i'm the worst if you want it {sera & tide}

[d6a seraphina keoch [cait]]

They just don’t make tributes like they used to.

I mean, once upon a time I could have understood the hype around the Games. Some of those Victors have been iconic. The fragile, frightened Torian blossoming from boy to man. The rugged, personable Andal wrestling with two parts of himself, man and wolf alike. Somehow, even with swords in their hands, they still managed to win the hearts of Panem.

I’m still trying to find the Flynn Garner of our unlikely bunch.

And I guess every year has the crazies that die off first, but like… is it just me or are there TONS more this time around? Not to mention a surplus of cocky Careers strutting around like they own the place. It really is just like high school. I guess that makes me the stoner sitting in the corner of the cafeteria smoking bad weed.

Except there’s only a meagre plants station and not a joint in sight. Trust me, I’ve checked.

Yet another morning raid proves my point, leaving me empty-handed and resigned to return to my bedroom for the day and stare at the ceiling, if only to avoid interacting with any more psycho tributes. I entertain the idea of just asking for a hit, but it doesn’t seem as fun to have someone doing all the work for you. Old habits die hard, I guess.

I make for the exit, hoping for a quick getaway, but simply entering and leaving a room could never be so straight-forward.

The boy from Four is the latest barrier to my escape. Our paths intersect – earth to water, I have the feeling the two won’t mix in the absence of the sun.

“Oh, hey. You’re with Circe right?” I cross my fingers behind my back, hoping this District Four kid won’t have the same hunger for trying to make a lasting impression. Let this be over quickly.

“Are you as much of a self-righteous bitch as she is?”

[d4a tide evros {ems}]

Tide Evros

Nothing is ever as it seems. Small things become giant realities, and in this moment, Tide knows that everything is possible. Everything could easily come crashing down, yet he's confident, he knows, and he's not afraid to show it. Maybe it'll make him an enemy to many, but the truth is, everyone is his enemy even those he's chosen to align himself with. At the end of the day, the only person he's loyal to is himself. Nobody else matters.

Maybe that's why it catches him off guard any time anyone approaches him. It would make sense after all. And now he's simply trying to mind his own business without a care in the world. It doesn't even really make sense. Why would anyone want to be his friend? Maybe charming them would get them to bend to his will, yet that isn't even guaranteed to work. Nothing is. Not in a game like this.

"Oh, hey. You're with Circe right?"

The answer is obvious, it's simple. They're both from four, but before Tide has a chance to answer the question, she's throwing more at him, and this time it cuts him to the bone.

What the fuck is her problem?

I didn't even do anything to her.

Yet his face remains calm and clear of emotion, and he starts chuckling trying to use it as a way to soothe himself.

How dare she say this. She doesn't even know me.

He calms himself with a gentle sigh and starts shaking his head.

"If you mean confident in my ability and knowing that I'm more then capable of success than you are? Then yes, I will proudly wear the title of a self righteous bitch."

[d6a seraphina keoch [cait]]

I see it the moment he acknowledges me: the misplaced confidence, the false bravado, call it what you want. But Tide Evros is a boy on a mission to understand the world and make it his own. It’s immediately clear he’d do anything to fulfil that goal.

I kinda envy that self-assuredness. It’s a foreign concept to me. Probably something they teach at Career school back in Four; it makes sense that we’ll never be on level playing fields. But the conversation is initiated. Too late to back out now. Just gotta grin and bear it for a few minutes, and then…

And then what? God only knows.

Unsurprisingly, the lukewarm conversation takes a nosedive as soon as he responds, mirroring my off-handed comment with several of his own. “I will proudly wear the title of a self righteous bitch.”

Trust a District Four kid to think that’s a good thing. I’m sensing a pattern here.

I let out a soft sigh, sucking my teeth on the exhale. “That’s a shame. I was hoping not everyone from Four was a cocky buzzkill.”

I might be blunt in the name of being honest, but he oozes asshole, full stop. I’m genuinely disappointed to find that out. And genuinely surprised to be disappointed.

“We’ll see how far that gets you in the Games, I guess.”