Maybe Foxface Is The Real Opponent Here~

4-A dark shade of beet red

My sleeps are filled with hazy dreams. I think about my father, back home, The Games. My thoughts have been pretty messed up since I was reaped, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I've been speaking to Larissa about it. She's grown on me since I met her, she's been telling me how I should prepare my thoughts, win people over et cetera. She told me everything about how she won, including tactics when it comes to training. She told me that in her interview she chose sexy as her approach, and it helped her astonishingly in the Games. Everyone expected her to be a silly pretty girl, and she sure showed them. 

The Training Center has a tower designed for tributes and their teams, which will be our home until the Games officially start. Each district has an whole floor to themselves. 5's floor is 5 floors up, which is accessed by elavators. The actual training rooms are below ground level of the building, where I head along with Doran, who is, as usual, quiet. The doors open to reveal an enormous gymn filled with obstacles, weapons and other skill stations. I even hear a few gasps.

As we become more and more eager to explore the stations, the head trainer, a tall, athletic woman named Atala begins reading out the schedule for training. We are free to go from station to station and choose a skill we will perform for the Gamekeepers later on. Some of the stations teach survival skills, others fighting techniques. There are assistants if needed to practice with, but we're not allowed to engage in any sort of combat with another tribute.

Atala begins to read down the list of the skill stations. 'Camoflague, archery, knife skills, standard IQ tests...' She goes on. I look around at the other tributes who look just as, maybe less, nervous than I do. It’s the first time we’ve been seen each other dressed simply, and some of the  tribute's Districts are easy to guess. Many are bony and underfed, while others fit and muscular.

But what really caught my eye was something else. Someone else. I had first noticed him in the Reaping videos. He's from a career district and therefore well trained, so I wasn't surprised when he volunteered for some other boy he admitted he didn't even know. I perceived him as especially aggressive, vulgar and frankly scary, but as he stands in the far corner of the training hall with a short freckley girl from 2, and a blonde girl from 1, gossiping about the District 12 pair, I can't help but listen in.

'..Holding hands? Come on, that's pretty suckish.'

'Don't you even think it's a little cute? Maybe they're like, together.' Says the pretty blonde girl next to him.

'If they're going to be together, the games is a pretty stupid place to do it. If they like each other, they shouldn't admit it and have to kill each other later..' He replies, matter-of-factly. Just then he looks right at me. I don't look particularily prominous as I stand by a wall nearby, and as far as I know, he has no reason to look at me. But he does.

Blondie turns and glares at me. 'Cato-' She starts, but Cato has already walked off. He disappears behind a crowd of squealing tributes.

As the last tributes from 12 arrive, everyone starts to station themselves by some sort of equiptment or weapons. I feel out of place seeing the bows, machetes and boulders. I'm not skillful, aggressive or strong. Then I notice some sort of sorting machine to test IQ in the corner and start to pace forward towards it. I am stopped halfway. 

'Hello little ginge.' He says, towering over me. He's the tallest tribute here, even though he's only 16. And obviously referring to my hair colour.

'Hey.' I reply, not knowing what to make of him. 

'Look, if you think I'm with her, i'm not, Glimmer isn't my type.' He states almost nervously. The pretty blonde?

'And you're telling me this why?' I say. I'm a little annoyed at him for disrupting my activities with idle gossip.

'I just.. I'm sorry..' He puts his hand on his head, showing his toned abs through his t-shirt. He looks  slightly confused. 'Let me start again. Hey, I'm Cato. I like working out and taking long runs around my District. What about you? He grins, obviously trying to impress me, or at least make me feel inadequent. I think, rather judgementally.

'Well, I'm Finch. I tend to keep to myself and try to survive, that's if I can.' I growl, growing impatient. 'I'm sorry, but I prefer to make friends who I can depend on not killing me.' If it's any compliment to the guy, he seems less aggressive and scary once you talk to him, maybe even a little normal.

He looks slightly offended, but at the same time amused by this. I notice Glimmer spot him and start to totter over. He catches my sight and says, just as Glimmer is about to arrive; 'Well, Finch, It was lovely to meet you.' and KISSES MY HAND. I blush a dark shade of beet red and nod to him, smiling my head off as I almost skip away. Glimmer, seeing this, looks very not impressed.

Some people start to stare, so I go over to the IQ machine, as I once intended to, and begin sorting out shapes and numbers, et cetera. I'm quite distracted as I sort, one thought is rushing through my head. 'Was he just flirting with me?' 

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