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WHEN LUCY GRAY'S MENTOR LEFT, A FEW OTHER TRIBUTES DARED TO BRAVE THE PUBLIC. They wandered towards the bars, allowing the citizens of the Capitol to rake their eyes over their filthy bodies, pity and superiority returned in shiny eyes.
Zea would've gotten up, but irritating her legs at that point would put her in a tough place for the games. "This is so unfair," she muttered. Coral had approached the crowd, leaving Mizzen and her behind. Lamina had silently sat herself next to them, unsettled by the prying eyes. "Charming people is what I'm best at. But because of these—" she smacked her legs, "fucking things, I'm stuck here."
The other two tributes responded with sympathetic glances, Lamina refocusing on the ground. Mizzen glanced around the enclosure, seeking out her district partner. "What if Panlo helped you?"
Zea considered this, following the young boy's gaze to her District partner, stood at the back of the enclosure defiantly. "Hmm, good idea, little eel." Mizzen's brows furrowed in offense, his mouth dropping open to complain, not that he got the chance. "Panlo!" Zea called loudly, stopping the buzz of voices around her. "Why don't you help me up so I can speak to these lovely people? Why does everyone else get to have the fun?"
Pushing himself off the wall, Panlo groaned, making his way to her. "How should I do this?"
"Great question..." A supportive shoulder wouldn't completely take away the weight on each leg. "You're going to have to carry me."
"No."
Zea huffed, "Listen, I'm not too fond of the idea either. I'd rather have a pretty thing like Lamina here do it," she stuck a thumb out at the redhead, who looked up at her with wide eyes. "But I don't want to risk hurting her."
"Oh, but hurting me you have no problem?" Panlo asked, bending down so she could wrap her arms around his neck.
"I'm confident in your strength, Panny." Unconvinced, he rolled his eyes, one arm snaking under her knees as he lifted her.
"Where to?"
"Hmm," she surveyed the crowd. A few families stood by, children eager to see the tributes but too scared to get close. "Those two girls over there, showing kindness to children really wins people over." The girls were perfectly placed, a rock was close enough to the bars that Zea wouldn't have to shout, and a camera man stood nearby with that man, Lucky.
Panlo started toward the two Capitol children, both clad in pristine dresses with unblemished faces. "Glad to see you don't have ulterior motives."
He left after getting her settled on a rock nearly flush with the fence. The two girls observed her with wide blue eyes. Zea smiled, waving them over. "I don't bite."
The two sisters looked behind themselves to their parents, shy. Their mother, a tiny woman with dishwater blonde hair nodded encouragingly. "Go on."
"Hi there," Zea smiled, filling her voice with a sickly sweet tone. "I'm Zea Mays, what're your names?" The younger child hid slightly behind her sister, thumb in her mouth.
