Rye

"Wanna see the roof?" Rye asked his sister. "Haymitch showed me earlier. You can see the whole city and the wind's pretty loud."

He hoped that she was picking up the hidden meaning in his words. Who was he kidding, though? This was Rose and she was the smartest person he knew.

Rose nodded and Rye sighed in relief. On the roof, cameras would still be on them, but at least they wouldn't be able to hear their conversation.

Rye led the way to the stairwell that one would use in case of emergencies and when the elevator wasn't working. Even though they were technically the top floor of the Training Center, there was still a flight of stairs that led to the roof. All he had to do when they got to the rooftop access door was plug in the code that Haymitch told him.

There was a small dome-shaped room made completely out of glass that they had to walk through to actually get onto the roof but they finally entered the fresh air, cooled down by the windy night.

Rye's breath caught in his throat as he stared at the view around them. For all of its faults, the Capitol was a breathtaking place and being up this high made it all the better. The buildings around them twinkled like the fireflies they'd see at home during the summer season. Below, there was a low buzz from the people on the street as they celebrated the Tributes. Sometimes a horn would go off, but it would just set off another round of cheers. Rye imagined that most of them were drunk off their asses.

"Oh, look," he heard Rosemary say as she walked toward the edge of the roof. He got nervous for a second, but she just picked up a pebble from the ground and tossed it off the building. Only, it didn't fall. It hit a wall and flew back at her, making her duck just in time.

"It's a forcefield," she told him excitedly. "They make them in District 3 and supply them to the Capitol. They're very interesting and I read that once you know what you're doing, it's quite easy to get to the level of mastery that you need to create one. I wish I could get my hands on some of the instructional material from Three. I could learn how to make one!"

Rye grinned at her, happy as ever to see his sister so excited about something that it made her ramble. It didn't happen in the presence of others, but he and Peeta and even Kline were often blessed with them.

Rosemary's smile dropped and so did Rye's.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his stomach churning with anxiety. He didn't show her that he was nervous, though. He had to be strong for her.

"I won't get to learn how to make one," she said, so quietly that he could hardly hear her over the wind. "I won't get to do a lot of things."

Rye sighed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, guiding her over to the part of the roof that housed a blooming garden, full of beautiful flowers and herbs. He sat her down in a chair next to the multicolored tulips, her favorite flower.

"Look at me," he told her. Rose pursed her lips and looked at him, eyes wet with tears. "I will get you out of that arena, Rosemary. I promise."

"I don't want you to promise that, Rye," Rose whispered thickly. "Because I need you to win, okay? I can't live in a world without you, and neither can Peeta or our parents or Kline!"

His heart ached at the mention of Kline and he couldn't help but think back to the tearful goodbye kiss that they shared in that room at the Justice Building back in District 12.

"You're stronger and you're a fighter," she continued. "You can protect Peeta from Mother better than I ever could."

Guilt pierced his brain. "I should have done something bef–"

"You can't worry about that now," Rosemary cut him off with a shake of her head. "I just need you to think about surviving the Games. You'll have to protect him, Rye, and help him grieve."

There was a lump in Rye's throat. "You're not going to die."

Rose furrowed her brows, letting him know that she was growing irritated with his lack of cooperation. "You and I both know that there is only one Victor. One of us is going to die and I want it to be me, Rye. I can't let it be you, okay?" her voice warbled and tears spilled out of her cheeks. Rye quickly pulled her into a hug and she buried her head into his shoulder. "I can't live in a world where you aren't. You're stronger than me and I know you can survive."

"Peeta needs you." he whispered, on the verge of crying himself.

"You have a better chance than me, okay?" Rose pulled away from their hug, eyes puffy and red and wet. "We all know it, Haymitch knows it, and so does everyone watching us. No one expects me to be the one returning to District 12."

"I expect you to," Rye cut in sharply. "I will do everything in my power to protect you. You're my little sister, Rosie. I can't let you die."

Rosemary shook her head, irritated again. "This conversation is going nowhere, Rye. I'm going to bed."

"Oh, come on, Rose!" he sighed, becoming aggravated now, too. "We need to talk about this."

Rosemary didn't reply and stood up from the chair. She plucked a tulip from the flower bed and walked away, leaving Rye alone in the cold.

-

Rosemary

She slept horribly that night, just like she predicted. When she wasn't thinking about her conversation with Rye on the roof, she thought of Peeta and Sage and of Kline and Delly. She thought of her mother and her last request of her, to have Rye come home. She was determined to make it happen, no matter what Rye said.

She rolled out of bed before Effie could come knock on her door to wake her up. She showered and got dressed in the training outfit that was sat out in the closet for her when she woke; leggings made of form-hugging but stretchy fabric, a gray sports bra, and a black tank top. She slipped on some sneakers and pulled her hair into a bun at the back of her head before leaving her room to eat breakfast.

She hoped that Haymitch was up already. They needed to talk.

Unfortunately, Haymitch was not up when she arrived for breakfast, so she loaded up her plate from the buffet the avoxes set out for breakfast and lunch. With an iced cinnamon bun, cheesy eggs, sausage and bacon, and buttered toast, Rosemary sat at the table and started eating. She ordered an apple juice from the avox on duty that morning. Just as she received the juice and started sipping at it, both Rye and Haymitch arrived.

Rosemary narrowed her eyes at how buddy-buddy they were being. She really hoped that Rye hadn't had the same idea as her to go to Haymitch to plead for their siblings' life. No matter if he did, she would talk to Haymitch later and convince him that Rye was the better and easier choice to keep alive throughout the Games.

"Good morning," she greeted them quietly before drinking more of her juice.

"Morning, Rosie!" Rye acted like they hadn't argued the night before as he shoveled porridge covered in brown sugar and blueberries into his mouth.

He had the right idea, not dwelling on their argument like she had been. They only had a couple of days left together before the arena and neither of them knew how long she would survive there. She couldn't be angry at him.

"You want something else to eat?" she offered, standing up to head back to the buffet where Haymitch was still piling up his plate. She didn't wait for Rye's answer and picked out an omelet smothered in cheese, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, ham, and spinach. She added toast and some melon before heading back to the table and setting the plate down in front of him.

"Thanks," he swallowed the rest of his porridge.

As she sat back down, the avox swept by and filled up her empty glass with more juice. She thanked him quietly. She felt bad for him and couldn't help but wonder what he had done to become a traitor to the Capitol. It probably wasn't even anything serious, as the Capitol went overboard with their punishments more often than not. Anything could be seen as an act of rebellion in the eyes of the Capitol.

Eventually, Rye and Haymitch finished eating and they started on the topic of training.

The thought of training made Rosemary so nervous she was starting to regret eating breakfast. While she was glad that they had the opportunity to train, it was terrifying. And as much as she trusted Haymitch, she was starting to feel skeptical about his plan of keeping her on the survival skills stations. Of course that information was very important and she had Rye to teach her after hours, but what if she just didn't get it? What if she and Rye were separated in the arena?

She supposed it didn't matter if they did. As long as he survived. But she would be so pissed off if she were in whatever afterlife that existed and found out that Rye died too. She'd beat him up when he arrived, that was for sure. Staying together in the arena ensured that she could protect his blind spots and if someone got through both of them, she was prepared to sacrifice her life for his.

"Okay, I thought over the plan I laid out for you guys last night, and I still think that it's genius," Haymitch grinned to himself. He took a flask out of his pocket and poured some spirits into his juice, sighing in relief when he took a sip. "Pipsqueak, I want you to learn everything you can with that big brain of yours. Rye, you're on the bystaff. If you have time, maybe test out spears."

"Are you sure that I shouldn't try any weapons?" Rosemary asked. "I need to be able to protect Rye."

"You'll have Rye to help you out with the bystaff," Haymitch waved off her concern. "If you're really worried about it, I'll teach you how to throw knives. I don't want you to give anything away to the other Tributes, especially the Careers."

Rosemary nodded. She just needed to trust him.

-

Training for Tributes lasted three whole days. On the fourth day, they would have an audience with the Gamemakers, where they would show off what they learned in order to receive a score that could attract sponsors, depending on the number. For three days, Rosemary would be able to watch the other Tributes, to observe their personalities, their strengths and weaknesses, to see if they were a threat to her and Rye.

The training room was three floors underground. The elevator that was supposed to take them down was not like the ones that went to the Tributes' floors. The walls were not glass, but a steel metal that made her stop in her tracks just at the sight.

She tried, she really did, to get into the elevator. Rye even tried to help her, but she just couldn't. Not when it was taking all of her energy to not freak out about training. The siblings ended up taking the stairs down which, in the end, was quicker than the elevator anyway. All of the other Tributes were already there when they arrived in the large gym, even though they, themselves, were twenty minutes early.

The gym was huge. There were various stations scattered all over the place, but generally, the weapon stations were situated with the others. There was a pool in one of the corners, a couple of obstacle courses, and a track that surrounded the whole room.

The rest of the Tributes were surrounding a woman in a half-circle, obviously waiting for them. Everyone wore the same clothes, but not one person looked alike. They were all different ages, different sizes, and differently fed. The outlier districts like Eleven and Eight, were practically emaciated while the Careers looked like they hadn't missed a meal in their lives.

Rosemary and Rye joined the semi-circle, slipping in between Three and Five. The head trainer, a tall and athletic woman named Atala, started to explain what their training schedule would be like. There would be three compulsory activities where they'd all participate together, and then the rest of the time they could go to whichever stations they wanted, where an expert would be willing to teach them the ropes.

Atala read through a list of the skill stations but Rosemary focused on the survival skills like Haymitch had told her. There were stations where you learned how to disguise yourself, one to make traps, another one for knots, tree climbing, fire starting, edible plants, and many others.

Rosemary half listened to Atala's instructions while studying the other Tributes. Many of them were taller than her, except for the younger teenagers, but if you took away height, she was still around the same size as many of the girls her age. The Careers looked absolutely vicious, their faces looking hungry as they listened to Atala and waited to be released to train.

They could squash her like a bug if she wasn't careful.

Finally, they were released to train. Rye gave her a quiet 'good luck' before he sauntered over to the weapon stands with most of the Careers, who were giving him strange looks. Rosemary watched for a second as her brother picked up what she assumed was the bystaff. Kyler, the District 2 male, said something to him but she didn't know what. She had an inkling when he picked up a large sword like it was nothing and passed it over to Rye to test its weight.

Rosemary turned away headed to the closest station, which happened to be knot-tying. There was no instructor at the station, but a large hologram that gave her step-by-step instructions. She was able to get through them with ease and without looking, she tried again, matching her previous one perfectly. Now that she knew how to tie some knots, she went to the snare and trap station. No one else was there, so the instructor was very excited to see her.

The instructor started her off by testing her slipknot and a couple of the other knots she had just learned at her previous station. Once she was satisfied, she taught Rosemary how to make snares to catch animals for food. Rosemary tried her best and she wasn't half bad at it, so when she was deemed acceptable, they moved on to making traps that could ensnare other Tributes. She spent an hour or so at the station before she felt satisfied with her knowledge and moved on to the next one.

The next station was camouflage. The instructor in charge was a thin man with long blonde hair tied up into a topknot. He enthusiastically introduced himself to Rosemary as Evert. Before Evert could see where she was in terms of being able to camouflage herself, Kyler from Two strutted up to the station.

He didn't say anything at first, listening intently to Evert as he taught them, but he still made her nervous.

Kyler was huge, even if he was shorter than Rye by an inch or so. He was still over half a foot taller than her. He didn't have huge muscles, sure, but she knew that he was strong by the way his forearms flexed. He also seemed to be a runner, his thighs the size of her head, surely.

Infuriatingly, Kyler was very, very attractive. Rosemary never really noticed boys or girls like that before. Sure, she knew when someone was beautiful, but she was never attracted to them. Of course it would be her luck to start experiencing attraction while she was training for the Hunger Games. Whoever was in charge of her life had a sick sense of humor.

When Evert was finished explaining, he moved on to give Kyler some one-on-one work. Rosemary stopped staring at Kyler and focused on camouflaging. She painted her arm with a combination of mud, clay, water, and berry juices on her skin, transforming her arm into what looked like leaves and vines.

"Oh, Rosemary, how delightful!" Evert gasped when he got a good look at her. "Try it on the tree, go on!"

Rosemary pressed her hand against one of the fake trees set up for reference and was satisfied when her arm blended in beautifully.

"How'd you know how to do that?" Kyler finally spoke up, his own camouflage forgotten as he gaped at her arm.

Rosemary hesitated for a second but the look in his warm brown eyes made her answer. "My family owns a bakery back home. I decorate the cakes with my little brother."

He hummed thoughtfully and stared at her arm again for a few seconds before picking up the materials she had played with and tried to copy her actions. "I'm Kyler by the way."

"I know, I mean I watched your Reaping," Rosemary said quickly. "I saw you with a sword earlier which is kind of ironic because your name means 'archer'."

Kyler raised an eyebrow at her and she blushed, hot blood rushing through her cheeks and around the back of her neck. "Yeah?"

"Sorry, I'm really into onomatology," she explained, now feeling awkward. "It's the study of names."

"Like their meaning and origins and stuff?"

"Yes."

"What's your name's meaning then, Rosemary Mellark?"

Rosemary gasped softly, shocked that he knew her first and last name. "Dew of the sea."

"What about your brother?"

"Rye means king. Peeta is for rock."

Her mind was screaming at her, warning her to stop talking to him. He was a Tribute and chances were, he'd try to kill her and Rye as soon as they stepped off their platforms.

But he seemed genuinely nice.

"Peeta is your little brother?"

"Yeah," Rosemary confirmed. "He's twelve."

"I have a brother that age," Kyler smiled fondly, but it faded as he added, "I also had a little sister, but she died."

Rosemary frowned in sympathy. "I'm so sorry."

"I appreciate that," he nodded solemnly. "She was at the wrong place at the wrong time, you know? We were at the market and accidentally walked into a fight between some Peacekeepers and a couple thiefs. She got caught in the crossfire and by the time I got to her, she was already gone."

Rosemary's stomach dropped, her eyes stung, and she felt physically sick. She couldn't imagine anything like that happening to Peeta. And if she couldn't protect him? The guilt, which she was sure Kyler felt, would probably kill her.

Kyler cleared his throat, trying to hide the emotions on his face, in his voice. "Anyway, I feel for you and Rye. It's gotta be hard coming here with him knowing that one or both of you won't come back alive."

"It's very hard," Rosemary turned back to the camouflaging materials. "I'm trying not to think about it. Here," she passed him the berry juice. "Use that to redden up your branch."

"Thank you," Kyler smiled brilliantly at her and Rosemary was confused to feel her heart starting to race like it would before a panic attack. "And you know what? Contrary to popular belief, sometimes denial can be good for you."

"Ignorance is bliss," Rosemary whispered. She glanced at the large clock on the side of the gym and saw that it was almost time to break for lunch. "Lunch is soon, we should probably wash off."

"Right," Kyler put down his brush and held his arm away from his body so the camouflage wouldn't smear on his clothes. "I'll see you later, Rosemary."

"See ya," she watched as he turned and walked toward the mens' room to wash up.

Rosemary went to the womens' bathroom to do the same and by the time she was drying off, Atala's voice came over the intercom to let the Tributes know that it was time for lunch.

She found Rye by the weapons cart, putting the bystaff back in its rightful place. "How's it going?"

His face was red and sweaty and he looked tired. "Good, I think. Once you get used to the fact that you're not using a cardboard tube, it's just like Pike."

"Have you tried splitting it into batons yet?"

"Not yet," Rye shook his head as they both started across the gym to the lunch room. "What'd you do?"

"I learned some knots and then moved onto snares and traps. It turns out that I'm really good at camouflaging myself, though. I think it's from decorating the cakes at home."

Rye laughed. "Well, let's hope you can disguise yourself as a cake in the arena."

Rosemary chuckled at his joke and joined him in the lunch line.

They ate relatively quickly, striking up a conversation here and there. Around the room, the rest of the Tributes spread out except for the Careers. They sat together at the table in the middle of the room, talking loudly. Just from the small blips of conversations she heard from them, Rosemary found that she didn't like them very much. Kyler was nice, but he also wasn't talking and laughing with the others. When his fellow Careers were busy listening to the male from District 1 tell them a tale about his home, he sent her a small but charming smile that she reciprocated.

Rye caught the exchange. "Okay, what was that?"

Rosemary blinked and turned to him. "What was what?"

"You and Two smiled at each other. Did you talk to him?" Rye's eyes sparkled mischievously. "He's pretty attractive, right? Do you want to be allies with him? I wouldn't mind, he's actually pretty nice. He showed me how to correctly hold a sword."

Rosemary gave him a deadpan look. "Are looks all that you notice about people?"

"The fact that you focused on that small part of what I said tells me that you do find him attractive." Rye smirked and Rosemary found that she wanted to punch him in the face. "Aw, Rosie Posie's growing up. Is this your first crush?"

She glared at him. "I'm going to haunt you for the rest of your life."

"That's if I don't die first," with that, he winked at her. "Hey, did you see the Gamemakers?"

Rosemary loathed when he changed the subject right after saying something out of pocket. Because it was Rye, though, she went along with it and confirmed her own observation of the Gamemakers with a nod.

The Gamemakers appeared a half-hour after they started training, taking their seats in the balcony situated over the gym. There were around twenty-five men and women dressed in deep purple robes who would observe them throughout the three days of training. During those three days, they would watch the Tributes, make notes, and eat endless amounts of food while trying to decide which Tributes had more promise than others. On the fourth day, they were the ones who the Tributes spent fifteen minutes trying to impress, and afterward they would score them depending on the time limit and how they trained throughout the week.

The Head Gamemaker, Misha Triplett, paid the most attention to the Tributes. Rosemary had noticed him looking her once or twice throughout the morning before moving onto another Tribute. All of the Gamemakers were supposed to pay attention to them, but they did not, instead opting to eat themselves silly, drink themselves dead, and entertain themselves until content. She hated them and truly thought that they were disgusting, which is why she kept her mouth shut.