Never Yours (Peeta Mellark X Reader)

Chapter 7--First Impressions

At 10 minutes to 10 the very next day, you found yourself standing next to Peeta and Effie in the elevator wearing a training suit that was quite tight around your body, but provided some flexibility as you moved around, stretched, warmed up. It wasn't too bad, especially since you'll be doing a lot of physical activity for the next few days. Who knows how worked up people would end up being?

"Here we are," Effie murmured, ushering you and Peeta off the elevator. Soon, you found yourselves walking towards the training area, where you saw all of the other tributes present, wearing the exact same thing as you were, and bearing many different expressions.

"Thanks, Effie," you smiled. "We'll see you in the evening."

Effie just gave a smile in return as she retreated to the elevator, and then headed back up to the penthouse. In the meanwhile, you and Peeta glanced at each other in indecision.

"Well?" Peeta murmured to you, straightening his blond hair with the palm of one hand.

You shrugged. "Let's go."

Together, you both entered the training room, and you quickly took a look at all the other tributes. Some of them were larger and have more buff than you did. Others were smaller and quite scared and intimidated. A few of them had the aura of being more than prepared and ready for the Games--back in your district you referred to them as the Career tributes, and it wasn't hard for you to figure out and see that the tributes from Districts 1, 2, and 4 all have that kind of look on them. This made you feel slightly intimidated, especially when you realized that the tribute who was glaring at you last night was a Career tribute.

Suddenly, your confidence faded and you felt fear course through your veins. The slight edge you had with your fiery entrance the night before seemed to disappear in a trance. Looking at everyone now, you weren't sure anymore how you were going to offer something greater than what you managed to pull off last night, but you recalled Katniss's advice from reaping day, and your breathing soon came easier.

"Good morning," you heard a voice say from a corner of the room. You turned to see your head trainer, Atala, make her way to all of you.

"My name is Atala, and I'll be leading you through your training sessions," she said. "You are all aware that in two weeks time, 23 of you will be dead." She looked around to make sure that you were all catching up, and you nodded.

"Only one of you will be alive. Who that is depends on how well you pay attention over the next four days, particularly to what I'm about to say," she continues. "First, no fighting with the other tributes. You'll have plenty of time for that in the arena," she assured you.

Of course, you weren't planning on that. You took a good look at the Career tributes now, who were fighting hard not to look too displeased at that warning.

"There are four compulsory exercises, and the rest would be individual training," Atala said, and you perked up at the mention of that. Most of it, individual training. That would at least give you some time away from the rest of the tributes. Being around them would serve too much of a distraction.

"My advice is, don't ignore the survival skills," Atala finally said, and you nodded. "Everyone wants to grab a sword, but most of you will die from natural causes--10% from infection, 20% from dehydration. Exposure could kill as easily as a knife."

That was pretty obvious. The Hunger Games doesn't test on how well you kill--it tests on how well you could live and adapt to the environment of the arena. Who knows where you'll end up, anyway?

With that, Atala let you go, and your eyes first landed on the fire-making station. Of course, regardless of where you end up, you'd want to try out making a fire out of any kind of material, and you quickly made your way there, pushing down the fact that Haymitch made mention to Peeta that making one in the dark would get you killed immediately.