Into Thin Air: The Forty-Second Hunger Games

Chapter 22

Quinn Grice

There was one good thing about getting Reaped. My bad thoughts only happened about people I was close to, like my family. Now I was in the Capitol, and I wasn't near anyone I knew anymore. As scary as it was, it was a wonderful relief to not have my brain screaming at me every second. I felt so good I decided to see the Games therapist and see if I couldn't learn some things that might help me if I ever got back.

The medical center receptionist was happy to see me. Therapists were provided to help the Tributes mentally prepare for the Games, but most of us didn't even think of it. It might have been good if more of us did. Then things like Titus might not have happened. There were two therapists, a man and a woman. That was nice of them. I went with the man and told him what was wrong.

"It's okay to have thoughts like that," he said. "It's normal. Everyone has them sometimes. It becomes more of a bother when they won't go away. Is that what happens with you?"

"They never stop. They're there all the time. I know everybody thinks them once in a while, but it must be bad if they happen so much," I said.

"There aren't any good or bad thoughts. There are only good or bad actions. Maybe you want to do something bad, but you don't. You're not bad because you wanted to do it. You're good because you

"Try to think of your thoughts as just chemical reactions. They're reflexes, like pulling away from something hot. Instead of judging them and yourself as bad, pull back and look at them as just thoughts. They're going to be there, but you don't have to act on them. You're in control, not them," he said.

We talked some more, and I felt a lot better when I left. He said I could come back if I wanted, and I did want to. It was important to prepare your body for the Games, but it was also important to prepare your mind. The mind controlled the body, just like I controlled my actions.

Lucius Petrol

Me and Ferrari had it rough. All the other Tributes had mentors. I didn't want to be rude, but Toby and Lena were... differently abled. But then, at least we had mentors. The two from Nine were stuck with their escort. He seemed like the kind of guy who would actually lower their chances.

But that wasn't going to stop me. If I had to do it myself, that would just make me prouder if I actually pulled it off. I spent most of my time at the javelin station, but I was doing double duty. While I practiced, I was also watching the other Tributes. I wanted to see who was dangerous and who might be an ally. It was polite to ask your District partner first if you wanted allies, but Ferarri was too loud. I hoped she did well, but I'd never be able to lie low with her for a partner.

It would be ideal to find someone whose skills were the opposite of mine. If I knew how to use a weapon, it would be best to find someone who could find food or do first aid. Maybe Violet would be interested. Some of the others were counting her out after the incident last night, but I was at the next station over and saw what really happened. As long as the Arena wasn't a peanut farm, we'd be okay.

I watched the Careers and tried not to give them the evil eye. I could see they already thought they'd won. They thought just because they came from the Career Districts and had the best training, that the rest of us didn't stand a chance. Victors weren't born. They were made. Why else would there be just as many from outliyng Districts as there were from One, Two and Four? Tose three Districts had a disproportionate amount of Victors, but they weren't invincible. It was easy for them to rest on their laurels and underestimate everyone else.

All of us decided our own fate. They got themselves into the Games because everyone around them said it was right. All but maybe one of them would die because of that. I was here by force, but that didn't decide whether I lived or died. I defined my own path. Maybe I'd die trying, but it wouldn't be because of my birth or because of my upbringing. It would just be because of me.

Eddin Cavitch

I was not an inconspicuous person. For me, making a shelter was a prodigious undertaking. I couldn't hide behind a rock like most people, not unless the rock was the size of a truck. But that wasn't entirely bad. Other than the Careers, most Tributes wouldn't attack me. Not unless they were the size of a truck.

I'd been wandering between the stations since training began. I started to gravitate toward the survival stations, since fighting non-Careers wasn't likely to be a problem and fighting Careers was a lost cause. It would have been nice to have classes like this in the Districts. We wouldn't be so hungry if we knew all these plants and how to fish. We wouldn't have been so sad, either. It would be good for the Capitol. They wouldn't have to worry about us rebelling if they gave us some food. We had humble desires.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to ally or not. There was safety in numbers, but I didn't trust myself. It wasn't that I was going to hurt my ally. Quite the opposite- I knew I'd get attached. Once I'd made a friend, I was stuck for life. I'd never leave my ally even if they were hurt, and I'd probably get myself killed trying to help him or her. There were a lot of friendly-looking, capable Tributes training with me, but I didn't dare get to know them better.

It didn't do any good to think about the Arena. It was going to come and that was that. It was better to focus on preparation and think ahead to what could happen if I won. I wouldn't have to live in the group home anymore. Jaime and I could live in the Victor's Village and be happy. We could buy presents for everyone we left behind. Something good could come out of anything, even the Games.

Keylor Herald

I didn't even want to show my face in the training room after the parade. That was not what I meant by redwood. I looked like an i***t out there. It was not an auspicious start.

After that disaster, I needed to step it up if I didn't want to be everyone's first target. As it was, I was completely unfamiliar with any sort of weaponry outside of axes. It would have been ideal to know a little more, but there was an upside. Had I known about a sensible weapon, I would have been almost forced to use it, since it would be the sensible option. Since I was equally ignorant on all weapons, I could choose a cool one to work with. And so I chose the falchion, because it sounded like "falcon". And also because it was a functional sword that wasn't heavy.

It was nice that Paul wasn't there in the training room. He was a good mentor, but we were nothing alike. He won by fighting only when he had to and keeping things sensible. I wanted to be more proactive and I was looking forward to exploring the Arena, even if I didn't necessarily want to stumble across other Tributes. He was all about caution, and I was all about action.

However terrible it was to be Reaped, I was excited about the Arena. It could be anything. I hoped it was anything but a forest. I wanted to see sand dunes or tundra or tropical islands. If I had to die young, let me at least see adventure first. And if I did die, I hoped it was spectacularly. I had so many plans for the future, and the most important was to do something great enough to get me remembered. That could still happen in the Arena. I could die fighting three Careers while my ally escaped, or I could leap off a waterfall instead of being ripped to shreds by some horrible mutt. If I couldn't live hard, I wanted to die hard.