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3. rough meeting

Etta grumbled as she adjusted her eyes to the bright light of the capitol mornings. She's almost never up this early, especially not to meet some filthy tribute. She'd been up for ages last night practicing how to greet Treech, hoping he'd fall for her fake warm welcome.

Etta stopped and regained her posture, trying to put on a content smile. He wouldn't fall for her words if she didn't look like she meant it. She brushed out her ugly, red-colored uniform skirt and adjusted the matching red bow holding back the front strands of her brown hair. Be sweet with your words, have a pleasant expression on your face, and make sure you look presentable. She noted in her head, saying it a couple times over before walking into the train station, only to realize someone else from her class was here.

"Coriolanus, what a lovely surprise to see you here...!" Etta forced a smile through gritted teeth as she recognized the blonde boy. He turned his head to look down at her, his lips pursed.

"Etta, lovely to see you too." he greeted with a smile, but it was obvious he was annoyed.

She noticed the fresh, white rose in his hand and grimaced. She didn't bring anything for Treech, not even a bit of food. Coriolanus noticed her staring at the rose and rolled his eyes. "I thought I'd make my tribute feel more welcome, do you have a problem?" he muttered.

"No... uh, do you by any chance have another rose? I may or may not have brought something for my tribute." she asked him quietly. She'd never thought she would have to ask Coriolanus for something, ever.

Coriolanus chuckled. "No, I don't. Good luck getting that boy to trust you." he shrugged, turning back to see if the train had arrived.

Great, just her luck.

They waited around for what seemed like forever, each of them starting to grow more bored by the second. She was about to turn around and leave when a screeching noise suddenly erupted in the train station. The tributes had arrived.

Etta eagerly made her way closer as a decent-sized squad of peacekeepers hopped out of the train and started commanding orders to each other, and the tributes. One of the peacekeepers noticed her and Coriolanus and stomped over, eyeing them rudely. "Are you two kids supposed to be here?" he asked, his voice loud.

Etta glanced uneasily at Coriolanus but decided to play it cool. "We're academy students. We decided to come greet our tributes that we were assigned." she stated, trying to brush her way past the peacekeeper.

The peacekeeper rolled his eyes and let the two students go past, walking back to order the tributes off the train.

She stared wide-eyed as the tributes began to step, or fall, out of the train. None of them were Treech just yet, but she knew he was getting out soon. She watched as the girl from 10 was thrown out of the train with a cry to cure her boredom but jerked her head back to the train as she saw movement from the corner of her eye.

There he was. Helping the girl from his district out of the train gently, who seemed to be in tears. She put on her fake smile and walked quickly over, scrunching her nose up at the smell of the train.

She's glad she doesn't have to awkwardly wait for them to notice her, because they immediately snap their gaze towards her, eyes sharp. Etta can't help but stare at the two of them blankly for a few long seconds. The girl tribute looks not a day over 15, tears running down her cheeks. She has dirt covering her pale skin and her messy reddish-color hair is sticking up every which way, not a good look for the first day in the capitol. Etta goes to smooth down her own hair after seeing how unkept the district 7 girls looked. As interesting as the girl tribute is, Etta is drawn to Treech. He no longer looks like he is about to cry; he looks a bit scary. But oddly attractive? He has striking hazel eyes and locks of dark brown curls spill out from under his grey hat. He even has a sprinkle of freckles across his face. He doesn't look scared anymore, just annoyed and confused. She feels a weird feeling in her stomach and prays that her breakfast doesn't come up.

Etta takes a deep breath and tries to remember what she had practiced saying for hours last night, but of course, she can't remember a single word of it. She frantically searches for something to say, her fake smile starting to twitch. Treech and his district partner glance at each other in confusion, their eyebrows furrowed.

"Um... hi!" she stammers, her voice cracking oddly.

She immediately regrets speaking at all and her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

Etta straightens her posture and takes a breath. "I'm Odette Rivers, your mentor." she smiles, hesitantly extending a hand for Treech to shake.

The boy eyes her hand carefully. Perfect nails painted the color of her outfit and her bow, not a scratch or dirt smudge in sight. Her skin promises to be soft if he would take her hand, but he doesn't. Just looks up at her with an annoyed glare.

Does this boy even talk at all? She wonders, pulling back her hand as she realizes he won't take it.

The smile drops from Etta's face as she starts to grow annoyed herself. "Do you talk?" she mutters, looking up at him expectantly.

Treech scoffs. "I do, actually. Just not to capitol brats." he retorts, his face twisted into a scowl.

Etta narrows her eyes. She was hoping to get this over with as fast as she could, but she was not going to let a disgusting district boy disrespect her without getting the last word. "Shut up. Your life is in my hands when you get into that arena." she snaps.

That seemed to quiet him down as he looks at the ground and shuffles his feet. The district 7 girl looks up at him and then to Etta, her eyes flickering nervously. "I'm Lamina..." she says, her voice hardly above a whisper. "I'm sorry, we're all a bit upset. We haven't eaten in a while."

Etta lets out a breath of relief to at least know Pup's tribute is nice. She plasters on a smile again. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lamina. I'll tell your mentor to bring you food as quickly as he can."

Lamina's eyes brighten slightly and she smiles shyly, but it leaves her face as she realizes who she's talking to.

The peacekeepers start to yell again, ordering for the tributes to get on some rusty old truck. Treech grabs Lamina's hand and starts to pull her away from Etta and towards the truck. He doesn't even know where he's going, but he just wants to get far away from the capitol girl. Etta purses her lips and chases after him, grabbing his upper arm firmly. "If you start being as nice as your district partner, maybe I'll think about bringing you some food as well." she whispers, releasing his arm after she finishes her sentence.

Treech huffs and doesn't look back, continuing to walk to the truck. Etta watches him get in and tilts her head. Wherever they're going this year is undoubtedly different from last year. This year seems to be different; they won't all be sent straight into the arena tomorrow, but somewhere else. Remembering how they were transported here, she concludes that they won't be staying somewhere even a quarter as nice as where she lives.

There's a moment where the district 8 boy tries to make a run for it, leaving the van unguarded. She's about to turn around when someone grabs her wrist from behind and tugs her forward. Etta gasps and wriggles in the grasp, surprised to see Coriolanus. "Etta, please. Please go with me, I need to get into that truck but I can't go alone." he pleads.

Etta furrows her brows. "Coriolanus, absolutely not!" she refuses, trying to remove his hand from her wrist. Coriolanus holds her tighter and drags her along with him, throwing her into the truck, him following close behind.

She shakily stands up and tries to get out, only to have the truck's back doors slammed centimeters away from her face. Etta shrieks and turns around, only to have many pairs of eyes on her. Luckily, Coriolanus stands in front of her like a shield.

Etta stands up and takes in her surroundings. No way out. Just her, Coriolanus, and 12 angry tributes. This is a bad situation to be in, almost as bad as when you pay good money for a dress and once you bring it home it turns out to be torn.

Actually, this is way worse.

She swallows hard at the tension. For the second time today, she feels as if her breakfast might come up again. The unbearable smell of the tributes is making it even worse to hold it down. It smells like dirt, sweat, and most concerningly, the metallic scent of blood. She's unsure of where it's coming from and tries not to think of where.

The truck shakes and begins to start driving, the bumping of the road making it extra nerve wrecking. Etta looks past Coriolanus's shoulder and feels relieved to see most of their gazes are fixed on the blonde boy. Lamina is sitting in between the district 10 boy with one eye and the district 10 girl who was thrown out of the train earlier, seeming to be glaring daggers at Coriolanus.

Etta's gaze flickers up to Treech who is staring directly at her, making her stomach churn uncomfortably. He's holding on to the railing of the truck and seems quite tense, not daring to move a muscle. She's hoping that due to their bad start earlier he won't hurt her while he gets the chance, the thoughts causing her to shrink down.

It's silent besides the occasional sniffle from Lamina or bump on the road causing the truck to shake. Coriolanus decides to break the silence. "Hi." he says awkwardly, giving away how nervous he really is.

The district 11 boy speaks up. "What's the matter, pretty boy? You in the wrong cage?"

Etta's glad for the first time in forever the attention isn't on her.

"No, this cage is delightful." Coriolanus replies, trying his best to sound laid-back. She fights back the urge to kick him. If she weren't trying to go unnoticed, she would have done it by now.

Most of the tributes obviously don't like what he said, their gazes immediately turning hostile. Etta freezes up, knowing something bad is coming due to the sudden change in atmosphere.

The district 11 boy lunges forward and grabs Coriolanus by the collar of his shirt.

"Get him, Reaper!" the district 8 boy who tried to escape calls out.

Etta knows this will end badly, probably with her and Coriolanus's dead bodies being dragged out of the truck. She and Coriolanus are both very well known capitol wise, and both of them dead will not sit well with everyone.

Etta scooches away from Coriolanus, exposing herself to the tributes, earning her multiple hard stares. Her classmate is slammed against the back of the truck and he groans softly. Reaper, as the 8 boy had said, yells again. "I will kill you right now!"

Nobody in the truck doubts him, especially when the sickly district 11 girl pipes up. "He'll do it, too. Reaper killed a peacekeeper back in 11." she says, loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Well, what about her?" the district 4 girl points at Etta, one of the only tributes to notice Etta was actually there. The girl takes in Etta's expensive uniform and how her hair is perfectly straight, her face flawless. "Something wrong, princess? Not having a good day?" she pouts.

Etta's face flushes with embarrassment and annoyance. She knows it's best not to reply, it would probably make her end up as much as a target as Coriolanus.

"Just kill them both." the district 10 boy shouts excitedly, his accent making it sound somewhat ridiculous. His district partner stands up threateningly. "I'm in."

"Nothing left to lose now!" the district 8 boy yells eagerly. The tension thickens and Etta slumps down, accepting this might be her last few moments alive. "Let's start with the boy, and end with the girl."

Etta jerks her head upwards as she hears Treech's voice. "I wouldn't do that if I were you guys." he mutters. "If you kill them, they'll punish you. It might not even be a quick death. Just pure torture." he drops his hand from the railing, staring down Etta.

Coriolanus's tribute chimes in, some girl with a ruffly dress every color of the rainbow. "He's right. Y'all got family back home? They'll kill them if you hurt either him or her, then you."

Etta's breath whooshes out of her lungs in relief. She'd have to thank Treech for that later, rainbow ruffles maybe too. They practically just saved her life.

"She's my mentor as well." Treech admits. "I have no clue what that means but it sounds important. Just... keep your hands off her, I guess." he mutters.

Rainbow ruffles nods. "And he's mine. I might need him."

The tributes look at each other with confusion, but they look somewhat calmer now. Not like they are going to rip her to shreds.

"How come you two get menders?" Coral asks, narrowing her eyes. It's obvious none of them know what a mentor is due to Coral addressing her and Coriolanus as a 'mender'.

"Mentors," Coriolanus corrects her. How does he still act so snobby and like a know-it-all when he was on the verge of death approximately 30 seconds ago? "You each get one."

He'll get himself killed with how he acts. Etta's not fond of him, but she doesn't want him dead... at least for now.

"Oh, and we'll just trust you on that one, right?" Coral stands up, her eyes burning with challenge.

"I swear, he's telling the truth. You'll meet your mentors tomorrow." Etta tries her best to reassure the tributes, hoping to settle them back down.

"And why do lumberjack and rainbow girl get special treatment, hm?" Coral asks, smirking. She leans down so she's eye level with 'rainbow girl' who chooses to avoid eye contact. "Why aren't our menders here?"

The 12 girl thinks it over for a second. "Just not inspired, I guess." she shrugs.

The truck stops and everyone shuts up, wondering where they've ended up now. Etta relaxes herself, which turns out to be a mistake.

Screams erupt and tributes start to slide down the floor of the truck. Etta scrambles to hold onto something but she eventually goes tumbling down at full speed. She barrels past several tributes and finds herself with her head spinning once she's stopped. She can hardly hear besides the distorted groans of pain from everyone else.

Etta's first instinct is to smooth down her hair, but jumps as the ground starts moving beneath her. Well, not the ground, but unfortunately a tribute. She scrambles to get away from them and her breath hitches as she realizes who it is.

Mizzen, the district 4 boy. Persephone's tribute. His hat had fallen off and his hair is messier than usual. His round eyes are gleaming with pain and he glares at Etta as he shakily stands up to put back on his hat. Etta's about to apologize but she stops herself. He doesn't need an apology, he's district.

The boy limps over to Coral and she seems furious. "I guess it's perfectly fine to use him as a landing, huh, capitol!?" she yells at Etta, who chooses to ignore it. Coral can yell all she wants, not like it matters.

Etta turns away and takes in her surroundings, turning pale almost instantly. It's the capitol zoo. The monkey exhibit to be exact. Etta scrunches up her nose at the smell. She needs to get out of here as soon as possible. She turns her head and almost faints at the familiar face.

Lucky Flickerman. Complete with a camera and his entire film crew. This has got to be live, and her parents are definitely watching, eager to get a glimpse at the tributes. Forget just her parents, the entire capitol is watching right now! There's even citizens already coming by in person to see. If she's caught here, her reputation will be demolished.

She looks around for Coriolanus, hoping to use him as a shield again. Her jaw drops as she realizes he's with Lucky, introducing his tribute. How could he do that to himself!? Lucky notices her standing in the far back, and looks even more excited.

"Not just one, but two academy students are here! Here we have Coriolanus Snow, and way back there, I think that may be Soren River's daughter, Odette Rivers!" Lucky explains into the microphone. "Care to join us, Odette?" he calls over to her.

Etta's stomach twists and she stares at him blankly. She can't really ignore him, it would just make her look more odd. Maybe this would be a good time to introduce Treech.

She scans the enclosure for her tribute and spots him looking around, looking quite unimpressed. "Treech!" she calls out, running towards him.

Treech turns his head and his neutral expression suddenly turns into a frown. "What, Ollie?" he sighed, looking down at her. Etta glared at him. "It's Odette. Not that it matters, you'll probably be dead in two weeks." she shrugged. He scoffed, but she could tell he was upset. "Unless," she continued on. "You come and introduce yourself to the cameras. Maybe then you'll still be alive."

Treech's gaze hardened, glancing over to Lucky and his film crew. "Fine." he muttered curtly.

Etta heaved a sigh, relieved that she didn't have to argue with him to get him to do what she wants. She jogged over to Lucky and shoved Coriolanus gently, enough to get him out of the way.

"Ah, and everyone, joining us right now is Odette Rivers!" Lucky exclaimed. "Where's your tribute?" Etta rolled her eyes and looked behind her; Treech still stood at the same spot, looking warily over at the cameras. She gestured for him to come and he walked slowly over. "Come on, we don't have all day!" Lucky called, slightly irritated.

Treech eventually made his way to the cameras and sat down a respectful distance away from Etta. She ignored him and smiled brightly. "This is my tribute, Treech! He's from District 7, and I think he has a good chance of winning the games already." she gushed, trying to make him seem more appealing to the capitol.

Treech almost immediately understood what Etta was trying to do. He tipped his hat towards the camera and gave a wink. "Hey there." he grinned. Lucky, excited as ever, carried on the conversation. "So, Treech from 7, how's life out there in the districts? Anything you'd care to tell us about?" he urged him on. Treech thought for a second before responding. "Well, I work as a lumberjack... well, more as a debarker, but I think lumberjack sounds cooler. I mainly just peel bark off trees with my tools. I can use an axe though, if that'll help me in the games at all." he replied simply.

Etta smiled at Treech, then back at the camera. If he kept this attitude up, fake or not, he'd get sponsors plenty. One step closer to the prize!

"Well, isn't that something, folks? We've got our very own lumberjack in the games! Nice talking to you, Treech. I hope to talk again soon." Lucky exclaimed, quickly moving on to shove the camera into another tribute's face.

As soon as the weatherman was gone, Treech's charming smile vanished. "Good enough for you, Capitol?" he asked in a mocking tone. Etta sighed. "It's good enough for now, I suppose. Listen, I'll try to come by again later with some food. If I don't show up, assume I'm busy." she sped through her sentence, desperate to leave the disgusting enclosure as soon as she could. Treech nodded and watched her leave, really hoping she would return. Not just for food, but some sort of company. Lamina's all he has here, and she hardly even speaks.

Etta didn't even mind the peacekeepers roughly grabbing her arms, she was just glad to be removed from the zoo. Anywhere but the zoo would be fine. She thinks about how Treech acts, and how she can use it to get him sponsors. He's quiet, a bit sassy, but surprisingly knows how to preform in front of cameras. Though Etta would never admit it to anyone, he's very pretty. Perhaps if he wasn't so obnoxious she would like him more.

Perhaps she could learn to like him, even with how much she despises him currently.

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The ride back to the academy was very awkward, having to sit next to Coriolanus way too close for comfort. Both of them also received a long lecture from a head peacekeeper, complete with injury and bag checkings.

She races down the hallway, determined to at least make it back to class quicker than Coriolanus. Her uniform is messy, as well as her hair and makeup. There was no time to touch up, unfortunately.

Etta takes a deep breath before opening the large, white wooden door. As soon as the door creaks open enough to reveal her, the classroom goes silent. All eyes on her, but this time, not for a good reason. She does her best to stay calm and holds her head high as she walks up the stairs to her seat.

As soon as she sits down, Livia's talking.

"Etta, where were you? Everyone was worried!" Livia asks, concern flashing across her face. Oh my gosh, your uniform!" she fusses, trying to get some of the dirt off. Etta places her hand on Livias reassuringly. "I was at the train station this morning hoping to meet my tribute. I did, he was rude. Coriolanus wanted me to come with him to follow the tributes, though I refused. Of course, he can't take no for an answer and shoved me into this rusty truck with some of the tributes, where I ended up at the Capitol Zoo." she explained quickly.

Livia gasped. "With those savages? I'm so sorry, Etta! Coriolanus is such a brat." she whispered. Etta snickered at that. "I'm going by again later to drop off some food. Do you want to come?" she asked, secretly hoping she would say no so she could speak with Treech alone.

Livia immediately declined. "Mm, I don't feel like it. Maybe in the upcoming days I will."

Etta was about to reply when the doors slammed open, revealing a very annoyed looking Coriolanus. He still had dirt on his uniform, unsuccessful on his attempts to fully remove it. The class looked up from their notes to stare once more. The blonde boy took a seat between Sejanus and Clemmie, avoiding eye contact.

"Your little excursion was in violation of about five different Academy rules, Mr. Snow, Ms. Rivers." Highbottom droned, not even bothering to look up from sorting the papers scattered across his desk. He adjusted his glasses, continuing. "Chief amongst them, endangering Capitol students."

Coriolanus's eyes widened. "What, who?"

"You," Highbottom quickly retorts. "and, Ms. Rivers. I'm moving for the gamemakers to have the two of you disqualified as mentors immediately."

Etta snaps her head towards Highbottom. He couldn't do that! She knows she's already in quite a bit of trouble at home, but being disqualified as a mentor means losing her chance at winning the Plinth prize, and that would send her father into indescribable rage.

"There were never any rules saying we couldn't go!" Etta protests. Coriolanus nods. "You said we had to get our tributes to preform, not that we had to stay away."

Highbottom sighs and rubs his temples. It's obvious he would have gotten an uprising with how rebellious Odette and Coriolanus are. Coriolanus's ambition would most certainly drive him to pulling a stunt such as the one he just preformed. He wouldn't expect this out of Odette, though; she's never been interested with the districts or tributes, let alone hanging out with them.

"Holding her hand, Coryo? Introducing her to the people?" Arachne sneers, flashing the boy a mean look. "You make it look like as if we're one of those animals..."

"Oh, shut up, Arachne!" Livia snaps. "You're just jealous his tribute is obviously more liked than yours." Etta giggles, smiling at Livia. It's odd for her friend to argue against Arachne, especially if it's somewhat standing up for Coriolanus.

Most of the class quietly laughs, but some choose to stay silent, preferring to watch with an amused look on their faces. Arachne looks quite shocked, but scoffs and rolls her eyes. "You all won't be laughing when my tribute wins the games!" she exclaims. How petty.

"Quiet down, all of you." Highbottom mutters. "We've got more important topics to get through."

Sejanus starts to speak, surprisingly. He's been deep in his notes the whole time Etta has been in here. "Etta and Coriolanus didn't show those people anything they didn't already know." he states, his voice oddly firm.

Even with her slight dislike for Sejanus, she admires him for talking back. He never seemed like the type to do so. He's hopeful, though. Not a surprise, most district people are, or try to be. He always believes that one day his classmates might have a change in mindset, maybe rethink their opinions.

"I don't need your help, Sejanus.." Coriolanus whispers, his tone of voice making his words seem like a warning.

If she could reach from her seat, Etta would most definitely slap him right now. He's so negative, even more so than her.

Sejanus simply ignores him. "The tributes are human beings just like us. That's why nobody wants to watch the games. Because, deep down, people know that winning a war ten years ago doesn't justify starving people's children, taking away their freedoms, their rights."

Etta exchanges a glance with Livia and the two girls roll their eyes in sync. "Here comes more ranting..." she whispers, just loud enough for Livia to hear.

But there was no more, he was cut off. By of course, Dr. Gaul. "Rivers and Snow fell down in the cage, it fell down in the cage, it fell down in the cage but it landed..." she speaks in her same spine-chilling tone.

Etta sighs and puts her head on her desk. She's in no mood for Dr. Gaul's little riddles and games, unlike Coriolanus who hesitantly replies. "On stage."

Dr. Gaul's eyes light up at the answer. She slowly makes her way over to a very uncomfortable looking Coriolanus. "You're very good at games. Maybe one day you'll be a gamemaker, like me." she smiles eerily.

Dr. Gaul turns around and tilts her head at Etta. "You, Ms. Rivers surprised me quite a bit today. Who would have thought you would ever wanted to be in the presence of a district child... let alone introducing yourself to him? Quite a change, Odette." she observes, strangely excited.

She puts on her fake smile from earlier, hoping Dr. Gaul buys it.

"Maybe that Snow boy will be a gamemaker, if the games continue at all." Highbottom speaks up.

"Oh, they'll continue," Dr. Gaul quickly replies, nodding her head rapidly. "with performances like Mr. Snow's in the zoo."

Etta clenches her jaw. So much for trying to make an effort.

"Anyways, I came here to ask the star mentor a question." Dr. Gaul continues. Etta perks up. Her?

No. Of course not. Coriolanus. Etta thinks as she watches Dr. Gaul look over at Coriolanus with a wide smile. "What are the Hunger Games for?"

All eyes fix onto Coriolanus who shifts uncomfortably in his seat, eyes darting around the classroom. "They're to punish the districts for their uprising. To commemorate the end of the war."

Dr. Gaul seems unimpressed. "Dull, dull, dull..." she mutters. "Punishment and such displays can take myriad forms. Why not drop bombs, cancel food shipments, stage executions. Why games?"

Don't they do all of those already? Etta wonders. Somehow, she understands what Dr. Gaul is trying to say. It's horrible, living with the fear of someone you love being forced into a game that's almost certainly a death penalty. Executions and other things people tend to forget easily, but the Hunger Games? It always is running through people's minds, especially during the month of July when the games take place.

"Shouldn't we be asking ourselves whether or not the games are right in the first place?" Sejanus pipes up again, earning himself multiple glares from classmates.

Dr. Gaul fixes her heterochromic gaze on Sejanus. "You have a problem with my games?"

Does this woman know how many people actually do have a problem with them?

Something seems to snap inside of Sejanus. "Some of those kids were only two years old when the war ended, the oldest of them were only eight!" he yells. "The Capitol is supposed to be everyone's government now. It's supposed to protect all of us, and I don't see how making children fight each other to the death every year is protecting anyone."

Etta knows he's right, though she would never admit it. He's just going to get in trouble, like anyone who speaks up about the games always does. He can speak this way to anyone he wants to, just not the highest in command! Does he know how stupid he's being?

Dr. Gaul frowns. "That sort of sympathy might interfere with your mentoring assignment." she chides.

Highbottom, having listened to everything, speaks up once more. "Perhaps the Capitol students are ill-suited to be mentoring the tributes. Perhaps the game's time has passed." he suggests.

Dr. Gaul looks as if she's going to say something, but Coriolanus of course has to start talking again. "Dean Highbottom is wrong. My classmates too." he says calmly. "Maybe Sejanus is on to something here." he rises from his seat.

"Maybe we should be viewing the tributes as human beings. I mean, you saw those kids in the zoo, they just wanted to get to know Lucy Gray. If we need people to watch, we should be letting them get closer to the tributes before the games."

Multiple students groan, Etta included. This boy just never stopped talking!

Dr. Gaul narrows her eyes. "Who will watch the games if they care what happens to the tributes?"

"Everyone! If they thought the tribute they cared about had a chance of winning. People need someone to root for and someone to root against. We need them to invest. And, if we bend a few Capitol laws, we could even have them place bets." Coriolanus speaks, almost excited in a way. "Look, I know Lucy Gray may not win in the arena, but if you give her a chance I would bet the Plinth prize that she can win people's attention."

Etta thinks about it for a second; it's not a bad idea. He's right about Lucy Gray as well. Besides the occasional comment about a tribute, Lucy Gray's been the favorite of the Capitol so far.

Dr. Gaul seems drawn in by Coriolanus's ideas. "I'd like you to write up a proposal of these thoughts, Mr. Snow. Have it done by Friday."

"Wait!" Clemensia stands up quickly. "You mean you might.. actually use his ideas?" she exclaims, eyes wide.

Dr. Gaul smiles and shrugs. "If it'll help the ratings, why not?"

Dr. Gaul begins to leave, but Clemensia continues to talk. "Dr. Gaul, Coriolanus and I are class partners. We do all of our assignments together." Coriolanus looks over at Clemensia, seeming annoyed.

Etta looks away, feeling sick to her stomach. She realizes after this she'd have to go home, where a not-so warm welcome would be waiting for her. Thankfully, all she would have to do is make up a few lies and seem as sweet as can be. Works like a charm, every time.

Usually.

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i've been writing for what seems like forever, only to look over this chapter and realize it wasn't that much. it's 2:54 AM and i finally finished this, and i'm so happy about it. again, i apologize that etta seems like such a jerk, especially to treech. i promise, she'll get nicer!

thank you so much for reading, i hope you've enjoyed so far!

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- julia !! (ettarivers), july 21st 2024

- published, july 24th 2024