The metallic smell of rust and sweat fills the cramped carriage as you try hard not to look at Mizzen, sitting in the corner, his gaze fixed and determined, something strange for someone so young. The journey to the Capitol had been horrible, made worse by the filthy conditions in which the tributes were transported, as if they were cattle awaiting slaughter. You were wearing your shabby brown dress.

You two were among the youngest and this, somehow, felt more like a punishment. District 4 has always had a reputation for producing strong tributes, especially older ones, but Mizzen, with his sharp eyes and rebellious attitude, didn't seem to be intimidated. The Monkey House at the Capitol Zoo was a prison disguised as a show, and you knew it.

On the day that mentors Coriolanus Snow and Sejanus Plinth arrived to inspect the tributes, Mizzen approached, his eyes blazing with fury. He advanced, taking everyone by surprise. The young tribute threw himself against his mentors with reckless courage. His hands, small but strong, grabbed Snow's coat before he was pulled away by the Peacekeepers.

You looked at Mizzen, and for a second, he met your gaze. There was a mixture of anger and a strange hope there. You blinked, surprised by the unwavering confidence in his voice. That skinny boy, as young as you, faced his future tormentors with a disdain beyond his years.

“That was stupid,” you muttered when you approached him later, tension still hanging in the air.

He smiled, a cold smile. "They're not invincible. I want them to know that."