Thanks to owlthewriter, CrocodileReader431, dyloccupy, Tales From the Cluttered Desk, Dani H. Danvers, Cori Anna, livinginadream0, Skeekiest, ladyqueerfoot, & n3b for the reviews!
Alright, it's the chapter before the Bloodbath! We'll do one final check in with everyone before… you know… that stops being possible. Before that though, I would like to provide a list on the current state of alliances. People have asked for it and I always find it helpful with 24 Tributes in the mix:
The Career Pack: Elegance (D1), Casanova (D1), Amaya (D2), Pietyr (D2), Maddie (D4), & Nicola (D4)
The Misfits: Seph (D5), Greta (D9), Sierra (D10), Oscar (D10), & Ash (D12)
The Big Mouths: Dallis (D6) & Diesel (D6)
The Boys: Wolf (D7) & Darley (D9)
The Farmers: Tilly (D11) & Calen (D11)
Lone Wolves or No Alliance: Hypatia (D3), Web (D3), Teagan (D5), Werifestria (D7), Raveni (D8), Blakely (D8), & Ophelia (D12)
Enjoy!
Chapter XVI Eve of the Games
The Capitol
District 1 Apartments
The eve of the Hunger Games had in recent decades turned into a revelry of bacchanalian proportions and the year of the 59th Games was no exception. Adult Capitolites partied the night away while their eager children – for whom the novelty of the Hunger Games was more fresh and thrilling – were anxiously trying to get to fall asleep so the Games could finally begin.
At the Tribute Center, the twenty-four Tributes remained confined to their District apartments, all processing the anticipation in different ways. For Elegance and Cas, the pair were toasting to their good fortune and their future success.
"To us!" Cas announced. They clinked their champagne flutes together – alcohol being a perk afforded to a favored, non-rebellious District like 1 – and took small sips, both silently nervous about even the slightest hangover for tomorrow.
"To one of our victories." Elegance confirmed.
"I think it'll be me." Cas winked, to which Elegance rolled her eyes.
"It'd be rude of me to break that silly dream, wouldn't it?" Elegance questioned, taking another sip. Cas, acknowledging that she was challenging him, and his stamina, took another, deeper sip than Elegance had.
"It's like I said, my victory was written in the stars." Cas said.
Elegance took another sip, draining half the flute. "The constellations change through the seasons." She said. "They can be fickle."
"Then if the stars aren't on my side, perhaps you'll be?" Cas asked. The had conversations over the past few days about this. It was only a matter of time before the Career Pack broke up. Over the years, it typically turned to chaos. Neither of them wanted that.
"Until the end." Elegance confirmed, without any need to clarify. They both knew what that meant.
The clinked their glasses once more and finished the drinks. They poured each other another and kept drinking.
District 2 Apartments
"That was a pretty dreadful performance out there."
Amaya saw Pietyr's temper flare but, honestly, when wasn't he about to have a temper tantrum. Amaya was cautious by nature, calculating and planning. She saw that in Cas and respected it, and feared it. But after five days of close contact with Pietyr there was nothing she respected about him. But why she was enjoying pushing his buttons so much was less clear to her.
"I'm sick of all this bullshit theatrics." He hissed.
"Do you think all that goes away once you're the Victor?" Amaya questioned. "The Capitol trots out Victors for everything. Unless you're not a popular one. Actually… you might be fine."
"And what about you, huh?" Pietyr demanded. "You going to be a good little whore for the Capitol?"
Amaya blinked. "What did you say to me?"
"I said, are you going to be a good little whore for the Capitolites?"
Amaya squared up, Pietyr did as well. She didn't give a damn what came of it and neither did he. "I'll be Victor." She told him. "And when I am, I'll make sure nobody visits your grave."
It took Pietyr a beat, but it clicked for him. "You don't know what I'm talking about, do you?" She was silent, suddenly at his mercy thanks to her ignorance. He laughed, savoring the moment. "Course not. You're from Dust. You never hung out with the other Victors or their families or friends. Too busy in that stupid gang. You wouldn't have heard the stories, huh?"
She refused to give him the satisfaction of demanding an answer. They stared daggers at each other until Pietyr laughed and strutted away, satisfied to have knocked her off her game. Maybe she'd trip on her starting plate.
That'd be too fortunate. And the world was never fortunate to Pietyr.
District 3 Apartments
He wasn't sure why, but Hypatia was still listening to him ramble. Web was very grateful for that.
"I don't want to participate in the Hunger Games." Web lamented. "I don't want to be Victor and I don't want to be famous and I don't want to be remembered forever. I was a genius back in District 3. A genius intellect. I was promised the world but I turned all that day because I wanted to be normal and happy and have friends and be a big brother. And now I'm going to die. Hypatia, I'm going to die!"
He kept going on like that while Hypatia sat at the dining table, listening silently in judgment. She could leave of course, but do what instead? Watch the coverage of the Games where nobody was talking about her? Hide in her bedroom alone, unable to fall asleep?
No, she was enjoying listening to Web rant and rage against the world. She was enjoying the anger that was filling her. Web was crying about how unfair the world was when it seemed to her that so much of it was gifted to him and he slapped it away. His genius, as he kept saying, promised him a good life. And even without it he had a brother, a mother and father, and friends. What did she have? A dead mom and a father in the Capitol who didn't even know she existed.
She was sure now that the producers had shut her off early. They didn't want her father to know about her, or anyone know. For a moment, she considered telling the whole nation once in the Hunger Games, just to spite them, only to realize that she'd have no idea when she was on camera. The Gamemakers controlled who was being broadcast at any given moment. They could listen in and shut her down by switching the camera or send a mutt after her. '
And in that moment, Hypatia realized something. The Hunger Games were no different than her life in the District. Just like there, everything was controlled by the Capitol. Even if she hadn't been Reaped, she would have still died under their thumb. A nobody. Forgotten by all.
She started to cry.
Web wasn't watching.
District 4 Apartments
"Can I ask you something?"
Maddie shrugged. "What's one more question tonight?" She joked. Her back wasn't really in it though and it came out more as a huff.
Nicola sat down on the puffy, aquamarine chair across from the couch Maddie was lying on. He looked serious, an unusual look for her partner. "Do you think your family bought you good coverage in the Capitol? Or even just a good score?"
Maddie shrugged again. "Maybe." She replied. Her eyes drifted lazily to the television screen in front of them. Some Capitolites, cosmetically altered to look like lions, were playing some sort of drinking game. Briefly, she wondered why anyone in the world would want to look like a lion. "I wouldn't put it past them. Are you mad about that?"
"Yeah." Nicola admitted.
"Are you going to tell the others?"
"They probably already assume. So, you've gotta bring it in the Games tomorrow."
"I don't think I'm going to win." Maddie whispered. Nicola groaned and shook his head. He hated this defeatist shit from her. He rose to leave but Maddie was talking again. "My brother was supposed to be here. Not me. But I think I make a better Tribute than him."
Despite himself, Nicola was curious about the Monaghan family. "What was his name?"
"Keef." She told him. "He was soft-spoke, a nervous wreck really. I don't know why my parents and grandparents thought that'd make him a good Tribute. I still remember he'd always come home from the Academy covered in bruises, crying. Mom and Dad sent him back every time though."
Nicola tried to muster some sympathy. He'd been on the receiving end of the Academy more brutal methods of discipline plenty of times. "How'd he die?"
"The official cause of death is 'undetermined.' But I know he killed himself. He couldn't take it and he couldn't be himself. I was nine when he died. The day of the funeral, my parents told me I was starting at the Academy the next week."
He had nothing to say to that. Her eyes left the tv and looked at him. "Why did you join the Academy?" She asked.
He contemplated that for several seconds. Then it was his turn to shrug. "It was something to do. And I thought it'd make me cool." He said. It was lame and more honest of a reason than he'd ever admit to anyone else.
Maddie snorted. "I think we're both idiots." She concluded.
They watched the tv in silence after that.
District 5 Apartments
Olivia called a meeting after the interviews. Teagan thought she was going to admonish her for ditching Web, but instead she was helpful.
"I don't want either of you worrying about the Cornucopia, ok?" She told Teagan and Seph. "You both just run. The Careers are going to be looking to make up ground after last year's debacle and there is no reason for you two to put yourselves in harms way."
"But… we need the supplies." Teagan said.
"And my alliance… we're running in." Seph said, voice filled with terror.
That was the first Olivia was hearing of his alliance's plan and she clearly disapproved. "If they run in you don't, ok, Seph?" She told him sternly. There was a fear in her eyes that reminded him of the way she looked fighting the Butcher of 10. "I'm the latest Victor, which means everyone loves me. I'll win you guys sponsors and send you everything you need. Just don't run in!"
"Are yo-yo-you mad I left Web?" Teagan asked.
Olivia shook her head. "I trust you, Teagan. If you think that's the right move, it's the right move. Now I need you both to trust me."
Teagan agreed. Seph did too, but he felt like he was being pulled in two directions. He just had to tell Greta and the others tomorrow morning not to run in.
They'd all be fine.
They had to be.
District 6 Apartments
Dallis was in a surprisingly good mood for what Diesel considered the eve of their imminent demise.
"You worry too much." Dallis told him when he confronted her.
"You worry too little." Diesel retorted.
"See? We balance each other out!"
Diesel groaned, sliding down the couch next to his impossible District partner. They were watching Caesar and Claudius, well into a bottle of some very nice sherry, toasting to the Hunger Games and making fools out of themselves. How Diesel would have given anything in the world to switch place .
"What do you want to do about the whole 'everyone want to kill you to save their skins'?" Diesel asked.
Again, Dallis was unconcerned. "I'm willing to bet the other Tributes won't bother us. In fact, I bet everyone knows the Careers are full of shit."
"I think you're romanticizing people."
"Impossible!"
"It's called 'the Bloodbath' for a reason. It's gong to be chaos and everyone is going to be terrified. I bet even the Careers will be! If someone thinks they can kill you and the Careers will show mercy, you better bet your ass they will."
"So we just run away at the start."
"I don't think it will be that easy."
"Again, you worry too much." Dallis said, turning to another conversation. "So, which secret do you think we should blab first? Maddie buying her way in or Amaya cheating her way in?"
Diesel shook his head. Dallis and her big, fat mouth.
District 7 Apartments
An eerie silence hung in the air for the District 7 Apartments. Even the Escort and Mentor said little, disturbed by Fest's proclamation.
There had been plenty of crazy Tributes over the years. Broken either by the Hunger Games or before thanks to the misery of the Districts. But Fest seemed to be something else entirely.
Wolf was in his bedroom, looking out the window to the streets below. The Capitol was so full of color and life, so far removed from the endless forests and tall mountains of 7. Wolf would have given anything in the world to be alone in the forests back home. Walking through them, smelling the fresh air and feeling the crunch of leaves beneath his feet.
He thought of Bernie and his other siblings. Were they unable to sleep like him? He could only imagine Bernie trying to calm their siblings down. She always knew how to do it, Wolf had never been a good nurturer, and in that moment he wished she was there to calm him down.
What he feared above all, besides not going home, was his siblings watching him die. None of them had seen their mom die. Only Wolf had been witness to that horror as the dogs tore her to part. They didn't see the blood, hear the wails, smell the iron in the air. They were blessed to only remember the good stuff.
Wolf didn't want them to remember him like that.
Next door, Fest was in bed. She was feeling comfortable, having gotten used to sleeping with danger just around the corner. She was nervous, only an idiot wouldn't be about the Hunger Games. There were many things that would be beyond her control in the arena, but the danger before her was known and that gave some comfort. She knew to expect a harsh arena. She knew to expect living on little water and food. She knew to expect to be hunted in the night by Careers.
As long as she knew the danger before her, Fest could find comfort.
It was danger that you didn't expect which was truly scary. The comforting smile. The promises of a better life. The enemy who came dressed in the skin of a loved one.
After the fire, she had been an orphan. Alone in the world, just a bandaged up twelve year old who's voice and body had gone to hell. Then, Barric came. He was an older man who told the Peacekeepers he was looking to adopt a misfortunate child and give them a good life. The Peacekeepers hardly cared and handed her over with little fuss. Barric was committed to giving her good life. Some sort of repentance on his part. He gave her gifts, gave her love and a home and friendship. She shined so brightly in his eyes that he never saw the dark shadows that danced behind Fest.
Until it was too late.
'I am that danger.' Fest told herself, shielding herself in her own mythos. She closed her eyes, ready to drift off until a thought hit her.
Tomorrow was her birthday.
And would be the anniversary of the fire.
It was an omen to be sure, though she couldn't say if it was good or ill.
District 8 Apartments
Blakely was surprised when she heard a knock on the door. She was just drifting off and awoke startled, fearing that it was already morning and the Peacekeepers had come to collect her for the Games. She looked at the clock and saw it wasn't even midnight.
She opened the door and found Raveni waiting on the other side.
"Hi."He began. Blakely said nothing in return. She hoped he wasn't there to try and ally again.
To her surprise, he handed her the shawl he had made for the interview. "I wanted you to have this."
"You should keep it." Blakely said instantly, making no move to grab the clothing. "You made it and all."
"That's not how the Weave works." Raveni told her. "Someone back in District 8 will make mine."
She understood what he was implying for himself. "I'm not dying in the arena. I don't need it." Blakely told him.
"It's… it's something to have." Raveni tried to explain. "To remember people by."
"I could give a shit about people. I don't want it." Blakely said firmly.
"Please, just take it. Let me do one last thing for someone. Please."
The stab at nobility did nothing for Blakely. "Good night, Raveni." She said, shutting the door in his face.
He stood outside for a minute before trudging back to his room. He folded the shawl with care and placed it on the vanity in his bedroom. He looked at the piece of clothing, reminded of all the lessons he received from the Weave.
'The shroud isn't just for the dead. It's for the living to remember. The colors are always bright and full of life. Remember the person's life, not their death. Remember their memory, the good and bad. It's the story of their life, the story of all our lives.''
He still had crotchet materials from his work earlier in the day. He pulled out the multiple spools of colored yarn and the crotchet hook and set to work on the shawl. He worked the hook and needles through, building out the shawl. He worked past midnight, only the glittering and neon lights of the Capitol outside his window to illuminate his work. After midnight he finished.
He placed the shawl back on the vanity and grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. He wrote a simple note and went to bed after placing it on the shawl. His final instructions and will as it were.
'To the Victor.'
District 9 Apartments
"So, what is your alliance going to do?"
Greta was surprised Darley was asking her anything. "Why do you care?" She asked.
"I'm just making conversation." He said, sounding offended by the question. Greta actually thought he believed it.
"Sure." She replied, wandering back to her bedroom with a carton of ice cream. She was going to enjoy her last night out of the arena and that didn't involve being badgered by Darley.
"Wait! Quid pro quo, how about that?" Darley said.
Greta had no idea what that meant but grunted. "Ok." She said, playing along.
"Wolf and I are running in." Darley said. "Just grabbing the nearest bag and getting out of there. Now, is that what your alliance is doing?"
She was nice by nature, and part of her felt compelled to him what their plan was. To be nice. Then Greta remembered she didn't trust Darley for a second. "We're going to play it by ear." She lied and made a beeline for the bedroom, shutting the door behind her and plopping down on the bed to suck up the ice cream
Darley sighed in annoyance, having hoped to get some sort of inkling of what they'd do. Everyone had played their cards close to chest with Caesar about strategy, which wasn't helpful at all.
Ah well. Hopefully Wolf would be a good buffer between him and any sort of nasty Career.
District 10 Apartments
Oscar wandered out of his bedroom well past midnight. Sitting at the dining table in total darkness was Sierra, gazing out the apartment windows while she was lost in thought.
"Couldn't sleep either?" Oscar asked.
Sierra's head jerked towards him, pulled out of her thoughts. "I tried but no use." She told him.
"Same."
He took a seat next to her. They were silent for a couple minutes, looking out the windows towards nothing. "I used to dream of running away from 10." She admitted it.
"Yeah?"
"My family lives near the border. And we had horses. I don't even think there is a fence or wall or anything. I could have just gotten on my favorite horse with a pack full of food and bottles of water and fled."
"And gone where?"
"I never figured that out. And I was always afraid the Peacekeepers would just kill my whole family if I left, so I stayed." Sierra said. "But I heard stories about people living in the wilds between the Districts."
Oscar had heard the same stories. They were tales whispered amongst children of the District. He was willing to bet all Districts had similar stories. They were a small glimmer of hope that there was a world outside Capitol rule, and a toe in the pool of rebellious thought. But as a person got older and realized the true brutality and might of the Capitol, they came to accept the fantasy was only that. The Capitol would never have allowed anyone to live outside its reach.
"I wish there was a way out of these Games."
"There is." Sierra said sadly. "But only for one of us."
They sat in silence, contemplating the sacrifices necessary for that.
District 11 Apartments
Tilly and Calen were well versed in stress, but the night before the Hunger Games gave that word new meaning.
Tilly was twisting and shifting in her bed and unable to sleep for many reasons. One of them, one of the easier reasons to deal with, was that Tilly never slept alone. Her younger siblings always snuck into her bed, no matter how hot the District 11 night was. It had become the norm over the years and Tilly, despite her protests and attempts to cajole them back to their own beds, had come to like it.
So it was perhaps that reasons she knocked on Calen's door. He answered it, just in his underwear.
"Um… can I sleep with you?" Tilly asked.
Calen, drowsy and almost naked and a teenage boy, suddenly came to life. "Uh…." He said, at a loss for words.
Tilly groaned, realizing how she phrased it. "Not like that! I just want to be around someone, ok?"
"Oh. Right. Um…" Calen stammered, feeling foolish and flustered. "Sure."
"And put a shirt and pants on." Tilly told him, coming into the room.
"I'm sleeping?"
"They have pajamas in the drawers."
"What the hell are those?"
Tilly laid out the linen pajamas and told Calen to get dressed. While he did, she divided the bed into two with a line of pillows down the middle and hopped in. Calen joined her, feeling awkward. Tilly, sensing this, let out a laugh.
"What?"
"I finally got you to stop being a grouch." Tilly told him.
Calen scoffed. "Whatever." He muttered.
Before long they were both asleep, glad for the other's company.
District 12 Apartments
Ash wasn't surprised that Ophelia was out on the balcony. It was a gorgeous location and one of the few benefits of being from 12 as far as they could tell. The open air terrace, really a garden, was on the rooftop of the Tribute Apartment building, an attachment to their own apartments. Ophelia was at the edge looking over. She gave him a smirk as he came out.
"There's some kind of forcefield that bounces back up anything you throw off it." She told him. "Like from the 2nd Quell. I thought about jumping to play around with it."
"I wouldn't. The Capitol might hate you after your interview and just let you fall."
"Ha! Could you imagine?" Ophelia laughed. "That'd really mess with them."
"Aren't you afraid for tomorrow?"
"Course I am. But I think I've made my peace with whatever comes next."
"You mean dying?" Ash asked.
Ophelia rolled her eyes. "Yeah, dying."
"How?" Ash asked, desperate for some answer to assuage his own fears.
"I don't know! You gotta figure it out for yourself."
"Thanks." He muttered angrily, turning to leave.
"Wait!" Ophelia called out. He turned and, for a moment, he saw her mask drop. "Good luck tomorrow. I'm sorry we got Reaped."
It was an unexpected tender moment from Ophelia. He couldn't help but smile. "Thanks. You too."
The mask was back up and Ophelia was laughing. "Don't need luck. I'll have Caesar's mom's butt as a weapon! I'll be unstoppable!"
She cackled into the night air and Ash joined it. It wasn't really funny but the alternative was to start crying.
They both wanted one little moment of joy before the end.
Alright everyone, you ready?! Ideally I'm updating this weekend with the Bloodbath, but I'll caution that with I'm going on a cruise with friends and have a hectic work week. Luckily, the Bloodbath is all planned out and a third written already.
I'm also leaving you guys with a challenge! Leave a review with your answers!:
1) Who do you think is a Bloodbath?
2) Any guesses on the arena?
3) Who do you think will be Victor?
Up Next: The Bloodbath