𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝑮𝒊𝒓𝒍.Cato Hadley

13.

~•~•~•~
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐣𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧.
~•~•~•~

Today is the day of the Individual Training. There was hardly anyone at practice yesterday, so Cato and I leave earlier, then we strategized with Haymitch and Enobaria.

Today, the gamemakers expect us to show them what we're good at, but I don't think anyone will try to impress them at all. I'll probably shoot a few times and leave. We don't have any sponsors to attract anyway.

I have breakfast with Haymitch and Cato and we talk about the Games.

"The arena will definitely be something we haven't seen before," Haymitch says.

"Plutarch told me he wanted the Hunger Games to be beautiful, so expect the worst," I say.

"Who knows what's going on in that guy's head, we just have to pray it's an arena like last year," Cato adds. He's right, last year was nothing like this one. At least most of the tributes couldn't fight back then, and now...

We talk some more and then prepare for the Individual Training. We put on the training outfit and go downstairs, to the hall where the gamemakers are waiting for us. We line up by the number of the Districts and wait for our name to be called, with me being the last one again.

First is Gloss, then Cashmere. We wait for fifteen minutes to pass and then Cato is called. He turns to me for a final look, walks into the hall, and never comes back. For a moment, I wonder what he did, but in the end, I come to the conclusion that he was most likely throwing spears or playing with the sword.

Little by little, the room starts to empty until it's just the two of us with Haymitch. He told me that he would probably throw knives because he was good with them before. Fifteen minutes pass and they call him too. Now I'm entirely alone, and I don't even feel the anxiety I felt last year. It's clear that we have all impressed them with something in the arena, we don't need to show any new talents.

"Melanie Clark." Finally, they say my name.

When I enter, I see that there are knives thrown at the targets, and I assume that some of them belong to Haymitch. Beete made some wires and Mags made fishing hooks. This is weird, last year we weren't allowed to see what the other tributes presented. Maybe it's because we already know our skills and they decided not to bother putting things away. This is what I think before I see something that immediately catches my attention.

In one of the targets with the human silhouettes, a spear is stuck, but not in the place of the heart, but where the stomach should be. Next to the target is written in red color and capital letters:

"THIS IS WHAT THE CAPITOL DOES"

I am speechless when I realize who actually played the role of the human target. Rue. It was there that the spear had lodged in her little body. That's why they show the tributes what they've done, they want me to see that. And I know who did it, the only person who can throw the spear so accurately is Cato. He's shown he doesn't care what the Capitol thinks anymore.