The castle was loud that first evening, Minerva could hear the cries of joy and merriment all the way from her chambers on the far end of the castle. If she thought hard she could see the warmly lit room crammed with tributes decked in their finest garbs mingling with the equally beautiful royals.

Minerva would celebrate when she had won.

The small oaken table that sat in the center of her dimly lit room was covered in her research, the research that she had spent the day so earnestly composing. She shuffled through the rough profiles she had gathered, erasing each tribute's name and replacing it with a number, the tributes could not be humans in her mind. Giving them numbers that represented their level of threat to her just made everything seem so much more simple and organized rather than the chaos she knew this truly was.

The charts and diagrams also gave her a strategy to win, hidden deep within the scribbles of pencil were every tribute's weaknesses and their strengths. Minerva would find every last chink in their armor and when the time came, she would shove a dagger straight into them.

Hour elapsed onto hour and in her complete fixation on her task Minerva forgot about the companion that she had brought to the capital with her.... The little bird who was missing an eye and had a fluffy red stomach was called Chimichunga and he was more than a little curious about his new surroundings.

Chimichunga had watched his friend for a long while, perched upon the table beside her. Eventually though his curiosity and desire for food got the better of him and he hopped to the heated stone floor. Chimichunga would find worms not only for himself, but for Minerva as well. His scaly claws clicked against the floor with each bounce that brought him just slightly further from the room.

Minerva probably would have never noticed Chimichunga's absence had it not been for the scream that erupted from the hallway. "Rat! Dear God! It's a rat with wings!"

Minerva nearly fell from her chair in shock as the scream rattled her from her project. She pushed her thin framed glasses up her nose and her eyes darted through the darkly lit room, scanning it for her bird. "Oh Chimichunga.... I need to remember to feed you," she muttered under her breath as she sprinted across the room and into the hall.

Minerva didn't have to go far before she saw her little black and red bird cornering a small, wiry man who was cringing in disgust. He had wavy black hair streaked with grey and an olive complexion that accentuated the lines in his forehead. She stopped a few feet away, staring at the apparent royal, her mind wheeling. "Duke Errol," she said finally placing the man.

Errol looked up, meeting her eyes. "Call this thing off! Call it off!" He demanded, his eyes shining with a bit of panic.

Minerva didn't have to say a word because as soon as her bird saw her he fluttered onto his owner's shoulder. She attempted not to let her amusement at the man's apparent fear of birds show on her face and let her eyes drift to the floor.

The Duke peeled himself off the wall and backed up, readjusting his silk blouse. "It's Grand Duke Errol to you, and would you care to tell me why that thing isn't in a cage?" He asked with an air of self arrogance. Minerva wasn't sure why he had arrogance, from what she had heard of him he was a dead weight who played off of the queen's sympathy to get his title. He was also sponsoring a tribute.

"Well," Minerva started, watching the Duke's face very closely. "We don't put children in cages do we?"

The Duke frowned and straightened his back. "That isn't funny, you child."

Minerva snorted, "It wasn't a joke. I don't joke."

"You're dreadful, honestly I have no clue as to why we have all of you brats here. The queen should just leave the throne to me." Duke Errol rolled his neck and sent Minerva a complacent smile. "Now if you will excuse me I am late for my evening massage." He turned around curtly and began to walk away.

Minerva hesitated, a second as she evaluated her options. "Enjoy it while you can Errol!" Minerva shouted down the hall, her voice echoing in the empty hallway. "If you think you will get to keep your title after a new ruler is crowned you are positively insane."

The Duke stopped dead in his tracks, his shoulders stiffening as Minerva's words hit his ears. Minerva smiled coyly, knowing she had hit a nerve. "Unless you want to make a deal with me." She watched as the man turned around very slowly as if it pained him. "I know you get to sponsor a tribute. If you sponsor me and get me through the games I can arrange things to keep your lifestyle in check, in fact I could even elevate your position."

The duke said nothing, he just stared at her with a sick expression on his face. Minerva's smile widened, "I'm a woman of my word." She lied, not entirely convinced that she would keep up her end of the bargain if the Duke decide to accept. "You don't have to make a choice yet, though. Take your time and think about my proposal."

Minerva thought she could just make out the slight nod of the Duke's head before she turned away. She wasn't convinced she had been successful with the Duke, however she did know that at the very least she had offered him something he needed. He knew just as well as she did that he would never survive on the streets, a man like Errol would be eaten up and spit out in a matter of hours. Her offer might just get her a sponsor.

With a slight smile she slipped into her room and closed the door, listening once again to the chatter of the party goers far away. She sat down in her seat and looked back down at her papers. None of them would know what had had hit them , and that was one thing she could promise.