Nothing Personal

District Two Interviews

After the tumult from the District One tributes had died down, Martina invited Tile Reserning up to the chair. Amber scowled at her as she bounced forwards, beaming brightly at the crowd through bright red lipstick. Unlike with Amber's dress, Tile's stylists had gone for out-and-out contrast rather than glitz. Her dress was loose and floated around her feet, black with white bands around the bust and hips. Her hair was gleaming golden and piled up on top of her head, with a small strand framing her pointed chin.

"Martina, hi!" she gushed instantly, "I've been looking forward to meeting you!" Martina laughed and patted her on the hand; her nails were blood red and sharped almost to talons. "Well, honey, I hope that I don't disappoint!" she chirped, and Tile smiled reassuringly.

"Oh no, of course not! You look much better in real life!"

"I am being well and truly flattered tonight, aren't I?" Martina asked the crowd playfully, "One of you should tell my husband; this is how you do it!" This got her a round of knowing laughs, her husband in the front row laughing the loudest of all.

"Don't flatter her too much; she already knows she's beautiful!" he shouted, just loud enough for the tributes to hear. Taylor and Austin exchanged glances and smirked. Martina, with a cheeky gesture at her husband, turned back to Tile with a huge smile on her face. The girl looked amused, her perfect teeth shining in the stage lights.

"So, Tile, you are looking stunning tonight. You must have to beat the boys off with a stick back home!"

Tile giggled prettily. "Well, sometimes. I think some of them are a bit scared of me though!" She even fluttered her eyelashes at the camera, prompting a few whistles from the crowd, never mind that she was young enough to be some of the whistler's daughter, and in one case grand-daughter.

Behind her, Amber frowned, inwardly criticising the younger girl's lack of tact. She was making herself seem cheap and easy to win over. Luckily, it didn't seem to be working on Dark. He was playing absently with one of the strands of hair, looking at her from the corner of his eyes. Pleased, she sat up a little straighter.

On the stage, Martina was continuing to press Tile on her conquests; "Well, tell me because we're all dying to know; is there a special guy back home?"

Rufus tried to bury his head in his hands without anyone noticing. Luckily everyone was either staring at Tile or watching the two District One tributes staring each other out.

"Well, Martina!" chirped Tile, visibly taken aback in a pretty kind of way, "I don't want to have to disappoint anybody but...yes, yes there is."

There wasn't; this was a carefully planned move. For a start, it would whip up interest and competition among the boys back home. For a second, it would give her an extra motive, a kind of platform. Martina seized on this happily. "Oh! Sorry boys!" - some people booed playfully - "Tell me a little bit about him. What's his name?"

"I don't want to say," muttered Tile, ducking her head so that the strand dangled teasingly in front of her eyes, "But he is very special! And I really really want to get back to him!"

Martina was good on picking up cues by now and she took this one expertly. "Oh, honey, you mean he doesn't know? Why not?"

Tile shrugged, slipping easily into the act, and arranging the straps on her dress as if they were falling off. "I just...I didn't know if he likes me or not..."

"Oh, give over, honey! Pretty girl like you; I bet he'd do anything for you!" Martina cooed. Tile smiled back. "Well, I suppose I'll just have to tell him when I get back then, won't I?" she replied. This earned her a round of applause and - though she didn't know it - another ten sponsors. A steely expression flashed across her face, full of determination.