From the dark days where Muggles and Wizards battled for power,
we have had The Hunger Games each year.
During these games each district will bring forward one boy or girl,
from the ages of twelve to eighteen,
and sacrifice them as tribute.
To battle to the death against one another
and from wizards.
The house was silent in the Flamsteed house, it was the same each year around this time. Terra could feel her heart in her throat, her lungs in her stomach, and her head twisted into new ways. She could have cried, could have screamed, but she knew that she must be though for herself and her family. It was her year, Districts One to Six would be sending girls into the arena this year, Seven through Twelve would be bringing their boys in this year. Terra could have cried as she held her brother in close to her body, hoping that she would live long enough for him to remember her. Talon was only one and would not have to go into the games for years.
It was coming to morning, she could see the school she went to, see the mills where some worked, coming through the nights sky. Her parents had already promised her to the Peacemakers, each year she had went away to a different type of training than everyone else, become cold and heartless towards people that were not of her type, and she was ready for a battle. The only person that she had not become stone to was her little brother, the one person she could never turn to coal with. She smiled down at the face that was looking up and smiling at her.
" Her Tal, good to see you again." She whispered as she rocked him back and forth. It had been the first time in months that she had been in her own home. " Wish me luck today, okay?" She asked as she placed her brother back into his crib and tiptoed back into her own room.
She pulled her red hair back into a bun and pulled on a jacket, knowing that it was going to be crisp until the sun came up and moved out of the house without a sound. She smiled at all of the workers, nodded as she passed the peacemakers who had just been her teachers not a day before, and moved to the fence. Terra was not safe- not permitted- to go past this fence, but she knew that beyond it was something that she needed more than anything in the world, it was her own little good luck charm. Terra moved quietly and waited for the perfect moment, knowing that the fence was hot and that she would have to wait for the moment, right as the whistle blew at the mill, the fence went dead, and she pulled herself through, nearly falling as she did, and landing on the grass with a thud.
Terra ran into the woods, knowing that just beyond some trees and hills was a district that was not even permitted for peacemakers to be able to go into, it was one of the three magical districts. The magical districts were made into threes, one for the pure-blooded wizards and witches, one for the half-bloods, and one for the traitors, the magical children that would chose magic over their own families. Terra spat at the thought of these people when she was at school, when she was with others that hated them, but she was walking right in that district, which was the poorest of the three. She moved into the deepest part of the woods and waited there, knowing that it would take some time, but she had no time to waste.
" Common Hermione! I do not have all day here, the reaping is today and we both have to go to it!" Terra yelled into the woods, knowing that no one from her district would hear and no one from Hermione's would care.
Hermione had been Terra's best friend until the day that they had both turned eleven, only two days apart from one another. Hermione had started to do something strange- something that had never been seen before; she started to bring things into the air and just keep them there with her own mind! Terra had thought that it was the best magic trick in the world! Her best friend lifting her into the air and then placing her in many different places- until the peacemakers had found out about it. They took Hermione away instantly and asked if she would like to keep the magic or her family. Though Hermione was just a girl, she had to pick on her own and at that very minute. She picked the magic over all of her friends and family, and was sent into the woods- never to be seen again.
" Sorry, sorry. I was caught up by my books and did not see the time that was being passed by!" She smiled as she came into the little clearing, opening up her arms for Terra's frame to fit into. " You look like you have been put through the ringer!" She whispered into Terra's hair while in their embrace.
" Honestly Hermione, I have been through worse then you could ever imagine at this new training that they are putting us through, I mean really. They seem to think that pairing us off and beating us to the brink of breaking is the best thing for us," Terra said as she lied in the grass with her friend, " well I mean, it helps with the Hunger Games, getting us all prepared for it and everything, but there are different things to be teaching us. Like how to prepare for a breakout or rebellion, those are things that I can expect, but just fighting, man I have seen enough of that to last a lifetime." Terra said as she closed her eyes.
" Do you think that you will be reaped this year?" Hermione asked softly.
" Do you think that you will be?" Terra replied.
" I hope not, you know that our rules are different from yours." She said softly.
" No, theirs are different from ours, you still belong in District Two Hermione, you know that you should be there with your family for this. Not there, where there is an even high chance of being chosen." She whispered, feeling the sun finally hitting her face.
" No, you would not believe the things that I have learned to do at this school that they have been sending me to, I mean I have been learning how to charm things and how to defend myself from all of these different-"
" Hermione, I do not need to know how much fun you are having over there because you chose them over us, all I need to know that is that you will be alive and well when I get here tomorrow." Terra nearly begged.
" I will be, just as soon as we get done with the reaping I will send an owl to the three that is behind your house." Hermione whispered.
" Do not volunteer for anyone. Got it?" Terra asked.
" Promise. Just think about it, this will be our last year in this stupid thing!" Hermione laughed, almost too happy.
" Yeah well after that I will be shipped off to some other district and we will never see one another ever again!" Terra shouted, hitting the ground with a bang.
" Why did your parents sell you?" Hermione questioned.
" I cannot talk about it." Terra whispered.
" Cannot or will not?" Hermione asked, looking her long time friend in the eye.
" Both." Terra whispered as she got up from the ground and looked into the sky.
" You will still watch out for Bell right, you know she cannot go in there for shit." Hermione asked, nearly begging.
" You know that I will always keep Annabell safe and sound." Terra whispered.
It had nearly been an hour since she had left her parents house, they would be awake very soon and knocking at her door to tell her that it was time to get up. Terra looked from the sky back to her friend, she knew which she should be and where she wanted to be and nearly let a tear form in her eye. Hermione was already at her feet, feeling the same thing inside of her that Terra felt as well, they both had a strong knowledge of the world, a deeper connection than most of the kids their age, but they both knew when to press their luck and when to not do it, that was one of the only things that had kept Terra alive through the years.
" You gonna keep strong today?" Hermione asked lightly, moving towards her clearing in the woods.
" You know it, don't I always keep stronger then the average Muggle?" She laughed a little, it being one of their best inside jokes, as they both moved away.
Draco woke to the sound of the television on his room, the sound of Caesar speaking about how last years games would effect the game makers this year, how everything would be different this year. This made Draco laugh as he shoved the sheets from his bed onto the floor and stood up and moved out of his rooms, not caring that he was in only his boxers, today was a big day and he knew it as well as everyone in his large district. Draco turned the corner and could hear his father from downstairs barking orders at one of their many house elfs. With a faint laugh Draco moved into the bathroom and washed off his face, combing through his hair and pushing it away from his face.
" What a shame that they still believe that wizards like you should have to be in these barbaric battles and that you should not even be able to use the powers that were given to you, it is your birth right to be able to use magic!" His father hissed as Draco sat down at the table.
" Father, we have been through this every year now and still the same thing comes from it, another four people get shipped off to fight to the death and usually one of them comes back as a victor! Now I do not understand how you can go on this rant like this! You know just as well as I do that there will be wands out there!" Draco hissed as he stabbed into one of his eggs, the yellow yolk spilling from it.
" I do not want to hear anything about this, Draco this is your final year being out there as if your are some form of meat that anyone can just go and buy some of and I do not like it at all! I do not want to hear anymore about this, I just want us to eat a nice breakfast." His mother begged
" But they make them so that you cannot kill someone with them, they just allow you to hurt them or change them in any way that you deem fit to do so!" His father said through his teeth.
" Trust me, I know what I would do if I got my hands on a Muggle tribute." Draco smiled with the egg still bleeding from his fork.
" That's my boy." His father smiled as the ate together.
" Enough!" His mother yelled.
There was a odd sense of happiness that spread through Draco's district on the days of the reaping, there was always teens that were joyful to be there, happy to see one another, and the younger ones that were always scared. Draco joined the few friends that he had, roped off from the girls and from people that were younger than from, and stood as the escort for his district got up and gave a speech about why where were all here, as if it were a group session at some horrible form of group therapy. Hissing and looking around as he saw people that he knew, people that he didn't, and names that he prayed would be chosen.
When the escort was done speaking he smiled as he went to the girls group where two named would be pulled out at random to be sent to slaughter. The first was a younger girl- someone that Draco did not know at all, just that they must have went to school together, but the second one was a girl that Draco- and the rest of the school for that matter- all knew very well, Luna Lovegood. The whole school knew her as the class-crazy, and for good reasons, but she stool in front of the crowd with nothing to say, nothing but a faint smile formed on her face. The escort did not wait even a second for applause or anything besides a name before he moved quickly to the boys name and pulled the first one that he could find at out there.
" Ronald Weasly." The man bellowed as he looked around, Draco nearly could not keep himself from laughing right at loud.
" There is a god." Draco whispered to his friends. " Praise him." Draco laughed lightly as Ron got up in front of the crowd and looked from face to face.
" And finally, our last tribute for District A is. . ." The man shoved his hand deep into the bowl and felt around as if looking for the perfect name, and finally pulled one out. " Draco Malfoy!"
" I guess that got has a sense of humor as well." Draco's friend said lightly with a tap on the back.
" I guess so." Draco whispered as he moved up the stairs, still in a little shock as he looked out to see his mother sobbing into his fathers arms, his mother unable to keep herself up.
Terra stood looking around, everyone seemed so distant on this day, it seemed like they were all excited, but still afraid all at once. Though they all knew that as soon as those cameras would come on, that they would all become different people, strong and brutal. Each person there looked more beautiful as the next, each trying to out due the next person that they saw. It was a battle of looks all the way around, for people that had money to throw around, it was something good to have. With a smile, Terra walked around, showing off her pretty red dress and heels, showing the new jewelry she was wearing, showing off everything to keep her mind off of what they were all really here for. Terra looked around, wondering what was happening in District C- Hermione's district.
" Where have you been for all these months, we thought that you had just up and gone like some of the other kids around here! I mean I would have never though in the slightest that you would have really chosen them over us- or that you even had powers- it's just that others were talking about it and I did not know what to really believe anymore-" Terra could not take anymore of her so-called friends for more than a few minutes at a time.
" You know where I have been you stupid drama-queen, I have been training to become what my family thinks is best and you know what I mean is not some stone person." Terra hissed being right between the only two people she could really stand to be around.
" Oh, they really chose you to be there and to really start your training and everything like that?" Her other friend asked.
" No they just think that I am pretty and keep me around for that!" Terra hissed, she knew that it was something that she had to do to show her strengths.
" I'm so happy for you and I wish that I could have the honors that you have." Terra laughed at this, she could still feel the bruises that her friends- and the rest of the world- could not see on her from the months of abuse that they had placed her through.
" You really would not understand." Terra laughed out. " Honest, you would be in too much honor."
" Welcome one and all!" Their escort smiled, she was a small woman named Sid who could barely be any older than most of the kids here today. " Before we get to all of the fun things today, lets hear from the capitol first."
It was the same every year, speaking about how the districts used to all be together, magical and non-magical people, all living peacefully as one until the day that the wizards all rose up and demanded that they have more and more power over the rest of the world, demanding things that the capitol could not give. So they went to war against one another, battling for months over the power until the capitol and the magical beings could come to a fair agreement, the capitol would not bother the magical beings as well as they did the same. But there was too much death, to many children killed in the war, so the capitol believe that it needed to bring this to light. Which is how the Hunger Games were made. Terra agreed to this, that there should be a punishment, that there should be something done about it, though not on this level.
" So should we have our girl here today or what?" Sid asked from above as she looked around, no one would answer her, she seemed way to new at this to even be speaking, let alone choosing the fate of District Two's tribute. She dug deep into it as she pulled out a name.
" Annabell Granger!" Sid smiled as a girl broke down before them, crying.
" Common get up! It is your time." Someone yelled as they moved for the small girl, raising a fist to the small girl.
" You get the hell away from her right this instant." Terra yelled as she pushed through the crowd, she knew the voice as well as she knew anything.
" Annabell! Anna!" Terra screamed as the girl was picked up, she could see girls around here raising their hands, they were ready for it.
" I volunteer!" Terra screamed at the top of her lungs. " as tribute." She could not believe what she had done. The words had just slipped from her lips. " Shit." She whispered as the peacemakers pulled her forward.
