Chapter 2.
I walk through the train to the dining room and sit on a chair by myself. I
refuse to become friends or acknowledge Cashmere and Gloss. Even though Cash is
my mentor. Gloss and I are supposed to team up with the careers. I'm not. No
way. He can help himself but no thanks.
"Let's watch the reapings!" Dakota exclaims in her shrill voice. She switches
on the television. We start with District 1 re-watching our own reaping. I
notice the looks of pride on some people's faces when I volunteer, the anger
from the others. In District 2 Brutus and Enobaria, I don't remember their games
or anyones to be honest, except 12's. In 3 it's Beetee and Wiress, nutts and
volts as Gloss calls them. From 4 it's Mags and Finnick.
Finnick. No Kasee
not your Finnick. This is Finnick from four. Not Finnick from 12. 5 offers
up Atala Abalone and Yarrow Pickledeen. From 6 it's the morphlings. The ones
addicted to the drug morphling. 7 brings us Blight and Johanna. District 8 Woof
and Cecelia.
Seriously. Woof? We gain Fancy Labradoodle and Twill
Rathbone from 9. District 10 introduces us to Parsley Ficklewood and Thicket
Hawksmoor. 11 gives us Chaff and Seeder. And from 12? Haymitch and Katniss. Well
Haymitch until Peeta volunteers in his place.
"That's not a tough competition at all." Says Cash calmly. Gloss nods and
grunts. "I'm going back to my room." Cash leaves.
"I'm going back to
my room. The atmosphere in here... I need to
think strategy." He storms out.
"What do you think, Kasee?" Dakota asks me trying to lighten the mood.
"I think Katniss and Peeta will win." I say, determind.
"Only one winner this year." She reminds me.
"They'll allow two again I bet. Rough up the competition." I say trying to
sound more like a career. Dakota smiles.
"I'll leave the videos of each of your competitors games here. I'm going to
talk to Cashmere and Gloss." And with that she leaves the room. I pull out just
one video. District 12's. Not to see their fighting techniques. Just to see
them. How they work. She hunts, he gathers. Teamwork. I want to be their ally.
Will they trust me? I hope so. That's when I see it. The Mockingjay pin on
Katniss' shirt.
A Mockingjay. A genetically created species that mated with
Mockingbirds to create Mockingjays. A backfire in the Capitols scheme. I need to
make a Mockingjay symbol. But not a jewellery symbol, she'll never trust that.
Something I can take in as my District symbol. Food. Not allowed. I know! I
untie my shoe lace and tip my shoe upside down. A coin falls out with the
Mockingjay symbol on it. I made it incase there was ever a rebellion. I turn it
over in my hand.
She has to trust me with this. I'm not worried about
Peeta not trusting me. I'm worried about Katniss. I watch all the videos and
it's about five in the morning before I realise I've been up all night. I yawn,
stretch and walk around the room for a few minutes. Then some people, no avoxes
walk in and start serving up breakfast. I walk in, no one else is around, I help
them serve up. They look greatful but as soon as Dakota, Cash and Gloss walk in,
I sit down and start eating. They're chatting about sponsors. I eat silently,
careful not to answer any revealing questions. I walk up to the window of the
train. Peering outside I notice the Capitol.
Here I go again. No wait. This
is for Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark. Then it hits me.
Is this
really for Katniss? Is it not just for Finnick Mellark, the boy you loved from
12? Is it to help his brother, Peeta? I tell myself to shut up and I stare
out the window as we pull up at the station. We're rushed into a car and driven
straight into the place we'll live till the games begin.
"Things are slightly different this year. The interviews will be tonight.
Instead of another day. Training starts tomorrow and you have only three days of
it. Then the real games begin." Says Dakota as nicely as possible.
Great.
Three days to become an ally with Katniss and Peeta. I can do it. The car
arrives and Dakota takes us straight to our rooms. We're on the first floor.
District 12 is 11 floors above us. I step into my room and am ambushed straight
away by my prep team; Liquid, Ivory and Damian. My stylist will arrive later.
They wax my legs, do my hair, make up and nails. Not much needs doing though as
living in District 1 gives some advantages. It saves the pain of the leg
wax.
"The lack of seafood really is annoying." Exclaims Ivory.
"I know. I ordered prawns and clams for my birthday but orders must've been
backlogged." Agrees Liquid. Liquids skin is a light aqua colour, tatooed with
waves that appear to move. Her hair and nails match her skin. Damian has a light
olive skin colour with a forest green hair colour. Ivory is exactly as her name
describes. Ivory skin, pearls surgically placed into her skin. I can't judge, I
mean what if I was from the Capitol?
"You're all done. Tigris will be here soon." They all leave quickly and I
have minutes to find my coin and hold it tight before Tigris waltzes into the
room, stands me up, looks at me and let's me sit again.
"It's good to see you again Kasee." She says giving me a hug. "I have your
dress ready." She leans in. "I teamed up with Cinna to make it. There's no
effects though." She pulls away, smiling. She tells me to close my eyes as she
steps me into the dress, pulls it up and makes alterations. She says to open my
eyes, I do so and stare at myself in the mirror. It's a sunset orange dress,
full length with sandals and a sunset pink hairband. "I knew you'd love it." She
takes my hand and leads me to the seating area where we wait to go on stage for
our interviews. I only have to wait for one person. Gloss then me. Then I'm
next. Ceasar smiles at me, I smile back. He asks me pointless questions about
the Capitol, has it changed since last time?
"Well we all know about Finnick Mellark, and we're all sorry about that as
you know, but have you found anyone else?"
Don't you dare try to use Finnick
against me.
"No. I'm not interested in anyone from
my District."
That has to
sting.
"Well! There you have it ladies and gentlemen, Kasee Amberson!" He smiles to
the crowd before interviewing everyone else. Most seem to be complaining about
the games, that they're being brought back in even though we're victors. It's
Peeta's turn. He mentions a toasting ceremony. That's sweet. Then he says it.
If it weren't for the baby... Katniss is pregnant. I instantly feel
even more sympathetic towards Katniss and Peeta. She's 17, my age, and she's
married and is pregnant. It's her interview next. All the victors stand up at
the end of the interview. Instead of walking away we all link hands. The cameras
turn off, the lights go black. We're left to get off the stage in the dark. I
don't try to find my way off the stage, I try to find Katniss. It's dark but I
manage to give her a hug.
"I'm on your side, Katniss." I pull off my headband with my coin knotted into it and hand it to Katniss. She turns it over in her hands.
"Thank you, Kasee." She says, handing me it back. She walks off with Peeta leaving me to stumble off the stage and into my room. I walk past Dakota and go straight to sleep. Tomorrow training begins.
I wake up to find a tracksuit on my bed. I laugh to myself as it's the same one from my first games. I put it on, do it up and walk out of my room. I must be a few minutes late, Atala has already started speaking. I stand at the back paying full attention until she's finished talking. Imediately everyone disperses to a station except me and Katniss. We stand there looking at the stations. I notice the knott station is empty and head there. I impress the trainer by showing her how to tie the knott used in my headband. Katniss joins me later on an works on an intricate knott. I decide to leave her alone, pregnancy can be a tough time on someone. Especially a seventeen year old girl.
For a girl from District 1 apparently I have good knowledge of plants, knotts, throwing a knife and camoflague. I attempt to fire an arrow but it lands next to my foot. Katniss walks over and helps me learn how to shoot. She's not the friendliest person I know, but you'd trust her with anything. I can tell Haymitch is telling her to make friends- she'd have left me alone otherwise.
"You're quite good." She says as I just miss the targets eye.
"Only because you helped. Thanks Katniss." I say. And I really mean it. I need all the help I can get. I can tell sponsors from 1 will be sponsoring Gloss, not me.
"No problem. Say, me and Peeta are looking for allies and you're not exactly a career, no offense." I smile. "So what do you think?"
"I'd love to." She leans in.
"Me and Haymitch are doing everything we can to make it so Peeta wins. Will you help?"
"Yes." I say without hesitation. She smiles. I can safely say that by the end of the day I can hit the target in the eye no problem. For the next few training days I cover all the stations, spending at least an hour to two hours on the ones I've never dealt with before. Then it comes to our private sessions. I'm second to go in but what shall I do?
It's the rebellion. Quater Quell. What would Finnick Mellark do? I say to myself.
Show up the Capitol. And that's what I'll do. About 15 minutes after Gloss went in I'm called through. I walk in, the Gamemakers watching intently. I grab a bow and just one arrow. I attatch a rope to it and launch it at the ceiling, they look at me with concern. The rope dangles from the ceiling to the floor. I grab a can of oil and three matches before I climb the rope, pulling it up with me as I go. The Gamemarkers are really confused now. I reach the top of the rope and start swinging backwards and forwards, pouring the oil as I go. I stop swinging Pull out and arrow, get it ready to launch and use a match to light the tip. The flame burns out before I can fire it. I pour some oil on it, relight it and fire it down to the oil below. The whole thing sets a light. I painted a Mockingjay. In oil. And set it on fire. I swing, somersault and land just outside the burning image. I drop everything, weapons, oil, matches and look up to the Gamemakers. They don't look impressed. "Mockingjay." I say before walking out. I see Gloss, Cash and Dakota are all chatting in the dining room. They won't notice if I don't turn up. I head into the elevator. I press 12. I'm zoomed up to the top floor, the penthouse. I stand down the corridor. I wait about an hour to two hours before I hear Katniss and Peeta enter there rooms. I stand up and knock on their door. Effie Trinket answers.
"Oh hello, Kasee, right?" I nod. "Can I help?"
"Is it against the rules for me to watch the replays with another District?" She shakes her head.
"I don't think so, why?"
"Can I watch the replays with District 12? 1 barely knows I exist." She smiles and nods then lets me in. She introduces me to everyone before I take a seat next to Cinna, Katniss' stylist. Katniss smiles at me. I smile back as Effie turns on the television. Gloss' picture appears. Then a number appears and it's as follows.
Gloss- 9
Kasee (me)- an 11, everyone smiled at me.
Brutus- 8
Enobaria- 9
Wiress- 6
Beetee- 7
Mags- 8
Finnick- 10
Atala- 3, what did she do wrong?
Yarrow- 4, yikes
The morphlings- 5
Johanna- 9
Blight- 7
Cecelia- 8
Woof- 8
Fancy- 3, He wasn't too good then.
Twill- 5
Parsley- 7
Thicket- 9
Seeder- 9
Chaff- 8
Katniss- 12
Peeta- 12
I stare at them in amazement. Katniss gives me a hug of congratulations, but I turn away from Peeta.
"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Effie asks. I look at them all and nod. They take me through and I sit next to Haymitch and Effie. Everyone is involved in talking. It gets to about 11pm and we're half way through watching the games of other victors when someone knocks on the door. Effie goes to answer it as we put on the 73rd Hunger Games. My games. I hear yelling at the doorway and look up to see Cash screaming at Effie. I jump up and run over. Gloss is there too. He grabs me and flips me into the wall outside.
"Traitor." He says yanking his sister away and walking off. Haymitch helps me stand.
"You're spending the night here." He states, helping me back into the dining room.
"Thanks Haymitch. Thanks all of you." I say. We watch my games in silence. It's getting to the part where Finnick dies. Peeta excuses himself, then Katniss. Katniss says I can sleep on the sofa in her room so I follow her through, lay down and close my eyes.
"You don't mind if Peeta comes in tonight?" Katniss asks nervously.
"Not at all." I say. I fall asleep.