Trigger Warning: Mentions of homophobic bullying and suicide.

Luka

I was aware that I was old and out of practice before but it really hits me when I walk into the waiting room. This is where mentors are supposed to wait while our tributes are in the Remake Centre, being prepared for the Parade. So far, only the Ones, Twos, Threes and Sevens have arrived but the only mentor I recognise from my mentoring days is Mink Ultramarine, the male backup mentor from District 1. He won the games after Sotope's and they've hated each other for decades.

"Is there anyone else from before the Thirty-Fourth?" I ask Sotope, quietly. Her memory is a lot better than mine.

"Seeder Howell," Sotope says.

I remember Seeder vaguely. She won the games before Turbin's so I only mentored alongside her for one year. For some reason, I always got the sense she didn't like me much.

I remember this feeling as well. This isn't the first time I've come out of retirement. I had to mentor a tribute in the Second Quarter Quell, since we had four tributes and four victors. It was a weird feeling. When I'd retired, all the tributes were at least nine or ten years older than my kids. When I mentored for the Quell, most of the tributes were around my kids' ages. Now they're around my grandkids' ages. Even if I'd had to come back for another reason besides mentoring my grandson - say if Turbin and Tesoro both mysteriously disappeared and I was Five's only remaining male victor - it'd still feel weird.

Gradually, the Career mentors walk over to me and wish me and Gus good luck. Gloss Goré offers me a hug, which I accept. Sotope and Mink glare daggers at each other.

"I've been talking to Hephaestion and Minaret about who they want in the Elites," Tarquin Baretti says. I feel relieved to see him. I may not be very close to him but he and Gus made friends last time Tarquin was in Five. I'm not sure if that friendship will cause Tarquin to root for Gus to win instead of either of the Twos - he is a Career, after all - but I reckon that Gus is, at the very least, his third choice for victor.

"They both want Gus," Tarquin carries on. "They think he'll be an asset to the alliance."

I smile. That's a good sign.

"I've been talking to Gus about allies as well," I say. "He has considered the Elites. There's just one thing he's concerned about. Why was Hephaestion booed at the reaping? Is it because he's a criminal?"

"No," Tarquin says, quickly. "Of course not. Hephaestion's the most loyal, law-abiding student we have in the academy. That's why we selected him. He didn't even want to volunteer until he was selected. He wanted to be a peacekeeper. That's what he was training for."

"Why was he booed, then?" I ask.

Tarquin looks embarrassed. "Homophobia," he says.

"Homophobia?" I ask.

"Yeah," Tarquin says. "Hephaestion wasn't very popular in the academy. In fact, I think he was bullied, mostly by Jack Frost wannabes. Someone started a rumour about him being gay and it took off. He was a pretty easy target. He'd taken a vow of celibacy as preparation for being a peacekeeper so he didn't date girls. That's why he was booed."

"So everyone in the crowd - even the grown adults - were booing him because they believed he was gay?" I ask. Something like that would be unthinkable in Five but I'm aware that other districts are less accepting than us.

Tarquin sighs. "Things are pretty bad in Two. I'm ashamed of my district. They… they wouldn't do that to someone like Fawkes. He's from another district. They just don't think it's something that's okay for a Two."

I nod. The Career districts have always held themselves to some ridiculous standards. This is sadly not much of a surprise. I'm just glad that I decided not to turn Five Career and invite that kind of culture into my district. Snow gave me the offer about sixty years ago, since I'd been a loyal victor, but I'd politely turned him down. I never regret it, no matter how many of Five's tributes the Careers kill.

"I understand now," I say. "I don't think Hephaestion has done anything wrong. I don't think Gus will think that, either. In fact, I think Hephaestion's a good kid. He's setting a good example. I'm sure, when he gets a good result, Two will change their minds about him."

"I hope so," Tarquin says. "So is Gus in the Elites?"

I can suddenly see the predatory glint in all the Career mentors' eyes. They can act like they care about me and my family all they want. Really, they just see Gus as an asset, an asset that will become a threat later in the games. They must be hungry for another win. All their tributes died in the bloodbath in the Quell. They're not used to losing. I doubt they'll just roll over and let my grandson win.

The Careers are going to target Gus sooner or later. If I get him into their alliance, I can guarantee that it will be later.

"I'll talk to him, see what he wants" I say. "But I think it's a good idea."

Once I'm finished talking to the Careers, the outlier victors from Three and Seven come over to wish me luck. It seems to be a regular waiting room ritual. Whenever a relative of a victor comes gets reaped, the other mentors all come over to comfort them, no matter where they're from or how old they are. It wasn't a ritual back in my day; most victors were too young to have kids of reaping age.

Suddenly, the door opens and a stunned silence falls over the room.

The mentors from District 10 are here. There are four of them, all young. Three of them are under the age of twenty-five. The eldest, Maia Nuñez, is thirty-four, the same age as Beta. Everyone stares at them. This is a waiting room ritual I'm used to, everyone staring at the mentors from the district that won last year, sizing them up. This time, I think we're all more amazed than usual. It's not because they're all so young, a sign of Ten's recent hot streak. It's not because they decided to use both their backup mentors for seemingly no reason, which is unusual for an outlier district. It's the fact that Fawkes Chau is there. After everything he'd been through, I'd expected him to take a year off. Judging by the shocked expressions on the other mentors' faces, I wasn't alone in that.

"Didn't you commit suicide?" Mink asks, breaking the silence.

That was the rumour back in March, that Fawkes Chau had committed suicide. All the major news websites were reporting it. All over the internet, people were mourning him. Then Fawkes posted a picture of himself, perfectly alive, with that day's newspaper, on the internet, with the caption 'Calm down, I'm fine.'. It turned out that the rebels in District 3 had just hacked into the Capitol's news websites and reported a false story just to cause chaos.

Fawkes laughs, nervously. "Didn't you watch the reaping recap? I'm pretty sure I was there. Oh, unless I did that thing where I go invisible."

"You… go invisible?" Mink asks.

"It's a District 10 thing," Fawkes says. "There must be something in the water over there. Or maybe I was just exposed to Lopez for too long. Who's to say?"

He seems so casual but I can see the haunted look in his eyes. It must've been hard for him to wake up one morning to the news that he'd killed himself. Manel Lobos reaches for Fawkes' hand to comfort him.

"Mink, you idiot," Sotope crows. "I can't believe you fell for that rumour. Didn't you find it odd that you weren't invited to Fawkes' funeral? Normally, whenever a victor dies, you get an invite to their funeral within the week."

Mink shrugs, "I thought only proper victors got funerals."

There's a long, awkward silence. There's a sense that Mink has crossed some sort of line, broken some sort of unspoken rule. Don't pick on the new mentors, the young ones, the vulnerable ones.

Manel glares at Mink and opens his mouth to say something but Fawkes puts a hand on his arm to stop him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, too, Mink," Fawkes says, coolly. "I can see why everyone loves you so much."

Everyone in the room gasps. Then Sotope starts laughing. Gloss, of all people, joins in. Mink goes red and barges out of the room, knocking Fawkes' shoulder as he leaves. Fawkes flinches. He looks slightly rattled.

I watch as Manel puts his arm around Fawkes' shoulders and pulls him close. Suddenly, I'm reminded of how I used to comfort Callisto after she was kidnapped by rebels.

I find myself walking over to Fawkes and Manel.

"Hey," I say. "Are you two alright?"

Fawkes frowns. "Do you think I belong here? I feel kind of… out of place."

He looks at me with innocent brown eyes. He's so young, only about twenty years old. He's less than two years older than Gus. I feel this strange paternal instinct to protect him.

"You do belong here," I say. "You're a victor. You won the Quell. I don't know what kind of state the Control Centre's been in since I retired but, back in my day, everyone used to look out for each other. Is it still like that, Manel?"

"I have friends," Manel says, quietly.

"But they don't really like me," Fawkes says.

"They do," Manel says. "Or, at least, they will when they get to know you a bit better. You're wonderful."

"Yes, absolutely wonderful at killing their tributes," Fawkes says, darkly.

"Lumas isn't that bothered that you killed Ernest," Manel says. "He's just always angry. And Ramona's dead but-"

"Whose fault is that?"

"The rebels," Manel and I say in unison.

Manel and Fawkes both give me weird looks.

"I'm used to answering questions like that," I say. "It's usually the rebels' fault."

"I know," Fawkes says. "I just… everyone blames themselves for something, right? Even if they know that someone else did it and that someone was in full control of their actions."

I completely understand. There are a lot of things that I blame myself for. Ramona Hirose's death just happens to be one of them. She was murdered by rebels because she was married to the President's late grandson for three years. She was the second victor to marry a Capitolite. I was the first. I remember feeling guilty when she got married because I wasn't sure if she was doing so willingly or if Snow was forcing her into it. I feel even more guilty now she was killed over that marriage. I can tell that Fawkes blames himself as well. Maybe he believes that he was the rebels' primary target and Ramona was collateral damage.

"I understand," I say. "If it helps, I don't blame you for anything."

Fawkes gives me a sad smile. "It does. I… I hope the odds are in your grandson's favour this games. You and your family are so kind. You deserve good odds. Are you interested in an alliance?"

"Sorry, kid," I say. "The Careers just gave me an offer."

"And you're just going to take it?" Fawkes asks. "The Careers are looking pretty weak this year. Are they really worth having to work with Mink?"

"If they keep my grandson alive," I say. "I had some doubts about the Careers but I talked to the Career mentors about them and now I'm feeling a lot more confident about Gus being in the Careers. I'll tell you what. Tell me what sort of alliance you've got planned. If everything falls apart with the Careers, I'd like to have a good Plan B."

"Hunter and Patty are already a pair," Fawkes says. "Maia and Lopez have pretty good relations with the Seven mentors so we're thinking about getting Spruce and Lucinda on board as well. If Gus joins, we'll outnumber the Careers and I reckon our alliance will be more stable than them."

"It seems risky," I say. "I think the Careers will target your alliance. And you won't have the numbers advantage if the Careers decide to recruit."

"Sometimes the only choice is the risky one," Fawkes says. Then he hesitates. He sighs. "That doesn't apply to Gus, though. I'll admit I'm just trying to keep Hunter and Patty alive. The odds are against them, especially if Gus joins the Careers. He's the only target bigger than them, apart from, maybe, Primrose. But I suppose that's why joining the Careers is his best option unless they turn out to be a dysfunctional mess."

"Did you just talk me out of taking your deal?" I ask, shocked by Fawkes' sudden pivot.

"Yeah, because I just realised it's a bad deal," Fawkes says. "I want to help. If Hunter and Patty both die but Gus wins, I want to be able to claim I helped him, even if it was just in a small way. It's… it's hard to explain. I just want to be on your side."

"You don't have to explain," I say. "I'm glad to have you on my side. If both your tributes die early, you're welcome to come over to the Five station and help out."

Fawkes nods. "I've just had an idea. It's nothing to do with Gus but I think Sotope would approve of it. Excuse me for a second."

He slips away and approaches the Careers. Sotope is still with them, chatting to Cashmere Goré. Fawkes starts talking to Gloss. I can't quite catch what they're saying but I can hear Gloss laughing. Then Fawkes returns, grinning.

"What did you do?" Manel asks.

"Mink is going to start get a lot of invitations to fake funerals," Fawkes says. "They are just going to start turning up in random places in his house."

I find myself smiling as well. I'm suddenly very glad I've always tried to be nice to Fawkes. He seems like a good person to have on your side and a bad person to make an enemy of.

Luka's setting up some alliances! Gus joining the Careers is looking pretty likely, since there's now a reasonable explanation for Hephaestion. It turns out, he hasn't done anything wrong, he's just an innocent kid being bullied by an entire district. District 2 has the dishonour of being the most homophobic district in Panem. At this point, the Career districts are just slowly imploding due to their own toxicity. Will that toxicity affect Gus' alliance or will all all the Careers be 'loyal' like Hephaestion?

Then there's the possibility of a Plan B alliance between Gus and the tributes from Seven and Ten. Whether or not Gus needs a Plan B, Luka seems to have taken Fawkes under his wing. It's an unlikely friendship given that Luka is the oldest mentor and Fawkes is the youngest, but it might prove useful later.