A/N: Well, here it is! My very first fanfiction! I'm absolutely brand-spanking new to this site, so we'll see how well this does. I do hope you all enjoy it, but I also want complete honesty in your reviews. Thanks for stopping by, and Happy Hunger Games!
Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing. I'm merely a fan writing this down for fun.
District 11
As Pocahontas lay in bed, a horrible feeling swept over her. It was a combination of fear and anxiety. It was both false hope that today would end up a dream, and despair at the events that would soon occur. She prayed to whatever God may be out there to grant her strength, for she knew what day it was. This was a most horrid day for all, one from which nothing good could possibly come. This was the day of the reaping.
Thankfully, she was soon met with a warmer presence that always managed to make her feel somewhat better. Meeko, the sweet little raccoon that lived in her home, climbed up on her bed and cuddled next to her. Pocahontas had met the little angel one day when she was hunting with her childhood friend, Nakoma. So charmed had she been by this creature that she had to bring him home with her, and Meeko was soon a beloved member of her family. It almost seemed as if Meeko knew what today was, for his affection this morning was far more gentle and cautious, and less hyper and excitable than usual. That was one of the many things Pocahontas loved about the raccoon. Not only was he adorable and loving, he was also surprisingly intelligent and considerate for such an animal.
After a few moments of silently petting her furry friend, she heard her bedroom door open. It was her father, Powhatan. His tall, muscular, and intimidating build stood in great contrast with the kind and peace-loving man that possessed it. He greeted his daughter with a warm smile, although the grim look in his eyes told her how he truly felt. Pocahontas completely understood why her father was in such a foul mood. After all, this was not exactly the day to be dancing around and singing about rainbows and unicorns. Still, she appreciated his half-hearted attempt to look at peace.
"Good morning, my child." Powhatan walked in his daughter's direction and gently sat himself on her bed, caressing her hair with one hand and placing Meeko on his lap with the other. Pocahontas didn't even bother lifting her head up, it was far too early and she was far too tired. "If only it were, Father." At her reply, Powhatan let out a soft sigh. He wanted so very badly to assure her that everything would be okay, like any good father should, but he couldn't lie. Besides, he knew his daughter all too well; she was not going to believe such an obvious attempt at false reassurance. Nonetheless, he opted to begin a conversation anyway. "Pocahontas, there are countless other girls your age in this district. You needn't worry all too much."
"Even so, they could easily select one of my dear friends. And even if I don't know them, my heart cannot help but break for those forced to participate in such a monstrous game." Powhatan's heart sank at his daughter's words, for her knew they were all too true. She went on, "Why does this game exist, Father? Why does the Capitol punish us in this way? What sort of monster came up with such a despicable idea, to torment us and have us murder one another for their entertainment?" As Pocahontas spoke, the look in her eyes gradually changed. Before, they were terrified and sorrowful. Now, they were filled with passion and anger.
"The people of the Capitol are cruel," Powhatan replied. "They hold past conflicts against us and use their power toy with us however they please. They are monsters, Pocahontas. They all have hearts of stone and take pleasure in tormenting those who are weaker than them. There are no exceptions among them, my dear. All of them are the same; every last one of them." Pocahontas had a hard time arguing with her father. It was true that the Capitol was an evil society. All of their families taught disgusting things to their children and raised them to be hateful monsters. "If only I had the ability to change them; to help them see the error of their ways," she said. Her father smiled at this, and bent down to kiss her trembling forehead. He gave her a wonderful suggestion in the most peaceful-sounding voice he could manage, "Why don't you go for a walk? You were always so in tune with Mother Nature, perhaps a morning stroll in the woods is just what you need."
With nary a word, the girl nodded. He was right; she was truly one with nature at heart. Being outside among the trees and the animals gave her such peace, as if all the problems with the world would simply vanish for a moment. The young Indian woman sat up and pulled herself out of bed, gave her father a quick kiss on the cheek and affectionately tickled the top of Meeko's head. As she silently made her way out of her house, she wondered how the rest Panem was up to today. Were they just as miserable as she was today? Were they even awake? What if some poor mother was comforting her terrified child right now? Pocahontas knew it had no effect on her, but her love for humanity still drove her to think these things. What could the other districts be up to now…?
District 2
It was nearing the middle of the day, and all that much closer to the big moment. Fa Mulan stood at the gate leading just outside her village, gazing at the horizon and pondering to herself. She had been training her whole life for this day. Today, she would enter the Hunger Games. Her entire district knew it. Both she and Li Shang were expected to enter this year. If someone besides them were selected, they would simply volunteer. It was already decided from the beginning that this would be Mulan and Shang's year to bring honor to District 2. At first, Mulan felt certain that she could do it without a problem. However, as soon as the actual day of the reaping struck, she felt a little more nervous. Now, as the hour of the reaping came closer and closer, Mulan felt less sure of just how well she could cope with murdering twenty-three other people.
Nonetheless, she had trained for years for this day. She was going to volunteer and fight in the Hunger Games, and she was certainly not going to dishonor her family. If she were to back out now, Mushu would never let her hear the end of it. Ugh, she could hear it now; "Dishonor! Dishonor on your whole family! Dishonor on you! Dishonor on your cow!" Her friend, Mushu, absolutely loved to refer to her horse as a "cow" for absolutely no other reason than to annoy her. And annoy her it did. Thus, Mulan decided to use the nagging sound of Mushu claiming dishonor on her "cow" in her head as motivation to willingly volunteer. That way, that she would never have to actually hear those obnoxious words uttered to her face. And so, she waited…
District 5
At long last, the clock stroke one. The moment everyone across the twelve districts had been dreading. Hercules and Megara had spent the entire morning together, preferring not to speak of the reaping. Now, everyone headed to the town square. After all, attendance was mandatory unless one was on death's door. To be completely honest, Hercules probably would have rather been dead than have to constantly worry for his loved ones. Last year, two of his dearest friends were selected for the games, and neither of them made it. That was what truly opened his eyes to the horrific, downright evil nature of the Hunger Games.
"Come on, Wonder Boy. You're not getting antsy now, are you?" Hercules looked to his left side, locking eyes with the beautiful young woman who spoke those words. Megara was clearly every bit as terrified as he was, but she was also much better at hiding it than him. While Hercules was never one to hide his feelings or keep them bottled up, Megara hid behind a barrier of sarcasm and cockiness. Granted, she was always sarcastic by nature, but she seemed to increase the number of quips when she was feeling vulnerable in any way. Hercules knew her all too well, so he saw past her smug exterior in a heartbeat. "Meg, you're not exactly leaping with excitement yourself," he replied. Megara kept her sly smile, but he was right. She was scared out of her wits, just like everyone else. She simply knew how to hide it better than her boyfriend.
Megara knew Hercules was scared more for his peers than himself. That's just the way he was. He could always be found helping others around the district however he could, but the reaping was the one time of the year in which he felt absolutely helpless. He felt powerless to do anything on this day, for all he could do was stand and watch his peers be taken to the Capitol to certain death. He had often spoken of volunteering for his fellow man, but Megara and his family would never allow it. Meg could see just how he was feeling today, and it made her heart sink. She hated seeing him like this. Every other day, Hercules could be seen with a big, bright smile on his face and doing something helpful for the townsfolk. On this day, he looked as if he would break down any minute. Megara guessed that if anything, he was probably praying to be picked as tribute this year. After all, that was really all he could do today. But she wasn't going to let him volunteer. Oh no, anything but that.
District 4
"It's too bad they hold the reaping at the square," whispered Ariel to her sweetheart Eric, as their group filed in silently to sign in. "This area is really the nicest place in our district. The Capitol always has to ruin everything!" As she said this, Ariel seemingly lost consideration for the volume of her voice. A cautious Eric was quick to remind her of their surroundings.
"Shh… I agree, but you might not want to let anyone hear you say that; not unless you want to end up in prison." At this, Ariel quietly huffed. Nonetheless, she spoke a bit more softly. "I'm not afraid of them. Someone needs to give them a taste of their own medicine!" Eric chuckled a little when she said this. She was right, after all. Of all the places to hold the reaping, it was truly a shame it had to be in such an otherwise pleasant area as the square. Still, he did not wish for her little statement to be heard. He never was particularly fond of unnecessary conflict. Ariel, on the other hand, was hot-headed and stubborn. She couldn't care less what the higher-ups had to say to her. Admittedly, that was one of the several things Eric loved about her.
Their conversation had to be put to a halt when all the twelve- through eighteen-year-olds began to be herded into roped areas marked off by ages, the oldest in the front and the youngest in the back. Since Eric was seventeen and Ariel was sixteen, this meant they had to be separated for the time being. Family members lined up around the perimeter, holding tightly to one another's hands. Eric could see Ariel's father, whom everyone called Trident, standing along with Ariel's six sisters; Attina, Aquata, Alana, Arista, Andrina, and Adella. Just like the rest of the families, all of them were clutching onto each other for dear life, praying for the baby of their family not to be picked. Ariel, being the youngest, was the only one who still had to endure this awful process. It was a miracle that none of Trident's daughters had been selected until now, but there were still two more reapings for Ariel.
As he gave his girlfriend's family a sad smile, Eric found himself standing in a tight clump of seventeens. Unfortunately, the square was far too small for their district's large population, so all the groups had to huddle together very tightly. It was quite uncomfortable. Despite Eric's attempts at giving his peers hopeful smiles, they all simply gazed back at him with grim, soulless looks in their eyes. Not that Eric didn't understand why, this was a dreadful day for everyone. At this time, most of the teenagers had been so mentally warped with fear that they simply ran out of energy. There was nary a soul who was in an even remotely positive mood. Still, Eric saw no reason not to make an attempt at cheering someone up, even if it would be in vain.
At this moment, everyone focused their attention on the temporary stage set up before them. Sitting on it were three chairs, a microphone, a large table, and two glass balls, each contained all the children's names. One was for the boys, the other for the girls. Two very important figures sat on the chairs. One was the elderly Mayor Merlin. The other was Ursula, District 4's rather plumb escort, with her disgusting lavender skin, short white hair that seemed to strongly disagree with gravity, and sinister smile.
Eventually, Merlin stepped up to the microphone with a large scroll and began to read. One could tell he did not take pleasure in reading the same story every year, for it seemingly served no other purpose than to remind everyone just how awful the district citizens supposedly are. It was the story of Panem, the country that was once called North America. In this story, Merlin was required to list in great detail every last disaster that destroyed North America and the ensuing war, all of which resulted in the shining Capitol called Panem, ringed by thirteen unique districts where the less privileged men and women resided. Then the districts, being the horrible and ungrateful little poor folk they obviously were, opted to start a great rebellion against the Capitol which ended in twelve of the districts defeated and the thirteenth utterly destroyed. As punishment to the less privileged, the Treaty of Treason was formed and once a year, the Hunger Games would take place simply for the Capitol's amusement.
Merlin then had to read the rules for the Hunger Games; as punishment for said rebellion, each district must choose one boy and one girl between ages twelve and eighteen to compete in a grand outdoor arena that could hold just about anything the Capitol's imaginative little minds could come up with. Over a few weeks, the competitors, called tributes, must fight one another to the death. Only the last tribute standing, the "victor," was allowed to return home. Granted, said victor would be put through the emotional trauma of slaughtering twenty-three other people their own age just to survive, but they could go home nonetheless.
Ariel scowled throughout the entire speech. The fact that the Capitol took mere children and forced them to murder each other for entertainment made her want to puke. The only reason for the Hunger Games was for the sake of dominance and power, to rub it in the districts' faces just how much better it was to be in the Capitol and how much it sucked to be them. Growing up, Ariel had always dreamed of seeing the outside world and going on some kind of adventure, but this was just too much. It was pure evil; nothing more, nothing less. And there was no sign of these people ever receiving any sort of comeuppance. Oh, how she wished she had the power to stop them, but common sense told her that nothing of the sort would happen for a long, long time.
At last, Merlin introduced Ursula. With an unsettling chuckle, she strutted up to the microphone in her giant black and white dress. Tapping on the microphone twice just to make sure her voice would be heard by all, she began her speech in a sultry voice. "Good afternoon, my dear sweet children. Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor. I'm quite confident you are all just itching to find out who shall be the poor, unfortunate souls to be sent off to certain death, so let us not waste any time, shall we?"
"Well, she certainly isn't one to mince words," Eric thought to himself. He could tell Ursula was most likely well aware how much the population of District 4 disliked her. He could also tell she truly did not have a single rat's bottom to give about that. In fact, she probably enjoyed seeing everyone glare at her with hate-filled eyes. I most likely amused her. However, his little train of thought was interrupted by the vile sound of her voice again. "Ladies first!" Ursula trotted over to the table where the glass balls rested, and dipped her hand in the one with the girls' names. As she kept that sickening grin of hers glued to her face, Eric's heart skipped a beat when he heard the unfortunate young lady's name announced to the world. It was Ariel.
Within moments, the mortified, screaming voices of Ariel's sisters echoed through the air. However, Ariel herself did not look fazed in the least. The red-haired beauty simply marched her way through the crowd and onto the stage without so much as flinching. All the while, her sisters sobbed painfully loudly in the background. Eric couldn't bring himself to look in their direction, for it was heart wrenching enough just hearing them. He could only imagine the despair and sorrow that plagued their eyes at this very moment, and was almost certain that if any of them were still eighteen or younger, they would have volunteered in a heartbeat. Anything to protect their baby sister, after all. But now, they were powerless, and had no other choice but to watch her proceed to the stage. Eric hadn't even enough time to process the fact that his beloved had just been selected to join the Hunger Games when he heard the boy's name announced. When he heard the name, he nearly had a heart attack.
A/N: Aaaaaand that's chapter one! Chapter two is almost certainly going to come soon. Actually, I didn't want to end it there, but I thought it was beginning to get a little long. Anyway, here are my two main concerns: Is this story decently written, and is everyone in-character? If any of you wish to address these two questions, please do so! I welcome constructive criticism, and I hope to improve on this however I can. Until next time!