final three deal | rita, xylia, lucky
Jan 30, 2024 20:35:52 GMT -5
Post by mat on Jan 30, 2024 20:35:52 GMT -5
l u c k y
nachtnebel
Lucky left the training stations early on the first day. He was just observing, for the most part. The missed targets and exasperating grunts from some of the lower districts gave him enough confidence to plan for how to train in the setting. Who were the smart ones that could pick up on small mannerisms and the digging in of a trainer's heels? Which combat strategies were easy to pick up on, and which were better for him to perfect and hone in private? Just two of the many things that processed through Lucky's mind in the blink of an eye. His mind tested them with his checklist of attributes, discerning the strong from the weak.
He sat in the dining hall for lunch, a quarter before noon. He asked for grilled cheese and tomato soup for his first day. It was something easy to handle, relatively clean, and warm. Lucky trusted the chefs in the training center to be capable of much more exquisite things, and he was determined to try them in good time, but today was a day for analysis. He ate ahead, finishing the sandwich and half of the soup bowl before pausing.
The soup grew cold. Breadcrumbs spun back and forth on his dish with the whirl of the overhead fans. The first test of the day? Strength. The physical competition. The second? Social. Eating distracted Lucky, so he finished eating early to dedicate his focus to talking and watching at the same time.
Who sits with whom, who laughs with whom, who argues with whom? Lucky wanted to know it all.
The exceptions came from the careers. Or at least some of them, anyway. He identified the ones from One and Two in the initial briefing at the training center and knew Inga already. Lucky picked his favorites (for the third test: strategy) and waited for them to come through.
He circled his soup with the spoon, steel against ceramic like it was just another day at Brewster's coffee shop. The other tributes slowly filtered into the cafeteria line. Lucky watched, silently critiquing the meals they took on their trays. He smiled and stopped stirring when a pair of girls turned, just the Ones he was looking for.
"Hey One! And… other One! Over here!" Which was which, he'll never tell.
