District Two

> "*Our nation would be nothing without District 2's superb stonework. It builds and fortifies our cities and its citizens are known individually for their strength.*"
> ― Description from *The Hunger Games: Tribute Guide*
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**District 2** is one of the thirteen districts of Panem. Located in the Rocky Mountains, close the Capitol itself, it is one of the largest and wealthiest districts. Many small villages, each one based around a mine, are scattered across the mountains. District 2 is where many Peacekeepers are recruited, trained, and where weapons are manufactured for their use, but the region's other industry is masonry/stone working. Publicly, District 2 is presented solely as the home of the nation's stone quarries, just as District 13 was publicly known for mining, but was also the center of Panem's nuclear weapons program.

After the First Rebellion, District 2 was rewarded with better treatment and living conditions for its citizens because of their loyalty to the Capitol. Despite this preferential treatment, however, the quarry workers suffer as much as laborers in any other district, and the district as a whole is not excluded from the annual Hunger Games.

Tributes from District 2 are typically Career tributes, training for years to compete in and win the Games.

## Tributes

Children from District 2 are raised with a warrior mindset in preparation for becoming Peacekeepers, though this mentality also serves them well in the Hunger Games. They are typically Career tributes, some of whom volunteer to participate, as winning is a great honor in Career Districts. They tend to be strong and well-prepared, like the Careers from Districts 1 and 4, but have an additional level of brutal discipline. As Katniss describes the District 2 tributes; "Cato. Clove. Brutus. Enobaria. I've seen their eagerness. I've seen their bloodlust, too."

## The Nut

During the Dark Days, the Capitol's military command was relocated from District 13; its Peacekeeping force, along with a large portion of its fleet of hovercraft, were housed in a large mountain in the middle of District 2, which was previously used for mining. Train tracks from the mountain lead into District 2's square. After the mountain was thoroughly mined, the internal infrastructure was reinforced, and barracks, arsenals, computer terminals, and meeting rooms were constructed, turning the mountain into a military base and the Capitol's main source of weapons production after losing District 13. After Plutarch Heavensbee described the mountain as "a tough nut to crack," Katniss Everdeen relayed this remark to the rebel leadership of District 2, resulting in the mountain being nicknamed the "Nut." The mountain itself was virtually impenetrable, and numerous rebel attempts to capture the entrances were defeated, resulting in a stalemate.

However, Gale Hawthorne noticed avalanche paths on the sides of the mountain and realized that an alternative to capturing the Nut would be to simply disable it. Boggs realized from examining the Nut's blueprints that its ventilation system was its weak point, as these would be blocked up by avalanches. To minimize casualties, Beetee suggested leaving the train tunnel to the square open as the only means of escape, which Gale was against, as he was seeking retribution for the firebombing of District 12. It was decided to leave the tunnel intact to give the survivors a chance to surrender, but anticipating that the escapees would be armed and desperate, the rebels fortified the buildings surrounding the square with machine-gun nests. When the Nut was bombed by rebellion hovercrafts, the resulting avalanches shut off many entrances and air vents. The survivors did not initially escape through the tunnel, but suddenly two trains rushed into the station when Katniss started to broadcast an appeal to surrender. After she tried to convince an injured soldier to surrender and was shot, the District 2 workers who had escaped turned on their own soldiers, allowing the rebels to stand by and watch.

## Previous Citizens

* Kora Fiammetta
* Sahara Bravo