"Everybody out!" Juniper heard someone yell as the door to the train car opened. The group let out a loud groan as heavy tension filled the air. They were here.

Slowly, much to the Peacekeeper's dismay, Juniper stood up, giving herself time to wipe off her clothes before finally making it to the exit. Treech, who had moved much quicker than Juniper already seemed to be waiting, hand extended as he helped her climb out.

"Come on, Keep it moving," the Peacekeeper urged, giving Juniper a little shove. Juniper rolled her eyes, glaring at the man as she felt Treech wrap an arm around her waist in protection. 

"Hands to yourself, Capitol boy," Treech spat back, glaring as he ushered Juniper away. Juniper let out a little laugh at his frustration, placing a hand on his arm as she pulled him off of her waist to reassure him.

Once the two had reached the designated waiting point, Juniper turned her attention toward the crowd around her. Coral and Mizzen seemed to be standing off to the side, whispering quietly to one another as another duo dressed in what seemed to be patchwork stood by them.

From behind her, Juniper could hear giggling, drawing her attention to a girl in a rainbow dress and a posh-looking blonde boy. Who was he? Juniper thought. Did he come for an exclusive look at the tributes?

Nonetheless, the girl in the rainbow dress didn't seem to be too fond of the man either, taking the rose out of his hand before making her way toward the crowd.

"Alright, everyone in the truck," a man insisted, opening up another door. Great, more traveling, Juniper thought.

Again, Juniper moved slowly as she followed the orders, reluctant to even move. But Treech was rather insistent she followed, watching her carefully as she climbed into the truck.

"Sit here," Treech insisted, moving from where he was standing to reveal an empty spot. Juniper shook her head at the boy before taking a seat. 

Why was he being so protective of her? It's not like the tributes were going to start a fight before the arena. None of them even wanted to be here in the first place.

Just then, Juniper heard a commotion outside the truck before the blonde boy scurried in, rushing toward the other side of the truck and getting locked in with the tributes.

"What's the matter, Pretty Boy? You in the wrong cage?" asked another boy who looked to be her age. Juniper took note of the boy as she wrote him off as a good ally, Tall, burly, older, and with a seeping hate for the Capitol. A perfect combination. 

But the blonde boy didn't seem to agree, twitching before he replied.

"No. This cage is delightful," said the blonde boy with an arrogant smirk. but Juniper could tell there was fear hiding behind his eyes. Good. Fear them. Even if it wasn't warranted.

Just then, the boy from before surged forward, slamming the posh boy against the back of the truck in anger.

"I will kill you right now," the boy threatened, causing the blonde boy to clench his jaw.

"He'll do it too," a sickly little girl spoke out," Reaper killed a Peacekeeper back in Eleven. They never found out who did it." 

"Quiet Dill," the older boy, Reaper as she called him, muttered before slamming the blonde boy again.

"I saw we all kill him," the boy with the patchwork spoke up from next to her, standing up.

"I'm in," said a girl in rags as she stood up.

The boy with the patchwork laughed as he stepped forward closing in on the boy.

"Nothing left to lose now," he said, causing Juniper to roll her eyes. Killing this boy, no matter how satisfying, would give them nothing but trouble.

"Yeah right," Juniper shot back, earning the attention of the others, "They'll go after your families right after they kill you. And I'm not trynna get my ma killed because of your stupid revenge."

"You don't want to get revenge then?" asked another boy with a funky hat and only one eye, letting out a scoff as he glared at her.

"Thinking you'll be able to get revenge on the Capitol is your first mistake. Killing the posh boy over there won't do anything but give them more reason to kill us," Juniper spat back with a chuckle. Wasn't it obvious?

"She's right You kill him, they'll kill them. Then you," Rainbow girl added, sending Juniper a nod before continuing, "Besides, he's my mentor. I might need him."

"How come you get a mendor?" asked the sickly girl, Dill.

"Mentor," the posh boy corrected, "You all get one."

"Oh, and we're all just supposed to trust you on that, huh?" said Coral, approaching the boy. 

"I'm just here to help you," the boy added, holding up his hands as a sign of surrender. Yeah right. There must be something else to it.

"Why aren't our mentors here then?" Juniper added, looking around for any more signs of that hideous, red uniform. Of course, there were none.

"Just not inspired, I guess," the rainbow girl replied, causing Juniper to chuckle. Poor girl unaware of his manipulation. Or was she playing him too? 

"That or he's somewhere where he's not supposed to be," Juniper added, smirking as she noticed the boy squirm at her comment. 

But her satisfying victory didn't last long. Soon, the truck came to a halting stop before tilting forward. Instantly, Juniper looked for something to hold her up but found nothing.

"Juni!" Treech called out, stumbling onto the bench before wrapping an arm around her waist, keeping her close to him. Juniper squeezed her eyes shut as she felt the others fall into her, letting out a yelp of pain as she pressed into Treech's side.

"Get off of us!" Treech yelled out, pushing off the wall with one hand as he tried to stop them from getting crushed. But it was no use, with nowhere to hang on, the tributes were all forced to the end of the truck.

And then, the doors opened.

Instantly, Juniper tumbled onto the ground, rolling off of a rock before hitting the dirt. 

"Ow," Juniper cried out, holding her bleeding elbow as she sat up. Was all that really necessary? They were already planning to kill them in the arena, why did they need to injure them before the games?

"Juni," Treech called out from next to her, scurrying over to her side, "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," said Juniper, running a hand through her hair as she sighed, "Just a scratch."

Still, Treech seemed unconvinced, frowning as he looked at the cut on her elbow. Juniper rolled her eyes, playfully kicking the boy's foot to draw his attention away from her wound.

"Lost your hat, Kobayashi," Juniper teased, hoping her smile would distract from his worrying. And like usual it did.

The boy playfully rolled his eyes before scanning the grass, winking as he placed the hat back on his head. Juniper let out a laugh as she clapped for him.

"Better?" asked Treech, smiling brightly as he looked at his friend. Juniper matched his expression, tilting her head down a bit before nodding.

"Much. My handsome Treech," Juniper teased, causing the boy to laugh as he looked at the ground. But then, an annoying voice cut in, ruining their fun.

"Well. I'm jealous of that entrance. Why don't we give them a minute to stand up and catch their breaths," a young reporter spoke, drawing Juniper's attention to her surroundings. Trrech, too, seemed to become aware of their circumstances, extending a hand out to Juniper as he looked bitterly onto the crowd.

"Where did these assholes take us?" Treech grumbled, leaning down to whisper in her ear so only she could hear him. Juniper gritted her teeth as she looked around, noticing the rusted sign by the side of the cage. 'The Monkey House'

"The zoo," Juniper replied, eyes turning back to Treech, "How fitting."

-

a/n:

and I'm posting... lol i can't tell if I like this chapter but I wrote half of it with a cat clinging in my arms so it was a bit hard to type *insert sad emoji here bc there are none on my laptop*

anyways, thank you guys for reading and being patient with me,,, it's been a very uninspiring day and a very busy week,,, ill try to post at at better time next week <33

love you guys,

hannah <333