#catastarter

Most Victors preferred to drown their sorrows in alcohol. Heather, on the other hand, would much rather enjoy the company of food. Especially the exquisite dishes the Capitol was known for.

As per usual, she walked straight past anyone who tried to talk to her, glaring at the ones who tried to walk alongside her. Meaningless conversations held no interest, especially since most of them would, presumably, be about her poor, unfortunate Tributes.

Her mood lifted considerably when she reached the tables laden with every food imaginable.

Let the real fun begin.

Starting at her favourite table, the one with pastries and desserts, she quickly filled her plate with butter croissants, chocolate cakes, strawberry and crème cakes, flaky tarts, chocolate gelato, cookies and cream ice cream-

“I’ve never seen such a little lady like yourself eat so much before.”

Heather glanced up and glared at the man who dared interrupt her food-choosing. He was a Capitolite, no doubt. The spikes protruding from his bald head were a dead giveaway.

“You know, I’ve always liked little girls who can-“

@aspen-scott-li

Ever since her victory in her Hunger Games, Emerald always insisted that she needed to drink enough to satisfy both her and Silver. A habit that formed rather quickly and often got the Victor into trouble with at least two people. So it was to be expected that her tongue was much looser than it usually was, much the misfortune of anyone who would come across her line of sight.

Another glass of wine was in her hand. She received a few worried looks from some of the other party goers, yet none would step in to say anything to her. After Haymitch, most had learned that it’s best to leave the Victors be when it came to their alcohol consumption. While she was not nearly the drinker the deceased Victor was, Emerald still was known to be seen at any function with a drink in hand at all times.

“We should find something to do,” she mumbled as she looked into her glass. Yet many had already fallen into their little cliques and social groups by this time, and the brunette had grown bored of her usual company by this point in the party. Surely there was someone who could entertain her company amongst all these people.

Yet pleasant company was difficult to search for once the familiar grating sound of a certain District 7 Victor’s voice could be heard through all the chatter and music. Of course she of all people would be here, Silver grumbled in her mind. An agitated sigh left her lips as her feet carried her towards the source of the voice. The two Victors had never gotten along, with Aspen’s “relationship” with Emerald’s classmate and friend and the District 1 girl’s disapproval of Alexis’ weakness. The two always found each other to butt heads, and this event would be no different.

It was her first time seeing all the Victors together under one roof. Sure, she knew all their names, their districts, the way they won and their track records as mentors. And during the war, she even met a few of them, under the harsh lights of an interrogation room, asking a few questions of her own. But here they were, in all their glory, dressed to the nines and barely able to move without someone fawning all over them. In the dim lighting of the room, you could almost imagine that the grimaces on some of the victors’ faces were smiles. Almost. But Mars knew as good as anyone else, there were few reasons to be happy in President Coin’s republic. 

She was posted on the side of the wall, hands clasped firmly behind her back, staring straight ahead. After the war, the peacekeepers had decided on a variety of different uniforms to choose from for different tasks, a break from the harsh white of their former uniforms. Those were too much of a reminder of Snow’s fallen regime. So tonight she was in a deep blue, and without all the heavy armor of the traditional uniforms. All she had were a few knives hidden in her boots and of course, her Vektor CP1 in her thigh holster. 

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a tv personality stumbling around drunk, causing a bit of chaos in the tight crowd. She didn’t move her head an inch, but she made quick mental notes. He was only a few yards away, and she could get to him in a little over a second. Then she could pin him to the wall, away from the light, so too many people wouldn’t be disturbed....

Then, two things happened very quickly. In the fray, a waiter dropped his tray, sending a dozen champagne glasses shattering on the floor. And then, someone was knocked off balance, almost falling right into the mess of broken glass. 

Mars’ hand shot out and grasped the person’s arm, and when she caught a glimpse of their face she smiled. First impressions were everything, and wasn’t this an especially important first impression? 

“Careful.  Wouldn’t want you to get hurt.” 

If one had to make a list of things that were far from experiencing a shortage in The Capitol, parties and social events would be right at the top. Although it had been five years since her relocation from Twelve and Thirteen, Diana was still getting used to the spectacle of it all. 

She had spent 32 years living in the Merchant section of District Twelve and the only time they would have an event even remotely close to a Capitol party would be when the Mayor and his family would throw a birthday party or special event, and even then it completely faltered in comparison to now. In fact, the only thing in Twelve that could possibly come close to anything in The Capitol would have been the representative brought to read the names of the unfortunate souls reaped for The Games. Effie Trinket stuck out like the sorest of any sore thumb you could find, if sore thumbs came complete with outfits that Diana could only dream of getting her hands on the materials for. 

She didn’t hate the parties by any means, on the contrary, sometimes they served as a good distraction She was thankful to force herself out of her apartment, she wasn’t thrilled about being in Coin’s mansion, but she figured she’d play nice and at least pretend to enjoy herself tonight for the sake of the Victor. She couldn’t imagine going through what they would and then be expected to hold themselves together as people around them praised them for their “show,” “work,” “good deeds,” whatever the Capitolites and sponsors called what they did. While she knew so many people taken by The Games, she never drowned herself in the specific details. 

Heather woke up to Kitty meowing loudly in her ear. Groaning, she turned over, only to get a face full of fur. Seeing that her mistress was awake, Kitty climbed down the bed, and scampered off to find breakfast. Reluctantly, Heather sat up in bed, eyes squinting under the bright sunlight pouring in through her window.

Sighing, she dragged herself out of bed and down the stairs to the living room. Her stomach growled loudly despite last night’s substantial feast. Her mother smiled from where she sat reading on the couch, before pointing towards the metallic hole in the wall. She grimaced. Heather considered not getting her schedule just to spite Coin, but then she remembered that Coin was not above punishing misbehaving Victors. Grudgingly, she stuck her wrist in and waited impatiently as her schedule was inked onto her body.

As she made her way to the kitchen, she looked over her schedule. To her annoyance, it seemed that she was going to be interviewed by Caesar Flickerman tonight.

With Cepheus Dayne, no less.

She scowled, before reaching for her mom’s home-made bread. It was dark, crescent-shaped and sprinkled with seeds- just like the ones from home. The familiar savoury taste warmed her heart, lifting her mood a little. Unfortunately, she was still miffed that she had to be interviewed by Caesar again. Especially the day right after the Victor Party. She didn’t understand why Coin still wanted her to be interviewed. It wasn’t like she had anything to say. Still, disobeying Coin wasn’t exactly an option. The repercussions were not appealing, to say the least.

Leaning against the kitchen counter, she thought of the other person that would be at the interview. Cepheus Dayne… He was an alright dude, as long as he didn’t try to hit on her. Maybe having him as an interview buddy wouldn’t be too bad; he could do all the talking for her.

As she finished her bread, Kitty sauntered into the kitchen and began meowing impatiently, tapping incessantly at Heather’s feet. She smiled affectionately at her.

Kitty was a… rather weird cat. Unlike most cats, she liked going out of the house and running about the neighbourhood.

She whistled a simple two-note tune, the signal that they were going out for a walk. Kitty immediately turned and rushed out the front door. Grabbing a bottle of water, Heather chased after Kitty before the inquisitive cat could get herself into trouble.

They strolled down the main road leisurely, Kitty running forwards occasionally to inspect things along the road. A dead leaf, a fallen flower, a shiny wrapper. She pawed through them deliberately, before moving on to the next piece of trash. As they passed by a big mansion, Kitty perked up as a tall figure exited the building. Kitty hissed ferociously before pouncing after the one and only Cepheus Dayne. Heather barely managed to hold her back before she could claw his eyes out.

@devyn-ackerman

It wasn’t as if these parties were all that boring - good food, good drinks, and influential company was always nice to have. Still, the Victor wasn’t interested in making new connections right then. The newest Victor was currently being swamped with attention from citizens and Victors alike; he didn’t need another person to deal with just yet. Right now though, the brunette wanted a familiar face to talk to. Someone that would be easier to talk to - not someone whom would show ignorance to her plight.

Dark eyes searched the crowned party as she looked for some company. Do you think the good doctor is around here somewhere? The familiar voice echoed in her head, prompting the brunette to ponder. Considering the reason for the party tonight, it would be odd of the other woman to not be present somewhere. “She must be,” Emerald muttered to herself. “It wouldn’t hurt us to look for her, at the very least.” 

Wandering through the party, she was stopped by a few people for some polite greetings and small chit chat. Mostly just some of her sponsors and regulars, nothing lasting more than a couple of minutes. The District 1 resident was growing bored having no one to talk with long term. Finally, Emerald caught sight of the other woman. Weaving through the crowd, the woman grabbed two glasses of champagne from one of the servers before reaching Devyn.

If one was forced to attend a party at the Capitol, one might as well enjoy themselves. Which is exactly what Emerald was doing. It’s what ensured that her tributes would always have sponsors, as the Capitolites always likes the tributes of a Mentor who intermingled with them. Of course, that was help in great part thanks to President Snow and his efforts to pass her around to any who could afford a night with the young woman. 

She had some faithful “friends and companions” in the Capitol thanks to her exploitations by the departed leader of the old Panem, and President Coin wouldn’t dare mess with the schedule if it meant keeping her power and dignity. As such, Emerald expected to see some of them at the party, and indeed she did. Many sought her out to give their condolences and partake in a dance or three with her. Dancing was one of the many social skills that Cashmere drilled into her head before her Game, knowing it would help her in the long run to enchant potential sponsors for future District 1 Victors. And so, she danced.

Forced conversations and many dances drained the girl of energy over time. Though the music was grand to dance to, the repeated activity on her feet were wearing her out. Excusing herself from the elderly man she had finished her last dance with, the brunette looked for somewhere to rest a bit. Coin should at least set out some more seating if she’s gonna keep throwing these parties, Silver’s voice commented. On accident, she saw an open seat available near the exit to the garden area, next to someone whom she didn’t recognize from behind. She walked up behind them and leaned closer to them to make sure they heard her amongst the clamour of people around them.