serenity basically DEMOLISHED all of her chances at getting a sponsor- that was obvious. but hey! she's having the time of her life, so who cares? she remembered a tribute a few years back. their interview stage 'blew up' on them. what a tragic accident, yeah? despite the dumb blonde persona she put on, she wasn't a moron. it was obviously planned. if the capitol wanted her dead, then this was their chance to do so. committing arson in a huge crowd? yeah, that's not a good idea. endangering a gamemaker? yeah, that's a chance of getting a death sentence. eh, whatever. just the very thought of it excited her. at least she made history. aaanywho... lives on the line! what fun! . . . an unfamiliar cat. an unfamiliar environment. wow, that was so totally predictable that she wasn't even surprised. actually, when /was/ the last time serenity was surprised? ren let out a small sigh, before putting on the most glamorous smile she could muster up. and god, it was easy when you've been doing it for your entire life. "oh. my. god. i LOVE your horns." serenity held a paw out. "cinere's such a pretty name, too! it's a pleasure to meet you." "ah, really!? your contacts really match your fur- gold suits you! serenity, right?" cinere gasped, a bubbly grin spreading across her muzzle. a youthful, gossipy persona. boy, would they get along. "yeah, yeah, but my friends can call me ren. let's go with that, 'kay?" the she-cat chirped, hopping around in circles. "let's make our... 10 minutes? 10 minutes. probably. together memorable." "but uuugh, sitting here and just answering questions just sounds /so/ grueling, you know." serenity sighed, inflating her cheeks with a childish pout. she kicked the chairs aside, standing out of the lighting. "let's play a game instead." "huh? ooh, you've got me interested, now. go on." the young interviewer tilted her head to the side. "tag. that's it. whenever we catch the other, you ask a question. sound easy?" ren clicked her tongue, shaking her fur out. imperium's niece. surely, she's heard of the incident...? or not. gamemakers are supposed to be strictly confidential, but imperium was definitely informed of this. "..." "you are /so/ on." /are you incompetent, or did they actually keep it a secret?/ "okay! three second head-start. it's a little hard to run in high-heels, but whatever." serenity's tail curled up. actually, she could barely walk in these, but hey, she's had plenty experience with running. ren slipped out something small onto the ground, on the dusty concrete below. "one..." this wasn't the safest environment to play tag in. then again, the hunger games aren't the safest environment to live in. "two..." she liked this capitol cat already. she'll leave her alone. the setup, though? not so much. "three~!" serenity took a wobbly step forward, and ignoring the 'fear' of tripping over, full on sprinted towards cinere. she was /usually/ quiet, too... this usually startled her classmates back in district five. her friends ended up accusing her of being able to teleport at some point, much to her 'amusement.' amusement. surprise. fear. another three words that she'd hope to understand some day. "tag. you're it." her front paw made contact, before darting back. "um- okay! okay! question one- do you have a motivation to go home?" cinere called out, looking around like a meaningless carousal in hopes of catching sight of the tribute of district 5. "...hm, well..." she sighed softly, her voice alerting cinere of her whereabouts. "...my number one motivation is already here with me." "my big sister. i really hoped the capitol lets the both of us out alive like del and acacia, but they made it /pretty/ clear it was a one-time thing." fake sadness. make your eyes just a little, a little bit watery. and make your voice a whole lot strained. "besides, lots of people in the games have lost their siblings. why should they make an exception for us, am i right?" "the pennies from last round. remember them? i found it quite tragic how dakota ended up... losing her life at the paws of her older sister- vixen. and it just really made me think-" "-...oh, god. ...would that... would that be /me?/" "my big sister is awesome. she's never a buzzkill! i honestly don't know what i'm supposed to do if i end up alive, and she doesn't." let that linger. a silence. laugh it off sweetly, but let that feeling just /linger/ there, and even though she was pretty sure the entire population of the capitol was rooting for her demise, they /had/ to feel just the slightest bit of empathy for her. ren pretended to stumble, crashing to the ground. she felt the other's paw tap her and zip away. "tag!" serenity dropped another 'device' onto the ground. cont vvv
"oh, come on! no fair!" serenity giggled, scrambling back to her feet as she continued the chase. her ear flicked, trying to pick up the auditory cue. "question two! how are you liking capitol life so far?" "oh, it's a really huge difference from district 5, that's for sure." the she-cat trailed off, spotting a flash of grey fur. both their pelt colors would camouflage wonderfully with the whole 'abandoned city' vibe in the background, but since both of them were wearing something flamboyant that made them stand out... she advanced in that direction. "i kinda envy you guys, y'know. our orange juice totally /sucks/ compared to yours." she joked brightly. "if i actually survive this... i wanna treat everyone who supported me. all of you guys are probably rich and can do it yourself, but everything's better with friends. it would be a nice opportunity. looking at you, cosmos. hey! hello! are you watching me?" despite not making the best first impression, it was definitely lasting. the audience definitely remembered that kid. a moment of silence. ren pounced, swiftly booping cinere's muzzle. "i gotchu! toodles!" plant another seed into the ground. at the end of the interview, the crops will be worth the trouble. "okay! next- you made hunger game history. first 0 ever! what are your thoughts with that?!" "oww, that's kinda harsh, cinere." ren joked half-heartedly, running away like no tomorrow. a smiling child, just having fun. frolicking. free of worries. we're all kids. we could all have grown up. but now? we can't. at least, that was the sentimental crap she wanted them to believe. "history's history! i could also be the first serenity solstice reaped into the games. anyways, the stuff is strictly confidential, but..." "..oh. it was /fun/. in my opinion, nothing really matters as long as you're enjoying yourself. divine entertainment is the thing that matters the most. the hunger games are the sole embodiment of that, don't you think?" her voice dropped to an octave, the schoolgirl attitude completely dropping for a split second. "of course, i had plenty fun watching from the safety of my home! i just couldn't pass up the opportunity to compete." "and... the person called was probably 12. they still have a future. oh, speaking of age, i turned 16 about 3 weeks ago! if i'm the victor, i want to spend my 17th with you guys." blow a small kiss. "unless you hate me, that's fine. nobody's forcing you to go." she rolled her eyes, beaming. serenity grabbed cinere's paw. "end of story. that was way less tedious than just a boring old interview, wasn't it?" "haha! yeah, i know, right? staring at postcards isn't my thing, but it's such a /honor/ to be in this position in the first place." the two she-cats walked towards the set. back towards the chairs, back towards where they were /supposed to be/ in the first place. serenity hummed, closing her eyes as she finally smacked the button that she was dying to press. hence the entire background 'blowing up.' nobody was hurt. it was just an illusion, after all. holographic fire. no way would her stylist trust her with real fire after what she pulled last time. which was pretty logical for someone who didn't want to get fired because of a psychopathic arsonist. ren reached up towards the golden roses resting on her ear. threw them into the air, and watched them explode into a flurry of petals. they spread throughout the air, adorning both the interviewer and serenity perfectly- an elegant, sophisticated contrast to the chaos in the background. she turned towards the cameras. "remember me whenever you see something cute, 'kay?" slowly, the smoke from the sparks curled up into the shape of a heart. "thank you for your time." serenity inhaled, her eyes shimmering. "praise imperium, and may the odds..." and took a bow. "..ever be in your favor." . . . serenity's wearing a flowy white dress with golden roses. she's also wearing rose-gold contacts. only her back paws have glass slippers/heels. her front legs don't have anything. written by yours truly! song is tag you're it by melanie martinez again, thank you to pinecone for telling me the basics of cinere's personality lmao. good luck in the games u guys
