0100100001101001, that’s part of the binary code responsible for lighting up the neon sign that reads ‘Welcome to District 3’ as the Victory Tour Train sweeps into its next station.
Katniss looking suitably serious in D3Katniss and Peeta’s first treat in District 3 was to be ushered through the reception of District 3’s previous Victors, Wiress and Beetee. They had exchanged a swift handshake each before they were whisked away by automobile to the center of the Manufacturing Settlement Area (or MSA), the most populous area of District 3. 
The always eclectic Wiress from District 3. Photo credit: AlmondTreeFilms.com
An ecstatic Beetee greets our victors
Understandably, this area consumes the highest amount of energy of all the Districts in Panem, so Katniss and Peeta watched in awe as their car cruised through the spot-lit streets and blinking structures of the MSA.
As citizens of the ‘Laboratory of the world’, District 3 natives are always working. The night shift at the Genetic Science department of Panem Biotech was just letting out when Doctor Mendal, head researcher at the department, buzzed in Everdeen, Mellark and their entourage. The good doctor tried his best to describe his work in genetics by explaining how both of our Victors gained their genetically unlikely lightly hued eyes. They were both suitably impressed, and Katniss even asked follow-up questions about whether altered genetics could give animals human-like biology, no doubt remembering the exciting finale of last year’s game.
In one of the Junior Labs, the District 12 teens met some of their District 3 counterparts. In this industrious region, children are assessed to determine their most efficient career placement. The 16-year-olds that our beloved Victors met were preparing for their Career Tests, when they can be selected by some of Panem’s most pioneering Research and Development Corporations, such as Panem Biotech, to continue their work under their sponsorship.
Photo credit TheNorthernEcho.uk.com
A Junior Lab Technician talked our heroes through a minor chemical reaction that produced a foam of sticky pink bubbles that clung to Peeta’s curious fingers, much to Katniss’s chagrin. She protectively berated him for touching a foreign substance, but then tenderly helped him wash it off with a bespoke solution. The technician revealed that the foam is currently under lock and key as tests are done to see if it can be combined with an anaesthetic or even a muscle relaxant. You never know, it was forewarned, we might see these mysterious bubbles in a future edition of The Hunger Games.
After a few more pops, bangs and sparking wires, it was time for the visitors to leave and deliver their speeches to the adoring crowd gathered at the Justice Building. There was time for a quick costume change during which Katniss swapped out of her grey pinafore and into a tight-fitting navy blue dress with a fiery orange waist-belt. Peeta changed his metallic grey suit for blue, with a white shirt and navy tie that perfectly matched his partner.
The speeches were, as usual, touching and full of grace but over far too soon. The Victors waved goodbye to the lucky audience to move on to their next stop, District 2.
For more of Arowana Flounder's brilliant work, please check out her fanfiction, Johanna Mason: They Will Never See Me Cry, and her original story, Archangels. You can follow her on twitter @ArowanaFounder