No. No, no, no! I am screaming inside my head. This cannot be happening. How can this be real? My name echoes in my ears, I can hear it ringing, yet there must be some mistake- it can't be me. It can't. My body unfreezes and I glance around. I catch Gabriel's eye. He is shocked, but gives me a weak yet encouraging smile. I try to smile back but my face is still frozen. Everyone is staring at me, like I have a disease. They draw away as I finally realise that it is, it is me. That I am going to die.

I only had to get through four more Reapings. Four more, and I would never have to dread those slips of paper again. I would never again face the fear of my own name, the indescribable terror defined by those tiny little slips. But I never made it, because here I am, in the Hunger Games. I am numb as I walk woodenly towards the platform. Suddenly my mind flashes back to previous Games, and I remember that those who looked scared were picked off quickly, marked as targets. So I try to act like I don't really care. It's hard, but I must be doing a good job, because Asreya, our district's escort, grins broadly at me as I approach.

"Well then," she says brightly, "let's have a big hand for our girl tribute!" She claps enthusiastically, but the applause dies after a few seconds. She composes herself quickly and trots across the stage to the other ball, the one which contains the boys' names.

"Let's see who our brave boy tribute will be this year!" she trills, and she plunges her hand into the mass of slips. After grabbing one, she crosses the stage again and read out the name in a loud and clear voice.

"Gabriel Caverly."

For the second time in less than five minutes my heart stops. I can't breathe. What are the odds? I took Tesserae, it's not like there wasn't a chance it would be me. But Gabriel only lives with his mother. His name was in 12 times. I had 24 slips, for food for my two sisters, my brother, parents and me. I can't believe that this has happened. Perhaps it's all a dream, and I'll wake up on the morning of the Reaping and this will never have happened. But I flash back to reality. I find Gabriel in the crowd. He looks nonchalant, but I have known him for too long to miss the fear and confusion in his soft brown eyes. He walks up to the stand and joins me.

I stare at him as we shake hands. My whole life has just been turned upside down. I cling to the one thing I have left now- my token. It's very simple, just a leaf, roughly carved out of beech wood. It nestles in the pocket of my dress. I hold it so hard it almost breaks as I walk with Gabriel into the Justice Building.

I'm shown into a simple room. There is a sofa but I don't sit down. Instead I walk straight to the window. I push it open, but it won't go far. I suppose that's to stop the tributes from getting out. I stand with my forehead against the cool glass, breathing in the familiar air, staring out at the vast forests that fill my district, calming myself down.

I know there is no way I will ever survive these Games. I've never been particularly strong or good at anything practical. I'm quite clever, but not clever enough to outwit my opponents. And I am not sufficiently pretty or pleasant to get sponsors. I am not coming out of this alive.

I just hope it doesn't hurt.

Suddenly I realise that while I won't survive, Gabriel stands a fair chance. He's been handling an axe since he was five. He's strong and immensely likable. He can fight and though I know I'm smarter than him, he's not far behind me.

I take a deep breath and make an oath to myself. I will protect Gabriel even if it costs my life. I can't see him die. If he died, so would I. I can't imagine life without him.

He's a couple of days older than me and our mothers were friends before we were born. We grew up together. He's been my best friend since birth. We tell each other everything and spend most of our time together. I've known him literally all of my life and seen him almost every day.

A lot of people, our mothers included, thought there might have been something more, but there wasn't. I have recently thought about whether I loved him, and I thought yes. But only as a friend. And I asked him, and he felt the same.

The door opens and I spin around, clutching the window sill. It's my family. Grace and Addie run towards me and I catch them in a hug. They're twelve-year-old twins, and both of them are crying their eyes out.

"We're sorry," chokes Grace.

I laugh a little to try and stop them from crying. "What are you sorry for, sillies?"

"We were scared and we wished that it wasn't us," whispers Addie.

"And then it was you instead!" wails Grace.

"Oh no," I say. "No, it wasn't your fault. Everyone gets scared at the reaping. Hey, I was still scared today and it was my fourth time! It was just luck, okay? It wasn't your fault at all."

This doesn't work. They just cry even harder, leaning against me.

"Hey, twins. I'll be all right. I can get through this, can't I? I can win! I can come home, and I will. I will come home." I'm reassuring myself as much as them.

They move back and stare at me dolefully.

"You promise?" they ask in unison, and I have to bite my lip to stop myself from grinning. This is a trick they've been able to do since they were tiny, and it always makes me smile.

"Promise," I say, and I lean forward and kiss each of them on the forehead.

Then I stand up and walk towards my parents. Mother is pale and looks like she might fall over. Father is shocked but is trying to hide it. They both envelope me in a hug.

"I will try," I say. "I will try to come back." I drop my voice to a whisper so the twins can't hear what I say next. "But just in case... You know. I love you."

Sam is only two, so he will probably never remember me when he grows up. I hug him anyway and say goodbye. I can tell he doesn't understand what's going on. He looks confused when I kiss him.

Then the Peacekeepers come and it's so quick, and my family are gone and I know that I will never see them again. It breaks my heart. I sit on the sofa silently while tears leak from my eyes. I brush them away quickly when I hear the door start to open. I glance up and see that it is Marnia, Gabriel's mother.

"Hey," she says softly. I reply with a nod.

"You can get through this, you know," she says, and this shocks me so much I lift my head to stare at her.

"But if I do," I whisper, "Gabriel can't."

I'm surprised to see tears leaking from her eyes. "One of you has to," she says, her voice shaking. "If he... You have to win. For him."

"He won't die," I say. The word is ugly and it frightens me so much, but all I can do is shake my head and stand up to walk to the window again. "He can't."

Marnia stares at me, then turns and rushes from the room. Just before she closes the door, she whispers "Good luck."

I return to gazing out of the window. I don't even look around when the door opens again.

"You aren't going to say bye to your best friend?"

I squeal and whirl around.

"Lily!" She's my second best friend after Gabriel. I work with her a lot at school and also in the forests when it's our turn to cut down the trees which supply the other districts. She makes me laugh all the time and is so easy to get on with.

I hug her hard, then we sit down on the sofa together, giggling. Suddenly her face turns serious. It scares me a little. She's a natural joker and is rarely seen without a smile on her face. She never takes anything seriously so it seems weird to have a solemn Lily.

She looks at me. "You can win. You can win this and come home."

"I can't, Lil. Even if I could beat the Careers and survive whatever arena conditions we get, I could never see Gabriel die. It would kill me."

"Please," she begs. "Please try. I know it sounds awful, but... I'd rather you came back than Gabriel. I mean, if he... died, then maybe you could win. It's like, it would be bad, but you wouldn't have to kill him or anything."

I stand up. "Goodbye, Lil."

She starts to cry as she stands up. "Bye," she says, and she hugs me fiercely then runs out, sobbing.

I feel like doing the same. All I want to do right now is curl up into a ball and bawl. But I know I have to be strong, so that the fact I've been crying won't show when I have to leave for the train. I sit on the sofa silently. There are no more visitors for me.

Finally a Peacekeeper comes and I walk to the train. I see Gabriel already standing by the door. I'm careful to hide my feelings as we climb up into the compartment where Asreya and our mentors are sitting. I can feel Gabriel doing the same.

We sit opposite each other, and listen to Asreya twittering on about the train and the wonders of the Capitol. I have no idea how I am going to cope with the next few weeks. I squeeze my eyes shut and try to block it all out.

I pretend that I am in the forest. A mockingjay flies over my head, singing a familiar tune that I can't quite place. I sit down, leaning against one of the towering oaks, with my knees hugged into my chest. I simply sit and breathe in the smell of home.

Suddenly I am awake. The train is moving; I can see the landscape flashing by outside the window. I have been moved to my compartment. I must have fallen asleep yesterday.

I roll over to face the wall, and as I do, I start to cry again. I cry for what seems like hours but can only have been a few minutes. Then I get out of bed and dress myself for the hard day ahead of me.

So I hope you like it! This is my second fanfic but my first for the Hunger Games. Please review, constructive criticism is always appreciated!

7outof200