Rise From the Ashes

Chapter Five

I bite my tongue as they rip up my leg hair. They've already waxed most of my body and spent several hours on my hair. It was now fully brushed out and loose in its childhood curls.

"Sorry you're just so hairy!" One of prep team Venia pipes. Her accent is odd. They always talk so high pitched, their jaws hardly open, and their sentences go up as if they're asking a question. With their odd vowels, clipped words, and the hiss on the letter s, no wonder it's impossible for us to mimic them.

Venia makes what I think is a sympathetic face. "Good news though, this is the last one. Ready?" I grip the table and get ready. The final strip of my hair. I've been here for almost four hours. I've been scrubbed, and waxed. Plus they spent two hours on my hair, first getting the ends brushed out and then getting the braids undone. They managed to wash, condition, and dry my hair. It hasn't been like this in six years. Since I didn't visit the woods, when I started my hair had collected all the sticks and leaves so my mom has slicked it back into braids. I had occasionally redone my braids as my hair grew but they had become matted and I had left them alone.

"You're doing very well." Says someone named Flavius. He's the only man in here. He's got orange corkscrew curls and he's applying a fresh coat of purple lipstick. "If there's one thing we can't stand, it's a whiner. Grease her down!"

Venia and Octavia, who's plump body is dyed a pale pea green shade, rub me down with lotion that stings and then soothes my skin that was scrubbed and waxed raw. They pull my from the table and make me remove the robe I've been allowed to wear at times. They circle me, holding tweezers to remove any hair they missed.

They step back and admire their work. "Excellent! You almost look like a human being now!" Flavius says, and they all laugh.

I force a smile to show my gratitude. "Thank you. We don't have much to look nice for in District Twelve." I say sweetly. This wins them over.

"Of course you poor darling!" Octavia says clasping her hands together, obviously distressed for me.

"Don't worry. By the time Cinna is through with you, you're going to be absolutely gorgeous!" Says Venia.

"We promise! You know, not we've gotten rid of all the hair and filth, you're not horrible at all!" Encourages Flavius. "Let's call Cinna!"

They leave the room quickly. It's hard to hate them, they're complete idiots, and I know in their own way they're trying to help me. Cinna. My dad told me about a relative of his in the Capitol named Cinna. I don't know how he knew, it's not like we have a phone. I should put on my robe but he'll make take it off anyway.

The door opens and in walks Cinna. It takes my breath away because, for a second, I think it's my dad. Cinna smiles softly at me.

"You can put your robe back on." He says. I slip it on and tie it tightly. "We should talk. There's a lot to cover."

"Alright." I agree. He leads me to a different room and presses a button on the table. The tabletop splits open and a feast appears. I ignore it and instead focus on Cinna. "Why do you look like dad?"

"He was my brother." Cinna answers simply. I start to open my mouth and Cinna holds up his hand. "63 years ago someone named Lucy Gray Baird won the tenth hunger games. President Snow was her mentor. They fell in love and President Snow ended up in twelve as a peacekeeper for a summer. While there Lucy Gray fell pregnant with twins. Once Snow found out, he struck up a deal with her. Until he died, the oldest child of the offspring still in twelve would be taken to live in the Capitol. Safe from the games, being well taken care of. In exchange she promised to keep the children's father quiet. I was the oldest of the younger daughter. You've got an older brother here. He's one of the trainers."

"You were the one who sent us money." I say softly. Cinna nods.

"I only heard he died I didn't hear how." He says.

"Mine. Got both of them." I answer. I press my lips together. "Said a friends mom was my aunt. They believed me and let me stay with them. But I didn't. I kept me and my two sisters alive for a while but Terra got reaped and I didn't have enough time to volunteer. It paralyzed me. My other sister is still in Twelve. She's staying with the girl I volunteered does family. They treat her like their own. They're family."

Cinna squeezed my arm. "They would be proud of you."

"Thank you." I say. I can't help the tears that trickle down my cheeks. "So is this your first year?"

"Yeah." Cinna answered smiling.

"So they stuck you with District Twelve?" I ask.

"No I asked for it. I had an idea and it's my families home." Cinna answers. "There's also quite a few Bairds here. Maybe you could meet them."

"We should eat." I answer. Cinna nods and I finally look at the food. Chicken and chunks of orange in a creamy sauce laid on a bed of white grain, tiny peas and onions, rolls shaped like flowers, and for desert a honey coloured pudding. I couldn't make this at home. Even if I tried it would be a poor substitute. Even the substitute would take days. I look up and find Cinna watching me.

"How despicable we must seem to you." He says. He's right. I find them despicable. While the districts struggle for survival they live to do nothing. "No matter. So, Ash, about your costume for the opening ceremonies. My partner, Portia, is the stylist for your fellow tribute, Gale. And our current thought is to dress you in complementary costumes." Says Cinna. "As you know it's customary to reflect the flavour of the district."

We're supposed to reflect the main industry of our districts. Since we mine coal and the jumpsuits our miners wear are very unbecoming, our tributes are normally dressed up in a skimpy versions. Of course one year they were naked and covered in coal dust.

"So I'll be in a coal miner outfit?" I ask, hoping for some coverage.

"Not exactly. You see, Portia and I think that coal miner things very overdone. No one will remember you in that. And we both see it as our job to make the District Twelve tributes unforgettable." Cinna says. So naked. "So rather than focus on the coal mining itself, we're going to focus on the coal."

Naked and covered in coal dust.

"And what do we do with coal? We burn it." Cinna says. "You're not afraid of fire, are you Ash?" He sees my expression and grins.