Edam Cabrales, 17

District 10 Female

It was obvious that Adera had a crush on me and I only felt a little bit bad about it. I had no interest in a romance of any kind, and it was wrong to string her along… but there were so many potential advantages. Love made people do crazy things.

Like volunteer for a death match to save their estranged older sibling.

I still hadn't wrapped my head around why I volunteered. I just did. And now I would regret it for the rest of my life - which would likely be over in a week or two. But instead of dwelling on the emotional side, I was doing my best to focus on the strategic one.

Adera was going to be a good ally regardless of her crush. She was quick, tough, and wily, and she seemed very loyal. My other female ally… less so. Clementine had approached me yesterday as we were all lining up to get into the elevators to propose an alliance. She was charismatic and charming, which was what rang the alarm bells in my head. She reminded me of myself. And I certainly wouldn't trust myself.

But there was strength in numbers and Clementine seemed willing to let me be our leader. And I already knew she wasn't trustworthy, so she couldn't creep up on me and stab me in the back later.

Kyle, her puppy dog, was tagging along as well, but I could control that too. He was a complete airhead, but he was agreeable and was already bending over backwards to make Clementine happy. Plus, he was jacked. Clementine and Adera both had some muscle on them, as did I, but Kyle was built like a brick wall. A lot of other tributes would think twice before challenging us in the bloodbath.

The bloodbath was my biggest worry. Adera had suggested we make a plan and the others agreed, so we had met up on District 10's floor to plot. Everyone seemed to be looking to me for a plan, but I wasn't a strategist. I froze. I just mumbled something about splitting up to cover more ground.

My cheeks burned at the memory and I set down the twine I'd been weaving. Adera had come to my rescue and now we had half a strategy prepared, but I knew I couldn't show any more weakness.

I had to show my allies who the boss really was.

Dahlia Cruz, 16

District 5 Female

"Have courage and be kind."

It was one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite stories, and it was something I tried to live by as best as I could. But here, in the Capitol - in the Hunger Games - it was hard to be courageous. And I couldn't afford to be kind.

I remembered my dad gripping my shoulders when we said our goodbyes. A Peacekeeper had just knocked to tell him and Arianna that they had to leave when he grabbed me and looked me straight in the eyes.

"Do whatever it takes to come home to us," he'd said. "Be selfish. Be ruthless."

"I can't," I had said, desperately trying to wipe away my tears. "I can't be that person."

"You can. You can be whoever you need to be and I will always love you."

Then he'd pressed a quick kiss to my forehead, smiled sadly, and ushered Arianna out as she began to sob.

I'd done my best to hold his words with me, but it was difficult. I didn't want to hurt anyone. I didn't want to become someone I wasn't. If I was truly honest with myself, I didn't think I stood even a sliver of a chance in the arena. And if I truly was going to die, I wanted to stay true to myself until the end.

I wasn't planning to roll over and wait for someone to kill me though, and dying of hunger seemed like an awful way to go. So I managed to talk myself into practicing with a bow. And I'd spent most of yesterday picking up some basic survival skills.

Porter thought I should learn a little bit of self-defense though, so I was spending my last hour before lunch at the hand-to-hand station. I had good reflexes but I wasn't very strong, so the trainer and I were mostly focusing on defensive moves.

"Good work," he said, pulling back after I side-stepped a punch. I'd tried to hook my ankle around his to trip him, but he'd hopped over it. He flashed me a smile as I thanked him.

"Take a breather," he told me. "Get some water and if you want to practice some more, you know where to find me."

I nodded, thanked him again, and turned toward the drinking fountains. But I jumped back in surprise when I realized the tough-looking boy from District 11 was standing behind me.

"Sorry!" I gasped. "You startled me!"

"I've been waiting to talk to you," he said, brushing past the apology and grabbing my elbow. He forcefully guided me away from the sparring mats to a quieter area of the gym.

"Talk to me about what?" I asked when he released my arm. My stomach churned as I waited for his answer.

"I think you should be my ally," he said bluntly. I shook my head.

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to do that."

"Why not?" he demanded. "I could protect you and you could keep us fed!" I balked.

"Why? Do you think I can't defend myself because I'm a girl? Do you think it's my job to feed you because I'm a girl? Because I can assure you that I do not need your protection or your growling belly."

Logan scoffed.

"You don't even know what it means to be hungry! You're just a rich little Capitol wannabe with crazy hair and no brains! You're going to regret rejecting me because I'm coming for you first. I bet you'll be a lot less brave when you're screaming for help!"

He was towering over me now and I shrunk back instinctually. For a moment I thought he was going to hit me, but then he was being shoved aside by an even taller boy. Logan glared at him but didn't have the chance to do anything else before two trainers grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him away from me.

The other boy, who I recognized as Harold from District 4, stood next to me as he spoke to Logan.

"You're nothing but a bully and a coward," he said. He didn't raise his voice, but his tone was heavy. "I pity the people who call you a friend, or worse, family."

Logan started to shout again but Harold turned his back to him and faced me.

"Hi," he said, shyly rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry to jump in like that. I just… I just really can't stand people like that."

"I appreciated it," I told him. "I'm Dahlia, by the way."

"Harold," he replied, offering me a handshake. I accepted it.

"Would you want to sit with me at lunch?" he asked hesitantly.

I thought it over for a moment. I hadn't wanted allies. I didn't feel like I could trust any of the other tributes. But Harold's expression was honest and the comforting feeling that his powerful response to Logan had evoked returned. So I accepted his offer.

Logan Acker, 16

District 11 Male

After I blew up at Dahlia, two trainers had dragged me back to my room on District 11's floor and shoved me inside. Almost immediately after, Abigail was at my door lecturing me. I ignored her and sat on the edge of the bed, seething.

Harold, that stupid pretty-boy from District 4, thought he was so good and noble just because he was from a rich district. He wasn't a hero for getting involved; he was an idiot. And he wasn't better than me.

I would kill him and Dahlia.

I unclenched my fists and rubbed my palms across my face. I felt a bit calmer, but Abigail was still yapping outside the door and it wasn't helping.

The door opened suddenly and I jumped up. Saigon came inside with their arms crossed and a scowl on their face. They leaned against the door and glared down at me.

"What?" I demanded. They didn't respond and I could feel the anger building again. I moved to stand up to yell at them but they lunged forward and shoved me back onto the bed.

"You need to shut up," they said. "I can't help you if you turn everyone against you."

"You don't even like me," I growled through clenched teeth. "Why are you helping me?"

"Because it's my job," Saigon said with a sigh. "And if you win then I don't have to be here."

"Now, listen. You're not allowed to go back down to the training center, but you will still have your private session. Do not rile up the Gamemakers more than you already have. They already don't like you, and they choose your score. If you get a really high score, you're a target. If you get a low one, you're written off. They'd be more than happy to screw you over before the Games even begin. Don't give them another reason to."

"If they already hate me then why should I even bother?"

"Because you actually stand a chance." Saigon's shoulders slumped and they sighed again. "Axel, Ed, and Dionysus came up to our floor this morning. They said their tributes were allied and they wanted you on the team too. I told them you would join."

"They don't know about the fight during training and we're going to keep it that way. You have allies and you have a second chance to make a good impression. Don't screw it up."

Anahira Wero, 18

District 2 Female

My spear sank silently into the chest of a dummy; just another casualty in a long line of foam opponents. Robin Violet hefted her own spear and shifted her feet to match my stance. I watched her reel back and throw the projectile with surprising force, but very little accuracy. Her weapon caught the dummy in the upper shoulder, tore through the foam, and then fell to the ground with a clatter. She groaned.

"It's okay," I told her. "You would have injured them pretty badly and I doubt very many tributes would approach a Career with a spear anyway."

"I just thought it would be useful to know how to use something besides a knife," she reiterated. "But clearly it won't be a spear."

I looked at the rack of spears next to us and found myself wishing for a taiaha all over again. My trainers said it was silly to train with a weapon that would never be in the arena, but I never thought I would be in the arena either. I did learn to throw spears, and in a pinch I could use one in close combat similarly to how I'd fight with a taiaha. But having my weapon with me would have made me much more confident.

"Can I ask you something?" Robin Violet asked as she let down her hair and ran her fingers through the rusty curls.

"Sure," I said. She flipped her hair out of her face and looked me right in the eyes.

"You all know I'm Covey," she said. "And you know how the Capitol feels about that. So why did you ask me to ally with you?"

I blinked at her, surprised. I was about to rattle off the answer Blue gave our mentors - something about strength or protection in numbers - but her earnest expression made me hesitate.

"I'm Māori. Well, mostly Māori…" I mumbled. "I'm sure some stuff got washed away over the years. But I have a culture and a people that I love and that's really special. I can't imagine the person I'd be if I didn't have that identity. I thought it would be the same with you and the Covey. And I thought that maybe, if you were a Career, and the Capitol liked you, the Covey would be better off too."

When I had the courage to meet Robin Violet's gaze again, I was surprised by her stormy expression and teary eyes. I started to stammer out an apology but she reached out and took my hand.

"What Māori tattoo would you give me?" she asked. I reached up to touch the hei tiki tattoo on the back of my neck. It was the first tattoo I got, when I first started training. It symbolized good luck. My newest tattoo, on my bicep, was from when I was chosen as District 2's volunteer. It celebrated my athletic prowess and served as a reminder of the challenge ahead. I also had tattoos for good health, strength, courage, and more. All things I would need in the arena. I didn't know what Robin Violet needed, but I knew what she had.

"Manaia," I told her. "To guide the spirit."

Hi everybody... I am SO sorry for disappearing! It's been almost two months since I updated. Like I said last time, I was having some severe health issues. But I had surgery in September and I'm pretty much back to normal now! And so I'm back to the world of fanfiction as well. I know the length of these POVs are all over the place, but please bear with me. I'm getting back into the flow of writing again. Also, I want to say again that I'm not Māori and I have no real life experience with Ta Moko. I'm doing lots of research (which has been really fun) but I may still get things wrong. If I do, please let me know.

Thank you for being so patient, and I hope you're all still excited for this story. The Private Sessions will be up next!

QUESTIONS

1) Is Edam as in-control as she thinks she is?

2) What do you think of Dahlia's mindset?

3) Will Harold and Dahlia work well together?

4) How will Logan convince his allies to stay with him?

5) Should Anahira have bonded with Robin Violet like this?

6) Do you want a Private Sessions chapter in my normal style, or in LadyCordeliaStuart's style? (the chapter is the notes the important Gamemakers took)

ALLIANCES

The Careers: Vignette, Christopher, Anahira, Blue, Missy, Robin Violet

The Mathematicians: Louise, CT, Robert

Courage & Kindness: Harold, Dahlia

Team Bro: Ivan, Diesel, Logan

Boss Babes: Adera, Kyle, Edam, Clementine

Tea Party: Tea, Paul, Dustin

Loners: Jersey, Annoa, Vikram

Have a nice day, be kind to each other, and never stop reading!

- Fiona