Tʜᴇ Hᴜɴɢᴇʀ Gᴀᴍᴇs ❧ A Rᴏʟᴇᴘʟᴀʏ discussion

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Alex strolled into the Training Centre, confident and more than ready for an opportunity to try out everything the Capitol had to offer - and maybe show off just a little bit. He stood in the centre of the room, casting his eyes around, trying to find something that interested him. A weapons rack caught his eye. Or, more specifically, the weapon on it.

A long, thin spear hung across the rack, almost glowing in the dim light of the room. It was truly a thing of beauty, with a glittering, razor sharp spearhead fastened to the top, and sharp, wing like pieces of metal jutting off on either side, so he could use it from almost any angle, to any effect. It was perfect.

Stopping in front of it, Alex weighed it in his lands. Light, but strong, and flexible to the point where it had some give, but would hold strong. Feeling a rush of appreciation, Alex lifted it, turning it over in his hands to admire it. If he had one of these in the arena, he would be unstoppable.

He had always been good with spears - well, fishing spears, back home - his lightning reflexes making it easy for him to nab the fishes perfectly, so they were caught and killed, but not damaged by the impact. This was something different all together. This was a real weapon. A

And Alex couldn't wait to try it out.

Juliette cautiously walked into the Training Center. She was curious about what would be inside. Oddly enough, few tributes where present at the time. Juliette looked around, now taking in all of the stations. Archery, swordsmanship, knife throwing, and more where present for weaponry. Somebody-she couldn't tell who-was looking at a spear. Then there were more long-effecting parts of the Training Center. How to learn how to start a fire, make a fishing pole, camouflage, and much more.

Juliette paused, thinking quickly about where to go. With little tributes there, she could start learning new things. But if they came in there while she was learning, they could get a wrong opinion and think she was stupid. Or, Juliette could practice weaponry-what she was good at, or hoped to be good at-and show off. But she also didn't want to seem conceded..

"So the Training Center is the place to be?" I asked, rolling my eyes. My Mentor nodded and in the corner of my eye I could see my district partner grinning slightly. I only just resisted the urge to slap her.
*
"What time do I have to go down?" Another question slipped my mouth. I was still stood in the lounge a few hours later. They wouldn't answer me.
"Two hours ago." My Mentor looked somewhat annoyed. I wouldn't blame them.

~

The lights that hung from the ceiling didn't look too good. They were too bright and you could barely see anything. Maybe that helped the tributes, so they wouldn't be able to see the Gamemakers, see their snarls and their shaking of heads and anything else they might let loose. Stations. That's what filled the area. He thought he could go the whole time without visiting this place once, but he was already shoved in the lift - the doors already closing - before he could protest.

Two other people were in. He wouldn't speak to them. It was a miracle he even acknowledged them. Now he just had to make allies, learn some facts he didn't already know, then it was down to the nitty gritty and he knew he wouldn't get that far, it was just too far and he was already panicking and-

~

"How could you?" It stank. Not necessarily of that. It just stank. "How could you?" It still stank. Again, not necessarily of that. Yet it still just stank. Drip.. drip.. drip. Click.. click.. click. Sniff.. sniff.. sniff. Bang. Bang. Bang. "How could you?"

Scarlett had woken up very early that morning, and had been ready to go down to the training center after a hearty breakfast and short chat with her mentor. Yeah- her mentor. You were supposed to go to them for advice and stuff, right? Turned out hers wasn't very easy towards his tributes and may as well have tortured her out of bed. He didn't care for her personal space either. Weren't the rooms supposed to be locked? pull on a nicer looking tank and knee high capris, She prayed she wouldn't be known as the girl with a sharp mouth after her Reaping, but so what if she was? Entering the training center and slipping in quietly, she realized only three other tributes were there. One being her district partner. Goody- she liked annoying him.

(( Would anyone like to be potential allies with Cinnamon when I finish her? ))

Juliette was over by the fishing station, making complex poles from what they had-which was more than she had back at home. She carefully tied the knots tight, making sure not to get her fingers caught in the hooks. Soon, she had a simple hook on a string. It would catch at least the more unintelligent fish. But hey, they stupid ones were fish none the less. Soon, Juliette had more strings with hooks. She started weaving the strings together. It looked quite strange and maybe even stupid, but Juliette knew that it would be impressive once done.

Juliette heard the doors open twice, and she looked up the second time. A girl and a boy had walked in. She couldn't see them very well, so she assumed they might not even see her at all. Juliette tossed her silvery blue hair behind her shoulder, continuing back to her work.

Eventually, Juliette had weaved all of the hooks' strings together. She was left with a strange contraption of a woven net mixed with fishing hooks. To anyone else, it might have looked like the funniest thing in the world. To Juliette-and even to the Gamemakers-it looked smart and life-saving. It would be able to catch a multitude of fish, and even other creatures that live in the water. Anything that would get tangled in the net or on the many hooks.

Alex felt a mixture of emotions as he walked across the room silently towards his district counterpart, the spear that he had chosen slung across his back in a leather sheath. He watched her work for a few minutes, standing a safe distance away, just watching her, silent and unmoving. Julia? Jeanette? Juliette? He didn't even know her name. They had never spoken, although he had seen her around often. With her distinctive hair and breathtaking eyes. It wasn't like he had been attracted to her or anything. He knew her only as the girl who sat in front of him in class, and she probably didn't even know he existed. No, he definitely never entertained the possibility of attraction between them. He just noticed her eyes.

Now, she was the only reminder of home he had left.

After a moment, Alex stepped a little closer, speaking from directly behind her, smirking slightly when he saw that she was so engrossed in her work that she didn't even look up.

"Nice fish hook," he said, softly. "Not the most foolproof...but beautiful, never the less."

It was true. It wasn't the most complicated hook he had ever seen, probably wouldn't catch any fish smart enough not to take the bait, but it was still a thing of beauty. Simple beauty.

Corey had sat on the roof until she was sure it was time for the tributes to come down to the training center. She had a form of cereal for breakfast. She dressed in tight black jeans a black t-shirt and boots. She took the elevator down thinking about what to expect. As soon as the doors opened Corey knew the Hunger Games have really began. She gave herself a quick chuckle as she walked into the room. Through the corner of her eyes she saw a couple tributes at the fishing station. She went over to the fire starting station, she watched and talked to the trainer. She made a fire with dry wood, wet wood, straw, grass and everything else they had at the station. Maybe I should talk to those tributes She thought as she moved away from the fire starting place. She stood 5 feet away from the 2 Career tributes.

Juliette looked up, her hair flashing as her head turned. She smiled slightly, though it was strained. "Hey. Alex, right?" She was pretty good with names and remembering things in general. Juliette set down the net on the table, careful not to let it get caught on anything. She stood up, brushing herself off. Juliette faced Alex and smiled softly. "I'm Juliette. And yeah, I know." Her eyebrow leaped up a little, curious about Alex.

She had seen him around District 7 before, and had remembered him from class. He had always sat behind her, or at least near her. Juliette blushed slightly, feeling weird that she had remembered his name, and he might not have remembered hers. "So..." Juliette muttered, the conversation going nowhere at the moment.

((Cinnamon can be allies with Jake. He's a Career so it'll take a lot of convincing))

Another tribute stood several feet away from where he was stood. Another miracle he even aknowledged her. He was still stood, not doing anything, just standing. Looking. Watching. People making fish hooks. Another girl enters. His District partner. Great. She'd probably be up for annoying him. What was she called? He was certain she had a name. He wasn't going to keep calling her 'she' and 'her'. He couldn't remember.

~

I know they're thinking; you're too mean, I don't like you- eff you anyway. You make me want to scream.. at the top of my lungs. It hurts but I won't fight it- you suck anyway. You make me want to die.

(( Okay ))

Alex tried to cover the awkwardness of the conversation with a smile, trying not to feel too bad that she knew his name, but he didn't know hers. He was in the most brutal murder game in recorded history, which, to be fair, didn't really exist for them before the games. Not that Alex knew off, anyway. He wasn't going to get very far if he felt bad about forgetting some girl's name, could he.

Some girl...? Alex studied her for a moment. Was that all she was to him? Dully, he discovered that it was the truth. He expected her to somehow become special now that they were in this together, but honestly, he was only curious. He didn't dislike her, but he didn't feel a sudden friendship or anything towards her. Still, she would make a good ally. And he didn't want to have to kill her. Not with all of their classmates back home watching. He couldn't handle that.

"Yup. I'm Alex," he confirmed with a smile. "Well remembered. It's actually pretty surprising, given the fact that I had a thirty-two percent attendance in class..." He sighed, before smiling, slightly bitterly, but in a way that was more friendly than off-putting. "I never thought I'd wish for a stupid History class, but I'd give anything to be there instead of here right now..." He laughed. "You missing home?"

Juliette could tell he was trying not to let his emotions get in his way. She herself knew that it would be a tactic of many. Or, like Career Tributes, they might not even have emotions. Sociopaths. Psychopaths. She knew with complete certainty that it would not be her tactic. Emotions were good; they helped in everyday life. Living without them would just be weird. But then again, Juliette was used to being numb from emotions. Not truly feeling.

Juliette laughed when Alex said he was only at school for 32% of the time. Her laugh was clear, yet still strangely quiet, though it sounded loud echoing in the quiet room. It was true, though many weren't at school very much. Except Juliette. The only time she would miss school was if she was sick, or couldn't make it. As in, she was snowed in or something.

When Alex asked her if she was missing home, the rosy color in her cheeks faded, leaving her face stark white. Juliette became completely serious, saying, "Who doesn't miss home? Come on, be serious. Don't you?"

Corey noticed another tribute, trying to remember his name from the reaping. She walked away from the 2 tributes talking and went over to the woven baskets station. She watched the trainer and Jake. She watching carefully wove a basket to hold water and layered to take heat. Pleased she left the station to the poisonous and non-poisonous roots, berries, etc. Corey looking at the various ingredients set in front of her. She got locked into the zone, closing out anyone around her. She heard the trainer explaining things but Corey didn't listen. She grabbed a root she recognized from home and mashed it and put it in the water. Next she took a couple blue berries and strawberries and put then in she swirled it with her hands then tasted it. It tasted like the sweet tea she made herself on holidays. She smiled thinking about home. She watched Jake from a distance determining how and when to approach him.

Although she didn't seem to care, Cahira aimlessly sat upon the Rockwall with her legs against her chest. Unlike most, who were training for there lives, Cahira had simply placed a pair of headsets on her head and listened to music. With two brown braids going down her shoulders, she overlooked everyone quietly.

Juilette seemed to be acquainted with Alex, which she noticed right off the bat. District partners, seemed pretty obvious. She didn't really care about hers, he was more of a dick and made fun of her. You shouldn't be here! You're useless.

He closed his mouth after a good punch in the mouth.

There was something about Juliette's laugh that was totally contagious, and Alex couldn't help responding to it, his lips quirking up in the tiniest of smiles. In that moment, he envied her for her freedom, her ability to be happy. Alex had always guarded his emotions. He never trusted anyone enough to truly show them who he was, not even his own family. Alex thought for a moment, his grey eyes turning cloudy as he pondered her question. "Yeah, I guess..." He smiled. "I do miss home. Sun. Swimming... My brothers and sister. My mom. I miss them. But there are things that I don't think I..." He hesitated for a moment. "I mean, there are things I won't miss." He supposed it seemed a little strange, that he was having doubts at a time like this. He didn't want to die, he didn't want to kill other people. But he wouldn't miss his father. That was one thing he was happy about.

If I die, will he care? Will he regret everything he ever did to me? Will he finally love me? Alex pushed away the thought, his eyes refocusing on the girl standing before him.

He smiled, to clear his thoughts. "Sorry. Just thinking. About home, I guess. About my family."

((Would anybody possibly like to alliance with Scarlett?))

(( My charrie Cinnamon could. ))

Juliette shrugged, saying, "It's fine. We'll all zone off once in a while. We all miss home. Well, maybe not all of us. There are a few weird tributes sometimes..." She grinned slightly, and looked around at the other tributes that had came in to the Training Center. Quite a few of them.

One girl was listening to music, ignoring the world. Juliette smiled, trying not to laugh. It was funny. While people learned how to fight and kill, this girl sat as though she had not a care in the world. Two other tributes were in the Center. They could possibly be District partners, as Juliette and Alex.

Secretly, Juliette understood what Alex was going through, not that either of them were aware of it. She looked back at him, an eyebrow raised. "Well, I guess we better start learning some new things." she said with a sigh.

"Yes," Alex nodded quickly, agreeing with her, before hesitating for a second, realising what was really on his mind right now. He had learned more about Juliette in about five minutes than he had in seventeen years of living within a kilometer of each other, around eleven years of sitting behind her in class every day. Well, every day he decided to show up, but that wasn't the point. And the more he knew about her, the more he was sure of one thing. If physically possible, he wasn't going to be the one to kill her. "Juliette..." he said, slightly awkwardly. "I..." He wasn't sure what to say. Should he offer an alliance, or was that stupid? If she rejected him, it would just make him look like an emotional fool. Maybe a truce? "Juliette, in the arena, things are going to be different. I'm glad we could, you know, talk before that."

Alex swallowed awkwardly, his throat drying up. Why was he so bad at this kind of thing?

"I don't want to have to do anything that will...hurt you," he said, his voice soft, and slightly strained. "I mean, we've gotta stick together right." He almost cringed at that. "Anyway. I'm not suggesting an alliance, if you're not interested or already have one. Just... Imagine what it would be like back home, if one of us killed the other. I just don't want to hurt my mom, your mom, or anyone back home."

He wasn't sure how to continue, wasn't sure hoe to put his point across. Was he suggesting an alliance? Not necessarily. He just wanted a clear conscience, he realised with a jolt.

Alex hated himself for being so selfish.

Juliette looked at Alex curiously. "You aren't sure if you want an alliance, though you don't want to kill me. Or have me kill you." she said simply. Juliette crossed her arms, and tilted her head. She thought about it, and knew he was right.

Juliette nodded and said, "An alliance would be fine. Because I don't want to kill you." It was awkward to say, but necessary. She knew that some other District partners would easily turn on each other and slaughter each other. That was how the Games normally went. "Unless you'd just rather a sort of truce." Juliette added on, letting him have the final decision.

The sound of Cahira's sneakers hitting the floor pierced threw her headphones slightly, which Cahira's silently shrugged it off. Eyeing the two from earlier, Cahira's begun to trot over. Whistling to make her entrance obvious, She looked at both Juliette and Alex. "I know how to make a dirt bomb." Cahira's said blandly. "You guys wanna see?"

Nothing New wrote: "(( My charrie Cinnamon could. ))"

((Okay, I might have her come over))

Alex didn't want to have the last say. Did he want her on his side? Would that make him look desperate or weak? After a moment, he nodded. "An alliance, if you'd like. If you already have other plans..." He smiled, his expression unreadable, his cool grey eyes not quite matching the equation. "Or if any better options come up, I won't hold you to your promise. I don't want to hold you back, Juliette. If the alliance breaks, I'll resort to a truce." The corners of his lips tilted up into another smile - or rather, more of a smirk - but at least it was sincere. He extended his hand to her, letting it over in the space between them. "To the Tributes of District Four," he said. "May the odds be ever in our favour. Shall we shake on it?"

He was pretty relieved that was over with. He wasn't good with people, and talking to them was a chore. He always seemed to offend them, make them dislike him, or scare them away. He wasn't too bothered about that, usually. But the Hunger Games were different. He was going to have to learn.

And now he had his first ally, if she agreed to it, that is. Giving her a quick once over, Alex smiled inwardly. Maybe she would prove to be a good person to have on his side.

Better on my side than at the end of my spear, he thought, grimly. And he didn't want that. Not at all.

Juliette grinned, and shook his hand. "An alliance it is then." She whispered, turning to face this new girl.

It was the same person who had earlier been listening to music. "A dirt bomb?" Juliette inquired, completely caught off guard and confused. "What do you mean a dirt bomb? Of course I'd like to see that!" Her eyebrow quivered curiously, and she glanced at Alex, then back at this new girl. "What's your name? Mine's Juliette."

"A dirt bomb?" Alex's reaction mirrored Juliette's, his lips parting in an expression of surprise. After a second, he composed himself, doing his best to look vaguely indifferent. "A dirt bomb. Yeah, sure." He glanced at the girl, his eyes tracing her, taking in every aspect of her appearance, from the headphones around her neck to the unconcerned expression on her face. He raised an eyebrow, slightly unsure of the newcomer. He knew that look all too well, he wore it himself, most of the time. After a slightly long, awkward pause, Alex smiled, his eyes remaining cool and calculating. "Alex. District Four. And sure. A dust bomb sounds...interesting..."

He folded his arms, waiting for her to explain or demonstrate. Judging the the looks of her, she was probably a career. Which, whether Alex liked it or not, meant that whatever she had to say was probably worth listening to.

αℓιуα ♪ ∂αη ѕмιтн ƒσяєνєя wrote: "Nothing New wrote: "(( My charrie Cinnamon could. ))"

((Okay, I might have her come over))"

(( Okay ))

"The name's Cahira's Garcia, District 1." Cahira's said with a shrug. "You can call me by my last name, or call me Banzi. Oh! Bam Bam, that's a good one to." Turning her head towards the herbal station, she begun to skip over. Her two braids jumping over her shoulders. "C'mon! I'll show you guys over here!"

Alex shot Juliette a confused glance, before following the girl - Cahira - over to the herbal station. He wasn't sure if she was insane, or just a little weird, but he knew that he should probably keep his distance. The insane ones were more dangerous, prepared to do anything. And she was from District One. They had a reputation, the tributes from One. Alex didn't want to make an enemy out of her. Not when she could probably kill him in a second.

He sized her up, critically. She was fairly average looking, but he knew that she was probably a killing machine, given what they taught kids in One. She wasn't bad looking, and fairly athletic too, but she didn't seem like a killer. Alex sighed. In the arena, they would all be killers. He couldn't change that.

Juliette wasn't all too surprised that this girl was District One. She was surprised about her attitude about everything. She wouldn't go as far to say that she was insane, but crazy-yes. Then again, all good people are.

She followed Cahira/Garcia/Banzi over to the herbal station, curious as to what she would do. This girl wasn't fazed by much, with her two braids and almost hyper like attitude.

Juliette caught Alex's confused look, and grinned. Deciding to call the girl Banzi, she thought about how she was from One. Killing machines, she was told. Honestly, Juliette was unsure how Banzi could be, but she also hadn't seen her with a weapon. She wanted to, but wasn't going to ask. Not now, probably not ever.

Jumping around before the two even got a few steps in range to see, Banzi silently ignored the teacher/trainer as she begun picking up various things. After picking up a few leaves, a sack, and some dirt, Cahira looked both ways before sticking her hand into her shirt and pulling out a napkin. Unfolding the napkin, she revealed a mass amount of toothpicks, cigarettes, and salt. She then begun to look around the table again, then grinning to set her eyes upon a small container of ashes and charcoal. Swiping the jars, she looked over her shoulder.

"C'mon! I don't bite." Cahira said with a smile. "Well, at least I don't think so.."

Shaking the pointless comment off, she begun to build the core of the bomb with wooden toothpicks, charcoal, and what appeared to be a needle. She then took two toothpicks and begun doing the delicate work of making the ignition. Placing it in the center, she finally laced over a piece of twine (which could have been entwied by a stick leaf.)

Doing the final touches, she placed the core to the side and begun stuffing the sack she'd collected with dirt, toothpicks, needles, and whatever shiny sharp objects she could find. Finally placing a leaf or two in, she begun to shift down the table. Taking a few herbs, and a small vial of water, she begun to mash together a natual chemical. After mashing up the liquid in a wooden bowl, she placed a glove on her hand and begun to scoop out the liquid. Shifting back to the actual bomb, she placed the vial directly into the core and next to the charcol and ignition.

Putting the entire thing together, she turned around with a small grenade sized bomb in her small hands.

"Walah! This is something I'd like to call a Dirt-Hybrid bomb!" Cahira said, then giving some sort of interjectic lecture. "Everything in this bomb can be found in the wild, no matter the climate! See this-" She pointed at the series of toothpicks on the outside of the sack. "When this is cropped down, it'll detonate the bomb. It'll take a foretime of ten seconds to detonate. This time variation whowever can be controlled by- Oh wait! Can't tell you that!"

Chuckling slightly, she continued. "If at a certain range, the bomb can take anyone out within fifteen feet. The farthest the blast, threw what i've calculated, is about thirty feet if stuffed right. Oh! The best part of all! See this-"

Dancing her finger around the edge of the bag, the small hued of green could be seen. "You can stuff whatever the hell you want in this thing! I can't tell you what, but it's always destined to be different every time!"

Juliette blinked a few times, carefully watching Banzi's work. It was quite interesting, to be honest. It wasn't exactly what Juliette thought the bomb would be, but she wasn't going to say that. It was actually really cool. And something to be wary of in the actual Arena. At least she knew the general look of it-even if it's different every time it's made.

"That's really cool." Juliette said, knowing that was an understatement. The dirt bomb reminded Juliette of fire bombs and old war tactics. Which was something she was rather curious about, though she didn't tell anyone. A long time ago, canon balls were made with the idea of putting everything sharp into a container. And when it would explode, massive injury would occur.

"Thirty feet? That's quite a range for something this small!" she paused, "How do you set it off? With fire?" Juliette inquired. Banzi wasn't offering much information on her hybrid dirt bomb, but Juliette was now curious because she had been shown it. The idea of the bomb itself was a very smart and creative. Then to actually be able to make it-that's an entire new level.

Alex watched the whole process with a critical eye, following Banzi's movements carefully so he wouldn't miss out on any of her tricks. Still, the general procedure was a bit of a mystery to him, and he wouldn't have been able to make a bomb of his own if he'd watched her all day. She was so determined to guard her secrets.

The more Alex watched her, the more he became certain of two things. One, she was definitely at least partially insane. If not insane, a little bit emotionally...weird. Was it the thought of blood and guts and gore that gave her such pleasure, or just being able to show off? The second thing Alex became acutely aware of was her obvious skill and finesse. He knew, as he watched her work, that he wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of her. She seemed like she would make a powerful ally, but he was sure that she wouldn't team up with him - with them - unless she thought they were worthy.

Which was going to be very difficult to prove. Especially to someone like her.

In any case, she would probably form an alliance with the really powerful ones, like the Tributes from Districts One and Two. District Four was powerful, but nowhere near as desirable as those two. Alex was going to have to work hard to stay on her side, to make sure she didn't go into the games with the intention of immediately slitting his throat.

Because he knew that if Cahira 'Banzi' Garcia wanted him dead, there was no way he was going to make it into Day Two of the games. He wouldn't even get off his tribute pedestal.

Alex circled the dust bomb curiously. "So...this is really made of all natural stuff?" He paused, running a hand through his hair and biting his lip in concentration. "How does that even work." After a brief silence, he laughed lightly. "No, don't worry about it. We all have our secrets, don't we?"

And she seemed to have more than anyone else. The more Alex knew about her - which was still precious little - the more curious he became. Dangerous or not, she was definitely an interesting opponent. He wasn't looking forward to facing her off in a battle to the death.

Looking up at Juliette with a smirk, Banzi explained. "It depends on the attack. Sometimes the bomb can be detonated with just the slightest friction. Other times, it requires manual detonation with the removal of the toothpick, or stick."

She then turns to Alex next, who also had a question. "Yup! Everything's natural. Do you want a demonstration?"

Banzai's smirk would shift into an evil grin, which she looked over her shoulder and eyed a few dummies at the weapons station. Her eyes would then form a dash of an idea. "Over here! I'll have to move the dummies though."

Juliette glanced at Alex, automatically knowing what he was thinking. It was a gift for her, of sorts. A gift and a curse. Banzi wasn't completely "off her knocker" but was eccentric, in the kindest way possible.

She grinned at the idea of a demonstration, and gracefully moved over to the dummies. "Where do you want them located then?" Juliette inquired, standing near them. She'd move them with Banzi's direction, unless Banzi didn't want her to.

People are quite an interesting animal, in Juliette's opinion. Each very unique in their thoughts and actions. They have 'free will'. Basically, people could do whatever they like. As long as somebody else was okay with it-whoever was in charge. And in the Games, anything was legal. Even cannibalism, apparently.

"Just make sure they are closed in together. Make sure there's a gap in the middle so I can place the bomb inside." Banzi responded. She begun to think about how it would affect the dummies, who could have been tributes.

For those who didn't know Banzi, she was the greatest cheater anyone could know. Unlike most tributes, who plotted to survive. She plotted to cheat and blow things up. Hell, she even had a huge plan to cheat the beginning of the games. If she was correct, it would be the biggest head start in Hunger Games history. Plucking something out of her pocket, she eyed the small bag of wooden balls in her hand. She imagined what better odds she'd have of surviving the Blood Bath, and getting first pick in the Cornucopia..

((Note: When I post the arena, Banzi's greatest cheat will be in the big intro post :P I'm soooo excited!))

She then begun to think of her strategy in the arena. She was probably going to go lonewolf, then hide the first night. When she meant hide, she meant being invisible. After the first night, she'd most likely rig the center and unground the bombs, then take crucial parts from them. From there... Anything could happen. It would depend on the situation.

Juliette put the dummies in a circle, leaving one out so they could see in the center. Or get out of the center. She glanced at Banzi, slowly beginning to understand her thought process. The more you make somebody speak, the more you learn about them. And the more you watch, the more you know.

She slid herself out of the circle, wondering if she should ask Banzi about being allies. The possibilities frightened Juliette a bit, but she bit her lip and said nothing. She would wait. She would show off her skills a bit. Juliette didn't want Banzi to think she was like a lost puppy who needed directions. She was smart and could figure things out on her own.

Heck, Juliette could survive and win the Games without a second glance at the other Tributes. Except when they died, of course. Then she'd get a good look at them. Juliette tried not to think about killing other Tributes, but she knew that it was inevitable. If she didn't think about it now, before the Games, it could get to her head with the first person she killed.

You have to be mentally and physically prepared for anything. The worst or the best.

Watching as Juliette backed away from the dummies, Banzi made her quick sprint towards the dummies, then sliding to her knees as she worked like a jack rabbit. Banzi, unlike most tributes, relied on stealth and speed. This gave her more speed to focus on creating traps and bombs. Those were her main weapons. But she did have experience in ranged and close quarter weapons. She prefered the quick weapons though. The light ones.

Working like the wind, Banzi removed the toothpick and swiftly tossed it in the center of the dummies. She then took off in a sprint and huddled over some obstacles to find cover. She then watched from the safety of 20 feet, which after ten seconds, the bomb went off. It wasn't like a regular bomb, where it would stop ticking and create a massive explosion. It was more of the sound of a lighter being struck, which then the bomb exploded. A large black and brown cloud would develop, which the area, around 10 feet, ripped apart the dummies with the sharp objects within. When the cloud recided, all that was of the dummies was a post and some fabric. On one of the dummies, the head was still remaining, but it had a fine amount of needles lodged into it.

The remains of the dummies were scattered.

While most would have been horrified, Banzi begun to snicker.

From the Gamemaker balcony, it had fallen silent. She could hear the sound of clapping. She might have impressed them..

((Would anybody like to RP with Scarlett?))

Alex felt strangely empty as he watched the dummies explode into bits, scattered around the training centre. He stood just behind Juliette, his arms folded and his stance relaxed, but his mind was reeling. He succeeded in maintaining a totally nonchalant expression, barely, his jawline tight and his eyes locked, in something vaguely like shell shock, on the dummies.

He turned his head away from the other tributes, who had all turned to watch, their faces displaying emotions that ranged from curious, or even amused, to horrified, and as though they were going to be sick. His eyes flickered over the dummies, broken, demolished carcasses.

In a few days, they wouldn't be dummies. Those would be people Banzi was blowing up. Real people, like him or Juliette, with feelings and families and as much of a right to live as any of the rest of them. This was sick. The whole process, the whole game. An insane, twisted trap that was completely inescapable.

As he watched the last shattered dummy fall slowly to the floor, it finally hit Alex, with crushing certainty, that, in a few days, maybe a week or two, if he was lucky, he was going to die.

As his eyes settled on Banzi, laughing in her insane, twisted way, at the dummy carcasses, Alex felt a bubble of rage, rising like bile through his throat. If he was going to die, he wasn't going down alone.

He was going to bring Banzi down with him, no matter what. He was going to justify the people that she killed. Now, they were only dummies. At the end of the week, they would be innocent children.

Juliette rolled her eyes as the Gamemakers looked on. She knew that now she had to prove herself while they were watching Banzi. Her eyebrow raised as she moved her gaze from the Gamemakers to the onlookers. Ranging from surprised to horrified, Juliette could have laughed at their expressions.

Instead, she merely stepped back into the shadows. Developing thoughts like a seed grew into stronger ideas. But she had one question. The question.

Would Banzi be a horrific ally or a grand enemy?

Juliette stayed out of the way as people finally stopped staring and went about their business. She thought and thought, not quite understanding this crazy girl. She was a puzzle. One that Juliette intended on cracking.

Lookin over shoulder to see everyone's reaction, she saw Alex's face. He was looking at her, which she could read what he was thinking through his eyes. He hated her, and he wanted to kill her. Her laughter begun to simmer down, which she responded. Juliette probably wouldn't know, but Alex would. "Be careful what you wish for.." She giggled, then looked at Juliette. "So, what can you do? It's only fair you get bragging rights. Both of you."

Juliette stepped out of the shadows, her arms crossed. A grin slowly crept on her face as she decided what to do. Two things to do, in fact. "There's two things. My bragging rights." she laughed quietly, grinning.

Without a second glance, Juliette walked over to the herbal stations-the memorization part-without a second glance. One the attending Peacekeepers hooked wires up to her head-for her bran. She grinned, tossing back some of her blue hair. Juliette rolled up her sleeves, waiting for the test to begin.

Alex followed Juliette, as though in a daze, Banzi's words echoing in his ears. Be careful what you wish for. Did she know? Was his sudden hatred for her that obvious? More importantly, did she return that hatred? He wasn't going to get far in this competition if she had a death wish with his name on it.

Clearing his thoughts, Alex turned to watch Juliette's demonstration with interest. He had been curious about what his District Partner could do, given that he knew so little about her. Besides, she was his ally, wasn't she? He needed to know her strengths and weaknesses, needed to know how she operated and where he needed to cover her back. He wasn't sure how long their alliance would last, but he wasn't planning on breaking it.

As Alex watched Juliette, curiously, trying to ignore Banzi on his other side, he thought about her question. What were his bragging rights? Sure, he could use a spear like a deadly extension of his arm, but that wasn't even that impressive in comparison to what Banzi had just done. Not that that had been impressive. Well, it had, but the feeling was more like, enlightenment...? Anyway, his skill with a spear or trident would probably be enough to land him a decent score in the Private Training Session, but he didn't know if it was good enough to impress the Great Banzi Garcia.

Turning to her, Alex smiled ever so slightly, hiding his distaste well, his grey eyes displaying only curiosity. "So... Sorry, this might seem kind of personal or whatever, but where'd the nickname 'Banzi' come from. If you don't mind me asking." He laughed. "If you do, that's understandable. Just curious."

Three.

Two.

One. Go.

The clock counted down. Swiftly, the computer brought up a screen which would test even her knowledge. Matching. What was deadly. Every basic human survival skill necessary for the Games. This was a program most hated, but Juliette relished in it with glory.

Juliette first sorted out what was deadly from safe. Not one of her answers were incorrect. A few stumbled her up, but she continued on at a fast pace. Then, she typed up the uses of each plant. Healing properties, food, pain relievers, all sorts of different uses. Again, no second glance at what was on the screen.

It was silent in the Training Center, not that Juliette noticed.

After the plant matching and testing, the computer started testing survival skills. What was better to help start a fire. What shelter would prove to be a better suit depending on the environment. What to do with hypothermia. What to do with a burn. Everything.

Racking her brain, Juliette found all the answers. Some would consider her a genius, but not her. To herself, Juliette was just smart. A thinker. But also good with weaponry. She wasn't just all brains, after all...

The screen blinked green, notifying her of the end. Normally, this screen would be red. Somebody would fail someway or another.

Just as it flashed green for the knowledge testing, there was another countdown.

Three.


Two.


One. Go.

This time, Juliette would be put in situations that really could happen during the Games. Some were situations that took place, but instead of the actual Tributes the events happened to, they were happening to her. But only in her mind-and on the screen.

In the mountains, there was a rockfall. Juliette searched for the slightest bit of shelter she could find. Then, curled up in a ball, she survived. The scene shifted again.

Now, a dark forest. Almost night, with minutes till dark. The aroma of fire filled Juliette's senses, and she knew where she was. Not in any regular forest. A tropical rain forest. With a volcano. Running away from the volcano and into water, and swimming far and fast, Juliette again survived.

A new scene. Now, Juliette was in the harsh, bare dessert. The sun was just beginning to rise. Any water in it's rays began to hiss violently. Looking around, Juliette saw what could have been an old mine. She took some of the siding-it was sharp-and jumped into the shadow. This time, the scene wasn't immediately over.

Hissing in front of her was a rattlesnake. It wasn't rattling its rattle either. It merely hissed, and watched Juliette closely. Refraining from any sudden movements, she re-gripped the sharp siding in her hand, waiting. Slowly, the snake slithered forwards. Juliette didn't want to risk getting out of the mine to face the sun, but didn't want to continue facing such a venomous snake. And yes, it was the venomous kind. A mouse scurried from behind her, catching the snakes attention.

It lunged at it, biting it easily. And Juliette acted. The rattlesnake was clearly only concerned with the rodent, and wouldn't be able to let go of it in time to bite Juliette. She picked the snake up behind the head, where it wouldn't be able to bite her even if it tried. She then climbed carefully up out towards the sun, and threw the snake with all of her strength.

Ten yards away, the animal laid, now dead and sizzling under the sun. The scene faded.

There were many more, but those are a few. Some happened so fast that you could barely tell what was happening-but Juliette, of course.

Again, the computer beeped and turned green. This time, the test was really over. On the screen, it showed a scan of her brain and it's activity. It was completely covered. The detail was astonishing, even though none of the Tributes would understand it. The Gamemakers certainly did. And the even the Peacekeeper who came and took off the wires connecting her with the machine.

"They call me Banzi becomes it goes with bombs. Ya' know. It's cooler and less obvious than Bam Bam or Bomberman." Banzi shrugged. She inspected Juliette from behind, watching her prep for the little test station. If this tribute knew herbs well, and she was allies with Alex, they'd be a dangerous duo. She could match up with her bombs, but only by so much. She'd have to literally re-train with a sword or something to have a physical advantage over the two. And stealth, she'd have to rely on that to.

"If you want to call me anything suiting, Bomberman is the name that works the best."

((lol because now I posted!))

(( OH, AHA XD I didn't seeeee! I didn't refresh my pagggggee))

Alex laughed, but his eyes were glued on the screen. Woah. This girl was something else. As he watched her flawless performance play out across the screen, Alex silently praised his luck that he had allied with her already. Now everyone had turned, everyone was watching. He could tell that the Careers were sizing her up, watching her play, and he felt a prickle of triumph. Not for himself, but for their District. Four might finally stand out. They were never the best, but fairly high in the standings. Lasted until the end, but usually lost out eventually. He had Juliette... Maybe they could change that.

Alex briefly considered what he was good at, wondering what he could possibly demonstrate later. Yes, he could easily beat Banzi or Juliette in any trial of strength, being a tall, broad shouldered, teenage boy, but that was nothing special, and hardly fair, considered his physical advantage. Besides, strength would hardly matter against a worthy opponent.

Alex could use a spear like he was born with one in his hand. His skill with one were remarkable, and he could double up and throw them as javelins like a pro too. He was just as good with a trident, but neither of those were the most common weapons. Yes, spears could easily be made simply by tying a knife to a stick, but Alex could only hope that he was provided with the equipment he needed in the arena. For now, though, his ability with a spear seemed like a logical bragging right.

Alex watched Juliette's face tighten in concentration as she worked through the simulation, his disbelief never wavering. How could she remember all this? Work all this out? It was remarkable to watch.