(A/N: I did another chapter guys :D I hope you guys like it, it's longer than the others as well. So please, enjoy and review ^.^)
Day of the Reaping
Have you ever had that deep-setted feeling in your gut that tells you not to get out of bed in the morning? The kind that settles deep down and practically tells you that something is wrong? That was exactly how I felt this morning, as I lay buried under the layers of blankets, my outfit was laid out neatly on a small wooden chair in the corner of my room, but I didn't bother touching it. I didn't want to think that this could possibly be the last morning I ever spent in my room, lying in my bed, thinking about the day ahead.
Although it was my last reaping, and I had only seven slips in the big glass ball, it was still a frightening prospect to stand in that crowd of boys and girls that were the same age as me, who had families and futures, or that were younger than me, and if not picked would have to through the same ordeal that I was going through now.
I dared to drag myself out of bed, the feeling of being late was far worse than the foreboding feeling of not going there at all, what if my name was called and I wasn't there? It would be my family who would face the ultimate price.
My feet were bare and the wood of my bedroom floor was warm against my feet, so walking over to the small chair was no difficult task. I slid out of my nightie, a thin, short piece that I had since I was a child, and tugged on the loose drawer of my dresser, placing on my underwear, and then unfurling the clothes my mother had so easily picked out for me. A dress, a pale blue, the white ribbon that held it all in place sat easily on my dresser. I slid it on, but I had never remembered ever actually owning this dress, but my mother seemed delighted when she had showed it to me, saying how beautiful I would look for the Capitol should I go, although my real aim was to look beautiful, not for the Capitol, but for Finnick.
The ribbon however had proven itself to be a challenge, struggling, but not overly so, I managed to easily tie the bow once I had found the right angle, and I slipped on the blue heels, and wobbled. I wasn't used to heels, they made me feel uneasy as I tottered, but I walked towards my mirror and looked at myself, before I tackled my mess of curls I called hair.
The dress made me look taller, and darker, the collar was low cut, but not low cut enough to be deemed inappropriate. It came to my knees, brushing against my freshly shaven legs, that was the one thing about District Four, we shaved body hair away to help us swim in the water, and of course, it was just easier not having hairy legs when wearing a short dress.
I pulled my brown hair from the collar of my dress, and began to comb it out. I had tended to wear my hair down, it was a typical fashion, so instead, I tied it into a think bun, allowing wisps of hair to dance out around the side of my face. I still didn't look like me, but this was my last year, so it didn't matter.
A knock on my door alerted me to the fact that I wasn't alone in the house. I didn't bother to answer, instead I made a small call that let whoever was outside know that I was dressed and awake. I expected my father, who was always the one to come and make sure I was awake, to enter my room, but it was my mother.
My mother was a short woman, who looked like an older, more beautiful version of me. She was curved, and her dark brown hair streaked with soft white fell just past her shoulders in corkscrew curls, her sea-green eyes shown bright, she was dressed in a dark green dress, a dress I hadn't seen her wear since my brother's funeral.
"You look beautiful, darling." She speaks in that soft way only mother's can, the way that calms your nerves and causes the butterflies to die down. I blink at her, and straighten myself.
"Thank you," I answer, "where's dad?" I asked right away, my mother and I hadn't had a close relationship, and once my brother died, it had seemed to worsen, I think that was one of the reasons I was surprised to see her knocking on my door. My mother looked down at herself, and clasped her hands in front of her.
"He's already at the Square, he's been asked to help out," I nod, before sliding my white cardigan on. My mother held out her hand, almost as though she was about to say something, but she drops it to her side, and closes her mouth, remaining silent. I let out a sigh, and looked at her.
"Come on mother, we should get going to the Square, don't want to be late and all," my mother nods and opens my bedroom door for me as I exit, her shuffling quietly behind me.
Xxx
The Sqaure, as always, was filled with the entire District, people pulled into the side streets, people cheered for their sons and daughters, most hoping somebody would be picked. It wasn't hard to pick my father out in the crowd, he was taller than most, and had claimed his space close to the eighteen years old at the back, I turn to my mother and point.
"Dad's over there," she nods to me, and kisses me on the cheek. She smiles softly, but darkly, almost as though she knew something but wouldn't tell me.
"Good luck, Annie love," she whispers sweetly, touching her forehead to mine and it feels as though it is the first form of affection she has dared to show me in years, I smile back at her, and hug her tightly, this was the mother that I had seen with my brother.
"I'll be fine, mum," I tell her kindly, knowing she was worried, like all parents were, "there's a thousand names in there, I'll be home for supper, and we can have a feast as celebration because today is my last year." She nods to me, and pats my cheek before turning and leaving, walking towards my father, I watch her go, but I can't help but feel that perhaps I should be worrying, just as much as she was, maybe even more so.
I go and get myself signed in, the slight jab of the needle as they take my blood causes me to flinch, and I stamp my finger down on a white sheet of paper, next to my name and walk in between all the other eighteen year olds who shuffle restlessly. After today, we would never be Reaped, it was both a joyous day, and a nerve-racking one, and to know we were all grouped together like cattle, it was too horrifying to say the least.
I search the stage, and I catch the mayor, he sits there with his back straight, a large grin on his face as he looks down at us all, and then nods as a camera ghosts past him, probably not even paying attention to the fact that he had acknowledged him. Next I see Mags, she had decided to mentor this year instead of one of the other female victors, she sits slightly hunched over, her outfit the same blue dress that hangs off of her in a way that only she suits, her white hair combed back into a messy side braid, she smiles sweetly up at Finnick, but ignores the camera, and I wonder what it must have been like when she had been in my spot, had she even been as old as me when she was Reaped?
My mind then turns to Finnick, it wasn't difficult seen as the camera only really focused on him. He was grinning at the Capitol, his grin was stretched enough to show his dazzling teeth as he winked at the camera and I wondered how many men and women in the Capitol swooned at that very wink. He is dressed in a plain white low cut top, his black trousers form-fitting. I wondered how he could sit so easily like that, with the whole of Panem watching him.
District Four's mentor Justice Maximum sits with his back straight, he looks, well blue. His skin, died to match the colour of the sky, his hair the colour of his sea and his suit, his suit was the colour of sapphires. He has only ever dressed in District Four typed colours after Finnick won the games, I had never seen a man seem so happy about a fourteen year old killing people, but that was Justice for you.
The mayor stands first, and begins to speak, but I bloke it out. I could recite the speech from memory if asked, it was always the same speech, never altering on a single word. I wondered if he practised this in the mirror before each Reaping. I wait for him to go back to his seat before listening intently to Justice, who had stood up and grinned rather happily.
"Hello all!" He spoke in his high pitched voice that caused me to shudder, I despised the Capitol accent more than most. "Today is a very special day once again, we are celebrating our very special annual Hunger Games once more! And to commemorate this very beautiful seventieth year we shall do, as it is tradition, pick a winning boy and girl from this fabulous District so that they may follow in the footsteps of their lovely and brilliant mentors right here!" He gestured to Mags and Finnick, who nodded politely towards the camera. Justice moved towards the glass bowl to his left, and stuck his hand in. "As I am ever the Gentleman, ladies are first!" He fished around in the bowl for what felt like hours, before he pulled out a single slip, the entire crowd froze as we waited patiently. He unfolded the slip of paper and cleared his throat before speaking into the microphone so everyone could hear him.
"Annie Cresta!"
I froze. It was like someone dumped the entire ocean into my body and froze it, I couldn't move and I couldn't react. I could see Finnick only slightly, but he felt a million miles away, I could feel people looking at me, and those around me parted slightly. I could hear broken sobs come from behind me, and slowly I turned.
My father stood beside my mother, keeping her upwards as she gasped and screamed, I didn't know how to comfort her, how do you comfort someone when they were about to lose a child? How do you do it when you are the child they are about to lose?
I begin to move my feet, it was difficult, like carrying led, each step towards the stage became harder, all I could hear where my mothers sobs as I came to the large concrete steps. I walked up them, aware of all eyes on me as I reach the top of the stairs, my eyes catch Finnick's for just a brief moment, before I stand next to the ball that had the name of every girl in District Four between the ages of twelve and eighteen. Justice looks at the audience, at first sadly, like he is sad to see me go, before he walks towards the microphone.
"Isn't she a pretty one, now the Capitol will love her, don't you all think? Okay, now for the gentlemen," he says as the crowd remains silent and nobody dares to answer him. I know nobody will volunteer for me, I was eighteen with no older siblings, and nobody who wasn't family wasn't prepared to through themselves into an arena with twenty-three other tributes who want them dead. I can hear as Justice rustles through the right bowl, but my eyes are only fixed on my parents.
My mother, buried in my father's chest, as she cries, my father holds her tightly in his arms, but now they are only two childless parents, I remember how my brother had once told me that should my name ever be called, he would be in the arena beside me, but now the world seemed to be crashing down like a heinous nightmare.
"Tiel Ula!" I once again felt frozen inside as I looked up, and my eyes widened again, wider this time. Tiel Ula was another eighteen year old, he was a dark skinned boy, and very handsome. He was broad and strong. He walked with more pride than I could even have, almost swaggered, and stood next to the right bowl.
Tiel had eight older brother's, and an older sister, however, this was not the first time a Ula had been called up for the Games, however, his older sister Lucy had been chosen, she had been Finnick's District partner, and when I look at Tiel, it fears me to wonder how he would be in the Games.
"Well, isn't this a strapping young lad, another beauty, well, I must say, I am rather impressed by these two, but do you want these two to have any chance of all the glory? Do we have any Volunteers?" He was making an excellent show, making the Capitol eat us up right then and there. They were loving the creatures Justice was making us out to be, dogs that you can bet on in some sort of race.
"No?" He asked the audience after a small while, so he grinned, taking both our hands, clutching them as he pulled them up in the air, a grin. I flinched slightly, but didn't utter a word as he began to talk.
"So here we have it, our Tributes, Annie Cresta and Tiel Ula!" I could see the crowd clap, some more enthusiastic as others, but I just stood there stiff. We had no communication, we had nothing but the subtle hatred that I held for Tiel and he for me, we both knew that one of us had to kill the other if we wanted to get home alive.