Chapter One
"Annie Cresta."
The wooden legs of Finnick Odair's chair scrape against the stage. He's sitting upright, and panic is beginning to flood his sea green eyes. He scans the crowd, desperately searching for someone. Someone named Annie Cresta…
"Annie. Annie!" a girl next to me hisses. I snap back to reality. No. This can't be. My name is Annie Cresta.
I shut my eyes and open them again, hoping to wake up from this nightmare. To my dismay, all I see is the entirety of District 4 staring at me.
The girl pokes my shoulder. Move, Annie. Move.
After what seems like years, I step out of the group of seventeens. Walk up to the stage. Climb the steps. I can feel Finnick's eyes boring into the back of my head as Roni Salinas, the District 4 escort, puts her arm around me. "Any volunteers?" she trills into the microphone. She's answered with the sound of distant waves crashing onshore. A painful minute slides by. No one wants to take my place. Roni shrugs and carries on with the reaping. "Okay then. Time for the boys!"
I glance over at Finnick, whose knuckles are turning white on the arms of his chair. I try to make eye contact with him, but he seems very interested in something on the ground. Roni fishes around in the reaping bowl for a while, picking up slips of paper and dropping them back in, stirring the names around, dragging out the process. She finally yanks out a slip and reads the name. "Collin Ottosen!" Roni calls out. A boy who can't be older than thirteen steps out of the crowd and makes his way up to the stage. His legs are shaking violently as he takes his place next to Roni. "Would anyone like to volunteer?" she asks.
"I volunteer," says a boy from the group of fifteens. He's tall and has a muscular build, and his tan lines are the kind that could belong only to someone who spends all day fishing. He walks up to the stage and Collin takes this as his cue to bolt away, back to a woman who I assume must be his mother. "Oooh, goody, a volunteer. And who might you be?" Roni asks. "Keld Bramson," he says into the microphone. "Ah! I should've known. You're Rolf's brother, aren't you?" Roni enthuses. Keld nods firmly. "Well, let's just hope you keep up that family winning streak, huh?" Roni says, and I may be mistaken, but I think I catch her shooting me a dirty glare. Keld shrugs and shoves his hands deep inside his pockets. "People of District Four, I give you your tributes, Annie Cresta and Keld Bramson!"
A few people clap. Others look down uneasily at their feet. Four men with dark hair and sharp features that match Keld's cheer loudly. "That's the spirit!" Roni shouts. She blows a few kisses to the crowd and bats her eyelashes. It isn't until the mayor comes up and reminds her that the ceremony has to continue that she takes her seat.
The mayor steps up to the microphone and begins to read the Treaty of Treason. When he's finished, he tells Keld and me to shake hands. He clasps his hand firmly around mine, his pale blue eyes dancing in the sunlight.
The anthem plays and I smile feebly at the crowd. They don't return the favor.
Peacekeepers surround us and lead us into the Justice Building. Two of them usher me into a circular room with a plush white couch, shiny hardwood floors, and a glass topped coffee table. They shut the door behind me with a sharp slam, leaving me alone.
I take a seat on the couch and survey the room. Open windows, curtains dancing in the warm, salty breeze. The smell of lemony floor polish potent. Well-tended to potted plants. On the coffee table lies a beautiful red rose.
I wonder how many people who've been in here ended up dead.
It takes ten minutes for my parents to finally show up. We stand in the center of the room, encircled in a tight embrace. They tell me how much they love me, how they'll be cheering for me. It seems to be only seconds before a Peacekeeper opens the door and tells my parents that the hour is up. "Wear this as your token," my mother says, pressing something into my hand. She kisses my forehead, tells me to be brave, and then she and my father leave.
I struggle to keep the tears from spilling from my eyes as I'm taken out into the Justice Building lobby, and then out the back door. Peacekeepers sit on either side of me in the car on the way to the train station. I make myself busy by straightening out every crease in my floral skirt and adjusting my blouse.
I know I won't make it out alive. I can see it now; a spear to the chest, maybe an arrow to the head. If I'm lucky one of the other tributes will just snap my neck during the bloodbath and be done with it.
I'm not strong. Not very pretty, not by Capitol standards anyways. I can't do anything but swim around and make fishing nets. The closest thing I've ever held to a weapon is a kitchen knife. It takes only minutes of running to wear me out.
Too soon, we arrive at the train station. I take a deep breath and step out of the car, preparing myself for the cameras that I know await me. Sure enough, I find myself faced with dozens of camera lenses, and Capitol reporters surrounding me. I keep my head held high and a small, innocent smile on my lips. Even wave my fingers a little bit.
My efforts to please the audience are futile. Most of the cameras are focused on Keld Bramson, and I'm sure that the entire Capitol is already making bets in his favor. His brother, Rolf, was the victor eight years ago. Brutal and unforgiving, he slaughtered nine tributes with a heavy-looking axe. When it was down to just him and his district partner, a 12-year-old girl named Elena, whom he had protected like his own sister throughout the games, he buried the axe deep in her chest. I remember how indifferent he looked when he killed her, ignoring her sobbing pleas.
Keld looks much like his older brother, sharp, jagged features, dark brown hair that looks like he's just rolled out of bed, and gorgeous blue eyes. There's no doubt in my mind that he'll win over the hearts of the Capitol citizens, leaving me in the dust.
Roni Salinas looks like she's having the time of her life, blowing kisses at the cameras, tossing her curly blue hair around like a little schoolgirl. If she weren't such a ditz and didn't have skin the color of eggplants, I imagine that she'd be something of a beauty.
When we finally manage to weave our way through the crowd and onto the train, the cameras linger for another five minutes before the doors shut. I lose my balance when the wheels begin to turn and put my hand up against the wall to keep myself from falling. The speed is overwhelming and I feel a little sick.
Finnick seems to appear from nowhere. "I'll show Annie to her room," he says, grabbing me by the elbow and practically dragging me through the corridor. We stop at a dark wooden door. I enter the room, and when he's sure no one's looking, Finnick steps in and closes the door behind him.
"Annie, listen to me. Your reaping was no mistake," Finnick says in a hushed voice. "What are you talking about?" I ask. "The Capitol knows about you and me. They think you're interfering with my…" his voice trails off. Although we both know that there's no other word for them than customers, neither of us acknowledges it. "Never mind. Point is, the President wants you dead, and every single one of those slips had your name on them."
My vision becomes dotted with black spots, and my legs wobble beneath me. If I felt sick before, it's nothing compared to what I feel like now. "How did you know that?" Finnick looks down at his feet, chewing on his lower lip nervously. "What am I supposed to do, Finn?" I whimper. Finnick takes a step closer and gently tucks a piece of hair behind my ear. I've half a mind to push him away, tell him that this is exactly the kind of thing that puts me on the President's hit list, but instead I find myself reaching for his hand and pressing it to my check.
Finnick's eyes lock with mine. His lips are turned up in an almost apologetic smile. "You'll have to win, Annie."
Finnick exits the room, leaving me to my thoughts. I sit down on the edge of the huge bed in the center of my room. My fingers run over the soft wool blanket as I stare off into space. It isn't until now that I remember my mother's gift, still clenched tightly in my hand. I release my fingers, and in my palm lies a simple seashell tinted a light peachy color. I remember seeing it in my mother's hair once or twice, and sure enough, when I turn it around, I find a clip glued to the back.
A sharp knock on the door startles me. Before I can permit her in, Roni pokes her head inside. "Dinner is in an hour, sweetie pie. You can wear whatever you want from that dresser, and if you need something, just find an attendant. The bathroom is over there," she says, gesturing to a door that I hadn't noticed before. I nod and she disappears into the corridor.
After a while, I stand up on shaky legs and walk into the bathroom. I turn on the sink and put my hands under the running water, and immediately pull them away when I find that it's scalding hot. It takes a minute or two of adjusting the knobs to make the water a bearable temperature. I rinse off my face and pat it dry with a fluffy towel on the counter.
When I look in the mirror, I see a girl who looks far too tired and worried. I see a girl who is scared out of her wits. A girl that has no clue what awaits her in the weeks to come. A girl that, if she makes it out of the Hunger Games alive, will have to spend the rest of her life afraid of being anywhere close to her best friend, knowing that even the slightest sign of affection could mean both their deaths.
I leave the bathroom, not wanting to look at my reflection anymore. Back in the main part of my quarters, the large dresser in the corner catches my eye. I open every single drawer, finding piles of neatly folded clothing in each one. My curiosity gets the best of me and I end up taking out all the garments and holding them up to my body, admiring them in the full length mirror. This game of dress-up temporarily distracts me from all that's wrong in my world right now, but I know that I can't avoid the Games forever. In the end I settle on a baby blue shirt with long flowing sleeves and a pair of black slacks. I slip back into the white sandals I wore at the Reaping. Before I leave my room, I clip back a small section of my dark hair near my face with the seashell barrette.
Instead of asking someone where the dining room is, I roam the seemingly endless corridor until I hear Roni's high pitched laugh from behind a set of double doors. When I push them open, I see a long table set with the finest china I've ever seen. On one side of the table sits Finnick and an older woman that everyone calls Mags, who won her Games decades ago. Opposite them are two chairs- one occupied by Keld Bramson, and the other I assume is for me- and at the end of the table sits Roni Salinas, laughing at something that apparently no one else found funny.
"Oh, there you are! I thought you'd never show up!" Roni exclaims. I shrug. "I got distracted by the clothes," I say, and this brings about a round of laughter from everyone at the table, and even Finnick sports a smile. The pleased expression on Roni's face tells me that I've earned her respect. As a girl from the Capitol, fashion must be all that she ever talks about. "I can't blame you for that," she remarks with a wink.
I slide into the chair next to Keld and three chefs walk out of a door that must lead into a kitchen. One places a large covered dish in the middle of the table while another goes around and fills our glasses with a deep red liquid that I recognize as wine. The third lifts the cover off the dish and reveals a large bowl with a soup that smells divine. He dips a ladle into the bowl and scoops the soup into each of our own tiny bowls, and when we're all served, the three chefs bow and retreat back into the kitchen.
The soup is rich and creamy, filled with all sorts of vegetables and chunks of meat. I eat a spoonful and it warms me from head to toe. It's so delicious that it takes all my willpower not to pick up the bowl and pour it into my mouth, but I mind my manners and take small bites. Roni suggests Keld and I tell our mentors about ourselves. Keld doesn't have much to say, only that he grew up with four brothers and that he works as a fisherman, but I'd rather come off likeable and friendly than surly and unapproachable, so I begin to babble about meaningless things.
I feel silly telling Finnick about my life, since he's been there for most of it, but I know that I must now pretend not to know him as well as I do for my own safety. During the third course of the meal, when everyone else is distracted by their plate of roasted turkey, Finnick makes eye contact with me and gives me a small approving nod.
I begin to regret eating so much after dessert- red velvet cake with buttercream icing. Even as a resident of one of the wealthier districts of Panem, I've never had this much to eat in one sitting. I exchange a look with Keld Bramson, who is looking just as sickly as I am.
After the table is cleared, Keld and I follow Roni and our mentors into a different compartment where we view the reapings in all the other districts. As always, the kids from District 1 and 2 look well-built and ready to kill. District 3 plays through, and then the words District 4 flash across the scene. My name is called, and the camera finds me in the crowd. I'm embarrassed when they show the girl next to me poking me, telling me to go up. When I mount the stage and smile, the announcers point out that I made a quick comeback after my moment of shock. They say I look like a confident young woman.
"Confident young woman" is nothing in comparison to the praise Keld gets. They talk about his brother, even show a short clip of his reaping. The odds are most definitely not in my favor here.
Nobody sticks in my mind until the program gets to District 9, when a girl with flowing blonde hair and crystal-like blue eyes is reaped. Her full figure and dazzling smile will be a good asset for her. A tall girl from District 11 with broad shoulders and more muscle than I could ever dream of having has a sly look in her eye that tells me her strategy won't be based on just brute force. The tributes from 12 have matching dark hair and olive skin, and their grey eyes have a dead look to them. I always feel the worst about 12, which has people dropping dead of starvation every day. They don't need the heartache of another two kids dying every single year.
When the recap is over, I bid everyone goodnight and make my way to my room. I slip into a purple silk nightgown that makes me feel like I'm encased in the warm currents of District 4's ocean. The thought of home comforts me, but at the same time makes me feel more scared than ever. I wonder what my parents are doing right now. Have they stopped crying? How will they handle the next few weeks? My father had a drink or two, no doubt. Maybe more. I pray that he'll stay strong for my mother, keep her distracted so that she won't have to endure the pain of knowing that I could be dead any moment.
I crawl into bed and pull the warm wool covers around me. I stare up at the ceiling in the dark. For the first time today, I let the tears fall freely from my eyes. They roll down my cheeks, soaking my pillow and my hair. I stay like that for a long while, curled up in bed. My head feels like it's going to explode any second. Too much has happened to me today.
I remember when Finnick came back from his Games. The way his eyes, usually so filled with life, looked hollow. He'd jump at the slightest noise, and try to avoid anything that reminded him of the horrors of the arena. He stopped fishing. He even stayed away from me for a while because my family's fishing net business only brought back the memory of entangling his fellow tributes in his woven net and spearing them with his trident.
Slowly, ever so slowly, Finnick began to come back to me. We would sit on the beach, skipping stones on the water's surface like we used to, back before he was reaped. He started talking to me more, sharing with me the pain of his time in the arena. Things started going back to normal, up until the Victory Tour.
Halfway between the annual Games, Finnick was forced to tour the Districts, to celebrate his victory with the very people whose children he had killed. He became even more popular in the Capitol, so popular that during his absence, he was sent no less than 543 bouquets of flowers, and so many more letters of the Capitol citizens confessing their undying love for him.
His popularity didn't go unnoticed.
When he returned home from the Victory Tour that year, he started getting weekly visitors from the Capitol. Female visitors. I thought nothing of it at first, but once the visitors started to come nearly every day, I figured it out.
It was a warm night in August, a few years after the Games. The two of us were on the beach, watching the sun set on the horizon. "Finnick," I began, picking at a loose thread on my shirt, "How many women have you slept with?"
The question took him by surprise. "W-what are you talking about?" he stammered. I stood up from my perch on the sand, putting my hands on my hips like a mother lecturing her child. "You heard me. How many, Finn? Twenty? Thirty?" I demanded. Finnick stood as well, his face just inches from mine. "I have no choice," he snapped.
"After the Victory Tour, President Snow himself came to visit me. Told me that my handsome face was something of a legend in the Capitol," said Finnick. "He said that I'd be receiving some visitors, and if I met their desires, I'd be paid for my efforts."
I felt as though someone had punched me in the stomach. "You don't mean…" Finnick nodded solemnly. "He mentioned that I should take into consideration the safety of my loved ones. Showed me pictures of my dad, of you and me on the beach. I'm only doing this to keep you safe, Annie."
Finnick began to walk away. "Wait!" I said, grabbing him by the shoulder. He shrugged me off and kept going. "Finn, please, talk to me," I begged. "I'm sorry, I didn't know!" Then he suddenly turned around, took my face in his hands, and pressed his lips to mine.
I remember how he tasted like tears and sorrow. How my fingers ended up entwined in his hair, pulling him as close to me as possible, as the sky around us went dark. How when we broke apart, he held me in his arms as I wept, telling me how sorry he was that it had to be this way.
Now as I lay here in my bed as the train is speeding off to the Capitol, all I can think of is Finnick. I wonder if that kiss will be our last, if I only have the next week to spend with him. I wipe the tears from my cheeks with the back of my hand and flip my pillow over so the dry side is facing up. I'm so exhausted that when I close my eyes, I fall asleep almost instantaneously.
When I awaken, all I can see is purple. I rub the sleep from my eyes and blink until I can see more clearly. I'm staring into the face of Roni Salinas, her bubblegum pink eyes an inch from mine. "Good morning!" she shouts. I groan and roll over. "What time is it?" I mumble into the pillow. "Four o'clock! We're just arriving in the Capitol, so get your cutie-patootie self out of bed and get dressed," Roni tells me. She stops to straighten out a painting on the wall before leaving my room.
I lay in bed for a minute, my eyes still adjusting to the dim light. I throw the covers to the ground and stretch my limbs. The clothing I left in a pile on the floor is gone, and has been replaced with an outfit I assume I'm to wear. I stand up and pick it off the floor. A pink v-neck shirt made of soft cotton. A white skirt with a flower pattern embroidered in black velvet. My white sandals from yesterday. When I put them on, I find that they fit perfectly. I take a quick look in the mirror in the bathroom and run my fingers through my hair. After repositioning my seashell barrette, I take a step back and examine myself. I look very girly, and not to sound vain, but very pretty in a natural, simple way. Whoever my stylist is must have decided to play up my large, round, sea-green eyes, the gap between my two front teeth, and the freckles that make me appear much younger than seventeen.
I leave my room and find my way back to the dining room. Mags is sitting down in her chair, holding a mug of coffee in her hands. Keld's head is resting on the table with his eyes closed. Finnick is nowhere to be found, and Roni seems to be the only one who's really awake. She's gazing out the wide window, and I see a faint image of a rather barren landscape zooming past. Suddenly the car goes dark, save for the chandelier hanging above the table. Keld Bramson snaps awake. "What's going on?" he asks groggily. He's dressed in simple blue jeans, a black t-shirt, and black shoes. Roni turns around and smiles at us. "We're nearly there!" she says excitedly. She steps back for Keld and me to peer out the window. Never have seeing the Capitol before, I stand in front of it, eagerly waiting for the train to pass through the tunnel that leads into the city.
When the darkness ends, it reveals what seems to be an alternate universe. The tall, colorful buildings touch the clouds, and the streets, although deserted, are filled with life. In shop windows are mannequins wearing the brighty colored apparel of the Capitol. Keld joins me and his jaw drops in awe. We stare in disbelief at the city; even press our noses against the window.
The train rolls into the station and the Capitol is blocked from our view. Keld retreats to his chair and Finnick walks into the compartment. "Did I miss anything?" he asks with a yawn. "We're here," says Mags, taking a sip of her coffee. Finnick rolls his eyes. "Fantastic," he grumbles sarcastically, earning himself a nasty look from Roni Salinas. He snatches the mug of coffee from Mags' hands and takes long drink from it.
"Come on, you two, you've got a big, big day ahead of you!" says Roni. She links her elbow with mine and pulls me away from the window. Keld looks very disgruntled when she does the same to him. Roni leads us out of the compartment and down the corridor to the door that leads outside of the train. The door slides open and Roni reminds us, "Big smiles!"
To my surprise, a huge group of reporters has risen early enough to meet us at the station. Microphones are shoved in my face, and cameras follow me the whole eight steps that it takes to reach the waiting car that will take Keld and me to the remake center. I flash a huge smile, wave at the cameras, and then I duck into the car, bracing myself for the big, big day ahead of me.