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The three training days went by quickly. Dove had let everyone know about her alliance with Twelve, to which her district partner laughed at. From the very day she met Twelve, they ate together at dinner at the same table inside the training area.
It wasn't only weird for people outside the Career group to be together. But the odd combination between a hopeless girl from Four, technically a Career, and a boy from Twelve, the poorest district, made everyone think they were insane. Which wasn't too bad. If they were harmless, they wouldn't have many tributes going after them because they weren't a threat.
Dove had tried to talk to the girl from Twelve, but she seemed too focused on proving herself to the Careers. A thing neither Dove nor her ally shared with her. Their mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, had advised them to go unnoticed during the training. But the fifteen-year-old had other plans.
In the end, the alliance remained the same as the first day. The girl from Twelve had rejected their offer to help each other. She wasn't malicious, just naive, which was a dangerous trait for a tribute. They hoped she would at least survive the bloodbath. But the odds didn't seem favourable for her.
During their dinner, Dove and Twelve talked about anything that wasn't Capitol or Home related, which resulted in scarce topics to be discussed. The second day, Dove noticed a fish-shaped loaf tinted green with seaweed, the typical bread from her home. The bread her brother used to do.
She ate all the bread she could. When she did, it reminded her of home. It was somewhat comforting and heartbreaking at the same time. As the third day arrived, the tributes started to get called during dinner for the individual assessment. First the boy, then the girl.
Dove and Twelve talked until she was called to the room. As she entered, she saw the Gamemakers. All high and mighty in their comfortable couches. They were interested in watching what she would do.
Finnick had advised her not to show her handiness with a trident unless it was in a dangerous situation inside the Arena. She had to get a score between 6 and 7. High enough for sponsors to be interested, and not deadly enough for the Careers to consider her threatening.
She didn't do much. Dove showed her extensive knowledge of plants and did a few traps, in which she threw dummies to show how deadly they were. She could trap anyone up high in a tree and finish them off. That would be enough for the score Finnick had asked her to get.
Once she was dismissed, she went back to her floor, where everyone was listening to her partner. He was talking about his assessment, visibly proud of the show he had pulled with the trident.
She approached the couches and thought before sitting next to her mother. There was a space between Finnick and Melo, but she couldn't be so blatant.
Supper time went by in a blink of an eye, and the next thing Dove knew was watching the tribute announcing scores. As per usual, the Careers got high scores. Her fellow partner got a 9, not bad, but definitely not the best District Four had seen from a volunteer.
It was Dove's turn. Her face was shown, and immediately after, it showed the number eight. Eight! It was a bit higher than what Finnick had asked her, but she didn't care at the moment. She had a high score without barely trying. What would have happened if she had shown her fighting skills?
Even though everyone celebrated the two scores, Dove kept staring at the television. As the face of the District Twelve boy appeared, she read his name. Alder Caldwell. That's his name. She thought.
Alder surprisingly got a high score for a District Twelve tribute, an eight, just like her. She had to ask him if he had contained himself as well. Maybe after they were somewhere safe in the Arena, she would.
The next day was there. They would be coached on how to act during the interview. It wasn't Dove's favourite day, but she didn't mind not having to pretend to train. As they ate, Finnick spoke up.
"Since you both will go with completely different ideas, we have decided to coach you separately. Dove, you'll be training with Delia in posture first while Edric trains how to act. Then you'll exchange places with him, and you with her." The plan was simple enough. Although being alone with Delia scared her.
Dove was right to be afraid of her escort. Delia got mad at any tiny mistake she made. It was getting unbearable until she could finally do things somewhat correctly. Finally, she was called to meet with her mentors.
As they ate dinner, everyone told her how she should look. Cute, harmless, a little sister to everyone in the Capitol, giving them the need to protect her. When Finnick spoke up, she was convinced of which advice to go with.
"Act as you are. You're already all those things. There's no need to emphasise them and make you look weird. Take advantage of your illness and act as calm as possible. Show them how alike you're with Salacia. After all, who wouldn't bet on a Goddess?" His argument was convincing.
Acting too much would make her stand out oddly. And since in the Parade she already acted calm and collected, she should do the same for the interview.
Lessons ended faster than she thought. Dove looked at the bed. Two more nights and she would be in the Arena. She wasn't tired. She wanted to talk to Finnick, who would come at any given moment. From the very first day of the trip to the Capitol, he was the one to visit her.
Dove was grateful for that. She was too scared to leave her room at night and get caught. Looking through her clothes, she found her rope. Finnick had given it back the night of the first day of training. He apologised for not giving it sooner. The statement she made the day of the Parade was enough to scare him into forgetting everything else.
Tying knots had become almost therapeutic to her. It helped her stay clear from thought and gave her something else to be frustrated with. It was a good break from being furious at the odds.
"Aren't I the best teacher?" The sudden voice startled her enough to drop the rope. "Finnick! Goddammit. What have I told you about being a stalker?"
"Sorry. But, in my defence, I called your name and even knocked before getting close. You just were too deep in thought." He defended himself.
"It's crazy to think I only have two more nights before I have to go to the Games. I know I should sleep more, but I can't. And if I survive, what will happen to me? Will I want to go back in time to kill myself before I win? Will I accept it? 'Cause I don't think I can. . ." Finnick was the only one to know of her thoughts.
Although every time she thought out loud, Finnick felt as if someone punched him. But he knew she had to vent her emotions with someone. Dove wouldn't do something that could endanger her life, as long as someone waited for her to come home.
Sometimes he thought of the year in which he hadn't talked to her, thinking she was a pampered fool who would congratulate him. But she never came to do so. Months went by before he knew why. Melo told him how she didn't feel worthy to talk to him for the same reasons he had been thinking.
But now that he looked at her, a young and reckless girl who had risked everything for her family. Finnick agreed with Ohan's concept. She was the mermaid from the tail, although he wouldn't let her have the same ending. Dove would go back to her loved ones alive. Even if it cost him everything he was.
"When you're back, you can think about that. For now, concentrate all your energy on surviving, please." Dove stared at him in surprise. Finnick wasn't the type of person to beg. "Finnick, I promised you that already," she said in a light tone, hoping to lighten his mood.
"I know, I know. It's just that. . . Sometimes I wonder what you would start thinking if I wasn't around. I'm too scared to even imagine about inside the Arena," he whispered. Dove got closer to him, making their shoulders brush each other. She wanted to reassure him. She was still there for him, and alive.
"But you are. You are here for me, and I'm here for you. And about the Arena. . . " Dove paused, unsure of what to reply. "I'll simply remember your face. How horrified would you be if I gave up? How would you be staring at the television, hoping for me to keep going? Weren't you the one that said 'if you know someone you love is watching, it will give you strength'?"
Two hours went by quickly. They would have to go to sleep, but neither wanted to. They had less than forty-eight hours before the Games began. But Finnick knew Dove would have little time to sleep in the Arena. Therefore, she should use all her remaining time to sleep as much as she could.
Everything went according to plan the next morning. They had fallen asleep at some point in their conversation, and Finnick woke her up as dawn was breaking. Her prep team went to get her shortly after. They prepared her until late afternoon. With a surprising minor incident during those long hours.
As they started working on cleaning her body to leave it spotless, Dove felt a slightly painful sensation around her abdomen. It wasn't long before she noticed her period had come. She had never had one before. It was her first one, and she was less than twenty-four hours away from the Games.
The odds are really not in my favour. Dove thought. Luckily, Neari had a solution for that. From what Dove understood, the Capitol had developed medicine for this type of situation with the female tributes.
Taking her mind off her thoughts, Dove smiled at the sight of Neari painting scales again, all over her neck, face, and arms. Quedell was in charge of her hair. He was putting all kinds of products into it. And Mareshah painted her nails in a sea-green colour before drawing small waves and a trident.
Thankfully, the make-up was light. It was mainly a bit of eye shadow and eyeliner, with full sea-green lips. The prep team had painted scales around her eyes and a tiara on her cheek. The mermaid-Goddess idea still lasted.
Once they were convinced she was ready, Ohan entered the room with her dress. It was covered. Probably not to get it torn on the way, or not to get dust on it.
"Close your eyes. You're going to love it," Ohan announced. She did as he asked, feeling the dress getting wrapped around her body, and the sound of zipping that came with a slight tightening sensation.
She noticed as three pieces were arranged on top of her head. The tiara and flowers. Dove guessed. Grasping Neari's hand, she slipped to her shoes, still with her eyes closed. She relaxed as she noticed there were barely any heels to be worried about. Ohan hadn't let go of the innocent approach, which she was grateful for.
Dove thought that would be it, but it wasn't. Quedell was being chatty about some decorations he was going to place on her hair, as Mareshah braided her hair in one loose side braid. Once they let go of her hair, everything was silent.
"Can I open my eyes now?" Dove asked impatiently. "Yes," Ohan replied calmly. She opened them immediately after. Seeing herself in the mirror was mesmerising. Recently, she had gone from looking like a Victor's child to looking like a tribute. And now she looked like a Goddess.
Her dress was the same colour as the one in the Parade. But this time she had long sleeves. They were tight until they reached her elbow, where they separated and fell like a waterfall. Even though her cape was decorated with bits of golden colour, she still kept the modest look.
Her tiara was the same as in the Parade, but the two lotus flowers weren't alone this time. Along her loose braid, there were different types of shiny stones or marbles. Dove wasn't sure what those were.
"You will shine the brightest tonight," Neari assured her. Ohan smiled and nodded at the woman's statement. Dove knew that whatever they had planned, it would be powerful.
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