I greeted my grandmother with a kiss on her cheek; she smiled allowing her missing teeth show. In return I grinned and helped her from her seat. A knock sounded at our door and I let out a sigh of annoyance.
"We're coming." I held onto my grandmother's arm as we steadily shuffled towards the door. A more eager pounding smashed at the door. "I said we're coming!" I know that I shouldn't speak to the peacekeepers in such a manner but they always managed to irk me with the simplest things. After all my grandmother is an ill sixty nine year old, she should be resting, not killing herself for these idiots.
When I opened the door I was met the stern jaw of a strongly built thirty year old. With eyes narrowed he pushed me forward. It wouldn't have bothered me if it weren't for the fact that my grandmother had toppled to the floor brutally. Instantly I was by her side to aid her in getting back on her feet but it was not fast enough for the men in charge, one of them raising their fists. I intervened but not without consequences.
Beaten and bruised I was still forced to work in the fields that day. A young girl by the name of Rue offered me a smile as she began her work picking the berries. She was only twelve years of age yet she was stuck with the responsibility of supporting her family of five younger siblings. It disgusted me that she did not receive more help at home but then again it didn't really surprise me, Peacekeepers around here weren't the least bit attached to our district or its people. Out of the corner of my eye I watched the girl slip in some berries to her pocket, I smiled and looked around thankful that even though under the watchful eyes of the peacekeepers she had managed to steal the extra food supplies.
About an hour or so into work I heard a scream. Panicked, I looked around in search of my family. She stood near the peacekeepers currently beating what looked like the ground. Her body shook and her eyes held the horror of the event before her. Standing on my tip toes I could see the man on the floor screaming, crying, and begging for it all to end. I diverted my glance to the floor and attempted to block out his constant cries for help. His screamed filled every inch of the fields- the only sound. I let out a shallow breath, closed my eyes and tensed my muscles to stop myself from doing something I would later regret. Suddenly the screams stopped. The sickly sweet sound of the Mockingjays singing a dull tune up above. We all just carried on with work. Just another day in district eleven...