{measure my worth} Tope/Peri/Viridian/Emerald

[Lulu]

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i've been trying to do it right
i've been living a lonely life
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Topaz Ross had exactly one success story to her name, and he was called Peridot Myler. Sure, maybe some people would consider winning the Hunger Games to be something of an accomplishment as well, but Tope knew better than anyone that seven years later it just wasn't as impressive anymore. Everyone expected more out of you, when you became a victor. And as a victor from a Career district? You were of absolutely no worth to anyone unless you brought back a handful of other tributes from your district with your foolproof mentoring skills. needless to say, the redheaded champion hadn't been very successful with that in Hunger Games past; she'd come close, what with people like Reyes and Avon and Stark and Jae, but ultimately had not done her duty properly. So nearly one year ago, when Peridot had emerged from the depths of Tartarus with ultimate victory clenched in his bloodied grasp, Topaz had celebrated with a loud screech of excitement and more than a little bit of alcohol.

Besides the victory tour, however, she and Peri had not had much time to interact following his win; they'd simply been too busy off doing other things, Topaz trying unsuccessfully to fit into the shoes of a married woman and Peridot basking in the glow of his success in numerous different ways. He seemed like a nice enough kid—definitely a competent, worthy victor—but she knew she'd have a lot to teach him once the 63rd Games came around and he'd have to share her mentoring duties. Now that that time had come, she had absolutely no idea how she was going to do it; did she hold his hand through the process, like mentors were supposed to do with their tributes, or did she let him figure out his own way of going about coaching the future lambs for the slaughter? Eventually she kept pushing it off so much that the dawn of the first mentoring session arrived and she still had not spoken to Peri about what what meant to be done.

Topaz had taken to waking up grumpily every morning since moving into the training center, mainly because Maverick was not there to make her hot tea and breakfast and assure her that the day would not, in fact, suck (she'd relied on her husband immensely during their first year of marriage to keep her head on her shoulders, mostly because she had a tendency to fly off the handle at the slightest provocation). After grabbing a yogurt parfait from the dining room, she settled down into her favorite chair in the sitting room with a scowl and waited for her young charges and her partner, who was still merely a boy himself, to arrive.

The female tribute this year seemed okay; she came from a large, well-known District One family as so many of the tributes lately had. Tope tried to see hope in her, but she couldn't help but feel pangs of sorrow for Kiera, one of the few people she'd actually managed to befriend, shortly before sending her off to her death. The victor had never pulled for one of her tributes as much as she had for Kiera, but it hadn't been enough. This Emerald Shore had big shoes to fill, in Topaz's eyes, and while she could pretend to have heaps of faith in her she knew she'd still be skeptical. If Kiera couldn't win, then District One females really had no chance anymore.

Then there was... Viridian. The moment she'd heard his last name announced at the Reaping Tope had groaned audibly, prompting some angry stares from some of the officials surrounding her. Viridian Harper. At first she'd hoped there was no relation, but she knew deep down that she was only kidding herself; Viridian Harper was none other than the younger brother of Stark Harper, her drunken one-night stand and former tribute from two years previous. Topaz had been trying to forget that night with Stark since the moment it happened, for though it had admittedly been quite enjoyable at the time it was far from worth it afterwards, particularly when she realized the other girl had hidden her most prized possession as payback. So naturally she was not too keen on mentoring her brother.

At long last the rest of the motley District One crew showed up. She exchanged a glance and a nod with Peridot and took a few moments to size up her tributes—okay, well, admittedly only Emerald, because she didn't want to look at Viridian more than she had to—before beginning to speak, not wasting any time with greetings. "What are your strengths?" she demanded immediately, standing up and circling them slowly with crossed arms, a vulture surveying her prey. "Are you Careers? Cause I'm not interested in training a bunch of pansies."

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i've been sleeping here instead
i've been sleeping in my bed
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[sbeeg]

The Capitol would take some getting used to. It seemed that if Viri would have walked out in the streets he would be stared at for his odd appearance, or lack there of. Colors and shapes flashes outside his window and in the training center District One had the first floor- the perfect view point to spy on citizens. He pictured himself walking among them, older and as a mentor but it never did click in his mind. They were all too odd and eccentric. He wondered if the current Victors thought so too.

Speaking of current victors, today was the day training started for the District One tributes. Topaz Ross, Victor of the 56th Games would be there but she was all but old news. The real gem was Peridot Myler who won only last year. As the next District One male Viridian had some serious shoes to fill- either he won or he disappointed. In all honestly, Viridian wanted more than anything to hit the real training center. The gym filled with weapons and firewood and all sorts of dangerous things to test out. Even running laps around the gymnasium seemed more appealing to the boy than sitting around and talking about strategy. He knew plenty of that from watching past Games. Still... it'll be pretty damn cool to meet Ross and Myler but it will be even better when he joins their ranks.

Stepping into the main room he spotted the elder of the Victors lounging in a chair. Despite the fact that the boy had just entered the room and they were officially speaking for the first time the woman merely glanced at him before concentrating on his District partner. In fact, she seemed to be dead set on just not looking at him. As a boy who was used to being stared at this was not at all the reaction he expected but nevertheless it only made him hunger for more attention. No one just glances over a Harper, not even a Victor.

"Are you Careers? Cause I'm not interested in training a bunch of pansies." Viridian couldn't help but snort. What's the difference between a Career and a pansy if you won't even look them in the eye?

"No, we just happened to be passing through and decided to chat," Viridian said dryly, his eyes following the woman as she circled around them. What wise knowledge could this lady possibly possess that Viri had not already figured out? Isn't ironic that pansies would the be the people who truly needed the training?