The reaping ended and I managed to process that I was involved, when I was led to the Justice Building. I sat in the room waiting for my parents, who came in one at a time. My father came first, looking unsure of himself, and as he sat down across from me I managed to say, "Don't let Drevan take out any tesserae." He looked up at me. "Don't talk like that, Cazzie. Don't act like you're going to…" He stopped. "Promise, Dad." He sighed heavily, then wrenched a smile out of the depths of his emotions. "Alright, Caz. I promise. And remember, you can run. You can run, and you can hide, and you're not that bad with a knife, either. Just try your best in training and take all of your mentor's advice, and you'll be fine, okay? We'll put all of our extra money into your fund-" "No, don't do that. What if you need it to pay for food later on? Keep it. I'll survive for as long as I can." "Caz… Cazzie… we both love you, your mother and I, and we want you to come home, okay? We'll be watching, we promise. We'll do what we can." And before I could refuse his offer again, he had got up and left. I noticed a tear shining on his eye just as he was leaving.
My mom came in right after. Her smile was soft and sad. "Hey, baby. Feeling aright?" I shook my head. "I'm not sure," I replied truthfully. She shook her head sadly. "Listen up. Heaven knows you can hide, and you're good enough with your survival skills. We all believe that you can do this. Just train hard and listen to your mentors, alright?" "That's what dad said. I made him promise and you have to promise too, that just in case, if I don't win, you won't let Drevan take out tesserae. You'll be able to afford more for him if you don't have to pay to feed me, too." "Cazzie. Babe. We'll be sending your food money to pay for supplies for you. And before you argue, if we can get you enough supplies, you'll be more likely to win. And if you win, there won't be any worries about food anymore, will there?"
"Your money will just be-"
"Caz. Stay positive, alright? We all love you, and soon enough you'll be coming home safe and sound, got it? I'm sending Drevan in." My mom gave me a quick hug, then stood up and left. I knew full well that she was holding a picture of me in her mind, a picture that had amped up my skills to a ridiculous level and beaten down all of my weaknesses. She wasn't going to believe that I could die until I did.
