Welcome to wonderland
I'll be your guide
Holding your hand under sapphire skies
Let's go exploring or we could just go for
A walk
Rowan Castro
District 3, He/Him, 15
(Third Floor)
...
I didn't wake up this morning expecting it to be the worst day of my life. No, I thought nothing would top Freddie's death or Reaping Day until the Bloodbath and, still, that's a couple of days away so today's horrors crept up on me and pounced. The pain wasn't the worst of it, although, it was likely the worst pain I've felt in my life. My arm snapped in two as the Peacekeeper pulled it behind my back, fortunately, the Infirmary was willing to give me painkillers. However, mending my arm was determined illegal as they couldn't send me into The Games with the medication. So, they simply tied a sling around my shoulder and told me to head back to my apartment floor. Immediately, I climbed into bed and have been sitting here, in the dark, for the past few hours.
No, the pain wasn't the worst. The worst is the complete lack of hope that has taken over me. Even when Freddie died, I had hope that I could continue on his legacy by doing what he loved most. And on Reaping Day, I had hope that I could possibly stick it out until the end and make it back home with all the riches of a Victor. However, today signalled one thing. I am going to die and I am going to die soon. When I walk into the Training Centre tomorrow, everyone will instantly see me as the easy target for the bloodbath. The Careers will compete for the first kill and who better to go for than me?
"Dawson, my god, you're his mentor!" Someone shouts outside the door and I assume it's Kathryn and Dawson arguing again. It's been on and off for the last few hours since I came back with the sling around my shoulder, Dawson had looked at me in anger and Kathryn with pity. Now they have no idea what to do with me, I'm pretty much a waste of space seeing as I'm as good as dead.
"He's an idiot, Kathryn! He's done this to himself." Dawson shouts back. "I mean, everyone knows not to touch a Peacekeeper. What was he thinking?" I can't blame him for his anger because he's completely right, I simply wasn't thinking. I saw the Peacekeeper grab Conifer and I watched her horrifying reaction, I couldn't help but intervene. Yet, I should have because now it's going to be the end of me.
A few minutes later, my door opens with a creak. "Rowan, are you asleep?" Someone whispers.
"No." I squeak, crawling further under my covers. The person approaches the bed and I recognise her short blonde hair, Kathryn. That's not all I notice, though, her eyes are red and her face is wet with tears. Has she been crying for me? I don't know but the thought is enough to set me off, the tears bursting out of me like a river smashing through a dam. I collapse and Kathryn holds me in her arms, crawling beside me on the bed and whispering comforts.
"You'll be okay." She says, rocking me back and forth.
"How can you say that?" I cry. "I'm as good as dead, Kathryn! Everyone knows it."
"That's not true." She whispers. "You still have the girl from Seven. Survive a few days out there with her and hopefully the pain will stop." I hadn't even thought about the pain, of course, they wouldn't let me bring painkillers into the Arena.
"Connie is...is she okay?" I ask, looking up at her with tears blurring my vision. Fortunately, Kathryn nods and I feel a small sense of relief. At least it wasn't all for nothing.
"I've been talking with Stephan, he says she's just a little shaken up but not hurt," Kathryn says. "We also decided to get the two of you together on our floor to watch the scores. Would you like that?" I would like that but it suddenly occurs to me that Kathryn is making the decisions of my mentor which only means...
"So, Dawson just abandoned me? Decided I wasn't good enough?" I ask, a little anger coming through.
"We..." She hesitates, taking a deep breath through her nose. "We decided to swap tributes. I wasn't getting on very well with Cybill so I asked for you instead." I know it's mostly a lie, she hasn't been getting on with Cybill - that's true - but I imagine the two of them swapped tributes for more reasons than just that. Dawson wants a Victor and he knows that I am doomed.
"Do you think I'm going to die, Kathryn?" I whimper, resting my head on her lap. She doesn't say anything for a couple of minutes. "Kathryn?"
"I don't know, Rowan. I don't know." She says, kissing the top of my head. "We have to believe, though. We have to believe that it's possible, so please don't give up."
"Okay." I squeak.
"Do you have any plans for your private session with the Gamemakers?" She asks and, as much as I don't want to think about the Games right now, I know I can't go in there unprepared.
"No, nothing I can do with this broken arm anyway."
"How about knife throwing, or sparring with a sword?"
"I guess I can try but I've never been much good with the weapons." I sigh. Before all this, I had planned to do some climbing and shelter building but that's off the table now.
"Just try, you'll never know until you do." She whispers.
Enver Naledi-Alder
District 7, He/Him, 16
(Seventh Floor)
...
I heave the heavy mattress into the elevator with Eamonn, my mentor, offering very little support. I have to fold it in order for it to fit in but, eventually, it does and I say goodbye to Eamonn as the elevator doors close in front of me. The elevator soars upward and I giggle at the feeling of my stomach seemingly dropping to my feet, for the past couple of days, I've been trying to figure out these elevators. How do they work? How does one go about making one? I mean, who wouldn't want an elevator up to one of their treehouses? It would be much more convenient than simply climbing. I've made a mental note of it right now so I can discuss it further with my Dads when I see them again. When, not if. That's what they told me at the goodbyes and that's how I choose to think.
The elevator doors slide open with a ding and I enter Eleven's apartment floor. It's pretty much an exact replica of my own and still just as fabulous with golden chandeliers, an ornate dining table and white marble floors. I lived fairly comfortably back home but compared to my house in Seven, this place is a palace.
Crow, Eleven's mentor, points me to the living room where everyone else is and I smile in thanks, he doesn't smile back and looks a little angry so I hurry into the living room. Eamonn told me he didn't seem so fond of the idea of a 'sleepover', especially not on his apartment floor, but was convinced when Eamonn promised it would form a stronger alliance. I like that about Eamonn, he's supportive of my decisions when everyone else thinks they're a little crazy. At least, that's how Malory, Odalis and Cybill acted when I brought up the idea of a sleepover at Training. None of them even knew what it was, how crazy is that? I used to have sleepovers with my Dads in our treehouse at least once a week.
"Hello!" I greet them cheerily, dragging my mattress into the room and dropping it to the floor. Malory and Odalis already claimed the couches so Cybill and I have had to bring our mattresses up here. I asked if I could just borrow Odalis' but he didn't seem to like the idea of sleeping on something somebody else has slept on, I then told him I could get someone to clean it but he still seemed uncomfortable about it so I let it go.
"Hey, Enver," Malory says, eating from a bowl of buttered popcorn. I take a handful before plopping onto my mattress and eating in silence.
"So, what do people do at these sleepovers?" Cybill asks, raising her eyebrows at me.
"Oh! Well, I usually just talk to my Dads about things." I reply, throwing a piece of popcorn into my mouth and attempting to catch it.
"Okay..." Malory says. "What are you guys thinking of doing for your private session?"
"Shelter building, of course," I say, having already discussed my plan with Eamonn. "Also, I'm planning on trying that poisonous and non-poisonous plant game if I have time." The three of them nod and I realise that I'm a little lucky to already be skilled in shelter building due to my treehouse business.
"I think I'll give archery a try, I managed to land a couple of shots this morning." Odalis mumbles and I cheer for him.
"We have an archer on our team, woohoo!" I cry and he blushes.
"I'm going to be making some traps, it's something I've rehearsed with already and is pretty straightforward." Cybill yawns and I give her a little clap too.
"I still have no idea what I'm going to do." Malory sighs, moving from sitting up to lying on the couch.
"You're great with fire making," I say, smiling encouragingly.
"It took me almost twenty minutes." She replies but smiles a little. "I guess I can give it a go, though."
"Alright! Enough of this boring Games talk, let's watch a movie or something." Cybill interrupts, already switching through channels with the remote. I've never watched TV on one of my sleepovers but it doesn't hurt to try something new and I want Cybill to have fun. Finally, she finds something that she wants to watch - some kind of Capitol romance movie, I don't really understand what's going on if I'm honest. She doesn't ask if any of us are okay with it and I'm starting to learn that that's just what she's like, she did volunteer after all. Why would anyone choose to leave their family and home?
If I had a choice in the matter, it would be my Dads sleeping next to me right now. The three of us laughing into the night without a care in the world. Now that I'm here, I realise how much of that I've taken for granted. Most of these people don't have parents who care about them or a home to long for, that privilege has never occurred to me until now. I suppose I can't be that lucky, though, because if I was then my name would never have been pulled out of that bowl.
A/N: Only three more chapters after this until the bloodbath, eek!
Alliances:
Robert, Aisling and Scylla
Marcus and Nicole
Malory, Odalis, Cybill and Enver
Sky, Ephron, Saxony, Marya and Smith
Quincy, Felix and Wells
Adam, Kaylee and Dahlia
- Neb