The Hunger Games discussion

A huge square room with dark gray walls.

In the far right corner, there are racks of weapons. Knives, bows and arrows, spears, nets, you name it. (No guns, though.) There are also rows upon rows of training dummies, and a room off to the side where you can wait in line to fight with an instructor.

On the far left, there's a massive agility course that loops in a circle. It includes jumps, climbing nets, and swinging weights that you have to dodge. Running the full course would take about ten minutes, or even longer when you have opponents trying to push you off.

In the front right corner, there's a rock wall, ropes and nets hanging from the ceiling, and sets of weights. The rock wall begins violently shaking every few minutes, and it takes a lot of effort to stay on when it does.

On the front left, there are plenty of stands and information panels on various things you might need. Camouflage, knots, plants, starting fires, etc. Each of these stands are run by a different instructor.

Right in the center, there's a large cylindrical pillar that stretches almost up to the roof. It has ropes hanging down from the ceiling to help tributes climb up to the top.

The Training Room Is Now Open!

Bring tributes here to train for the next few days, form rivalries, alliances, and maybe a few romances! I'll be posting the training scores on day two or three, depending on how much roleplaying everyone's done. All characters that are inactive throughout the entire training session will automatically get a five. Let's go!

((Posts will be pretty short sorry :| pls don't punish Kitt too severely ;-;))

Kitt wasn't surprised to find he was the first one in the training room. He'd had a passion for weapons, death, and all things Games-related for several years, and he wasn't about to stop now, not when he'd finally gotten into the Games. He had a determined smirk plastered on his face as he made his way over to the knives, picking a sheath up. One by one, he unloaded them all into a dummy, each knife striking a lethal portion of its body. He grinned in satisfaction, but noted that this was way easier than if his target was moving. Too easy.

Prim slowly walked into the training room. She was the second person in the room. A male was on one side of the room, she watched him with a look of horror on her face as knives dug into a dummy's body. She almost backed out of the room, but was stopped as more tributes stalked into the large room. She slowly walked over to a corner. She knew that if she wanted to survive this game, she would have to do something, so after a while she quickly walked over to the herbs and plant section of the training room.

Saiya poked her head into the training room, glancing around at everything. This place was... huge. And full of weapons. And also quickly full of people who seemed like they could kill her in seconds if they wanted to. Ohhhh boy. She noticed the rock wall on the right and started towards it, figuring she'd start with something she had some sort of skill in. A rock wall was something she could do fairly easily. Weapons? That was a whole different story.

Kitt glanced over at the two tributes who had entered the room and cocked an eyebrow with a smirk, a bit unimpressed. This was his competition? If everyone in the Games was like this, he'd surely have a victory, and he liked to think it'd be his pretty quickly. As he stalked over towards the dummy and wrenched the knives from where they were deeply embedded in its head and torso, he watched the two tributes with him in the room, amusement obviously displayed on his face.

Vera entered the training room, a cool expression settling over her face. She appeared neither overly arrogant (inwardly . . . perhaps a bit) nor intimidated. Her face was just a cold mask. In fact, she seemed rather collected despite the untimely circumstances.
Her gaze was laced with the barest trace of glimmering anger - it was always there, though you couldn’t tell just by looking at her. She seemed fine enough, if not a bit unstable.
She looked at the tributes around her, almost turning up her nose in disgust, though she wasn’t the type of person to do that. All of the tributes, who were in it to play foolish games, and for what?
Nothing.
The Capitol gave them the slightest beam of hope, then stomped on it promptly, crushing any dreams you had of a future.
It was how they maintained control, how they’d done it for so long already. Vera shook her head, not willing to dwell on it now. She knew she wasn’t going to win, not that it mattered, anyways; she had no one left to live for. And, she was quite willing to let all of these people rot along with the Capitol, if they were willing to compete in these damned games and think it actually meant something.
Most people came into the games with a purpose.
At least some sort of end goal.
Vera had none. She had no purpose, no motivation at all. The only thing that kept her going was a flicker inside her, a spark, a burning rage. Unbeknownst to her, of course.
So, she stalked over to the swords and picked up a silver blade, curling her fingers over the handle and running her hand along it, giving it a proper examination before promptly shoving the sword in a downwards angle towards the center of a dummy’s heart.
The dummy fell apart in ribbons within seconds, as she’d used surprising force for someone of her size.
And she laughed, so quiet it was almost inaudible.

Prim watched the other tributes with half closed eyes. She was standing next to the herb and plant table. She knew that she would never actually be able to kill anything so she shyed away from the weapons and did what she knew best. The plants. Prim did know how to use a small dagger, one that her father had given to her before he went missing. Prim's mother had taught her a lot about plants and what to use and how to use them; which were poisonous and qhich plants would do what. Prim might be one of the younger ones in the games this year, but she might also be the smartest when it comes to actually making sure that she doesnt starve to death. Prim looked over and watched as another female tribute glidded into the training room. It fraked her out that she was actually the youngest tribute here. She knew she wouldnt survive long and with how all the tributes were acting so far, she doubted that she would even make it trough training. Prim's mother had broke down ceying seeing that her baby girl was chosen for the hunger games. It had hurt Prim to know that she had hurt her mother, even if it wasnt her fault. Prim wiped the thoughts away and returned to observing each of the tributes. Prim closed her eyes, I have to make it through training, Prim told herself; opening her eyes.

((Not on much at all today sorry, I'll probably post for Kitt again tomorrow))

//lol all good!//

Naja Ashlock stalked into the training room, footfalls inaudible. Her face was impassive, every movement slow and measured. Red-brown eyes swept over the faces of everyone in the room, sharp and burning, and yet captivating - impossible to look away from, yet terrifying. She looked them all up and down, assessing them with lethal silence. She'd learned their names and faces already, but their weaknesses was another story.
The Careers appeared to be her biggest threat, but she knew much better than to underestimate the underdogs. They could come out of nowhere, have any useful skill. The Careers were strong, likely smart, good in battle - but they were clones, only in the Games for a stilted and hollow form of glory drilled into their heads by instructors. They didn't know, and never would know, what could happen in the arena.
Arcana smiled under Naja's cold mask. There were so many opportunities. The other Careers would want to throw in their lot with her, but the weaker Tributes might be smarter. She could take care of herself on her own, she knew that. She didn't need allies. But there were so many ways she could attack mentally, to finish things before they were even started.
It wouldn't be simple to earn their trust, Arcana mused. But then again, it wasn't too hard either.
That boy - Carwyn - he'd been trained well. District Four, so a Career. But something about the way he handled his weapons suggested that he wasn't an emotionless robot trained to kill. He could be valuable. He was cocky, though. And she suspected that he would betray her as easily as she would him.
Primrose, the little girl, was soft. She seemed small, weak, innocent. She'd be easy to eliminate, though she might make a good ally if she had a valuable skill. Either way, she'd likely never see a betrayal coming - and if she did, it wouldn't be too much of a problem.
Saiya seemed like she'd be a good ally, though a liability at times. Likely easy to kill, though she might be hiding something. She wouldn't have much defense against a straightforward attack, but a betrayal seemed like it might get messy.
And Vera, who was the most unreadable out of the other Tributes. She seemed like she had some skill, and could pose a threat. And the way she handled a weapon was strange; untrained, but poised. She could be valuable, too. Harder to betray, but if Arcana allied with her and manipulated someone else into killing her...
There were so many possibilities. One person could turn on another so easily.
All she had to do was find their weaknesses.
Naja simply tied her hair back and waited.

(wtf why is that so long)

//oof there goes my little prim XD//

Prim watched as another girl walked- no strutted into the training room. Prim sighed, again another person that was going to be stronger, faster, smarter, than her. She shook her head and continued working on her small test. She was passing with flying colors and of course, that would happen. Prim might be small, but she was pretty smart; even if she came from the poorest district. No one had come over to the herbs and plants station and that made her kinda happy. She was the only one that most likely had the skill of herbs and plants.

Prim was the smallest, the weakest, definitely not the fastest, but she would be able to prove herself when it came to smarts. Prim was only skilled in the plants, but she also was able to learn how to use a dagger. It would have to be small enough to fit into her hand, but she would be able to use it. Since Prim was so small, she was also very agile and would be able to fit into tiny spaces that many of the other tributes wouldn't be able to.

Prim's light brown hair had been tied to her neck in a low bun. SInce the small girl had so much hair, he was able to do things like that with her hair. She wore the black athletic suit that had been given to her. She kept to herself as more and more tributes filed in; one after the other. She watched them all, but she said nothing.

Saiya was at the top of the wall in minutes, and she sat on top of it, looking around at the room below her. Only a few people seemed to have filed in, and one girl has stopped near the door. Saiya recognizes her from the Chariots rides. Naja. That was her name, right? Wait, was she looking at her? Shit, is she making me a target or some career thing?
Saiya, of course, had completely forgotten about the fact that the rock wall would shake - violently. And shake it did, sending her tumbling off the top to flat on her back on the soft mats at the bottom. “...ow.”

Crofton Fletcher walked into the training room, slipping through the door and staying close to the wall as he wandered. He was trying not to be noticed as he watched all of the other tributes silently, making his way to the left where all the information stands were. Green eyes flicked from tribute, ranking each on how dangerous they seemed.
Naja. She’d made quite the statement during the Chariots. Intimidating, cold, ruthless. Plus, she was a career. He should probably avoid her.
Kitt. The boy radiated a sort of confidence, and he didn’t doubt it was well-earned with the way he handled those knives. He was from District 4, right? Crofton decided to steer clear of him.
He shuffled through a set of plant cards as he kept scanning the room.
Vera. She seemed dangerous, with the dummy that was in pieces at her feet. Quiet yet calculating. Maybe a possible ally, but Crofton wasn’t sure whether he could trust her, so maybe not.
He watched Saiya for a moment, seeing her fall from the rock wall and just lay there for a minute, and decided she was relatively harmless. Strong-looking, but lacking in coordination.
That left the girl across from him, going through the plants test like it was nothing. Prim, right? She was... small, definitely, and likely had little to no skill with weapons. But she was exceptionally good with plants, it seemed. And they were from the same district. Maybe she’d make a good ally. Crofton didn’t bother her, though, sorting through the cards quickly and methodically like the information had been programmed into his brain.

Vera knew that the 'defiant' thing to do was to pay the other tributes no heed, simply ignore them and move on with her life, however miserable and short it may be. However, she had never been the defiant type. She was just independant. So, she decided to observe each of them carefully.
Carwyn, the tribute from District 4, seemed like a formidable opponent. On the outside, he appeared a typical Career - another mindless puppet, as they all were. But he had another layer, something she couldn't quite decipher. Yet. It seemed like his cockiness could be the downfall of him, though.
Saiya was...interesting. Reckless and kind of a mess, she didn't seem like the best person to ally with Vera. Even she could admit that she needed someone a bit more stable to ally with. Saiya had to be more than what she appeared; wasn't everyone?
Well, maybe not. Primrose - Prim - was innocent and likely had no big secret. She was small, and obviously weaker than the other tributes. Possibly underestimated, though she couldn't see how the girl would be of any use to her.
And Naja. The Career had to be more than just the cold mask she presented, the deadly stare she fixed everyone. She held herself regally, looking at everyone with a gaze that was supposed to be intimidating and seemed to be drawing most of the attention. If Naja wanted attention, she certainly got it. She had ulterior motives, and Vera could tell just by looking at her. Vera looked her right in the eye, her own stormy-grey eyes unblinking as she raised an eyebrow.

Alren walked into the training room. The first thing he noticed were the knives in the far right corner located by the rest of the weapons. There were five other tributes in the room. He quickly surveyed them, searching for potential allies and enemies. The smallest girl looked out of place. She didn't fit with the others. Alren was sure she had some sort of skill fit for the Games, even if it wasn't with a weapon.

There was something about her that Alren couldn't help noticing. She reminded him of Sereya, his younger sister. He couldn't help feeling protective of her, even though he didn't know her. Everyone here was bigger than she was. Even if she could stay hidden during the Games, someone was sure to find and kill her.

He stared at the knives on the wall. Could she use any of the weapons? A knife, maybe. Was she good? Alren couldn't tell. He knew that even if he formed an alliance with the girl, she would have to die eventually. That thought nagged in his mind for a few moments before he shoved it away. He would worry about that when the time came. Not now.

He hesitated for a moment before walking over to the girl. She seemed to be watching the other tributes. She seems observant, Alren thought. He addressed her. "Hello," he said. "I'm Alren. District 10."

((Which girl are you talking about?))

Ayla wrote: "((Which girl are you talking about?))"

((Prim. Sorry if that was unclear. Alren doesn't know any of their names yet. He doesn't pay attention that much XD))

((I'm so fxcking jealous of y'alls writing skills I can't–

but yeah I was busy today so I'll post again for Kitt tomorrow))

Alexandria wrote: "Ayla wrote: "((Which girl are you talking about?))"

((Prim. Sorry if that was unclear. Alren doesn't know any of their names yet. He doesn't pay attention that much XD))"

((Ah, okay. Thanks for clearing that up lmao))

Naja met Vera's gaze and cocked her head - the motion was less birdlike than predatory, a wildcat sizing up its prey. She heard Saiya fall from the wall, noting her clumsiness, but her attention remained fixed on Vera.
She moved toward the weapons rack, not taking her eyes off the other girl, and picked up a dagger. Simple, reliable, almost exactly like the kind she was used to carrying - if of stronger make.
Her red-brown eyes burned straight into Vera's as she drove the blade into a dummy's neck, sending its head tumbling down.

Impressive, Vera thought to herself, not saying it aloud, as she had no reason to. She didn't lower her gaze, still burning with cold as thoughts ran through her head as always. Save for a few of the tributes here, the majority seemed to be easy to manipulate. She almost choked on the word, manipulate. She'd gotten so good - too good - at manipulation. Ever since...
Her movements lithe and smooth, controlled despite the flash of fury inside her, she turned the sword in her hand over.
In less than a second, she sliced the dummy in front of her from head to toe, running her sword through its body.
Savage, though her expression said otherwise.
Both pieces of the dummy fell apart at once, the half on the right rolling on the ground and stopping right before Vera's feet.

Alexandria wrote: "Alren walked into the training room. The first thing he noticed were the knives in the far right corner located by the rest of the weapons. There were five other tributes in the room. He quickly su..."

//sorry! give me a sec to write up a response! i was at church!//

kenadie ♔ wrote: "Alexandria wrote: "Alren walked into the training room. The first thing he noticed were the knives in the far right corner located by the rest of the weapons. There were five other tributes in the ..."

((That's okay! =D Take your time! There's no rush))

Prim whirled around and looked at the boy that was standing right behind her. Her eyes widened, how was she supposed to respond? Strands of light bronze hair fell into her face. "I'm Primrose, but everyone calls me Prim," she forced out of her mouth, calmly she continued with the herbs and plants. Prim rolled up her black sleeves and pushed the bronze hair that fell into her face behind her ears. "Do you want something?" She asked, her voice cracked. Dang it! A voice yelled in her head. Now the boy was going to walk away and most likely he would be the first to kill her. She shook her head and concentrated on mixing herbs together to make something new. After a while, her hands were now getting tired, but since the boy still stood behind her she didn't move, she continued until she perfected putting more than two herbs together.

//sorry that it is short lol//

Naja examined the way Vera used the sword. She knew how to use it, though she clearly hadn't been trained. And something about her was off - she was much more than the placid exterior she presented.
Wouldn't this be interesting.
She moved precisely but with wicked speed as she sliced the dagger up the torso of a dummy, turning and cutting another in half. Two direct blows, but the elegant way she moved made it look like one fluid movement. It took about a second, maybe two, and then another two before the dummies both collapsed.
This was too easy, she knew that. Naja needed moving opponents, needed a rhythm of footsteps and strikes, to consider it a fight.
The dagger in her hand, the dummies on the floor, and the others in the room - most of them sizing her up. Her mind went back to the Academy, the years before her life had been shattered. She'd trained alone for a year and a half, barely seven years old. She'd spent all her energy and time fighting to get to the top.
Until she'd met Bryell and Jules.
Jules' lazy smile, even when he'd been facing her across the mat.
Bryell's energy, the way she seemed so alive when she attacked.
Her bitterest rivals, then her closest friends, then -
Naja's face gave nothing away as she shut down the thoughts. She couldn't afford this, especially not now.
Not now, when she was about to get her revenge.

Alren looked at Prim. "Would you like to be allies in the arena? You remind me of someone I know."

He watched Prim with utmost curiosity. She seemed to know about plants and herbs. He didn't know how useful she would be as an ally, but the more allies he could get, the better off he'd be in the Games. She seemed like the kind of girl he wanted on his side, though he didn't know if he could kill her if push came to shove. She looks and acts too much like Sereya, he thought.

He shoved the thought out of his head, though it kept nagging at him.

Prim looked over at Alren with confusion, "Why would you want to be my ally?" She asked, setting down the herbs and facing the much older and taller boy. "I'm twelve, one: I would slow you down, two: I'm not as strong as the other tributes," She said, folding her arms over her small chest. "Who would I remind you of?" She asked, quietly.

"My younger sister," Alren replied. "She's older than you, but the way the two of you act and carry yourselves is very similar. You're small. You can fit into places other tributes can't. You seem to know about herbs and plants, which is one of my weaknesses. Can you use a weapon? If not, you may not last long in a fight."

"Oh," Prim said to how Alren said that she reminded him of his sister. "Only a dagger, but it has to be small enough to fit in my hands," She said, bring up her hand from behind her back. It was very small compared to Alren's. "I was never actually planning on lasting very long," She added, under her breath. He must not care enough though. She didn't want him to care. But secretly, Prim knew herself that she needed at least one ally if she wants to make it through even the first five minutes of the games. Prim sighed and looked around Alren, she focused on each of the different tributes. She then shook her head and looked back up at Alren.

“We can work together,” Alren said. “We can at least try to make sure you aren’t the first tribute killed. I can show you how to wield that dagger if you want. In return, I just need to know which plants won’t kill me.”

Prim nodded, "Deal," She said, turning around she sorting the herbs into two piles. "These ones are poisonous, do not eat them. You can touch them without killing yourself, but just be careful," Prim said, pointing to the pile on the right. Then she pointed to the left pile, "These are the ones that you can eat, all of them taste bitter, but you can eat them." Prim made another pile of plants that would help in case of an injury. "This plant, the ( i have no idea... ), is a plant that can help with bee stings, this one, ( again, i have no clue...), is for..." She continued naming all the plants that would benefit them and those that would kill them. "That's all the plants and herbs that they have here," Prim said, as she finished naming all of them and what they did.

Alren observed each plant Prim pointed and named, committing them to memory. “Thank you,” he said when they finished.

He grabbed a knife from the weapon wall. “You want to hold it steady.” He gripped the handle tightly. “Like this.” He pointed the knife away from him. “Never point it toward yourself, no matter what position you’re in. You might end up stabbing yourself, or an enemy may stab you.”

Prim nodded, watching the older boy work. She took one of the smaller knives that were found way back in the corner. "Like this?" She asked, doing exactly what Alren had shown her. She may be twelve, but she had always learned quickly, no matter what she was learning. That's why she had already commented all of the plants to her memory, even though her father had only taught her them for a week before he disappeared. A tear almost slipped down her face, but she urged it away. It followed her directions and never fell. She turned her attention back to Alren.

“Exactly like that,” Arlen said. “You’re a fast learner.” He turned the blade quickly in his hand, ready for a fight. “Make sure that if you are in a fight, you slash in or outwards or lunge forward. You’re more likely to win that way.”

Prim watched him before doing as he said and did. She slashed outwards and also lunged. She wasn't sure about the winning part, because she also knew that to win a match like this, you have to have brute strength, Prim didn't have that. But she did know, you also had to be clever. Prim was very clever. She smiled, watching herself move gracefully with the knife.

Alren watched Prim move. "Very good," he said. "You're small, but you could win a fight. As long as you can anticipate your opponent's next move, it's possible. This will only be good for melee, so long-ranged weapons can and would kill you, so I'd recommend staying as far away from those as possible." He looked at Prim. "Can you climb trees?"

Prim nodded to all his words, "Yeah," She said, answering his question about her climbing trees. She kept practicing with the small life as he kept talking. Prim was a great multitasker. So as Alren was talking she was still very focused on her knife skills, but she was focusing just as much on Alren and his words.

“Good,” Alren said. “We can have eyes in the air and on the ground.”

He looked around the training room. He wanted to try climbing the rock wall and ropes. The more skills he knew, the better off they’d be.

Prim nodded, "What else do I need to learn?" She asked, watching as Alren was looking around the training room. She looked around the training room, but the opposite way. Alren was looking at the different stations, Prim was looking at the different tributes that scattered the room.

Alren looked at Prim. "Do you know basic survival skills? How to hunt, any of that? Knot tying? Maybe we should try to learn different skills, that way we can use them in the arena."

"No, but I can learn," She said, looking at the ground. Maybe since she didn't know how to do that stuff he would leave her and maybe even kill her first. She shook her head and looked back up at him.

"Based on how quickly you've learned how to wield a knife, I don't doubt it," Alren said. "I'm going to try the agility course. After that, I'm going to try scaling the wall. Have fun, Prim." He held out his hand. "Allies?"

Ignoring the weaker-seeming tributes, Kitt scanned the room for stronger tributes, ones that seemed that they'd be more compatible with him if he wanted a few allies. His eyes landed on Vera and Naja. Interesting, he thought as the corner of his mouth tilted up in a cold, calculating smile. They're not all that bad...
He set down the sheath of throwing knives and opted for some daggers, then made his way over to another dummy. As he viciously slashed the dummy into ribbons of fabric and stuffing, he kept his piercing, bright sea-green eyes on the two girls. He had no intention of going up right away, shaking their hands, introducing himself, and practically pleading to be their ally.
No. That was needy. A sign of weakness. And Carwyn "Kitt" Arledge was neither of those things. He laughed at those things. Spat at them.
So he watched. Waited. Until he caught their attention and could make his signature unwavering, sharp eye contact that communicated every word he wanted to say without a single sound leaving his mouth. That penetrated deep into the souls of the others and reeled them in like a fish on a hook. He had to thank his father for his eyes, and for the unexplainable power that seemed to come with them.
No. No time for that. Father is dead, Kitt scolded himself. You can't go back and reminisce on all the lovely things he's given you. There's no point. Focus on the Games. Focus on reigning in some allies. Focus on getting a good training score. Focus on impressing everyone.
Focus.
So he did. Kitt's gaze didn't waver a bit from its targets as he slashed up another dummy, then another and another. He watched, waited, planning out his every move as he did so. Just like he'd done for so long.
He'd
Never
Stop

((I'm tired XD))

Vera knew exactly what Naja was thinking. She was untrained - at least, professionally untrained. But untrained didn't necessarily mean unskilled. She'd leave all this shit behind if she could, so she wouldn't even need to be skilled with a sword, but that wasn't how the world worked. So she adapted. And cruelty was the only thing that could come close to matching the harshness of the world.
Even in her eyes, of you looked closely, paid close enough attention, you could see the simmering anger, laced with its cold exterior.
For a while, she remembered when it had controlled her, the anger and the bitterness and her surroundings. She'd lacked the strength to fight back, wrapped up in her own prison. And then she learned.
Every day, she etched it into her brain.
Her skin was still worn with scars.
But she had a measure of control now.
If only she'd figured it out sooner, before hell decided to pay her a visit, before...
She almost tore her piercing stare away from Naja, nearly stabbed herself in the hand with her own sword. But she held on, her gaze remaining icy.
And Vera threw the sword, fast but deadly as it flew and planted itself in the third dummy's head, with such force that the dummy crumpled in on itself.

ѕнєяℓσ¢к ѕαℓναтσяє мαℓfσу wrote: "((I'm tired XD))"

((I'm so tired lmao but your post was really good))

Naja felt, more than saw, the blade fly past her, and heard the thud as it slammed into the dummy. Vera was strong, and fast - more so than she looked. And the harsh, bitter look in her eyes was familiar, even if nothing else was.
Their gazes held for another long moment.
Naja strode past Vera, their...interaction now over. It had been an interesting exchange. Vera was unpredictable in a way, but she had a pattern. She adapted to the things around her, matching the brutality of the training room with her own exterior. Something about her mind was, for lack of a better word, changed. There had been something she'd had to lock away, repress, and strengthen.
There was a weakness there that she could exploit.
Earning her trust wouldn't work in this case, but Naja never relied on that. Wildcats had claws and fangs. Snakes had venom. There were many ways to kill.
She felt Kitt's stare as she turned to face him. Bright, burning green eyes met fiery russet. She locked gazes, not taking her eyes off his, even as she noticed the dummies he'd destroyed. His fighting style matched that of his District - not surprising. He was a Career. His strength was probably the same as some of the men she'd faced down before.
He was waiting for her to come to him. She knew that much. That was the game people played - how they tried to exert their power over others. It tried too hard to be subtle. And yes, Arcana did want to slink over to him, to stalk right up and match him blow for blow. She wanted to play with him.
But she wasn't known for giving people what they wanted.
So she turned and walked away.
Her dagger gleamed in its new sheath, hilt-deep in a dummy's heart. It was hard to pinpoint the moment she'd released it, whether she'd thrown it or if she'd just stabbed it. It was just...there.

Vera, in turn, stalked towards the row of knives near where she'd just been standing and tested them in her hand, weighing them out.
Naja was interesting. She possessed what some people might think a typical Career demeanor - commanding, an arrogant tilt to her features, but also cold and fitting for the games. However, she knew this girl wasn't another mindless robot. The way her eyes gleamed, it was certain there was more. And everyone had a weak point, even the most powerful tributes.
Naja was no exception.
Vera picked up a knife, one that fit perfectly in her hand and was just the right balance for throwing and close combat.
And Carwyn, the other one who'd been watching them. He was most definitely more than he let on. He was cocky, perhaps reckless at times, she'd noticed. But he was no puppet, that much was easy to tell. His expressions let on more than Naja did, though they were still concealed.
She leaned against the wall, watching their exchange with interest as she continued to think. She flipped the knife in her hand up and down, almost lazily, save for her sharp features and cold mask. If Naja and Carwyn allied, they'd make a strong pair.
That could go one of two ways; it could benefit them both, launching them to the top two and then it'd be up to their sheer skill to determine who won next. Or, it would destroy them.
Either way, they'd kill a good number of tributes, and possibly her included, if she decided to get in their way.
Sometimes Vera wondered if that would be a good thing.
If they just killed her.
But then she remembered control, and she snapped back into focus.
She turned her attention back to their exchange, amusement creeping up her face - though it didn't reach her eyes.
While she was observing, she continued to throw her knife up and down, until she caught it once more and threw it in one swift motion.
It hit the dummy across from her, nailing it right between the eyes.
Not exactly where she'd intended it, which had been in the left eye, but it worked.
It still hit a lethal area.