The Daughter of the Sea

▬▬ 𝟎𝟑 ∙ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗶𝗱𝗲

･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽

˚✩ ⋆｡ ✩┊ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐚 ┊✦ ˚ · .

▬▬ 01 ∙ 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚁𝚒𝚍𝚎

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The train started its journey, slowly picking up the pace as we left the station. It moved with such celerity that I wondered if this speed was even humanly possible. Moxie informed me, with a proud smile, that the train went up to 250 miles per hour and that we would be at the Capitol in less than a day. I glared at her and asked her why I would ever want to be at the Capitol just to die.

"This is an opportunity of a lifetime, not many other kids get this chance!"

I sighed, it wasn't that Moxie was a bad person. It was just that she was raised in a way where the Hunger Games are an honor. Still, I muttered, "And that lifetime won't be very long, will it?" I wonder if this is how Finnick felt three years ago, being transported to the fight for his life.

At the thought, I looked up from fiddling with my dress, searching for Finnick, but he wasn't in my compartment. Moxie was the only one with me, and she was still prattling on about nonsense. "Oh, I can't wait to see Wynter again, and Effie! I hope their tributes are better this year, last year was just completely disappointing." I assumed that she was talking about the other escorts, none of which I knew. Seeing as there was nothing to do, I wandered around the train's halls till I found my room.

The first thing I noticed was its soft, luminescent glow. Compared to the flashing, harsh lights of the Capitol that I've seen on TV, my room was surprisingly warm. It was big - well, big would be an understatement. I've never had this much space in my room before. I sat on the soft bed, covered with a light blanket the color of pearls. My body sank as if I were sitting on a pillow of clouds. Next to the bed was a small wood table, probably from District 7, with drawers for my little belongings. The handles were bejeweled with scintillating, invaluable gems and the wood shined with the scent of pine. I gently tugged on the ribbon in my hair to loosen it. There was some sentimental value that was possessed in this length of ribbon, maybe that's why I kept it. After carefully tucking it in the container along with Annie's bracelet, my token, I closed the drawer.

I found that I was unusually exhausted from the morning's swim and the Reaping. I opened the closet to find stacks of clothes and more that were hung up. The Capitol had the budget to waste money on useless items, but not enough to help the poorer districts, a fact that just added to my growing hatred of the Capitol. I did not want to accept the Capitol's gifts, the copious amount of clothes that a single room contained, but my dress was getting uncomfortable. Quickly, I changed into a loose blue blouse and shorts, hanging up my mother's dress in its place. I crawled back into the bed, pulling up the covers and letting my eyes flutter close. I flipped back and forth, one second the bed was too cold, and the next it is too hot. There was a little remote control next to me, and I pressed a red button labeled "self-adjust." The bed immediately flooded with warm steam that quickly cooled to just the right temperature. I finally flopped back over and stared up at the ceiling, deep in thought. Peace filled the room, and soon I felt myself slipping away.

I was eyeing the Peacekeepers with nervousness, as they pricked my finger and pressed my blood on the paper. I winced at the sharp stab, but I had greater worries than that. I was twelve, at my first Reaping. Technically I had witnessed so many go before me, but watching others get reaped and having the chance of getting reaped had a stronger impact than many imagine. Annie led me over to the other fidgety twelve-year-olds and left me to stand with the thirteen-year-olds. Finnick was over by the fourteen-year-old boys, giving me a reassuring smile. My name was only in there once, but who knows what would happen?