R-i-i-i-p! Mikoto gritted his teeth as Venia  ,a girl with aqua  hair and golden tattoos above her brow yanked a piece of fabric from his legs,pulling his hair out from beneath.

Venia:- Sorry, darling ,your just to hairy

Why do these people talk in such a high pitched accent? Why do there jaws barley when they talk? Why do there sentences seem to go up like a question? Odd vowels,clipped letters and always a hiss on the letter 's' . No wonder it was impossible not to mimic them.

Venia made ,what was supposed to be a sympathetic face.

Venia :- Good news, darling, just one left,ready.

Mikoto gripped the edge of the table ,he was seated on and nodded.The final swathe of hair was yanked off with a painful jerk.

Mikoto had been in the Remake center for three hours,and he hadn't meet his stylist. Apparently ,his stylist  was not going to meet him until some major problems with him,were solved.
They had scrubbed his body clean with a gritty foam removing dirt and three layers of skin, turning his nails into uniform shapes and getting tid of his body hair .His legs,arms,chest, underarms and parts of his eyebrows were plucked out making him feel like a turkey plucked for Thanksgiving.
Mikoto didn't like this but he kept his mouth shut, like he promised Geysis.

Francis:- Your doing well. The one thing I can't stand is whiners

Francis shook his orange locks and applied a shocking purple lipstick on his lips.

Francis:-Come on,grease him down.

Veronica and Octavia, a girl with green skin ,rubbed a loion on his skin,which was burned then soothed his skin. Then they pulled him up from the table and took off his white robes ,he was aloud to wear and began to look for any stray hair left. Mikoto felt very embarrassed ,to be infront of these people as naked as the day he was born but he didn't say anything.
The three got away looked at him and smilled.
Veronica/Flavis/Octavia:-Good you look like a human now.

Mikoto forced a smile on his face.

Mikoto:- Thank you ,we don't have much cause to look nice in district 12.

Octavia:-Of course, you  don't poor dear, especially for such a handsome boy,it's a shock you are not actually from the capital.

Venia:- And when Cinna is through with you, you will be absolutely gorgeous, darling.

Francis :- Don't worry ,Snow flake, after allthe cleaning you look like a absolute snow angel. Lets get ,Cinna.

The three hurried away.  His prep team were nice. But also a group of idiots. He knew they were trying to help him, in there own odd ways.

Mikoto resisted the urge to wear his robes because he knew his stylist would want to see his body. He ran his fingers,  silver white hair and sighed.  He had his clothes and shoes back at the train, he wished he hadn't.

The door opened amd a man of about 24 walked in. He had a handsome face, brown tan skin and dark brown hair. He wore very light makeup ,just a golden eye shadow on his eyes and a natural tint to his lips. His clothes as compared to the other people which, were extra extravagant and colourful ,were simple and elegant.

Cinna:- Hello Mikoto,Iam Cinna your stylist.

His voice was calm and warm unlike the usual Capitol accent.

Cinna:- Just a moment, Okay.

Mikoto nodded. He walked around him , not touching but taking every inch of his body with his eyes. Mikoto had to resist the urge to try to hide his "private parts".

Cinna:- Which parents hair colour does your hair resemble?

Mikoto:- My mother's.

Cinna:- There truly beautiful. And are in perfect balance with your body. She must be very beautiful.

Mikoto:- Yes,She was.....

Silence.....

Mikoto then tried to change the subject.

Mikoto:- Your new aren't you?I haven't seen you before.

Cinna:- Yes,Iam new,this is my first year in the games.

Mikoto:- So they gave you District 12 .

Cinna:- I asked for it.

Mikoto:-................

Cinna:- Put on you robes and lets have a chat.

Mikoto putted his robes back on and followed Cinna in to a room with a beautiful painted walls, three blank and  one glass giving the view of the city. There were three velvet couches and a low table. Cinna pressed a button and fried chicken ,pearly white rice,green peas and onion slices and  a thick syrupy juice.

What must it be like, Mikoto wondered, to live in a world where food appears at the press of a button? How would he spend the hours he now committed to combing the woods for sustenance if it were so easy to come by? What do they do all day, these people in the Capitol, besides decorating their bodies and waiting around for a new shipment of tributes to roll in and die for their entertainment?

Mikoto looked up to find Cinna's eyes trained on him. "How despicable we must seem to you," he said.
Mikoto remained silent.

"No matter," said Cinna. "So, Mikoto, about your costume for the opening ceremonies. My partner, Portia, is the stylist for your fellow tribute, Hein . And our current thought is to dress you in complementary costumes," said Cinna. "As you know, it's customary to reflect the flavor of the district."

Mikoto:- (the opening ceremonies, you're supposed to wear something that suggests your district's principal industry. District 11, agriculture. District 4, fishing. District 3, factories. This means that coming from District 12, Hein and I will be in some kind of coal miner's getup. Since the baggy miner's jumpsuits are not particularly becoming, our tributes usually end up in skimpy outfits and hats with headlamps. One year, our tributes were stark naked and covered in black powder to represent coal dust. It's always dreadful and does nothing to win favor with the crowd. I need to prepare myself for the worst)

So, I'll be in a coal miner outfit?" He asked , hoping it won't be indecent.

"Not exactly. You see, Portia and I think that coal miner thing's very overdone. No one will remember you in that. And we both see it as our job to make the District Twelve tributes unforgettable," said Cinna.

Mikoto:- I'll be naked for sure, I think.

"So rather than focus on the coal mining itself, we're going to focus on the coal," says Cinna.
Mikoto:-  Naked and covered in black dust
"And what do we do with coal? We burn it," says Cinna.

"You're not afraid of fire, are you, Mikoto?" He saw my expression and grined.

A few hours later, Mikoto is dressed in what will either be the most sensational or the deadliest costume in the opening ceremonies. He is in a simple black suit  that covered him completely. Shiny leather boots lace up to hisknees. But it's the fluttering cape made of streams of orange, yellow, and red and the matching headpiece that define this costume. Cinna planned  to light them on fire just before their  chariot rolls into the streets.

Cinna:- There not real flames of course, synthetic fire ,Portia and I came with me .

Mikoto:- Well I just hope ,i don't get barbecued.

Cinna:- I want people to recognize you when you show up in the arena,Mikoto the boy on fire, the snowflake on fire.

Mikoto:- Well I hope i don't melt.

Cinna chuckled slightly.

Hein had a similar costume ,her dress was a black unitard ,with golden designes ,she wore black high heels, a long cape and a more extravagant head dress then Mikoto's.

They were  whisked down to the bottom level of the Remake Center, which was essentially a gigantic stable. The opening ceremonies were about to start. Pairs of tributes were being loaded into chariots pulled by teams of four horses. There are coal black. The animals were so well trained, no one even needed to guide their reins. Cinna and Portia directed them  into the chariot and carefully arrange their body positions, the drape of their capes, before moving off to consult with each other.

"What do you think?" I whisper to Hein. "About the fire?"

"I'll rip off your cape if you'll rip off mine," she says through gritted teeth.

"Deal," I say.Mikoto thought : Maybe, if we can get them off soon enough, we'll avoid the worst burns. It's bad though. They'll throw us into the arena no matter what condition we're in.

Mikoto:-"I know we promised Haymitch we'd do exactly what they said, but I don't think he considered this angle."

With all that alcohol in him, it's probably not advisable to have him around an open flame," said Hein.

And suddenly they were both laughing. Mikoto guessed  they were both so nervous about the Games and more pressingly, petrified of being turned into human torches, they were not acting sensibly.

The opening music began. It was easy to hear, blasted around the Capitol. Massive doors slide open revealing the crowd-lined streets. The ride lasts about twenty minutes and ends up at the City Circle, where they will welcome the tributes, play the anthem, and escort them into the Training Center, which will be their home/prison until the Games begin.

The tributes from District 1 ride out in a chariot pulled by snow-white horses. They looked so beautiful, spray-painted silver, in tasteful tunics glittering with jewels. District 1 makes luxury items for the Capitol. You can hear the roar of the crowd. They are always favorites.
Samuel and Luna looked dazling. So beautiful and perfectly elegant.

District 2 gets into position to follow them. In no time at all, they were  approaching the door and could see that between the overcast sky and evening hour the light is turning gray. The tributes from District 11 were just rolling out when Cinna appeaeds with a lighted torch. "Here we go then," he says, and before they can react he sets their capes on fire. Mikoto gasped, waiting for the heat, but there is only a faint tickling sensation. Cinna climbed up before them and ignites their headdresses. He letted out a sign of relief. "It works." Then he gently tucks a hand under Hein's chin. "Remember, heads high. Smiles. They're going to love you!"

Cinna jumps off the chariot and had one last idea. He shouted something up at us, but the music drowned him out. He shouted again and gestured.

"What's he saying?" Mikoto asked Hei . For the first time, Mikoto looked at her  and realized that ablaze with the fake flames, she looked dazzling. And he must be, too.

"I think he said for us to hold hands," said Hein. She grabbed his right hand in her left, and they looked at Cinna for confirmation. He nodded and gave a thumbs-up, and that's the last thing Mikoto saw before they enter the city.

The crowd's initial alarm at their appearance quickly changed to cheers and shouts of "District Twelve!" Every head was turned their  way, pulling the focus from the three chariots ahead of them . At first, Mikoto is frozen, but then  he catched sight of them on a large television screen and is floored by how breathtaking they look. In the deepening twilight, the firelight illuminates their faces. They seem to be leaving a trail of fire off the flowing capes. Cinna was right about the minimal makeup, they both looked more attractive but utterly recognizable.

Remember, heads high. Smiles. They're going to love you! Mikoto heared Cinna's voice in his head. He lifted his chin a bit higher, put on his most winning smile, and waved with his free hand. He was glad now that he had Hein to clutch for balance, she is so steady, solid as a rock. As he gained confidence, he actually blew  a few kisses to the crowd. The people of the Capitol  were going nuts, showering them with flowers, shouting their names, their first names, which they have bothered to find on the program.

The pounding music, the cheers, the admiration worked their way into his blood, and he  can't suppress his excitement. Cinna had given him a great advantage. No one will forget him. Not his look, not his name. Mikoto. The boy who was on fire.The snowflake on fire.

For the first time, he felt a flicker of hope rising up in him. Surely, there must be one sponsor willing to take him on! And with a little extra help, some food, the right weapon, why should he count himself out of the Games?

Someone throws him a red rose. He caught it, gave  it a delicate sniff, and blew a kiss back in the general direction of the giver. A hundred hands reach up to catch my kiss (mostly female and a few male ), as if it were a real and tangible thing.

"Mikoto !Mikoto!" He can hear his  name being called from all sides. Everyone wanted him.

It's not until they entered  the City Circle that he realized he must have completely stopped the circulation in Hein's hand. That's how tightly he had been holding it. Mikoto looked down at their linked fingers as he loosened his grasp, but she regained her grip on him. "No, don't let go of me," she said. The firelight flickers off her  eyes. "Please. I might fall out of this thing."

"Okay," he said. So he kept holding on, but he can't help feeling strange about the way Cinna had linked them together. It wasn't not really fair to present them as a team and then lock them into the arena to kill each other.

The twelve chariots filled the loop of the City Circle. On the buildings that surrounded the Circle, every window was packed with the most prestigious citizens of the Capitol. Theit horses pull our chariot right up to President Snow's mansion, and they came to a halt. The music ended with a flourish.

The president, a small, thin man with paper-white hair, gives the official welcome from a balcony above them. It was traditional to cut away to the faces of the tributes during the speech. But Mikoto can see on the screen that they were  getting way more than their share of airtime. The darker it becomes, the more difficult it is to take their eyes off their flickering. When the national anthem played, they do make an effort to do a quick cut around to each pair of tributes, but the camera held on the District 12 chariot as it paraded around the circle one final time and disappeared into the Training Center.

The doors shad only just shut behind them when they were're engulfed by the prep teams, who were nearly unintelligible as they babble out praise. As Mikoto glanced around, he  noticed a lot of the other tributes were shooting them dirty looks especiallythat pink haired guy from District4 ,Mikoto rememberedhis name as Eito , which confirms what he  suspected, they had literally outshone them all. Then Cinna and Portia are there, helping them down from the chariot, carefully removing their flaming capes and headdresses. Portia extinguished them with some kind of spray from a canister.

Mikoto realized he was still glued to Heim and forced  his stiff fingers to open.They  both massaged their hands.

"Thanks for keeping hold of me. I was getting a little shaky there," said Hein.

"It didn't show," he told her. "I'm sure no one noticed."

"I'm sure they didn't notice anything but you. You should wear flames more often," she said. "They suit you." And then she gave him a smile that seems so genuinely sweet with just the right touch of shyness that unexpected warmth rushes through Mikoto.

A warning bell goes off in his head.He thought; Don't be so stupid. Hein is planning how to kill you, . She is luring you in to make you easy prey. The more likable she is, the more deadly she is.

But because two can play at this game.

Mikoto:- I prefer the snow and cold but the flames did look prettty good.  You looked like a queen.

Hein blushed and looked down .

Mikoto knew she was acting but he also knew she was pretty good at it.