Rudd Winslow's PoV

District 7

"Daddy, wait up!" I stop in the grass to let her catch up, and I wonder how I could have let her get so far behind me. I pick her up with a groan, "up you go Cleo," I say. her golden eyes sparkle like little suns. She has a little crumbs on her cheek, but I don't mind. I give her a raspberry on her dirty cheek, and she giggles, letting me know that everything is fine.

"again!" She hollers. she's laughing loudly now, and I can't help but give her another. "Again!" she says once more, but we have things to do; I have things to do.

"Not right now, doodle-bop," I say, placing her back on the floor, and replacing her with a dirty napkin. I throw it away and begin to tidy up the place. "Stay right there, right where I can see you, okay?"

"Okay daddy!"

I begin to pick up her dirty clothes, and throwing them in the hamper, when I come along something clean, I fold it and place it in her drawer. Out of instinct, I glance over, and she's gone. I search frantically around the room, thinking that she's playing hide and seek. Oh how she loves to play that game! I feel a twinge of fear, mingled with pain knotting up in my stomach, she's never done this before. I walk out of her room, and find her sleeping in the hall.

"I thought I told you to stay where I could see you," I whisper. I'm glad that I found her for many reasons. One, she's the one person that I actually finding myself happier around. I feel that I can't hurt her. Two, she's not mine, I'm just her babysitter. And finally, she calls me daddy.

I go to pick her up, but I come up short. She's lying in a deep crimson liquid, and it seems to grow in shape and volume. I gasp, lifting her from the floor, and I find my scissors plunged into her abdomen. Pain shoots through me, and it's worse than any death that I can imagine. I feel the floor meet my hands, and finally all the strength leave my body.

I sit up, and notice that it was all a dream. Just a dream? Kind of hard to swallow. I fear that it has something to do with my mother, and I shake it from my head instantly. she abused me, and now she's dead. She couldn't handle it, no. She couldn't handle the confrontation. She couldn't handle it. I quickly get dressed, and I look at myself in a broken piece of glass, which is what I have as a mirror. I straighten my black shirt, and rub the wrinkle out of my jeans as best I can. I hate sleeping in my clothes, but I did, and now I am to pay for it.

I grab my thin wind breaker, and head outside into the thick forestry ear my house. the wind bites through my clothing, and nips at my skin greedily gulping down its warmth. I take the hatchet that's leaning against my house and do what I do best.

I find a sizable tree and begin to chop. suddenly, I hear a noise, and I recognize it as chopping as well. Who would chop so close to our house? I think bitterly, and go check it out. It doesn't take me long to find it's source. A young girl, no younger than sixteen is chopping at a small tree. I sneak up behind her, and tap her on the shoulder.

"I could have killed you, girl," I say. I don't need her taking the wood near my house, especially a tree so small. She turns to me, and instantly I'm capture by her beauty. She blushes. I feel a little nervose, but I shove the feeling away. "What are you doing chopping wood her, this isn't your area. And this tree is too young."

"I'm sorry, but I'm new here, and this is just a one time thing. I promise -"

"One time thing?! This tree only has one life, and you chop at it like it's a great oak. Let me show you a thing of two." I use one hand and chop the tree in one swoop. "The tree is as fragile as you, I say in a threatening manner. She gulps.

"I'm Melanie." she says. I'm confused, so I reply.

"Rudd." I nudge her into a tree, and block her path with my body. her heat is just delicious, licking my face. "I don't want to see you this close to my house again, got that girly?" I say using my ax blade to force her to make eye contact with me. "Damn she's gorgeous, like my mother, and that's what makes me tick.

"If I catch you here, again I'll -" I almost said kiss, but I restrained myself. "I'll kindly and simply kill you. I slam the blade into the oak above her, letting her flinch badly. I'm angered with myself for doing such a thing, and I stalk off after dislodging my ax. It's probably Those Fucking mind games that The capital is playing with us," I say to myself. I know what I have to do. I place my ax against the wall, and take off.

I really don't know where I'm going until I arrive at the justice building, I don't stop there. I shove my way to the front of the crowd. "I want to DIE!" my head is screaming. I shove some kid aside and hop onto the stage.

"Thank you for accepting me as your tribute."

A/N I hope that you enjoyed the first real chapter! I will add more characters soon, as soon as you begin to add more reviews. I have a couple more tributes to do now, but I'll hold off on their PoV until next time. A special thanks to Imaginationstation00 for the first review. The SYOT wil be open until Dec 20, as Christmas will be coming up.