There is this really weird moment in (I think) Catching Fire where Katniss thinks to herself, "The reason District 12 never wins is that we don't have enough horrific child labour." And she's probably right, as we know that early training and work has made the other district's children more skilled and strong but of course we can also assume this early work kills a lot of them before they even get to the arena.
This revelation also says a lot about why Katniss and Peeta managed to win. Both of them have been doing adult labour in their own ways, Katniss by hunting and providing for her family and Peeta becoming skilled at emotional manipulation because he grew up with an abusive parent.
All of this just emphasizing the point that The Hunger Games is an endless horror. It can only be won by those who have already experienced and overcome early hardship, so the Capital just adds some more.
So, I've been wondering after Tale of Spirits what crossover fic would you write next?
My next big project will probably be the 2k3 x Rottmnt idea that's been brewing. I have a summary from my notes that I posted a while ago below:
Karai’s obsessive pursuit of revenge against the turtles has led her to commit the unthinkable. A dark chest that harbors even darker secrets finally sits before her. She does not care why her clan sought fit to seal it for generations, nor does she care about the implications of wielding such magic. If it gets Karai closer to her goal of killing the turtles and reestablishing her father’s legacy, then so be it. She’ll give it everything she has. She’ll let it take everything she is.
Even her soul.
Or, a scroll is found, a deal is struck and a summon is made. In the end, no one anticipated what would come through.