(Barley Furrow,17,Female,District 9)
My mentors, Omri and Sunnoria stare at Simon and I with quizzical faces. They've been doing this for the past five minutes. I have no idea why they're doing it. Is there something wrong with us? Suddenly, Simon clears his throat,
"Sorry, but what are you doing?"
Sunnoria blinks a couple of times and Omri cracks his neck.
"We're figuring out your angles of course, be patient" Sunnoria growls.
Oh.
"I got it!", Omri says, clicking his fingers, "Simon, I've heard from some of the teachers that you like to talk. You're going to go for the lovable angle. The Capitol won't be able to help liking you".
Simon nods, but I'm not sure he's very happy. No, of course not, we're headed for the Hunger Games. In less than a month, one of us, if not both of us, will be dead. Oh. Tears well up in my eyes and I try to blink them a way. I will not make a fool of myself in front of two victors. Unfortunately, Saffron, my escort sees.
"Sweetie, it's ok", she coos, walking over and wrapping her arm around my shoulder, "What are some things that are key points about you?"
I think for a second. My friends, my family, the fact that my father left before I was born. I know!
"I'm a hopeless romantic".
Saffron grins at the two mentors,
"Perfect. Well, now that we have that out of the way, why don't you guys go and eat something. We'll come get you for the recap of the reapings".
I nod and dart off before Simon can make conversation. I'm not going to get attached to him. That's the last thing I need when I'm headed for the Hunger Games. Ugh, I just remembered again. I'm headed for the damn Hunger Games. It's worse this year as well, as no sponsor gifts are allowed to be sent to tributes. Of course, the Tribute Parade, the Private Training Sessions and scores, and the interviews will still be held to keep the entertainment value.
The victor of this year's games will need to be strong to survive the arena without any sponsor gifts. Not to mention that on top of that, the arena is going to be some horribly special arena. The first Quarter Quell arena was a labyrinth that would change during the night, crushing tributes against the walls while they slept. The second Quarter Quell arena was a beautiful paradise where nearly everything was poisonous.
I wonder what this year's arena will be.
I walk into my room and I want to cry and laugh at the same time. My bed is gorgeous and soft looking. A window looks out of the train, allowing me to watch the scenery zoom by. And the bathroom, oh the bathroom. Golden tiles, a massive shower (something I've heard about from my stepfather), a beautiful toilet, a towel rack filled with towels and a massive sink.
All this is for me? We're only one here for one day, then we live in the Capitol until the games. God, if this is only a train, I can only imagine what it must be like in the Capitol. Ten times better than this surely.
I strip down and have a shower. It's amazing, like rain that falls from the hose on the roof. Once I'm dried and dressed I lay in my bed for a little while. Today's been a big day and I'm exhausted. Could it be just this morning that I kissed my mother on the cheek before walking into the seventeen year-old section? Even though I know I'm not going to win, I'm going to damn try.
Maybe my mentors will be able to help me? I know that Omri won his games because he worked in the grain fields, so he was used to harsh conditions and he also knew how to use a sickle. Sunnoria won by hiding and killing tributes when they walked past. Both of these victors have killed before, so maybe they can help me actually deal with killing an innocent human.
All too soon I'm called to the couch by my Saffron to watch the recap of the reapings in the other districts. I shuffle out into the main cart slowly, my heart pounding. I'm about to see my competition. No doubt the kids from One, Two and Four will be the most terrifying. All six of them have been training their whole lives for this. I eventually reach the couch and Saffron puts an arm protectively around my shoulder. Simon comes to the couch and sits next to Omri, who hands him a drink of orange juice. Sunnoria lights a cigarette and ignores Simon's coughs.
Damn it, I forgot to eat. Oh well, I can wait until the recap is over. My heart skips a beat as the Panem anthem starts to play. It ends and my heart begins to beat faster as District 1 appears on the screen. The escort calls out a name and asks for volounteers. Obviously there's a volounteer. A girl who appears to be eighteen struts up to the stage. She's deeply tanned, with wavy platinum blonde hair that reaches her chest and gorgeous emerald green eyes. There's a certain way that she holds herself, it's so queen-like.
She announces that her name is "Venus Chandler", and I can tell that she'll be the leader of this year's Career pack. She's the first tribute I've seen, but she holds herself with an air of pride. I bet anything that she'll be the leader of the Careers. The boy from District 1 volounteers before they even ask. He's obviously eighteen. He has pale skin, light brown-blonde-ish hair, and most weirdly, he has purple eyes. Contacts maybe? His name is Festival Crown, which is the most ridiculous name I've hard, even for a kid from One.
The program moves onto to District 2. The girl volounteers before the name is even called. She's another eighteen year-old. She has pale skin, blue eyes, and straight black hair. I learn that her name is Katherine Davis. Katherine is not a very District 2-like name, but it doesn't really matter. She looks like she could rip my head off my shoulders with her bare hands. The boy volounteers when they call for one, and he practically flies to the stage. With peach coloured skin, extremely dark brown hair, and piercing blue eyes, he's not too bad to look at. Not as gorgeous as the tributes from One, but almost no one is as good-looking as them. His name is August Slate
District 3 appears on the screen and I see the first two non-Career tributes. The girl that's reaped is named Albina Tracy. The cameras don't need to look for her, we all hear her first. There's a scream from the crowd and a girl from the thirteen year-old section has a panic attack. The Peacekeepers have to help her up on to the stage, and you can see the look of disappointment from District 3's victors. Albina looks like nearly everyone in District 3, with her ashen skin, brown eyes, and black hair.
The escort trots over to the male bowl and digs around for a little while before deciding on a slip. She reads out Ivo Hart and nothing happens for about fifteen seconds. The peacekeepers find him. Ashen skin, brown eyes and black hair, just like his district partner. He's obviously gone into shock. The fourteen year old climbs the stage and the program flick over to District 4.
I feel really bad for those District 3 tributes. They're only young and even with sponsors they wouldn't of lasted long. Who knows, maybe one of them is the next Beetee.
From District 4, the female volounteers when a volounteer is asked for. A girl walks out from the eighteen year old section with red hair, tanned skin and sea green eyes. She's extremely pretty, and she looks very confident. She tells the escort that her name is Dori Irving. The boy is a volounteer as well, volounteering when one is asked for. He's tanned, has black hair, and sea green eyes, and he's the youngest Career. The other five are all eighteen, whereas this boy is just sixteen. His name is Danté Holverson, and the screen flips to District 5 before I can really see anything else. Now that the Careers are out of the way, I look for potential allies in the tributes from here. District 3 is a no go. I want an ally that is strong and loyal.
The escort calls out, "Nina Filipov!", and I lean forward. A girl with pale skin, black hair, and blue eyes walks out of the sixteen year old section. She is definitely a potential ally. She looks nice enough, and there's something about Nina that I can't put my finger on. The escort pulls out the boy's name and announces that "the lucky boy is Ellery Moreno!"
A boy with red hair, pale skin and green eyes walks out from the eighteen year old section, and he appears to be holding it together. You can see that the District 5 victors are pleased.
The camera switches over to District 6 and I can see all of the mechanic shops and vehicle building factories in the background. The victors are sitting on chairs on the stage and look like their about to fall asleep. Probably because they know their tributes don't usually do great.
The District 6 escort calls the name of a sixteen year old girl and asks for volounteer, not expecting one. Then, someone yells out,
"I volounteer as tribute!", and heads snap towards the girl who said it. The girl who was called leaps of the stage and runs towards a man while an eighteen year old girl with red hair, pale skin, and brown eyes limps up to the stage. She has a black eye and a couple of broken teeth. There's no way she volounteered because she thought she could win. By the looks of it, she's from a community home or an abusive household.
She announces her name to Panem, Milanks Browne, and the escort picks the male tribute. Dexter Shelby walks out from the seventeen year old section and I raise my eyebrow. A seventeen and eighteen year old? Does District 6 actually stand a chance this year? Dexter has olive skin, blonde hair, hazel eyes and is pretty good looking. Maybe District 6 will finally win.
District 7 pops up onto the screen and I can see miles and miles of forest in the distance. When the escort calls out the name, Tineke Carson, the camera finds her. She storms through the crowd with her eyebrows knitted tightly together. She's swearing a string of horrid words and is shoving kids left and right, out of her way as she storms from the fifteen year-old section up to the stage. She reaches the stage, and the escort attempts to congratulate her, but is rewarded with a punch in the throat. Tineke glares down at the crowd with angry blue eyes. Her sandy-blonde hair fluttering in the wind, her olive skin glowing with the sun.
I have to give it to her, this girl has guts. The escort recovers quickly and pulls out a slip from the male bowl. Omri Summers is reaped and there's no movement. A peacekeeper finds a boy who has passed out, in the sixteen year-old section, and drags him to the stage. The peacekeeper throws a bucket of water over him, plastering his black hair to his tanned face. He looks at Tineke with recognition in his gray eyes, they probably work in the lumberyard together.
The screen flits to District 8 and the escort calls out Inas Royce. A girl with tanned skin, light brown hair, and hazel eyes has a meltdown in the twelve year-old section, screaming something about being too rich, and peacekeepers have to force her up to the stage, kicking and screaming. Inas is quickly followed by another twelve year-old boy called Yuki Blackbourne. He has dark skin, black hair, and brown skin. The look on the faces of the District 8 victors say what everyone else is thinking, District 8 will not be gaining their fourth victor this year.
My heart flutters when District 9 appears on the TV. I can still smell the bakeries, and the fields of wheat. I can still feel the warm wind on my face, and hear the rustle of grain swaying in the wind. Antonius pulls a name from the female bowl and calls my name out. I watch as I walk from the seventeen year-old section, barely holding back tears. My honey brown fishtail braid being tugged in the wind, my hazel eyes piercing out from my olive skin. I reach the stage and Antonius pulls a slip out.
"Simon Sawyers!", is announced and my district partner walks out from the fifteen year-old section. With dark skin, brown hair so dark it looks black from a distance, and light brown eyes, Simon looks more like a kid from District 11. The look of pure shock and fear on his face pulls on my heart strings. I inwardly cringe when we shake hands, because I'm a sobbing mess.
The camera switches to District 10 and I'm glad to not see my sobbing self anymore. A girl called Manami Bosch walks out from the eighteen year-old section and I know I want her for an ally. She's got a strong look on her face as she makes her way up the stage. She's tanned, with brown hair and eyes. Her district partner is thirteen. Patrick Constantin has tanned skin, black hair, gray eyes, and is crying as he makes his way up to the stage.
Next up is District 11. An eighteen year-old girl is reaped and her name is Lilac Meadows. She has brown eyes, black hair, dark skin, and looks strong enough to actually win the games. If she doesn't join the Careers, I want her on my side. When the escort asks for volounteers someone does. The camera finds a girl in the thirteen year-old section who's deeply tanned, has brown hair with blonde-ish streaks, and brown eyes. It's obvious that the girl didn't mean to volounteer.
The look of horror on her face says it all. Lilac Meadows runs from the stage and the little girl goes up to the stage, announcing herself as Poppy Ferns. The District 11 victors look mad. They had a chance this year, and now they have a thirteen year-old girl. Even Seeder looks angry. When Lauritz Lenox is called as the male tribute, the victors gain more hope. Lenox is very tall and muscley. He has dark skin, brown hair, and pretty green eyes. The way he walks up to the stage, he definitely is a tribute to watch out for.
The screen flicks to District 12 and I see the most recent victor, Katniss Everdeen, looking extremely anxious, as this is her first tribute. Haymitch is heavily drunk beside her. Last district, Barley. Look for a potential ally. The girl who is reaped is called Amber Kolt, and she looks very similar to Katniss. Olive skin, black hair, gray eyes. They could be siblings. The girl is quite emotionless. The fifteen year-old takes to the stage and Eben Whittemore is pulled from the male bowl.
A twelve year-old boy walks to the stage trying to be brave, but tears are streaming down his cheeks. He looks very similar to his district partner. Dark brown hair, gray eyes, and olive skin.
The Panem seal appears again and the anthem plays.
"So", Saffron turns to us, "Who stuck out in your mind?"
My mind flicks through all of the tributes.
"All six careers. Girls from six, seven and eleven".
"What about you, Simon?"
"The same".
Saffron clasps her hands, "Very well. Time for dinner!"
I get up from the couch and walk to the dining cart with Simon, the faces of my twenty-two other competitors still fresh on my mind.
So these are the tributes! The chapter for the Tribute Parade should be up very soon! Don't forget to review!