I wake with a start, my whole body aches with fear; there is a bitter taste in my mouth. Today is the day of the reaping, the day that we choose who goes in the sixty-seventh Hunger Games. In district seven not many people win. I'm fifteen and my name is in the glass bowl eight times, four because I have to and four times more to feed my two younger brothers, Jacob and Shane, and my mother. My brothers are identical twins, aged eleven, next year they will have a chance to be in the games.
"Johanna," my mother calls "I've got some breakfast."
I trudge downstairs to find Jake and Shane sitting at the table munching on bread, my mother helps at the bakery and each week she gets two whole loaves for us all! She also owns a bit of money, not a lot, but enough to live on. Of course, me and the boys do pour bit, sometimes we do the washing of others in the village for little wage, we get along well as a team.
"Jo darling," mother says, "my old red dress is laid out on my bed, I thought you would need a new one. Last year that old dress only just fit."
"Thanks Mother." I say to her and sit down to some nice bread. After I have eaten, I have a bath and put the beautiful red dress on.
"Wow!" Shane looks at me.
"You look amazing!" Jacob adds.
I look at the clock; we all must have slept in quite late because the clocks say half-past one, the reaping starts at two.
"Shouldn't we be on our way now?" I ask Mother.
"Yes," she replies "we should"
Down at the town square, Mother and the twins leave me to go to the fifteen year old girl's area, suddenly I'm nervous. I see my best friend Kia at the fourteen year old section, she is in my year but her birthday is in two weeks.
"Welcome, welcome," cries our district escort, Cilee, "As you can see we are gathered here again to witness another boy and girl get chosen to take part in the Hunger Games"
She then passes over to the mayor, he tells us about the history of Panem and all that boring stuff. Now over to the real business, I look over
to mother and the twins and take a breath.
The name read out on the card startles me; I didn't expect it at all.
Johanna Mason
