Chapter 2

The crowd parted to let me pass into the center and up to the stage; as I walked many of the boys I knew from school gave a nod of the head to acknowledge my passing. I took the stage next to Narci who looked off into the distance as if not understanding what was going on, it was the only reaction she could have given other than screaming and trying to run.

The mayor then read the treaty of treason and I thought again about something that crossed my mind every year since my older brother died. Why do we need to pay for what our grandfathers and great grandfathers did long ago? Is anyone still alive who remembers that stupid war? But all I could do was keep quiet and wait for the speech to end.

We were then escorted into the justice building by the peace keepers and placed in two rooms by ourselves. The first people to come through the door were my dad and Galmis; both looked grim but my dad looked disappointed too "Doc, do always act on impulse or did this actually seem like a good idea?" My dad said while shaking his head furiously.

"What was I supposed to do dad let Galmis go just like Narci, Just like Habara? I thought I could save at least one of them," Then it hit me, in the arena alliances were always made and perhaps now I could make one with Narci, no I would make one with Narci . I could find a way to save both Galmis and her "Maybe I can save Narci too."

Dad took a deep breath and I began to realize how he must have felt since I volunteered; now he has to watch one of his children die to save the others. "The scary thing Doc is that I know you would make sure she wins, I bet you would kill yourself to make sure that happens. I don't agree with such a waste of life, but that is your decision. Galmis say goodbye to your brother."

"Doc I," For once Galmis had nothing to say good or bad so I spoke for him

"Galmis I'm sorry but I need you to do something for me," He just nodded "I need you to take care of Narci when she gets back; also remember I did this because I love you and I don't want to watch you die."

"I will, I promise and thank you Doc" As Galmis left his eyes told me he was on the verge of tears, the Kid who tried so hard to look tough could hardly keep from crying.

The door opened again and Sly walked in, she tried to keep a calm face but panic found its way into her eyes. "Hey Doc, so," She was trying to stay calm but how could anyone act like everything was fine. "I'm sorry Doc, but maybe you can win."

"Sly listen to me, I know I won't come out but I can still help Narci win, I can save them both." She looked away unable to meet my eyes. "I'm sorry Sly but I have a chance to make sure they'll both be okay."

She forced herself to look at me now; the panic that was creeping in was now flooding her eyes, the look you gave a dead man. A dead man, which was me now; whoever made the named reaping day could not have picked a better name. Still she tried to keep her voice calm "I understand; Doc, if there is anything that I can do to help you though,"

"Actually yes, make sure you keep an eye on Galmis, with dad as the mentor he will be alone for a while, and when Narci gets home I need you to keep her company." Narci and Sly liked each other; you would think they were sisters if you didn't know them better.

Sly nodded then gave me a hug the kind that was a final goodbye "one more thing Doc, I brought this by," She reached into her pocket and fished out a small set of metal tags, dog tags. "You'll need a token in the arena." They were my brother's; dad must have told her to give them to me but why her? Why didn't he give them to me himself?

All I could do was nod and say "thank you, I will." A peace keeper walked in to escort her out "Thank you Sly, You've been a good friend."

"You too." She said as she walked out, and that was it for saying goodbye to District Five. Only a second later I was escorted to the train station where the cameras were waiting; I hardly knew how to act in front of them so I just swung my head around from camera to camera. On the train Narci was already there along with dad and Crassus.

"Now off to the Capitol with you my fine tributes" Crassus said in that obnoxious capitol accent. The man looked ridiculous in his bright yellow wig and mustache. Did people from the Capitol ever look in a mirror? I would guess not otherwise they might decide to tone down the stupidity in their wardrobe.

As Narci and I watched our home disappeared dad began to talk "It's time to start planning your strategy, I know you two well so I can make some suggestions. Doc you are good at fighting with all the time you spent wrestling with your brother, but keep your knife skills honed too you have a lot of talent for it. When training I recommend that you learn some snare, plant ID, and other useful survival skills. Narci you may need the opposite, you still need to learn survival skills, but you should really learn how to fight a little better. And both of you try to learn how to be stealthy, hiding at the right time can save your lives, trust me."

"Well, how did you win dad?" Narci asked.

This was a topic dad tried to avoid but when it mattered he would tell us "I used stealth, planning and deception. I made a few alliances that 'did not go well' for my allies. One night I was on guard and slit a throat then blamed it on the kid I switched guard duties with, another night I spotted another tribute sneaking up a bit too late to save someone. That's the trouble with allies; you can't be sure who you can trust."

Soon enough the Capitol came into view; I was taken aback at the buildings and how large they were. Could people really build things this large? We began to pull into the station; it was filled with more people than I had ever seen in one place. "A word of advice," Dad whispered to us, "you should start appealing to the crowd now, get them to like you."

Let the games Begin then I thought over a few waves to the crowd. Narci seemed to be working out well, with a small smile and tiny little waves the people seemed to love her already. We were then escorted to a car that took us to a tall building, even by Capitol standards. It was here that the words rang in my head, this is it, we're here.

ent here...