A/N: My second chapter! This is going to be really similar to the book. But, you know, in Damen's point of view and with new challenges. So, I hope you all enjoy it and I hope I'm doing a good job of making it like the true Suzanne Collins-like Hunger Games. I know I'm not the great author herself, but I'm giving it my all.

Disclaimer: I make no money from this story. It's for my own pleasure. I wish I got paid for this.

Summary: North America is in ruins and a new nation called Panem has risen. The Hunger Games became an annual ritual after the Dark Days. Seventy-two years after the Hunger Games began, I only had my name in five times for the reaping but that wasn't enough to spare me. I was chosen. I was sure to never come back home to the people I love. But I was driven by two things only: love and revolution.

Survival For Love – Revised Version – Chapter 2

No one had helped. No one will. No one had helped. No one will. The mantra kept screaming in my as we were led down off the stage and into the Justice Hall. I'd never been there before in my life since none of my family, luckily enough, had died while harvesting grain or anything. Harvesting isn't that dangerous unless there's a guy like Castle behind the scythe. I was thankful there weren't hordes of people surrounding us to see our reactions, clawing at us to claim they touched us, to get pieces of us to show off like in the richer districts that provided the Careers, 1, 2, 3, and 4.

The Justice Hall was all worn wood that seriously needed to be repaired from all the dry weather we'd been having. Rain had come only a few times—enough to water the crops and revive the forests.

It smelled musty in there, as if no one had ever bothered to clean the place in a long, long time. There were wooden doors that must have led to different rooms, but we were led away from them and put into two separate rooms to wait. Peacekeepers guarded the doors as I took in my surroundings.

A few books were scattered around on the shelves and there were pieces of furniture there, too. A lamp, a couple couches, a painting on the wall, a bookcase, and a desk with a chair behind it. I wondered who would even enjoy working here. I wondered who would come visit me when the door opened to let in the first visitor.

It was my mom and dad with Jason automatically leaping onto me with tear-filled eyes.

"Damen, don't—don't go!" he bawled out sadly. "Don't leave us!" It was really hard to not burst into tears with him. Ever since Jason came along, I'd been protecting him more than I was protecting myself. Guarding him from the cruelty in District 9, scaring away the monsters under his bed, comforting him, helping him in school, providing him with food and clothes.

All I allowed myself was a single tear and a small, almost nonexistent smile to show I cared as I hugged him before the Peacekeepers took his shaking form away and Mom and Dad entered. I hadn't noticed they left. I looked up harshly to Mom and Dad, all the past resentment showing clearly.

"Don't let him starve. Take care of him like I've been taking care of him since he was born. Be parents!" I yelled. Jason's warmth from him clinging to me still stayed on my clothes. I wondered how long it would last. My heart ached for him.

"We have been parents." They muttered it out so low I could barely hear them. I kind of wish I hadn't. I was almost surprised they even bothered to come at all.

"Who tucks him in at night? Who helps him with homework? Who tells him they love him? Who breaks laws to give him food? Who trades for birthday presents for him? Who keeps him from seeing all the bad in this district? Definitely not his mother. Definitely not his father." I stood up angrily. Starvation wasn't an option for Jason. If I won, I would have killed myself right after knowing they never helped Jason. "I'm only going to try to actually make it until the end for him. Only Jason. I can live without you and you can live without both of us, but Jason and I can't live without each other there. Leave. I don't want to see you."

I had to grow up on my own without them. I had to teach myself to hunt and pick up the unwritten rules from those frightening men who learned the hard way. I was forced to brave the nameless part of the district where we traded all our goods. There were all sorts of people there, too. Old, gnarled men and women who worked for years without a break, younger adults trying to survive, and somewhere-in-between greasy men who wanted easy prey. Nothing I ever wanted Jason to go through.

As soon as they left, I put my head in my hands and allowed a few more tears to escape. The only thing I processed was the door opening again. A few times before, when I was young and didn't know better, I fell asleep in a tree and on the roof and woke up on the ground, gasping for breath because all the air had been taken from my lungs on impact. This was kind of like that but maybe a little worse. Or maybe a little better.

Lily was standing in front of me with her blonde hair pulled back and a small bag of something in her hand. She was fiddling nervously with the hem of her purple dress that she wore to the reaping.

"Um, these are for you. It was as much as we could spare if we didn't want to starve for a couple weeks," she said apologetically, handing over a white bag of small frosted cookies. The Lakes family must have spent a good amount on these delicacies.

"Thanks," I said, taking them from her and resisting the urge to gorge on them right now. "If you don't mind me asking, where's Castle? I expected him to be here."

She laughed. "Actually, he was here before me but he got kicked out. One of the nicer Peacekeepers, Horan, took him out of there before he got whipped for insulting the Capitol. He wanted me to give you this."

Lily dug around in her pocket for a few seconds before pulling out a bracelet made out of weaved roots and leaves. The roots had been carved with designs of grain fields, to remind me of home. I ran my fingertips over the designs. Making this must have taken Castle hours of his free time. There was even a small C.Z. carved into it, standing for Castle Zorretti, and his signature wave through a spiral marking.

"Castle was going to give to you for your birthday but this happened and it's better now than ever," she shrugged slightly. Lily had her blue eyes locked on my hazel ones. Ocean tides pulled lighter blues into the darker ones in the never-ending pool that was her eyes. Seeming like the rushing rivers in the forest, I couldn't pull my eyes away from hers.

"Promise me you'll come back." Lily continued quietly, facing him now from the other chair. Her elbows rested on her knees and she was leaning closer to me.

"I can't promise that, Lily. You've seen how it is."

"Please, Damen, promise me that. Just that one thing."

The girl in front of me looked like she was a second away from breaking down and begging me. I'd been in love with this girl since the first time we shared a history class which was, what, seven years ago when I was nine.

"I can promise I'll do my best to come back here." I said.

"I'll have to take it," Lily said to me and the next thing I knew, her lips were pressed against mine. This was the first time I'd been kissed. This was the first time she'd been kissed. Before I could even respond, Lily had pulled away, leaving the taste of her on my tongue as soon as I licked my lips.

"Lily—" I started, only to be cut off.

"I've got to go, Damen. Good luck out there." And she walked off, leaving me with my thoughts.

No! I wanted to scream to her. Don't leave me. Don't let me face this alone!

But somehow I knew I wasn't going to be getting much help through the Games. I'd be on my own for the most part.