𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐬 | 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟕𝟔𝐭𝐡 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 ✔️

𝕍𝕀

Our feast following the first day of Training is a quiet affair. I sit next to Aurora opposite Salacia and Nereus, who don't ask much about Training because I don't think they really care. From the looks of it, the two of them are only here for the luxuries of the Hunger Games suites and the clout they'll receive from their positions. They dig into the food as Aurora and I share a glance.

While Nereus digs into a massive leg of meat, I turn to Aurora. "Can we talk about our new allies? I don't know how I feel about them."

Aurora glances at the two adults before grabbing my hand. "Let's go to my room and talk," she says quietly.

After we stand and excuse ourselves, Aurora leads me to her room, where we sit on her bed to talk.

"I know you're unsure about the others," Aurora acknowledges. "I think we're making the right decision here, though. I just have a feeling that we'll need some other kids on our team. Who knows what the Gamemakers have planned."

"I just don't trust the others," I say anxiously. "They might not be Careers, but they're still from the wealthiest Districts. They probably think they're entitled to win the Games, and will do whatever it takes to get there. I don't want to be caught in the crossfire if that happens."

Aurora nods. "I get that. But, you have to think about it from my perspective. I don't have manual labor experience like you. I'm pretty weak and I need some allies to take care of me to help me make it to the end. I know that you might not trust them, but I trained with Isabelle and Vesta today and they seem really nice. It's a risk, but it's the right choice."

I sigh a bit. I know I'm never going to win this argument. "If that's what you think is the right thing to do, I trust you."

Maybe Aurora is right. Almost all of the tributes are weak and fragile, so what other options do we have? Having soldiers like Phoenix and Isabelle on our side will be very useful.

I just hope it isn't a decision I'll come to regret.

~

The second day of Training passes much like the first. This time, we have some allies to work with. Axel is actually quite nice, and he helps me work on sparring with my spear. On the other side of the room, Aurora has made fast friends with Isabelle and Vesta. Phoenix trains on his own today.

Towards the end of the day, Axel decides to train with Vesta, so I head to a plant station. May as well learn about the Arena before I head into it.

I'm surprised to see a girl already in the station. She's so small, I didn't see her at first glance.

"Oh, hello," I say with a smile as I pick up a plant manual. "Sorry to disturb you."

She glances up at me, and I recognize her - she's the girl from District 12, Selina. "Oh, no worries," she says. "Any company is good company in here. I sure need it."

"What about your District partner?" I ask. "I thought I saw him over at the obstacle course."

She gives me a grim look. "Rory and I are not together anymore. We're not on speaking terms."

"Oh," I say, surprised. I didn't think about the fact that some of the District partners might split, especially with how close Aurora and I are. "Sorry to hear that."

"It's okay," Selina says, but I can tell it's not. "I do think we still care about one another, but for our own sakes, we have to separate. I mean, he's supposedly Katniss Everdeen's cousin, and I'm the District 12 female, so I think we're both going to die. The Games are going to be rigged against us, so what can we do?"

"Supposedly?" I ask, confused.

Selina nods. "They aren't actually related. The Capitol just made that up. Rory's older brother was best friends with Katniss and was also a rebel leader, but in the Capitol, they think he's related to her."

"That's awful," I say. I feel bad for Selina - she hasn't done anything, and here she is in the Hunger Games. Not only that, but the Games are certainly going to be rigged against her. No matter what, District 12 won't have another Victor for a long, long time.

I guess I'm lucky in that regard. I may have low odds of winning, but at least I have a chance. Selina and Rory are going to die. The only question is when.

Aurora was less than happy about my interaction with Selina that night when we returned to our suite.

"What were you doing around with the girl from 12?" she asks. I can tell she's jealous.

"What do you mean?" I ask. "I was making conversation. We were at the same station, I wasn't going to ignore her."

"You could have," she argues. "Just stay away from her, okay? We only have so much time together left. Keep me sweet."

I nod, but I know Aurora won't understand. She wouldn't feel bad for Selina like I do. That doesn't make her a bad person, really. I know most of the other tributes don't care about the District 12 kids. But I can't help but feel bad for them. The only thing keeping us going is the hope that we might survive, but they don't even have that.