Hebe strolled into the apartment with a confidence she hadn't felt since her days at the academy, her mentors, escort and Luca all sat down in the large conversation seat. They looked up upon her arrival and she flopped down on the sofa, filled with a sense of triumph.
"I assume it went well then?" Finnick asked from next to her, arms draped across the back of the sofa, hands just inches away from Hebe's head.
"Oh it went splendidly." She replied, a conspiratorial grin crossing her face, "Luca, how did it go for you?"
"Pretty well. I knotted a big web of rope together and shot arrows through all the little holes. The gamemakers seemed pretty impressed. They clapped me on my way out." He responded, clearly pleased with his performance. Hebe knew he had been slightly worried because he knew they underestimated him, so she was glad things had finally gone to plan for the boy.
"So what'd you do? I don't think I've ever seen you quite so smug." Finnick asked, Luca leaning forward keenly.
"I tied this big dumbbell up in one of the nets and put this dummy directly underneath it. Then I threw some axes to cut the rope. Blindfolded. Oh and I wrote 'careers' on the dummy."
The group just gaped at her, unable to believe what they had just heard. Even Ambrosia couldn't summon one of her Capitolite gasps.
"Blindfolded?" Luca spluttered, it almost sounded like he didn't believe her.
"Yup. Had to cut off this bit of cloth from my trousers." She raised her leg, and they all looked at the gash in the fabric.
Mags shook her head in disbelief, her lips curving up in a smile. Finnick however was still too stunned to speak, opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water.
"And the greatest triumph of all, I've managed to shut up the Finnick Odair! I didn't know one could be capable of such a feat!" Luca laughed heartily at that, reaching forward to high-five Hebe, while Ambrosia leaned forward to give her a bone crushing hug.
Finnick just barely managed to regain his ability of speech when Antonio and Tigris came crashing through the doors.
"Tigris?" Hebe asked, confused as to why her stylist would be here. Was there some public appearance she hadn't been made aware of?
"No need to look so worried dear, we're just here to watch them release your training scores. And enjoy some of the food."
Hebe walked forward and hugged her stylist, then turned and shook hands with Antonio.
"Well then, let's all take our seats and wait for them to release the scores." Ambrosia said, leading their newest guests to the sofa, pouring them glasses of a pink alcoholic liquid.
They dissolved into individual conversations, Hebe feeling unable to socialise when she was still so jittery about the release of the training scores. She did indeed feel confident, how could she have put on a better show? But something nagged at the back of her mind, maybe it hadn't been as impressive as she thought? Maybe the careers had bested her. Then they'd come after Luca-
"You did good. Trust me, I spent 15 minutes winking and spinning a trident around and they gave me a 10. You'll be able to protect him." Finnick whispered into her ear, she turned and saw a genuine smile on his face.
"How did you-"
"You're not as hard to figure out as you like to think, Cross." He said cutting her off, tilting his head and smirking at her "That and you were muttering under your breath."
She smacked him across the shoulder and he was about to give her some clever retort before he was rudely interrupted by Caesar Flickerman, raving excitedly, praising the game's in the superlative terms that Hebe had quickly become accustomed to. Ambrosia squealed, turning the volume up so they could all hear.
First was Augustus, scoring a 9. The blocky number moved across his face, Caesar giving brief commentary about each score. Verity achieved an 8, on the lower end of what was expected from a career. Hebe could imagine the spoiled girl throwing a fit that her score was 'so low'. Icarus got a 10, his snarling grin that appeared on the screen most likely reflecting his reaction. Hebe shivered, reminded of the bloodlust that had emanated from him during training.
Gaia was an exception to the trend of careers scoring highly, only managing a 6. Hebe didn't dare think what the careers would do to her once they were in the arena.
The two district 3 tributes passed without incident, getting the expected low scores of a 5 and 6.
Then it was Luca's turn. Much like she had during his evaluation, Hebe watched with bated breath, waiting for what felt like years for Caesar to read out his score.
"And now we have young Luca Merritt from District 4, with a score of… 8!"
Hebe nearly screamed in joy, practically jumping over the coffee table to envelope the young boy in a tight hug. Luca just stared at her shell-shocked, tears in his eyes. Everyone around them cheered, congratulating him on his score, Hebe standing back and smiling so hard she thought her face would split in two.
Children as young as Luca almost never scored highly, especially not as highly as an 8. Twelve and thirteen year olds were thrust into the arena each year as cannon fodder, with no hope of surviving. Maybe this year, Luca had a chance.
Hebe eventually returned to her seat, remembering the fact that she was yet to know her own evaluation score.
"Also from District 4, we have the beautiful Hebe Cross, who scored an… 11!"
Caesar's own eyebrows raised slightly from shock. 11's were rare.
"Shut the fuck up." Hebe muttered, unable to take her eyes off the screen, watching as an 11 moved across her face.
Everyone around her had stood up, craning to see if the score was real. Ambrosia had let out a high-pitched squeal, her and Antonio almost jumping around in excitement. Mags looked stunned into silence, but an undeniable look of pride had spread across her face, nodding at Hebe. Tigris did the same, sitting down beside the elderly mentor, seeming slightly more shocked than Mags.
Finnick still stood up, gaping at the screen even though it had moved onto District 5's feeble scores.
"Holy shit." He whispered looking down at Hebe who had not moved an inch since her score had been read.
Luca then leaped at her, clinging on, laughing with glee. It seemed to be then that the realisation hit her, lips curving into a wide toothy smile. Finnick began laughing along with Luca, his mind still reeling, flopping down on the sofa.
No one paid much attention to the rest of the scores, although Hebe noted that Anise from 7 got an 8 while her district partner scored a 7. Niamh also scored highly, getting a 9. Hebe imagined her pride at scoring higher than half of the careers.
The rest of the evening devolved into rowdy celebrations, Hebe not catching a breath until she returned to her room and crashed, falling immediately into the welcome embrace of sleep.
Hebe sat at breakfast the next morning feeling almost entirely at peace. She had finally had a real night's sleep, most likely her last before the arena, and she was wearing more comfortable clothes, donning a pair of silk trousers and a top rather than squeezing into her training outfit.
"You look good. Sleep well?"
Hebe eyed Finnick warily. He was being suspiciously normal.
"Yeah I had a great sleep. Why?"
"Always so cold… Am I not allowed to take an interest in the wellbeing of my most successful tribute to date?"
"If I'm your most successful you must be god awful at mentoring. Mags, I think you should fire him."
Mags just laughed. "I could never fire my most successful tribute to date could I?"
Hebe scoffed down 4 separate slices of toast, feeling uncharacteristically ravenous. Clearly she had been so shaken by her score she had forgotten to eat anything the night before.
Today it was Ambrosia's turn to lay out the itinerary. Tonight would be their tribute interviews, a final chance to prove their worth to the Capitol. This was where Ambrosia's strengths lay.
"Luca, you will be coached by Mags and Finnick first. They'll run through a mock interview with you and practice giving the best answers possible, meanwhile Hebe will be with me learning etiquette. Then you'll both swap, Mags and Finnick taking Hebe and myself taking Luca. Then you'll be sent down to the remake centre and Antonio and Tigris will fit your outfits for the interview. I've been told they're something of a marvel." Ambrosia then began gushing about Tigris' fashion brilliance, and while Hebe was of right mind to agree, she didn't really want to become too involved in the conversation.
As soon as Hebe was finished eating she was whisked off to another room with Ambrosia, leaving Luca to the mercy of Finnick and Mags.
Hebe soon discovered, much to her dismay, that learning etiquette was a living hell. She was forced to practise walking in 9 inch heels, while Ambrosia berated her, saying things like, "If I can walk around in them all day you can too!" and "Beauty is pain my dear!". Hebe wasn't entirely sure she wanted to be beautiful if it meant living with the constant fear of breaking her ankle.
Then once she had managed to stop wobbling quite so much in the heels, they focused on her posture. Unfortunately for Hebe, that seemed to go even worse, Ambrosia asking her questions and smacking her with a paper fan everytime she even considered slouching. The woman was acting like she has scoliosis.
By the end of the gruelling session however, Hebe did look every bit a woman, armed with the same poise and elegance expected in a Capitolite. Despite its benefit, Hebe had never felt so glad to see Luca.
"Good luck…" She muttered to him as she passed, the younger boy suppressing a groan, incapable of thinking of anything more dull.
She entered the adjoining room, joining Mags and Finnick around the dining table.
"How was etiquette then? As horrible as I remember?"
"Worse. And you didn't have to wear the heels."
Mags laughed at that, turning to Finnick and saying, "At least we won't have to teach humour."
They spent the next few hours throwing question after question at her, informing her what the safest response would be.
"If he talks about the games, go intimidating. We want the careers to be even more scared than they already are. Don't give any specifics about your individual assessment because it's against the rules. Instead act coy and play it off. Do the same with any questions you don't really want to answer."
"What if he asks me about home? Or my family?"
Finnick visibly stiffened at that.
"Be as vague as possible. Deflect the topic to the Capitol, talk about your humble beginnings in District 4 and how glorious it is to be here. And they're sure to ask about why you volunteered. Of course, you want to talk about how glorious the games are, but make sure to also play into the older sister angle, sponsors will love it."
It continued similarly from there until they had considered almost every angle, and she had an answer for almost every question.
She soon rejoined Luca who looked exhausted after Ambrosia drilling him for the past few hours. Together they took an elevator down to the bottom floor, and were put in a small underground carriage that took them back to the remake centre where they would be prepped by their teams. Finnick continued to give them advice the entire way there, and for once Hebe was thankful for his incessant talking. It settled her nerves.
She stumbled out of the carriage at the other end, feeling slightly sick from how fast it had been going. Luca too looked a bit green, however their mentors seemed accustomed to it, most likely from the amount of times they had escorted tributes down here. The thought was all the more sickening.
Once again she was whisked away by her prep team, and they quickly got to work waxing and smoothing, polishing and manicuring, snipping and painting until she felt like she was a slippery new born baby, fresh from the womb. Hebe wasn't entirely sure that all of their attention was necessary as almost none of her body hair had grown back since her last visit. Her team must take their jobs very seriously.
They chittered around her as usual, marvelling at her beauty, asking her questions, gossiping about clients. She wasn't enormously interested in the details of Wisteria and Theodore's shocking affair; however, she was glad for the distraction. Not only from the pain of her eyebrows being plucked, but from her crippling anxiety about the interview.
Then they were taking her down the corridor again, this time turning and taking a small set of stairs, leading the way to what would be her dressing room. Opening the door, she was thankful that Tigris was already there reading her magazine, a hanger with a black covering on the hook next to her.
"Hey Tigris."
"Pleasure to see you again my dear. And such an impressive score too! I always knew you had it in you."
"Thank you very much."
"No problem. Would you like to see it?" Her stylist gestured toward the hanger.
Hebe nodded excitedly, genuinely looking forward to seeing what her stylist had in store for her this time.
Shedding the cover, Tigris revealed the gown, Hebe gasping, and rushing forward to put it on.
It was a dusty pink at the top, following in a gradient until it was almost white at the bottom. It reached her ankles falling in soft waves that spread in a triangular shape that started just below the hip. Attached to her shoulders as straps was similar sheer fabric to what she had worn at the parade that flowed in long strips, like tendrils.
"Like a jellyfish?" Hebe said softly, still in awe of the dress.
"I knew you'd see my vision," Tigris walked forward holding a net of pearls that she placed on Hebe's head, standing back to admire her work, "It's like you. Beautiful, with a sting."
Hebe smirked in reply, Tigris grinning back at her.
"Although I'm not sure you're going to be as happy about this…" Tigris turned and rummaged around in a wardrobe, spinning back around with a pair of enormous strappy heels encrusted with pearls.
Hebe groaned, remembering the blisters on her feet from Ambrosia's gruelling training. At least she wasn't too worried about tripping and falling over the long dress now.
Tigris yet again chose to leave her hair loose, "They'll have plenty of time to see you with it tied back in the arena. And it softens the look."
She was right, her bold makeup was indeed softened by her loose hair, complementing the role she was trying to play. Honest and caring, with a mean streak. Tigris was a genius.
Then there was a knock at the door and a voice shouting, "Are you decent?"
"Yes Finnick, you can come in and bother us now."
He leaned against the door frame, smiling at the sight of his female tribute. She was indeed striking.
"Hey beautiful, ready for the show?" Hebe wasn't too fazed by this, now almost used to Finnick's unusual way of interacting.
"Oh I was born ready."
"That's my girl. Follow me."
Tigris raised an eyebrow at him. Teenagers.
She trailed after him down the corridor towards where he told her the TV studio was. God this building was confusing. They eventually reached the door that went backstage and Tigris went to take her place in the audience, wishing her tribute good luck, knowing she wouldn't need it.
Hebe then saw Luca, rushing forward to greet him. He was standing in a white suit with thick black stripes along the seams and his usually unruly hair had been painstakingly combed.
"Oh my god you don't smell for once!" Hebe exclaimed. Luca raised a hand to his chest in an expression of mock offence.
"I'll have you know, I have impeccable hygiene for a boy my age. I practically smell like roses!"
"Yeah, yeah whatever you say."
"Honestly, so juvenile." Finnick added, shaking his head.
"Oi watch your tone, I'm probably older than you anyway."
"Yeah, when's your birthday?"
"November."
"Fuck, April."
"You should probably respect your elders then, huh?" Luca interjected, shouting in protest when Finnick cuffed him around the ear.
Their familial moment was interrupted by a voice of tannoy telling mentors to take their seats in the audience.
"Better run along now then kid." Hebe said smugly.
"The only reason I'm not kicking you right now is because I don't want you to sprain an ankle in those heels."
"Aw, so considerate."
"That's me. Good luck sweetheart." Finnick replied, using the same words he had before her individual assessment, almost like a good luck charm.
"You too kid. Kick ass." He ruffled Luca's hair affectionately, ruining the careful work of his prep team. Then Finnick was gone, disappearing out the door.
Hebe then turned to the line of tributes forming, leading Luca to the spot behind the district 3 tributes, the girl looking like she was going to throw up, Hebe choosing to keep her distance lest there be a repeat of the evaluations. On the way she caught eyes with Niamh, who was standing in an emerald coloured dress embossed with floral patterns. They yet again shared a look, locking in their alliance.
Suddenly, the screens above their heads flickered to life, Caesar appearing on stage, introducing the audience to the interviews, explaining their format and energising the already over-excited crowd. Hebe was reminded of a horde of puppies or chimpanzees.
Then, Verity was flouncing on stage, her blonde locks straightened into a sheet of hair. She wore a diamond encrusted frock that looked like a ballgown, cinching at her waist and jutting out at her hips in a mass of petticoats and ruffles. As predicted she talked at length about her home and the life of luxury she led there. Hebe had to stifle a laugh when she mentioned horse-riding lessons.
Then came Augustus in a pale blue suit, smug but not overly compelling. He just kept telling Caesar all about how he was sure to win because he was just oh-so strong. He certainly wasn't oh-so smart, even the most obvious of jokes went over his head.
Gaia came after him, stumbling up the steps in a gown made entirely of gold fringe. Hebe eyed her warily as she continued her shy mousy approach. There was no way she was actually that weak.
Icarus was after her, wearing a similar gold suit and black shirt that complemented his eyes and skin tone remarkably well. He was very serious, pulling off the intimidation Augustus was going for. Poor old Augustus must be pissing himself right about now.
As usual, Hebe pitied the District 3 tributes as they fumbled through their interviews, answering all of Caesar's questions with a tentativeness that made them look slow as well as weak. Considering intelligence was normally District 3's only strength, Hebe knew they wouldn't last long, and these suspicions were confirmed when Ampere exited the stage and vomited all over his polished shoes. It was like they both had food poisoning or something.
Then it was Hebe's turn, she was whisked forward to the spot she would enter from. She was already able to hear the Capitols screams, like shouting monkeys.
"Next up, we have a stunning tribute from District 4," He really did seem obsessed by her looks. "She scored highest in individual assessments and shined at the tribute parade, it's Hebe Cross!"
Then the door slid open, bright lights blinding her as she struggled to maintain her serene, confident expression in the face of the assault on her senses. She strode forward, some kind of adrenaline kicking in just like it had at the parade, reaching the two armchairs and greeting Caesar, shaking his hand warmly. The crowd's cheers died down as the two took their seats, Hebe remembering to hold her head high, crossing one leg over the other and folding her hands in her lap.
"So, Hebe a pleasure to meet you at last!"
"Oh the pleasure's all mine Caesar."
"I'm sure it is!" He said turning to the crowd and letting out his famously disarming laugh, Hebe giggling along with him.
"Now, Hebe, I'm sure you wouldn't mind telling me how you managed to achieve such a high score in training! Give us the details."
Hebe paused, pretending she was considering it before saying,
"Oh Caesar… you didn't think you could fool me that easily did you? You know I could get in trouble for that!"
"She's a sharp one! Well folks, it was worth a try wasn't it? You can however tell me about this beautiful dress! What's the inspiration behind it?"
"My incredible stylist Tigris wanted something that she felt represented me. To quote her the idea is 'beautiful with a sting'. A jellyfish was the obvious choice."
"Indeed it was! Tigris always brings out the best in our wonderful tributes doesn't she?" The crowd erupted into cheers. "But do tell me, will we be seeing that sting in the arena?"
"Most certainly darling, do you even have to ask?! You're talking to the soon to be victor of the 69th hunger games! Which reminds me, once I win, you'll just have to get me in contact with your dentist, I can't help but admire your teeth!"
Caesar laughed, the crowd screaming in excitement. They clearly liked her brazenness.
"Someones confident! Now give me some insight Hebe, did you plan on volunteering? What were your thoughts going into the reaping?"
"Yes, I did plan on volunteering and I'm so glad I did. It's such an honour being here."
"But weren't you scared?"
"Oh of course I was! But I think seeing that little girl get reaped just reaffirmed what I had to do. I was always meant to volunteer, she was never going to make it and I knew I had to protect her."
"Isn't she just so sweet! Quickly before you go, we've noticed your closeness to your district partner Luca. Tell me about that relationship."
"Luca is like a little brother to me. I knew him a bit before coming here, friend of a friend and all that, but we really gelled in the last few days. He's a talented kid too. If it's not me coming out of the arena I'm certain it'll be him."
"Well, we all hope so, Hebe." Just then the alarm went off, signalling the end of her interview. She stood up thanking Caesar and winked, blowing a kiss to the crowd. She caught Finnick's eye, a proud expression covering his face.
Then she bowed and walked off, waving as she went.