Chapter 3-

District 7 is an grand, woodland district with lots of wildlife and lumber and trees. The forests and meadows are hidden and there is a variation of color, smells, and sounds. So is the civil area of the district, where the Justice Building, the town square, and pubs and local shops are at.

Even if it is enslaved, there are still a lot of things to do then just working for the rest of your life. Luckily, Panem citizens from the districts are able to get limited opportunity of extra-curricular activities . I most likely chose dance. For little 13 year old girls, they were allowed to dance. I danced when I was working, I danced at school, at home and everywhere else where I was bored out of mind. Although, there is a certain age in which you can't do those activities anymore and proceed straight to slave work.

I'm also handy with axes, especially with twin axes that intimidate others who want to face me off. Like Onyx. I actually think that he should think before he picks on another little person, and think twice if it's my sister.

I wake up. It's the morning after my confusing, moody birthday , or should I say, our moody birthday(referring to Misty).

It's reaping day this morning for district 7. I'm really scared about the cold tension between the Hulls and the Pines and this damn day just worsens the feeling. I'm sure the career districts are just full of it because they have this sort of Capital wannabe bloodlust for being on TV and spilling innocent blood.

Misty wakes up later than usual so I have to do the honors since Countee is making breakfast at a slow pace due to dreading that this day would come, sooner or later. Misty wakes up, I tell her, "It's time."

Misty and I say goodbye to Countee, our mother as she is going to exit after us. We move forward out the door, and to the town square. It is mild, but always so exceptionally chilly. Misty comments,

"I hate it when the weather's like this, especially on the worst days like this." she said in a grim manner. I just giggle and she smiles back, knowing that I prefer this weather.

The town square is large and in a shape that coordinates perfectly directing us to the Justice Building that awaits possible victims, or this year's winning tribute. An victor in the Hunger Games must be clever, or wily, or brave, or swift enough to be able to handle the psychiatric and physical trauma the games do to a growing mind.

The Peacekeeper that takes our prints pushes a needle on us and pushes it on the paper. I Take it just fine since I have lost a lot of blood before….

It was when Onyx captured Misty as usual. I took my axes and run to save her, but I was blocked by the Pines' dogs. The dogs then started attacking Misty as if she was dog chow. I push and shove and stab all the dogs till the weaken. Peacekeepers came and confiscated the dogs since they were too unstable to be guard dogs and it harms workers and distracts the public. Misty was always injured by the dogs and it was a daily routine that she would be the dogs' meal.

I lost blood because when I get Misty out of their attention, they attack me instead and I wound up bleeding internally and I take the pain as my father wanted me to take it. In order to save someone I love the most.

After my papers were finished, I move from the 17 year old line to the 18 year old line since my birthday was, of course, yesterday. Now I can finally be with Talitha and maybe we can become friends and secretly loyal to each other, behind our families' backs. I see Onyx staring me down when I cross over next to Talitha. He signals with glare at his father, Zaniah, and then Zaniah signals back with a nod. After that, Onyx bites his lip intensely as to hold him from attacking a target, I believe it was me.

I came to Talitha and waved, "Hi" to her , hoping for a response back. I say again, something I should've said a long time ago

"So I wanted to say thank you for all you have done for my family and defending me and my sister when we needed you the most. So I hope we can become public friends and show we can stand up, against our family differences and…"

Talitha turns around, but with a bruised, disfigured face and eye sockets all black and blue. "I would love to do that, but right now I can't since of other more difficult complications rather than actually being friends…with you…."

I frown.

"Don't get me wrong, I would, but now is not a good time. Maybe when your family or mine, they finally die of some natural cause, then there's a possibility, I mean we're never getting out of here anyways." Talitha states logically, always thinking of my feelings.

I know me and Talitha's friendship is all I have because all my other friends ditch me ever since they were finding out I was public enemy no. 1 with Onyx so everyone stopped liking me only because of him. Now, since Talitha's his sister, it's almost impossible or in fact, forbidden.

"Good Luck to you, Happy Hunger Games." She looks the other way, towards the podium. I stand next to her, looking out to the podium. As the annual reaping video finishes, when Mayor Prescott enters he greets everyone and the escort takes the stage with a little sense that she doesn't like the cold weather.

For her, it starts to snow.

The district starts to be in large blankets of snow and the drizzle and droplets of snow become heavier as they each drop. The escort, Cariba Mildow, you can tell she was a beginner in escorting tributes. Although, she has had a reputation for only escorting tributes in the warmest climate districts such as Districts 11,9, 4, 2, and 1 pretty much, but nothing as cold as now.

"Happy Hunger Games, everyone! And may the odds be ever in your favour because the world will be…" She reads the next line in her index card, "Watching, yes watching! That's it, umm…" Cariba moves to the other cards, but she seems so frustrated and unprepared and so she doesn't know what to do.

"Well, screw the cards!" She threws them in back of her. Afterwards, she begins to start with the bowls. "As usual, let's start with the boys! I mean…screw it! We'll start with the boys to change this whole freakin' system of goodwill and manners and such!" Cariba walks with such ego and proceeds to the boys' bowl. "Our male tribute from District 7 is Onyx Pines!"

I feel both surprise and fear and a really big touch of glee and guilty happiness in my heart. I feel so ashamed that I am happy because of my enemies' misfortune and my own plus 1.

Onyx moves forward and I can hear the chit-chat of "Better him than me", "He deserves it", and "Finally, someone who deserves this kind of penalty for what he & his family did to the Hulls.". I heard my name especially and I felt cared for by so many of my district that actually support my cause to get rid of that monster, I agree with that decision every step of the way!

"Now, onto our female tribute." She walks to the females' bowl to see who is our next victim/possible victor. "Your female tribute is…" I can see Cariba's goose bumps and shivers all over her body that makes it so noticeable. "Mare Blackcherry".

I was so afraid it was going to be Misty, but good thing it wasn't me or her. I would've expected this though.

Mare Blackcherry steps up and then she makes a break for it. She run right into the peacekeepers. She couldn't stop struggling and she kept screaming and punching and saying, "I will never be a tribute! I won't die like this! Not here! Not now!" Mare was so out of control, they had to pin her down and blow her head up right in front of us all. It was really terrifying. As I look at Mare's corpse, I see Countee, my mother from a distance. She was here, enough to see what happen.

We all turn our attention back to Cariba, for her to say, "Well, that was surely unexpected. But we certainly can't have a Hunger Games without 24 tributes, not 23! Moving on…" Cariba dips her hand back into the bowl and what she retrieves is another name, another victim in her hand, who might very much likely end up like Mare Blackcherry.

"Misty Hull."

I froze at the name of the sound of her name. She was the next one to be picked after that homicidal escapist. It's just so highly unbelievable and just, I never thought. I see Talitha drops tears from her eyes, so is Countee, Zaniah's face is emotionless, and Onyx's is just plain evil from the looks of it. He has that devilish grin that never wipes away from his face which gives Misty and I the total creeps and I can't stand for it no longer. He wanted this, he was waiting for this day to come, to torment me by slashing her. Or maybe he's gonna save her for last and then give her the most brutal beating and killing everybody of Panem is never going to forget? Not even a corpse for a proper burial or an open casket for that matter?

I had to do what a good sister like I've always been have always done and what I always had done for the past years, ever since Misty was born, I'm going to volunteer. As Misty is about to reach for Cariba's hand, the moment when it's actually going to happen is interrupted by….

"I volunteer!" With a long, courteous, brave scream I ever could've done before. This was the time to prove to Misty, to Onyx, to the Pines, to Countee, To Nation of Panem, to my father who is dead! That I am victorious and nobody is gonna stop me. I will be tolerant no more, but full-out defend my ditrict, defend my family, and defend my honour for actually being in these games. I will win.

When I started thinking of about how I will win the Hunger Games and prove myself worthy of than being a slave, we're already escorted to the Justice Building. I stand next to the window, overlooking Victor's village and it's beautiful and I deserve this kind of luxury. Misty, and even Countee deserves this because we have lived a life of luxury, around people who have treated us as if we were citizens of this "great" nation. I want to take my "real" life back. And this time, I'll keep it since Esperanto couldn't sustain our home for much longer.

Misty and Countee enter and Misty is so gleeful to see me and so was I to see her. I started to say, "Please to make anymore problems with the Pines because they don't deserve such nuisance from us even if we are helping ourselves to their workload, we don't deserve that and they don't either, please, for me?"

Misty nodded to signify yes. I said to Countee, "Please watch her from now on, when I get back."

Countee replies, "How do you know if you are coming back?"

"Well, I just have that feeling you know. My father's spirit coursing through my veins, empowering me with his confidence and endurance of the victor he was. You know, how he was." My mother seen him, kill, hunt, and fight off almost every opponent in the arena and I think I'm just perfect for the role of the female tribute. "Just I won't kill so much like he did."

We said our final goodbyes, Countee ends it with a "Your remind me so much of him…"

"Time's up!" The Peacekeeper forcefully escorts them both out of the room and that'll be the end of my goodbyes, except I would like to see Talitha, but I bet Zaniah would only let her see Onyx…

Suddenly, Onyx comes in to my room. Onyx! Onyx! Onyx! Out of all people! Talitha walks in too along with Zaniah. Zaniah waves, Talitha hugs with a bear hug and Onyx says a few words. Both Talitha and Zaniah leave the room. Onyx says to me,

"I was about to take your sister's life, but taking yours will be so much better because it's payback for what you've done to me…" He shows me the scars from his shoulders and his leg and they were still unrepairable. No stitches whatsoever.

"I'm so sorry…" I got cut off.

"No. You wish you were sorry sooner and then when I win, I'll make sure they suffer too."

After I heard him say that, I wanted to cut his arms and legs off, but I saved my anger for later, for the arena.

The real games have begun.

Get ready when she goes to the capital, with Onyx! Cant wait ;)