Dale Winter

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Moxie released a guffaw, almost surprised at the bluntness from the man next to her. She shook her head as she listened to him, being excited about the arenas felt inane – why would the Games be exciting. She did have to admit that the secondary arena was cool – it was an interesting reveal. “I guess also like because it’s the biggest event in Panem it’d make sense that like they don’t even have to fully worry about money. They could probably go get resources from wherever – I’m not an expert, though.”

“No, you’re not” Dale agreed with a nod as he picked up his coffee and took a sip. “The budget is not unlimited, as many of you might think, but sometimes going above and beyond is worth a little number crunching.”

“I wonder how much money they’re throwing at this,” Moxie wondered aloud. Maybe it was the lack of sleep, but she was coming off more blunt than she anticipated. Still the words continued, “First a functioning volcano now a literal underworld just casually placed under the arena? That’s insane. How do they even have the time to build of all of these?” Her main worry was Kit, followed closely by Honey, they’d have to relearn an entire arena. Moxie couldn’t even begin to conceptualize what new horrors awaited the tributes let alone how they’d match up to the above-ground nightmares they had already dealt with.

“It’s about time” Dale replied bluntly. The arenas were always extravagant, he’d give them that, but it was nice to see that there was no expense spared this time. The ratings would love it. Two arenas in one, brilliant. “There is time for everything of you have enough money to spend”

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Gamma exchanged an unimpressed look with one of the leaving interns, then eyed both Dale Winter and the chair occupied by what she was sure was a very expensive coat. “So kind of you to save me a seat then,” she said, approaching regardless, carefully moving the coat to the back of the chair, and taking a seat. She hadn’t even been planning to spend long in here, but she couldn’t help but allow herself the indulgence of a little spite against these sorts of people, however small or petty.

Dale watched her as she moved his jacket, and once she’d set it on the back of her chair and sat, he reached over and pulled it away, abrupt and aggressive. He placed it on his lap instead, grumbling. “I don’t save people seats, the coat is worth more than you’re entire yearly salary, if there’s a mark, I’ll bill you for the dry cleaning” he huffed, turning back to the screen just as the earthquake began.

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she didn’t want to predict a girl would win, with them all in dresses. Harrow was her only tribute left. she wanted him to win more than she’d ever cared about a tribute since her own games. it was weird and scary, to feel responsible for someone else’s life. “yeah, me too.” she agreed, absently, as she ran her finger over the glowing light on her wristband that meant harrow was still alive.

“Which district are you again?” Dale asked, raising a brow. It really was impossible to keep track, especially if he hadn’t supported them in the past, because he didn’t see them as worthy winners then.

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“I apologize, usually most sponsors I know tend to root for a specific team,” Pluto graciously spoke. Perhaps her word choice needed to be more careful, it was certainly something she needed to make a note of when talking to those damned sponsors. “I think the girl from Six is interesting, but I wouldn’t quite say I hope wins – there’s a bit of investment in either one of those sisters that volunteered at the same time.” Pluto hummed as she thought through it all again speaking her mind as she did so, “Kit from Twelve is fascinating as well as the little angry one from the Capitol, oh what’s her name?”

“That’s mindless, a specific team is not going to win each games, they might as well throw their money away” Dale said with rolled eyes. He wondered how some sponsors even had funds left, being as careless as they were. “That’s at least four you have selected, is there not an obvious choice?” he asked, not allowing her to take the easy way out.

“It’s brutal,” Pluto confirmed, offering a small shrug as she brought her own cup to her lips. “It does have some spaces that shouldn’t be absolutely devastating and, perhaps your team will have better luck further in the arena,” She mused, humor on the edge of her voice.

“I don’t have a team” Dale answered quickly. Sure he was supporting Honey, but that didn’t mean much, he could switch his funds as quick as the click of his finger. “Who are you hoping wins?”

@dale-winter​

“what do you think about the outfits?” she asked, halfheartedly. she didn’t want to think about how rosemary had two babies at home, twins with neither a mother nor father. she didn’t want to think about how rosemary had called her a good mentor, had comforted her when she’d cried over the stress of this. rosemary wanted to get home to her babies.

she was dead.

“I’d wear the shoes.” she murmured, half-hearted.

The outfits. He hated small talk, but small talk about fashion was the worst kind. “Awful, but fitting” he answered in a bored tone. “I prefer shoes to completely cover the foot”

@dale-winter​

“What’s your drink of choice on launch day?” she asked the sponsor, a tablet in one hand with Honey’s vitals and location constantly updating on the home screen. “It has to be something celebratory. Especially since it looks like you made a good choice in Honey.”

“Champagne, if you’re buying” Dale hummed, not as enthusiastic about Honey as Surya seemed. “She made a kill, but she also lost a fight, so I’m not sure why you’re raving so much, she’ll have to improve”

Who do you plan to support financially in the Arena, either by working the sponsor room or even tossing a few of your own dollars someone’s way?

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“Well it’s the only thing you can base decisions on, isn’t it? Unless you can see into the future, in which case I have a few questions.” She leveled her gaze with his, tilting her head conspiratorially. “I have the highest training score here. Tell me that’s not promising.”

It was promising. There was arguments for and against training scores, but Dale did set a lot of his expectations around them. “What did you do to get them on your side?”

“Tributes who behave themselves don’t win,” she said with a shake of her head. “I’m mentoring Honey, not her brother. I’ll account for his money, not his attitude. That doesn’t reflect back on her.”

“You always have an answer for everything, don’t you Surya?” Dale asked, his tone blank, unreadable. “I don’t support tributes who don’t respect me, regardless of their potential, so as long as she keeps herself in line, she’ll have my money”

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“Because Two is the best,” Cain argued carelessly, sipping idly on a cheery cola. They had a track record that spoke for itself, and the last few years had been particularly successful for them. “Who else are you gonna put money down on when the Careers are on a streak? And Two is the best position for a win right now. The girls from Four are either going to kill each other or get themselves killed trying, and One’s not even relevant this Game.”

“You sound very sure of yourself Cain” Dale pointed out, although he had to admire him, he never wavered, always confident, regardless of what the truth was. “What about the Capitol though? You have to give Honey Bellerose some thought in your theory”

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“Yes, and if you don’t believe me, call them up and ask,” she said, her tone challenging. She may have been the odd one out of the family, the grandkid they wished they didn’t have, but she did have their blood in her veins. She could talk rich person if she needed to. “Dad had a Ducati too, for like a decade he rode that thing. In the summer I used to ride behind him in that more than we rode in his truck.”

“I’ll take your word for it” Dale decided, because she seemed to know a little too much for someone who was just trying to pull his leg. “Did you ever get your own?” he wondered, without thinking about the fact that kids didn’t ride around on motorbikes in six.