The Candidate [A Hunger Games Story]

Chapter One

My birthday party was set to be the event of the year. With everyone from the Academy attending my eighteenth birthday, I was certain the name on everybody's lips was going to be mine; Aurelia Thorne.

Everything was perfect on the day of the event. My hair was newly styled and dyed, with my voluminous curls dyed a stunning grey color. My stylists were going to arrive several hours before the party to make sure my makeup was perfect. In the backyard, Avoxes were running around, preparing the tables for people to dine at, and filling our infinity pool with pink water, as requested. I stood on my balcony, taking it all in with a happy sigh. That party was all that I could think of. That night, I planned to drink far too much, dance with my friends and perhaps even catch the eye of my latest crush at the time, Cicero Montague. He had told me he was buying me the most lavish, most expensive present out of everyone, and I couldn't wait.

I stepped back into my bedroom from my balcony and headed over to the mannequin in the center of my room. I had some finishing touches to make to my party outfit. While my parents had insisted that they would happily buy me something new to wear, I wanted to make my own design. During my time at the Academy, they taught me all of the vital skills - catering, music, combat training, and entertainment management - they even gave me etiquette training - but the one thing I've always loved the most is fashion design. Out of all the subjects I studied, it was the one I loved most, though combat training probably suited me better. My tutors always told me I'd make a good Peacekeeper, or even a Gamemaker like my father, if I desired that way of life, but I rejected it. All I wanted was to surround myself in pretty colors and a million different materials, expanding my ideas into the most provocative fashion the Capitol had ever seen.

I admired the outfit I had created. Knee high velvet boots the color of plums, finished with glitter and a feather trim. Orange and pink ruffles for the dress, billowing out like strange clouds. It had taken me months to create, but I was in love with it. It was completely unique, unlike anything you can find in the other boutiques in the Capitol. Each one claimed to offer the newest most exciting fashions, but I knew that until I saw something as good as what I could create, I wouldn't be buying from their stores.

I ran my hands over the soft feathery material. I was dreaming of leaving the Academy a few weeks later and starting to run my business. I knew there would be plenty of people willing to buy my designs. After all, I had hundreds of friends. I was from one of the most popular families in the Capitol. It tends to be the way when your Dad plays such an active role in the Hunger Games, and your mother is one of the best social influencers in the city. I was born for greatness, and I planned to achieve it.

There was a knock at the door. I thought that perhaps my stylists were early, but just after knocking, my mother peeped her head around the door. She gave me a warm smile.

"Hey, sweetie. All ready for your party?"

I nodded, grinning. "I was born ready for this."

Mum stepped gingerly into the room toward my dress. She ran her hand over the material of my dress. "This is stunning, Aurelia. I couldn't be prouder of you. You outdo yourself every single day."

I blushed. My mother had always been very open with her compliments, but they never failed to take me by surprise. If there was one person in the world who truly appreciated me, it was my mother. I never felt the same connection with my father - he didn't spend much time at home because of his job - but my mother had always been my best friend, closest confidant and my inspiration. She had always supported my dream in a way that my father hadn't. Like my tutors, he'd always been desperate for me to follow in his footsteps, but I was happy with my lot in life. I didn't feel any need to change my mind.