The following three days passed promptly. Draco had a routine of waking up, grabbing something to eat, and then enjoying the passing scenery. Every day, Draco and everyone else dined together, enjoying unusual conversations with Haymitch.
Draco noticed that Haymitch stopped pestering him about his volunteering, instead, Haymitch gained some sort of respect for him. It was strange. Similarly, Haymitch stopped drinking – maybe that was the reason.
Other than that, Draco slacked off as much as possible during these few days, knowing that his hands would be full after arriving at the Capitol. Hence, on the fourth day of traveling, as Draco was enjoying some tea with Katniss, the scenery changed altogether.
Looking through the window, Draco saw the gigantic fortress that goes by the name Capitol. Rivers were surrounding it from all around, and Draco saw numerous bridges leading towards its entrance. Katniss opened her mouth slightly. “It’s huge.”
“It is indeed.” Draco nodded, not having anything else to add. They stared in silence, as they promptly approached the Capitol. Barely a few minutes, they were inside, the train passing through guards stationed at the entrance. The train lessened its speed upon entering.
Draco understood why.
Thousands of civilians flooded the streets, pouncing onto the train. Draco stared in disgust as they banged their heads onto the window leading to his chamber. They were shouting his and Katniss's name. Draco clicked his tongue, then smiled like he had never before, waving back to them. Katniss followed his actions.
Fortunately, this ordeal soon finished, as they entered the shade of a tunnel. The train stopped abruptly and Draco yawned, stretching his back. Haymitch and Effie walked into their room, their expressions more serious than before. Haymitch groaned. “What you are going to experience right now will be pure torture."
"Sound promising." Draco snorted.
Haymitch smiled at him. "The entire Capitol has been wanting to see the tribute with their own eyes. Since you are the last ones to arrive, you won't get any rest." Haymitch turned around and the door to the train opened abruptly.
Peacekeepers rushed inside and then everything became a blur. Draco and Katniss were separated and escorted into different rooms. He was forced to go into a shower and change his clothes. Then, Draco was escorted to another room, where a few women started working on his appearance.
They shaved his little beard, plucked the hair out of his nose, and cut his hair. Then, they chopped the nails on his hands and feet. Draco's dozed out during the entire procedure, rethinking his options and plans for the next few days.
It took them half an hour to make Draco look presentable, as he stood up and faced his figure in the mirror. His black hair was neatly brushed back, revealing his forehead. There was some makeup on his face, hiding the little pores on his face. Sighing, Draco looked down, seeing his shaven legs. It felt strange. He felt like a newborn baby, and he couldn't say it was to his liking.
As he was staring at himself, Draco saw a dark-skinned man appear in the corner of the mirror. Recognizing him, Draco spun. The man walked up to him, stretching his hand out. "Nice to meet you. My name is Cinna. I am the one responsible for styling you and Katniss."
"Stylist?" Draco feigned interest, processing the information. "Can't lie, when I volunteered for the Reaping, I expected bloodbath and killing..." Draco smiled. "But not only did every part of my body get washed, I also have my own stylist now. Life can't be more perfect, can it?"
Cinna chuckled. "You are an interesting person, Draco." Cinna then withheld for a few instances and continued. "Anyway, there is going to be a Tribute Parade in a few hours, and I want to make sure that both you and Katniss stand out. You will be more likely to get sponsors if you make an impression."
Draco nodded. "I trust you. Just don't make us look corny."
Cinna smirked again, snapping his finger. Two men walked inside, holding on a dark gown. "Change and meet me outside in fifteen minutes. Katniss should be ready by then as well."
Draco took the clothes into his hands, staring into Cinna's eyes. "Thanks, I will be sure to be there on time."
Nodding, Cinna left together with his fellow helpers. Draco promptly removed his current clothes and put on the jacket. It was a bit stiff, but Draco couldn't complain. It looked great, especially since all of his features were also dark. It would probably look even better once it was lit on fire.
-
Draco came out of the tunnel, seeing all the participants from each District. Most of them stared back at him, and Draco assumed that they were not very pleased with his previous statement. Draco grinned, walking towards the end of the line, where Katniss and Cinna were urging him to come faster.
However, just as Draco started walking, he stumbled upon his leg, falling and pushing the male tribute from District 1. His name was Marvel, if Draco remembered correctly. Anyway, the man fell onto the ground, his face exploding with anger.
Everyone stopped whatever they were doing as they looked at Draco, surprised. Draco put his hand on the back of his head, putting on a carefree facade. "Oh, I am so sorry. I slipped."
Marvel was clearly not done as he shouted something back, but Draco ignored him completely, moving away. No screen appeared. Draco continued onwards, then grinned and fell again, bumping into Cato, the male participant from District 2.
Yet, this time, Cato remained unhinged. His body was like a piece of metal and Draco barely pushed him at all. It was an unnatural strength. Draco lifted his gaze, making deep eye contact with Cato, as they both inspected each other. Then, Draco shrugged. "Pardon me, it seems I am clumsy today."
Then, Draco beamed a little smile, continuing to walk forth. However, the smile disappeared the next second, as he glanced at the warning screen on his left. It seemed like he had found another one.
Moving on, Draco stopped pulling off this stunt. Doing this three times would be considered going overboard. Yet, Draco still stared at each and every participant, trying to decipher whether they were infected or not. All of them looked perfectly normal, except one. At the end of the line, Draco felt a deadly gaze wash over him.
Rue was standing in front of him, her eyes practically making holes in his chest. Draco raised his eyebrows, then saw Rue relax. She winked, going back to her carriage. Draco sighed. He guessed he had found another one and he was not glad.
"What the hell was that, Draco?" Katniss approached him, her voice a hiss. "Haymitch said that we should make allies, not enemies. I know that you didn't bump into them by accident."
"Do you think those tributes from 1st and 2nd District would want anything to do with us?" Draco asked, shrugging. "And it was an accident, Katniss. Have you never stumbled twice in a row?"
"No, I haven't." Katniss rolled her eyes.
"You make quite an entertaining pair." Cinna chuckled. "I am sure everyone at the Capitol will love you. Especially, once they see you in the dresses I prepared for you."
Cinna took out a lighter from his pocket. "Once the parade begins, I will light both of you on fire. It's artificial, so don't fear it." Cinna looked at both of them. "Just accept it like it is part of you."
Katniss and Draco nodded at the same time, hopping onto the carriage. Marvel, the man from District 1, was already moving on his carriage, disappearing into the distance. Draco heard shouts coming from the other side of the tunnels.
Before they knew it, Draco and Katniss were on the carriage, lit on fire. The darkness of the tunnel ended abruptly, revealing an audience bigger than those at the football games. Draco felt the noise and excitement grow once they saw their flaming dresses.
Draco felt a flare of excitement in his chest, hearing people calling out his name. He wanted to lift his hand and shout back, but he decided against it. Instead, Draco kept a straight, indifferent expression, as if none of this was interesting to him at all.
"Draco, why are they so excited about seeing us?" Katniss asked, her questions sounding more like a threat. "Aren't we all going to die soon, anyway?"
"They are animals, Katniss," Draco answered, indifferent. "Applying logic to them is simply futile." Once he said that their carriage finally came to a halt. Draco tilted his head, seeing President Snow standing on a podium above.
Snow began his speech, but Draco barely registered what was being said. Instead, Draco was trying to see whether there was any difference between him in the movies and right now. However, no matter how he looked, Snow acted the same. Draco hoped that to be true. Otherwise, this job would turn into a bloody mess.
After another long procedure, Draco and Katniss were driven back to those tunnels, where they met up with Haymitch, Effie, and Cinna. After that, they were introduced to their living quarters for the next few weeks. Draco couldn't complain, for they were even more luxurious than on the train.
Draco took a shower, grabbed a few snacks, and lay on the bed. Staring at the ceiling, Draco sighed. Rue and Cato were infected, which was far from ideal. Additionally, there was someone else, and Draco hoped he would find out the fourth Mysthral's identity during the next week of mandatory training.
Opening up the shop, Draco concentrated on equipment.
He hadn't just been slacking off on the train here.
Draco had found a few items in the shop that might turn out to be useful, and Draco believed that purchasing them was going to be essential.
-
[Equipment: Worm Spy]
[Rank: F]
[World: Eminence in the Shadows]
[Description: An artificially created worm that is linked with wireless headphones. The worm transmits and deciphers all the sound waves within a 2-meter radius and transfers them to the headphones. Unfortunately, it was considered a failed project because it was too difficult to apply. The worm was usually found in a matter of a few hours]
[Cost: 15]
-
It was indeed difficult to apply, but Draco couldn't afford anything better. However, he needed some intel from Myshtrals. What were their plans, how were they going to change the story, and all of that? Perhaps it would be a failure and Draco would just lose his money, but he had to at least try.
Going into the games without any knowledge would be quite an ordeal.
Purchasing it, Draco felt something in his shadow again. However, this time, he decided not to summon it. Instead, Draco turned off the lights and went to sleep.
-
"In the next two weeks, 23 of you will be dead, and whoever survives depends on how well you prepare." A dark-skinned woman named Atala, whom Draco knew to be the chief in training the tributes, continued. "There are going to be four mandatory training activities. The rest will be individual training. My advice: don't neglect survival skills. Most of the tributes die because they can't find food and water."
Draco yawned as he listened. Then, he stretched his hands out, cracking his neck. As soon as they woke up, they were escorted towards the training grounds. This was the place where Draco would have to do some work. Whilst everyone was still listening to what the woman was saying, Draco was already scanning the perimeter.
The training grounds, in short, were lackluster. The overall vibe was off since there was barely any sunlight. There were a bunch of different weapons and weights, along with separate rooms, where it was possible to try using them.
Draco lifted his head, where he saw another room, dimly lit up by lamps. Men and women dressed in atrocious dresses were dining there, overlooking the tributes, drawing entertainment from their struggle. Among them, stood a man with a cleanly cut beard that matched his gelled hair. It was Seneca, the game maker of the upcoming annual Hunger Games.
"What are you staring at?" Katniss asked, following his line of sight and seeing Senece, eating grapes alongside his fellow Capitol people. "Who are they?"
"No one that you should worry about." Draco shrugged, turning to Atala, who was organizing the compulsory activities. Not saying anything else to Katniss, Draco made his way there. All the other participants were staring at him with daggers in their eyes. Marvel seemed like he would kill him at a moment's notice.
Cato was also not bearing any good-willed thoughts in his eyes. Once Draco stood next to all of them, two red screens appeared before his eyes. He had rechecked everything as soon as he got on the school grounds. Out of all 22 tributes, excluding him and Katniss, Cato and Rue were the only ones infected.
That made his plans crumble a bit. He was hoping that he would find the rest of the infected in the games, yet it seemed like someone infected was working from the outside. Sighing, Draco stood in line, Katniss behind him.
The first mandatory exercise was balance training. Numerous metallic poles were dispersed around the perimeter, the width of them being no bigger than that of a foot. They were placed quite high in the air so that falling would result in a lot of pain, but rarely any injuries.
"I hope you break your neck." Marvel hissed from the front.
How the hell did he appear next in line after Draco? Did he purposefully go back just to say this line? Funny guy.
"I hope I do so that I won't be pestered by bugs like you any longer," Draco mumbled back, uninterested.
A blonde-haired woman grabbed Marvel on the shoulder, whom Draco recognized as Glimmer, another tribute from District 1.
"Don't let him get into your head, Marvel. People like him can only talk." Glimmer pushed Marvel in the front, as he promptly jumped on the first rod, redirecting his anger into the mandatory exercises. Marvel wasn't the most agile type, but his balance was on point, and he finished the entire task in barely any time.
In order to motivate the tribute to do better, a screen on the left wall portrayed all their times and results. Currently, Clove from District 2 had the best score with 7.6 seconds.
Glimmer, who hadn't even spared a glance at Draco's way, like he wasn't even there, jumped as soon as Marvel finished. She moved with much more balance, which was normal considering she was an archer. Finishing the exercise in a record 6.3 seconds, she looked back at Draco and smirked. "You said you were going to win, right?"
'These guys are acting childish, aren't they?' Draco sighed, staring at Glimmer's back. He didn't feel intimidated or annoyed by their actions. Rather, he was amused. Well, there was nothing he could do, considering that they were indeed just kids.
'I guess I should show them at least something for them to stop bothering me.' Draco thought, not really entertained by the idea of them always buzzing around him.
Atala frowned. "Draco Ashvale, please don't stop the line."
"Sorry, sorry." Draco swiped his hands, then his face turned serious. He leaned forward, his back twisting. And, then, with no hesitation, Draco leaped forth, his foot landing on one pole a second later. Without stopping, Draco flew off it again, landing on another. Another second passed and Draco was on the other side, staring at his 2.8 seconds record.
All the tributes were staring at him from below, whilst Atala opened her mouth slightly. Draco looked down at Glimmer, making eye contact with her. He winked, grinning in a similar way that she did. Her lips trembled from fury.
Katniss appeared from behind, her score of 8.5 appearing on the screen. She put a hand on Draco's shoulder. "What are you doing?" Leaning closer, she continued. "Haymitch told us to not show off."
"I didn't show off." Draco shrugged, jumping from the stairs and landing on the ground. The three following exercises tested their strength, speed, and survival skills. Draco didn't hide his abilities, but he neither showed anything over the top. It was just enough to make others more aware of him.
Eventually, the compulsory exercises ended, letting them practice their skills. Katniss went towards the open area, where they practiced survival skills, whilst Draco lingered in the middle of the gymnasium as if contemplating something.
Then, Draco sighed. What he was going to do would definitely be considered stupid and could probably end badly, but Draco needed some intel. Setting his mind, Draco made his way toward where Cato, Glimmer, Clove, and Marvel were discussing something.
They saw him approaching, stopping whatever they were doing, as they stared at him with hatred in their eyes. Marvel stepped up. "What do you want, coal miner?" He then looked back at his group, snickering.
"Was that supposed to be funny?" Draco hissed, feigning anger. At this point, the entire gymnasium was staring at their little interaction, knowing that trouble was coming. Peacekeepers readied themselves, but they were not ready for what was about to come.
"Listen, if you just co-" Marvel was about to continue, when Draco suddenly kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying against both Glimmer and Clove. The three of them stumbled on their backs and before Cato even realized what was happening, a punch landed on his face, forcing him on the ground.
Draco jumped on top of Cato, punching again, but Cato finally realized the current situation. The man moved with unexpected strength, as Draco found himself pinned on the ground instead. Draco felt a punch land on his jaw, as his bones trembled. This was strength above anything he had ever experienced.
Cato threw another punch, but Draco tilted his head to the left, dodging it. Then, Draco put his left hand on Cato's face, putting his thumb into his mouth and stretching his cheek. A groan of pain escaped Cato's mouth, as Draco then punched with his other hand, landing a good one on Cato's face.
Blood dripped on top of Draco and before he knew it, he was being thrown on the ground and pinned by Peacekeepers. He didn't resist, having accomplished his mission.