Amber's POV

-District 1-

I was in the Arena, one of the last two tributes to be alive. I snuck around the edge of the Cornucopia, and waited, my heart pounding. Something dropped out of the sky and hit me on the shoulders. I fell on the ground and looked up, to see who my attacker was.

It was William, the boy from District 2. He was the only other one alive. He raised his knife, and…started to jump on me.

"Huh?" I said, confused by his actions.

William just continued to jump, and jump, and jump, and jump…

"Ouch!" I cried out, waking up.

My little sister, Quartza, was jumping on my bed, to wake me up. Well, she was jumping on me more than she was on the bed. A particularly painful blow to the stomach caused me to wake up.

"Quartza cut it out!" I said, throwing my pillow at her.

"But mommy told me to wake you up!" She said, batting her eyelashes.

I sighed. Quartza could be so stupid sometimes. Being 4 gave her an excuse though, I guess.

"Go help mommy make the pancakes," I said, shooing her off my bed.

"How'd you know we were having pancakes?" Quartza asked, her fat little face crinkled up in confusion.

"Magic," I said, causing her eyes to bug out.

Quartza then sprinted down the stairs yelling, "Mommy, mommy! Amber's magical! She knew we were making her pancakes!"

I rolled my dark brown eyes, any fool could figure out what we were having for breakfast by the smell of pancakes in the air. I sniffed in deeper. Good, there was no bacon smell. My mom knew I hated bacon. Usually she would make it anyways, just for my dad and Quartza, but I guessed she realized that today was an emotional day for me, the day of the Reaping.

I guess it wouldn't be too bad to be picked; I knew my stuff and could win easily. I just didn't want to leave Quartza. She could be a pain, but I loved her.

I pulled back my covers and got out of bed. Looking in the mirror, I saw that my long blonde hair was in a big knot. I sighed, my mom would have to fix that later when I got ready.

After pulling on a pair of pink fuzzy slippers, I trudged downstairs.

"Morning," I grunted.

"Morning!" Said my mom and dad in unison. I could tell they were being overly cheery for my sake. I didn't really need their support though, I wasn't nervous at all about today. Even if I was picked, another girl would probably volunteer for me. There was a volunteer almost every year.

I smiled at them, and poured myself a glass of orange juice.

"Pancakes?" Quartza asked me sweetly.

"Mmhmm," I said.

Quartza carefully placed 3 pancakes on my plate. I smothered them in syrup and gobbled them down. I wanted to have time to get ready, if I was going to look good for the Reaping.

"Can you help me get ready?" I asked my mom.

"Sure thing honey," my mom replied with a smile.

Ugh. Adults were so cheesy when it came to the Games.

I walked back upstairs, into my room.

"What should I wear?" I asked my mom.

"How about your red dress?" she asked.

"Perfect," I said, rummaging through my closet.

I pulled out the red dress and slipped it on. It was strapless and short; it hugged my chest, gathered at my natural waist, and flowed out to my knees. It was a cheery bright red color, and had brown trim that matched the color of my eyes.

I slipped into a pair of red heels. I was short, and wanted the extra couple of inches to make me look a little bit more sophisticated.

"Let's tackle your hair now," my mom said, walking up to me with a hair brush.

I sighed and sat down on my bed, allowing my mom to brush through my hair. It was painful, but nothing compared to what the Games would be like. Not that I would ever be in them. When my mom was done brushing my hair out, it looked beautiful. We decided to not do anything to it, so it would look natural. My hair was blonde, straight, and long. It hung down almost to my hips.

"You look amazing," my mom said to me.

I gave her a kiss on the cheek and said, "Thanks mom. See you after the Reaping."

She smiled and I walked out of my room, down the stairs, and out the door. I joined the crowd of people heading toward the Justice Building. I fell so small in the gigantic crowd, even though I was 18, the oldest age group in the Games.

Everything was a blur until the actual Reaping began.

"Hello! Hello!" Our escort, Louis Reade, said cheerfully as he stepped onto the stage. "This year is a very special year! It is a Quarter Quell!"

I forgot about that. Quarter Quell's were very special years, which only came every 25 years. They were awful, because the Capitol always made them extra violent.

Louis pulled out an envelope bearing the Capitol Seal, and opened it with gusto. A surprised expression crossed his face. "Well! This year we all have ladies as tributes! No gentlemen, very interesting!" He said, excited. "Let's get on with it!"

My jaw dropped. Only girls would be going into the Games? That means my chances of being picked had increased! What was I going to do if I was picked?

I drew in my breath as Louis plunged his hand into the glass bowl on stage. Only now did I notice there was only one bowl.

"Chiffon Catalano!" he announced.

I looked around, trying to find this girl Chiffon. I recognized her last name from somewhere… I knew who it was the minute my eyes fell upon a tall, blonde, 17 year old girl, who had a very uneasy look on her face. She quickly corrected her face into a smile. She was very beautiful when she looked happy.

"Aren't you a pretty girl?" Louis said to Chiffon as she walked onto the stage.

She gave him a small smile.

"Any volunteers?" Louis asked, looking out into the crowd. Nobody moved a muscle.

"Now, the other tribute!" He said, plunging his hand into the glass bowl again.

"Amber Schorl!"

I wanted to cry. I hadn't cried since I was 3, and that's a very long time to go without crying. I wanted to be brave though, for Quartza. I walked up onto the stage, and looked out into the crowd, trying to keep my emotions from showing.

My eyes first fell onto Quartza, who looked confused. Then I saw my mom and dad, who had equally sad expressions on their faces.

I quickly looked away, for their faces made me want to cry even more.

"Any volunteers?" Louis asked.

Silence followed. Of course nobody would want to volunteer on a Quarter Quell year.

"Nobody? Okay, I give you our tributes from District 1, Chiffon and Amber!" Louis announced. "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favour."

I shook hands with Chiffon. She had a firm grip. Her face looked familiar.

Suddenly I found myself frantically searching the crowd for someone. My eyes fell upon a guy in the 18 year old boy section. He had blue eyes, blonde hair, he was tall, and very athletic looking. He looked like a cute boy version of Chiffon. His name was Luke Catalano. He was my boyfriend. He had a horrified look on his face, and I knew why.

I was going into the Games with his sister.