My room on the train consists of a huge king-sized bed with silk sheets, a bathroom filled with endless gadgets (most of which I have no clue how to use) and a expanse of glass that shows the world whizz by before me. I get into bed and pull the sheets over my body. I shiver yet it is so warm. My thoughts are tangled, my head a jungle. There is a knock at the door and Johanna slowly walks in and sits at the foot of the bed.
"Hey. I knew you'd be awake. I still can't get to sleep and it's been over twenty years since my games."
"Yeah. Do you have any more advice?" I ask.
"Plenty, if you want to hear it." She says as she flicks the lightswitch on.
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"Get your hands on a weapon at the bloodbath. Trust me." I soak up all of her useful information like a sponge.
"I'm pretty good with an axe" I say.
"So was I. Not as good anymore though..." She says sadly, "You can carry on my axe legacy."
"I will. So how should I get the tributes to fear me?" I ask.
"Pick off some weak ones at the bloodbath and then get into an alliance. Act vicious in the training centre too." She replies. I nod my head before dropping back onto the bed.
"I think I should sleep now. I'm pretty tired." I say yawning.
"Yes. The Capitol will drain you tomorrow. Sleep well." She says quietly closing the door behind her. I slide off my precious ring and place it on my bedside table. Slowly I drift off to sleep, and I once again have awful dreams all night.
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I am back in the games. This time it is different. A liquid shimmers beneath my feet as it laps up and onto my pedestal. The cornucopia is situated in the middle of an expansive ocean. I squint into the distance, my eyes catching sight of various islands.
The gong sounds and I instinctively dive into the water. It hurts my eyes and runs fiercely against my skin. I tear through the waves like a fish from District Four.
I feel a tugging on my foot. It's a rope curled around my leg, a tight grasp on me. It pulls me under the water into darkness. I struggle for breath and thrash around, knowing it will kill me faster.
I wake up coughing and spluttering to the illusion that my lungs are filled with salt water, I take deep breaths until my pulse goes back to a steady pace.
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I hate the shower that I decide to undergo. The hot water reminds me of last night's slumber. Once I'm finished I hit a button that reads steam
The shower fills slowly with the mist, clouding the glass door and drying my slick, wet body.
I pull on the clothes that have been left for me: a dark green jumper with beige trousers. I slide on my ring before there is a persistent rapping on my door. Gracie slips into the room.
"Hello dear. We've arrived. It's quite busy outside but there is no need to be alarmed. Just smile and wave dear. If you want to look tough, set your jawline and look past the crowd. Don't worry. " She tells me optimistically.
"Thank you. I thought you were like them you know, but you're not. It's because you've seen what happens in the districts. Awful things. Terrible." I mumble.
She bows her head looking sorrowful as she ushers me out to Breakfast. I sit with Ash and eat two and a half sausages and have a drink of something warm. I, personally, would like it sweetened with sap, but I don't mention it.
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"Whats your district token?" I ask Ash, clasping the warm mug which holds my drink.
"It's here," he says as he pulls a chain from around his neck, over his head. "It was my mother's. She died last year." His bottom lip trembles and he bites down on it to stop the shaking. He hands me the necklace. On first glance it looks like bark. On further inspection I see it is actually gold, the rough markings of a tree running down the jagged mineral.
"It's beautiful," I tell him "Here. Mine's a ring." I say as I lift my hand.
"Wow, it's really nice," He says, with wide eyes as he carefully inspects the ring.
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I stand infront of the sliding door that leads to the Capitol. A mordern and futuristic city. The place that haunts my nightmares.
"Brace yourselves." Gracie sighs. Ash shoots me a nervous look and I raise an eyebrow a him, letting him now I feel the same. The door edges open and I am overwhelmed with every shade of every colour imaginable. I am blinded by the flashing of cameras taking in my every angle. The millions of eyes watching me, judging me, studying me.
Gracie's voice plays back in my head, set your jawline and look past the crowd...
I do exactly that. I look past all of the reporters and photographers, without any emotion in my eyes. The crowd wave desperately for me to talk or even look at them, but I do no such thing. I don't pity them. I hate them.
Gracie does the opposite to me. She smiles at everyone and calls out to the crowd members she recognises. Ash has a handsome look on his face, winking to the occasional adoring fan. He may seem like a nice guy, but I can't be sure whether I trust him just yet.
++++++++++++++++++++
After what feels like half an hour of walking through Capitol crowds we arrive at a place Gracie calls the Salon.
We step inside and three colourfully dressed people, my prep team I imagine, swarm around me taking me from Gracie. I catch a glimpse of Ash being taken by his three makeover artists.
"I'm Alexis," says a tall woman, her skin a shining silver dressed in golden silk. She walks in these incredibly metallic shoes with points at the ball of the foot. She then informs me that they are stillettos, the very height of fashion in the Capitol. It looks like they would hurt a lot to walk on.
The rest of my team introduces themselves as Alonzo and Aqua.
"But you can just call us the A-Team!" Aqua chuckles, and the others quickly join in. I force a fake smile as they get to work.
The next three hours are my worst nightmare. First they strip me naked, but I insist I leave my ring on, much to their annoyance. Then they get some strips of paper, coat them in hot wax, and pull all of the hairs from my body. I grit my teeth until eventually they bathe me. They keep my hair the same length but clip my nails, before painting then a dark green colour.
"I think we can send you to Apollo now." Alonzo says with a big grin, obviously pleased with his work.
I pull on a pure white robe and catch a glimpse of Ash from across the salon. His blonde hair is on piles on the floor, his head bare.
YOU ARE READING
Broken - A Hunger Games Story
FanfictionIn a dark vision of the near future twelve boys and girls are forced to appear in a live TV show called The Hunger Games . Katniss Everdeen never existed. There was no rebellion. There was no Mockingjay. However, on the 93rd Annual Hunger Games, the...
