[M] The 48th Annual Hunger Games (Jannah & Zulera301)

[Zulera301]

Layla couldn't help but nod in agreement. "well that's exactly why one of us has to win then. The stakes are high, and so are the prizes. If we both die, it's gonna come back and slap District 2 in the face. With a chair. Coated in spikes." She knew that morale and determination could help a lot. Paige, Rye, Dezna, and Aurum had all coordinated with their partners to try and bring home a victor for their districts--for one reason or another (Alice had at least two reasons, one of which was even able to elude President Snow himself at the moment). Layla felt that her cause was certainly worthy, but that so was Ryker's, whicih was another reason she would be slightly more at peace if he won. Granted, the only way she'd know that he was going to win was if he killed her, and that was not something she wanted to think about too much--not this early in the games anyways.

Layla chuckled. "well if District 3 does turn out to be useless, let's off them in the opening seconds just to remind them that they're pathetic. If they're useful... well, then I figure we'll recruit them long before we're shot up the tubes into the arena." If anything, they and that District 12 girl would be the ones to watch out for in terms of intellect and cunning. Maybe (hopefully) she was just overestimating that District 12 pair, but they looked fairly cunning. Layla did not want to run into the wrong side of that it if really proved to be the case.

"well of course we do... except this time we *really* match. We even have the same numbers on our outfits." she chuckled, knowing that the numbers obviously represented what district they were from. Otherwise, the only real difference apart from sizes were the differences between male and female tributes, which were usually just minor size tweaks around the hips, shoulders, or bust anyways. It was simple, just like many of the arena uniforms were, but it was also stylish. Well, and Layla liked black. The thin blue and grey stripes (well, stripe; since there was only one of each, and they ran adjacent and parallel to each other down the sides of the shirtsleeves and pants) did not detract at all from it, and neither did the numbers.

"Snow always knows," Leto quipped, "who needs elections when you've got protection?" She was quoting a public service announcement that had surfaced in Districts 2 and 5 recently, but given the loyalty of District 2, this was mostly just playfully laughed off rather than feared the way it might be in some of the less loyal districts. But of course it made sense for the Capitol to know everything about the boys and girls that they were sending into the arena, and it wasn't like things such as height and weight were terribly personal or private issues anyways. Most tributes were either fit or slender, the former being from training or labor, and the latter being from scanter meals, such as in poor districts like 9, 10, 11, or 12.
"makes sense to me... no complaints though." Layla shrugged, inadvertently answering Ryker's unasked question. She was indeed loyal to the Capitol for the most part, and was thus not likely to be scrutinized as closely if she became a victor, as someone like Alice or Zerviah might be.

Layla raced after Ryker to make sure he didn't get to the training center before her, and so they arrived there within seconds of each other of course. District 7 was already there doing their thing they did with their axes, and the District 12 boy was over at the weapon station swinging swords surprisingly well. Perhaps he wouldn't be fodder the way a handful of District 12 boys had been lately. the girls had all actually been fairly prominent, with each one in the last 5 years at least making it into the final 8. The girl was over at the traps station, and seemed to be dealing with various spikes and poison. If she was a trapper, that would spell trouble.

"you wanna duke it out while we wait for District 3?" Layla suggested, turning back to Ryker, "just you and me, first one to get pinned loses?" She figured their strength was about the same since they both had small, slender frames, so it seemed like a fair fight to just use fists and feet in--especially while they waited for District 3 to show up so they could decide if they were worthy to be drafted into the career alliance or not.

[Nachthexe]

District 2 was all about honour and glory, stemming from its background in militarism. Not even their Hunger Games tributes could exempt themselves from such traits, having been raised so firmly in it. Ryker and Layla of course were no exception to that. "Exactly. This is both ourselves and our district at stake here. Our wins and losses do reflect on those back home." Ryker replied, nodding in agreement with Layla's words. It would potentially take a lot to produce a District 2 victor, but almost no victor ever had it easy in the games. Some had even won based on luck alone. Sagittaria? Nobody was quick to forget the coin toss which had saved her from being slain in the arena. Kiva? She had simply been fortunate that Valendria had lost her mind and went suicidal(at least that was the Capitol's official story). Alice? Cheap shots were something Keshet hadn't been anticipating.

Of course almost no victor managed victory all on their own and Ryker was further reminded of this upon Layla's mention of the District 3 pair. "It's easy. We observe them in training." He stated despite remembering the possibility of them holding back. District 3 was clever so were arguably more likely to use some sort of technique to throw their opposition off, but would they really know any real combat skills? District 3 rarely did and in years they were recruited into the career pack it was almost always based on their smarts and cunning alone. Those were often traits careers lacked and Ryker knew it. Certainly the pack in the 47th games had seemed fairly balanced in terms of brains and brawn, but Ryker wasn't so keen on the tributes who had been in the 46th games due to the fact they had been sabotaged and torn apart so easily. Layla's sister seemed like the one exception that year in that she had managed to outlive the rest of the pack, only finally falling due to the destructive fireballs that had rained down on the arena.

Like Ryker, Layla as well seemed anxious to get down to the training centre. This was further confirmed in the way she also went dashing towards the elevator. This did excite the mentors, even if just for the sole fact they liked to see tributes eager to support their district. At least that was the case in Districts 1 and 2 where victors were known to be absolutely loyal to the Capitol. The others of course were much more mixed in their opinions. "I guess you didn't want me to beat you, huh?" Ryker commented once he exited the elevator alongside Layla. "I suppose this is it though. Time to get started." He continued, stretching his arms before proceeding to look around the room.

Tributes were still very much arriving, but Ryker wasn't terribly surprised by District 7's effort with the axes. They lived around them and even worked in an industry that made pretty crucial use of them so quite often District 7 tributes carried quite a significant edge in the games as long as they knew how to wield an axe. The pair this year definitely seemed to be able to, the boy especially. This had Ryker concluding he was a possible threat, but potentially less so than the extremely beefy District 11 pair who would no doubt soon be smashing the various dummies to pieces. That was how Ryker imagined the boy of the pair at least.

Of course without District 3 present there wasn't much observation Ryker could do of them so instead of continuing to watch those who were already present he took up Layla's sparring challenge. It was something that was bound to attract the attention of the other tributes, but Ryker didn't mind. Careers had never been shy about showing off their skills, after all. "Sure, let's do this. First one pinned loses, and no fighting dirty. I expect this to be a fair fight since we're not in the arena." He replied, chuckling at the last bit. He had trust in Layla that she was honourable enough to give a clean fight, but he threw out the reminder anyway. Fortunately for the pair there was all sorts of padding available for tributes to spar and practice fighting, but the irony of it didn't go over Ryker's head; tributes were prized jewels to be protected until the moment the game's very first starting cannon went off. Despite this though the boy readied himself and retained a full fighting stance, awaiting the start of what was hopefully not to become any more than just a friendly challenge.

[Zulera301]

Layla nodded. "according to my calculations, given how many victors we currently have divided by how many years the games have been running, District 2 wins about once every 6 to 7 years, which is better than any other district, including '1. So... since Lincoln won the 42nd games... we pretty much have to win this one, since I don't think either of us want to wait for 49..." that was part of the joke, given that if Ryker and Layla didn't win (or rather, one of them), there would be no seeing the 49th Hunger Games for them. Layla would not be above resorting to cheap or dirty tactics at the end if it was what stood between her living or dying. There were no rules to the Hunger Games, and so even controversies like Alice's upset or Valendria's cop-out were totally legal.

"of course." Layla nodded, "I don't think they'd hold back... but if it's a charade or what have you... then I guess that's just a few more kids for us to paint targets on, y'know?" she chuckled. Maybe that's why they didn't focus much on names. It made the deaths feel less personal, and more like numbers, which made the killing seem not as bad. On the other hand, District 3 had usually proven that even if they lacked physical strength, that they were fairly ruthless in terms of intelligence. Clemont and Hikari had become something of legends in their own right, for their stunt during the 45th Hunger Games of building fully functional lightning machines and weapons, and even electric-proof shields. If Buzz and Dayta were anything like that, Layla and Ryker would have a hell of a time fighting them off, be it as enemies, or as friends-turned-enemies at the end of the games.

The Capitol had no reason to question the loyalty of victors from places like Districts 1 and 2, although that could also be a dangerous mindset. Luckily Leto was no rebel, but at the same time, while she never said anything of it, she didn't have any strong feelings of loyalty to the Capitol, having seen all brutal sides of it in the 35th Hunger Games. She was far from a rebel, but she was rather staunchly neutral about the Capitol. Most people simply assumed that it was just her stoic and expressionless demeanor, and so she was never questioned about it. Still... even she smirked at the young tributes' enthusiasm. If nothing else, she still did have pride for producing (or potentially producing) another victor.
"well of course," Layla chuckled, "I'm in it to win it, y'know?" she elbowed her partner playfully. Sure it might become more serious later on as they fought to the death, but for now they could be playful and have a bit of fun, she felt like.

A lot of the tributes went for things that kids from their district were famous for using. District 7 used axes; District 4 used spears. smaller girls from District 2 used knives. District 12 used bows. These were all fairly effective strategies (the only questionable one being District 12 thus far, given their single victor in 48 years). On the other hand, '12 was definitely shaping up in recent years to be a thorn in the sides of other tributes. Even if they didn't win, they were still leaving quite a mark that becoming a more popular talk of Panem.

Layla chuckled at Ryker's rules. "nah, I think I'm going to grab the axe behind me and just kill you now." she joked, not even pretending to turn around, however. "but of course... we ain't in the arena... we don't need to fight dirty in a friendly competition." she cracked her knuckles, since this was just going to be a friendly little spar to try and pin one another, rather than a fight to the death. That would be in a week.
Crossing her arms for a second, Layla shifted her feet apart and took a stance. "at your ready..." she nodded. Yup, she'd be playing fair this time, even to the point of making sure he was ready. If that happened in the arena though (to any tribute, mind you), she would not hesitate for a second, and would have struck at the earliest opportunity.

[Nachthexe]

A victor every 6 to 7 years. It wasn't a bad record and certainly one Ryker could commend. Of course that had him realizing that since Lincoln had won the 42nd it was high time for District 2 to bring home another victor if it was a record they intended to uphold. Fortunately both himself and Layla seemed pretty confident in that respect. "Don't you worry. One of us will be seeing the 49th Hunger Games. I promise you that." Ryker reminded Layla, attempting to remove any doubt she may have been experiencing. There was a week until each of the 24 tributes would be thrown into the arena so any time for doubt was long gone.

Was District 3 a charade? It was a recurring thought that ran through Ryker's mind, although he was yet to see any evidence to suggest it. That gave him some hope that they would be ally material and wouldn't just turn on the career pack the first chance they got. No, Ryker would ensure the pack remained intact for as long as possible and if it took District 3 to do that then he was willing to take them as allies.

Given that the training centre was not yet filled with 24 tributes Ryker thought it the prime time to have his friendly match with Layla. He trusted it would be a fair and friendly fight so simply readied himself as Layla did. "Yep, let's do this." He announced before beginning to deliver light blows in Layla's direction. He figured that due to them being relatively even in size and skill it would be a bit of a long match, but it was definitely quickly capturing the attention of the other tributes, even those just beginning to arrive. District 1 in particular seemed impressed as they walked in, simply nodding before proceeding to their own training.

It was when Ryker managed to land a few light blows on Layla that District 11 suddenly took notice of the friendly competition. Kamau in particular looked on in intrigue for several seconds before cracking his own knuckles and then flexing his arms. The boy happened to also wear a smirk on his face, which Ryker got a quick glance at. It was quite clear he was showing off that he was the one with superior strength, but Ryker just chuckled at the redundancy of the whole thing. However, he did quickly realize that he was not somebody to take on directly and that he would indeed need to be taken down in a more discreet way. How, he wasn't sure yet and just switched his focus back to his opponent, which he was attempting to wear down in order to pin.

"Well certainly not bad. You two may be young, but you're damn determined." Dayta, the District 3 girl commented as she walked into the training centre and approached the scene of the current action. "I can see why though. It must suck to lose two sisters. I have siblings of my own and fear the very same for them." she continued, shrugging as she eyed Layla with intrigue. She knew almost immediately who the girl was. In fact, nearly all of Panem did if they had been following the games closely. Dayta was certainly no exception and almost found herself pitying the girl, although she knew strong emotions in the Hunger Games were potentially dangerous.

[Zulera301]

Layla nodded at Ryker's reassurance, which was kind of a reassurance for both of them, since it meant that at least one of them would come home. It was often a shame that two victors couldn't be allowed if they were from the same district, but the Capitol did like the drama and suspense that came from two allies having to turn on each other. Sagittaria had been kind of a disappointment in that regard, but at the same time, despite coming from such a rebellious district, Rye Grove was still a hero and similar to Lynx Chantrea from the 47th games, many were relieved that he had died peacefully, and a lot of the District 11 locals were also glad that he had been able to die on his own terms, since he and Sagittaria had come to an agreement on the such.

There was strength in numbers as the career pack last year demonstrated, but as it also demonstrated, there was danger in numbers. It was a high-risk, high-return venture. There had been career packs historically that even recruited members from District 11 or District 12 a few times, even if they were the first ones to go when the pack disbanded at the end of the games. District 3 was another one that was much more often drafted in, and there had been a boy a couple decades ago who, when the careers were about to turn on him, he turned around and set off a bunchy of electrical traps and fried them all at once. District 3 was a dangerous game.

The way that Ryker and Layla fought was almost like a martial arts practice. They were only aiming for particular areas, striking mostly with their hands and feet. Obviously neither one would think that there'd be an actual incident in the games like this, but it was a nice little way to test their skills, defenses, and reflexes. Sure it might not be as impressive to show this off as it would be to show off skills with various weapons or tricks, but they had a week to show off. Nothing like a little warm-up act to get the blood and adrenaline flowing. Layla was already pumped as they struck each other. She did cast an acknowledging nod towards Sheen and Jewell when they appeared, but didn't distract herself from the ongoing spar.

Out of the corner of her eye as she landed another nice blow on Ryker, she did see that District 11 pair. Kana smacked her palm with her fist before elbowing her massive partner, almost as if suggesting they have a fistfight. While the boy was clearly the larger of the two, Kana was a rough-n-tumble kind of gal, and was faster than he was, so perhaps it would even out.
Layla in the meantime, didn't really see why Ryker wasn't trying to pin her down, but instead just seemed to be jabbing at her.
"You know we're supposed to be trying to pin each other, right?" she asked with a chuckle. It was not like and "secret strategy" would be blown here since it was unlikely they would ever fight like this, unless the Capitol expected tributes to kill each other with their bare hands. If that was the case, they should just declare Kamau the victor now and line the others up behind the building and shoot 'em quickly. thankfully she didn't think that would ever happen.

"Thanks," was the next word Layla said when someone spoke to her. As this girl went on to talk about her sisters, Layla was reminded about just how many people knew about their failures--everyone. They had all watched the 45th and 46th Hunger Games, and so it was no secret that Layla Aranai came from a family of failures. That was why she had to break that trend. That was why she had to become the next victor.
Hopefully she didn't get too sidetracked though. Many of the other tributes were watching her and Ryker's little spar, and she wanted to win that too, mostly out of personal pride.

[Nachthexe]

As the match continued Ryker found himself evenly matched with his opponent. It was becoming obvious that training had paid off for them both and certainly the other tributes who were gathering around saw it too. Two careers duking it out before they were even in the arena. Certainly that was an unusual sight in the training centre, even if Ryker or anybody else didn't realize it. Still, practice was practice and Ryker managed to land several more punches on Layla as the girl became distracted by others arriving.

"I have my methods." Ryker retorted to Layla as he managed to get in closer to her. Sure enough he delivered a few more blows and finally got a firm grip on her, pinning her down. "Always keep your eyes on your opponent. And most of all, don't allow them the advantage of wearing down your stamina." He advised as he continued to hold the slightly smaller girl down. After several seconds he finally unleashed her from his grip, taking notice of the larger paler girl who made an appearance. Almost immediately she was recognizable as Dayta Diamond of District 3 and she was very interested in the District 2 tributes.

"That was...rather impressive. I still owe my brother a victory; told him I would allow him to win the next one." Dayta remarked, chuckling as she glanced over at Ryker. However her mood was quickly killed by once again realizing where she was. The Hunger Games training centre. There was no leaving there or the arena unless she won. "Admittedly it's a bit of an unfair fight, granted he's smaller and younger." She continued, regardless of circumstance. A little friendliness never harmed anybody. At least not in the training centre previous to the games.

"Your brother?" Ryker quickly asked, intrigued. He knew the girl was going to be dead eventually anyway so he saw no harm in friendliness either.

"Yea. I have three of 'em. All younger. I would hate if they ever ended up here though." Dayta replied, shrugging.

"Well your district is full of intelligent people so they wouldn't have too much trouble in the arena if they were ever reaped." Ryker chuckled, although he quickly noticed Dayta's smile turn into a frown. He was treading into dangerous territory and didn't want to upset the girl further who was a potential ally, thus quickly dropped the subject.

"Yea... I suppose you're right..." Dayta responded with hesitation before walking off to presumingly begin her own training for the day. This left Ryker and Layla alone again as the crowds who had gathered during the sparring match began to dissipate. Ryker did feel that eventually his defeated opponent would want a rematch, but in the meantime he simply left her tips to think about. It was unlikely such an incident was bound to occur in the arena, but he knew that all precautions were crucial if one was to survive. That stood as especially important in the latter stages of the games once all the weak and vulnerable tributes were already eliminated.

"Well shit, I hope I didn't upset her. She sure bailed fast." Ryker confessed to Layla, shrugging. He was certainly unsure what to make of the girl at this point, but upon beginning to observe her from a distance he did find himself surprised. She was surprisingly skilled for somebody of her background. Rarely did District 3 produce warrior tributes, but Dayta so far seemed to be an exception with the way she relatively flawlessly managed to wield her knives. "Now I really hope we didn't upset her. Check that out..." Ryker continued, pointing towards the girl who continued lunging herself towards the various dummies. She certainly managed to leave her mark on each one with what was no doubt bound to be fatal blows had they been human targets.

After several more minutes of observing Dayta and the other tributes Ryker decided it was his own turn to get started. Much to his surprise the station containing spears and lances currently remained empty, which was bound to allow him plenty of wiggle room in his own training. Jewell seemed to be a long knife and sword girl while Sheen went for the heavy weaponry. Clearly there was going to be an excellent balance in the career pack this year, much to Ryker's delight. "We seem to have a good balance this year, but to ensure that I'm getting some of my own practice in." He remarked as he walked over to the spear and lance station. He had plenty of opportunity to show off, but didn't just yet. Instead he simply picked up the first of many spears and began practicing the various techniques he had learned back in District 2.

[Zulera301]

The beauty of training was that it was just that--practice. There would be no deaths in the next 6 days, and so even if a tribute got into a small scuffle, nothing would come of it. There were Capitol supervisors that would jump in if anything got too hostile, but two careers who had vocally expressed a nice clean fight (and then lived up to it) were not about to get any Peacekeepers on them or anything. Layla wanted to punch herself for getting so distracted. She really needed to focus if she hoped to make it past the bloodbath. One look at that silent District 12 girl and Layla knew that if any of the careers stalled for even a moment during the bloodbath... she'd probably have their throats.

"you have your methods...?" Layla narrowed her eyes, trying to catch her breath. She was slacking a bit in the stamina department at the moment, and it did end up costing her. She felt her feet leave the ground and her back slammed against the padded floor as she was pinned. She groaned, trying to squirm free, but to no avail. If she could have recovered from it, the fight would have continued.
"FUCK!" she swore as she was defeated. She wasn't mad at Ryker, but was once again mentally beating herself. Layla subjected herself to this kind of mental abuse a lot.
"good game..." she grunted, once Ryker had let her up. "I need to stop being so stupid... your tactics worked..." she was a bit miffed, but tried to stay friendly to show that her disappointment was not directed at him and that there were no hard feelings.

That albino District 3 girl caught their attention as she complimented their little spar. Layla wished that she could have won instead, but it was water under the bridge at this point, so there was no point crying over it. Layla listened to the conversation, surprised in learning that she had other siblings.
"well... the only reason I volunteered was because I was trained for this..." Layla admitted, and frankly, even with that mindset, the thought of getting your name unwillingly chosen didn't sit well with her, even if District 3 had that awesome electronic lottery.

The slightly awkward conversation also left on an awkward note, and Layla didn't know what to make of it.
"In her defense, '2..." a boy's voice spoke up. Layla turned and saw that it was Buzz, based on the number 3 on his uniform.
"there's not really a way to sugarcoat that 23 of us are gonna be dead. But... if it's any consolation, don't count us out just yet..." the way he said it made it sound more like he wanted an alliance rather than was trying to challenge them or anything. Either way, the boy swaggered towards the archery station, where he proved to be a rather skilled shot.

Ryker snapped Layla back to reality again. "Knives... I need to hold one," she nodded, "let's get training."
She did smirk after seeing the others. They would have Sheen as their heavy weapons expert, Buzz as a ranged archer, Dayta as a melee assassin, Ryker as a heavy-duty ranged fighter (given the heavier nature of spears compared to knives or arrows, anyhoo), and Jewell as a well-rounded fighter. Layla would top it off with her blinding speed and agile knife-throwing.
Oh yes.... she had missed this. She ran her fingers appreciatively over the fine, razor-sharp blades that were now in her hands. To hell with the generalization. She was a classic District 2 knife-girl and she was proud of it.
It wasn't really even a competition with Dayta or anything either, mostly because Layla liked throwing knives more than melee daggers (although she'd definitely try those later on too).

"Nice choice of weapon," she complimented the especially pale girl, with a smile before instantly grabbing a knife, spinning around on her toes and slinging it, where it hit the target with a loud "THUNK!" To top that off, she threw another one with such precision that it knocked the first one out of the target. She needed this... it was nice for her to remind herself in her sea of doubts that she was still very skilled and had plenty of a chance to win. Yes, today was going to be a good day.

[Nachthexe]

"Just be glad this isn't the arena. Such slip-ups could easily cost you your life." Ryker advised Layla further, remembering the previous games how both Aurum and Valour had ultimately taken advantage of their opponents' distraction in order to finish them off. Even a few seconds of demoralization was costly and in Layla's case it seemed to be especially prominent with all the doubt she seemed to carry. At least it was a simple guess based on Ryker's observations of his partner in the way she carried and expressed herself. He held no hard feelings towards her for it, however. The games were a pretty heavy undergoing, after all, and everybody knew that only a single tribute was ever coming out.

The career districts were unique in the fact that nearly every year they produced volunteer tributes. Although the other districts occasionally did it was rarely something ingrained in their actual mindset involving the games. No, for them the games were usually a death sentence and Ryker quickly began to envision Dayta like that as she walked off to begin her own training. Still, in his eyes she somehow seemed slightly different, almost as if she was actually anticipating being thrown into the arena. The way she had remained calm all throughout her own reaping had served as just one indicator, making Ryker believe that perhaps the girl had thought up an ulterior motive she intended to carry out. It was a far-fetched theory, but one he didn't throw out just yet as he continued to watch the girl.

All Ryker's thoughts about Dayta quickly shifted to her partner who was next to make an appearance. "Well we career kids come in fully aware and prepared to face that fact." Ryker retorted as the boy spoke. He too seemed like no pushover just like his partner, although Ryker was definitely interested to see him in action. He knew the boy's words had hinted at possible interest in an alliance which admittedly surprised him. He knew that in past years tributes had to prove themselves worthy to join the pack, yet here was a boy already believing he could. That immediately gave Ryker high hopes, although also a healthy amount of skepticism. "Don't count you out? We have the arena for that; if there's anybody we need out then we will ensure it." He announced, winking at the District 3 boy as he too began with his training.

Ryker nodded. "Yea. We came down here to train, not to see who can throw out the wittiest response." He chuckled as left Layla alone to practice. Very quickly he was making progress with his own, practicing even more of the techniques he had learned back in District 2. Most notably these consisted of various techniques to enable a spear to travel at maximum speed for maximum damage at long range. He knew that theoretically such weaponry could be effective at closer range, but having a powerful throwing arm he had his obvious preferences. Considering the weapon choices of Layla and the District 1 pair he knew it was a potential asset to the team. At least if District 3 didn't join in, whom also appeared to have a ranged expert in the form of archery. Nonetheless it was bound to be a very good year.

"Yep. Things can get surprisingly rough in District 3." Dayta responded when she noticed Layla complimenting her choice of weaponry. She had intentionally kept her answer vague, not wanting to disclose personal information to a girl she would soon be forced to kill. Any dirty secrets she possessed she knew she probably wanted to take to the grave if it came to that anyway. She could only assume the smaller District 2 girl alongside her felt the same. Ideally she wanted any established relations between them to be strictly professional anyway. Forming friendships with anybody in the Hunger Games never ended well and the pale girl knew it well just from having to observe the games over the years. She also wasn't quick to forget poor Bolt and Techa of the 44th games who had even been friends previous to the reaping. That alone almost made her feel relief at the fact they had both died; for some death almost seemed like an escape.

[Zulera301]

Layla nodded. "Well... I would have resorted to more desperate measures if this was the arena," she admitted, "though I suppose anyone would..." she was not trying to imply that he didn't win fair and square. They had followed their few rules, and then the rest of the spar had been fair game as to how to win, and the Hunger Games were not about to call off a victory just because the victor used cheap tactics or exploited weaknesses in their enemies, in order to achieve the crown. Really... Layla needed to step up her game if she wanted to live... since losing the Hunger Games did mean certain death.

the attitude of District 3 was a difficult one to predict--at least for Layla. On one hand, she had heard talk from the Peacekeepers that they were a troublesome bunch that were not terribly fond of the Capitol. Indeed, they, along with Districts 8 and 11, had apparently been major players in the first revolution. Yet, they were willing to put that aside and side with Panem's two most loyal districts at the drop of a hat. And thus, Buzz and Dayta were no exceptions. They were both plenty different, although both seemed to have similar determinations to win--very much like Ryker and Layla.

in fact, that Buzz fellow seemed to be particularly confident. It suddenly had Layla drawing parallels between herself and Dayta. Did the girl secretly hide similar doubts the way she did--behind a mask of confidence?
Buzz on the other hand, seemed fairly confident in his skills just as Ryker did.
"well then," he retorted, not turning this into a competition as much as simply expressing an amiable interaction with this small pair of careers, "I'll make sure I prove myself both in the arena and here in the training hall." he quipped. Thankfully, he did not appear to be the "all show and no go" kind of tribute, and actually had skills to back his words up.

"True enough," Layla agreed, "I came here to throw the most lethal knives," she winked, twirling a blade deftly in her hands. Simple as it might have been, Layla enjoyed having throwing knives to hold or carry. It was kind of a silly notion, but it did bring her solace. She knew exactly how to flick her wrists, and even practiced strapping some of the knives to her body or shirt in case she needed to pull them out quickly. Hopefully this year's outfit had a jacket of some sort. Carrying knives in one's coat was a staple trick of District 2 knife-throwing girls, and Layla wanted to be part of that trend. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Layla raised an eyebrow, and then actually gave pause. "Well... don't believe all the hype about '2 just yet," she muttered softly, "we're rich, but we've got our share of problems too..." she wasn't trying to make this a 'who has it worse' contest as much as she just wanted her potential ally to know that even the Capitol's favorite district had its share of issues. But, with a shrug, the smaller girl retrieved her knives and went again. throwing them, holding them, feeling the metal slide out of her hand as she flicked her wrists just right... it was a very gratifying feeling... and a nice way for Layla to cheer herself up, really.

[Nachthexe]

Ryker was relieved to know that Layla seemed to be taking his advice to heart. Even if he wanted to win for his own reasons he did view her as the next best thing if he happened to fall. Her feelings of vengeance alone were enough to make her passionate about bringing her family into the spotlight after their less than impressive legacy in the games. "Survival makes people resort to extreme measures. I feel we will be no exception." Ryker reminded Layla, remembering some of the various rumours that circulated about previous games. One of the very early ones in particular intrigued him in that the victor had supposedly sliced off his own arm in order to free himself from one of the deadly Capitol traps that had been triggered when only a few tributes remained. It was a story he had never verified for himself, but somehow he didn't believe it too far-fetched either.

Staying true to his words, Buzz(and Dayta for that matter) seemed to have no difficulty proving himself. Unlike most tributes to come out of District 3 both he and his partner seemed to be adept with weaponry. It was a welcomed change from the usual more cunning methods they relied on, although a part of Ryker hoped the pair possessed smarts as well if they were to join the career pack. Those sorts of things were almost always a valuable asset in particularly sticky situations. Layla and District 1, of course, were quickly proving themselves adept with their choice of weaponry as well so the 48th career pack definitely seemed promising.

"Me? Survival is survival. I got sent here so I figured why not make the most of it. All but one of us is destined to die anyway." Dayta explained as she continued showing off her own knife skills to Layla. Despite specializing in the same kinds of weaponry the two girls had very different styles: while Layla took a more direct approach and used her knives as projectiles Dayta was more like an assassin moving within the shadows. Ryker as well took note of this as he continued examining the girl. She had plenty of potential to be dangerous, especially if left to her own accord. That was all the more incentive to recruit her into the career pack.

Dayta was hardly surprised to hear that District 2 also had problems. This was Panem, after all, so the girl knew that if anybody claimed to be problem free then chances are they were lying. This had the girl simply nodding as Layla shared her implication of problems in District 2. Clearly they were bound to be different from District 3's, and by extension Dayta's, but she knew they were there. The girl she was talking to had been the same girl to already lose two siblings to the games, after all, something Dayta couldn't even yet imagine.

The rest of the morning went quite smoothly even as Ryker moved from station to station, eventually making his way over to some of the more survival oriented ones. It was an aspect of training that many careers often didn't pay enough attention to and very quickly Ryker found himself wanting to differ in that respect. Survival was also crucial if he was to see District 2 again, after all. It definitely wasn't as easy as it looked either as his efforts were quickly proving. Naturally, the outlying tributes from the likes of Districts 11 and 12 appeared to have no trouble though and snickered at Ryker's own efforts. This embarrassed the boy slightly, but fortunately lunch time soon approached anyway, prompting him to reunite with Layla and discuss the day's revelations with her.