Hello fellow wanderers! This is the next chapter of The Siren's Call. You're open to comment your thoughts about the story so far—or honestly, any other random thoughts. Please feel free to share your love of the Hunger Games with me because I will be sure to geek out with you! Without further ado—chapter 5 . . .


Chapter 5

The next day, Sterling keeps me busy learning proper etiquette and strategy for the interview. I'm taught about manners, fashion, and all subjects having to do with "wooing the audience". I feel Sterling's scrupulous yellow gaze on me as I practice my walk. I'm not very good at it, but I begin to catch on. It appears that with all my flaws, I excel in walking in a long dress and heels.

"Yes! Good, very good." Sterling announces when we take a break. "Mags, are you ready to give her some advice?"

I cautiously take a seat next to Mags at the dining table. Somehow, she carries the scent of the ocean even after days in the Capitol. The smile on her wrinkled face tells of a past of many emotions.

"How are you?" She croaks, gesturing to me.

"Fine."

She raises an eyebrow.

"Mags, not to be rude, but aren't you supposed to be telling me all the important information that could save me in the games or showing me how to get sponsors?"

She shakes her head. "Tell you what you need to know. Must know who you are."

"I'm nobody," I respond bitterly.

"Yes," She says with significance, nodding her head vigorously. I think she means that I can be, maybe if I want it enough. Her smile is the most genuine thing I have felt since I was reaped. "Again, how are you?"

"I'm doing as well as I can, only having a breakdown every few hours. I guess what else can I expect?" I fake a laugh.

She says something, but her words are so slurred I make her repeat it.

"Most important to you?"

"Oh, What's the most important thing to me during the games? I don't know how to answer that." I can't hold my frustrated tone back entirely. This is beginning to feel more like a personality test rather than training for the games.

"You do."

"No, I don't!" I shoot up from my seat. "What am I supposed to say? That I want to win or at least stay alive?! Maybe that's not as important to me as being me." I run my fingers through my hair in exasperation. "Maybe what matters is proving that I am more than a killer or a performer, that I have a conscience that no one else seems to possess. I never asked to be in these games. Now that I'm here, everyone expects me to do everything I can to survive. But what? Living with blood on my hands the rest of my life? I couldn't live with myself. I don't want to win the games! I don't want to be a victor! I don't want any of this!" I sink into my chair, panting.

Mags studies me for a moment, then says, "I have nothing to teach you. You already know who you are."

I look at her incredulously.

"Annie, here is your stylist and prep crew to go over the plans for your style for tomorrow's interview," Sterling beckons me over. I shrug to Mags and swiftly follow Sterling. I spot Angel's ratty bun from a mile away. I held on to hope that she had quit.

"Yes, because clearly, the parade didn't go as planned," Angel sneers with her arms crossed, portraying her high-and-mighty facade.

"We have a better compromise though." Claudia comes up behind Angel. Her blue streak is gone, and her purple hair is tied in two pigtails behind her back.

"What sort of compromise?" I ask.

"Well, clearly you have shown yourself to be quite the rule-breaker. Refusing to unveil your clothing like your district partner leaves a bad impression," Angel huffs.

"But, we're spinning you as meek and true to yourself instead of arrogant or confident. We want you to seem like you're spirited and original." Claudia cuts in.

"Yes," Angel says, rolling her eyes. "We hope that because the audience sees so many people typical to their districts or even trying to seem like the Capitol, you seem fresh and new."

"We want you to seem otherworldly." Claudia bites her lip, waiting for my reaction.

"Wow," I breathe, awestruck for a moment. "That sounds great actually. Thank you!" I don't regret sharing my genuine reaction.

"Do you think you can pull it off?" Sterling asks, clearly expecting a yes.

"I don't know, but I'll try."

"Good enough!"

I practice answering questions Sterling asks for a while. The verdict is that I am 'not a complete failure', according to Angel. Then Finnick takes a break while Sterling drills Adrian on some questions too. Apparently, Adrian is going the mysterious route, to no surprise. I don't think he'll have any trouble playing it off.

On the day of the interview, I am taken to a large dressing room to finally see the outfit I'll be wearing. I see Claudia and the rest of my prep team beside Angel, so I feel slightly relieved.

"Claudia, show her the outfit!" Angel demands with a thrust of her hand.

She shows me a tight lavender jumpsuit that is plain except for the sparkles on the long sleeves. I thought that Angel would have something bigger planned.

"But you will be wearing the cloak from your ride through the Capitol overtop," Claudia adds.

"Then won't this be covered?" I ask, touching the silky fabric.

"Well, that's kind of the point. We want you to wear the cloak overtop of this until you're asked to remove it. Then you throw the cloak off and let it fall to the floor."

"The purpose of this is to make it appear like your little incident at the parade never happened. You will explain that you wanted to wait to show your outfit because you are unique and special, not because you are a rebel and refused to do it."

"Right." I look at the outfit, a feeling of dread washing over me. How will I be able to pull this off? And even if I do, the outfit doesn't seem spectacular, which doesn't even make sense under the context of what she tried to put me in last time.

Claudia comes up right next to me, seeing my discomfort. "I modified—with Angel—the outfit you were supposed to wear. It was supposed to show you as strong and confident, but since we are going with ethereal, we thought this fit better." She gives me a look that says to just trust her.

I try to give her a winning smile. I've decided I at least appreciate Claudia. She seems like the most compassionate of the group. I can't say her words ease my spirit about the interview very much, but knowing someone is at least trying to help me somehow makes the world seem a little less terrifying.

"I guess I'm ready," I mumble.

My prep crew begin to dress me in the lavender outfit. But before they put the cloak overtop, they place two small hoops hanging below my knees. They place some sort of electrical wire on the outfit. With Angel glaring at me through her thick lashes, I don't ask questions about it. Then, they carefully arrange the cloak over the jumpsuit and pin the underlayer to my waist.

"One final thing," Claudia says, placing Finnick's necklace over my head.

After giving me a gentle portion of makeup, my prep crew ushers me onto the elevator to go to the interview. I step out of the elevator to see some of the tributes lined up to go on the stage. Angel has to forcibly place me in front of Adrian because I lost all feeling in my extremities. This is it. The last thing before the games. The chance to show the world who I really am.

The theme song comes on to announce the interviewer-Caesar Flickerman-which startles half the tributes. My own heart drops. Caesar introduces himself in the same bubbly manner he does every year and calls up the girl from District 1 to start the interviews. Her name is Vivian and she is dressed up in an ornate dress of green, blue, and purple that compliments her long black hair. I think it's supposed to be like a peacock. She has decided to act elegantly for her interview. She keeps her legs crossed and politely laughs at Caesar's jokes. The boy from District 1, Jasper, is strong and plays the hardcore—but charismatic—killer well. His looks probably aid him in crowd appeal. The tributes from 2, Carla and Magnus, are as brutal as ever. Both of them sport the superior athletic builds typical of District 2 tributes. The boy and girl from 3 are friends. They play off the competitive friendship but claim to want to be allies in the game. I can't tell if they're lying or not. I can't decide which truth would be worse.

Then it's my turn. I close my eyes and mumble a hope for the best. Then, I walk into the myriad of lights and colors, spellbound by the haze of sound and movement. I catch myself on the screen. I look straight out of a fairytale, and as shocked as I had just come from one.

"Well, don't you look exquisite this evening?" Caesar's large smile and bubbly demeanor add to the overwhelming feel of the room. He takes my hand and leads me to my seat.

"I have no idea," I laugh awkwardly, clutching his hand too hard. I frantically try to avoid glancing at the audience. Thousands of people, all trying to cling to every word I say.

Caesar laughs. But not in a bad way, like I said something wrong. He acts like I was hilarious.

"Well, trust me, you look lovely."

"Thank you." I blush.

"I'm so curious about what's under your cape."

I just laugh.

"So I hear you got an impressive score of nine. How do you feel about that?"

"I'm mostly shocked, but happy—I guess." I stumble over my words. This isn't going well. I finally look at the audience. I would have guessed that they are embarrassed for me because of how awkward I am, but they seem to be focusing on me. I catch Finnick's gaze in the crowd. He raises his eyebrows and nods, almost to urge me on. I can turn this around. I have to prove it. I sit up straighter and try to focus on Caesar's next question.

"So what did you do to woo the game makers?"

"I did something different; I guess that's why they liked it. I sang for them."

"Oh my, that is precious." Caesar looks at the crowd in mock surprise. "That's a new strategy. What did you sing?"

"A song I wrote myself." I hear the audience's 'awwws'.

"And what was it about?"

I think for a moment. "It's about someone trying to find hope in a broken world." It isn't exactly true, but the crowd loves it nonetheless.

"Did you often write songs in District 4?"

"Yes, I like writing all sorts of things. Songs, poetry, even some stories. Mostly for my sisters." I feel a pinch in my heart at their memory.

"Well, I would love to read some of them someday. Wouldn't you?" Caesar asks the crowd, who respond in affirmation and cheers.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I don't know about that. I like to keep them close to my heart. Some things you can't share with others."

"Oh, I see. Now is that why you didn't reveal your outfit during the parade?"

I feel my face flush. I can't lie, I just can't bring myself to do it. I'm about to throw everything away. "Yes, they had given me an outfit that I was grateful for. But it wasn't me. I'm not good at pretending to be something I'm not. I'm not a monster meant to intimidate people." I try to smile, showing it was a joke.

"Who are you then?"

"I don't know," I say frankly. I close my eyes and drown out the cheers from the crowd. It's just me on a cliff overlooking a vast ocean. No more people trying to tell me who I am. No more family to keep me on track. No more Finnick to distract me. Just me. So, who am I?

I open my eyes. "I'm Annie. I'm from District 4. I'm a singer and writer, I'm a dreamer, but above all else, I'm someone just trying to be genuine in a world of liars and fakes. And people say the same thing I do when life is going well for them, but they don't mean it. When they're threatened or uncomfortable, so many good people will sacrifice who they are. But I'm here now, and—believe me or not—I'm telling you I won't. And it might get me killed one day, but it'll be worth it. No matter what happens, the true me will be worth it."

A moment passes when Caesar and I stare at each other, and then, the audience erupts into a frenzy of claps. I smile at them. And it's real this time.

"Well, why don't you show us who you really are Annie!" He says while clapping excitedly. It takes me a minute to figure out what he means, but I realize he's talking about the outfit.

I stand, and the audience silences. I slowly walk to the front and throw off the hood, revealing the top of the jumpsuit underneath. Instead of dropping to the floor, the cloak sparkles and spins around me on the wire underneath. I lift my arms and gasp in surprise. It wraps around my hips and legs tightly and then spreads near my ankles. I smile at the crowd, and they burst into ten times the amount of applause as before.

"I'm a mermaid Caesar!"

"Wow! I guess you are!" He looks genuinely stunned. He waits for the audience to calm down. "What is this?" He touches my pendant.

"A gift from a friend," I say, fingering the golden shell. "Finnick actually." The crowd gasps. I squeeze my hands. Stupid girl. You should have kept your mouth shut.

"Oh, but Finnick isn't your mentor is he?"

"No, he was an old friend. He left for the games when I was thirteen, and I guess it was never the same after that." I can't help but say it bitterly. Memories about him flood back into my mind. The crowd exclaims their sadness.

"A shame. You know Finnick is quite the character around here." Caesar raises his eyebrows

"Oh no, it's not like that," I laugh at the absurdity. "Not now."

"I haven't met anyone who dismisses someone like Finnick."

"You haven't met me then," I grin at the crowd. I can imagine their whispered conversations about this strange girl who claims to be genuine and can care less about Finnick's attractiveness. I'm not upset about the thought.

Caesar lets me know my time is up, and I wave and curtsy to the crowd before leaving the stage. A lot of thoughts race through my mind. I'm so proud of what I said, I'm so happy about the mermaid dress, and I'm so confused about what to think about my conversation about Finnick. One thing I know is that the crowd loved me. I guess that's good enough for now.

I keep thinking about what I said while I take my seat beside the tributes who have already finished their interviews: So many good people will sacrifice who they are. No one knows I said that because of Finnick. I don't know if even he knows. But I do. And no matter what I do, I can't get rid of the resentment I feel toward him for leaving me. He changed; he is a completely different person than the Finnick I knew before the games. I remember a moment that happened a long time ago that still breaks my heart to think about.

Years ago, when I was thirteen, I opened the door tentatively and found Finnick sitting on the couch.

"You're here already," Finnick stated.

"I tried to be here first, or there would be a long line of people waiting to say goodbye to you," I said, trying to sound annoyed instead of sad.

"No, not that many." He grinned.

"Can you possibly be excited about this?" I asked indignantly. "Why would you volunteer? After everyone warned you. After I warned you! You're too young! You're fourteen, you can't possibly win." I held back angry tears.

"Annie," Finnick said, grasping my hands. "If I win, my family will be forever taken care of. I'll live in luxury and share it with you!"

"I don't want the riches, I just want you to be safe. I want everyone to be safe." A stray tear trickled down my cheek.

"It'll be okay Annie. I have a strategy. This is what I've been training for."

"But you're so young for the games, you're only fourteen!"

"You already said that."

"I know." The tears started flowing. "What if you die, or worse, what if they change you forever?"

"They won't." His grin faded when he realized how much I was crying.

"No! Finnick please, you have to promise me! I know it sounds stupid but just promise. Promise you'll be okay in the games."

"I promise Annie, please stop crying."

"Promise you won't let them control you!"

"I swear."

"Promise you'll remember me! In the games, when everyone else distracts you from who you are." My face turned red when I heard the words come out of my mouth. I meant them nonetheless.

Finnick only laughs. "I promise Annie, I will never forget you or leave you alone forever. I'll come back after I win and everything will get better for both of us. Just trust me. I promise."

He lied.


Stay tuned for upcoming chapters and take a look at my profile page to take a small sneak peek of Chapter 6.