1 I wake up suddenly, shaking like a leaf, and drenched in sweat. I'd had the nightmare again, oh that horrible nightmare… Joining the Games… I've had the dream so many times before, that I can't get it out of my head…
"Tulip Joneswood!" Effie Trinket calls, my heart stops. That's me. That's me! I see my brother, James, and my sister, Madison Grace. They're crying. I begin to fall, fall into the arms of those around me, neighbors, friends, classmates… they all pity me, and my undeniable death to come. Peacemakers rush over and I'm handed to them like I'm already dead. Then, I fall. Falling, falling, I hit the ground. First, it's a desert area, next a frozen wasteland, then a town full of rubble and debris. A shining sword is held high in the sky, ready to strike. It falls upon me slowly, I'm dead. My family is watching helplessly from home; crying. Never to see me again for I'm gone. Forever.
I shake the dream off. I have to be brave, it's my brother's first year in the reaping. I can't show weakness, for him.
I swing my legs over the edge of my bed and walk towards my school notebook, tear out a piece of paper, and carefully right out a note. I've got to meet Gale in the forest today, we need more food.
Just as I sign my name, my sister walks through my bedroom door. Why is she already dressed in her reaping clothes? I think, watching her flowing white sundress as she enters my room, angry. It's her last year in the reaping, just as it is my brother's first. It's my third, soon I'll have to carry the burden she's so riotcheously held for the past six years, putting her name in extra so we won't starve. Her name is in there a total of thirty-seven times, thirty-seven little slips that say Madison Grace Joneswood on them.
"Why aren't you dressed yet, Tulip?" She yells at me, being late to the reaping is unacceptable. Unless you're sick, like my mother. She's had cancer for six years now, and she is immobile.
"I guess I woke up late." I shrug, tearing the piece of paper to bits. Such a shame, District 12 people can't often afford much paper. Just then, my brother James comes bouncing into the room, bubbly as ever.
"Hi there, Jamie." I poke his nose and give him a big hug, Jamie- -my nickname for him- -is my pride and joy, he's much like me and is an optimistic person. Or, as optimistic as this town can offer.
"Are you worried you're name'll be picked?" He asks, letting a few nerves slip.
"Not at all." I lie. I need to lie, a little white lie, so that he'll feel fine. If you don't worry about it, it's not as bad. That's why every time is hell for me. "Why, I hardly think our names are in there at all."
"So, you really think we won't get picked?" He asks, always trusting my advice.
"I know we won't." I take a good look at him, he's wearing a slightly too long button down shirt and dark pants. The only thing is, his buttons all off by one. "You little butter fingers, let me fix that."
I begin to right his buttons, fixing them so they are all in the correct holes, when he asks, "How do you know, Li?"
"Because I know all." I say in a mystical tone, he laughs and I poke his button nose again, "Just don't worry, okay?"
"Okay." He smiles, and pokes my nose. I go after him to poke his back, but he's running out of the room away from the "monster." Madison taps her foot impatiently.
"We have to get you dressed, now." She takes the purple strapless dress off of her arm and throws it to me, I catch it and begin to slide it over my head. Once that's through, she sticks me in front of the mirror and begins to work on my black, wavy hair. She makes it into a braided crown with my hair straight as a pin on underneath it. I look at myself in this dress, it's so snug because I've had it for over two years now.
"Ready to go?" Madison asks, after pulling the last braid into place.
"Ready as I'll ever be." I say, placing my combat boots on.
"What are you doing?" She asks.
"Putting my shoes on, what does it look like?" I laugh a little.
"Combat boots? Are you sure?" She asks nervously.
"I'm putting them on, aren't I?" I say, and then stand up and call for Jamie to tell him it's safe to come in.
"Ready, butter fingers?" I ask, he laughs and nods.
I take his hand, and we walk into our small, under-stocked kitchen, kiss my mother goodbye, and follow the crowd to the town center for the reaping. I try to keep a smile on my face, though I can tell my brother notices the layer of worry the begins to draw all over my face. The same one I cannot erase until we're back home, safe.
We eventually get split up. Jamie with the other twelve-year-old boys' on one side, and Madison with the eighteen-year-old girls. I try to find other familiar faces, I see Madge, a good friend and the mayor's daughter, Gale, who I mouth and apology to for missing the woods early this morning, and then bread boy. I see him look around and spot me staring at him, I turn away.
I call him the bread boy for many reasons. He's always throwing around sacs of flour, he's the baker's son…
And he saved my life six years ago.
A horrible accident that killed fifteen men had taken place, mine and Gale's included. My mother had become sick the week before, and we had yet to have food since then. Two-year-old Jamie, nine-year-old me, and nearly twelve-year-old Madison were stumbling around looking for food, any food, rotten food, something. We found our way across from the baker's, it's illegal to steal in District 12, so we checked the garbage. Empty. I spotted the baker's son from the window, he stared at me and I couldn't do anything but stare back as I slid down the garbage pale and sat on the cold, hard ground. His eyebrows furrowed, and then he looked down abruptly. I saw another woman, the witch that was the baker's wife, come over and smack him across the face for whatever cause him to look down. He came stumbling out onto the porch as she was yelling at him, "- -go you stupid, klutzy boy! Go! Feed it to the pigs!" He watched me carefully, waiting for the door to click so he'd know his mother was gone, then he walked towards the pigs' pen. It began to rain, and he sped back up the porch. That's when I notice it, bread. Warm, but badly burnt, bread. I wanted it so badly, and as if reading my mind, he threw it towards me. One loaf, two loaves, three loaves… he sped back into the baker's and my siblings and I took off down the round, I tried to smile turn around and smile at him as thanks, but we might've been too far for him to see. The next day I was ordered to thank him at school, which I never did out of embarrassment…
I watched as Effie Trinket mangled into a bear-hug, while the mayor finished his lecture on the history of Panem ,by Haymitch, a District 12 Hunger Games victor. She then stumbled towards the podium, holding her pink wig in place with one hand, and began her speech. I saw Gale, then, mimicking her words and nodding his head back and forth to make fun.
"Welcome, welcome, welcome to the 74th annual Hunger Games!" Effie called in her ridiculous Capitol accent, the one that was high-pitched and made each sentence end like a question. "Now, as usual, we will start with the girls…"
Effie Trinket sauntered her way towards the girls' clear, circular bowl. There were over a thousand names in it, I'm sure. She danced her fingers around the edge, plunged her hand in, dug around, and then plucks a name like it's a bird's feather. She walks back towards the podium slowly, building anticipation. She smooths out the slip… I feel the crowd hold it's breath, and then we all let go simultaneously. Except me.
Because it is me.
"Tulip Joneswood!" Effie calls out chipperly, I nearly faint. The crowd pulls apart and leaves a path for me straight towards the stage stairs. I lift my head high, and proudly step forward, letting them all know I'm not afraid. Even though I'm dying inside.
Jamie rushes away from the crowd on the boys' side, and hugs onto my leg for dear life. "No, please, no!" He cries, Gale rushes over and picks him up. Then he turns to me, whispers ''Don't you dare loose, got it? Don't you dare." and gets back in line with Jamie crying on his shoulder. I continue to make my way to the stage, unbreakable, with my head held high.
"Now there's a tribute!" Effie Trinket gushes, "So proud to represent her District! Wonderful!" She sighs with content, the fixes her wig again. As I make it up on stage, Effie taking my hand in her own green-and pink-seam-gloved one. I stand next to her, unmoving, acting unafraid, and then Haymitch stands from his chair. He makes his way over to the first camera man he sees, leaving the camera man shaking with fear as he yells "You see that? Guts! Nerve! You have none of that!" Is he yelling because of his drunkenness or actually to the Capitol?
I get my answer when he falls off stage and a gurney must take him swiftly away. Effie Trinket then seems to feel the need to rush to get past the "embarrassing moment" that Haymitch has caused. She dips her hand in the boys' clear bowl, picks a name quickly, and reads it aloud Please not Jamie, please not Jamie, please not Jamie....
"Peeta Mellark!" she calls out, still smiling and going about as if noting happened. Peeta Mellark… why him? Why the bread boy? He walked down a similar pathway created by the crowd as I had. He took his place on the other side of Effie quietly, without a word.
"Now shake." She orders, regaining her peppy spirit.
I stuck out my hand, and his firm, warm one fell next to it. We shook once and he gave me a reassuring- -or was it threatening? To show his strength and intimate me?- -squeeze. By the weak smile he gave me, I'll go with reassuring.
I figured at least I'd get the chance to finally say thank you, though it will be rather hard with either me about to kill him or vise-versa. Hopefully someone else will kill him before I come across him. He seems nice, and nice people dig hooks into me that makes me like them, friends. Jamie, Madge, and Gale've done it.
"And may the odds be ever in your favor…" Effie bids the crowd farewell, and the Panem anthem begins to play. The chance of someone else killing him is very high, I should have nothing to worry about. Though…
The odds haven't really been in my favor.