Author's Note: Hey! Back again with Chapter 2. Some lines are taken from my original chapters, but with added stuff. I will try and post the next chapter tomorrow, Friday at the latest. I got lucky today with minimal homework and no plans until the evening! Yay! So please read and review if you want more!
Reaping Day
"Mother, Father, we're home." Levi calls upon opening the door to our house. "And I've brought breakfast." He adds, running into the kitchen and placing the dead gull on the counter. I follow him.
My mother is at the sink, washing dishes and glasses. "Great. I will prepare it shortly." She says. "Your father went to the market to pick up some extras. He should be home any minute. Why don't you two wash up?" She asks us. "Annie, I laid some clothing out on your bed."
"One of your old Reaping dresses?" I ask hopefully. "The green one? With the ruffles?" She's never allowed me to wear that one before, and it's my favorite.
My mother nods. "I think it'll just about fit you now." She says. "Now go wash up." She hastily motions Levi and me up the stairs.
Levi takes the steps two at a time. I leisurely step one at a time, pulling the clam out of my pocket and thumbing it over in the palm of my hand, admiring its natural beauty, unlike that of the Capitol women. I never understood why they do that to themselves. Why would someone dye their skin orange? And their hair purple? What's with the sparkly tattoos of whiskers on their faces? And the tight skin around their eyes that makes them look like a corpse? I could never figure that out. They don't look attractive. If they just left themselves the way they were born, I'm sure some of them would be remotely pretty. The best of everything comes from nature. It's the last connection we have with the Capitol ruling all of Panem. We might as well cherish our time with it while we can.
I come out of the bathroom to find my mother's dress laid out on my freshly made bed, just like she said it was. The dress is flowy and green with ruffles at the necklie and cufss and a bow around the waist. There are a pair of green sandals laid gently atop the dress. I put on both the dress and the sandals and continue to towel dry my long, wavy, brown hair.
Just as I walk out of my room, I catch a whiff of the gull Levi shot down. My mother is roasting it over the fire, most likely glazed with a faint clam sauce. Levi comes walking out of his room. He is wearing khaki pants and a sky blue silk shirt that had belong to a family friend many years ago. His dark blonde hair is smoothed back, so it's not covering his ocean blue eyes like it usually does.
"Wow, Annie." He says. "You're surely growing up." He smiles. "Going after Finnick Odair this year?" He teases. "I know you like him."
I roll my sea green eyes. "You're still an immature idiot." I say. "Plus, he's not even my type." I return the smile.
"Just hurry up." He says. "I'm hungry and wanna get a good spot in the square. I'm not standing in the back like last year."
"It wasn't my fault!" I say.
"Whatever." He smiles, descending the stairs, two at a time. I shake my head and follow.
In the kitchen, my mother had prepared a wonderful meal. The roasted gull glazed in a clam sauce (I was right!) is neatly arranged in the center of our table surrounded by seaweed topped with chunks of tuna fish.
"What's with the fancy meal?" I ask. "I thought it was just going to be the gull, that the big feast was tonight."
"Just in case you get reaped." Levi informs me. "Something nice."
"What are the chances of that?" I ask. "My name's only in there three times, cause someone won't let me sign up for tessera."
"Annie, you're my baby sister." Levi says, placing an arm around my shoulder.
"And that makes it alright for you to put your name in twenty four times?" I ask, sliding out from under his arm. "What if you got reaped, Levi? What if you died? What would I do then?"
"Probably go insane." He teases. "But you know I'd come back."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
"Annie, Levi." Our mother calls to get our attention. "Come to the table, now."
"Yes, mother." I say, walking over and taking my seat.
"Anna Bella, you look beautiful." My father say, noticing my dress. "Stand up and spin for me."
I roll my eyes and blush. "Seriously?" I ask. "I'm fourteen. Don't embarrass me."
"It's just us." Levi says. "Just do it."
"Fine." I stand up and spin around, letting my dress twirl around me in the wind from my arms. "Happy now?"
"Pleased." My father smiles. "Now come eat."
Most of District 4 is already in the square when we arrive. "We're not that late, are we?" I ask Levi. He shakes his head before giving what feels like a final embrace before walking over to the section assigned to the seventeen year old boys. I make my way over to the section for fourteen year old girls. On my way there, I pass Arnav in the fifteen year old section, smiling and waving hopefully to his sister in the twelve year olds. I follow his gaze. Meri looks terrified. Oh, how I hope her name isn't drawn. That would be awful. No twelve year old should have to endure the Games. They never stand a chance.
I enter into my section. My best friend, Crea Sherman, is already there, waiting for the reaping to begin.
"Hey." She calls when she sees me. "You're late."
"I know. I know." I laugh. "What else is new?"
"You tell me. I haven't seen you for days. You haven't been at the docks. Poster's getting worried about you." She informs me.
"I was sick. I had the flu, but I'm all better now." I smile.
"Good. How many times are you in there?" Crea asks, changing the subject and pointing to the glass bowls that decide our fate.
"Three." I say. "Levi refuses to let me take tessera."
"Good brother." She replies. "I'm in eighteen times this year. I took all the tesserae since Junal died." She adds, shedding a light tear.
"I miss him too." I say. "He's watching over you. Never forget that. And think, he's probably thrilled at how brave you're being, taking all that tesserae." I add, trying to cheer her up. "For your father and Lira and Alic and Hadey and Mull. They're all proud of you."
"You're lucky, Annie. You're not gonna get picked. You're never gonna have to face that arena." Crea says. "You're never gonna have to die that way."
Now she's making me feel bad. "Can we just forge about the Games for once? I'm sick and tired of being a stupid pawn for the Capitol!"
"Annie! Don't think like that! They'll kill you!"
"Exactly. They."
Our conversation is cut short by the sound of Mayor Huxley's voice. He begins to read off the names of District 4's past victors. Being a Career District, we tend to have a lot of those, the latest being the victor of the 65th Games- Finnick Odair. Finnick's only five years older than me with his bronze hair, golden skin, and gorgeous sea green eyes that make mine look plain and boring. He's tall and muscular and sure can wield a trident- that's how he would his Games. Someone sent him a trident as a gift. It had to be the most expensive gift ever, especially so late in the Games.
After the mayor finishes reading off the victors, he introduces our district escort. Her name is Pandora Knight.
"Happy Hunger Games!" She squeaks as she walks onto the stage. "And may the odds me ever in your favor!" Pandora is tall and thin with curly plum colored hair and big blue eyes. Her skin is the color of a honeysuckle and tattooed with several glittering dragons that turn red and green upon catching different lighting.
After her rant on what an honor it is to be an escort- which I drowned out with my own thoughts on the Games-, Pandora says something that pulls me back to the reaping. "Ladies first!" She says, walking over to the first of the two glass bowls, holding all the names of the possible district tributes.
Pandora places her honeysuckle hand into the bowl, pushing papers around until her fingers grab hold of just one. She opens the slip of paper and prepares to read the name out loud.
"Annie Cresta."
