My sister, Lil ties up the back of the band of my turquoise dress and spins me around to check if it looks good. She smiles and gives me thumbs up. I don't smile back. It's not that I'm angry with her, it's just that I'm scared. It's the day of the reaping where we find out who is picked to compete in the 97th annual Hunger Games. People aged twelve to eighteen have to put their names in a jar, a certain amount of times depending on their age. Twelve year olds have to put theirs in two times and eighteen year olds have to put them in thirty six times. I have to put my name in eight times, more than the usual amount of thirteen year olds. My older sister and I made a deal with the Capitol that we would put our names in triple the amount of times than other people our age so that they would give us money each month. They only give us twenty five dollars each and we hardly manage. It'll be better when my sister teaches me how to hunt. She promised that she would start the day after the reaping.
Mum isn't here to help us. She was pregnant at the age of seventeen. Dad had left her when he heard she was pregnant. The next reaping was close to my birth. Mum was picked. No one volunteered for her. She gave birth the night of the reaping. One of her friends offered to take care of Lil and I. Mum was one of the first tributes to die. After a while Lil and I were older and our guardian, Mum's friend had children of her own to tend to. We looked out for each other and lived under the horrible conditions. By the age of thirteen Lil started hunting for about an hour a day. I was seven years old then and stayed home. We had a cow and a chicken. My duty while she was hunting was to milk the cow, give the animal's food and water and check to see if the chicken had laid any eggs. When Lil got home we would go and sell the milk and eggs. After about one year the cow got sick and died. We no longer had any milk to sell. We still have the chicken though. As we got older Lil hunted more often and I was left to look after myself and try to find some work in my district. Everyone said I was too young to work but I kept begging for work. At the age of eleven, a sweet old lady needed help with her farm. I helped her for two hours a day. I had to milk the cows, feed the animals and sell the products to the local store.
Now that Lil is nineteen she doesn't have her name in the jar, but I do. I'm scared I'll be picked. I have the same chance as fifteen year olds of getting picked. Over the last few years fifteen year olds have been picked. I feel tears welling up in my eyes. Lil comes over and gives me a hug.
"It's going to be alright," she says comfortingly. "You won't get picked. They'll probably pick an older person."
We look outside and see people heading to the town square, which is where the reaping is being held. Lil grabs my hand and we follow the crowd. I line up so that the peacekeepers can get the prick of blood to check that I'm here. It hurts a lot. I then go to my age group and wait.
"Welcome, welcome, welcome," says Danielle Bells, "To the reaping of the ninety seventh annual Hunger Games. Here is a little video brought all the way from the Capitol."
Everyone watches as it shows little bits from the previous Games. When it finishes Danielle continues. "Let's get on with it. Now, ladies first." She puts her hand in the big jar for the girls. I swallow hard as she picks one out and unfolds it. "This is a surprise," she says. "Sarah Losel."
Lil was wrong. She was wrong. I'm the tribute. I'm Sarah Losel. Everyone looks around for the chosen tribute. The few people I know look at me. I make my way out of the crowd slowly.
"No!" Lil yells, "She's my sister! You can't do this!"
I look back. Lil's running towards me. I watch as some peacekeepers pull her back. I've stopped and now I've got peacekeepers beside me literally dragging me along. I stand next to Danielle as she picks a boy. "Nicholas Gout." she announces. This can't be happening. Nicholas is fourteen and so handsome. He is the boy I've had a crush on for ages. He walks up, his face expressionless and stands on the other side of Danielle. I shake hands with Nicholas. I look at his face and it suddenly looks horrified.