Solar wasn't anxious. Nope, not at all. Whatever this was, it wasn't anxiety- after years of being in the public eye, Solar wasn't sure he even /could/ feel that kind of anxiety anymore. Though maybe, this feeling was worse. This time, unlike for the parade, Solar had been given an earpiece to wear. They supposed their parade performance had been less than satisfactory, if Sunnydae was willing to pay to help them out for the interviews. Solar could hear Mr. Heliot's voice already. "Alright, Solar. Remember, head up, speak /clearly/, smile /before/ the cameras find you. And don't mess this up." Mr. Heliot had never been a kind manager, exactly, but tonight he sounded more stern than usual. This part was the same as any other interview, the only difference was the context, right? Even the interviewer was someone Solar had met before. Despite what would happen in the following days, Solar couldn't bring himself to feel scared. He just felt... empty. There, that was his cue. Solar arrived on stage, smiling and cheery as always. The illusion of ocean above was a little claustrophobic and terrifying, but it would be fine. It would be just fine. "Solar Sunnydae, hello, hello!" Ambrose Lux, that strange old Capitol celebrity who'd been doing this job longer than Solar had been alive, greeted them with the energy he always did. "Uh- Hi, Mr. Lux! It's nice to see you again- hope you're having a sunny day!" "Address the crowd too, Solar, make sure they feel important." There was Mr. Heliot again. "And-" Solar turned towards the audience. "I hope all of you are having sunny days, too!" "It's always lovely to talk to you, Solar, but I bet you never expected an interview like this, huh? I sure didn't!" Ambrose always had that weird grandpa energy, usually it was somewhat comforting, but tonight, it just felt out of place. "Haha, yeah, I really didn't see this one coming." "Now, I'm sure everyone in the audience knows who you are, but mind telling us about yourself a bit, Solar?" "Okay, sure," Solar knew exactly how to answer this question. "My name's Solar Sunnydae, from District 5, and yeah, I'm /that/ Solar Sunnydae. Autographs after the interview, please." Audiences usually liked that joke. "So, Solar, how did it feel to be Reaped? I mean, your whole life, you've been safe- or thought so, at least- and now it's all out the window! What's it like? "Well..." Terrifying, was what Solar could honestly say. But the voice in their ear knew better. "I'm honored, actually. The Games are such an important tradition, and I'm so, so happy I get to represent not just District 5, but Sunnydae, too." "You know, it's funny- You grew up as Sunnydae's mascot, isn't that right? How on earth did that happen?" This question again. It seemed like /everyone/ wanted to hear the story, over and over. "Oh, you all know that! But yeah, it /is/ an interesting story." One Solar had been told a thousand times. "So I was an orphan, or abandoned, you know? Nothing special about that. Lucky thing, though, Sunnydae was just getting big and needed a mascot, someone sunny and hopeful! They took one look at me and said, 'yep, that's our sunshine'. So they took me in, and raised me, and you all know the rest!" It wasn't like Solar remembered this themself, they'd been too young, but they'd heard this story so often it felt as close to memory as it could get. "Lovely. It always warms my heart, really, the way they just found you and decided then and there, you were theirs! They must be such a loving family." "Oh, absolutely. Anytime I was scared, or unsure, they would always help me keep going. I am who I am because of Sunnydae." Was the stage getting darker? It felt darker. "Now then, enough about that- Let's look forward instead of back. Any particular strategy you're planning for the Games? How's a ray of sunshine like you gonna survive, huh?" Xe said it in a nice, somewhat teasing grandpa way, but it still stung, somehow. "Well, you'll be glad to hear, I've made some friends, actually." Okay, the lights were definitely getting dimmer. Solar couldn't help but feel like they were drowning. "Oh, now that's not at all surprising. How could anyone not love you?" "Heh, yeah, exactly. I'm just charismatic, I guess!" "Now, we have time for one more question- what to ask, what to ask..." Ambrose tapped xeir chin in thought. "Oh- What do /you/ hope the arena is like? That's always a fun one, and tells a lot, too!" "I..." Now, Mr. Heliots voice was silent. Maybe it didn't matter how Solar answered this one? Or maybe, everyone wanted their genuine hope. "I hope it's somewhere nice and quiet, you know? Like- Like a meadow in summer. Colorful, and warm, and alive." The stage was dark enough that Solar could barely make out Ambrose, but they could still see xeir unnaturally bright white teeth as xe beamed. "Well, I certainly hope you get that wish. I think we all do. Everyone, give a round of applause for our one and only Solar Sunnydae!"
