Tamika Frentle District 7
To be honest, I despised the Hunger Games. I didn't understand why 23 innocent children had to die just for Capitol entertainment. They are also responsible for killing half of my family. My sister, Janita, was reaped when I was seven. She, like me, had been cutting down trees with big heavy axes since she was very little. She had a strong build and was 5"10 which made her slightly taller than most of the other tributes. But District 1 killed her. The boy was a violent killing machine. It was down to her and him. And he won. My mother was transporting timber to the capitol on one of District 6's trains. Her colleagues didn't count the amount of timber sticks properly and one was missing. The Capitol accused her of stealing and sentenced her to death.
It's just me and my father now. My dad trained me in combat and weapons in the woods straight after Janita died to prepare me if I happened to get reaped. I'm 13 now and today will be my second reaping. I was up at 6 o'clock this morning throwing axes at random targets in the woods. Suddenly, I realised that in the arena, my opponents aren't going to be completely still like these stupid trees. They're going to be dodging my weapons and trying to attack me at the same time. So I decided to throw my axes at something moving. I locked my eyes on a bird flying about ten metres in front of me. I took my aim slightly in front of the bird and threw. My axe sliced it into two cleanly severed pieces. Ooops. Well at least now I knew that I could throw with accuracy at something moving. I then tried throwing and running at the same time. I threw each axe with precision and they all landed exactly where I wanted them. I smiled to myself. I was ready.
At 10:30, one and a half hours until the reaping started, I decided to go home and dress up nicely. I opened my wardrobe which barely had anything in it and chose my violet summer dress with matching sandals. Father tied a violet bow in my hair and gave me a small velvet box. I gasped when I saw the contents. Inside was a small amethyst on a silver chain that went around my neck. 'I got a pay rise this morning and decided to get you a present from the jeweller,' he told me. 'For good luck.' I gave him a hug goodbye and made my way down to the city square where the reaping was held. I met my friend Arianna on the way down and we walked together.
Arianna was one of the weaker girls at school and often got bullied. I tended to stick by her side and help her out of sticky situations by attacking whoever was bullying her verbally or sometimes physically. No-one dared go up to her when I was around. She was the same height as me, 5"7 but was much thinner and paler from staying indoors all day. She had a thin freckled face with striking red hair and emerald green eyes. I, on the other hand was the complete opposite. I was strongly built from training everyday and was tanned from spending so much time in the sun. I had honey blond hair that fell in waves halfway down my back. My eyes were dark grey like my fathers which reminded me of storm clouds when he got angry. I could throw a punch. Everyone knew I could. I accidentally knocked my cousin, Cayton, out when I was training in hand-to-hand combat with him in the woods. I picked him up and carried him to my father who was practically laughing his head off as I came through the door.
Arianna and I were one of the first people to reach the city square. It was festivly decorated with streamers and balloons and there were Peacekeepers standing on the outskirts of the venue. I winced as the metal blade cut into my flesh and watched my blood splatter onto the page. I waited for Arianna to finish then we made our way to the 13's section. I saw Cayton in the 15's section clenching his fists nervously. He saw me looking at him and smiled. 'Good luck' he mouthed. 'You too' I mouthed back.
When the city square was filled, our district escort, Aquasia stepped out onto the stage. And to suit her name, she was dressed in a floor length aqua dress, a fluffy glittery aqua feather boa, aqua 7" heels and a massive aqua wig with a sparkly aqua hat on the top. I nearly threw up at the sight. I felt Arianna gagging beside me. I stiffled a laugh. 'WELCOME WELCOME! I FIND GREAT PLEASURE IN ANNOUNCING THIS YEAR'S TRIBUTES FOR DISTRICT 7! WELL LETS NOT WASTE ANY TIME! LADIES FIRST!' Aquasia screeched into the microphone, oblivious that it was turned on. I swear almost half the crowd covered their ears. 'ARIANNA STERLING!' she screeched. I gasped. The 13's section parted for Arianna to walk up to the stage. Holding back tears, I ran forward and yelled 'I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE!' 'Oh! We have a volunteer!' Aquasia exclaimed, having realised that the microphone was on. 'What's your name deary?' 'Tamika Frentle' I replied. 'Well! I am betting my new apartment that that was your twin sister wasn't it?' WTF? A TWIN SISTER? This woman's head must be made of newspaper. Twins? We barely look alike and we don't even have the same surnames. This woman has some mental issues.' I thought. But instead I just answered with a simple 'No' to avoid discussion. 'And onto the boys!' she cried excitedly. I rolled my eyes and stepped back, relieved that no more attention was being paid to me. But my relief didn't last long. Well not until I heard the name of the male tribute. Cayton Frentle. My cousin.
'Well, Tamika Frentle and Cayton Frentle, I don't believe you two know each other!' she screeched in excitement. I gave Cayton a look that said I told you this woman is a complete nutcase. He nodded in agreement. 'Well do you know each other? It would make introductory sentences a lot easier if you knew each other already!' Aquasia continued. 'Yeah we do. She's my cousin.' Cayton replied. People in the crowd sniggered and laughed quietly at Aquasia's stupidity. One Peacekeeper shot a gun at the sky to quieten the crowd. 'AND THAT'S ALL FOR TODAY! HAPPY HUNGER GAMES AND MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN YOUR FAVOUR!' Aquasia concluded.
A/N: Oooooh! What's gonna happen now? Cousins reaped together for the Hunger Games! Next chappie will be about the goodbyes and one very odd train ride! Stay tuned!
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~Celinachan~