Disclaimer: I don't own THG, as I hope you can see. Everything belongs to Suzanne Collins!

July 11 was the day that my life ended.

It started off normally- my sister, Katniss, was comparing school work to after-school activities, fussing over priorities and importance.

I was sitting in my usual spot, drawing a flower on a piece of lines paper that I had found earlier on the floor. It was a well-known fact that I wasn't an avid drawer, but I took drawing on as a hobby, helping me focus in times of worry. Later, I took it on as a habit, doodling on the corners of math sheets, printing my name in all caps.

To me, at the time, I found life as repetitive. Same story everyday, same routine, same people smiling at you, trying to catch your attention. I thought of human life like the death of a fly- it really doesn't matter. To me, reading that 110,000 Germans died in a battle in WWII doesn't affect me, it was just a huge number.

This perception was swiftly altered by a few key events, which changed my definition of life forever.

My mother was sitting in a corner, knitting a blue scarf out of wool. I would like how to knit someday- it sounds fascinating, and I loved the idea of making your own clothes. I was discouraged, however, by my sister Katniss who threw the tools on the floor in frustration after failing for the 5th time. Sometimes, you can't improve at things, no matter how much you try.

My father was attacking a crossword puzzle. His curly, unruly hair was drifting in his face, getting in the way of his glasses. He blew a breeze from the side if his mouth, pushing the curls away for a second, but his efforts were in vain, for they fell in his face again.

My mother frowned, as she touch a patch of her scarf. It was missing something, some charisma was gone. It needed a spark to bring the whole piece together, to help it come to life. I knew that feeling. It happened every time I glanced at a report that I wrote. It wasn't good enough- it needed something more.

"Katniss?" asked my mother tentatively, not wanting to be the one to break the tension. "Can you fetch the pink wool for me please? If you can find the sparkles, can you bring that too?"

Katniss was sorely irritated for being interrupted from her intense math. She responded exasperatedly, speaking quickly, annoyed with my mothers simple words. "Why can't you make Prim get it? Can't you see that I'm working right now? I'm busy, just... stop talking!" I bit my lip. Katniss wasn't one to act like this- she tried to do as much for me as possible, and was considerate. She was quick to anger, though, a flaw that was going to eventually bring her to her doom. My mother was calm, carefree, so it wasn't surprising that she had calmly folded her hands into her lap, and turned to me. "Prim? Could-"

My father stood up abruptly. I took my head out if my work to stare at him, astonished. Nothing could bring him out of his daily crossword, so I knew something was up. Dad was a diligent and passionate worker, and nothing minuscule could distract him.

"Excuse me, Katniss? I know you are upset, I know you are anxious for your test. But under no circumstances may you speak to your mother like that. Do you understand me?" My father wasn't really angry. I got the feeling that he was looking for an excuse to scream, and Katniss was the first excuse he came upon. What he was angry about, I don't know, but I'm positive it had something to do with his crossword. Dad and Katniss were like bombs- if you sent them off, they exploded. Suspecting an interesting fight, I put down the sketch pad and glanced at them eagerly. This was going to be one for the books...

Katniss arched her jaw. "'Excuse me?'" She mimicked my father, using a high pitched voice instead of a deep bellow. "Why can't you listen to me for once? I mean, seriously, why do you have to always argue with me? Would it hurt to do as I say?"

My mother clucked, and muttered, "Here we go again," still not looking up from her scarf. Both of us knew that there was no point in breaking up the fight. Then we would get sucked in, and the fight was going to be even broader than it was before. Anyway, fights between father and daughter weren't uncommon in the Everdeen household.

"Why can't I listen to you?! I always listen to you! You never turn your UNDIVIDED attention to me!" The way he bellowed made me flinch, but Katniss stood up as defiantly as before. A screaming match followed, and I pressed my hands over my ears, moaning. I tried to block out all the wailing, the screeching, the pounding in my heart (which felt like it was going to blow up).

Finally my father stood up. His face was set deep into a scowl identical to my sister's. "I'm leaving!" He announced. None of us responded. In our household, we find it easier to concentrate when a bowl of ice-cream was in front of us. My father claimed that ice-cream we kept at home was "no good" and that whenever one of us was in a scandal, we had to go to the ice-cream parlor across town. So it was no surprise when my father picked up the keys to our Honda, and stepped into to the car.

It was a surprise when he never came back. After the first thirty minutes, we assumed it was traffic. In my head, I couldn't believe that was true, but by the way Katniss was biting her fingernails and my mother glanced around worriedly, I decided not to bring it up.

Two hours later, and after many phone calls, Katniss stood. "I know it's far, but I'm going to walk to the parlor." We had no other car, and the distance from our house to the ice-cream parlor was thirty miles. I raised my eyebrows in disbelief, and she sighed impatiently.

Just as she was about to step out the door, a piercing ring filled the whole house. Katniss's ringtone shook the room, and smiling, she fumbled her fingers over the couch to find it. She grabbed a small, red metal device, and raised it up in triumph. "Hello?" she asked timidly into the phone. Katniss narrowed her brow. "Yes, this is the Everdeen household. Why-" Her confused stare turned into a look of pure terror. She put her hands to her heart and sank to her knees. It made her look vulnerable for the first time, and I was afraid. What news could make my sister so terrified, reduced to nothing but sadness?

At that moment, Katniss dropped the phone. We all saw it hit the ground, we all saw it shatter on the floor, Katniss's face frozen, oblivious to anything that happened. The effect on the room was instantaneous.

Hey everyone! My name is Caroline, and I'm 12 years old. I've been having trouble with my essays lately, I've been getting bad grades :( Could you leave a review and tell me what I'm doing wrong? This is a MULTI-CHAPTER fic, just to let you know ;)

Acknowledgements go to everyone that reviewed on my last fic, Miracles and Angels!

-Caroline