The first hunger games- Abandoned

Chapter seventeen: Strategy

I wake up the next morning and for a second I don't know where I am, but then I remember the Reaping, and my name being called and now I'm here, on this train, being sent off to the Capitol. I didn't bother changing out of my reaping dress last night, I don't trust wearing the pyjamas in the trains drawers, they're too... Rich. I felt the fabric last night, it was so silky, it was like butter, but I want to stay as little connected to the Capitol as possible, even if it means sleeping in my Reaping dress. I didn't mind really, I love my dress, and it's the last thing I have of Emerald. Emerald, I don't know if I'll ever see her again, or my mom... I clutch the necklace she gave me and hold back my tears. Gosh, it's been one day since my name was called and I've had to hold back my tears at least, what, probably five times now. Has it really only been one day? It feels like so long ago I was in the comfort of my moms arms. District 6 was never the most ideal place to live, and we weren't rich by any means, but I had my mom, and Emerald and that's all I really need right now. I don't care about the fancy clothes or the amazing food, I just want my life back! I don't want to think about the games, but what else is there to think about? In just ONE WEEK, I will be fending for my life, in just ONE WEEK I could be dead, it's gut wrenching just thinking about it. I stand up from my position on the bed, I brush my hair and walk to the dinning cart. Grenadene is eating her breakfast and thankfully Blaze is still asleep. I walk over to the cart keeping my head down, hoping she won't talk to me, but that doesn't work. "Hi!" She says in her fake voice "how'd you sleep?" Awful, I think to myself, how would you sleep if you were being sent to your death?! "Fine" I say, picking up a rolled, buttery baked thing and placing it on my plate, I take an orange and a glass of water and sit down opposite of Grenadene. "Ahh, a croissant, my favourite!" She says looking down on my plate, So that's what its called, good to know. I pick it up and dig in, it's so good! I've never tasted anything like it, it's so fluffy and buttery but a little crunchy on the outside, it's simply perfect. once I finish my croissant, I think that's my new favourite word, croissant, it's such a fancy word, anyways, once I finish it I peel my orange eat that and gulp down my water. It seems like such a luxury, having a whole orange to myself, I always only get a few pieces when we can even get them, they're very hard to come by. I look up at Grenadene who's eating what looks like a croissant with chocolate inside. I only ever had chocolate once, when I first got adopted, before the war, my mom gave me a chocolate chip cookie as a reward for finishing all my chores. I never got another one again, but I'll never forget the taste of it. It was kind of indescribable, "so do you have any advice?" I ask, "um, well, I know that you get two and a half days of training before the arena so I was told to tell you to not dismiss the survival skills, I know you probably will go right for the weapons, but you must remember to get some survival training in as well" she said smiling, "ok, and what should I expect, in the arena" I ask her "there's going to be a cornucopia, where weapons and survival supplies will be inside and around, the lesser the value of the thing, the closer it will be to you. You'll have to stand on your platform for 60 seconds until the gong rings and then you can either run for the cornucopia and retrieve supplies or run the other way, if you step off the plate too soon you'll get blown to bits" she says, looking me dead in the eye, telling me not to step off before the gong rings, but that's not what I'm worried about, "what do you recommend? Running for the cornucopia or getting out?" I ask, hoping she'll know the answer and not tell me to do something that will get me killed. She seems to know her stuff though, more than I thought she would, "running away. For you anyways, you're pretty small, age and height wise, you'll get killed right away if you go for the cornucopia, it's a bloodbath, don't go for it." "Alright, fine" I say, a little disappointed in her answer, if I don't go for it how am I gonna get the weapons and supplies I need?! I decide that I'm not going to follow her orders exactly, considering she doesn't really know what she's doing, and it's MY life. "Oh! One more thing" Grenadene says as I get up to get more food, "you're going to have to try to get sponsors" "sponsors?" I ask, I've never heard that word before. "Yup" she says "sponsors, they're the people who can potentially save your life" now I'm intrigued, I don't exactly know who or what sponsors are, but I want to get them if it means I'll survive, "what exactly are sponsors?" I ask, sitting back down. "Sponsors are citizens of Panem that can buy you supplies and the gamemakers send them to you when you're in need of them, it's usually people living in the Capitol considering we have the money, but citizens of the district can send you gifts as well" interesting, I'm gonna have to get some, especially considering I'm on the younger side of the tributes, it might be the only thing that keeps me alive. "How do I get sponsors?" I ask, hoping I'm not going to have to do some deranged thing, "get them to like you" //AN: see what I did there? Huh? Huh?... *nudge nudge*\\  ok, that seems easy enough, so what? I smile at them and train and get a good training score?" I ask "pretty much yeah, you have to make sure that you make an impression during the interview so they'll start to have an emotional attachment to you so they'll sponsor you, and of course you need a high score, cause no ones going to sponsor anyone they don't think can win" she says, she's actually better at this mentoring thing then I thought she'd be. Just then, Blaze walks in the room, he's also still dressed in his reaping outfit and he doesn't look at either of us, he just walks over to the food cart, well one of them, and takes some food. After standing staring at nothing for about 5 minutes he comes over and sits down. I get up to leave, but Grenadene makes me stay seated, she says "you two need to warm up to each other, you'll be spending the whole week before the games together" I really don't want to stay here and chat strategy with him. If he knows my strategy, I'll be dead within the first two days! Doesn't she know he hates me? Ughhhhh. This is going to be a long train ride.
AN: OH MY GOSH GUYS IM SO SORRY! I haven't updated in forever I'm so sorry! I'm in my first year of high school this year and it's been stressing me out and I've had MAJOR writers block, I'm so sorry guys! I hope you liked this chapter though and I hope you continue to read this book, thanks so much for being patient with me, love you!