In chapter 4, they are all still on the train. Katniss and Peeta show Haymitch that they can actually fight and he decides to stay sober enough to help them. The first thing he tells them is to not resist whatever the stylists put them into. They finally reach the magnificent, glistening Capitol.
In chapter 5, Katniss is in the Remake Center with a prep team who has been addressing some obvious problems. This includes scrubbing down her body with a gritty foam that has removed not only dirt but at least three layers of skin, turning her nails into uniform shapes, and primarily, ridding her body of hair. When they are done, Katniss’ stylist, Cinna, enters. They sit down and talk about her costume for the opening ceremonies. Cinna and his partner Portia, the stylist for Peeta, have decided to dress them in complementary costumes. He also says it’s customary to reflect the flavor of the district. For the opening ceremonies, the tributes are supposed to wear something that suggests their district’s principal industry; District 11 - agriculture, District 4 - fishing, District 3 – factories. Katniss thinks this means that she’ll have to wear some kind of coal miner’s getup. Cinna says that he and Portia think that coal miner thing’s very overdone and it’s their job to make the District12 tributes unforgettable. So rather than focus on the coal mining itself, they’re going to focus on the coal. Cinna then says, “And what do we do with coal? We burn it.” A few hours later, she is dressed in what will be the most sensational or the deadliest costume in the opening ceremonies. She’s in a simple black unitard that covers her from ankle to neck with shiny leather boots laced up to her knees. But it’s the fluttering cape made of streams of orange, yellow, and red and the matching headpiece that define the costume. Cinna plans to light them on fire just before their chariot roll into the streets. Cinna assures her that it’s just a little synthetic fire and that she’ll be perfectly safe. He tells her that “I want the audience to recognize you when you’re in the arena. Katniss, the girl who was on fire.” Peeta shows up dressed in an identical costume. They go down to the bottom level of the Remake Center where pairs of tributes are being loaded into chariots pulled by horses. The opening music begins. 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. Just before they go, Cinna sets their capes on fire. At the last minute, he has an idea and shouts for Katniss and Peeta to hold hands. When they enter the city, the crowd absolutely loves them and they look breathtaking. After the ceremonies, the chariots parade around the circle one final time and disappear into the Training Center.
In chapter 6, they are in the Training Center. It has a tower designed exclusively for the tributes and their teams that will be their home until the actual Games begin. Each district has an entire floor – one simply steps onto an elevator and presses the number of their district. Effie Trinket takes them up to their floor. She and Haymitch will be overseeing them right into the arena. Katniss’s quarters are larger than her entire house back home. They all sit down to eat dinner. Their servers, all young people dressed in white tunics, move wordlessly to and from the table, keeping the platters and glasses full. Katniss recognizes one of them, a redheaded girl, and says “oh! I know you!” She can’t place a name or time to the girl’s face, but she’s certain she’s seen the girl before. An expression of terror crosses her face and she quickly shakes her head in denial and hurries away from the table. The four adults are watching her like hawks. Effie tells her to not be ridiculous because she couldn’t possibly know an Avox. Katniss asks what an Avox is. Haymitch tells her that an Avox is someone who committed a crime and they cut her tongue so she can’t speak. He says that she’s probably a traitor of some sort and it’s unlikely that Katniss would know her. Effie tells her that even if she did, she’s not to speak to one of them unless it’s to give an order. Peeta quickly comes to rescue her when he says it’s a girl named Delly and that he kept thinking she looked familiar as well. Katniss catches on and agrees saying that’s who she was thinking of, even though she knows Delly looks and acts nothing like the girl. The energy at the table relaxes. They eat cake and move into a sitting room to watch the replay of the opening ceremonies that’s being broadcast. When Katniss and Peeta are told to get some sleep, they go up to the roof to talk. She tells him that she and Gale were in the woods one day and they saw the redheaded girl and another boy running for their lives. A hovercraft had appeared out of nowhere, dropping a net down on the girl and carrying her up. It shot a spear through the boy, killing him and then hauling him up as well. Katniss and Peeta wonder where they were going and why they would want to leave the Capitol.
In chapter 7, the next day, Katniss and Peeta decide to let Haymitch coach them together. Haymitch tells them to go to group training in the Training Center and spend the time trying to learn something they don’t know. He says to save showing what they’re best at until their private lessons. He also tells them that in public, he wants them to be by each other’s side every minute. They get ready and then go down to the training rooms. When they join the others, a woman named Atala begins to explain the training schedule. Experts in each skill will remain at their stations and the tributes will be free to travel from area to area as they choose. Some of the stations teach survival skill while others teach fighting techniques. Katniss can’t help but look at the other tributes. Almost all of the boys and at least half of the girls are bigger than her, even though many of the tributes have never been fed properly. Katniss actually has a healthier body than most because she is strong. The exceptions are the kids from the wealthier districts, the volunteers, the ones who have been fed and trained throughout their lives for this moment. The tributes from 1, 2, and 4 traditionally have this look about them. In District 12, they call them the Career Tributes, or just the Careers. When Atala releases them, Katniss and Peeta go to the knot-tying class, then the camouflage station, which Peeta is very good at. He tells Katniss that he decorates the cakes for his family’s bakery. They move from station to station learning valuable skills. The Gamemakers, twenty or so men and women dressed in deep purple robes, sit and watch. At lunch, Peeta and Katniss eat together and try to keep up a friendly conversation. One day, Peeta empties their breadbasket and points out how they have been careful to include types from the districts along with the refined bread of the Capitol. The fish-shaped loaf tinted green with seaweed is from District 4. The crescent moon roll dotted with seeds is from District 11. The next day, Peeta observes that they have a shadow; there is a little girl from District 11 standing back a bit, watching them. She’s twelve years old and reminds Katniss of her sister Prim. She has bright, dark eyes and satiny brown skin. He tells Katniss that he thinks her name is Rue. She slips up and joins them at different stations. On the third day, the tributes are starting to be called out of lunch for their private sessions. Its then when the tributes have to make an impression on the Gamemakers because after that, the Gamemakers score them on how likely they are to succeed in the Games. If a tribute gets a high score, they are more likely to win sponsors. Katniss is the last to go. She knows she’s in trouble because the Gamemakers have been there too long and have sat through twenty-three other demonstrations. She can only continue with the plan and heads over to the archery station. She’s excellent at shooting but when she turns to the Gamemakers, the majority of them are fixated on a roast pig that had just arrived at their banquet table. She is suddenly furious that, with her life on the line, they don’t even have the decency to pay attention to her. Without thinking, she pulls an arrow from her quiver and sends it straight at the Gamemakers’ table. She hears shouts of alarm as people stumble back. The arrow skewers the apple in the pig’s mouth and pins it to the wall behind it. Everyone stares at her in disbelief and she says, “Thank you for your consideration,” and walks out without being dismissed.
Oh wow. I can’t believe Katniss actually shot at the Gamemakers. I wonder what will happen. They could really hate her now or they could like that she is fiery and passionate. I guess we’ll see. I think Rue is interesting. She’s really little so it’s sad that she will probably die during the Games, but I like how much she and Prim are alike. It’s too bad that nobody volunteered to take her place though. I really like Peeta, even though Katniss doesn’t trust him. She’s only nice him in public because she was told to. I actually think Peeta is generally a nice person and would have hung out with Katniss anyway.
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