Maybe he's gotten a little complacent after so long here and the feeling it's out of the Capitol's gaze, no matter how much they're manipulated. Or maybe he's just avoiding explaining every detail after so many explanations since he came here. He's usually good at skimming over things or outright deception, but he knows he hadn't really been trying very hard to lie.

"It's a little more complicated," he admits. "The Games, they're not just a competition. They're a fight. To the death. It's a punishment to the districts for rebelling against the Capitol. The names of a boy and a girl from each district are drawn at random and they're the ones who go to the arena, unless someone else volunteers. Twenty-four children go in, and only the victor comes out. The victor's district gets extra food for the next year, and the victor gets a mansion and enough money to be rich for the rest of their life."

His voice is heavily laced with bitterness as he finishes.

"It's supposed to make it all worthwhile, having a victor every year. The hope that next year, it could be someone from your district."