AN: This is the Reapings chapter. We've started, guys! :D So this is how it'll work. This chapter consists of the Reapings of Districts 1 - 6, from the POV of one tribute from each of those districts. The train rides will be from the POV of tributes from Districts 7 - 12. The chariot rides will be from the POV of the tributes from Districts 1 - 6 who didn't get a POV in this chapter. The training will be from the POV of the tributes from Districts 7 - 12 who didn't get a POV in the train rides. Then the interview chapter will be one long chapter with a short version of every single tribute's interview, from nobody's POV.

*deep breath* Does that make sense? xD Anyway, that's how it'll work, so we only have 5 chapters before the actual Games.

District One - Ember Maloff POV

"Ember! Time to go!"

My older sister Alice's voice carries up the stairs. I ruffle my blonde hair and hurry downstairs to meet her and Adam.

"So, Alice dearest," I smirk, perching on the end of the banister. "Jealous that I'll be volunteering today and I'll be the one coming home with enough money to last me several lifetimes? Jealous that I'll be Mother's favourite again?"

Alice rolls her eyes, but Adam grins. "Stop being so cocky, Em, it'll get you nowhere."

I smile back sweetly. "It'll get me everywhere, just you wait and see. So, will you miss me, Alice?"

Alice sighs irritably, looking me up and down. "What on earth are you wearing, Ember?"

I glance down at my grey blouse and black shorts, failing to see anything wrong with it. At my blank expression, Alice tugs pointedly on the shorts.

"These! At least go and put a skirt on if you're not going to wear a dress. We are supposed to look smart you know, especially if you're volunteering or doing something stupid like that."

I ignore what she said about looking smart. "You think volunteering is stupid? You don't think I can win? Well, it's wonderful to see your confidence in me. Just because you were too scared –"

"I think you'll do brilliantly, Em," Adam cuts in, ever the peacemaker as he throws an arm around my shoulders. "It's about time District One had another victor."

Mother and Father collect us and we head off to the square. I join the seventeen-year-old girls and wait patiently as District One's escort, a very small, very thin, very sparkly woman who reminds me of a fairy greets the crowd in her soft voice. She talks as if she's putting a small child to sleep. She reads out the first name in the same peaceful tone.

"Ingrid Darter."

"I volunteer!" My voice is cool, confident, but loud. The human fairy turns to me, serenely surprised, and invites me up onto the stage.

"I'm Ember Maloff," I tell the audience clearly. I can see Mother, Father, and Adam grinning like Cheshire cats below me – only Alice isn't smiling. Well, she could at least act pleased for me, and not like a bitter sour puss.

I'm genuinely surprised when I find that the human fairy has no wings. The sunlight makes her sparkle so much it's rather painful to look at her. I'm half-expecting her to take flight at any moment.

Zircon Terric volunteers for some wimp called Riley Something-or-other. He comes up to the stage from the thirteen-year-old section, which is a bit scary because he already looks like he could crush me by catching me in a simple headlock. His arms are massive. Even the human fairy tries to discreetly step back as he announces his name in a booming voice far too loud for his age. When he shakes my hand, I can almost feel the bones in my hand snapping.

My parents are beside themselves with happiness. "We know you can win, sweetheart!" Mother exclaims, gripping me a slightly awkward hug. Affection isn't the most commonly seen thing in our family. "In a few weeks, we'll all be richer than our wildest dreams! Oh, we're so excited for you!"

Excited for me or excited at the prospect of their fortunes? I don't really care, because it's obvious I'm getting so much more attention than Alice, who's sulking at the back of the room. Jealous cow.

"Well done, baby sister!" Adam ruffles my hair and envelopes me in a one-armed hug. "Knock 'em dead!"

"Ooh, I plan to," I promise very seriously, and then we laugh at our own joke.

I approach Alice with my arms open. "Hug for good luck?" I smirk.

Surprisingly, she looks close to tears, but steps into my arms at Mother's raised eyebrows. "Please don't die," she hisses in my ear suddenly. "Don't trust the rest of the Careers. Grab what you can, and run. Don't do anything stupid, Ember."

Trust her to try and mother me. "No promises," I hiss sweetly back, before kissing her cheek and walking away. I don't even bother to give her one last smile, sarcastic or not, before the Peacekeepers escort them out.

I'll either die in the arena, or come back home filthy stinking rich. I know which one sounds more attractive.

District 2 – Aveira Malik POV

"I'm volunteering, Cade."

My brother just nods, as if he's been expecting me to say this. Of course he knew I would say this – being my twin, he knows me better than anyone. He was born six minutes before me, and looks exactly like me in male form – light blonde hair, fair skin, dark green eyes. And always that same smirk.

"You do that, Aveira," he says, tucking a strand of long hair behind my ear. "But don't say I didn't warn you."

"You haven't warned me," I point out, rolling my eyes as I slipped on my ballet flats.

"Well, I'm warning you now," Cade tells me. He glances quickly around, then grabs me in a tight hug – a rare show of affection. He lowers his voice to a hiss. "Don't volunteer, Aveira. You don't know what it's like in there. Please just promise me, you won't volunteer."

I rip myself out of his grip, outraged. "Don't you dare tell me what to do and what not to do, Cade. Do you want all the glory of being a victor to yourself? Is that it? I've been training for this my whole life, and now I'm finally ready. Prepare to mentor the victor of the 40th Hunger Games."

That's when Mother sweeps into the room, and we immediately plaster smiles on our faces.

"Are you both ready?" she asks briskly, surveying us with her critical eyes. We must look perfect – I know she and Father both expect me to volunteer. "Lovely, both of you. Let's go, or we'll be late."

Father is waiting by the door for us. As we leave, I smooth out my blue corseted dress and give my home one last glance, before hurrying after the others to the square.

A bouncy, plump man is District Two's escort this year. After the Mayor gives his long speech, the escort hops onto the stage – quite a feat, judging by the size of him – and beams at the crowd, who look eagerly back. Rollo Pinken is rather scary. He's painted himself bright yellow all over, skin, hair, lips, fingernails. It's like staring straight at the sun – if the sun wears lime green pinstripe trousers. He's ludicrously cheerful and happy as he greets the crowd.

He makes me sick.

As is tradition, Rollo Pinken dips his chubby yellow hand into the girls' ball first. Still with that stupid grin on his face, he plucks one out at long last and reads it out.

"Gem Temple –"

"I volunteer!" Gem's staring at me as if I'm mad, though there's gratefulness in there too. What she doesn't know is that I didn't really do it for her. Sure, she wouldn't even survive the bloodbath, but I want to be in these Games more than I want to save her.

Hanna and Dellia on my other side look as excited as my parents do, pushing me forwards onto the stage. I introduce myself, refusing to look at Cade or my parents or Rollo Pinken the cheerful idiot. I wait for the male tribute to be called as I look into the distance.

Titan Ashes is emotionless when his name his called and he steps up to the stage. He's taller than me as he shakes my hand, and I lock eyes with him, trying to wheedle any sort of emotion out of him that would be to my advantage. I achieve nothing – he only stares defiantly back. So that's how it is, is it?

In the Justice Building, my parents pounce on me.

"Oh, we're so proud of you, darling!" they gush, hugging me tightly. "Volunteering like that for Gem! It was so brave of you, so lovely of you!"

And now go and kill twenty-three kids younger than you, I add in my head, but I accept the kisses on my cheek because that's exactly what I'm going to do.

Noelle, my younger sister, sweeps forward to embrace and kiss me, though it's cold. "Well done," she says, locking eyes with me. There's no 'good luck' there. "Perhaps we'll have another victor in the family. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Only Rollo Pinken wouldn't notice that sarcasm.

Noelle is jealous. She always has been and always will be. She's never been as pretty as me or as important as Cade, and now that I'm about to win the Hunger Games she'll be stuck in our shadow for good.

I almost care. But not quite.

Cade is the one who hangs back. "I told you not to volunteer," he whispers, so that Mother and Father and Noelle won't hear him. "You don't know what you're letting yourself in for."

"Then try to do your job and keep me alive," I whisper back coldly. "Though really I think I'm better off without you if you're going to keep acting like this."

He has to leave then, so that my friends can see me, but I don't think I particularly want to see him later on.

Hanna, Dellia and Gem are more thrilled than my parents. Hanna and Dellia because it would boost their status even more to have a victor as a best friend, and Gem because I just saved her from certain death. She's pathetic, snivelling all over me, but I hug her and let her cry anyway.

Maybe she's the only one who will actually miss me.

We're bundled onto the train before I have a chance to pretend I'm upset, and then we're rolling out of the station, away from the safety of District Two.

I promise myself I'll see it again.

District 3 – Milton Rocksham POV

I've just finished getting dressed when my mother bustles into the room, carrying my faintly baffled little sister on her hip.

"Oh, Milton, take Mae for a minute, will you? I've got to find my shoes, and we're already running so late…" Not waiting for an answer, she holds Mae out to me. I stagger backwards at the unexpected weight.

"Alright… hey, little Poppy," I smile at the four-year-old, setting her down on my bed. She giggles at my pet name for her. "Ah, has Mummy only done one plait? Come on then, let me do your other one."

She sits very patiently as I braid back one half of her long blonde hair, making sure it matches up exactly to the other braid. Mum comes back into the room halfway through, and leans against the doorway watching us, a small smile on her face.

"What do you say, Mae?" she asks when I'm finished, picking my sister up as she skips over to her.

'Thank you Milton!" Mae choruses from memory, giving me a wide smile. She's got a few teeth missing, which makes it even cuter.

"Good girl," Mum praises, allowing her to go and collect her favourite doll, leaving us alone. She approaches me, and cups my face, kissing my forehead. "You look so smart today, Milton. How are you feeling, honey?"

I know why she's asking this. It's my first reaping. She's probably more nervous than me. "I'm fine, Mum. Are you?"

She nods quickly, blinking back tears. I suppose even the very slim chance that I might be reaped is upsetting to her. "We'll have a nice big dinner tonight to celebrate. Lamb chops – your favourite."

I perk up at this, grinning. Lamb chops are my favourite, but we hardly ever have them. They're so expensive, and rare in our district. "Sounds great, Mum." I notice Mae standing there behind Mum. "Come on then, Poppy, let's go!" I scoop her up in my arms, and we troop outside into the square.

District Three's escort has been our escort for as long as anyone can remember. Wilbur Hain is probably older than time itself – I mean, he looks positively ancient. I don't think he could develop any more wrinkles if he tried. When he first speaks, nobody can hear a thing he's saying. The mayor hurries up to him, shoves a loudspeaker in his hands, and shuffles away again. When Wilbur speaks again, I'm still not sure he can even hear himself.

"Th-thank you all for c-coming," he starts off shakily. I fidget uncomfortably. Well, it's not like we had a choice.

The mayor sort of prods him, indicating for him to get on with the Reapings. Thank you for that, Mr Mayor, we would have been here forever.

Ebanie Streeter is the first tribute picked. She appears from the fifteen-year-old section, looking absolutely terrified and on the verge of tears. Doesn't she know there are cameras watching her every move? Then again, if it was me…

It is me.

I'm too shocked to move at first. It's like my whole world's gone numb and time has completely stopped. Wilbur can't have said my name, could he? It was impossible. It was my first reaping. I hadn't even applied for the tesserae.

One name in thousands.

I slowly make my way up to the stage, not completely aware of what I'm doing. Then I hear a voice – "I volunteer!"

I whip round, seeing my best friend Ruben trying to fight his way past the crowd towards the stage, to pull me back. What on earth is he thinking? He can't volunteer, not for me! "No, Ruben!" I yell at him, trying to reach the stage before he does, and then my other friend Jasmine is there, grabbing hold of his flailing arms and dragging him back to where he's supposed to stand. I'm grateful to her, and to Ruben too for trying to do something to protect me, but I can't let him get hurt. The pain in Jasmine's eyes is already enough.

The though that I'll have seen them for the last time in one hour is unbearable.

I shake Ebanie Streeter's hand, which is trembling just as much as mine in. I grit my teeth and nod slightly at her. She smiles weakly back.

I don't want to kill her. I don't want to kill anyone.

In the Justice Building, Mum breaks down in my arms. Sobbing loudly on my shoulder, she wails about how much she loved me and how she wanted me to get home no matter what, with Mae perched awkwardly between us as I try to hug them both. We stand like that for ages, until Mum's crying finally subsides enough for us both to try and offer Mae an explanation.

"Listen, Poppy," I begin, trying to be careful with my words. "I've got to go away for a while. You've got to be really good for Mummy, alright? Do whatever she tells you, eat everything on your plate. You can be a good girl, can't you?" I tap her freckled nose gently and tickle her mouth with the end of her plaits, but she doesn't giggle like she usually does.

"Why you going, Milton?" she asks, blue eyes wide. "Why Mummy crying?"

"Because I might not be coming back, sweetheart," I tell her gently, which only sets Mum off again. "One day, Mummy will be able to tell you why I had to go away, but you've got to promise to remember me, OK? I love you, Poppy."

She still doesn't understand, but nods anyway, wrapping her tiny arms around my neck. "Lobe you too Milton." I chuckle a little at her pronunciation of 'love', squeeze her tightly one last time, and then Mae and Mum are gone. It's all I can do not to break down there and then.

Ruben and Jasmine visit me as well. They're both trying their hardest not to cry, but it's obvious they're struggling. We spend the time that we have together trying to make light of the situation, cracking jokes and teasing Ruben about his willingness to volunteer. It seems a bit morbid, but I think it's the only way we know to deal with this.

They're gone far too soon. I keep my head up for the cameras, because I won't let them see how torn apart I was in the Justice Building.

I'm probably in better shape than Ebanie Streeter.

District 4 – Mellish Reed POV

"So what do you say? My marbles for that sandwich."

The little boy standing in front of me eyes me warily, clutching his ham and cheese roll protectively. It's making my stomach growl at the sight of it. I haven't had anything to eat today.

"Let me see the marbles first," the boy insists. I sigh. Oh, of course he has to ask that question. Kids are so suspicious.

"Haven't got them with me right now, kid," I tell him regretfully, making a sheepish face. "How about tomorrow, eh? I'll come find you and give you my bag of marbles. They're green and blue, like the sea. One of a kind."

He still doesn't look sure. "My mummy said –"

"Mummy isn't here right now, is she?" I interrupt. "Hey, I'm sure Mummy wouldn't mind. Besides, she's just a girl – she wouldn't understand our little trade anyway. We boys have to stick together." I gently bump his shoulder with mine, crouching down at his level. I'm less scary that way.

He grins. "Mummy never understands anything. Alright then." He holds out the sandwich, and I swipe it out of his hand before he has a chance to change his mind. "I'll get the marbles tomorrow?"

"I promise. They're at home right now," I lie, ruffling his hair. "See you later, kid."

I take a satisfied bite of the sandwich as I walk casually away. It's just too easy these days. Of course I'm not going to give him anything in return for the sandwich, but it's his own fault he eats up lies like I'm eating up this sandwich. Every kid's the same, whether I'm conning them out of a bag of sweets, a couple of fish, or their week's pocket money.

"Mellish, where've you been?" my father demands as soon as I get into the house, wiping all evidence of the sandwich away with my sleeve. "It's nearly one, we should be there by now."

"Like you actually care if I'm Reaped or not," I mutter, but not quietly enough.

He gives a grunt. "I'm more worried about the Peacekeepers showing up at the door if we're not there. Get a move on."

I join the sixteen-year-old boys in the square and rock back and forth on my heels impatiently. This is such a waste of time – I just want to go home, or maybe get something else to eat. I'm still starving.

"Good afternoooooooon, District Four!" the excitable escort trills like she's trying to sing opera. "What an exciting daaaaaaaaaaay for us aaaaaaall!"

Why has she painted herself bright blue? She looks like a bloody Smurf.

"Now, without further ado, let's pick out our girliiiiie!" she sings, beaming at everyone like it's the best thing she's ever been asked to do in her whole life. "Melody Croooooss! Come on up here, Melody!"

Unfortunately, Melody Cross seems as enthusiastic about the whole thing as The Soprano Smurf does. She walks up to the stage with a massive grin on her face. Bloody hell. Are these the two people some poor sod's going to be around twenty-four-seven until they get to the arena? I pity them.

"Mellish Reeeeeeeeed!" Crap.

I grit my teeth, set my mouth in a thin line and walk calmly up to the stage. Melody and The Soprano Smurf are waiting for me, both still grinning like idiots. Really? Why the hell are they so happy?

I grudgingly shake hands with Melody. I swear, if she bounces up and down anymore she's going to shoot straight up into the sky and we'll never see her again. Not that that would be such a bad thing.

My father doesn't have a lot to say to me in the Justice Building. Of course, he's the only one who visits, and the only reason he comes is because it would be viewed as strange if a father didn't see his son off to certain death.

Not that I plan on dying.

"Do good," he says gruffly, awkwardly patting my shoulder. Well, I'm absolutely overwhelmed by that extravagant show of affection. I'm glad when he scarpers off to hide in his house like the grumpy old man he is.

But there's no one else to see me, and for the first time in my life, I actually feel lonely standing here in this blank, lifeless room. Then I remember something that makes me grin.

I'll have an excuse not to give that kid his marbles tomorrow now.

District 5 – Peridot Reska POV

"Peridot! Peri, where are you?"

I buckle up my sandals and pull my head up to call, "In here, Arie!"

My best friend skips into the room, auburn hair rippling and green eyes bright and sparkling. I resist the urge to sigh. Even when she's skipping around like a five-year-old, she looks beautiful. I wish more than anything I looked normal, like her.

But no. My parents made sure that would never be a possibility for me.

"Ooh, you look nice," Arie smiles, eyeing my lavender sundress. "Come on, Hal's waiting."

Hal is Arie's fraternal twin. The three of us have been best friends since childhood, and their father took me in when my parents ran away. He shares Arie's green eyes, but has dark hair, and is always smiling. Arie told me a while back he had a crush on me, which I was shocked at. Who'd fancy me, with the DNA mutations I have from being experimented on?

Remembering this, I self-consciously fiddle with the random teal streak in my white-blonde hair as we approach him, waiting at the door. That's not the weirdest thing the experiments did to me. My eyes now resemble rainbows, with different patches of colour everywhere. Yes, rainbows. My parents must have been desperate for money if they were willing to have their daughter made a freak show like this.

Oh, wait, no, they weren't desperate for money. They just didn't care. That's why they ran away from our district.

"Hey, Peridot. You look lovely," he grins as we leave the house. I blush. It's different when Hal compliments me – I mean, for one thing, it sets off butterflies in my stomach. Arie saying I look nice certainly doesn't have that effect.

I slip my arms through his and Arie's, and we set off for the square. Once there, Arie and I join the seventeen-year-old girls and Hal joins the boys.

"Hello, District Five," a tall woman barks, making half the crowd jump. She's this year's escort for our district; a rather scary, militaristic woman with a no-nonsense attitude. You get the feeling she would take the most extreme measures to keep her tributes alive. "Let's get on with it then, shall we?" She claps her hands together, and reaches for the girls' ball. Well, she doesn't mess around, does she? She's neither smiling nor frowning when she plucks the name out of the ball.

"Peridot Reska."

What?

Beside me, Arie gasps and grips my arm so tightly her nails are digging in. I think I can vaguely hear a male voice crying out my name in desperation. Begging someone to volunteer for me.

They don't.

I wrench free from Arie's grasp and make my way up to the stage in stony silence, trying to look nothing more than irritated. People are whispering, so it's hardly an act. The militaristic escort holds out her hand for me to shake.

Stuff her and her formalities.

I spit in her face.

A ripple of disbelieving gasps unsettles the crowd. The escort doesn't even flinch, but her eyes are burning and she's glaring at me with such an intensity that I don't think I want to do that again. Great, as if things weren't bad enough, my escort now hates my guts. That's the way to go, Peridot.

I determinedly don't look at anyone as the male tribute is picked. Gabriel Thorp takes his brother's place by volunteering – I know he's his brother because they share the same surname. Wait, why is he coming from the fifteen-year-old section? He looks about twelve.

Why on earth does he look so smug? He's just signed up to be killed, for God's sake. I hope he doesn't go all Career on me. His face drops slightly as he shakes my hand. Ah, so it's finally hit him. Not so clever now, are we? I have to give him credit though; he doesn't let it show at all.

Five minutes later, Hal and I are trying to revive an unconscious Arie in the Justice Building. She fainted as soon as she saw me. Wonderful, how can I say goodbye to her when she's dead to the world? When she finally wakes, she bursts into tears and launches herself into my arms, sobbing violently on my shoulder. Am I not the one who's supposed to be crying her eyes out? Nevertheless, I pat her back and soothe her and tell her I'll try my best to come back.

Over her shoulder, I can see that Hal knows I'm lying through my teeth.

His face is slightly twisted in a grimace, like he wants to start crying but he knows he can't. I'm so glad. I want someone, at least, to be stronger than me right now.

I fall into his arms without a word, while Arie is in the corner wiping her eyes and trying to pull herself together. He holds me tightly, stroking my hair.

"It's going to be alright, Peridot," he whispers. "Everything's going to turn out alright."

It's such an outright lie, but it's the best we can come up with.

The Peacekeepers whisk them away – the only two people in the world who will miss me, or bother to remember me – and I'm left alone, waiting to be picked up and piled onto a train that will take me far away from here and straight to my death.

District 6 – Darcy Nuostabus POV

"Ooh, he's not bad looking," Morgan praises a boy walking past, nodding approvingly. Sarah and Briana raise their eyebrows at her.

"He's about nineteen," Sarah points out.

"No – no, I see her point. His bum's nicer than most guys our age," Briana says appreciatively. "Ooh, look, here comes another one."

"Mmm… wouldn't mind me some of that," Morgan comments about the sixteen-year-old blonde boy who's walking over to his friends.

"Actually, yeah, he's quite cute…" Sarah admits, before her expression turns to one of horror. "Wait, that's my brother!"

The three of us burst out laughing. "Incest, darling, is technically illegal," Morgan says kindly, patting Sarah's head affectionately. "Although what you two get up to at home, we can only guess."

"Oh, you twisted cow!" Sarah huffs, face very red as Briana cackles her head off. I chuckle at my friends.

"Oi, Darcy, is Alex with anyone at the moment?" Morgan asks me, probably in what she thinks is a very casual tone of voice. I roll my eyes.

"Yes, he's still single and no, he still doesn't want to go out with you," I tell her, smiling slightly. She asks me this question at least once a week, about my brother Alexander.

"Oh, I wish the reapings would just start already," Briana complains irritably. We turn to her, wide-eyed, and so do most of the thirteen-year-olds in our section. She realises what she's said. "Oh, I don't mean that! I don't actually want anybody to be reaped! I was just saying…" She trails off, muttering to herself now.

"We understand, dear," I say, just as a cough from the stage catches everyone's attention. The Mayor has finally showed up, and is giving his usual speech. Briana and Morgan get bored almost straight away, while Sarah listens attentively as usual. I've no idea why.

Finally, he welcomes District Six's escort onto the stage. A very tall, very slim, very pretty blonde woman is looking around at us all with an uninterested expression, perfectly painted red lips pursed. It's clear she wants the Games over with as soon as possible so she can go back to hair-spraying her hair or whatever it is people like her do all day.

"Ladies first," she announces in her Capitol-affected accent. She delves her hand gracefully into the ball, rummages around for a while and picks one out easily. "Morgan Chimer."

My heart drops. This isn't real. This isn't happening. She didn't just say my best friend's name.

SMASH!

The loud noise right next to me makes my head snap sideways. Briana has just dropped the glass necklace she was fiddling with, and both her and Sarah are staring at Morgan with wide eyes. Morgan herself looks paralysed, like she wouldn't be able to move even if she wanted to.

Her feet don't have time to take more than a few steps forward before I'm lunging ahead of her, screaming, "I volunteer! I volunteer!"

"Darcy, no –" Morgan hisses, but I pretend not to hear her, shoving her to the side and beating her to the stage.

"And your name is?" the pretty blonde woman prompts, sounding as bored as ever.

"Darcy Nuostabus." I can see Morgan dropping her head into her hands out of the corner of my eye.

And then it hits me. What have I done? I don't regret saving Morgan, but what have I let myself in for?

Idiot, Darcy, I think. Idiot.

I'm so caught up in my own thoughts that I only the catch the surname of the male tribute being called.

" – Nuostabus!"

There's only one other person eligible for the reaping with the surname 'Nuostabus'.

My brother makes his way up to the stage, and I can still see the shock in his eyes at me standing up there with him. He shakes my hand and squeezes, silently asking if I'm alright. I nod quickly. His mouth sets in a thin line, and he turns to glare at the crowd, who are gossiping freely. Well, honestly, they could wait until we were out of their sight.

Sarah, Briana and Morgan are hysterical in the Justice Building. Sarah is trying to give me one hundred tips on staying alive in the arena at a time, Briana is crying on my shoulder and Morgan is blaming herself over and over again for not stopping me volunteering. In the end, I have to sit them all down like they're misbehaving children, tell them very sternly I don't want any tears or advice I won't be able to follow or any guilt from them. Then I give them a smile – because I'm always the cheerful one, and I want to keep that up, don't I? – and pull them into a massive group hug. That nearly sets me off there and then.

Mum and Dad can't believe I volunteered like that. Mum is shouting at me, telling me off for signing myself up to be killed, and Dad looks incredibly disappointed. Disappointed? They're about to lose a daughter and probably a son as well, shouldn't they be comforting me?

In the end, they come to their senses and engulf me in hugs and tears. I wonder vaguely if Alex received the same send off I have.

I doubt it.

AN: Please review, and tell me how I did in the first chapter. Please tell me if I didn't write your character quite right - it's hard to write 24 different personalities, but I'm trying my best and I want to do you and your tributes justice. Oh yeah, and there's also 5 sponsor points for reviewing. :P