I slumped in my chair as Red from district 1 went onstage, smiling brightly as her orange dress flowed out from behind her. I began to chew my thumb, my teeth grinding against my soft skin. My blonde hair had been tamed down from their normal wild tangles and now lay in soft curls around my face, framing my delicate features and pale skin. My eyes flitted from person to person as they passed, nervous smiles and cocky grins plastered on their faces. They seemed strange. Foreign, even. Being locked in your house for 8 years straight did have that effect on you.
I sunk down even further in my seat, looking around as I settled into the plush chair. I'd never experienced such luxury before. This whole experience was all new to me. My stomach growled loudly, and I looked to the right, where there was a trolley with lots of different foods on them. All the foods were beyond my wildest imaginations. A small bowl was filled with small, blue berries. I reached over and grabbed a handful before cramming it all in my mouth. Callisto from District 2 stared at me as if I had grown a second head as I stuffed as many berries as I could fit into my gob. I hissed at her, my hands mimicking claws, and she shrieked and took a step back. I leaned back in my seat and giggled maniacally. I chewed, and a burst of flavour erupted in my mouth. I smiled, satisfied, as the fruity flavour filled my mouth with sweetness. I swallowed and licked my lips, trying to get as much of the flavour as possible.
My gaze returned to the food trolley as I reached over and grabbed the first thing I could find - a thick and creamy substance that was labelled 'Greek style yoghurt'. I took it and held the small carton in my hands, and tentatively dipped my tongue into the yoghurt. It tasted creamy and slightly sour all at once. Yum.
I dipped my finger into the yoghurt and sucked my finger, gazing around at all the tributes. I saw Cherry look over at me, her expression wary, and I felt a sudden urge to pull out my dagger and stab her in the gut, watch the life bleed out of her. My whole body tensed up, and I dug my nails into my thighs to stop myself from attacking her. I would have plenty of time for that in the games. Plenty of time. All of the tribute had their interviews, and I stayed in my spot, waiting for my turn and watching the others tributes interact backstage.
Soon enough, it was my turn for my interview. I waited in the wings tentatively, still licking my fingers, until Sequin finally called out my name. The audience applauded loudly. I stood at the side of the stage, playing with my hair, until one of the avoxes had to shove me onstage. I turned around and hissed and them, my expression angry, and the avox's eyes widened in terror. I giggled as I made my way to the seat next to Sequin, and I very ungracefully sat down, still licking my lips. Sequin was so sparkly the bright lights almost made it blinding to look at her. She wore a sparkly dress, and her hair had sparkles and sequins scattered all through throughout it. She had somehow managed to get sequins imbedded into her skin, especially along her arms. She looked incredibly strange.
"Hello, Noelle." Sequin smiled politely. "Wow, don't you look pretty?"
I mumbled a thank you and looked down at my outfit. My stylist had dressed me in a light rosy pick dress. It was flowy and beautiful, but I didn't understand how that made me look beautiful.
"My dress pretty. I'm not." I said slowly. Sequin frowned.
"What?"
"I still me. I not different. This just me in pretty clothes and makeup. If I not beautiful before, dress doesn't change that."
Sequin stared at me, dumbfounded. "No, I meant..... nevermind."
I sunk down in my seat and began to chew my thumb.
"So, Noelle, how are you liking the Capitol?" Sequin asked.
"I like food." I mumbled. "I like the food. Is food here?" I began to look around.
"Uh, no, there's no food here." Sequin said, her voice bordering on frightened. I growled and sunk deeper into my seat, staring around at the audience.
"What do you miss most from back home?" Sequin asked me.
"Nothing." I muttered. "Locked in house for 8 years. Don't miss that."
"Oh-Okay..." Sequin said slowly. "Uhm... Who stands out the most this year?"
"Devlin." I said immediately. "His face burnt. Badly."
Sequin stared at me open mouthed, as if she couldn't quite believe I had just said that. I didn't understand. I didn't understand that it wasn't socially proper to say that. To me, I was just speaking the blunt truth.
"Umm, yes, he-he does have a little bit of a burn, doesn't he?" Sequin said jokingly, trying to make the conversation less dark. "Well, umm... Are they the biggest threat? If not then who is?"
"Careers are scary." I said, my voice muffled as I chewed my thumb. "Esperanza and Crystal too. But I just kill them."
"Huh-what?" Sequin sputtered.
"If they threaten me, I kill them." I said, a sickly smile spreading across my face.
Sequin appeared to be truly frightened at this point. "So, um.... Who do you think is the weakest tribute?"
"Willow." I said. "Too innocent. Shouldn't be here."
"Um..." Sequin was clearly starting to freak out, so she tried to speed up the interview.
"What do you think gives you an advantage over the other tributes?" Sequin asked me.
"I can kill." I muttered. "I can hide. I used to bad living conditions."
"Why do you deserve to win?" Sequin asked me.
"I don't know." I mumbled. "Because I can kill you all." I began to giggle maniaclly, rocking back and forth slightly. Sequin was edging further and further away.
"Do you have any allies?" she asked, her face portraying that she already knew the answer.
"No." I said immediately. "They backstab. I trust no one in the games."
The buzzer suddenly rung loudly, signalling the end of my interview, and the relief of Sequin's face was as clear as anything.
"Thank you to the wonderful Noelle Jenkins!" she announced loudly, before literally shoving me offstage. I staggered offstage, still giggling to myself. Suddenly, I bumped into someone. I squeaked and stumbled back, then looked up to see Devlin looking down at me. I stared in fascination at his burn, and raised my hand tentatively, my fingers tracing the burn. It was brown and black and red and all sorts of colours. The skin was charred, broken. Devlin stared down at me, obviously not quite sure what to do. My fingers touched the burn, and Devlin hissed in pain, but I took no notice. I looked up at him.
"What happen to you?" I muttered. Devlin shoved past me, his expression uncomfortable and irritated, and I watched him walk away, my head cocked to the side in confusion.