Story title: Rules of the Moonlighter
#. 1 Look out for your own
Waking up to someone crying incredibly loudly was what Delaney expected today in her somewhat small cottage. Looking to the side of the open room she saw Marcus, one of the newer children, crying as he held on to his older sister, Carrie, for dear life.
"I don't want you to go! It's not fair!" He cried as he continued to wail, all the other kids not having the heart to yell at him for the early morning wakeup call, not today at least.
"Shush, Marcus, everything will be fine. I'm not going anywhere." Carrie tried to reassure but looking into her eyes I could clearly see her doubt which I didn't blame her for. With all the mouths we need to feed all those of age take a tesserae though we're sure to always split it amongst ourselves evenly so there isn't an excessive amount on one person. Standing up I walk over to the pair and put a hand on Marcus's head getting him to look up at me.
"Don't worry Marcus, nothing will happen to your sister, I promise." Marcus stopped his crying, hiccupping slightly and nodded, putting his trust in the person who had taken him in after his parents died and his relatives abandoned him and his sister. I smiled at him, ruffling his hair as I walked to the joined kitchen and living room where a ton of hungry kids were waiting sullenly for breakfast. In the tiny kitchen stood Jayden, the designated cook, mainly due to the fact he was the only one out of us all who could cook a meal that's both large and somewhat edible.
"Morning Jay, how's the food?" I ask quickly getting kids to sit in place as I help Jayden serve the 20 something amount of mouths. Jayden looks at me and I already know its bad news.
"We'll have enough for a while, though I'm not sure if we'll be able to hold out for the next tesserae. Maybe if the older kids work overtime it might help a bit." I nod thinking of how many hours the others would have to work in order to get enough to feed and clothe everyone. Smirking slightly I look at Jayden and reply, "If all else fails we'll have to lighten some loads around here as well though I'm sure some game would help." Jayden nods knowing I'm referring to our more illegal activities of stealing and hunting, both of which are punishable by death.
After the somber breakfast where all the kids twelve and up look very downcast I quickly order them all to get dressed before inspecting them all to make sure they at least look decent in the hand-me-downs. Nodding I remind all the kids to stick with people in their own age groups and to try and stay strong. As we make our way to the town center we're joined by others of the gang, though the older ones only come to guide the young ones and wish us all good luck. I look around at all the gang that is going into the reaping and shake my head in worry. I know that at least one of us will be chosen out of the 27 that are between the ages of 12 and 18, I being one of them. Though we've had a streak of good luck for 4 years and none of ours had been picked but, this year we were larger [16 girls and 11 boys old enough to be tributes, 12 children waiting a few more years, altogether 39 kids to feed and look after and worry about] I could only hope.
As always I stand with my group, those in my gang stand around me for support, dividing ourselves from the other kids who look at us either in indifference or hate. The other districts can't really tell but within district 7, we are far more divided during the reaping's then simply by gender and age. There were little 'clicks' within district 7, the haves and the have not's, the Bluebloods and the Moonlighters as we are called. Basically the Moonlighters were all street kids, no family or homes except for the ones we work and all contribute to. We're a large gang actually with 7 members old enough to work and not worry about the games, allowing for us to have a grand total of 3 houses in all, which 39 of us kids live in, coming to a grand total of 46 people in the gang. The living conditions are 'cozy' but the company and safety we get is a well worth trade-off, who can argue over how food tastes every day and have a dry, warm place to sleep. Even if that sleeping place is filled with about 15 other people in a house meant for 6 at the most.
Pulled from my thoughts by obnoxious clapping I tune back in to notice that I had missed the traditional video explaining the hunger games, a constant reminder of our defiance, though it wasn't our own but our ancestors. The escort for district 7, Minnie something or other I think, turns back to the crowd, the only one clapping excitedly though the mayor claps out of half-hearted need.
"Well now it's time to begin the reaping! Girls first, as always." Reaching into the bowl fill with slips, I begin to think of our odds. In that bowl are hundreds of slips, out of those hundreds at least a fifth of them were ours. I watch in the same hated silence as the other girls waiting for a name, just one name t-
"Carrie Underwood!" My mind blanks as I stare in dejection at the name that Minnie had just called, hearing but not hearing Marcus begin screaming from within the watching crowd as Kayden, an elder member, holds him back from running to his older sister. I watch as Carrie slowly walks towards the stage, wide eyed and shaken for all to see. She can't do this, she knows it, I know it and all of Panem watching knows it. She won't win like that, she's already resigned herself to dying, to never seeing her brother again, the last piece of the blood-family she has left. She gets to the top of the stage and we all watch silently as Minnie, pleased, begins to walk towards the boys bowl. She reaches in when-
"You didn't ask for volunteers." Everything freezes in that moment and I'm sure the cameras are now focused on me, the girl who spoke out during the reaping, but I'm not paying attention as my eyes are now locked with Carrie and I see her begin to widen her eyes in realization of what comes next.
"Well then, would anyone like to volunteer?" Immediately I walk forward stating, "I volunteer as tribute." I can feel the gangs' eyes on me as I walk towards the stage, Carrie passing me on her way back into the crowd but she stops me by grabbing my elbow, the peacekeepers tensing to break us apart when she speaks.
"Why are you doing this Delaney? They need you." I look her straight in the eye and reply with what I always tell new recruits, our mantra, and our number one rule in our family of thieves, beggars and unwanted souls.
"We look after our own, Carrie. You're family and Marcus is family too and he needs you, more then he'll need me." Not able to look at her anymore I blank my face of emotion, steeling myself as I walk towards the stage, trying not to think of what I'm leaving behind. Kids that rely on me, the others can take care of them. One less paycheck to bring home, the older ones will start working this year. My family, I'll miss them the most but they'll survive. Looking out into the crowd I try not to look at any of them, knowing that such a thing might break me. I feel their eyes staring at me, begging me to say it wasn't so, that this was just a bad dream and the reaping would start the next day and it wouldn't be one of us that left.
But it's not a dream, this is the reaping of the 74th annual hunger games and one of us was chosen and I took their place. This was reality and we all knew just how cruel reality is. I continue to stare straight ahead as Minnie finally addresses me after gushing about someone volunteering from our backwoods district.
"Well then what's your name dear?" Minnie questioned and I replied as confidently as I could, hoping my voice sounds strong enough. "Delaney Kindle." Minnie looked very excited as she turned to address the starring crowd. I thought back on my answer proud that my voice hadn't wavered or cracked but then again all of us in the gang were good actors. And if you weren't a good actor you learned quickly.
"Let's hear a round of applause for our volunteer!" No one claps, not a single one. And then I see Jayden raise his hand in the air, Marcus then Carrie following. Slowly my entire gang raises their hands, even the others, kids who were ignorant or chose to ignore the feud, raise their hands, heck even those bastards raise their hand, though it's very grudgingly. I watch holding back tears as they all simultaneously bring those hands to their hearts, knowing this as the sign of love and respect for all of district 7. A sign that clearly says, 'we will miss you, you'll be in our hearts,' and I think my heart bursts in love and thanks to them all, but I don't show it with tears but with a smirk, the smirk my gang knows all too well. It's a smirk that speaks of my confidence but also my pride in the others when they do something great and I see them smile, most of them through tears, all of them with sad faces. I wonder at how I must look a smirking girl, who looks far too confident for her size and her background, but I know and my gang knows that my looks are deceiving.
Minnie moved on calling out the male tribute, Daren Houser. I had to force down a snarl, a Blueblood who made a show of looking just as disdainfully at me as I was looking at him. We kept civil though, shaking and trying not to look completely stupid in front of the cameras. As we shook hands and when we looked in each other's eyes you could see the challenge and resentment there. We both knew that there would be no true 'district unity' in these hunger games and that we would have to look elsewhere for alliances if we even formed any. A Blueblood and a Moonlighter simply don't mix, like children with matches in these dry woods we cause nothing but destruction when near each other.
I don't pay attention to Minnie anymore and simply walk where instructed on my way to the justice building. I'm lucky they allow friends in as I have no family, no blood-family anyway the gang was family to me anyway, though I'm sure some of them won't be present as we only have a few minutes to say goodbye.
I was right Jayden, Carrie, Marcus and Tyler were the ones to come say goodbye, seeing Tyler made me begin to actually tear up. Tyler was the one who saved me, who helped me live, without him I'd be nothing, without him I'd be dead already. He was my idol, an insurmountable person who could do no wrong and stood above all others in my eyes.
"Now, now none of that, Itsy-bitsy. Crying always makes your face look even more disgusting." Tyler was always a jerk, even when I can tell he's about to cry too.
"Speak for yourself; I can see those tears in your eyes princess." I try to grin at him like I always do but can tell it falls short by the sadness that grows in their eyes. Marcus is hugging me, bawling. Carrie watches on with an apologetic face. Jayden, he looks so tired and worn down.
"Guys, make sure you keep everything going, this doesn't change anything. Jayden, you'll be luminary-""No, you're Luminary Del, and you'll always be luminary to me." I can tell he doesn't want listen to reason but I have to make him understand. He knows what happens when someone in the gang goes into the games. Even if we come back no one can ever know our relation.
"Jay you know that it has to be done. Even if I come back no one can know about our tie to each other. You have to do it Jay, you'll be a great luminary I know it." I see him turn around in frustration his shoulders shaking and I can't look at his figure anymore knowing he's crying.
Tyler steps towards me and I see him untie a cord around his neck, taking off the necklace that rested there. Grabbing my hand I felt the smooth wood and knew that it was one of Tyler's carvings he did in his free time. Looking down I saw it was a snarling wolf, looking far fiercer then I felt at the moment. Seeing my questioning look he answered my unspoken question. "This is the best carving I've ever done, I was gonna give it to you for your 18 birthday but, you can hang on to it until you get back." Nodding I quickly tie the necklace around my own neck, loving the feel of the wood resting lightly on my clavicles.
They all hug me as the peacekeepers come in and just as the door closes I manage to say. "I'll miss you guys, my family."
As the door closes I think I see a tear go down Tyler's cheek, Tyler the one who was always strong, always brave no matter what. Seeing him cry really hits home what has happened. This is it, in a few days I'll be fighting other children like me to the death, 24 went in and only 1 comes out of the arena and I wonder… Could that 1 be me? Am I good enough to make it; was I even close to matching those pets in districts 1, 2 and 4?
And soon I find myself wishing I could cry too but, I can't knowing that I'll look weak and I can't afford that now. I'll cry once I'm on the train and I hope I can last that long. I think back to all those years ago when Tyler found me, a skinny malnourished little rat of a 7 years old, caught red handed trying to pick his pocket. I remember his grin and him taking me in, the first thing he ever taught me about our gang, my new family.
'Remember, Delaney. We're family here and we look after our own, no matter what. That is the first and most important of our rules.'
I know that Tyler is proud of me and my keeping to the rules. To that rule. I'll always look after my own.
Always.