𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐍 𝐏𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐒 | hunger games ✓

chapter 5

━━･❪ 🌸 ❫ ･━━

A knock at the door jostled Daphne out of her quiet slumber. It took her a couple seconds to orient herself, and at first she was confused as to where the hell she was. Then she remembered. Reality hit her like a brick wall.

She contemplated ignoring whoever it was outside her door and going back to sleep. Permanently. But that probably wasn't going to happen, so with a groan, she dragged herself out of bed.

She took a swig of water from a glass by her nightstand, swishing it around in her mouth to cleanse her breath. Funny, she didn't quite remember bringing a glass into her room after watching the Reapings. Either an Avox stopped by, or she must be going crazy.

Her stomach still ached from the feast she had downed earlier. Daphne glanced at the clock on the wall, realizing that she'd dozed off for about three hours. It was still nighttime. Still the same day.

Another knock sounded almost hesitantly. A pang of annoyance hit her as she stumbled for the door, opening it and muttering, "what the hell do you-"

Daphne paused upon seeing Theia, a soft smile across her face. "Sorry for waking you up, Daphne, but come out. We're arriving soon, and I thought you four would like to enjoy the view."

Daphne was about to decline and tell Theia to let her rest. But, her brother had chosen Theia to look after her when he was gone, and Daphne knew that Theia had nothing but good intentions, bothersome as they may be. Least Daphne could do was try and be pleasant.

Daphne forced her lips to curve into a grin, allowing Theia to lead the way as Daphne reluctantly left her bedroom behind. She hastily combed her fingers through her hair to straighten it out a bit before they emerged into the main compartment.

The main compartment functioned like a living room. It had two couches facing each other, along with a couple chairs and a glass table sitting in the middle. There was a television plastered to the wall and soft carpet beneath her feet. This was where they'd watched the Reapings a couple hours ago.

Iskra was sitting stiffly in one of the chairs. She didn't acknowledge Daphne as she entered the room. Caelum, Azalea and Theron were standing by one of the windows, gawking at the view like deer in headlights. Now genuinely curious, Daphne joined them, standing beside Caelum. Apparently he'd been experimenting with the soap scents as well, since he smelled vaguely of chamomile and grapefruit.

As Daphne looked out the window, her jaw may as well have hit the ground. She'd seen images and videos of the Capitol on television before. They all had, and they all knew how magnificent it was in terms of architecture, technology and fashion. It was a different kind of shock now that Daphne was here, in person.

Now she could see exactly how tall the multicolored buildings were, how alien the people were dressed. It was lighted enough that it didn't feel like nighttime, illuminating the vibrant color that splashed everywhere she looked. It was hard to believe that something as prosperous as this could exist in the same country as the plain, barren outlier districts wracked with poverty.

People were lined up at the edge of the tracks, waving and pointing as the train flew by. They all knew who was aboard, and they were all eager to catch a glimpse of the ill-fated tributes in person before their faces would be on every screen in Panem.

"They seem awfully hyped to watch us tear each other apart." Daphne idly commented, and to her surprise Caelum snorted in faint amusement. A silly part of her wondered if he was finally about to say something to her, but instead it was Theron who spoke.

"I'll try to maim a tribute or two for them. Maybe sprinkle in a blindside for some extra flavor." The curly haired boy said wryly as he smiled and waved at the crowd. Daphne couldn't tell whether or not he was joking, but either way Azalea took a small sidestep away from him.