Chapter 6

In a hotel next to the President's Mansion, a Capitol girl was dropped off to get ready for her goodbyes. She wore an embroidered blue dress and ballerina shoes, and her waist-long brown hair was colored pink from the ends and in two braids. The girl sighed as she seized the room's luxuries around her. There was unique mahogany furniture, charming flower-arrangements, precious art, and the latest electronics. The girl thought if the previous Games' tributes had it like this or if they had to tell their goodbyes in some old and rotten mold house.

Besides the girl there were three guards in the room, keeping an eye on her. The hotel located near her reaping spot but far from the other spots so their group had to wait for others to arrive. The one hour time was equal and would start and end at the same exact second to all of them.

"What's that for?" the girl asked and looked at one of the guards and the gun that rested on his hip. Hanna thought it was a funny sight. She had just turned 13 - they could prevent her doing anything without guns. Still, when she circled around the room, the guards followed her every step acting as if their job was a life-or-death deal.

"It is to verify that things go the way they have been planned."

"So if someone tries to kidnap me, you will shoot him down?"

"You know who painted this? What this jay in this represents anyway?" Hanna tried to erase some small talk with the guards but they didn't reply to her.

"I think it takes a while before they let anyone in. Can I watch TV?"

"Fine, watch TV but don't ask any more questions!"

Hanna went to switch on the plasma and then immediately, after seeing the first sight of herself she turned her head away, then turned hot red from embarrassment. It wasn't her when they called Hanna Romy. She focused to be positive, to spread good energy around her, and find the bright sides in every situation. This girl in the reaping tried pathetically to hide her lachrymose face, and spoke weird things to the tributes next to her. Hanna guessed that she didn't really draw the sponsors to her direction. The other tributes were bigger, stronger, older, and more attractive. She was an odd one, considered hippie person who had never even touched a knife. Why would anyone want to cheer for her?

She sorted out her pessimist thoughts. There was no point of worrying what other people would think. Hanna meditated her motto: what I cannot change, what I cannot influence no matter what, should not concern me. Nonetheless, she admitted that the reaping was a disaster. She should find her inner peace again and drive away the bad influences. This day should be no exception…

Hanna turned around when hearing a familiar voice saying her name, or somewhat like a nickname, and she ran across the room to lift up the cutest baby in the world. The guards were holding their breaths and almost sprinted to open the windows. Hanna didn't care of the smell at all, though she agreed that her brother could use a diaper change. The baby smiled and curled his tiny hands around a toy dog and Hanna smiled widely back to him.

"Haga!" Oliver sputtered. He pulled Hanna's braid and then moved on to chew her wooden necklace. Hanna's father came to hug her briefly. Actually he just bumped into her with an armful of paper before he started showing important looking documents.

"The minute after what happened I put our house into auction. The leading offer is quite high now, with that money we can send you gifts fairly long. When they've run up, you will have sponsors. I'm in good way planning a campaign for you. Hanna Romy – tribute for you!" Hanna's dad watched her amazed look for a moment and started explaining again.

"We can change the campaign name later if my assistant gets something better. She will answer your sponsor calls if I fall asleep. I've planned everything so don't worry! I will do everything to save…"

"Calm down Dad." Hanna smirked and rolled her eyes."I'm not dead yet."

She could understand why President Snow had picked her father to be his right hand. He was a planner and organizer to the core, always stressing too much about everything. Hanna hadn't yet figured a single trait she'd inherited from him. She was more of an easygoing and down-to-earth type like her mother.

"Where's Mom?" Hanna asked a bit worried. She wouldn't miss this and Hanna couldn't think of a way to bear this without seeing her.

"She comes in last. We thought it's the best plan."

Oliver was such an attention-seeker when he didn't get his sister's full attention. He started to punch their dad with his baby fists. Oliver had a very hard look and he pointed him with the toy.

"Young man! You're showing me doggy's butt?"

Hanna laughed and walked over to a sofa to play with Oliver and his dog. Their dad hardly noticed them when he made phone calls to prospective sponsors. I appreciate it more than you can understand, Hanna thought, but why to worry so much. There is always hope.

Hanna wondered how their life would go on after the Games. She hoped to become a spirit or an angel, so that she could still touch their lives even if she didn't return. Then she thought of the past and the day when Oliver had born came into her mind. Hanna had been so happy when she finally at 12 years got a sibling. She didn't like being only child. She crossed her fingers that her parents would take the bull by the horns and don't wait forever to make a new play mate to Oliver.

Their time went so fast. Before Hanna knew it, her father and brother were already leaving the room. She embraced them tightly and ruffled Oliver's hair for the one last time. She looked carefully so she could remember her brother's habits, appearance, gestures and doggy to the smallest detail. Everything else was unimportant to her. If it was possible, Hanna wanted Oliver's smile to be her last memory of this world.

"They let only the five of us to come in. Talia and Quenna wanted to wish you luck!"

"We will sponsor you!"

"Just remember that the bloodbath is the worst. You need to get straight out of there!"

When Hanna's friends came in, the 15 minutes came to end even faster than the previous. It felt as if it was weeks ago when she had last seen them, when really, they were all together in the reaping. Just before Hanna had walked to the Stage, she quickly whispered her longest-standing friend Pandora that she didn't want everyone to grieve because of her, not today when she could barely keep her own spirit high. Pandora seemed distressed but made her a promise that she'd ensure everyone to act normally. After the last hugs and wistful words, Hanna was alone again when she'd told goodbyes to five more important persons in her life.

She wandered to light some candles because she thought they brought in the right placid atmosphere, though the guards forbad her from switching off the lights. Hanna waited her next visitor having no clue of the person's identity. If her mom would be last and they didn't let more of her friends come, who was still left?

"Hi Hanna", she heard a woman voice to greet her. She recognized their neighbor Edith Ferrer, who had been Panem's Attorney General for over twenty years. Edith used to be one of the Capitol's most powerful people but still none of her decisions could have been implemented without the President's approval. Snow had been dictator so it was like that with everyone.

"Hi Missis Ferrer."

"I'm sorry this happened to you."

Even though Edith had been a close friend of Hanna's mother for years, Hanna still hadn't known to expect her. Edith's son Chester had been chosen to tribute too, right after Hanna. Edith earned Hanna's respect for that she could say goodbyes twice. Hanna knew many couldn't have.

"I get straight to the point. You need to survive the Games. You're just too good, and too young to die."

"What? I don't understand." It made perfectly sense that her dad had told her the same thing. But for Edith Ferrer it was bizarre, unless there was a rule allowing two victors.

"I met Chester before I came to see you. I don't know how that boy's mind works. He told me that he won't come back. He said he doesn't want to live when all the others die."

"So you came to tell me that you will sponsor me 'cause he… won't kill?" Hanna tried to keep up with her. She had decided that if it came to it, she would defend herself. Hanna guessed that even then, her chances of winning would be as nonexistent as for someone who wouldn't kill.

Sponsoring her wouldn't be "a profitable investment", as her father would have put it if he was honest. But maybe Edith's friendship with Hanna's mother was good enough a reason to choose her.

"That's not the case. He will kill. He said that if he's going to die he wants to vote for the victor. I don't know to explain it better, but Chester will kill to protect some others, like you and Emme, his cousin. She was the seventh announced tribute. Anyway, I want you to form an alliance with them. I think it would increase your chances of survival considerably."

"I just don't get him. Why he doesn't want to live, but still kills for me?" Hanna thought Chester as the last person in the world to kill anyone. He didn't even seem to be interested in the Games. The Ferrers always hosted a huge celebration during the middle of the Games, inviting all the rich and powerful people of the Capitol to their mansion. For Hanna, it was her highlight of the year, but she had never seen a sight of Chester in the parties.

"Believe me that I don't get him either. I tried to convince him to try to win. But it's pointless. He won't change his mind."

"I'm between a rock and a hard place now. Of course, I still hope Chester to decide differently. It's very unlikely however, so I will use all my possible contacts to help you."

Edith was leaving. Hanna hadn't decided what she should think about all this. She really didn't know how to act when this proposition came out of nowhere.

"There are very tough tributes in this year, tribute arts champions and one of the history's youngest Game makers. I know it will be hard, but if you hide long enough so that there's only a handful of tributes left… Chester could save you." Though Edith was a career type –person like Hanna's father, she didn't read documents or speak in the phone. She had her fully attention to Hanna.

"I don't know. I don't want to take an advantage of Chester." It was Hanna's biggest fear. How Panem would remember her if she won.

"It wouldn't be like that." Edith's response was short, but the expression on her face told Hanna that she was meant to be a part of this alliance with her son. Hanna's inner spirit could tell it and she knew she would have to follow it, though she couldn't bring herself to say it at loud.

"Okay then. When he asks me to alliance with him, I'll do it."

Hanna had only one visitor left. She walked over to the sofa and wrapped herself under the blankets. Hanna started to cry, her jaw trembled and her teeth rattled. She wanted to be brave, and for others she could pretend that she was. Now she didn't see the point in that anymore, since her mother was so much like her that she would know instantly if Hanna wasn't totally honest.

"Oliver doesn't understand that I will leave soon. But that's good. He won't be heart-broken when he thinks of me. If he'll remember that I live at all..." Hanna's voice came to sound just like a leaf's swish when she talked to her.

"You silly" her mom smiled. "We will tell him about you. The one thing your dad didn't sell was the items that remind of you. You can come back. If you don't, we'll never forget. You will always be our daughter, and we will never stop loving you. You must always know that."

Hanna leaned against her mother's shoulder and swept of some tears to look better at the painting with the jay. Beautiful dark brown bird flew free over the sunlit plains. It made Hanna reflect on her memories of the rebellion. It had changed their lives completely and a lot more changes were still to come. When Hanna heard about the rebellion for the first time, she saw flames. The flames came to her thoughts and dreams constantly after that day. She had known that it was a sign of her protected life to soon end, but she had never expected it to happen like this.

"I think I will pass down in the tube." Hanna's mother lifted her up from the shoulders and put Hanna's palms around her own closed ones. She looked like she was going to break down but managed to speak almost normally.

"I know you won't. We're stronger than that." Hanna's mother opened her hands, and then took them away. A small locket dropped down into Hanna's hand.

"What's this? It's very pretty."

"It is the reason why I came in last. I went home and put those two pictures to your locket. If you want it can be your token."

Hanna opened the golden heart-framed locket and found out that on the other side she was with her friends in an outdoor picnic. There were several people in the picture and it was blurry but she still loved it. In the other picture she was with her family. It was better formed one from her album's cover and her favorite one.

You're the best Mom I could have ever had. You and Dad never expected anything from me. That's why I've always wanted to give my best, because I knew I would always be enough.

"Thank you Mom."

An hour had gone and they had to leave. Hanna put the locket around her neck and blew out the light candle under the dark jay.

"I love you too. I love you all."