Lotus Amarin, 18

District 4 Tribute

I let out a grunt as a trainer's punch caught me in the side of the jaw. Face hits usually weren't allowed in training, but I had told Shelly to go all out. I tasted a bit of blood as I returned her blow with a kick to her ribs. A pained huff escaped her mouth as my fist came up and caught her on her other side. Before she could stabilize herself, I swept a leg out and kicked her feet out from under her. Shelly crashed to the ground.

After a moment I reached a hand down to help her up. She took it and flashed me a smile.

"Good work," she praised. "Your speed is improving quickly."

"Thanks," I breathed, wiping the sweat from my forehead. A few strands of black hair had escaped from my bun, so I took the whole thing down and quickly redid it.

I had excelled at Muay Thai ever since I discovered it. My lean frame and shorter height made me a speedy and hard-to-hit opponent. But I was just as strong as the other boxers and could take on anyone in the Academy. Except for maybe Crash.

Crash was my best friend and would be volunteering alongside me tomorrow. Xey were a powerful fighter and I knew we would be a perfect duo in the arena. Together, we could do anything.

Shelly gave me a pat on the shoulder, startling me from my thoughts.

"I'm going to hit the showers and then head home," she told me. "Good job today, and good luck tomorrow!"

"Thanks," I said, giving her a tired wave. I'd be training all day and my body was extremely sore.

The door to the training gym opened and my eyes lit up when I saw Crash come inside. Xey opened xeir arms and I rushed over to give xem a hug.

"How'd it go?" xey asked.

"I totally crushed Shelly," I bragged.

"Nice," xey said, offering me a high five. I slapped xeir hand with a grin.

"Want to head to the beach?" I asked. "I need to cool off." A big smile spread across xeir face and xey swung a buff arm over my shoulder.

"Let's go!"

The Academy was up on the bluffs overlooking the ocean, so it wasn't too long of a walk to get to the beach. This little slice of sand was where all the Academy trainees hung out, and there were already bonfires and drum circles set up by the time we arrived.

But Crash and I kept to ourselves. We weren't disliked amongst our peers, but being the only two openly non-binary neopronoun users at the Academy meant we weren't everybody's bestie. But that was okay. We had each other, and that was all we needed.

We stripped down to our undergarments and splashed into the warm water. I kicked some water up at Crash, who laughed and tried to dunk me under. We giggled and splashed and wrestled until we couldn't anymore, and then we collapsed on the sand and looked at the stars. Tomorrow, things would be changing. But it would be okay if I had Crash by my side.

Crash Derosches, 18

District 4 Tribute

A cool breeze began to pick up, sending the smell of smoke towards Lotus and I. The other Academy trainees were partying to their heart's content, drinking and roasting sausages and telling loud stories. But Lotus and I preferred the peace of each others' company.

But the wind was making me shiver and the smell of sausages reminded my stomach that it was almost dinner time. My parents wanted to have a special meal to celebrate me. I sat up.

"I have to head home," I told Lotus. "Sorry, but Dad is cooking something special."

"Oh," zey said, sitting up with me. "That's fine. I should probably shower soon before my hair becomes permanently salty." I laughed and nudged zeir shoulder.

"Sounds good. I'll see you tomorrow."

We stood up, brushing the sand off our bodies, and parted ways with a final hug. I grinned to myself as I walked home. A new adventure was beginning soon, and Lotus and I were going to dominate. I couldn't wait!

When I got home, the smell of fried fish greeted me first. Then my little sister Lily did, poking her head out the door before bounding down the steps and throwing herself into my arms.

"You're all wet," she said, wrinkling her nose. "Now I'm wet too."

"It's your fault for tackling me," I teased. "You're soggy now, and you have to deal with it." Laughing, I hugged her tighter and rubbed my cheek on her shoulder. She squealed and tried to squirm free.

"Kids!" my dad's low voice called from inside. "Stop fooling around! Dinner is almost ready!"

"Aye aye captain!" I bellowed back, setting Lily down. We ran inside and I grinned when I saw the meal he'd prepared. Fish and chips; my favorite childhood meal.

"Go wash up," Mom called from the patio, where she was setting the outdoor table. After grabbing a change of clothes, I slipped into the bathroom and hopped in the shower. I rubbed all the sand off and soaped myself up, watching the bubbles cascade down my muscles and then gurgle down the drain. I'd worked hard to build up a buff and intimidating figure, and now it was finally paying off.

After drying off, I debated doing my makeup but decided against it, since it was only my family around. I usually played around with dramatic theater paint; scars and war paint and stuff. Paired with my bald head and stark white eyebrows, I could cut quite the impressive figure. But for a chill night at home, it wasn't necessary.

I joined my family at the patio table and Mom raised her glass.

"To Crash!" she said proudly. "We're so proud of you."

"To Crash!" Lily and Dad echoed. Then we all clinked glasses and dug in to the delicious fried food.

"How do you think this will compare to the Capitol?" Lily asked.

"Nothing will beat Dad's cooking," I told her. "But I bet I'll have a lot of fancy desserts."

"You better send me some!" Lily said, looking envious. I winked at her and Mom laughed.

"You're going to do amazingly, Crash," she said. I smiled at her.

"I know."

Mignon Daerleen, 30

District 4 Escort

"Mignon!" someone shouted as soon as I stepped into the Justice Building. I threw my arms up and struck a pose, laughing in delight at Trenton's applause.

"Hello!" I cried. "It's so good to be back!"

"It's good to have you back," Sienne said kindly as Trenton threw his arms around me. I embraced him warmly.

The other victors looked on without comment and I gave a shy wave. Sienne and Trenton were definitely the most personable District 4 victors, and the ones I felt most comfortable around. But Finnick was an absolute delight and we'd grown quite close last year.

He came to greet me with a grin on his face. I hugged him quickly before taking in his appearance. His copper hair was mussed, as usual, and he was wearing a short-sleeved cotton dress shirt and khakis.

"You look so handsome," I cooed, straightening his collar.

"And your hair is stunning," he replied. I patted my electric blue afro and smiled.

"Thank you. I wanted to go with something bold to celebrate our victory last year."

We chatted for a bit longer before a Peacekeeper called me over.

"It's time," he told me, placing a microphone in my hand. I thanked him and waited for my cue in the music. As I stepped out onto the stage, drinking in the smell of the ocean, the district clapped and cheered.

"Hello everyone! I am so happy to be back!" I gushed. "We did so wonderfully last year. Here's to another great Games!" I thrust my fist in the air and the crowd joined in, still cheering wildly.

"Now, before we begin, let's welcome our past victors!" I applauded too as Finnick, Mira, Trenton, and the others came onstage. Once Mags had finally taken her seat and the clapping died down, I stepped back up to the podium.

"We have a short film to share, and then we'll get to the good stuff!" I sang. The speakers behind me began to blare and the big screen came to life.

"War…" the narrator droned. "Terrible war…" The dramatics went on and on, but I joined in the cheering when it was over. Though, like many others, I was cheering for the end.

"How beautiful," I gasped. "Isn't the history of our nation just so impressive?" I got a few cries of agreement, but I could tell the crowd was getting antsy. So I continued.

"And now it is time to select our tributes!" I strutted over to the bowl on my right and took my time selecting a slip.

"Logan Leeds!"

"I volunteer!"

The person who spoke was a tall, intimidating figure with a blinding smile. Xer dark skin stood out amongst the tanner folk of 4 and xeir bald head and bold white brows made quite the imposing impression, as did the scar through xeir left eye.

"Hello!" I cried as xey joined me on the stage. "What is your name?"

"Crash Derosches!" xey announced proudly. "Your next victor." The crowd whooped and cheered and I clapped my hands together excitedly.

"Wonderful! Well Crash, let's select your partner now!"

Again, I took my time choosing the slip. When I did, I carried it delicately back to the podium and spoke the name loudly.

"Riley Arnold!"

"I volunteer!" another voice said.

This tribute was shorter and thinner, but still had a decent amount of muscle. Zeir black hair was tied back in an intricate bun and zeir dark brown eyes sparkled with excitement. Zeir outfit was neater than Crash's but had the same monochrome theme. As zey came to stand beside Crash, xey grinned widely and high-fived zem.

"Congratulations," I said, holding the microphone out to zem.

"Thank you. I am Lotus Amarin," zey said. "It's an honor to be here."

"It's an honor to have you," I replied as Crash wrapped Lotus in a joyful hug.

"District 4, I give you your tributes: Crash Derosches and Lotus Amarin!"

Hi everyone! I'm back with the next intro chapter! Thank you to Willuna for Lotus and to SilverflowerXRavenpaw for Crash and Mignon. If you couldn't tell, Crash and Lotus use neopronouns. I'm not perfect with these but I'm trying my best and I ask that you all respect this. If I mess up, definitely point it out and I'll fix it, but I'm not going to tolerate any nastiness. I'm excited to write these two and I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please leave a review and give me some feedback! I'd really appreciate it :)

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

- Fiona