Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games or any of the characters.

Author's note: Hi again! Hope you enjoyed last chapter. Please review! Anyway, here it is:

The bitter words of my little sister still ring in my ears as father takes our arms and lead us towards the Justice Building where we will get to say our final goodbyes. Serge is still screaming, but Cali just stands there, looking at me. Her face is not angry, worse than that. Her face is disappointed. Her face is that of a little girl looking up to her role-model sister after she did something wrong. I guess that's because that's exactly what it is. As we walk towards the doors of the Justice building, a peacekeeper steps in front of us.

'I'm sorry but there is a new procedure. You are not allowed to wish goodbye to the tributes.' It takes a minute for the words to sink in. When they do, father goes absolutely hysterical.

'No. That woman is my wife, and these are her children. We have to see her.' Father says. The peacekeeper suddenly becomes very angry.

'Look mate, I don't care if you are bloody President Snow, and that is your wife. It does not matter, you are not getting in that door.' Father's eyes are full of fire. He lurches forward and punches the peacekeeper squarely in the face. The peacekeeper, taken by surprise, is knocked to the ground. Suddenly, another peacekeeper comes in and grabs father from behind.

'How dare you,' he spits, 'how dare you, injure authority.' Father is dragged to the centre of the square. Serge, who had briefly stopped screaming, starts up again. Cali still just stares at me, but this time, a tear splatters onto the concrete.

'No.' I say. Father is being taken away. 'No!' I spin around just in time to see father being tied to a wooden post. I suddenly know what is happening. Father is going to be whipped. Doesn't happen a whole lot in district eight. Well, a whole lot worse has happened instead. The uprising caused a whole lot of death. Serge still has a puncture in his right leg from where he was shot. Luckily, the bullet didn't go far in. He still has trouble walking though.

I suddenly see the peacekeeper race the whip. 'No!' I shriek. 'No stop!' I am a coward. I should run into the square and jump in front of that whip, but the thought of the pain is what holds me back.

But Cali is not a coward. She gives me one long, hard look before she runs into the square. What is she doing? I wonder. Then I see her jump in front of father.

'No!' The scream bursts from my throat. The peacekeeper is confused.

'Get out of the way, little girl, or I'll whip you as well.'

'Cali, no!' Father screams. I run into the square, and grab Cali, drag her out of the way.

'Flax, leave me alone.' She says harshly, but I don't let her go. We watch father be whipped twenty painful times, and then the peacekeeper says,

'Do you promise that you will never, ever violate or injure the authority again?' Father nods his head.

'Then take your children and get out of here.' Father is untied, and let drop to the ground. I feel a hand on my shoulder, and spin around to see father's friend, Baize Springshill, standing there. He is holding a stretcher. Baize and another man help lift up father and lay him on a stretcher, then carry him to the house.

'Flax,' says Baize, 'Get Serge and Cali to eat something, and then put them to bed.' I nod and go to walk out of the room.

'Oh and Flax,' Baize says, 'I'm sorry, about your mother.' I just nod and then leave the room.

I am too tired to make anything, so I give Cali and Serge each two pieces of bread with butter, and then take them by the hand up to bed. When I put Cali in bed, she just gives me that cold, disappointing look.

'Cali, I'm sorry.'

'You promised.'

'I know, because I thought mum wouldn't get taken away. But I was wrong.'

'But I believed you.' I am silent. Then Cali speaks again.

'Did the Capitol take mummy away?'

'Yes.'

'Then I hate the Capitol.'

'Don't say that.'

'But I do.' I am too tired to argue.

'So do I, Cali. So do I.'

I wake up, my face pressed against Cali's bed. I must have fallen asleep. I look over at Cali. She looks so much older than five. She looks my age. Her almond-coloured hair is spread wildly around her, frizzy and distorted. As I attempt to get up from the bed without waking her, she wakes up.

'Hey kitty.' I use the nickname I haven't used since she was three. She gives me a tired smile.

'You never use that nickname anymore.' We get up, leaving Serge to sleep in peace, and go downstairs. Baize is still here, dripping father's back with an unpleasant liquid that makes father grimace.

'Daddy!' Cali squeals, not noticing the bloody streaks running along his back.

'Good morning sweetheart.' She goes up and hugs him, which causes him to wince.

'Cali!' I say sharply. She backs away from father. I say good morning to father, thank Baize, and then take Cali into the kitchen, where I give her two more pieces of bread and butter, but this time also boil some potatoes so that we can have a change of meal. We melt the last of the cheese on our potato, then eat it up. I take one in and feed it to father, then offer one to Baize, who accepts it. Serge comes down the stairs and I hand him one.

Late in the afternoon, father is feeling a lot better. He was lucky. It appears that the peacekeeper who was whipping him was either drunk or a little short-sighted, but he missed father's back a lot, and father ended up only receiving about ten lashes. We gave Baize a little bit of money, as a meagre thank you gift for all he has done. After Baize left, father went straight up to Cali and grabbed her by the collar.

'Cali,' he fumes, 'you have to promise me that you will never, ever, try to save my life again.' Cali is scared. Her lip trembles.

'Okay.'

Anyway, I'm sure this is just crap but please review. You can tell me it's crap if you want.