The End of Innocence: The 72nd Annual Hunger Games

First Day Of Training

A knock on my door forces me to open my eyes to exist in the huge bright room. I didn't get much sleep. After an hour of restless sleep, I came to the realisation that even attempting to sleep will deem futile. The sun seems to rise quicker here, or at least the lack of sleep makes me believe that. The streets outside become busier quite earlier in comparison to at home. When I hear the knock again, I let out an audible groan to let whoever it is know that I am awake and alive.

Ami's wig is the first thing that comes through the door. She is holding my training suit in one hand, and in the other one, she is holding what seems to be a cup of coffee. "Good morning! Did you sleep well?" She asks eccentrically.

 "Yeah." I lie examining the clothing. "What's that?" Asking what I already knew.

She puts her coffee cup down on the stand beside my bed and folds out my training suit for me to see. "It's your training suit. Leggings, and a t-shirt. It'll help you move better for your training to go splendidly."

She puts the outfit on the bed and leaves the room without saying a word. The training suit is simple. All black with a big number nine in blue on the back. I spend five minutes or so getting dressed. It's kind of a task, I feel like a baby refusing to take its bottle, even though it knows it must eat. Everything is a task here, even existing here seems unworthy of any reaction. When I'm done dressing into the slightly uncomfortable clothing, I follow Ami to the elevator. 

We don't say a single word until the elevator reaches the bottom floor. Amy wishes me good luck as the doors open, revealing the gigantic room to me. It seems they were waiting for me, as they're all standing in a circle around a woman, some chatting with the person next to them and others now staring at my arrival. The lingering smell of bleach and disinfectant block my nose and I almost gag walking into the room.

"Ah finally, Mr Reynald." The woman says. "Stand there between District One's Scarlet and District Two's Vickin."

Obviously, out of every possible Tribute I must stand beside Scarlet. It is almost like it is planned. It makes me think if the Gamemakers witnessed our encounter at the Opening Ceremonies so they planted me beside her. I walk calmly over, taking in all of the eyes around me. I don't bother looking at anyone despite their glances, not even Lesa, who's standing across from me at the empty gap beside District 1 and 2.

"So you finally arrived huh?" Scarlet whispers after I reach my place. "Let's see what skills you have, darling."

The woman blows some whistle that she has around her neck. It causes a few Tributes to cover their ears instinctively, others like myself just stare at her. She is brown skinned and has short hair. Menacing, but not quite. I don't know what to make of her.

"Hello everyone, my name is Atala." She announces. She walks slightly around in a circle, examining each of us. "I hope you all enjoyed the Opening Ceremony. What a sight seeing how different some of you look without them fancy getups on."

A few Tributes from around the room slightly laugh and others stay silent. This is the first time I am up and close with my opponents but I still can't seem to focus on their faces. They all look the same to me.

Atala blows the whistle again for no reason again, it seems more unexpected so more cover their ears this time. "Here are some statistics that won't come to a surprise to you all. Next week, twenty-three of you will be dead. You all know only one will reign. This all comes down to how well you all pay attention over the next three days. Some of you want to go in and grab a sharp, inviting weapon, but the statistical average is that seventeen percent of you will die of natural causes. On the first day, thirty-eight percent of you will die at the hands of another here, and twenty-percent from dehydration or hunger throughout the coming weeks. Being exposed to the elements can sometimes be as fateful as someone killing you instantly."