oakleydressel‌:
She smiled brightly, listening to Aspen’s suggestion.  “That sounds like a really good idea,” she told the girl. All Oakley wanted was to take a day and forget about all of her problems. There was even a piece of her that wanted to return to District Eight, but she knew better than that. Not only would it harm her tributes’ chances, but she’d regret giving up time she could have spent with Birch no matter how much it would hurt her heart.
Oakley glanced around and nodded.  “I’m sure my tributes are around here somewhere….at least they’re supposed to be.” Glancing at Aspen, Oakley nodded.  “if the pattern holds, they’ll be inside or at least in a more man-made arena. Every year since seventy-two it’s alternated,” she told her. Starting with Nolie’s dinosaurs and ending with you last year, but they could always break the pattern to throw us off.”
Aspen made a face because an inside arena took away some of the advantages her tributes might have. District Nine wasn’t an inside District. Their people often worked out in the fields, even at a young age. They learned how to read weather patterns, care for crops, and take care of themselves that way. “Though I am not really sure how they come up with the arenas. I have no ideas.” She wasn’t a gamemaker, but she felt like she should have had a guess. “They haven’t done anything cold and snowy in a long time.” Not that she could recall anyhow since Enobaria won, when she was younger.
“How do I not be so bad at this Oakley?” Aspen asked softly. She could see the way her tributes looked at her, the same way a lot of people looked at her. Young and inexperienced when it came to being a mentor. “It doesn’t seem fair they’re stuck with only me to help them.”









