SPARK ✩ CORIOLANUS SNOW.¹

𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞.

          The train station was bustling with noise when they arrived, a stream of headlights illuminating the expansive line of tributes waiting to be shoved aboard. Cuffs held their wrists in place and ankles shuffled close, but it couldn't keep the looks of glaring rage off of their faces or the snarls they directed toward the Peacekeepers directing them. 

The same treatment was offered toward Mason and Jude once they rolled to a stop next to one of the parked vehicles. There wasn't an ounce of kindness in the way he was tugged out of the bed and dragged to the parking lot ground, barely catching his footing at the last second. Mason was cursing at them next to him, but Jude opted to go silently. God forbid he draw more attention to himself than needed in these coming moments. 

Soft murmurs came from further up in the line, the sharp smell of exhaust stinging Jude's nostrils. He strained to hear what was going on, to find out even a semblance of why they hadn't yet budged since him and Mason joined. But it was near impossible over the rumble of the running vehicles behind him and the groan of the train and the voices and some incessant, occasional whir. 

One more car pulled up, and out came a man and a woman. The man had styled dark hair and a trimmed beard, clothes too shiny to be district but from his cuffs, he was. Same with the woman but she was glossy and blonde, wearing a flowy dress that hugged her ankles and her hair loose at her shoulders. They studied Jude like he studied them, the woman a little more scrutinizing whereas the man was more curious, as they were shoved into line behind them. 

Closer, Jude could smell strong perfumes on the both of them, floral and musky. They had to be District 1's tributes; they were too pampered and adorned. He tried to subtly eye behind himself at them, wanting one more glance to determine if he was right, but instead was met directly with the man's gaze. He smiled despite it all, head tilted in amusement. 

"Do you see something you like, darling?" The man even had a lilting accent, closer to the Capitol's voices than any of the other Districts. Jude glanced away in an instant, feeling his face go hot. "Aren't you a little out of place here?" 

"Can't any of you," Jude breathed out, dropping his head to stare at the ground, exhausted, "say something original?" 

The man's smile widened. "I figure you better get used to being a spectacle. The Games haven't even begun." 

Jude didn't answer, turning back around to face the front. Radio static crackled, and the line finally began to move. The chatter in the front seemed to get a little louder, and while Jude was focusing on trying to understand what they were doing to them, he didn't notice that the man behind him was speaking until he leaned down to whisper into his ear. 

"My name is Ruby," he said, his words just an exhale on his skin. Jude jumped, instinctively rearing his elbow back, both of his hands jerking too with the cuffs. Met with air, he turned to see Ruby smiling that amused smile once again. "I would keep your hands to yourself, darling boy. You'll need all the allies you can get." 

Jude rolled his eyes. He didn't need anybody, certainly not in these Games. He knew from the moment that he was Reaped that this was not the sort of Hunger Games that he would survive by making friends. It was proven on the vehicle ride over with Mason, and growing more clear with every person he met. Nobody was going to ally with the child amongst their own ranks. So he wasn't going to ally with them. 

The line was moving steadily now, and Jude was close enough to see the table at which two Peacekeepers sat. One had a piece of paper in front of them where they sat, and the other held a small device that Jude was more than familiar with. The tiny device that pricked the fingers of each person eligible to be Reaped. Since they switched the rules of the Games, they needed their DNA and data still to keep track of them and couldn't get them in the rush to get them Reaped before the riots began.