Author's Note: Hi everyone! This is my first fanfic, and to celebrate the premier of the hunger games last week, I wrote up this one-shot. If you find any OOCness or problems throughout, please review and let me know!
Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games trilogy. I do not want Suzanne Collins to become Anne Rice because of that.
Despite the fact that it is very, very normal in The Hunger Games, I couldn't keep thinking to myself this. Rue's dead. She survived the Bloodbath, now she's lying lifeless and covered with flowers. It's unlawful (at least it's what I think) and ruthless. Yet the Capitol sees this as a form of drama to the Games. She was very useful in the orchards. Our lives may change a lot without her. As my daughter, she had been the greatest gift in my entire lifetime.
Since she was five, I'd been teaching her how to harvest fruit from especially tall trees, despite that I usually harvest the grains. Fortunately, her relatively small body halped her to climb up most of the tall trees by the time she was 8. Every time she got home from school, she'd enter the orchards and ask if there are any fruits to harvest. Though, at times there was nothing to harvest, and she'd end up with a saddened face at the end of the day. Well, her execptional tree climbing talent is not the only great aspect to District 11, the agricultural district.
Her first music lesson came at her first few weeks in school. Even though she learned just a few notes, she had since then been telling me where she can learn more of this thing called "music". Then she discovered the mockingjays, while we were on the way delivering harvest.
"What are they?" I remembered she asked me, as she haven't seen this peculiar bird before.
"Those are what most people call the mockingjays, Rue. They sing very well. I suppose you could sing a few notes and see what happens?" I answered.
She smiled, then stopped and sang the notes she'd learned. The mockingjays imitated nonchanlantly and passed it to one another. You can just guess her reaction after that.
"Wow! These birds are pure magic! Are there more of them around?"
"Yes, Rue. In fact, they're almost everywhere, especially near the orchards," I said, satisfied at her new discovery. After all, it was a child's best experience in life.
The weeks after, she began to use the mockingjays to her advantage: to tell the time and when she's done harvesting the fruit at the top of the trees. The mockingjays can easily reproduce the notes and pass them to one another, everyone praised Rue as a valuable asset to District 11. I love you, Rue, I also remembered thinking that during one of our bountiful harvests.
Then came the dreaded Reaping. Her first Reaping! I kept my fingers crossed tightly the night before. She never had to apply for tessera; Rue either somehow sneakily took some food from the farms or we used our hard-earned labor money to get it, but I'm happy that is so for as long as my youngest child turns 19. Reaching out for her name seems like a one in a million chance, but I never took any chances. Never for pitting her against a game that'll kill.
My wife gave Rue newly-bought clothes from our savings for her to wear, but that didn't seem to help. I saw Rue trembling a bit, but a motioned for her in the distance to stop. The tribute escort of our district, known as Mell Breslin, who also announced the tributes, confidently introduced herself. She had her usual golden streaks to her brown hair, and she wore a golden dress. I suspect she did that just to fit into our district's industry.
"Good morning, and happy Hunger Games! May the odds be ever in your favor!" she said her usual line, and showed us a recap episode of last year's Hunger Games. Yes, yes. We know. Just get on with it, I thought impatiently. It just annoys me with the bringing up of more tension when we have to worry so much at this moment.
"First, we'll select from the girls," Mell said, while picking a card gracefully from the girls' Reaping ball, and approached the microphone.
"Rue Etly," Mell announced the name on the card she picked up.
Rue's heart appeared to have skipped a beat. Such a rare chance, and yet she got it that easily? This is an outrage! Winnow, our lovely nine-year-old daughter that looks almost like Rue hid herself behind her mother. Sadly, no other girl dared to volunteer. But Rue made a determined look and stance. Casually, she approached up to the stage.
"So here you are," Mell said warmly, but shrugged. "Well, let's say I never expected a young tribute to play for the Hunger Games, either."
Rue rolled her eyes. Mell ignored her, and proceeded to say, "Now, for the boys." and randomly selected a name from the boys' Reaping ball. She approached the microphone too, and held card in front of her.
"Thresh Proke," Mell announced. No volunteers for the boys, too. Despite having his fate sealed, the boy, just as burly as me walked up to the stage.
"Well then," Mell said. "It looks like we have our tributes settled. Before everyone leaves, I'd like to say the tributes' friends and family are allowed to have a minute and a half with them before we send them on their way to the Capitol."
Mell almost entered the door to the Mayor's house, but she forgot something. "To everyone else, Happy Hunger Games! May the odds be ever in your favor!" She finished before hastily pushing Rue and Thresh back in. I never wasted the opportunity when the Peacekeepers allowed us to talk to Rue.
"Don't worry, Dad," Rue reassured. "I can climb the trees. The others are probably too heavy for that."
"But what if there aren't?" I retorted. "You know you're risking-"
"I'm sure there's trees, and if there's none I can use a slingshot and flint as a weapon," Rue interrupted with a frown before continuing. "Dad, Mom, I'll try the hardest to win. Even if I fail and die, please move on and take care of Winnow, Maize, Tiller, Bran and Mill for the rest of their lives." She then turned to her younger brother and sisters, save for her youngest sister who is still a baby.
"Guys, if you do get into the Hunger Games, I wish for you to try your best to win. Please, don't let me down." She said.
But Winnow had something to offer. She had been learning arts and crafts and she picked up grass weaving fast. She weaved a grass necklace with a wooden star on it, but she kept it as a surprise gift for her birthday. "Wait! Before we go, I have something to give!" Winnow quickly said and produced the necklace. "I thought to keep it until your birthday, but this is your good luck charm. Take it."
Rue examined the necklace. "That's so sweet of you."
Before anyone could speak, the Peacekeepers informed us that we had run out of time. My wife gave Rue a nod before we exited the place. On the other hand, I hope Maltenia gave Thresh, her grandson some encouraging words. We had been befriending her and Thresh for a long time since I met her when I was a child, tilling the ground for wheat to be planted on. I knew there'd be only one victor, but I wished the best for anyone who deserved it.
A week later, I was happy to know that Rue was given a decent score while training, but I didn't see how. Maybe she was right. She had the potential for longevity in the Games. I also liked her interview, especially the part where she said she loves everything in the Capitol, such as her stylist Nolren. And during the actual Games, she was really showing her talent! She didn't had to have problems with the Careers as, like she said can't climb trees well.
When she suggested that the District 12 girl, or Katniss from what I've heard in her interview saw down a nest of tracker jackers, I was really happy that she did the right thing. Those annoying careers deserve to die anyway. They're too overpowered and arrogant, yet Glimmer, the District 1 girl, her name I also knew from her interview, couldn't fend herself quickly off those lethal insects. After stealing Glimmer's bow and arrows, Katniss passed out, but I can see that Rue treated her in her comatose state, wrapping the tracker jacker stings with some leaves that I think can treat them. Now's the exciting part! It's the reason we kept our eyes peeled when we watched the Games daily.
The Katniss and Rue Alliance, or that's what I'd call this part. Obviously, Rue and Katniss formed a lovely alliance. They shared food, They aimed to destroy the Careers' supplies, and literally make them face 'Hunger' in 'the Hunger Games'. Rue even used her signal for safety checks between her and Katniss (she used a whistle instead).
Rue lit her first fire to distract the Careers, while Katniss found out that placed the supplies in the mined areas. This brings me to another awesome part of the Games: By shooting at the plastic bag of apples on top of the supplies, they tumbled down to the mine and destroyed the everything! Take that, Careers! The death of that boy from District 3 from a neck up was a bit forgiving, I have to admit.
Unfortunately, all good things came to the end, and this is what I'm trying to say about. Katniss received no melodies from the mockingjays when they should have received Rue's melody, it sent her to a state of panic until she found Rue. Trapped in a net, but Katniss freed her. Ugh, it's actually a net set up by another Career, which I know from the interviews again was Marvel. How annoying. Katniss shot Marvel with her arrow she stole from Glimmer but it was too late. Our jaws drop while we were watching. Not ours, but everyone's! Marvel's spear had struck Rue in the abdomen. We shed some tears, and hopefully the Peackeepers don't mind our sadness.
"Can you sing?" She had asked Katniss.
As she laid dying, Rue just plain asked Katniss to sing. "Really?" I said, even with sadness, sarcastically. And even if she did, Rue passed on halfway through. Katniss chanced upon some wildflowers which she laid on Rue.
Thank you, Katniss from District 12. You have helped my daughter in the Games, and you made her resting as peaceful as it could be. Thank you very much. I also thank you for the farewell gesture, which we immediately follow suit.
Suddenly, Harv, a co-worker in the wheat farm that I worked with, loses it. He shoves the people around him and yelled. He believed Rue was not just a source of entertainment and should be valued as any other human being. The others support him, and so do I. I ask silently for my family to evacuate the area while we overthrow sacks of grains and smash crates of produce into bits and pieces. We beat up the Peacekeepers when we can. I don't care about how people will feel, as we don't get the food legally, anyway. This is our proof that we aren't the Capitol's puppets, and along with the other districts. When the Peacekeepers get rough, I barely escape by jumping literally out of town and out of their sight. I rush back home with my family.
"Everyone, we had a mini uprising," I say, sweating and concerned, but feel no regret at all. I explain why and how it happened. "It's why I told you all to head back home quick."
"Dad," Winnow turns to me, tears overflowing. "Why? Why now?"
"Look, Winnow," I focus at her. "We can't blame anyone. It's bound to happen in the Games. If she didn't die now, she'd die sooner or later. Our only hope is to let Katniss, the girl from District 12 win."
"But she's dead!" Maize, our six-year-old younger daughter exclaims with tears, too. I hug Maize and Winnow.
"Hey, remember what Rue said?" I ask them, but no answer follows. "Rue said she wants everyone to move on. We should continue our farming, and help ourselves have a comfortable life throughout. If we keep grieving on Rue, it won't help," I say with full confidence. "By the way, our work was probably canceled due to the uprising, so shut the windows, and we can stay here until tomorrow."
Everyone nods at each other, and bolted the windows and doors shut. They know that I'm a target for the Peacekeepers.
"I'll prepare some dinner," My wife says. "This dinner will be special. I'm dedicating it to Rue."
I smile. Even the girls stop crying. Life returns to normal, but Rue's death remains in my mind in a less trumatizing way.