A/N: I made a silly mistake and mixed up Gloss and Cashmere, but it's been fixed, so please don't be confused in this chapter!

A L T H E A

   The training center was nearly empty when Thatcher and Althea entered. The man hadn't asked about the day or night before, thankfully, but he had given her hand a firm squeeze before they exited the elevator.
   Instructors and Districts Nine, Eleven, Seven, and Twelve were scattered around the stations. Peeta and Katniss were bent over the edible vs. poisonous station, but the boy straightened when he saw Althea heading their way.
   "Althea!" He exclaimed. "Are you feeling better? Thatcher said you weren't feeling well."
   "Is that what they call it nowadays?" Katniss asked snarling. Anger flared in Althea's chest as Peeta shot a warning glance at his companion. Katniss paid no mind to him, straightening as well and staring directly into Althea's eyes. The older woman reigned in her anger. This was a child grappling to hold onto what little control she held on her life.
   Instead, she stepped closer to Katniss, a small and false smile on her lips. "Don't speak of things you know nothing about." Her voice was hot and threateningly low. Peeta and the instructor watched warily as the females stared into each other's eyes challengingly. If Katniss was a thunderstorm, Althea was a hurricane, and neither would back down.
   "I know enough." Katniss was strong as steel, but she was all too stubborn to admit when she was wrong or beaten.
   "You know nothing," Althea spit through clenched teeth. When she backed up, it wasn't in surrender. No, it was a postponement. If she had to physically put the Girl on Fire in her place in the arena, she would not hesitate.
   "Peeta, thank you for your concern. I'm feeling much better." Lies, lies, lies. You're a liar. "If you're up to it, I'd actually like to give you some pointers on your machete skills."
   The blond boy's eyebrows shot up on his forehead like rockets. "Yes! I mean, yeah. That would be cool, thank you." Katniss opened her mouth to protest, but shut it just as quickly.
   Althea left the station with Peeta quick at her heels. They found the blade station easily. "Tobias. Good to see you're still running this joint," she started. Tobias was an instructor and had been since before her games.
   The man grinned, brown eyes twinkling. "Of course. Gonna cut some more heads off this year?" Neither tribute missed his eyes flickering to Peeta.
   "Not if I don't have to," she answered, casting a glance to the elevator just as it opened. Upon seeing Mags, she looked away swiftly. "Peeta, we're going to start on the basics, okay?"
   The boy nodded eagerly. She grabbed two foam machetes. Why every weapon but the long knives and swords were real was beyond her. Tossing one to him, she subdued a brief flash of relief when he caught it easily.
   "Just put it off to the side for now," she ordered. He did as she was told. She moved four feet from him. "You should be good if you're disarmed. You're strong, smart. But we're going to make sure it doesn't get to that point. Got it?"
   "Yes, ma'am."
   She smiled wryly. He needed to stop being so adorable immediately. With his puppy personality, she was sure he would manage to worm his way through her walls. She had always been a sucker for kids. That was one of the many reasons she hated mentoring of any form. She would get attached and root for her kids so hard, and get heartbroken each time. Last year, they were so close, and Finch had been so smart. But not smart enough.
   Peeta could not be one of the children in the cemetery of her heart. 'Protect Katniss' be damned — she would kill anyone that lay hands on Peeta Mellark.
   "Rule number one: unless you have an absolute surprise attack or they have been rendered flightless, keep at least this distance between yourself and your opponent." She gestured to the space between them. He nodded.
   "Rule number two." She propped herself onto her toes and continued. "Don't stand flatfooted. I'm not sure how that leg works, so take that rule however you can."
   He surprised her by rocking back and forth on his heels and toes. Then he made a show of lifting his foot and rolling his ankle around in the air. "It's pretty mobile. And it's waterproof, too!" He exclaimed. The situation was easily comparable to when Cassia was younger and would show the victor her new toys. Of course, being raised by kind hearted parents, she would also show Althea the toys she was going to donate to the District orphanage with equal excitement.
   "Only the Capitol's best, I'm sure." The taste that filled her mouth upon saying the words was bitter and repulsive, but she couldn't openly voice her opinion on the matter. "Continuing on. Don't ever stand flat-footed. You'll be knocked off-balance easily." She changed her footing to stand at a forty-five degree angle. Her chest still faced the boy, but she had more stability in her stance. Peeta followed the movements with his eyes and changed his stance to copy her own.
   "If you can, I want you to keep that leg in front of you. That way, if your opponent gets a slice, they won't hit anything incredibly important." She watched as he adjusted his body to match her words.
   "Yeah. I'd hate to have a repeat of last year and become a cyborg," he joked, but she could tell it was also an honest statement. Still, she gave him a small snicker. Despite the depressing truth of it, it was pretty funny. It was good that he still had his humor.
   "Okay. Keep your core strong. You're not immobile, just unmovable. Strong base, but be quick to dodge, too." Backing away, she waved Tobias over. "Pick up your knife and work on defense only. Tobias, give him what you've got."
   "I thought I was the instructor," he sassed, but he still picked up his own foam blade.
   "No one asked," she snapped. They had a single day to improve Peeta's skills. And although it was her own fault, she didn't want to waste any more time with Tobias' sass.
   She watched as Peeta worked to block and dodge Tobias' blows, calling out pointers, tips, and encouragements. She had found out early on that most tributes responded better to positive reinforcement, including herself. Soon enough, he was blocking nearly every strike Tobias was throwing his way.
   "Alright. Good job!" She gave him a high five as he panted. "Catch your breath. I'm going to demonstrate a few ways to disarm your opponent. So pay attention." He nodded and took a drink of water. Althea turned to Tobias. "We're going to go slow so he can watch."
   "But I heard you like it fast," Cashmere's voice rang out. Althea froze and clenched her teeth.
   "And you'll be begging for fast when she kills you slowly," Thatcher snapped, appearing out of nowhere. "Move along before one of those knives pops your breast implants."
   "Ha!" Johanna called from behind. "I always knew those were fake!"
   Althea had not turned to face them, but she heard Cashmere scoff and march away. Her eyes lifted from her fist that was clenched around the foam handle and connected with Finnick's. Despite a layer of false boredom, she could see the confusion and anger. Looking away sharply, she locked eyes with Tobias, who waited patiently for her next move.
   "Forget slow. Peeta, try to keep up."

A/N: hi loves! a little bit of team building and humor to help move our storyline along. thoughts? comments? how are we doing?
love you!