Sorry it took me awhile to update. I'll probably by kina slow at that. Right now I'm working on this instead of writing an essay for school that's due tomorrow. I think I'm just procrastinating. Hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything Suzanne Collins wrote!

Chapter2: The Reaping

We made our way to the town square, one of the only places in the district that could actually feel happy at times. But today, even with all of the Capital banners plastered on the store fronts, the mood emanating from it was anything but happy. I watch as people file in silently and sign in. This is a good opportunity for the Capitol to keep tabs on the District's population. Prim and I walk over to the roped off areas in the middle of the square for 12-18 year olds, while our mother goes to stand at the perimeter with all of the other children's family members.

There are other people there, too. Those who don't have any family members that are eligible for reaping, some who are taking bets on what two names will be drawn today. Most people don't deal with them, because those same people are often informers. But who hasn't broken the law? Technically I could be shot on a daily basis for hunting, but at least I am protected by the appetites of those in charge. And anyway, Gale and I agree that if we had to choose between starving to death and a bullet to the head, the bullet would be much quicker.

The square is quickly filling up with District 12's eight thousand residents. The square is large, but not quite big enough to hold that many people. It is getting claustrophobic. I take my place with all the other female 16s, while Prim takes her place with the other 12s. There is a small stage at the front of the square, with three chairs and a podium on it. Two of the chairs are filled with Madge's father, mayor Undersee, and Effie Trinktet, District 12's escort. The third chair is empty, and both the mayor and Effie look a little worried about the apparent absence.

I look over at Gale, standing with the other 18 year old males. His face is hard and expressionless, but I know him too well. I can see the worry and fear in his eyes, and can tell that his face is just a mask. I suddenly get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach, imagining what it would be like if he was reaped. I don't know what I would do. It's getting harder for me to breathe, and it doesn't help that I start to think about how the odds are definitely NOT in our favor this year. I look up at the two glass spheres on the stage, each filled with the names of the children of the district. I look at the one on the left, and thought about how 42 of the slips are Gales. In the sphere on the right, 20 of the slips have Katniss Everdeen written on them in neat handwriting. With all of the tessera we have to take to feed our family, the odds are pretty heavily stacked against us, especially Gale. But I never let Prim take out any tessera, so thankfully only one of the hundreds of slips has her name on it.

As soon as the town clock strikes two, the mayor steps up onto the. He begins to read a story about the history of Panem, the same one that is read every year. He drones on and on about some place called North America, then something about the Dark Days and how the 13 districts rebelled and were defeated, then finally gets to the part at the end about the Hunger Games.

The rules for the games are very simple. As a punishment for the uprising of the districts in the past, every year each district must provide one girl and one boy, tributes, to participate in them. The 24 tributes will be trapped in a large outdoor arena, and will be forced to fight to the death. The last one standing wins. This, taking our children and forcing them to murder each other as we watch, is just the Capitols way of rubbing in our faces the fact that we are so completely at their mercy.

Then the mayor reads the list of our district's past victors. In the entire 73 years of the games, we have had exactly two. One of which is now dead, the other is named Haymitch Abernathy. Just as the mayor reads off his name, a paunchy, middle-aged man staggers onto the stage, and collapses in the third chair. He is drunk. Extremely. The crowd responds with light applause, but he seems to be very confused. He attempts to hug Effie Trinket, and she barely manages to fend it off.

The mayor looks distressed. Well he has right to be. This is all being televised live, so right now District 12 is the laughing stock of the nation. He tries to get the ceremony back on track by introducing Effie Trinket. Bright and bubbly, she trots onto the stage and says her signature line, "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor!"

Her hot pink hair must be a wig, because the curls have shifted over slightly since the hug from Haymitch. She talks about what an honor it is to be here today, but we all know it's a lie. She's just waiting to get promoted to a better district with real victors who aren't drunks that molest you in front of the entire nation.

I spot Gale through the crowd, looking at me with a shadow of a smile. As far as reapings go, at least this one has some entertainment factor. But seeing his face makes me once again think of his forty-two slips, and how the odds are not in his favor. He must be thinking the same thing about me, because his face darkens and he turns away. "There are still thousands of slips." I whisper, hoping he could hear me.

It's time for the drawing now. "Ok, ladies first!" Effie shrieked in her all too cheery voice. She shoved her hand into one of the large glass bowls and pulled out a single slip of paper.

All I'm thinking is Please don't be me. Please don't be me.

She walks back over to the podium, and smoothes out the crumpled piece of paper. And it's not me.

It's Primrose Everdeen

I am trying to remember how to breathe, how to speak, but I am unable to as the name bounces around in my skull. I think I start fall, but a boy from the Seam catches me. There must be some mistake. This can't be happening. Prim only had one piece of paper out of the thousands! I'd done everything I could to protect her, but it wasn't enough. It didn't matter. All it took was one slip. One slip and our lives changed forever.

Somewhere far away I think I hear the crowd murmuring unhappily, as they always do when a 12-year old gets chosen. But then I see her. The blood drained from her face, hands clenched in fists at her sides, walking with small steps up toward the stage. She passes me, and I see that the back of her blouse has become untucked again. It's that little detail that brings me back to myself again.

"Prim!" the cry escapes my throat, and sounds like I'm being strangled. My muscles begin to move again. "Prim!" I don't need to push through the crowd, the other kids get out of my way, forming a path up to the stage. I reach her just before she mounts the steps, and push her behind me in one fluid motion.

"Volunteer!" I gasped. "I volunteer"

There's some confusion on the stage, as our district hasn't had a volunteer in decades and the protocol has become rusty. But they quickly compose themselves.

"Lovely!" says Effie Trinket. "I am sorry though, I believe that there is the small matter of introducing the reaping winner and then asking for volunteers, and if one does come forth then we, um…" she trails off, unsure of the protocols herself.

"What does it matter?" says the mayor, while looking at me with a pained expression. He doesn't know me really, but he does recognize me as the girl who sells him strawberries and is his daughter's friend. "What does it matter?" he repeats gruffly. "Let her come forward."

Prim is hysterically screaming from behind me. She's wrapped her tiny little arms around my legs, unwilling to let go. "No, Katniss! No! You can't go!"

"Prim let go." I say harsher than I usually speak to her, because this is upsetting me, and I don't want to break down and cry. When they televise the reapings tonight, everyone will notice my tears and I won't have any sponsers, and I will be marked as an easy target. A weakling. I won't give anyone that satisfaction. "Let go!" I say again.

I feel someone strong pulling her from my back, and turn and see Gale holding a squirming Prim in his arms. "Up you go, Catnip," he says in a voice I can tell he is trying to keep steady, and then carries Prim off towards my mother. I finally work up enough courage to climb the steps.

"Well bravo!" gushes Effie. "That's the spirit of the games!" You can tell she's just glad to finally have a district with a little action in it. "What's your name, young lady?"

I swallow hard, and respond with "Katniss Everdeen."

"I bet my buttons that was your sister. Don't want her to steal the spotlight, do we? Come on everybody! Let's give a big round of applause to our newest tribute!" Effie trills.

I give credit to the people of my district, for not one of them claps. Possibly because they all know me from the Hob, or knew my father, or have met Prim, who no one can help but loving. I stand there unmoving while they take part in the boldest form of dissent they can manage, silence. It said we do not agree, we do not condone, all of this is wrong, without really making a sound.

Then something I wasn't expecting happens. Almost every person in the crowd touches the three middle fingers of their left hand to their lips and hold it out to me. It is an old and rarely used gesture in our district, occasionally seen at funerals, that means thanks, admiration, and most of all, goodbye to someone you love.

Now I am on the verge of tears. But fortunately Haymitch chooses this moment to come stumbling across the stage to congratulate me. "Look at her. Look at this one!" he yells, throwing his arm around my shoulders. "I like her!" His breath reeks of liquor and you can tell it's been awhile since he's bathed. "Lots of…spunk!" he says triumphantly. "More than you!" he lets go of me and heads for the front of the stage. "More than you!" he shouts, pointing straight at the camera. I can't tell if he is addressing the audience or if he is so drunk he may actually be insulting the Capitol. I'll never know, because as he opens his mouth to continue, he plummets of the stage and gets knocked out.

He is taken away on a stretcher, and Effie attempts to get the ball rolling again. "What an exciting day!" she trills as she tries to straighten her wig. "But more excitement to come! It's time to choose our boy tribute!" She crosses to the ball that contains the boys' names and grabs the first slip she encounters, then zips back to the podium. I don't even have time to wish for Gale's safety before it's too late.

"Gale Hawthorne" she reads.

This time, instead of silence, there is a collective gasp from the audience. Then slowly, the silence breaks, and shouts erupt. The crowd couldn't contain their anger anymore. Many of them knew that with both Gale and I gone, our families would surely starve. The others just joined in on the chaos once it had begun. I think shots were fired into the air by the peace keepers to quiet the crowd, but I wasn't paying any attention to that. My eyes were locked on Gale, and my mouth was open in shock and horror.

"No" I whispered under my breath. I saw him walk out into the isle, with his little brother Rory chasing after him. He picked him up and set him back near his family. He bent down and said something to him that I couldn't hear. "Gale Hawthorne, please come up!" Effie said again, now getting visibly frazzled by the commotion. I saw him stand and turn. He locked eyes with me, then began walking up towards the stage.

It finally hit me. Gale and I were both going to be in the games, and we were probably both going to die. That meant that both of our families would also most likely die, if we weren't there to provide for them. Everything I worked so hard to protect for years was all coming crashing down in one day. I started getting nauseous. But then Gale was standing by my side, and I was able to keep a straight face. I felt safe, as long as we were together.

"I present, this year's tributes!" Effie hurriedly said, speeding up the ceremony to prevent more disturbances. The mayor quickly rattles off the Treaty of Treason like he does every year. When he is finished, he motions for Gale and I to shake hands. He takes mine in his and gives it a reassuring squeeze. We take one last look at our friends, family, neighbors, and the only life we have ever known, before turning our backs on it and walking away.

A/N: Wow this chapter was really long! Sorry if these first two chapters were really boring, but I pretty much just wrote what was in the book. It'll be different from now on, promise!