the neon on the river ~D2 Tributes

[matrim daniel fairbain]

The train ride was still going - it was longer than Mat had expected. Or maybe time was just dragging on as his mind was racing too much, he couldn't tell which. He always seemed to find that time took longer when his thoughts were clouded, and they definitely were now.

He had been waiting in his compartment for a while, but decided to come out to the main compartment to see who was around. Maybe he could chat to Rufus a bit, try to work out some things he needed to work on for when they arrived in the Capitol. He felt like the concept of the Capitol was looming over him now, it wouldn't be long before they arrived, and then it would be like he was in a completely different world. The more he knew about what to expect, the better.

As he came out to the main compartment, only Elizza was there. He still didn't know how to interact with her - there were walls between them that neither of them had put up themselves, they were put up by the Capitol and the Hunger Games. Maybe it was better that way - he had to focus on himself. Still, he took a seat opposite her, and looked out the window. "You were really good with the cameras. They loved you," he commented idly. She seemed to have really had it together out there, while he felt like he had barely scraped through it. He hated putting on an act, he was terrible at it.

[elizza ann larkspur]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px; height: 200px;] [atrb=width,440] don't make me go home GIVE ME SOMETHING TO REMEMBER Everyone had left the main compartment, off to do whatever it is there was to do on that train. Elizza wasn't quite sure what to do. Auricula seemed to be done for a while. She didn't blame her, being a mentor must have been tough every year. But she didn't exactly have a slight sense of negativity, which was comforting for Elizza. She knew her stuff, more than Elizza could tell early off. She absolutely hated judging people before she met them, even though she had naturally done it. A terrible habit that resulted in her tactlessness at times, something she wasn't too fond of. Elizza only sat their staring out the window beside her. She didn't exactly feel like going into her compartment since she had been in there a while. And she was only left alone to go over the same thing over and over in her head. Boy, did she despise mulling over the same thing, as much as she did. Well, as much as it kept popping up her mind. She looked up as Matrim walked into the room and sat opposite of her. She studied him as he gazed out the window, wondering how he must be feeling through this long ride to the Capitol. He spoke of her doing rather well in front of the cameras. It was a slight surprise. She hadn't necessarily been trying, nor was she forgetting to look decent. It came rather natural. At the time she was wonderous about it all, so that emotion helped. She didn't really know what to say to the comment. Elizza shrugged and responded, "You weren't too bad yourself." He wasn't. He had a slight smile planted on his face a majority of the time. A flash of what it was like came across her memory for a moment. She glanced at him before fiddling with her necklace.

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[matrim daniel fairbain]

Mat raised his eyebrows slightly. "Really? It felt like I was terrible," he replied, frowning a little. Maybe she was just being civil, and hiding her actual thoughts, that he had been looking all over the place out there. "Thanks, I guess. But I feel like I'm going to be relying on a good score to get sponsors, rather than how I handle myself with the cameras." That might not have been completely true, he would probably be quite good in the interview if he could get his head in the right place beforehand. "Is that a reminder of your family?" he asked as he noticed her fiddling with her necklace. He had only brought one thing from home, a small engraved stone with his mother's name on it. Nobody else would be seeing that, though. It was firmly stored away in a zip pocket.

[elizza ann larkspur]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px; height: 200px;] [atrb=width,440] don't make me go home GIVE ME SOMETHING TO REMEMBER Elizza looked away as he frowned. She thought he was doing fine, although she might have been worrying about everything else rather than how he was doing at the time. She lifted a shoulder and said, "You weren't terrible." There wasn't much more to say on the matter, it wasn't something she was too worried about. Although it may have been something he was more worried about, which she didn't exactly know what to say that would assure him. Elizza bit her lip as he thanked her, mentioning his scores would be the highlight of his image for the games. He would soon be able to capture the cameras she thought. "But, both are pretty essential," she said quietly, a small smirk forming on her face. She stared out the window again as she let her necklace ring around her fingers. Elizza looked to Mat as he asked about it. She let out a scoff, looking at it herself. "No, not my family." She shook her head and tilted it a bit, deciding whether she should ask if he knew her friend or not. She had been a pretty outgoing career, she had brought her out of her shell long ago. "Did you ever know Gabriella? She was in the games?"

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[matrim daniel fairbain]

Well, that was comforting to hear. Assuming she was being truthful. While he wasn't going to go out of his way to trust other tributes, there was something about how she said it that made him believe her. Maybe it was naive, but he felt slightly more confident that he'd be able to get by in front of the cameras after hearing her feedback.

"Yeah, I guess they are. It just seems so forced, the whole 'attracting a sponsor' thing, you know? But I guess anything you can do to stay alive, right?" he said, frowning. In some ways, every time the camera would be on the tributes, it would be like a competition for attention. Whoever got the best sponsors would have the best chance in the games. Perhaps being part of the Careers would mean that they would share their supplies, but he couldn't count on that.

He turned from looking out the window to look at Elizza when she asked him about Gabriella. Mat did remember watching her in the Hunger Games a few years ago, but he couldn't remember exactly how long, or what had happened to her, other than knowing that she hadn't won. "Yeah, I remember her. Was it... three years ago? Or four?" he asked. "Were you and her close?" Mat hadn't had the experience of losing someone close to him in the games, but it made him sick to think about what it must be like to watch someone you love have to go into the arena.

[elizza ann larkspur]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px; height: 200px;] [atrb=width,440] don't make me go home GIVE ME SOMETHING TO REMEMBER Elizza looked to Matrim as he spoke. He was right. It was the time before the arena that set you up for success or even failure. It was a lot of pressure on someone, especially if they weren't great at speaking or good with the cameras. All of the talent needed to be there the minute your name is called. It's a lot to take in and keep a grasp on, and the Capitol would be the most important part. "Yea, crazy how hard you have to work to make an impression. From the minute you step on the stage." She didn't exactly know her angle yet for the games, she would soon have to figure out. And being herself? She wasn't too sure if 'herself' was reputable enough. Her expression was flushed for a moment. She snapped herself back to reality as she spoke, "Three years..." It still hadn't seemed that long ago. He asked if the two were close and she nodded, letting the necklace fall back onto her chest. "We were inseparable," she said with a small smile. Her expression changed as she went on, staring at the ground beside her and not wanting to really explain much. "Well, she and I made it the year she was reaped. I've worn it ever since."

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[matrim daniel fairbain]

Mat nodded. "Yeah. I hadn't thought much about making an impression before coming into the games. I guess that's what Hestia and the mentors are there to help us with," he said, leaning back into his seat thoughtfully. His preparation for the Games had always been about what to do in the arena, not what was happening before it. He felt very unprepared, all of a sudden.

Mat noticed her flush, and that she was obviously remembering some painful memories. "I'm sorry. That must have been tough for you. And now you having to go through the games as well... does that make it worse?" he asked her. It may have just brought up all of her memories of when Gabriella went through it, which would be really hard on her. He knew that she trained a lot, but didn't know whether she actually wanted to be in the games or not. He supposed he'd find out soon, it wasn't the time to ask.

[elizza ann larkspur]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px; height: 200px;] [atrb=width,440] don't make me go home GIVE ME SOMETHING TO REMEMBER Elizza only nodded in agreement. They were their to make them look good. Along with the stylists and prep team. Thinking about all of what was to come ahead was exciting as well as unnerving. Hopefully she was going to be easy to work with. At times she'd been quite stubborn when it came to herself. Hestia and Auricula were going to have quite the time with her. Of course she would try her best to take her advice, but she would still want to make her own choices all the same. At that moment she began to think that it wasn't too bad to be herself after all... or was it? She would surely find out before the games. Who knew? Maybe the Capitol people would like her sense of style. She tried hard to leave the thoughts and memories of her friend in the back of her mind, hidden from her heart. It wasn't easy but she managed to keep herself together, even if sometimes she seemed distant to others. Sometimes she didn't know where she was. It seemed that he didn't know what it was like to loose someone close to you to the games. She didn't expect him to understand, it was something that would only be understandable through experience. Although, nothing would be worse than loosing in that arena. Moreover it was harder on those at home than it was in the arena, at the moment anyway. "To be honest, it does," she said looking back out the window beside her, her eyes traveling the landscapes that zipped past. " A lot actually, but I'm getting over it," she added. It was a lie, but she didn't want him to be thinking she was worn down because of memories or thoughts in her head.

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[matrim daniel fairbain]

Mat wasn't completely convinced by her saying she was getting over it. From that comment, though, it seemed like she didn't want to be here, as a part of the Games. He figured that now was a reasonable time in the conversation to ask. "So did you want to be in the Games? Or were you hoping someone would volunteer for you?" he asked, moving on from the topic of her friend which was obviously a bit of a sore point for her. He didn't want to focus on points that made her uncomfortable, but there was one point inside himself which made note of the fact that thoughts of Gabriella and now Elizza being in the Hunger Games made it harder on her - and considered how he could use that to gain an advantage in the games himself. That part of him made him hate himself, and he pushed that thought far away. What was he going to become by being here?

[elizza ann larkspur]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px; height: 200px;] [atrb=width,440] don't make me go home GIVE ME SOMETHING TO REMEMBER Elizza looked to Matrim again as he asked whether she wanted to even be in the games or not. The answer was automatic and without question. "Yes, I have my reasons." And she sure did! Her parents, herself, and Gabriella. It was almost vengeance. No one would volunteer for her anyway, she was a career plus she was quite distant from the others the past few years. Some had known she was training hard for that moment to get into the arena as would anyone else. She was a career. That had been reaped. That didn't happen often. Maybe that would come to her advantage. Although it may seem as though know one cared to volunteer for her. She hadn't known the case, but if someone were to volunteer for her at that moment she would continually refuse the offer. She needed to be in the games. There was nothing else she wanted to do. "I was actually planning on volunteering, but being reaped is even better," she said putting her hands on her lap. No one cared for her. The last person she would ever think that would have some kind of worry for her would be her father. And she hadn't even been able to say goodbye to him. She kept the thought that she didn't need to. She was determined to get back home. That was the unfortunate part of having your parent work as a peacekeeper. "No one would have volunteered. Speaking of..." she said moving on from herself. "Were you planning on volunteering yourself?" It was a reasonable question, she looked at him as she waited for an answer.

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[matrim daniel fairbain]

Her response was instant. So there was no question, no hesitation, she definitely had wanted to be in the games. That settled any questions that he had about her in that sense. It also closed the topic for conversation - it was clear she wasn't going to be revealing those reasons to him now. He briefly wondered what they were - were they to do with Gabriella? He didn't know enough about her to speculate, only that she tended to keep to herself, which he had picked up from seeing her at training. He supposed he could consider himself luck that she had even said this much to him so far.

"Wow. Not often a Career gets reaped," he said with a slight smirk. "Who knows, that could somehow be turned into an angle to get you some sponsors." Mat didn't have any skill in angling a situation to get people's approval, that would definitely be up to the mentors, stylists, and escort. Mat briefly wondered who his stylist would be, and what kind of clothes they'd dress him up in.

"I was planning on volunteering, yeah. Made it a lot easier when that boy got reaped," he replied. He couldn't have stayed quiet to let a fourteen year old enter the games, when there were so many who were better prepared for them, him being one of them. He didn't tell Elizza his reasons - no point elaborating when she hadn't asked.

[elizza ann larkspur]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px; height: 200px;] [atrb=width,440] don't make me go home GIVE ME SOMETHING TO REMEMBER Elizza gave a small smirk at his comment. "Maybe," she said with a lift of her shoulder. It would be an angle she didn't have to work at, which was an advantage she hoped. So many careers had volunteered. Some saw her as lucky and some saw it as a curse. Whichever it was, she didn't care, all she wanted was to get into the games and away from her parents grasp for a while. She nodded as he responded. The boy that was reaped looked young, she hadn't even recognized him. And she remembered the terrified and saddened look on the boy's face. The other's reactions were amusing, however his was unusual yet normal for anyone not wanting to be associated in the games whatsoever. Elizza was glad she was sitting there across from Mat rather than the boy. All she would be able to see in that boy was the same face. The face of realization that he had the chance to die on live television. So he had been planning on volunteering like she had. She was sure he had his reasons as well. Although she was conflicted on whether to ask or not. Instead she lifted her feet under her on the chair, changing her position so she was more comfortable, and simply said "Why so eager? You don't strike as one of those stuck up careers." He had been quite humble, but she knew he was strong. Strong enough to outlast many, although that was her plan.

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[matrim daniel fairbain]

Mat had had second thoughts leading up to the reaping about whether he was going to volunteer or not. While he tried not to show it, he had been quite unsure. He knew that this was the only way to guarantee that he'd be able to help his mother get better, as they never helped people who didn't have the money to cover it. If he won the games, that wouldn't be an issue anymore. If he won. If he didn't win, his mother would be left at home with his father, and probably wouldn't hold on for much longer.

He was thinking deeply about this when Elizza asked him why he had been so eager to volunteer. He had appeared eager, had he? Maybe that was in his haste to ensure that the boy didn't have to go into the games. He thought for a moment or two before answering. "I have my reasons, too, I guess," he told her. He didn't trust her with information about his family yet. It was something she might decide to use against him. "I'm not here because I want to kill people, or anything like that, though," he told her.

[elizza ann larkspur]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px; height: 200px;] [atrb=width,440] don't make me go home GIVE ME SOMETHING TO REMEMBER Elizza waited a moment as he was mulling something over in his head. Once he answered, she only looked at him, taking note. She hadn't given him hers, so he wasn't going to give out his. Simple. She never told people about the problems she had with her parents, and she planned to keep it that way. The only thing anyone that knew her really knew about it was that she wasn't very fond of them. The truth, but they hadn't known why. She always remembered the one time she had told someone, it was only a year back and he thought it was petty. Maybe it was. She had told him to try and live in her shoes and that's when everything went downhill. Elizza hated thinking of that one boy, the one she could barely remember now. Shaking her head of the thought, she looked out the window, suddenly getting bored of the various stretching of colors. When he spoke again she shook her head, as it was obvious. "I don't think anyone is. That's just a chore," she said in disgust. She hated thinking of it that way. But once it came down to it, it was only one more chore to do before getting the job done and succeeding. "More like a nightmare. But, I guess you just gotta not think of it as killing... people," she added a moment after.

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[matrim daniel fairbain]

Just a chore. A chore, like homework, or cleaning up your room, or washing the dishes? Was that how he was supposed to view killing the other tributes? The thought disgusted him and it was evident on his face. It seemed Elizza felt the same way about it, but he wasn't sure what to expect from the other careers. Often they seemed bloodthirsty and eager to get into it. "I think you're right. But that won't be easy to do," he answered. "What do you think the other Careers will be like? Do you think they'll enjoy it?" he asked her. This was the first time they had spoken of the fact that logically, it was likely that both of them would be a part of the Careers group in the Hunger Games. So they would be in an alliance, at least in the beginning.