Final 8 Family Interviews:

District 1

A cool breeze swept through the streets, making the dazzling glamour of 1 much easier to bear in the summer heat. Gregor Flickerman loved coming here; it was almost like a significantly dolled down version of the Capitol.

But as he turned left and walked to his destination, that notion was quickly shattered. The Shaw household was located in a much more run-down version of 1 that felt hidden, as if it was deemed too ugly to be true. Nonetheless, he wasn't intimidated. He just knocked on the door.

A middle-aged woman who looked almost identical to Vivian opened the door with a curt smile. "Welcome! You must be Mr. Flickerman. Come on in!"

Gregor claimed the armchair while the Shaws sat on the couch with an 18 year-old black-haired boy. The camera was turned. "Welcome Panem, to the beautiful District 1. I'm sitting here with Vivian Shaw's parents. Care to introduce yourselves?"

The woman spoke up. "I'm Roxanne Shaw, and this is my husband Pinot. This is Vivian's boyfriend, Rudy." Rudy was smiling as well, but Pinot was pouting.

"So," Gregor continued. "I'm sure you're all quite proud of Vivian's journey quite far, no? Not only is she the second fan favourite to win, but she also has the most kills out of any tribute thus far!"

"That's my girl," Roxanne beamed.
Rudy smirked. 'Yeah, that's Viv for you. When she wants something, she works to get it."

Pinot scoffed loudly before either Roxanne or Rudy could get another word in. "Yeah, at the expense of blowing up her entire game in her face! I knew that boy from 2 was bad news from the moment I first saw him! Look at him, just look at those eyes. He's got a glint in them that tells you he's up to no good."

Roxanne bumped her husband's elbow. "Oh hush, dear."
"I'm just saying."
"You're being silly."

Gregor just leaned in. "Is that so? Someone doesn't approve of his daughter's alliance?"

Pinot opened his mouth to speak, before glancing over at Roxanne's icy expression. He cleared his throat and composed himself. "I want Vivian to come home, and I want her to make the right decisions that will assure that. Not that I don't trust her…I'm her father. It's my job to worry."

"I see," Gregor hummed. "Well, any good father would worry for their children. Tell me more about Vivian's life growing up. What got her into training?"

"I think she always wanted to be a part of the other girls." Roxanne sighed. "We didn't have much money growing up, and unfortunately, children can be quite cruel when one of them stands out. But Vivian never let that get to her. She worked hard and paid for her training by herself."
"Wow," Gregor marveled. "We love a strong, independent woman! What did she do?"

"I'm…" Roxanne faltered. "...I don't think I should say…" Pinot was now glaring at the camera and Rudy looked rather uncomfortable.

Gregor decided not to press; this interview was juicy enough already.

District 2

Not that cameras were a rarity in 2, but Gregor had come here so often during the family interviews of the Games that he was starting to gain a bit of notoriety. Kids followed after him and had a fun time being featured in some of the B-roll as they pushed each other out of the camera's way to make sure the spotlight landed on them.

The Bronze household was still quite fresh in Gregor's mind; everything looked the same as when he visited four years back.

Beryl and Alkali Bronze seemed a little less hopeful this time around, probably worn down by both of their children entering the Games within only a couple of years. Two pictures, one of each of their daughters, sat on the couches with them. Gregor frowned, and asked about it. Did they think Olympia stood no chance to win?

"No, no." Alkali shook his head. He looked offended by the very suggestion.
"Of course not!" Beryl insisted. "We will not be losing another child and Olympia will be coming home. I don't care who she has to kill for that to happen!"

Beryl was nearly folded in on herself and Alkali had to gently steer her back into an upright position. "She's a very tough girl," Beryl finished. "She will win."

Alkali sucked in a shaky breath. "I'm just worried. I mean, if Olympia spent more time in school instead of dropping out, that would've helped her a lot too. She just has so much potential and possibility and if she applied herself-"

"Training is more important," Beryl insisted. Alkali didn't seem to have a rebuttal to that and so remained silent for the rest of the interview.

Afterwards, Gregor met up with Olympia's friends. A group of five people sat with him and talked fondly about Olympia. They introduced themselves as Rhyo Rhine, Klay Lignite, Maya Arrow, Gaius Smith, and Ares Honor, the former boyfriend of Olympia's late sister Ijolite.

"Of course Olympia is gonna win!" Rhyo gushed happily. "She's the strongest tribute in the Games. Yeah, I know everyone's gonna say it's Arietis or Vivian or whoever, but those guys are stupid. Olympia's not arrogant or impulsive."

"Yeah!" Klay agreed. "That's gonna be their downfall, and not Olympia's. I know it may not seem like it, but her caution is gonna help her. She definitely flies under the radar, and nobody will notice she's there until it's too late." Maya and Gaius nodded enthusiastically.

"What about the split of the Career pack?" Gregor asked. "Does that bode well for her?"

Rhyo scoffed. "Please refer to my previous statement. Arietis and Vivian are stupid. And I'm not worried about Avonlea; she's ineffective. Her steam will burn up eventually and then she'll do nothing. Olympia is ten times the Career that Avonlea wishes she could be."

"Olympia has noted where Ijolite was failed and corrected that," Ares said solemnly. "I've seen nobody throw themselves into training like she did. I think she stands a good chance to win against everyone else left and bring home District 2 another well-deserved Victor."

Now it was time for Gregor to head to the District 2 Academy. He had tried to get into contact with the Rammestiens for Arietis's interview, but they gave him some really weird vibes. Definitely not television-friendly as much as Gregor loved interviewing, he also really loved keeping his job. After getting in touch with Lyme and Brick, they advised against meeting with Arietis's biological family.

So he'd only be interviewing one person today.

The Academy dormitory was cramped. Two boys were inside, but one of them quickly excused himself and ran off. "That was my roommate," Carlos Garcia said dismissively. "Don't worry about him, he said he just wanted to give us some space."

Carlos sat down on his bed and Gregor took the other. The camera began to film. And immediately, Gregor asked the burning question that was on everyone's minds as soon as he met this boy: was it Carlos that Arietis was talking about in his interview?

Carlos sucked in a shaky breath. "...yeah, probably. Arietis's parents sucked. I won't go further than that because that's all anybody needs to know about them. They were shitty people."

"I see. And what's your relation to Arietis?"

"He's my closest friend. We met when I was 12 and I had started training. I was new and scared as hell because I didn't know what I was doing, but he showed me what to do when nobody else would. I'm not even sure how we clicked because we're practically polar opposites." Carlos laughed nervously. "I mean hey! He helped me come out of my shell and be more assertive for myself."

Gregor nodded as a sly grin came across his face. "And you two are such good friends, correct?"

"Of course?" Carlos seemed a little on edge. "I mean Arietis has his…moments. But we get along just fine."
"Have you two ever been more than that?"

Carlos just sighed loudly, dropping his head into his hands. For a moment, it appeared he wouldn't say anything except potentially yell at Gregor to get out of his room. Which would make for great television, but would also be kinda disappointing because Gregor knew he would have his audience hooked.

"...yes," Carlos finally said, ending the awkward silence that permeated the tiny room. "Yes, Arietis and I used to date."

"Used to?" Gregor mused. "If you don't mind explaining…"

Carlos's expression suggested he did mind, he did mind a lot, but he still spoke anyways. "It's the classic case of realizing what you had as just friends was leagues better than what you had as boyfriends. We didn't work out that way, but we still care for each other. It was an amicable break up, okay?"

"Of course," Gregor said gently, knowing he had pushed his luck a touch too far. "Not a knock against you at all. As a matter of fact, I'd like to thank you for letting me interview you today. Arietis deserves to have an amazing friend like you."

Carlos mumbled something under his breath, nodding with flushed cheeks.

District 3

The technology district was a huge whiplash from the glamour and relative wealth of 2. Gregor didn't come here as much; maybe if Bennet stepped up and actually did his job more often, that would change.

People gawked at him as he walked by, frozen in their footsteps. Maybe his raspberry coloured hair stood out quite a lot in a district that often had more pressing financial matters than dye, but Gregor didn't care. He had a job to do.

Mila's father smiled at him as he approached the door. "Mr. Flickerman! We weren't expecting you here!"
"Is that so?" Gregor asked.
"Genuinely."

The mood seemed tense as Mila's parents sandwiched a girl between them who looked like an exact copy of the District 3 tribute. Her mother gently placed an arm on her shoulder. "We're Mila's family. My name is Paige."
"I'm Luke," the father said.

"And I'm Tara." Tara didn't look happy. If anything, she appeared like she wanted to dart out of the room at any moment.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Gregor said politely. "What are your thoughts on Mila's situation thus far? In the 14 years since Bennet won, District 3 had only made the top eight a total of four times, Mila being one them."

"That's good," Paige mused. "Yes, that's good. We've been worried sick for Mila. We know she doesn't have the drive to be as murderous as some of the other tributes."

Luke ran a hand through his hair. "Mila's always had some…well…struggles when it came to schooling. She has difficulty applying herself and staying motivated on important subjects. We feared that she wouldn't focus on her survival as much as she needed to."

Tara looked like she wanted to say something, but when Gregor's gaze fell on her, she folded her arms and remained silent.

"Mila needs to take initiative," Luke decided. "She's been hiding too much and that makes her an easy target. She needs to become independent."
"Yes." Paige seemed to agree. "We want what's best for her but we can only do so much to help her."

Tara stayed silent. Gregor didn't push it.

Next up, he was meeting with a young girl named Gadge Romero. She introduced herself as Mila's girlfriend. "And Mila is the love of my life. I'd do anything for her."

Gregor chuckled. "Ah yes, young love. How are you feeling about Mila's journey through the Games so far?"

Gadge shivered. "God, I'm so terrified for her. When the spaceship got destroyed, I was absolutely worried I'd lose her but she managed to survive! It was heartbreaking to watch Loire and Ascella die and I feel horrible about it. But let me be selfish for a moment."

Gadge turned towards the camera. "I would rather Mila come home over anyone else."

She backed up from the lens and folded her hands neatly into her lap. "That's all I have to say. I love Mila and I want to continue our relationship. Hopefully she wins and I believe that she can."

"You're very passionate," Gregor admitted. "I can see why Mila is so drawn to you."

Gadge blushed furiously.

District 4

The summer air was painfully obvious in the fishing district, and poor Gregor was working up a sweat. He was thankful to be invited inside by Avonlea's mother so quickly before he melted into a puddle.

The Headden family squeezed onto the large couch, with Avonlea's two sisters squished between their parents. Mr. and Mrs. Headden were pointedly not looking at each other.

The older sister waved at Gregor. "My name is Monroe and this is my little sister Locklyn. These are my parents Marino and Ness."
"Pleasure to meet you," Ness said politely.

"The pleasure is all mine," Gregor replied. "Let's talk about Avonlea. She started out as the Career underdog yet has managed to score two kills and currently sits as the third favourite to win the Games. What do you make of that?"

Ness beamed. "I knew my girl had it in her. Avonlea is always so unsure about her abilities, but once she finds her confidence, she really gets going."
"Yeah!" Locklyn agreed. "Lee's really proved that she's not cannon fodder! She really showed everyone she's the best Career in the arena! She's a badass!" The girl sheepishly covered her mouth as her mother gave her a look.

"That's one way to put things," Gregor chuckled. "So you're proud of Avonlea's progress in the Games so far?"

Locklyn and Ness both nodded. Ness then sent an icy glare in Marino's direction. "Well? Aren't you going to show some support for your daughter? Tell her you're proud of her?"

"I am," Marino sniffed.
"Doesn't seem like it."
"We can't all be camera hogs like you."

"I'm worried," Monroe spokes up suddenly. "I mean, I don't doubt Avonlea's abilities. But she only has a 1 in 8 chance of winning. That's not very high. What if something happens to her?"
"Nothing's gonna happen, silly," Locklyn insisted. "Lee's gonna win and come home!"
"I think she'll be just fine," Ness agreed.

Monroe sighed sadly and looked away.

Afterwards, Gregor interviewed Avonlea's friends, Darnell Jones and Misty Saranoga. "I'm going to be the Victor of the 102nd Hunger Games," Misty said proudly, puffing her chest out. "Just you all watch."

Gregor nodded. "Can't wait to do your family interview, then! Now let's talk about Avonlea. How do you feel about her progress in the Games so far?"

"I'm glad for her," Darnell mused. "She's kept her head as steady as possible and done what she needed to do to stay alive. It was a shame about that Cy kid though."
Misty elbowed him. "You mean her boyfrieeeeeeend?"

"Misty! He wasn't her boyfriend. Don't tease her like that."
"Come on! You saw the way she looked at him. Avonlea had a crush!"

Gregor coughed not so quietly.

"Right." Darnell blinked. "Well, I think as the current leader of the Career pack, Avonlea's got a great shot at winning this thing and coming home."

"And I plan on beating her kill count." Misty winked at the camera.
"Come on, Mist. Quit bragging. This is her interview, not yours."
Misty scoffed. "I know that!"

District 10

If it was hot in 4, it was like a circle of hell in 10. The various cattle Gregor saw had the right idea; they were fast asleep in the shade. But as much as Gregor wanted a nap, he had a job to finish. Then he could sleep to his heart's content.

The house he was visiting was more of a shack. It was a bit of a squeeze to fit the crew inside, but they managed. The four people in front of him shared some resemblance to Hunter, but not a lot.

"It's a privilege to have you in our humble abode," the man said. "My name's Ted. This is my wife Joey, an' our boys Tanner an' Soren. Hunter's my nephew an' we took him in after his parents died."

Oh right. "Anything you'd like to say about that?" Gregor asked.
"Not particularly," Ted responded, though his voice was slightly bitter. "No sense in dwellin' on the past, as I'd like to say. Keeps you stuck. Best to keep on movin' forward, somethin' I'm always tryin' to tell Hunter. You'll never make any progress if you don't grow."

"I see." Gregor could tell he wouldn't get much mileage out of that topic. "As we've seen with Hunter so far, he's in a tough situation but he's still going. How do you feel about his journey through the Games?"

"We're so proud of him." Joey smiled, but hesitated in her words. "But we're also very worried for him as well. We want our boy to succeed. Can he stand up to the likes of those nasty Careers?"
"Do you think he can?"

"I wanna believe so," Tanner spoke up. "Hunter's a good kid. He can be pretty stubborn when he wants, but a good kid. You saw how he bounced back after his ally died." Soren nodded in agreement.

"Ah yes, what a terribly tragic death." Gregor sighed dramatically, but none of the Appalachies seemed entertained enough to join in on the theatrics.
"It was sad, though," Joey admitted, leaning on her husband for support. "That poor, poor child."
"It's alright," Ted comforted her. "It's alright."

Gregor decided to change the subject to test the waters a bit. "But Hunter is also one of the few outliers with a kill under their belt! Let's talk about Hunter's trapping skills. What do you make of that?"

Silence permeated the room. "We have no idea where he learned it," Ted finally said, his tone indicating that was the end of that. Soren glared at Gregor, but kept his mouth shut.

"Right," Gregor nodded, hoping his disappointment wasn't too obvious. He was hoping to catch the Appalachies admitting to some suspected illegal behaviour (wouldn't that make for great TV!) but they clearly were too tight-lipped for him. "Unfortunately, we're almost out of time. Anything else you want to add before the interview ends? Some finally remarks to give to Hunter?"

"You can do it, son." Ted sternly looked into the camera lens. "You've got all of 10 rootin' for you to come back a Victor. Just a few more miles to go, an' you're home free."

District 11

By now, the shade of the trees in 11's apple orchards looked very inviting. But Gregor soldered on because he was nearing the home stretch of his interviews. He found himself on the nicer end of the district, which surprised him because the agriculture district's tributes weren't normally from here.

Kerkylas's family had clearly been expecting his arrival, because they were all nicely dressed up as they invited Gregor inside.

"I'm Rian Andros," Kerkylas's father said formally, no emotion on his stoic face. "This is my wife Cherri and my daughter Tari."
"We're more than grateful to have you in our home," Cherri added politely, although she was stoic as well.

Gregor was flattered. "It's certainly a pleasure to be here. Now, let's talk about Kerkylas! What are your thoughts on his journey throughout the Games so far?"

"We're, uh…" Cherri faltered. "Surprised…I suppose."
"Really?"

Cherri patted her daughter on the back as she spoke; Tari was fidgeting around. "We were not expecting him to kill someone. We know he's quite strong, yes, but I guess it just slipped our minds about what Kerkylas needs to do to win."

Rian nodded. "But we hope he can win. Like my wife said, he's very strong. He should use that to his advantage. He could take each Career one-on-one in a fight if he has to."

"And he should ditch that guy from 12," Tari piped up.

Gregor blinked. "You think so?"

"Yeah," the girl insisted. "He's just slowing Kerkylas down! And he does nothing anyway, except get their other ally killed. Kerkylas is better off without him anyway."

"I agree," Rian said. "Reggie hasn't provided anything to his alliance with Kerkylas. It would be best for my son if they parted ways. After all, Kerkylas's survival is much more important than some coal miner."
"Right," Cherri sniffed.

After leaving the Andros residence, Gregor met up with Kerkylas's friends. The interviewer had always been quite confident in his body and masculinity, but it was obvious that the trio of Sean Danvers, Simon Jucey, and Barbados Lopez were metaphorically dripping with testosterone.

"Dude, of course Kerkylas is gonna kick ass and take names!" Simon scoffed loudly. "I mean, have you even seen the guy? Shit, he's built like a wall, bro."

"Damn right!" Barbados agreed. "He's gonna make the arena his bitch! I mean he's kinda got a bitch in that 12 guy. Man can't do shit."

All three of them burst into laughter.

"Yeah, yeah." Gregor tried to steer the interview back to something a touch more respectable. "So I take it none of you are worried for Kerkylas."
"Would you be worried?" Sean asked. "He could whoop your ass any day."
Gregor chuckled nervously. "Well now, I don't doubt that…"

"He could totally rip your head off," Barbados grinned.
"Nuh uh." Sean waved a finger in his friend's face. "Kerkylas is too hardcore for that. He'd start by ripping limbs off so he can watch the light die out in their eyes. And then he'd…"

Gregor decided that was a great place to conclude things.

District 12

Now people were really staring at Gregor, not that he blamed them or anything. He hadn't shown up here in a very long time. Gregor tried to remember when his last visit was…well…he had no idea.

And he really only had one person to visit today. He had tried to get in touch with Reggie's sister, the last remaining member of his family, and she made it painfully clear she wasn't going to talk. It was a shame to end the interviews on such a bleak note, unfortunately, but Gregor couldn't go out with a bang all the time.

He met at the small clinic with a boy in a white lab coat. Lyle Henriksen had nasty circles under his eyes and wrinkles all over his young face. He was trying to smile at the cameras for the sake of appearances, but his body betrayed his absolute exhaustion.

"Let's talk about your relationship with Reggie," Gregor began. "Do you help him run his clinic?"

"Yeah," Lyle muttered quietly. "We own this place together. Reggie has always had a passion for helping people get better and I like to help him do it."

"How noble," Gregor sighed, which seemed to lift Lyle's spirits a bit. "Does he enjoy his work?"

Lyle hesitated for a few seconds. "I think so," he finally said. "I mean, what's the point of a job if you don't enjoy it in some capacity? Reggie has a tendency to take things seriously in all aspects of life."
"That is true. What do you think about Reggie's journey in the area so far?"

Lyle began to blink back tears. "I just worry for him so much. Every day, I just hope he makes it through safely. We only have each other and I really can't afford to lose him. I don't want anything bad to happen to him."

"What about what's happened to him so far?"

"I don't know how it makes me feel." Lyle shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Is it kinda dark to say I'm glad most of the other tributes are dead? I mean, with each death, he gets closer to coming home. I know he can do it. He's dealt with impossible odds before and pulled through. He will manage to win."

Gregor nodded solemnly. "You have a lot of affection for Reggie."

"Well, duh." Lyle's tone indicated it should've been obvious. "He's my boyfriend. We've been dating for almost five years and have known each other since we were kids. I love Reggie and I hope he loves me back just the same. I mean, I know he loves me back! It's near impossible to imagine my life without him."

Gregor quickly counted something on his fingers. "And if Reggie does win, he'll be 12's first Victor in 25 years."

"Yeahhhhhh I don't care about that. Statistics are fact, but I think I've earned my right to be emotional about my own boyfriend's life. Reggie winning is what I obviously want, but I just want to see him alive again. No matter what."

Here's a chance to catch up with the friends and family of the Final 8! Did any of the interviews stand out to you?

Blog has been updated to reflect current statuses and sponsoring is still open!

See you all next chapter

-Vr