Harry stands up and moves to the window. He leans his head on his forearm and watches as we pass through a tunnel. He smiles, and as he does sunlight hits his face. He looks at me, green eyes glittering brilliantly, and my heart skips a beat. He’s really a sight to behold I realize. His hair is messy and curly, and each of his brown locks frames his face brilliantly. He’s lean and sleek, and his body language makes him seem unbelievably confident. I’m almost entranced by him really.
“Kate look, we’re here.”
I’m snapped back into reality by the sound of his velvety voice. He motions for me to come to the window, and I move quickly to get there. I stand beside Harry and he moves behind me, putting his arms on either side of me to hold the window sill. The Capitol is brilliant, unlike anything I could ever dream of. The buildings are tall; many reflect light around them like mirrors, creating the illusion that the city shines. Harry puts his chin on my shoulder, and breathes deeply. Goosebumps cover my skin as I take in his scent and feel his touch. Holy crap. He’s touching me.
“I-it’s beautiful,” I say aloud, trying to end the silence.
“Yeah, no kidding,” Harry sighs, and changes his voice into an accent like the one that Dainty has, “Welcome to the Capitol! We honour your sacrifice!”
“Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favour,” I laugh, half heartedly. Harry laughs out loud, and I can hear bells in his voice. Suddenly our view of the Capitol changes to hundreds of Capitol citizens, smiling and waving at us. We have reached the train station, and they have come to greet us. Harry starts to smile and wave and I do the same, remembering that the more the citizens like you the more likely you’ll have sponsors. I try to imagine myself as one of them. Oddly dressed, full stomach and excited for the Hunger Games. Watching the trains pull up and seeing one of the most handsome people in the world waving to me, with his brilliant green eyes smiling more than his teeth could manage. Seeing a tiny dark haired girl in front of him, smiling too. She’s pretty, but nothing like him. He’s perfect. He’s charismatic.
He’s probably going to win.
It’s not long after we arrive at the Capitol that we are whisked away to be prepped for the tribute parade. My prep team is a group of highly energetic girls. I don’t catch their names when they introduce themselves to me but as listen to their chatter between waxing and plucking and priming my body, I find out that they are Desira, Natara and Akassa. Though they seem unphased by my growing discomfort as they transformed me into a Capitol doll, I watch them intently. They move like butterflies; fast and in patterns that don’t make sense to me. I hear Desira whisper something to Natara, and they smile to each other. I sit up and look at them and, sensing my confusion, Desira walks towards me and takes my hand.
“It’s time to take you Cainon.”
She leads me into a room. It is small, and inside there is only a medical bed against the back wall. The walls are metallic grey, and I can feel claustrophobia well up inside me. I sit on the bed, and Desira closes the door. I stare for awhile, waiting for my stylist to come through. After a few minutes of waiting, the door opens and a tall man walks in. He looks similar to most of the people in the Capitol; he is thin and has pasty white skin. His eyes are big and hard, accented by black eyeliner and purple eyeshadow. He is heavily tattooed, with eyes and feathers, trees and many other things covering his arms and neck. On his left wrist, he was the tattoo of the Mockingjay, though it is bright and colourful rather than black like mine is. His hair is coiffed, and bleached blond with a purple highlight splashed above his forehead. His fashion sense doesn’t seem bad; he is well dressed but not outrageous. His vest matches the purple in his hair and his black pants stick to his skin, following every bump and crease in his skin. He smiles at me, and I can see that his teeth are tinted purple. It is faint, but noticeable. I feel plain next to him, but this isn’t something I’m ashamed of.
“You must be Kate!” He exclaims. His voice is soft and low pitched. I had expected something more feminine than masculine.
“Yes. And you are?”
‘Why, I’m Cainon! And I’m here to help you make an impression tonight at the parade.”
I smile sheepishly. The parade was something I had dreaded since arriving at the Capitol. District 7 is the district that provides lumber to the Capitol, and for the last 75 years our tributes have been dressed as trees.
“So I’m going to be a tree?”
“Well, not quite.”
[A/N: Hello again! Hope you enjoyed chapter three! What do you think? Comment, Vote and Share if you enjoy! Thank you so much to everyone who had read the story so far, it's so apprecaited! If you have any theories, let me know too! Will hopefully be able to post again in the next couple of days as long as life doesn't get too busy! Thank you all so much again! :) ]
