Coriolanus took an immediate disliking to Katniss. It wasn't that she was ugly, or disgusting as the typical tributes of her district were. It was her eyes. That fiery gaze that spelled trouble. Everything about her reminded him of Lucy. She even had a pin of the bird he found to be a mockery of the Capitol. Katniss was a mockery to the Capitol. At the same time, he couldn't stop looking. As much as he found himself hating her, there was something alluring about her. Something that, if allowed to flourish, could turn out to be very dangerous. An uncontainable flame, if you will. And he couldn't let that happen. No, he would break her in the arena. Kill her if he had to.

He continued down the room, his gaze passing over the tribute questionnaires. Some caught his interest; a sword, a spear, an axe. Some were pathetic, like the boy from district 10. That boy wanted a slingshot. Well, he would get one, Coriolanus thought.

As he made it back to the centre of the room, his gaze fell back on Katniss. She was still staring at him. Her eyes conveying what she wanted to say. She wanted to scream at him. That she hated him. That he was a monster. But Katniss also knew that the true evil lay with the president. Without President Ravenstill, the games wouldn't be possible. Or so she thought. For with all the hate Katniss managed to convey through her gaze at Coriolanus Snow, she probably could've doubled it if she was looking at Ravenstill. Only Katniss didn't know that the man she was looking at, was the one who truly deserved all of her hate.

"Tributes, you time is up. It is time for the opening ceremony. Please follow your mentor to the car that will take you there." Coriolanus said in a stoic, almost bored tone. How boring their deaths must be to him, Katniss thought bitterly.

"You heard him. Up." Clelia said to her, forgetting completely about Katniss handcuffs. Just then, as if the peacekeeper next to her could read her mind, he unlocked her. Katniss temporary relief was soon diminished when the handcuffs were once again attached to her wrists as she stood.

Once in the car – Katniss didn't know it it was the same car but it looked the same – Clelia opens her mouth again. "Once we arrive at the city centre, each of you will walk down the marked path in pairs in district order. No hand holding, no touching." She says. All Katniss can think about is how tired she is of hearing this obnoxious girl talk. "And absolutely no running." She adds, as it Katniss would be dumb enough to try and escape while hundreds of people are watching and with cameras on her. Katniss she looks at Clelia.

"Why are you even here? Helping me?" Katniss asks her. Clelia huffs.

"What you do reflects back to me. If you are a popular tribute, or win, it's good for me. Don't mistake it for me caring about you." She says and looks at Katniss with disgust. Disgust seems to be a theme from the Capitol people. They all look at the districts and its citizens as less then. Katniss stares at her with distaste.

"Then I'll make sure to be as forgettable as possible." She says to Celia. Clelia rolls her eyes.

"It's your life." She says. Katniss knows this of course. It's literally her life and her promise to Prim in the line. But her supposed mentor irritates her so much that she wants to make sure that girl doesn't benefit from her in anyway. How, she doesn't know yet.

They arrive at the opening ceremony and they go on about it just as the years before. It's a fairly short affair. A loud one but still short. There are big crowds of people off either side of the walkway, cheering loudly at the people they like and booing at those they don't like. At the end of the path, the president stands. To his side, the head gamemaker. Katniss meets his gaze, and continues to stare him down the remainder of the Presidents speech.

As the opening ceremony commence, she suddenly notices how hungry she is. It's only logical, she haven't been fed since the train last night. Lost in her thought of hunger, she doesn't notice when the peacekeepers round all of them up and start to lead them away. They are ushered into a big van, and transported back to the Headquarters where they were earlier. There, they are taken down underground, and each given a cell. It's a modest room, with only a bed similar to that on the train, a toilet and a mirror. In one of the upper corners of the room Katniss spots a surveillance camera. She can recall having seen footage of tributes in similar, if not the same cells, from earlier games and immediately frowns at the thought of being watched and broadcasted while sleeping. Katniss fairly quickly decides against using the bathroom while in here. She briefly considers giving the camera the one finger salute, but also quickly decides against this. If they are watching here, sponsors might be too. Katniss doesn't care if she pisses off the Head gamemaker or the president. She wants to in fact. But she also wants to survive. No one wins without the help of sponsors. Almost never. And Katniss intends to survive, for Prim. So Katniss settles on frowning at the camera for a while, until she tires.

After that she resigns to sitting at the corner of her bed and hum a song. She hears someone outside her cell start to hum the same song. And then another one until every tribute hum the same song, together making an eerie, sad sound. Katniss finds it beautiful and disturbing at the same time. All twenty four of them, humming the tune of a song that Katniss didn't know any of them knew. All but one of them awaiting their imminent death. Katniss realises that she will never not be able to sing this song again without thinking of death. She looks up at the camera again and wonders who is watching her now, and if they are broadcasting their song to the country.

On the screen in the control room, Coriolanus watch as all of the tributes hum in synchronous. He never thought that he would hear this song again, and he always vowed that he would ban it once he became president. Secretly he can't help but enjoy hearing it again though. That's probably why he lets them continue for longer than he should. Not a mistake per se, but an uncontrolled notion at least. He hates the effect this Katniss Everdeen seems to have on him. He doesn't feel love for her. Maybe misplaced love for Lucy that he once had. But he vowed to never feel such things again. Too unpredictable. He had thought that if he just got rid of Lucy, then nothing could stand in his way. But then Katniss shows up now, when he is just about to get all that he has fought so hard to achieve. And that leads him to wonder if this will keep happening. Will there always be a girl with fury in her eyes and determination in her bones? An underdog that should have died, but keeps getting up again and again? What can he do to keep them in check? What must Coriolanus do in order to secure his power and contain the rebellious flame that stubbornly keeps on flickering?

"That's enough. Cut the broadcast. Stop them." Coriolanus orders the small man in charge of footage for broadcast. While a little of this might intrigue the audience, a lot of this might intrigue them too much. Showing this, and soon the bloodbath, will prove to the districts that unity for them will never happen. That's why he allows a small part of it to air. Not because showing this might get Katniss sponsors. He does not care about that. He does not want her to win. It was a mistake that Lucy did.

When preparations for the interviews are done, Coriolanus goes home for the day. Wanting to be well rested tomorrow, he forgoes the mingling and the parties. He rarely entertains them if not for strategic purposes. Tonight is not a night where anyone of importance will attend.

As he lays his head on the pillow, awaiting sleep, he thinks of the tune Katniss hummed. In the privacy of his home, where no one can see his lack of judgement, he sings the final verse to himself.

"I am the one who you let see you weepin'

I know the soul that you struggle to save

Too bad I'm the bet that you lost in the reapin'

Now, what will you do when I go to my grave?"