A/N: Look who's updating againnn :D As a quick note, I did add in a cast for this book, which follows the original Hunger Games cast, so you can check that out if you haven't already :3 I'm actually updating 2 chapters today, one in Katniss' POV and one in Cato's POV (so we can all find out what happens after Rue offers Cato help :)) I think my author notes always end up being too long, so without further ado, here's the chapter!
(Switching back to Katniss' POV)
I can barely hold in my smug look as I beat Cato and Clove on the climbing net. I beat them by a long shot too. But I really can't afford to get arrogant, so I push the victory out of my mind. Focus, Katniss. Control. I can't help but let my grin spread even wider at the sight of Clove and Cato both struggling back to the ground, with Clove looking slightly green, and Cato swaying a bit on his feet. When he notices my smug smile, Cato scowls and glares. I can't help but grin even more. He challenges me to another round tomorrow, the second day of training. I agree. To be honest, I was actually holding back when we were racing. I really can't afford giving away any talents I have. I even "stumbled" a little on the net, just so Cato and Clove will think that I can't climb (not that Clove really had the time/effort to put into looking, because she was already having enough trouble keeping her own lunch down...). Ha. Cato thought I couldn't climb. I have proved him wrong. Victory for him? I think not.
I can feel his icy blue glare on my back as I walk away, towards Peeta. Oh right. Peeta!
Why does Clove call him 'Lover Boy'? Is it because she thinks he's soft...? He loves everyone?
I give up after awhile because careers are confusing. They think differently. I sink into a seat at the camouflage table next to Peeta, forgetting about his desire to train alone.
"So, how's the camouflage going?" I ask casually, watching him paint his other arm into a green berry bush this time. I have to admit, it looks amazing. The detail in the leaves are so delicate and precise, it looks real. Although I suppose if Prim grew up decorating cakes in the bakery, she could very well be just as good by now. She has the patience. I'd rather be out hunting, not wasting my time frosting pretty designs.
"Great! I saw you climbing the net with the careers. You should be careful, you never know how low they might stoop. You don't wanna get hurt," Peeta frowns, with genuine concern in his soft blue eyes. Less intense compared to Cato's eyes... Wiat what? Why am i even thinking about Cato? I brush it off as victory getting to my head.
I force myself not to snap at Peeta, saying that he isn't my dad. He doesn't need to protect me from anything. Instead, I opt for saying, "I'm fine, I was just showing them that I'm not completely useless."
"But Haymitch said-"
"I know, as long as I don't let them see me with my bow it's fine!" I let a bit of frustration creep into my voice. Hopefully he didn't notice the small face off going on between Clove and I, and how I showed her what I can do with a bow. I can't resist adding, "You're the one that told Haymitch that we should train seperately!"
Peeta flinches slgihtly at that. "Look, i have my reasons, if you'll just let me expl-"
He's interrupted by Atala's voice calling out, "Training for today is complete. All tributes will return to their rooms now. Your mentors will inform you of what is happening tonight, and your stylists have already finished your dressware for the upcoming event. Good luck."
Event tonight? Dressware? I have no clue what she's going on about, but I know better than to ask. It can't be good. I should enjoy not knowing. As my mum always says, Ignorance is bliss when it comes to the capitol. I stand up and walk towards the training doors. How will I tell Peeta that I will be joining the careers? I shove the thought away. I'll have to face it sometime soon in the next two days, before the interviews, when Haymitch is likely to reveal it. But for now, it can wait.
"What do you think they're doing tonight?" A voice next to my ear startles me. It's Marvel."Clove just told me about the alliance," he says in response to my confused look. Of course. He's allowed to talk to me now.
"I have no clue," I reply honestly. "But it can't be good. We have to dress up." I shudder involuntarily.
"Well, I suppose I'll see you then. By the way, watch your back. Cato looks like he's going to murder you the second you let your guard down." Marvel casually leans forward so his mouth is right next to my right ear, and I can feel his hot breath on my neck. "If you trust us and want to anger him further, meet me and Clove tonight on the rooftop after the event planned. Tell no one, bring no one." Marvel straightens up casually and walks towards the rest of the careers who are branching off towards another hallway. "See you tonight!" He flashes me a wink and then turns to talk to Clove and Cato, who are no doubt asking what he means by talking to me.
"What did district 1 want?" Another voice demands in the same ear. I turn to see Peeta standing their, looking slightly irked.
"What is it with you guys appearing out of nowhere and speaking in my ear?" I respond, narrowing my eyes.
At first, I found the amount of concern Peeta gave me sweet. But now, it's starting to get annoying, how he has to watch everything that happens. I need privacy. "He didn't want much, just saying he would see me tonight at the planned event," I snap.
"Why would he even be talking to you?" Peeta returns, his eyes also narrowing slightly. I sigh.
"I honestly have no clue, I have to go." I excuse myself quickly and walk towards the other direction, not even bothering to say goodbye to Peeta, or to check where I'm going. I can feel Peeta watching me again.
Pretty soon, I find myself at a maintenence elevator, or something of the sort, when something (or someone) grabs me, and pulls me into a broom closet.
"You think what you did earlier was funny, yeah?" A low voice breathes into my ear. I shove the person off.
"Seriously, what is it with you all speaking into someone's ear? It's annoying!" I snap, rubbing my left ear this time. "Now back off or I'll call for the peacekeepers."
"I'm not sure you want to do that..." the mysterious person says. I feel them reaching over to flick something on the wall, and a small light bulb turns on. The person steps out of the shadows and in the dim light, I see ice blue eyes. Oh great. Cato.
"What do you want Cato?"
He laughs. "That's no way to welcome your possible future ally," he drawls smirking.
"Look, if you're going to kill me you might as well get on with it, because-"
"Oh no, not yet. I'll wait until the arena." He responds lazily.
"Then what do you want?" I demand a bit harshly.
"What did Marvel tell you?"
"You never answered my question."
"And now you're not answering mine," he counters.
I scowl in frustration. "You're a real douchebag, you know that?"
"You're not much better yourself," He notes.
My scowl deepens. "Fine. I'll answer your question if you answer mine first."
"Oh, is firegirl making deals now?" He mocks.
"I am seriously about to slam my fist into the other side of your face. Based on how your face was doing right after I punched you before, I don't think this punch will be much of a pleasent experience for you. What do you say?"
He doesn't flinch like Peeta did after my jab, but to my satisfaction he seems to back off a little more. "Alright, you better answer my question firegirl, since I'm about to answer yours."
"I will. In district 12, we keep our word," I can't resist taking another stab at him.
He glares, but manages to ignore it. "I'm interrogating you. There's your answer."
I glare, feeling unsatisfied. "That's not good enough."
"I wasn't aware that seam rats have standards," he smirks.
"Well, they do!" I hiss, brushing it off because to be fair he ignored my previous insult.
"Fine, I'm exploiting your weaknesses, and judging your usefulness," He says bluntly.
"And you're doing that by...?"
"Don't push it 12, that's all you're getting out of me. Now answer my question."
"Marvel didn't want anything," I say shrugging.
"Oh really? I think you're lying." He moves closer, and even though he's definitely making me uncomfortable, I refuse to back away. To do so would be to give in to him.
"Well, he was talking about how we will see each other at the planned event tonight," I respond. I'm actually being honest, because maybe Marvel's point wasn't mainly the planned event, but we did mention it, and he did say he will see me there.
Cato's icy blue eyes narrow further, but he seems satisfied enough. For now. "Good enough for the time being. Well then, I'll certainly see you there as well," He responds with a sly smile as he opens the door and exits. "Have fun, girl on fire, take care to avoid getting burnt tonight!" He winks.
I don't trust him. He must be up to something. I keep getting the feeling that he knows something I don't about what will happen tonight. The real question is which does he know about, the planned event, or the meeting with Marvel and Clove? Or both? Of course, the entire thing could be a trick. Maybe Marvel and Clove are tricking me about the whole thing. Will they really be on the roof to discuss a prank for Cato, or is this really all an elaborate set up to ambush me? I suppose I'll find out tonight, if I show up, that is. As for now, I better head back to prepare for the event.
-TIME SKIP-
When I finally get up the elevator and back into the penthouse, I find Haymitch waiting for me, with Peeta no where to be found.
"Where's-"
"-Peeta? He came straight back like he was asked to, and he's already practicing with Effie!' Haymitch snaps looking irritated. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?
"No! So what's going on tonight?" I ask cautiously, knowing that for best results, I should avoid angering Haymitch further.
"This year, it'll be a bit different. Senecca Crane, the head gamemaker, and President Snow have decided that they have a particulary interesting mix. They've come up with a few interesting..... events each night after training, to promote bonding between tributes."
"Why bother? It's just going to hurt more when someone dies."
"That's exactly the point. More hurt, more drama. More drama, they have a better show. It's as simple as that."
"I wouldnt necessarily call that simple, but what's our event for tonight?"
"Tonight is the first night, so it will be easy. A formal dinner feast, and a Masquerade ball."
"First of all, that's not easy. Secondly, does that mean...."
"Yup. You won't be able to tell who's who. All the stylists have been instructed to make their tributes un-recognizable, with each person not only having a mask, but also recieving one to two capitol products to alter their appearence in some way."
I groan. A vivid image of everyone covered in piercings and tattoos with died pink/green hair waltzing around flashes through my mind. As long as I don't end up with piercings or a tatto, I'll be fine. died hair isn't so bad, it can be washed. ... what if I end up dancing with a tribute I utterly HATE?
"You'll be fine, Katniss. Now go see Cinna, he has your costume ready, along with your product. You only have 3 hours to get ready."
"3 hours is a lot," I grumble. But I go anyways.
When I meet Cinna in his office, he has a few things on his desk that I dearly hope aren't for me. The first is a fancy, elegant bottle of a red coloured liquid that I can only pray is not for me. The second is a small, jewel encrusted box/container thing, with the word 'EYES' enscribed on it. Oh no. Could it be... contacts? The last thing is a simplistic silver box, with the word COSTUME on it.
Oh no. I thought I wasn't going to have to run around naked covered in black coal dust.... Looks like Cinna was just saving it.... Then I feel slightly guilty. I should trust Cinna enough to know that he wouldn't do that to me. Whatever it is, it can't be as bad as contacts. My mom and Prim have told me about contacts before. Apparently, people in the richer districts use them to enhance their eye colour, or to change it all together. Its supposed to make you more beautiful, but they sound painful to me. Of course, I haven't so much as seen any in district 12, where most of the population is stuggling to stay alive, nevermind putting effort and money into changing eye colour.
"Hello Katniss. Haymitch informed you about the Masquerade tonight, I assume?"
"Yeah.... that isn't hair dye, is it?"
"No, not really, although it does serve a similar, more temporary purpose," Cinna answers. "It's more similar to hair spray. It will change your hair colour for tonight, and tonight only. By the morning, after a shower, your hair will be back to its natural shade. It doesn't have any of the damaging effects of hair dye, and is not permanent."
"So... I'll still have to have red hair tonight..."
"Yes. The hair dye is one of your captiol products."
"Fine, go ahead, do whatever you would like for tonight..."
I follow Cinna into the styling center, hoping that by tonight, Prim and my mother can hopefully recognize me even without my mask....
A/N: Well that's what's happening with Katniss! Let's see how Cato is dealing with this, in the next chapter!