chairs and glass tables. Pitchers of lemonade and iced tea and punch sat on the dining table and the small chandelier above it was sparkling with sunlight.

Mira pushed past me to throw herself onto a well-cushioned loveseat. She looked angry, with her arms crossed and her chin tilted up. Our district's escort, Daphne Blumenthal, was standing near the window, looking out at the ocean. Our mentors were nowhere to be seen.

"Feel free to help yourself to a drink," Daphne said, shifting positions and blowing her reflection a kiss. "The punch is to die for."

"I'll pass," Mira grumbled, but I reached to pour myself a glass of lemonade.

"So Marino, what do you do, besides tell bad jokes?" Mira asked suddenly. I chuckled.

"I'm a performer. A drag queen, to be specific."
"Ooh," Daphne gushed, looking back from where she'd been touching up her makeup in the reflection of the window. "That's so fantastic! There's this awesome club in the Capitol that hosts drag shows, and they have the most amazing garlic fries. You should check it out!"

"I-I'll have to think about it," I stammered, glancing at Mira. She was frowning at Daphne. Didn't our escort realize we were going into the Hunger Games?

All of a sudden I felt light-headed. I set my glass down and sank into a chair, the reality of the situation sinking in. I was a tribute. In the Hunger Games. I almost wanted to cry. I wasn't trained! I wasn't a killer. How was I supposed to do this?

Luckily, my panicked thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Sienne and Trenton. They'd clearly changed out of their fancier reaping clothes, as Sienne was wearing jeans and a blouse, instead of a dress.

As soon the door slid shut behind them, Daphne opened her arms and Trenton rushed forward.

"Darling!" he cried, embracing her. "Oh my goodness, it's been ages!" He took a strand of her hair in between his fingers. "This color is stunning."

"Oh, you're too kind," Daphne giggled. She looked like she was about to say more, but Sienne cleared her throat.

"We're all happy to see you Daphne, but we have a few other matters to address."

"Right," Trenton said, clearing his throat. He stepped away from Daphne and smiled sheepishly.

"Where do we start?" I asked nervously.

"I want to start by watching the other reapings," Mira said.

"So, I take it you don't want to be trained together?" I teased. Mira looked me directly in the eye.

"No." Then she stalked out of the train car, and was quickly followed by Sienne.

After they were gone, Trenton let out a low whistle.

"She's a mean one, isn't she?" he commented.

"I've never met her before today," I admitted, picking up my cup and taking another sip of the perfectly sweetened lemonade. My mentor sat down across from me and folded his hands on the table.

"So," he began. "Tell me about yourself." I tapped my painted nails against my glass.

"My name is Marino Cortez. When I'm in drag, I go by Abyssa Deluge. I like to dance. My favorite color is teal."

Trenton laughed, but it didn't sound mean.

"I meant more along the lines of what your skill set is, but that works too."

"Oh…" I trailed off. "I guess I'm a dancer. That takes a lot of strength. And I've used a baton before, but mostly for performance purposes. Other than that…" I shrugged. "I'm pretty useless."

"Nobody's useless," Daphne said from across the room. And in spite of my nerves, I smiled.

Ronald Jones, 18

District 6 Male

As soon as I stepped onto the train, I knew I was where I was meant to be. The dark wood paneling, the olive couches, the plush rug beneath my feet… it exuded class and luxury. Winona nearly bumped into me as I stopped to admire it.

"Hey, watch it," she snapped, purposely shoving past me. I narrowed my eyes at her, about to respond with a rude quip of my own when another voice cut it.

"Stop it. There will be no arguments on this train, you hear me?" Winona and I both turned to look at Journey, who had her hands on her hips and a frown on her face. I held her gaze menacingly, but she stood her ground.

Rolling my eyes, I broke away and flopped down on a couch. I propped my feet up on the coffee table, making Hestia gasp.

"What are you doing?" she shrieked.

"Relaxing," I told her. "You should try it some time, since you look like one of the women with a stick permanently up her butt."

Winona snickered as Hestia gasped in outrage.

"Enough!" Journey shouted, slamming her hand down on the couch beside my head. My instincts told me to leap up and punch her, but I restrained myself.

"We are all civilized adults, and will act as such." Journey sighed and stepped back. "Let's all get something to eat and then we can talk."

"With all due respect," I said, purposely digging my heels deeper into the table. "I don't need your help."

"Oh." Journey raised an eyebrow. "Then I guess Axel will have an easy job."

"Hmm?" a new voice asked. I turned to see Axel, my shrimpy mentor, walk into the room. He hovered behind Journey, eyes flicking about nervously. I rolled my own. How was a skinny little kid supposed to give me advice on how to kill people? I was the Conductor of Aggression! I'd killed more people than he could dream of.

"Someone mentioned my name?"

"Ronald here was just saying he didn't need your mentorship," Winona said, looking at me from the corner of her eye.

"Oh. Uh…"

For a moment, the whole train car sat in awkward silence. Then I cracked my knuckles and got up.

"Well, I'm off to enjoy my new soft mattress," I said. No one protested, so I headed to my room.

My bedroom was done up in the same earthy tones as the rest of the train. The floor was a plush cream carpet and the moss-green sheets were softer than anything I'd felt before. I laid back on the bed, letting my muscles finally relax.

Then someone knocked on my bedroom door and I sat up with a sigh.

"Come in," I said grumpily. The door opened and Winona came in, wrapped in a fluffy white robe. She shut the door behind her and leaned against it casually.

"So, Conductor…" she said smugly, raising an eyebrow. I stood up.

"What do you want?" I growled.

"I want an alliance. I've got a plan, and I need a killer."

Kerra Rathbone, 17

District 10 Female

Both our mentors were already on the train when Victor and I boarded. My district partner was still sniffling a little, but his sobs had faded away. Arturo seemed fairly relieved by that, but was making an effort to keep some distance between himself and the distraught boy. Una was sitting at a long wooden dining table while Signy stood in the corner, watching us. When I met her eyes, she waved. The corner of my mouth crooked up in a smile.

The doors closed behind us and the train rocked slightly as it began to move. Arturo skittered to the other side of the room, and Signy came forward, her hand out for a handshake.

"I'm Signy," she said. I shook her hand firmly.

"Kerra."

Signy shook Victor's hand too and then guided us to the table, where we both sat down. Una was frowning, and I watched her through narrowed eyes.

"I know this is… a lot," Signy said. "If you need time to process, please take it. But know that Una and I are here to help you."

"What's the point?" Victor asked. "We're all going to die."

Signy sighed and glanced over at Una, but she also seemed to be at a loss for words. Victor just sank lower in his seat. We all sat in an awkward silence for a minute before I stood up.

"If no one minds, I'd like to find a quiet place to sit," I said.

"Your room is the last door on the left," Arturo said, pointing to the corridor between the train cars.

"And the last car has a nice view," Signy said. She gave me another gentle smile, but I didn't return it this time.

I wandered down the corridor to the very back of the train. The entire back wall of the train car was a glass window, and had a bench seat. I curled up on the soft fabric and watched the dusty landscape rush by.

I'd been through a lot, and I'd always fought to make it through. But the Hunger Games were beyond anything I'd encountered before. And I was afraid. Afraid I wouldn't be good enough. Afraid that I would die.

"Hi," a soft voice said. I turned to see Victor standing in the doorway, his eyes still red and puffy from crying.

"Hey," I replied. "Do you… uh… want to sit?" Nodding, he approached slowly and sat on the other side of the seat.

"I'm sorry I've been such a baby," he mumbled.

"It's okay," I replied awkwardly. Comforting people was not my strong suit. "It's a lot, like Signy said."

"Yeah…" he said before trailing off. "I was wondering though… will you ally with me?"

I blinked at him. I wasn't entirely sure why he'd want to ally with me, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a younger, weaker ally. If it came down to the two of us, I could handle him.

"Okay," I said. Victor smiled.

Hey everyone! I am SO sorry for the massive gap between updates. I haven't been feeling very good and making it through each day has been a struggle. But I am absolutely not giving up on this SYOT. Updates still might be sporadic, but my goal is to update every two weeks.

Questions:

1) Which of these three POV tributes would you want as an ally?

2) Of all the victors introduced, who would you want as a mentor?

3) What would your strategy for the Games be?

Have a nice day, be kind to each other, and never stop reading!

- Fiona