Chapter 1
"Ah...", I hear Persia spit out as she falls to ground. Caston yells out louder and runs off. Jareda's cannon fired and I run to Persia's side.
"Persia, no!" I felt like crying but I know that I shouldn't in front of her.
"Echo, don't leave me here alone, please.", she breathes out.
"No, I'm not gonna go anywhere!", I tell her.
"I'm not gonna make it, Echo.", she says.
"No, you're going to make it, you're gonna win this game. Be strong Persia! Please!"
"Sit me up against the tree, please", I do as she says, and I ask her why. "The sun is going down, and I wanted to see my last sunset." The hovercraft comes into view and picks up Jareda's body.
"It's not your last sunset! You're a fighter! Fight it, Persia, please! Fight!"
"Echo, I'm not stupid. I'm going down right now, just like the sun. Here take my pin. It's yours now.", she hands me her District token, a mockingjay pin, like my necklace. "Hey, Echo...Stop it. Smile. Come on smile, I want to see that thirteen year old I met in the arena, that one day.", she tells me and I try to smile, but I sort of get a mix of a laughing frown. "Come on before I go, I want to see a smile. Remember what we used to do when you were sad."
"Yes, I do.", I say and nod. I try to give her the smile she asked for, but it's still to hard.
"Yeah, you remember. I use to tickle you!", she pokes my stomach and she's laughing. I try to hold back my laughter but it gets out. "Can you sing to me...my favorite song. Remember the first one you sang when we met...the hanging tree." I couldn't hold my tears in anymore, I was smiling but I was also crying. "Come on...cheer up. I'm going somewhere better than this place.", she wipes tears off my face. "Sing, Echo. You always were the best..."
I begin the song and I watch her slowly fade away. I shake her as I sing the song to keep her awake.
"Are you, are you
Coming to the tree
Where they strung up a man they say murdered three.
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you
Coming to the tree
Where the dead man called out for his love to flee.
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you
Coming to the tree
Where I told you to run so we'd both be free.
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you
Coming to the tree
Wear a necklace of rope, side by side with me.
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree."
"Persia! Persia! Persia, don't go! Please! Don't leave me here alone!" I scream out and realize it was just a dream. I get up from the bed and take a shower. The new house has a better shower than my old house, because the water actually runs in the house. I walk downstairs and notice that I'm alone. Without Brazilia the house is always quite. Ever since she died of a deadly sickness, my parents avoid the new house. They always stay late at work. My dad cuts down trees, and my mom got a job teaching singing in the school.
I sit downstairs on the couch and I turn on the television. It's on a Capital channel where they are talking about the arrangements they are making for me when I arrive there for next months victory tour. They are building a stage in the City Circle where I will have my talent show, and my interview with Ceaser Flickerman. It's been so long since I've been in the Capital fighting for my life against my best friends. I still have nightmares every night, but living in Victor's Village, people are used to hearing people screaming in the middle of the night. I got used to it as soon as I met some of the tortured souls.
My brother, Arslo, avoids me now. When I came home, he called me a killer, and that he never wanted to ever see me. Leo never sticks around long enough to ever talk to him. He either goes to Arslo and his new wife's home, or school. Every time I see him, he quickly runs up to his room, completely wordless. Before the games, he would always be quiet, but now the silence has a certain atmosphere of fear surrounding it. Everyone sees me as a dangerous muttation. When I walk down the street people always move out of the way, even some of the past victors are scared of me. I don't see why though, I won the Hunger Games just like they did, I'm no different then them. I'm a month away from the victory tour, where I will go see the faces of all those District Tribute's families.
I'm always alone. Always. My friends never look at me the same way again. The only person I still talk to is Clair, and my neighbor, Tessa. She's a daughter of Akiliya. Other than them, my parents are in and out within minutes, I only talk to them when they decide to talk to me. The death of Brazilia traumatized them. It was sad because that day in the Justice building was the last time I saw her. She caught the disease while I was still in the arena, and died the day I returned. They tried everything to keep her healthy so when I got here we could get her the treatment she needed, but it didn't work.
I decide to take a walk and see what goes on in my home of District 7. I walk out of the gates of my new home in Victor's Village, and I pass by one of the most disturbed winner's, Adesa, home all the time. We talk from time to time when she doesn't freeze and has one of her episodes. I can always hear her screaming from her house, I ignore it because I know that everyone who lives in these houses is disturbed, and I don't complain because I do the same.
I walk to the Justice building and see groups of people outside talking and children having fun with their wooden toys. I walk all the way to the place where I used to live. The place is still as poor and broken as the day I left it. I see the eyes of people watch me when I pass by. I go up to the door of my old home, and open the door. It creaks so loudly, but I don't care. I've come for something else. I walk over to the small cramp closet that was my room. I open the drawer, and pull out the picture of all the Elites and I. Right next to it is a picture of Sestra and I two years ago. I keep her wooden ball here, right next to her picture. I always come here when I have a rough night, it keeps me relaxed, I can always nap here and when I wake up, feel like everything was the way it was before. Back when Venice and Joel were still alive. Back when Sestra would come knocking on the door to ask if I can go out and teach her something new. Back when I'd go to the Elite Training Grounds once a month and train while seeing my best friends still alive.
I wake up and I have the two picture in my hands, we all look so happy. I stare at the pictures and see all the smiling faces. I couldn't help but break down. I start crying, and I hear a commotion from outside. I put the robe that I've left in the house over myself, pull the hood over my head, and I walk outside to see what was going on. I ask my old neighbor, Crestria, what was going on. "The new Elites have been chosen!" she says.
"New Elites? What about the old ones?" I ask.
"Well, since most of that group is dead, and only three remain, they have been decommisioned and released of their duties. These two will be taking there spots as the new District 7 Elites, and they are going to their first training.", she answers me.
I see two children going in the direction the Justice building to be picked up. I see that the boy is tall and well built, looks like he could survive the games when they eventually chose to put all the Elites to be in the games again. The girl looks like a shy mess, her black hair covers one of her eyes, and the revealed one looks around anxiously.
They pass by me and I know that they saw me, they also know who I am. The boy gives a surprised facial expression when he looks at me and then turns his head to the front quickly. The girl doesn't keep her eyes off me until they finally get a distance away from me. The boy looks like he's around my age, and the girl looks a bit younger. I follow them to the Justice Building, and I see the train in the station here to take them to the training grounds in the Capital. I go up to the train's window and I look through secretly. I see that some of the seats are filled, I'm guessing that the new Elite's from Districts 1-6 are the ones I see sitting down. This is the new generation replacing Persia, me, and the rest. Those poor things look like they wouldn't survive the Free-for-Alls.
I walk away and I know that the new Elites for sure got a glimpse of me. I walk back to my home in Victor's Village, and Tessa is outside, watering her flowers. Tessa is about my age, and we always talk. Her blonde dyed hair seems like it's straight from the Capital. Which could be true. Us winners get special treatment, we are the best of a bad situation.
"Hi, Echo! I haven't seen you out in a while." she asks me pouring water over her roses.
"Hi, Tessa, yeah I know I just decided to go do something today. I think I was able to get some of the dust that was collecting on me off.", I say with a smile which is something I rarely do anymore.
She giggles and I walk back inside. I take off the robe and I see that someoene is in the kitchen. I break a glass bottle that I must of left out, and threaten to stab them. "I'm not here to hurt you, I'm are just here to talk to you about your Elite status.", the man says.
"Go on...", I put down the bottle and walk past him to the kitchen.
"Well, you're the best Elite in all of Panem-" he says and I cut him off.
"I'm not the best Elite in Panem..."
"Well whatever you want to call it, you are one of the last remaining Elites in Panem, and you won the Hunger Games, so I'm here to ask you if you would want to come and train the new Elites in their first training?"
I think about it for a while, and answer, "No..."
"Hear me out!" he says getting up.
I throw a knife that passes by him and drives into the wall. "I said...no...I never want to see that place ever again!"
"Okay," he says still stunned staring at the knife and how far dug into the wall it was, "I respect your decision.", and he rushes out of the house. I walk over to the knife in the wall, and pull it out. I wash it and place it back in the drawer I got it from.
"I have had enough with the Elites for one day..." I whisper to myself.