*DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THESE CHARACTERS, EXCEPT FOR THE STYLISTS AND ANY OTHER MADE UP PEOPLE. THE ENTIRE PLOT AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS MRS. COLLIN'S. I'M JUST WRITING A FAN FICTION. *
"No," I moaned. "Oh, no!"
But, I thought, I have no way to be sure. As soon as I thought that I figured I'd better check and see if there were any pregnancy testers. Of course, being the Capitol, they had everything. Including an instant result pregnancy tester which had been shoved into the back of the cabinet.
I used it and glanced down quickly. Congratulations! You are-- My thumb was covering up the last word, but I knew what it would say. I was so shocked, scared and happy, that I didn't remember the worst part of my pregnancy; I was still in the games. If my prep team found out about it, they would probably abort the baby. And, if I died, the baby would die, too. It would never grow to meet its father. It would never see it's three aunts or grandparents. I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't let the Capitol kill Chasin's baby.
Just as I was thinking this, Trustine knocked on the door to my room.
"The preps are ready for you, Clove!" She called.
"Alright," I said, but it came out as a whisper Trustine couldn't hear through the closed door.
"Clove!" She rapped on it again.
"Coming!" I yelled. I threw away the tester after I wrapped it up in toilet paper. Taking a deep breath, I walked over to the door, opened it, and stepped into the hall.
"Good morning, love," Trustine smiled. "Clarisse and your team are waiting for you."
She led me to the Prepping Floor.
"Sylvia, Madigan, Lucas!" Trustine called.
Two girls and one guy all bounced over.
The first girl had neon green hair, long sparkling turquoise eyelashes, purple lips, and jewel encrusted cheeks which were apparently supposed to look like freckles.
The second woman had a silver afro, golden eyes and lips, and silver dyed skin.
The man, Lucas, was the most normal looking. He wore a grey pantsuit and his crimson hair was covered in the same shade of glitter.
"We've got her from here, Trustine," Lucas's voice was surprisingly high pitched.
"Okay, off you go, Clove! Your team will take wonderful care you you." She promised and waved joyfully.
"Don't worry, Miss, you're in good hands now," The girl with neon hair, Sylvia, smiled.
"Oh, okay," My voice quivered slightly.
The prep team went to work. They waxed my body, ridding me of any "horrifying" hair. They reshaped my eyebrows, not to look like lace as Lucas wanted, but to look normal. They filed my nails down to a precise shape and covered my face in a thin layer of make-up that polished it. Last, they removed what Madigan squealed was a "mustache".
The team called in my stylist.
My stylist was Odette Lunaria. Tall, her body long and graceful. You would have thought of her to have an arrogant voice, but no. Her voice was extremely high, and, partnered with that eccentric Capitol accent, made her nearly drive me to insanity when she simply said hello. She was sporting her usual severely short bob haircut, and long, curled confetti hung down past her shoulders. Her full lips were painted a dark shade of red, which matched her hair very well.
She watched me for a while, scanning my body, which was naked. I felt exposed. I wanted to pull my robe from the nearby chair and hide behind it, but I didn't follow the urge.
"You may put your robe on," She said. Once I had tied the robe tightly about myself, she snapped her fingers and had me follow her into a different room.
I concluded that all rooms on the Remake Center looked the same. That meant every tribute had a room with a total glass wall; a sprawling view of the unnaturally bright city. I gawked at the bizarre colors, cars, and people.
"Hungry?" Odette's voice brought me back to the present.
"Uh, I guess," I said, feeling a nervous knot tie up my stomach.
"Eat," She pressed a button by her chair, and, without delay, the table top split open and a gourmet meal came forth from it. "I'll explain what I want to portray you as."
I took a small bite of the delicious iced raspberry rose petal soup and realized how famished I was. I began to eat a lot more quickly.
"You and your district partner, Cato, both have a strong, dominant look about you. Felix and I believe an armored look would suit the both of you quite nicely. Thinking back to the time of ancient Greece, we have dug up a few pictures and plan to make you to some armour similar to the ancient style, only, make it with a lightweight stone as you come from the masonry district." She stopped talking for a moment and took a dainty sip from her glass. I couldn't tell what the honey colored liquid inside was. "Any questions?"
"Erm," I said, and quickly swallowed. "Uhm, when am I going to put it on?"
"As soon as you are done eating," Odette said.
I felt her disdainful eyes on me the entire time I ate, scrutinizing my every move.
When I was finally done, she led me back to my room in the Remake Center.
"Here it is," She said and held up a silver and gold breastplate. Before she helped me with the armour, she had me put on a black sleeveless shirt and black shorts that came just above my knees. After that, she helped me into each piece of stone armour.
Lastly, she fixed my make-up, adding a golden tone to my already tanned skin, covering my eyelids in a bold silver shadow, lining my eyes with a stone gray liner.
"Okay, you're done!" Odette stepped back and the prep team squealed about how beautiful I looked and about how I was sure to get many sponsors. All I could think about was what Trinity's face would look like when she saw me in this costume. I began to feel tougher than I had since the reaping, more secure.
"Let's get you back to Enobaria!" Odette and the preps lead me away from the Remake Center for the time being.
I gulped when I saw our chariot. Cato leaned against it so easily, and he really looked like he truely belonged by it. His armour matched mine, only it fit him much more than it fit me. He looked so powerful, for a fleeting moment I was terrified. I hid it well, and strutted over to the chariot in a manner that made Cato raise his dark blond eyebrows. An annoying smirk crossed his face.
"Don't," I glared at him. The smirk vanished, and he looked a bit...worried?
"It's time!" Felix, a short man with evergreen colored hair and pale baby blue skin, Cato's stylist, told us. Cato climbed up into the chariot on his own, but Felix felt the irritating need to help me up into it. Cato had that smug look painted across his face again, and I resisted the impulse to stick my tongue out at him. Instead, I adjusted my gold, winged head piece and ignored him by facing forward, my body stiff.
Our chariot began to move, and ahead of us, I caught a glimpse of a waving, smiling Glimmer in a sparkling silver tunic. I want to laugh, so instead I smiled and waved at the crowd. They roared when the saw our slate gray horses trotting down the isle.
We came to a stop just as the District 12 chariot began to move. I watched, awed as the crowd, as the Everdeen girl and Mellark boy made their way to us. They wore capes and crowns of actual fire. Their faces glowed in the evening light. Then I saw that they were holding hands. This didn't make any sense as they were going to have to kill each other. The crowd went insane, screaming their appreciation, stomping their feet, throwing roses. This obvious love of the District 12 tributes made me angry. My teeth ground together as I watched them. When their chariot stopped, I realized that they would have to go. Immediately. They were going to shatter my ability to make it back to my family.
President Snow gave the usual speech, which which ended with, "Welcome the tributes to the 74th Annual Hunger Games!"
We were aired once more on the huge screens, but only shortly, because the cameras went and hovered on District 12 again.
I glowered as I jumped down from the chariot.
I was still glaring as we watched a recap of the chariot ride.
I went to bed that night feeling my anger slowly seeping away and being replaced with fear of what tomorrow would bring.
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A/N
Soooooooo sorry that I haven't updated this story in so long, Narwhals! I know, I'm pathetic :/. I am rereading THG for the 4th time, and I guess I was inspired to start writing this one again:). I will update more often, guys!
Also, if the story switches into the present tense at some points, it's because I was having some difficulty with remembering to write in the past tense.
Thanks for reading and supporting me! Remember to vote, comment, and enjoy!
I'll update again soon, okay? Love my Narwhals!
The Unicorn LOOOOVER :D