I had procured a fate more desirable than most. I was promised shelter, safety, and best of all: three meals a day. I didn't even need the meager wages I would be earning, I could send them home. The thought that my mother and sister would have some sort of income was enough to remind me of how much I needed this job. Or rather, this contract.
My name is Katniss Everdeen, I am sixteen years old. I have been contracted to be a servant in the merchant town nearby.
The porch creaks a little as I step outside. I get a little tease of spring, the light wind caressing my knees and lifting the cloth of my skirt. I'm wearing a dress my mother had worn when she was my age, its her best. Light blue cloth, more appropriate for warmer weather, but in good enough condition to make me look like I at least care. In one last show of individuality, I wear my hunting boots, laced properly but without stockings. My mother braided my hair up, out of my eyes and somewhat ladylike. I don't care if I look feminine or not. My knees are grass stained and my face is devoid of any rouge.
I bring my hands up to my shoulders and give them some sort of reassuring squeeze. Hopefully my new family will give me a job I'm good at, perhaps hunting or working on a farm. Whatever they do, I'm sure they'll find a place for me. Its not everyday you come across a girl who can climb a tree taller than a house, or battle a coyote for some game.
I hear the screen door shift behind me.
"Its almost eleven Catnip, ready to go?" says Gale. He's carrying my leather game bag, but instead of dead animals its filled with the little amount of earthly possessions I had. I can see my little sister Primrose behind him. She looks sad. But she has to know that this is for her own good moreso than anyone else.
I nod my head and shield my eyes from the sun with my hand. I look from side to side, taking in every last ounce of Seam that I can. Its dirty. It smells like burnt cedar and rot. Soot clings to every inch of construction I can see. I guess I won't miss that as much.
Gale, now taking the role of older brother, gestures his head towards the narrow gravel road that leads towards the Square. Prim comes up to me and grabs my hand, giving me a bright smile.
"Where's mom?" I mutter. Prim looks behind her and then back to me. I guess there's my answer, she won't be seeing me off today. Figures.
Sometime later, we arrive at the Square to meet my proprietor, Effie Trinket. We were told by the agency to be at the General Store by eleven, whoever bought my contract would pick me up.
Thats how it worked in District 12. When you turned twelve your name was entered into the Employment Database. You were assigned a proprietor, a social worker sent by the Capitol, who would work to the "best of their ability" to find you a job. Most children were ignored until they got older so that they could be contracted to tougher, more dangerous jobs. Gale got contracted to the mines a year prior. He faced peril everyday, but at least he got to live with his family and maintain a somewhat normal life. My contract seemed a little bit more exclusive. I was to live with the person who bought my contract, which only hinted at a more intensive occupation. God, I hope I'm not a prostitute.
Effie stood uncomfortably on the General Store's rickety old porch, getting the heels of her shoes stuck in the rotting floor boards. Despite her shallow appearance and demeanor, she wasn't all bad. She told me she would find me something lucrative, and she had. The person who bought my contract had also paid a bonus, which I immediately gave to my mother to last the next few months.
"Good morning Ms. Everdeen!" She smiled, waving a clipboard at me. I returned the wave, and took my game bag from Gale. "Your contractor is running a bit late, seems like he's had a busy morning at the bakery." Bakery! My contractor works at the town's bakery. Or maybe he owns it...who owns the bakery again? I'm wracking my brain.
"Katniss maybe they'll give you bread and cake everyday for breakfast." Prim laughs. I laugh right back. That actually doesn't sound too bad. I can't remember the last time I was able to afford breakfast. Maybe my mom and Prim could afford it now too.
Gale throws a painful punch into my shoulder, earning a grimace from Effie.
"Mail me some cake." He smiles. I nod. Then I hear it, the car.
Its rare in District 12 to have a car. I'm afraid of them. But I guess this wasn't like normal cars, it had a cab in front and a wide flatbed in the back. I could see heavy sacks of flour and some barrels stacked on it.
Everyone, including some passerby, halt and stare. I'm sure this vehicle is nothing special to someone from the Capitol, its rattling and it might even be steaming.
"Its like a tea kettle..." I murmur, earning another grimace from Effie and a chuckle from my sister and my best friend.
When the machine comes to a stop, it turns off and the door creaks open. A cloud of what could only be flour dances in the sunlight.
"Katniss Everdeen!" He calls out my name.
I didn't think I'd know the person who bought my contract, but then again, I should have realized it when Effie said the word "bakery". I should have realized that my new "master" would be none other than the baker's son. Peeta Mellark. The boy who saved my life four years before.