Reaper ~ THG AU

Ch. 13: Scores

As soon as I walk into the apartment, I'm hit with the sound of laughter and talking. Both prep teams and stylists are sat at the table in the center of the room, the rarely seen mentors with them. Acacius is the first to spot me, a glass of wine in his grip as he smiles towards me.

"There she is!"

"Finally! We can eat!"

Ditus calls from the seat across from my brother, making a few others laugh. I offer a small smile as I step up the steps that lead to the platform. Noviana stands as soon as I reach the top step, rounding the table to meet me. Her arm immediately wraps around my shoulder, leading me towards the chair beside her and Seeder.

"We were just talking about how the rest of the night is going to go."

"And how is that?"

I ask as I take my seat. Acacius smiles towards me as Ditus answers my question. Noviana sits down beside me before throwing me a smile.

"We'll eat then go into the lounge and wait for the scores to be announced. Then we'll talk one on one with both of you, find out how the interviews will go for you. Then the designers and both prep teams will take you both to your rooms to get you ready for tonight."

"Why not talk to us together? Wouldn't that save time?"

"Well...you will be going into a game where one of you will be coming back. It's not the best thing to speak in front of each other, right?"

"That would be true if Acacius and I weren't a team. We're going in this together and will fight till the very end for each other..."

"She's right. It's best to talk to the both of us at the same time."

"Okay. I guess that can be..arranged."

Ditus clears their throat, before taking another sip of their wine. Seeder clears her throat from beside me, glancing between Acacius and I.

"What did you both do for your private sessions?"

I look towards Acacius, reaching for my own drink that was just set in front of me. I mumble a quiet thank you as he sighs. He reaches up and scratches his head, clearing his throat.

"I started out throwing knives, then I threw a hundred pound weight at a target, and finished with climbing the rope course. I used up all my time and even thanked them before leaving. What about you, Z?"

Everyone turns towards me as I swallow my wine. Two avoxes come out with a rolling cart of steaming food. They keep their heads down as they move towards the table.

"I started out showing what I can do with a spear...then I did one of the obstacle courses, and finished everything off with two knives in a target just like Acacius taught me..."

I go quiet as plates of different meats  and sides of all kinds are set before us. Sanchi, one of my prep team members, claps his hands as he eyes the endless plates of food. My eyes widen as even more plates are set down, filling up the whole table before us. Once the last plate of food is set down, the other avox moves to pass out clean plates and silverware for everyone to use.

"We decided since tonight is your last night and we've all been so busy this year, that we'd have a little buffet! I took the liberty of asking Acacius over there what both of your favorite foods were back home..and each of us also ordered some of own favorites to share with you both! I hope you like it?"

Ditus smiles towards me, a bowl of mashed potatoes already in hand. I smile, giving a hesitant nod before glancing towards Acacius. Minerva grabs a tray of small balls of meat covered in a sauce.