A/N: Hello to anyone who is still reading this. If people reading this can review it, then I will be very happy. Here's Chapter 4!
Disclaimer: I don't own THG
I am shocked. Completely shocked. A volunteer? After all that Panem has been through? The brown haired, green eyed boy made his way up to the stage.
"Hello, young man!" she says happily. "May I have your name?" The boy smirks.
"I am Rowan Esquire, the next Hunger Games Victor." He says proudly. Adrienne laughs, a light airy tinkle.
"This year will be very interesting indeed." she says. "Now shake hands." I turn to Rowan and offer my hand. He takes it and gives it a short jerk. His eyes look murderous and he smirks. Adrienne then breaks us up and takes us straight to the train. She leads us to the lavish sitting room.
"Wait here, your mentors will be with you shortly." She leaves the room. Rowan turns to me.
"Well, this should be fun." He says. I look at him.
"Why did you volunteer?" I ask.
"Well, my uncle was in the Games long ago. He died. He was only sixteen." Rowan tells me. "If I win, I'll be rich. Talk about get rich or die tryin'." Rowan laughs.
"You're despicable." I snap.
"Hey, I only do what my ancestors and I were trained to do. Bring pride to my district." He says. That sounds familiar. "After all, I do come from District 2." I stop and think for a second. Rowan looks familiar. I have a deja vu experience when I look at him. Where have I seen his face before. Rowan senses my confusion.
"What, you didn't know?" he asks.
"Know what?" I ask warily. He looks at me like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Your mother killed my uncle." Rowan tells me. "I'm Cato's nephew." Cato. It all makes sense now. The resemblance between them. His coming from District 2. Suddenly, my parents and Uncle Haymitch enter. Uncle Haymitch already has a bottle of white liquor. I see the expression on my mom's face when she sees Rowan, and I know she recognizes him too. This is all so overwhelming. I stand up and go to my train compartment.
I am laying on my bed when someone knocks on the door.
"Lucy?" It's my dad. "Lucy, it's time for dinner." I don't answer. He opens the door.
"Lucy? Are you alright?" he asks. I continue staring at the wall. Dad sighs.
"We will protect you, Lucy. Your mother, Uncle Haymitch, and I will not let you die." he reassures me. "You are great with a bow and arrow. You will survive." I sit up in bed quickly.
"Don't you get it?!" I shout. "They're going to kill me because I'm the child of two victors, one of which is the Mockingjay!" Dad cringes. He knows I'm right.
"No matter what, don't stop fighting." he says in a strained voice. "Come out for dinner when you're ready." I feel too sick to eat. Eventually I must fall asleep because it is dark when I wake up. Someone left a small loaf of bread and a glass of milk on the nightstand next to my bed. I don't feel hungry, but I need my strength. I eat the bread and drink the milk. I look out the window of my train compartment. I see buildings that I recognize are from District 2. We will be in the Capitol by morning. I had only been there once. My parents hate it. Rye and I love it. We love seeing the tall sparkling buildings and the strangely dressed people. That was where I had first learned about America. I was eleven and someone was talking about it in the Town Square. I saw Panem's flag along with another strange looking flag. It had red and white stripes. In the top left corner, it had a blue square with many white stars. I counted fifty total. My mother said that instead of Districts, America had fifty states. The only thing I knew was that the country was destroyed by war against other countries in the year 2022.
"People there were selfish, Lucy." My mother told me. "They only cared about themselves and how rich they were. When the new president tried to set things straight and fix the country, there was an uprising. Some fled to other countries. The unlucky stayed in the ruins of America. The country used to be very great when it was founded, but selfishness and hate destroyed it."
"When did Panem rise?" I asked.
"A few days after America was demolished. Apparently the Snow family had been planning Panem since 1900. People were so desperate for salvation so they went along with it. The Snow family was very controlling. Panem lasted for fifty years before the uprising. Then started the Hunger Games. And you know what happened after that." she finishes.
"Tell me more about America and the other countries." I plead. Mom shook her head.
"When you're older." she tells me.
And I did learn more. Not about America, but about other countries. Eurasia emerged when Panem did. The country used to be two separate countries. South America was inhabited only by wild animals. Africa was inhabited by other people that were different from us. They lived very old-fashioned, in mud huts with no electricity. Eurasia lived very much like us, with some more advanced technology. We never spoke with each other after the second rebellion, although they keep an eye on us. I know there are many archives with information about America at the Capitol, but I don't know where they are. Maybe someone there knows. I sigh deeply. I better get dressed. We'll be there soon.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! Sorry it was mostly Lucy's thoughts. It's just building up to when Lucy learns more about the USA. I believe that what happened to America in this story could actually happen. Anyway, bye for now!