When I get home, I see my mother and Prim all set. They are both looking nice in their attires, even if Prim's struggling to keep her blouse tucked into her skirt. My mother just secured it with pins to make it stay.
I take a bath in warm water. Scrubbing off the dirt from head to toe felt so good. My mother even took out one of my father's shirts and a pair of pants.
"Is it okay?" I ask her, since I know how important my father's clothes are to her.
"Yes," she tells me. She fastens the last button of my shirt in place and when I saw myself in the mirror, I'm not even sure if I was the one I'm looking at.
"You look so handsome," whispers Prim.
"I don't even look like your brother," I say, hugging her. Might as well have a happy moment with her if ever one of us gets reaped. But I still hope that she won't be reaped, since her name was only entered once because I didn't let her sign up for tesserae. Even though, I can feel she's also worried about me. I notice that her blouse isn't tucked in again, so I tucked it in place.
"Tuck your tail in, little duck," I say, tucking her blouse in.
She giggles then says a "Quack" and I say, "Quack yourself," with a laugh. I kiss the top of her head and said, "Let's eat."
The ones Gale and I got earlier this morning are going to be saved for supper. We just had the bread from the tessera grain and drank the milk from Prim's goat, Lady. No one wants to each much, though.
We go to the square at one. Everyone should, unless you're about to die. If the officials knew you weren't there, you'll be put to jail. The busy square turns to a gateway to death at this time of the year. 24 kids will have their death sentence televised nationwide today. Other than that, it's the Capitol's way of keeping in track of the country's census. Kids 12 to 18 years old are sorted, the youngest at the back and the older family members older than 18 at the side, separated by ropes. The others who simply didn't care just took bets on who's gonna get reaped.
The square gets tighter as more people arrive. The others were led to streets where they still can see the screen from the square.
Right now, I'm standing among kids my age as we exchange nods. We are all too focused at the stage before the Justice Building. There is a podium, three chairs, and two large glass balls, each for the boys and the girls. There are 20 slips with Peeta Mellark written on them as of now.
Mayor Undersee and Effie Trinket fill two of the chairs. I see them murmur to each other and I guess they're wondering why the third seat is still empty. Whoever he is, he's kinda late.
At two, Mayor Undersee steps on the podium and tells the ever-so-interesting history of Panem (which no one really listens to), a country that rose from the ruins of a place once called North America. A Capitol with 13 districts made up Panem until the Dark Days came when the districts had an uprising against the Capitol. The 13th was obliterated and the Treaty of Treason gave the new laws for peace which lead to the Hunger Games, where as a punishment for the districts' uprising, they are to give one girl and one boy called tributes, which are to be picked at the reaping. Locked in the arena, the 24 tributes will fight to death until one remains: the victor. This is the Capitol's way of reminding us that we don't stand a chance against them, that only they can control us.
The Capitol also requires us to think that the Hunger Games is a festival to be celebrated, a tournament of the districts. The victor receives fame and fortune, as well as his/her district which will be showered with prizes (mainly food) for a year while the rest of the districts starve.
District 12 only had two victors for the past 74 years. The one still alive is Haymitch Abernathy, the drunkard who staggers on stage and gives Effie a big drunkard hug. Mayor Undersee manages to divert the attention from Haymitch to Effie, since we don't want to give the Capitol something to laugh at.
Effie takes over the podium and says her signature line, "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favour!" She gives this little speech about what an honor it is to be in 12 when everyone knows she wants to transfer to a district without getting smelly drunkard hugs.
I search for Gale only to find out he's looking at me, with what seemed of a smile. There are 42 slips with Gale Hawthorne in them and I still hope he'd be spared.
"Ladies first!" says Effie, then digs her hand into the ball and gets a slip. Everyone holds their breath at this moment. I'm still hoping it's not Prim.
Finally, Effie smoothes the slip out. She reads it in a loud, clear voice. And, it's not Prim.
It's Katniss Everdeen.
