**Disclaimer**- I am NOT an experienced writer. This is my first Fanfiction piece and I am still getting used to writing this type of material. I am not trying to write like Suzanne Collins, just honor her work. I would appreciate constructive criticism but keep in mind that I am new to this. Thank you and I hope you enjoy reading! :)
Chapter 1
The sound of an axe cutting down a tree jerks me awake. "Could you be any louder at six in the morning?" I call through the window to my obnoxious cousins. "Cheer up Will, today's the day", Mason shouted back at me. As if today was a reason to be effervescent. This is reaping day. Putting on my usual violet colored hiking boots I head off from my room into the conflicting aroma of our living room, which smells like soap and the start of a delicious turkey already cooking. I pass mother and the twins with a half-hearted hello and goodbye. I am late on my daily morning route, and being forced to take the hazardous shortcut over the stream. Trudging through the woods is never easy. But is one of the only forests in District seven that I can walk through without sporadic logs all over. By the time I reach the shop it is already on the verge of nine o'clock. The shop is in the center of town and owned by three of the best carpenters in District 7. Those three men are my father, Uncle Gavin and Uncle Bo. Their jobs at the shop are to make beautiful wooden furniture for the capitol from the highly distinguishable forests of our district. However my chore is not as glamorous, I arrive at the ever familiar shop most mornings to tidy up each workroom and make sure all the tools are in order. Most kids at my school have jobs too. I shouldn't complain since several students dropped out this past year to do hard labor to support their families. That's just how it works in District 7 I suppose. Our district is rather large, we have six schools that contain over three thousand kids. Every year two of them get selected to compete in The Hunger Games. I have only known one person my whole life who was reaped. Barry was in my second grade class but that's all I really remembered about him. His death was tragic, his own ally impaled him with a sword two years ago. When I heard the canon blow I became sick, although I didn't know him well it is difficult to grasp watching someone you knew disappear from the world. That's why I try to avoid the public viewing if it's possible. To see children fight to the death should make your stomach turn I think, yet everyone else believes it to be the normal. I'm positive everyone else has their opinions but they choose to keep it to themselves. I keep my spirits up by thinking of our family having a hearty meal for the first time in weeks. The family business does fairly well in comparison to other citizens of seven but we aren't wealthy by any means. Mother and Aunt Polina usually cook a celebratory feast the day of the reaping to thank god for the fact that one of the children didn't get selected as a tribute. There are five people eligible to get reaped in our house, my four cousins and myself. Benella and Orly are the twin daughters of Uncle Gavin and Aunt Polina. They are my age, fifteen, but I don't find myself hanging around them at school. You could never guess we were related and grew up in the same home. They are the most well known girls in our school and I am not. Benella is smart and lovely, I can't help but be reminded of my mother when I look at her. She has a flawless porcelain complexion and smooth golden locks. Although she is prettier than her sister she is not vain like her. Orly is conceited and not very bright. The twins are identical but there is something about Benella that makes her naturally beautiful. Wilbur and Mason are the sons of my Uncle Bo and my late Aunt Dianna. Wilbur is about to celebrate his nineteenth birthday in just a few weeks, unfortunately not in time for his name to be taken out of the many in the reaping bowl. He is tough and stands over six feet tall. Many of my friends find him attractive but his looks are nothing special. It's safe to say Wilbur is the toughest man his age. Mason is closer to my age, only seventeen and so far is following in his brother's footsteps. The thing that stands out most to me about him is his compassion. He is the only person around here with whom I can express my true feelings without feeling judged. He has an athletic build similar to his brother but is slightly smaller. People often mistake us for brother and sister because we both have big blue round eyes and thick ash-brown hair. I am the only child of my mother and father. They never had another baby although they longed to have a son. Up until the moment I was born my name would be Willoughby after the willow tree. Mother loved the name so much she kept it but decided on calling me Willa. I get complimented on my name often and I have grown to like it. Ten people in one house isn't easy but we manage. As for the reaping goes, with five children, the odds are not exactly in the Prowlers' favor. Uncle Bo walks into the shop and greets me with a giant bear hug, like his sons he is quite immense.
"What's wrong sweetheart, reaping day got you down?" he asks while setting his tools down on the work bench. "A little nervous, I guess" I answer somewhat abashed. "There's thousands of names in there, the odds are slim to none" Uncle Bo doesn't seem reassured himself. No doubt he is a little uneasy about the situation too. We rarely have victors of the games from District 7. The Career Tributes, as they are called are at an advantage. Children from Districts one and two are trained to kill and volunteer at the reaping. If they win, great riches come to them and their district. Once in a blue moon an underdog will surpass the careers, but not often. Giving Bo an uneasy nod, I went on hastily completing my chores. I head home in give me enough time to put on my reaping dress. It's the most elegant piece of clothing I will ever own. Aunt Dianna hand made all the girls' reaping dresses. My dress is a warm ivory color made of silk and gold buttons down the back, it is one of the most elegant in the district, since Dianna was the only seamstress in the district. I prefer getting ready in my parent's room since Benella and Orly take at least two hours to prepare for the reaping. In the living room sits the boys fidgeting around with their uncomfortable clothing. "How much longer do we have to wear this?" Mason complains.
"Who cares we get to eat all the turkey we want afterwards" Wilbur says. Then they look over at me standing under the doorway. "Wow Willa you actually look like a girl today" he jokes again. Wilbur's jokes don't annoy me at all, I appreciate how he can be humorous in a situation like this. "You don't look too bad yourself" I reply. Wilbur is usually disheveled at this time of day since he chops down trees for our fathers and this is the only time you will see him polished in the daylight. Mason spins me around on the wooden floor comically pretending as if we were capitol citizens at a fancy party. The twins finally join us and we head off to the Justice building. It stands out like a sore thumb in District seven, most buildings are wooden around here and The Justice building is metal and very capitol-esque. I've been in there plenty of times to pick up the furniture orders from the capitol, I get excited for those trips because I get to have a taste of lavish and elegant living. Most government officials of district seven live in there and it serves as a communication hub between us and the Capitol. The lot outside of the Justice building fills with hundreds of kids, some faces I recognize, others are not foreign. I stay close to my cousins as i'm searching for my friends but they are nowhere to be found. Once the area is filled up, Peacekeepers are starting to make the crowd split down the middle so the person reaped can walk up to the stage. The Capitol escort for our district strides onto the stage and clears his throat into the microphone. "Happy Hunger Games, boys and girls!" says Cassius Finch in his Capitol accent. He is an odd man with fiery orange hair and silver lips. He can barely reach the podium so a few peacekeepers provide him with a stool. Nobody applauds, this is not a joyous occasion. "In just a few minutes, two brave tributes will be chosen to compete in the sixty-seventh annual Hunger Games." His speech is extremely repetitive every year and I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same for every other district. They then show the yearly video explaining how in the wake of the rebellion, the Capitol established the Hunger Games, an annual event in which twenty-four children between the ages of twelve and eighteen, one boy and one girl from each district, are chosen from the reaping and entered into a competition where they must fight each other to the death until only one remains standing.
The event serves two purposes. The first is to demonstrate the overwhelming power the Capitol has over the districts by taking their children by force and forcing them to slay each other in a no-rules competition. It's proof that the Capitol's control over us is so unstoppable that they could do something so inhuman to force the children of their people to slay each other in a The second purpose was purely for entertainment. The Capitol citizens thrive off watching it every year, but they don't have to offer up any children.
"And now for our male tribute" Cassius says. I grab onto Mason's hand as Cassius reaches into the reaping bowl. Please don't be Mason, Please don't be Wilbur I keep repeating to myself. "Finn Anderson", he exclaims. Nobody approaches the stage. He repeats the name a few times until I see a tall, timid boy mount the stage. Finn Anderson I think, but I don't recognize the name until I see his face. He goes to my school and is one year ahead of me, I turn to Mason who is the same age. "Do you know that boy?",I ask.
"Yea but he's really shy, I don't think i've ever heard him speak." My heart breaks as I look over at Finn's screaming father being withheld by Peacekeepers, now I know who he is. Finn's mother was also killed in the forest fire. Just like Aunt Dianna. Who does Mr. Anderson have now? His wife is gone and now his son will be too, courtesy of the Capitol. After congratulating Finn, Cassius now is ready to announce the female tribute. I seek the comfort of the twins. Orly is more concerned about the wind messing up her freshly done hair. Benella seems uneasy so I hold her hand to reassure her. I am close enough to see that Cassius accidentally picked out two slips instead of one, he puts one back in the jar. Unfolding the other slip, he appears to be struggling with the name. "Willoughby Prowly." I freeze in my own body and the world around me stops. Benella lets go of my hand and everyone turns to face my family. Who would have thought one of the Prowler children would be reaped. Slowly advancing towards the stage I take my death walk. "Well it looks like we have our tributes! Finn Anderson and Willoughby Prowler" Cassius says. The crowd is silent although we can hear the faint sound of our families weeping among the thousands of people. "Willa, my name is Willa." I announce into the microphone still in a daze. Cassius continues to ramble on but his high pitched voice is fading in and out. My vision is becoming blurred as I scan the crowd. I lose my balance in enough time for the Peacekeepers to hold me back up. Next thing I know I'm being led into the Justice building along with Finn and we are separated into two equally luxurious rooms before we get shipped off to the Capitol. I want to cry but my body is still in shock. Instead, I sit patiently and plan my goodbyes. The door cracks open and I rush towards my mother and father, they hold me for a minute until I manage to say something. "It's okay, I'll fight for you" this only makes my mother more upset. "We believe in you, all you have to do is be the amazing strong girl you are and the sponsors will help you get back to us," My dad says. He was never a good liar. He knows I won't last a day in the arena. I give my final farewells to the two people I love the most and I pray this won't be the last time I see their faces. The guards rush them out since we only get an allotted time with our families. My four cousins are up next. They all surround me, powering over one another to try to say their last words, but a sudden rage burns up inside me. Fury at the Capitol for every child's life they have taken away over the years, anger regarding the name on the slip in which Cassius chose to save, resentment towards my tenacious male cousins who decided upon not volunteering for their helpless cousin. Most of all, aggravation towards myself for not appreciating every second I had with my family. "Enough!" I shriek. At this point, I start to lament. That shut them up. "You can't go, Willa" Orly said. "How will we go along without you?" this is the first time I have ever heard her say something considerate towards me, or anyone in that matter. "We know you can do it, your smarter than anyone I have ever met," Mason says. Wilbur joins in, "If you can't beat them I don't know who can." Maybe I've had siblings all along, I think. Before I can let out my last regards, the peacekeeper gives me another warning. I hug and kiss each one on the cheek and they are gone. I have stopped crying because I know in a few minutes there will be cameras filming me board the Capitol train. Finally I can exchange my goodbyes with my aunt and uncles. They are my second parents and it pains me to see them leave just as much as my real parents. Aunt Polina gives me a present, my violet leather hiking boots. My memory flashes back to my twelfth birthday when she originally gave me those boots in hopes of me helping the boys chop down logs outside our house. I felt so special wearing them since the only colors you really see around here are neutrals. It's refreshing to see a pop of pastel in the wildflowers or on someone's clothing. Then a question pops into my head. "Polina, how did you get this boots to be purple", I ask her. She smiles at me, "I had been searching around the town square for a present for you until something caught my eye. An old pair of brown boots that looked so comfortable and only needed a little bit of repair, so I bought them. On the way home, I came across the fruit market and one of the workers was about to throw away a barrel of rotten berries so I asked if I could take them, and I used the berries to die your shoes purple." Now I am proud that this is the one thing I can bring in the arena from home. This is the last conversation I will ever have with my Aunt Polina. Uncle Bo and Gavin hug me, bid me their goodbyes and then they have to leave. I'm devastated that I wasn't able to see my friends one last time but in the short time we had, family comes first. Always. I am reunited with my opponent and we embark on our journey to the Capitol in the tribute train. I stare out the window and watch everything I have ever known and loved vanish before my eyes.