I was a little embarrassed as I snuck out of my room with Slate, only to find that everyone was already at the dining table, having dinner. Aldo was eyeing me skeptically as I told Slate to head back to his floor.

I could feel all eyes on my as we had dinner.

Lolly cleared her throat. It had been obvious what Slate and I had been up to, so she avoided the subject altogether. “How was your session with the Gamemakers, you two?”

“I did what Mari and Aldo told me. I did what I was best at and they seemed to be a little impressed. I mean, since I’m fourteen, no one really can take me seriously, can they? I’m not entirely sure if they were smiling because they were drinking or if they were pleased with my performance,” Xavier said, coming to my aid. I flashed him a quick smile to thank him. “Was it the same for you, Serena?”

“They were a little distracted when I came in, but they paid attention, probably because I was from District 4. They were nodding by the end, so I hope it went well.”

Just on time, the television switched on and the anthem played. The scores started coming up with the tribute’s face next to it.

Taffeta managed a 10, which was unsurprising, while Chiffon had a 9. That one I expected to have a higher score. Slate got an 11, which was very high, compared to the other Careers in the past few years that managed a 10 at most. Lark got a 10, just like Taffeta.

The ones from 3 were a 4 and a 6. The 6 belonged to the female. I hadn’t been paying attention to her. A 6 was pretty good for someone who I underestimated. Xavier got a 9, and to my surprise, I ended up with an 11. Well, there went my image as a ditz.

The only other tributes that ranked higher than a 5 were: the female from 5, who managed a 7 (and I vaguely wondered what other tricks she hid up her sleeve), the male from 7, who got a 9, the female from 7, who had an 8, and the male from 10, who got an 8.

I finally knew who my contenders were. The ones who showed their talents were obviously the ones ranked 7-11. The ones with the lower ranks either really didn’t stand a chance to stay alive, or were hiding right until the Games started.

We shall see.

I remembered that the names of the tributes from 7 were Lit and Boone. The fast runner from 5 was Keegan. I had taken note of them from the trainings because they would be the underlying threats, aside from the obvious District 1 and 2 tributes.

There was a round of congratulations for the scores and we had a few drinks passed around. It was the first time that I tasted champagne.

“Tomorrow, you’ll both be having individual trainings. In the morning, Serena will be having hers with Lolly, while Xavier will be having his with Mari. By the afternoon, Xavier will have time with Lolly, and Serena, you’ll be training with me,” Aldo said.

“It’ll be the day before the interviews, so we have to prepare for that.”

“We have the whole day tomorrow to talk and plan, so I think you guys better get to bed,” Mari said.

“Unless you have something better to do,” Aldo added, raising his eyebrow at me. He did it so well, and I could even see myself doing that same expression. He wouldn’t have let me off the hook so quickly without getting a say in it. He would have said something about me having Slate in my room sooner or later.

“I’m heading to bed early tonight, don’t worry.” I rolled my eyes and did just that.