"Allies?" "Always."

Chapter 6

Apparently Effie's job doesn't stop at the train station. Her, along with our mentor, will be supervising us right into the arena. It ends up being a good thing in the end, because there's no other way that I would keep on schedule.

I haven't seen Haymitch sense we made our deal. Probably drunk on the train somewhere. Effie Trinket, on the other hand, seems to be bouncing off the walls. We made an impression at the opening ceremony. She's not just over-complementary about our suits, but also about how we composed ourselves.

She claims to have been trying to line up sponsors for us all day, but she can't officially seal deal without Haymitch. I do, however, admire her determination and her politeness toward us.

Katniss and I walk in to the room we will share until the games. Laying on the foot of the bed is our box of cookies. Some one must have brought them from the train, although, there is only one left out of the bakers dozen we started with...

As I bite into the last of my dad's reminder of home as I take in the quarters. This place alone is bigger than Katniss's whole house back home that most night the four of us share. Everything is plush, like on the train, and there are a lot of machines. I decide to take a shower and it turns out that it's more complicated than it was on our ride to the Capitol. I press a button and it gives you hundreds of options from water pressure, to things like soap and shampoo. When you step out onto a mat, heaters come on that blow dry your body. In place of brushing my hair, a box sends currents through my scalp, untangling and slicking back my hair, drying it just enough so that it won't drip water, but it was still stay back.

I program the closet for a loose pair of pants and a baggy shirt, my favorite choice in clothes. The window will zoom in and out of any part of the city that we choose. We deside to make it look like a forest so that Katniss would feel more at home. You need to hardly whisper a type of food from a vast menu into a mouthpiece and it turns up, hot and steaming, before you can even lift a finger.

I finish the cookie as Katniss gulps down goose liver and puffy bread. I look at her and try to keep from laughing. "What?" She asks with a mouth full of bread.

"You got enough to eat there?" I quip. She shrugs and goes back to eating. I sit up beside her on the bed. She leans her head on my shoulder and I lean my head on her's as she eats. We stare at the forest and listen to the sounds it has to offer. Birds whistle, water ripples, and bugs chirp to the night sky. I wrap an arm around her and she grabs another piece of puffy bread. It's just like the days in the forest.

While she stuffs the bread in her face, Effie knocks on the door, calling us to dinner. "Good. I'm starving!" Katniss excites.

I give her a strange look. Then I just stand and walk with her to the dinning room.

Haymitch, Cinna, and Portia are on the balcony overlooking the city. I'm happy that our stylists are here, especially after I see Haymitch is joining us.

This time around, dinner isn't really about food. It's about tactics, planning out our strategy. Our opening ceremony proved how costly a mess up could be.

A quiet man in a white tunic offers all of us a glass of wine. I graciously except that proposal of a glass. What could one little glass hurt? I sip the pungent liquid. It's not very pleasant, but I could drink it.

Haymitch takes a seat across from Katniss and I. I'm starting to believe that he was going to take our deal seriously because he looks like he has his own stylist. He's clean, groomed, and as sedated as I've seen him.

All the guests must have a decent effect on Effie and Haymitch. They are addressing each other in a more tamed way than before. They both have nothing but praise for us and our stylist. While they make small talk, I attempt at a conversation with my future wife. "Are you nervous?" I ask. "For the interview? Private sessions? Training? Making allies? The-"