I just tilt my head and stare at the ground. The crowd starts to talk in hushed tones, but I don't say a single word. A twelve year old. More importantly Katniss' twelve year old sister! How could this happen? Why her? Out all those names... I hear footsteps and turn up my head in time to see her walk past. Pale, Clenched fists, and scared. As she passes, I see that the back of her shirt has fallen out of her skirt, forming something that resembles a duck tail. "Prim!" I turn and see her, working her way through the crowd towards her sister. Oh, no. I think, please don't. "Prim!" Just as Prim is about to walk up the stage steps, Katniss steps in front of her. No, I think, Katniss ,don't! "I Volunteer!" No! " I volunteer as tribute!" I just stare at her. Back and forth between her and Prim. The odds do not want to be in my favor today. I think, This can't get any worse! Wait... Or can it? Stop it, Peeta. I order myself, Just stop. I breathe in and hold my breath, hoping it helps with my thoughts. "Lovely!" Exclaims Effie Trinket, "But I do believe there's small matter of introducing the reaping winner, and then asking for volunteers. And if one does come forth, then we, um. . ." She doesn't even know. But it doesn't matter now. "What does it matter?" Says Mayor Undersee, he's looking at Katniss with what looks like a sad expression from here. Could it be, that the mayor actually feels bad for her? "What does it matter?" He says again. "Let her come forward." After he says that, Prim clings onto Katniss and starts screaming. "No, Katniss! No! You can't go!" "Prim, let go!" Katniss says harshly, but even from here I can tell she's trying not to cry. I don't blame her."Let go!" Someone walks up behind them, Gale, I think is his name, and picks up Prim, who is trying so hard to get down. "Up you go, Catnip." He says. I can tell he's trying not to cry, as well. They stare at each other for just a second before Gale takes Prim to their mother, and Katniss mounts the stairs. All of a sudden I get a small felling of jealousy. She's going to her death! Her sister had to be pried off of her! You shouldn't be feeling jealous! I scream at myself. Now even I'm on the verge of tears. "Well, bravo!" Trills Effie, clearly excited. "That's the spirit of the Games! What's your name?" Katniss takes moment before answering. "Katniss Everdeen." She says. "I bet my buttons that was your sister. Don't want her stealing all the glory, do we? Come on, everybody! Let's give a big round of applause to our newest tribute!" She beams happily, probably excited to finally have little 'fun' in her job. But no one claps, or really moves. Silence. But slowly, one person, then another, soon everyone, including myself, brings the three middle fingers of their left hand to their mouth and holds it out to her. Seen usually only at funerals, because it means goodbye to someone you care about. All of a sudden, Haymitch Abernathy gets up and stumbles over to Katniss and throws an arm over her shoulders. "Look at her! Look at this one!"He yells, Katniss gives a small grunt as he shifts his arm, he must be holding her pretty tight, by the look on her face. "I like her! Lots of. . ."He stands there with a puzzled look on his face, trying to find a word."Spunk!" He beams. "More than you!" He lets go of Katniss and walks toward us, pointing at the cameras as he speaks. "More than you!" Who does he mean? The other districts? The people of the Capitol? Who knows, because before he can continue he walks right off the stage, knocking himself unconscious. As he does this, the cameras follow his every move. Which isn't much now, cause he's pretty much dead to the world. They come and collect him, taking him away on a stretcher, and Effie Trinket still seems excited. Who knows why? "What an exciting day!" Says Effie. "But more excitement to come! It's time to choose our boy tribute!"She walks over to the boys' name ball with one hand on her head, probably trying to keep that ridiculous thing she calls hair from falling off. She picks the first slip she touches and heads back to the podium. Please please don't be me! Don't be me! She opens the slip and reads the name; "Peeta Mellark." NO! No, no, no! How? WHY? I scan the crowd and lock eyes with my father before the cameras can find me. His eyes are wide with alarm, but my mother remains almost emotionless. No surprise, there. I make my way through the field of people and start walking to the stage. The odds have no interest in helping me this year, and will most likely completely abandon me in the arena. As I walk I try to keep my face clean of emotion, but can barley manage. All these new thoughts and old memories come pouring into my mind, but one memory comes numerous times, so I cling to it. I climb the steps and take my place on stage. Effie Trinket asks for volunteers, and immediately finds, and lock eyes with Mason, who just shakes his head rapidly and stares at the ground. No surprise there, either. The mayor comes back and reclaims his spot and begins his long speech, like he does every year after the tributes have been chosen, but I'm not really paying attention. All I can think about is that one memory... That night five years ago, when we were eleven...
It was a rainy day, a good day to be inside baking. If only my mother would stop yelling so much. After I finished decorating the small cake I had been working on for hours, I placed it in the store window, then my mother started yelling at me to take care of the bread that was in the oven. As I started walking to it, she opened the front door and started screaming at someone. I peered over her shoulder and saw her. Katniss was going through our trash for food. She locked eyes with me for a split second as she backed away. Mother closed the door and mumbles something as she walks away, but I don't hear. I watched her make her way through to the back and collapse against the apple tree. I have to help, I thought, somehow. And then I got an idea. I went over to the oven to take out the bread, but purposely knocked the two loaves into the rich flames. As I removed them, my mother was yelling at me, and as soon as I stood up, she slapped me. She kept yelling at me as I trudged into the rain and mud to feed them to the pig. "Feed it to the pig, you stupid creature! Why not? No one decent will buy burned bread!" She slammed the door behind her, and I start tearing chunks of the bread off, trying to get the burned parts. Then without looking where they land, I toss them in Katniss' direction and go back inside. I watched her out the window as she looked back and forth between the bread and the house. She quickly snatched up the bread in her jacket, holding onto them for dear life as she ran away; I couldn't help but smile a little, and then went back to work. This and more was traveling through my vision as the mayor approached the end of his speech. I stand there, going through all the times she caught me staring at her in the school hallways, but averting my gaze when she did. As the mayor concluded his speech by telling us to shake hands, I did. And as I did I looked her straight in the eyes, and gave her hand a hopeful squeeze, and turned back to the crowd as the anthem of Panem starts to blare through the speakers. And I stand, hoping my death won't be her fault.
So... Chapter Two? :D I have Chapters 1-3 already written out, so I'll post Chapter 3, now, then contuine writing! :D I'm ALWAYS in favor of Feedback! ~Alexis