Easter egg!
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Victory Tour Part I – Agenda
Day I
08:00 am – Prep team and escort to arrive at Victor's Village to prepare Victor.
09:00 am – Shooting at Victor's Village; departure interview with victor.
09:30 am – Cars to pick up Victor and team and drop at train station.
09:45 am – Photo op; Team (Victor, mentor, escort, and prep team) to board the train and immediate departure.
10:00 am – 03:00 pm – Travel to District 11.
03:00 pm – 03:45 pm – arrival in 11 and reception by District's Governor.
04:00 pm – 04:30 pm - Victor's speech.
04:30 – 06:00 pm – Free time.
06:00 – 07:00 pm – Prep team to ready Victor for state dinner.
07:00 – 11.30 pm – dinner at the Governor's mansion.
11.30 pm – Car to pick up Victor and team and return to the train.
12:00 am – Departure from 11 and night journey to 10
…
"So, you have one of these for every day?" Katniss asks while going over the 30 pages containing the itinerary and agenda for the Victory Tour I'm embarking on tomorrow.
Over the last few weeks, I've been nothing but a model citizen, and once a week I've been meeting Katniss for a few hours to work on her plant book project. Today will be our last meet until I get back and as I'll be away for two weeks, I've invited the Everdeen ladies and Haymitch to dinner. Katniss is already here, and the remaining guests will meet us later.
I nod. Effie sent over the schedule a few days ago, and Katniss has found Effie's thoroughness and rigor very curious "Does it also say when you're allowed to go to the bathroom?" She continues. We're seating side by side on my living room, having made almost no progress on the book.
"I may not have enough time" I laugh with her. We're seating so close together that our knees are almost touching. A fact I am very aware off. I don't know if Katniss is too, if she doesn't seem to care or is so caught in examining the agenda, she's not conscious of it.
"How are you feeling?" She looks at me with those incredible dark eyes and makes me forget everything for a few seconds. I feel so lucky, and I don't even know how I managed it. To be able to spend this much time with the one person I wanted to the most. Call me crazy, but I think we have a real chance of becoming friends.
"I honestly don't know. On the one hand I never left the district, well not counting on the time I was sent to die and for some miraculous reason I didn't, and that is making me very nervous. But the worst part by far will be to have to face all those people and the families of the fallen. To be paraded there is bad enough, but to have the families there, to give a speech and have them relive their loss… It's criminal"
"What are you going to do?"
"What can I do Katniss? I must go through it. Endure everything they throw at me. You saw what they did to that family, what choice do I have? I won't risk anything happen to my family, to you…" I almost said to those I love, but that wouldn't have been a good idea.
"I can take care of myself" And somehow, I managed to still make her angry. I sigh heavily.
"I know you can. I know you've been doing so successfully, for the past 5 years, and I know you don't need anyone's help. But I won't be the reason you get hurt. I wouldn't be able to live with that."
"It doesn't make sense. It's not fare that you can't be who you want to be because of us. I don't want that weighing on me."
"Katniss, I stopped being able to be and do what I wanted the minute my name was called. You have nothing to do with it, nor are responsible for anything." We're still seated side by side and looking deeper into her eyes, I can't help but to be frank "And honestly, I would gladly go through everything again if it means we can be friends" I flinch internally, afraid of how she's going to react.
"So, we're friends now?" her laugh alleviates the mood and makes me feel relieved.
"I'm afraid so" I say.
"I can live with that" she decides, smiles, and turns her attention back to the plant book, signaling the end of the conversation.
I take the rabbit out of the oven, (one I had trade for bread with Katniss), as the remaining Everdeens ring the bell. I open the door to find Haymitch waiting with them on the other side.
"Perfect, just in time. Come on in" I tell them and receive from Prim a flower bouquet and another lovely goat's cheese.
"Thank you for having us" she says taking her coat off and placing on a hanger an into the wardrobe I have in the entrance.
"Thank you all for coming" I smile.
"Yes, yes. I'll go open this" Haymitch gestures to the wine bottle in his hands and beelines for the kitchen.
I lead everyone else to the dinning room and gesture for them to take a seat of their choosing. Once again, I'm lucky to take the seat in front of Katniss and leave the seat at the head of the table to Haymitch.
"Lily, may I pour you a glass?" He returns with the now open bottle and pours Mrs. Everdeen a glass when she nods affirmatively.
"Thank you" she cuts the air with her hand signaling Haymitch that he may stop.
"Please help yourselves to whatever you like" I offer when Haymitch finally takes his place at the table. On it, two baskets of cheese buns, a bowl of salad with lettuce, tomato, carrots and nuts, a tray of roasted rabbit and potatoes and a bowl of rice, that I've prepared in the intervals from drawing or while Katniss was evaluating my sketches, decorate the table.
"Everything looks delicious Peeta! Hopefully this wasn't too much trouble. We wouldn't want to add to the stress you must already be felling with your upcoming trip" Mrs. Everdeen comments.
"Oh, quite the contrary. You're helping me focus on something else other than the tour. Your presence is very welcomed."
"And with how things have been in the district lately you may go through a tougher time than us" Haymitch puts in. That family's punishment was just the beginning and rules have been thickening up all over the district. Curfews introduced, houses searched, and all contraband found destroyed. Every possession had now to be properly authorized and permitted. Luckily, with the help of Haymitch and Effie, we were able to secure a permit for the Everdeens to keep Lady and even to legally sell her cheese and milk if they wish to. They are now in the process of requesting a medical practitioner's license for Mrs. Everdeen, but it hasn't been easy as she's from the Seam. Of course, that this increased attention to all things contraband and questionable activities is another source of concern for me and helps keeping me up at night afraid something will happen to Katniss.
"Yes, it's reminded me of the not so good old times. I wonder what's brought this on." Mrs. Everdeen asks.
"I'm not sure. I think the sum of a lot of small things, and they need to remind us from time to time how much they despise us" Haymitch replies, but somehow it seems he's not saying everything he knows.
When all plates are emptied, I stand up and replaced them with new empty ones. From the kitchen I bring a smoking teapot with chamomile tea and place it on the table along with a flan and an orange cake.
I made the flan with the ingredients Effie sent me along with the school tapes she promised and proceed to explain my guests the origins of this dessert I learned was invented in ancient Rome.
Very aware of the time, Mrs. Everdeen urges her daughters to finish their dinner and prepare to head home. Using the Victory tour and the fact that I'll be out for the next two weeks as an excuse, I manage to pack the leftovers from dinner and send them back with the Everdeens.
Haymitch leaves with them and surprising everyone, insists on accompanying the girls home to make sure the arrive safely. We part ways with them inviting both Haymitch and me for dinner when we come back from the tour.
I finish up cleaning downstairs all the way wishing I had had the courage to hug Katniss goodbye.
"Wake up! Wake up! We have a big, big day ahead of us!" Effie's high pitch voice wakes me up at 08:01 am and without giving me time to properly wake up, my prep team walks into my bedroom with their chirping voices and boxes of equipment and start setting up.
"Come, come Peeta, up and into the shower. We haven't but a second to waste" they tell me.
Ten minutes later, still dripping, 3 pairs of eyes make me super uncomfortable as they look at me and evaluate what needs to be done. In the next 45 min, all "excessive hair" is removed from my body, eyebrows and nails are fixed and a very fine layer of concealers and gunk is spread all over. I'm in my robe and with my hair being styled when Portia, my stylist from the games enters the room. Unlike the remaining Hunger Games stylists, Portia is very much like a normal person, with a very clean and sober style and a calm and comforting tone. My games were also her first and I truly believe I was very lucky to have been placed with her. Normally, the first-time designers or least desirable ones are left to the worse districts such as 12. But her normalcy made for some very cleverly designed suits, that I believe helped me gather some sponsors.
Anyway, I'm happy to see her, even though I wasn't sure I was going to. Since I "won" the games, she and Effie got a lot of attention, and she probably could have chosen to upgrade to a better more commercial district.
She hugs me and let's me know how happy she is to see me. She drops a new suit on my bed, tells me to quickly get dressed and how she can't wait to show me the suits and designs she brought with her for me to wear on the tour. Not everything is finalized, so If I would like to do any alterations when I see them it's possible. My opinion is important to her, she says, and she wants me to be comfortable in the outfits she's going to put me in.
At 09:00 am on the dot, I'm styled and dressed in a form fitting light blue suit. I think Haymitch has been talking with my stylist as my prep team explained this color choice will be perceived as friendly, trustworthy, and cooperative, with the suit for the initial interview being especially important to set the tone of the entire tour.
The connection with Caesar's cameras and the man himself, is brief and pleasant. Our interaction is easy and unimportant with us maintaining what is starting to be our trademark easy bantering. He comments on how excited everyone is to see me again, how I'm an audience favorite and how much we have to talk about when he finally gets to interview me again in the Capitol.
All in all, they have a good few minutes of conversation to choose from and both Haymitch and Effie look pleased with how that went. This first segment of the tour was not live, as the Capitolites are usually late risers.
On Effie's cue, the cars are brought around, with everything, including people, packed in record time onto the cars. A few more cameras awaited us at the station, but with nothing else expected from us, we quickly board the waiting train and we're ready to departure.
As the train leaves the station and distances itself from the District I think about the absence of my family. They all knew I was leaving today, and even though I understand that the bakery doesn't stop, none of them has reached out to me, not today, not yesterday… My father is the only one who still makes the effort, writing letters and trying to know how I am. Still, it makes me sad to know no one really misses me.
I am shown to my room and left to change to a more comfortable ensemble. The stewards are serving a light breakfast at the restaurant cart, and I'm expected to attend so I can't take long. Haymitch knocks on my door with an impeccable timing seeing as I had just finished dressing.
"Hey kid. Nice job out there with the cameras" He seats at the foot of my bed which tells me this was not all he had to say.
"Thanks. Nice touch on the suit"
"I don't know what you're talking about" He sighs "Listen kid, the first 5 minutes were good. But they were nothing compared to what's coming. I need you to keep it up" He signals with his hand, in warning. Conversations on the train are not secure, so we need to be careful with everything we say here.
But I understood just fine, He's alerting me, reminding me what's at stake here and I'm grateful for it.
"Thank you for the pep talk. Let's go have breakfast."
"Got mine right here" He gestures for the spirits bottle on his hand, while he leads me out of the bedroom. "Too much socializing already. I'm going to my room. You have fun at breakfast. Listen to Effie." He warns and disappears, leaving me to make the trip to the restaurant cart alone.
Effie and Portia are already seated at the table and waiting for me. I take my seat in front of Effie and ask for a cup of hot chocolate to the steward when he comes forward and asks me what I'd like.
"So, Peeta I was just discussing with Portia your suits for today and I think they're absolutely perfect. You'll have the chance to see them after breakfast. We've nothing planned for this morning, so you'll be able to relax after your appointment with Portia. Please be sure to meet us back here at 01:00pm for lunch, to give you time to eat before changing into suit number 2 for the reception at 11 and first speech." Suit number 2? What happened to the first one?
"Will I not be using the suit I had on just now, for the first interview?"
"None sense! You can't repeat outfits!" She looks shocked at the proposal. "Oh look" She points at the tv "It's 11:00 am, they're showing your interview! Oh Peeta, look how handsome you look!" The light blue looks good, I have to give it to them, even though I can't understand how colors can have meanings. It also appears they were even able to salvage 15 min of conversation and actually make me look ok.
So, even though I'm not that interested, I follow Portia to the cart designated as her office and go through the suits she thought out for me. I still don't understand why I have to have so many outfits, but looking at the work and effort she has put into them, I can't help but to feel grateful.
So, I do my best to sound interested and to pay attention to everything she shows me and thank her. She tells me my next suit, a navy blue one, will be delivered at my room and will be ready for me to dress it after lunch.
With an hour to kill, I find myself strolling the train and getting to the last cart. I remember being here the last time, on my way back home. All the windows and glass ceilings really make you feel like you're outside. It's my favorite part of the train, so I just seat and let my mind wonder for a few moments.
Lunch goes by in a blur, Effie talks about how the numbers from my interview were really good, how the acceptance by the audience was great and they can't wait to see me on screen again. Haymitch maintains his liquid diet and remains quiet for the entire lunch. I nod and go along with Portia's small talk until I'm excused and go back to my room to dress. Minor adjustments are made, as the prep team already did the bulk of the work in the morning. I go back to the last cart to enjoy the view, now that we're approaching 11.
The beautiful orchards composed by multi-colored fruit trees make for a breathtaking landscape, offset only by the very high fence that surrounds them. The fence is sandwiched by coils of barbed wire on top and large metal plates lining the bottom, I assume to avoid digging from beneath. Things have been difficult back home, but this is next level. Not even Katniss could escape to the woods with a fence like this one.
When the train stops, we're met at the entrance by a group of peacekeepers that very rudely shove us all into large bullet proof all-terrain cars, leaving Effie and the prep team complaining on how unwelcomed they're making us feel.
From the tiny windows, I can see that the fence is linked to very high evenly spaced watchtowers, each one with a group of at least 5 heavily armed peacekeepers. The level of oppression is beyond what I would have imagined, with the whole district giving out vibes of a giant prison.
The District's Mayor quickly greets us inside the Justice building and after 5 minutes of Smalltalk excuses himself to check on the preparations for dinner later today. Effie hands me a card with the speech I'm supposed to debit and before I know it i find myself outside of the justice building on a stage with what seem like a million eyes on me. The area is filled with people that were no doubt forced to be here and, on the back, two smaller stages support the families of the fallen tributes from this district.
I didn't interact much with Pepper and Harrow. During the 2 weeks we had at the tribute center everyone, apart from the careers, pretty much kept to themselves, and then, they were both killed in the initial bloodbath. But seeing their smiley pictures, the grieving families, I can't help but to feel guilty. Even though I wasn't directly responsible for their deaths, I'm only here because they're not. How can I just stand here, read the cards Effie gave me and pretend everything is alright? These families are never going to be fine again. They had parents and siblings that will forever be mourning their loss.
I turn off my brain and try to go through it doing what's expected of me. I might not have done as good a job as I thought, as Haymitch grabs me the second it is over and pushes me up the stairs and onto the attic of the building.
"You need to do much better than that, kid. Snow will be watching; you need to do enough for him to let you be."
"How can I? You saw the families. How can I rub in their faces the fact that I'm alive and their children aren't?"
"By thinking about what you have to lose. You must focus Peeta, play ball. Think of it as playing a part, whatever you need to do to go through and convince them you're one of them. It's the only way to not only protect your family, but the families of the lost tributes and avoid anymore punishments to the innocent." He is right of course, but it's easier said than done.
As if reading my thoughts, he sighs "Listen, you said thinking of the girl helped you go through the games, perhaps you should do the same now. Remember, the more you care for someone, the greater the risk they're in. Whatever you do will have consequences for her.
Now go down, rest and prepare to bring your best to dinner tonight."
I'm given a room in the justice building and I spent every minute of the allotted free time afraid. The stakes are too high, I can't risk Katniss' life. I should have stayed away. Now I have no other option. I won't have anything happen to them, so anything but giving it all I have will be unacceptable for me!
I look over at the green suit currently waiting for me on a hanger in the room's closet and know what I must do.
I am escorted into the ball room by Portia an take the opportunity to thank her for the suit. The green, which I thought to be an homage to the trees and soul of the district could also be perceived as calming and a wish to promote peace. Which, after this afternoon's speech, can only work in my favor.
A seated vegetarian dinner is served, exposing the best produce, all originating from the district. I make my best not to think of the abundance displayed at dinner compared to how little the population has to eat.
Some of the District's Victors are also present and Haymitch takes me aside to introduce me to two of them, who he considers to be his friends. Seeder, who with her olive skin and black hair bornes a striking resemblance to the Seam folk back at home. And Chaff, who I recognize from games as he and Haymitch are often seen together and sharing a bottle. He won the 45th Hunger games and lost his hand in the process. Like Haymitch, he probably finds solace at the end of spirit bottles. Dark-skinned, like most of the district's population, his two meters and menace stance, highly contrast with his easy going, goofy manner and I can easily see with he and Haymitch are such good friends. We make some small talk and indirectly I ask if there's anything I can do to help the families of the fallen tributes. They're touched by my offer but advise against it, as Haymitch instructed.
I leave dinner, at the programmed time, with two new friendly relationships and I can honestly say I had a good time getting to know these two victors.
District 10 borders with 11, with the journey taking only a few hours, which will be covered during the night. The agenda for this district will have us stay the entire day.
Beginning at 10:00 am with a visit to the main slaughterhouses, before a private lunch with the District's Mayor. The afternoon will closely resemble the one spent at 11. My speech is programmed at 04:00 pm and a state dinner with the district's Victors and dignitaries scheduled at 07:00 pm.
Although everything's provided during this trip, I did pack a few things from home, which I now take the opportunity to unpack after shedding the green suit and dressing a more comfortable pants and shirt ensemble.
Taking the sketch book and watercolor case out of the bag, as I intend to bring it with me to the last cart to fulfill my night routine there, I'm surprised to see a piece of paper fall from it.
In it, a very rudimentary Lily, Primrose, and Katniss flower are drawn on top of a message left for me:
"We know how tough this tour is being for you. You're stronger and more capable than you realize. Even though this trip may be daunting, we believe in your ability to handle it and come out stronger on the other side.I just wanted to remind you that you are not alone, Katniss, myself, and mom care very much for you and look forward to welcoming you back.
Prim"
I fold the paper and hold it close to my heart. In tears, I seat on my bed and think about how much I miss these 3 ladies that have become my family, and before I know it, I fall asleep hugging the letter.
