Snowdrop

Chapter 6

At the end of the day, Maximus comes to escort us back to our floor. I see his lip curl slightly in disgust as he sees just how sweaty – and probably smelly – we are, but he somehow manages to keep any remarks to himself.

As the elevator doors part, he rushes into the corridor. "Perhaps you four should wash and then come to dinner. I'm sure Acacia will love to hear what you've been up to today."

While I'm thankful for the shower to ease my stiff muscles, what I really want to be doing is sleeping. But I allow myself to stand in the deliciously warm water for a while and just think.

I finally managed, after almost three hours at the blades station, to hit the middle of the target. I heard Rouge give a small noise of disbelief, possibly a swear or two, and I couldn't resist flashing her a smug grin. Then she threw a knife at her own practice dummy with such force it stuck fast.

I'm going to have to ask Acacia if I can stay practising with the knives one more day, then on the last day before lunch, and our private sessions, I can work on survival skills. Not that I need that much. I'm something of an expert when it comes to which plants we can eat and which ones would kill us instantly. Everyone in District 12 is.

I scrub myself down with a strawberry-scented soap and turn the water off. Then I change into a short-sleeved shirt and trousers. As I walk around my room, towelling my hair off, I realise how quickly I've adjusted to the Capitol's luxuries. How normal it feels to press a button on the wall, say what food we want, and have a servant bring it to me in little more than I minute.

I feel sick as I think of my family, eating what little food Burnet might have managed to trade for, washing in a generations-old bath, and waiting. Waiting to see our interviews and our training scores. Waiting to see who kills us. Waiting to have our bodies sent home in nothing more than a wooden box.

I toss aside the towel, roughly comb out the tangles in my hair, and make for the dining room.

Surprisingly, I arrive before any of my fellow tributes. Acacia sits next to Maximus, and smiles pleasantly as I take my place at the table.

"You seem to have attracted the attention of the trainers. I've heard that you were at the knife station, trying over and over again until you hit a bulls-eye. The Gamemakers noticed, too. They think you're very determined. Well done," she says.

I nod, accepting the praise. I didn't do that well, but I was certainly determined. As a servant steps up and pours me a glass of juice, I take the opportunity to ask Acacia.

"I was wondering if I might be able to spend tomorrow working with the knives again," I say. "I'm really enjoying it, and I want to be good at it. I don't want to go down without a fight."

Acacia takes a sip of her wine, which earns her a disapproved look from Maximus. She ignores him and watches me thoughtfully. She looks at me for so long I think she's not going to answer me, when she finally speaks.

"And what about the other things you need to practise? I don't want you to be like the Careers, only knowing how to handle a weapon and ultimately dying from something you could've prevented if you'd listened to me."

"I can spend the time we've got before our private sessions the day after, can't I? And I know which plants I can eat and which ones I can't. And there's one girl –"

"So it's not about training, it's about rivalry," Acacia smiles. "She wouldn't happen to be from One, would she?"

How does she know this? All I can do is stare at her with my mouth wide open, and she nods.

"Yes, I thought so. Rouge, I think her mentor said her name was. That girl's taken notice of you. Apparently she was working with the knives alongside you, and she told her mentor you kept giving her odd looks."