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fausta wakes me up next morning by knocking at the door. i let willow go when she also wakes up slowly ; i leave the bedroom to go in mine take a shower and dress up. then we join our escort and our mentors for breakfast. the mood is not really set for discussion with us apparently, so even if i hear a few times about the sponsors or even the interviews, i'm not really paying attention. i'm more focus on the white breads, the fruits and all the sweet drinks we can eat.
i'm just finishing a cup of coffee when the large fields we could see through the windows fade away. dark makes its room around us when we enter a big tunnel dug in the mountains around the capitol.
we're back ! fausta screams suddenly, making me jump. we're back home, finally !
when the sun floods again in the train, i'm quite astonished by what i can see.
i always saw the capitol through a screen, during the yearly reaping or on our old television at home. pictures don't even do justice to what is really the capitol. everywhere, shining and high towers of glass fight for the highest spot in the sky, wide paves streets where are passing sparkling cars and colorful population.
i don't know where to look anymore, everything seems to kick me in the face. colors are too vivid, people too many. luxury is everywhere.
willow got closer to the window to see better, but she steps back quickly when, outside, we can suddenly hear screams and applause. they recognized our train ; and now, they are cheering for us, they squeeze closer to the train track to have a chance to see us.
they are literally disgusting.
we are damned to die for their pleasure. how can they acclaim us like we were some kind of celebrities ? are they really so excited to see us kill each other and then, die ? do they really want our blood this bad ?
the sickening crowd finally disappears when we get into the station. phox calls for us :
you are going to meet your prep team now. it won't be a piece of cake, but don't say anything. let them do their job. then we'll see you right before the parade.
behave. blight adds. both of you.
the train stops finally, and fausta takes us with her to a car waiting for us. luckily, there are no cameras nor crowd to cheer for us. according to our escort, we'll be shown again to the people during the tributes parade, this afternoon.
the trip to the remake center is short. as all the other buildings, it's big, shining and flood with light with all the glass windows.
willow and i are split up, and in a short lap of time, i found myself naked, lay down on a cold table, with three sets of hands taking care of me. appia, mina and gaius, my prep team, are as i always imagined born-capitol people.
shallow, simpering and deeply annoying.
but i don't say anything, as phox told us, and i let them do what they want with my body ; even when they scrub me with a lot of creams and lotions, when they carefully trim my nails, when they remove all my hairy areas, when they cut my thick hair.
i even bear their incessant chattering during the three hours of my preparation, without even laugh once to their ridiculous way of speaking.
well, i think we're done here. get up for me to check, gaius, the only man on my team who has long blue hair, says finally.
he turns around me during a moment while i'm still naked, then claps his hands with satisfaction.
you're finally human ! i'm gonna call for bess. he's your stylist.
the three of them leave, for my greatest relief. i couldn't handle anymore their high-pitched voices, their extravagant outfits with colors as painfully vivid for my retinas.
i take advantage of their leaving to wear the only piece of clothe i can find - a pair of boxers ; but the door already open again. my break was short.
a man walks in ; a really short man, young, and wearing the capitol's exuberance on himself. but if everyone seem to love every existing shade of any colors, he wears only black, except for his hair. he comes to me and i take my time to detail him ; his waist-long hair are white and shining with strass, half of his face is tattooed with graphic black designs, his polished heels slam on the ground and his suit is as see-through that i can see his also tattooed torso and the curve of his legs. only his groin is out of sight.
hi, love. i'm bess. can i ? he says with the typical accent of the capitol, but with a sweet voice.
i don't like the intimacy he already puts me in, but i don't really have a choice so i nod and let him do. next thing i know, he takes my hand and pulls me towards him, really close ; then as gaius did moments ago, he walks around me to contemplates my body. finally, he gives me a silky robe to wear and invites me to follow him in the next room, where there are couches and plates of food.
he sits down, takes a piece of bread and i do as well before he talks :
so, what a reaping you put on.
i'm kinda annoyed to always hearing this, but i don't say a thing.
i really loved your devotion for your sister. it was really sweet.
it was not. it was hurtful and horrible, it was a life or death choice.
it was quite inspiring, you know ? so, telly and i, we made both your outfits to reflect your bond.
i guess telly must be willow's stylist ; but then something he says make me finally say a word :
aren't our outfits supposed to express what our district is ?
generally, tributes from the seven are dressed up as trees because of our forests and our factories which provide the capitol with paper and wood. and as well, tributes from the four are dressed up to match the fishing, the eleven for the agriculture, the twelve for the coal, and so on.
that's right. but a little update can't kill anybody, right ? he smiles for the first time and i can see his teeth are also covered with glitters.
i can't say i like bess. he's too capitol-biased for me to appreciate him ; but then, he dresses me up and after an hour, i'm ready to be shown to all panem.
