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TW: forced vomiting, death
THE CAPITOL ZOO CLOSED ITS GATES TO VISITORS AROUND EIGHT O'CLOCK AT NIGHT. The tributes relaxed for once, free from devouring eyes as they settled down, debriefing on their meetings with the few mentors that came.
"Sejanus makes a really good sandwich," Zea proclaimed to Marcus. "Normally I'd prefer turkey over ham, but I'm really not in any position to be picky."
Marcus scoffed, crossing his arms over himself, shutting down the compliment. "Probably had a servant make it."
Zea wanted to shoot back at him with a cruel reminder of his luck, but Marcus was easily a top contender to win— angering him wouldn't help her. "I'm just saying, my mentor didn't even think to bring me food. You shouldn't take him for granted so quickly just because of..." She trailed off, no need to air their dirty laundry. "Just because he's Capitol."
"My mentor seems to think everything is about him," Coral said, "Just because of that stupid prize."
Lucy Gray frowned, inching closer to the circle of tributes. She had mostly stuck to herself and Jessup, a pariah amongst them for her mentor's action. "Prize?"
A cruel snort fell from the redhead's lips. "What, did you think your mentor went to all that effort because he cared?"
Zea shot the District Four girl with a look of warning. "Hey, back off." Coral's gaze switched from Lucy Gray to Zea, and then to the ground in shame. "The mentor whose tribute is the most, uh, impressive? I guess? They win a bunch of money. That's why any of them are actually motivated to help us."
Lucy Gray let out a shaky breath, her head tilting slightly into a nod. The awkward moment was interrupted by Treech, who shrugged as he kicked some dirt with the tip of his shoe. "My mentor doesn't seem to care about the Plinth Prize."
"That's because she was District," Coral pointed out, "I recognize her from Four."
Zea zeroed in on Treech, "Does your mentor seem...cool?"
"What?"
Zea shrugged off all the questioning stares. "There's something I want to do...for fun. I'd need help on the outside though."
Panlo scoffed. "Zea, they're hardly going to let you do anything that you would consider fun."
She rolled her brown eyes, poking him in the side, "I'm sure they would allow you to engage in your idea of fun, Panny. Just give you a wet canvas and let you watch it dry." He made a quick move to grab her, Zea darting away to the other side of Lamina, placing her between them. "Kidding! Geez. Don't worry, this is something I think even the Capitol would like."
