The Second Annual Hunger Games (Book 2)

Two

The room is just as luxurious as I remember from the first time. I collapse onto the huge bed, the mattress curving around me. It's about two minutes later that there's a knock on the door. I sigh and stand up.

"Tullis I'm not really-" I open the door and my breath catches. "Talon."

He smiles at my bewildered face, looks behind him, and then quickly enters the room closing the door behind him. Hi, he signs.

I stare at him for a moment before exhaling. "Hi."

We both look at each other for a long moment. It's been a while.

I scoff then crush him into a hug. "A while, it's been a year." I let him go. "How are you? Are you okay? Have they been hurting you?"

He smiles and leads me over to the bed where we sit down. So many questions. I'm fine. I think they've forgotten about you and me.

I sigh with relief. "I was worried."

How are you? he asks.

I hesitate. "Good."

The truth.

I look at the ground. "Scared mostly. I don't know if I can help these kids or survive the Capitol for that matter. I could barely manage life at home. I've only just adjusted."

Don't worry. I'll help you. He grabs my hand and squeezes it.

"I'm glad to see you, though."

He smiles again. Me too.

I glance at the door. "Is it safe, you being here?"

He shrugs. I don't know, but it's worth it. I had to trade with another avox to be on this train.

"Really?"

He nods and stands. I should go, though, before they notice I'm gone. I'll see you later. He cracks open the door and peeks through and then exits the room.

I stare at the door for a long time after he's gone. Talon risked a lot to come see me, so I know he cares about me, but how much? Before the games last year we kissed, but he was dragged away from me. After the games there was no possibility that we could have a relationship, so we didn't talk about it at all. Now, I don't know. He might just feel obligated to care for me after what I went through; he watched me go through it. Maybe he doesn't care about me in that way at all now. Maybe he found someone else in the year since we've seen each other.

I blink a few times and turn away from the door. I can't let myself worry about things I don't know. I take a shower and take comfort in the Capitol's ways of hygiene. It's the one thing they always seem to get right. Even though we moved to the new house the Capitol gave us, it isn't quite the same quality as in the Capitol. And this time I can actually enjoy it without being afraid of my imminent death.

They hot water calms my nerves and relaxes my muscles. I close my eyes and enjoy the feeling of the water rushing over me. My thoughts turn to the bed that awaits me and I quickly get out. Full from the meal and less tense from the shower I fall right asleep.

The sun seeping in through the window awakes me in the morning. I sigh and stare at the ceiling until Tullis taps on the door. "Aldera, are you awake?"

"Yup," I call back. "I'll be out for breakfast in a minute."

"Hurry." Her retreating footsteps sound through the door.

I get up and go to the closet. I'm overwhelmed by the amount of clothes the can fit in a closet on a train. I walk in and pick out an ivory dress with embroidered blue lace and some black sandals. I wash my face and then brush my teeth.

Tullis and both tributes are already in the dining car; they look like they didn't sleep a wink.

"Good morning," I say. I sit down and dig into the morning feast.

"Morning." Only Tullis responds.

"So when we reach the Capitol today you are going to meet your stylists. They will be the ones who design all your clothes when you're in the Capitol. They'll get you all cleaned up and ready for the parade."

"I already took a shower, how much cleaner can I get?" Fergus asks.

"Trust me, you're no where near clean by the Capitol's standards." Fergus and Sybille look at each with disbelief; this is the cleanest they've ever been. "Anyway, so they'll get you ready for the parade and Tullis and I will meet you before it starts. Depending on what outfits your stylist have for you, we'll decide your image and how you should act based on that image. Before I forget, do either of you have any skills that could be useful in the arena?"

"I can identify edible plants," Sybille says. She glances at Fergus and me. "I guess everyone in 11 can do that though."

"I can do that but otherwise I'm not good at anything. I'm smart but that won't win out over muscles." Fergus looks down at the table.

"That's not necessarily true. Sometimes the best way to defeat an enemy is to outwit them. You can set traps and that mind of yours will definitely help you in hostile environment if you remember how to survive. In training they'll teach you how to start fires, camouflage yourself, find water, all sort of things. A good mind will help you with that, many people last year died of dehydration, not because someone else killed them."

"How can you talk like that? How can you just accept that this is happening?" Sybille looks at me with something like disgust.

I lick my lips. "I had to accept it a year ago. It's the only way to survive. You plan, you figure out your strengths and the enemies weaknesses, or you die." I take a deep breath. "I know how this all sounds, but this is your new reality. The sooner you accept your reality, the longer you'll live."

There's a bit of a silence before Tullis says, "Anyway, after the parade there's nothing else for today, so we'll go back to our floor in the training center. There are three days of training but we'll talk about that later. Then there's the interview and the individual sessions with the gamemakers, and then..."

"Game time," I finish for her. "We're going to get you guys as ready as possible for these games."