A/N: After forever-and-a -day, here it is! District 5!

District Five

Ophelia Whinters

I woke at precisely 8:42 AM. My alarm was meant to go off at 8:45 but I had known I wouldn't need it. I reached over and turned it off. I had let myself sleep in because it's Reaping day. I had exactly two hours and eighteen minutes before I needed to be in the square. What to do with all of this extra time? I could read. The books lining my bookshelf hold little appeal; I've read them all too many times, having long since memorized each and every page.

I suppose I should go meet up with Winslow and Esbony. As much as I love them, their proclivities towards outward displays of affection get really old, really fast.

Plus, I won't be meeting up with them until 10:30 when we go to town and try to trade things at the market. The market isn't really supposed to be open on Reaping day, but around here, no one can afford to be shut down for long, not even a day so we make sure and go to trade every day.

So for now I sit in bed and wonder what the odds are of my name being pulled out of the glass sphere. It's only slightly higher than last year. .66% chance of my name being pulled out of the ball, there are people far more likely than myself. I comforted myself with that thought and pulled myself out of bed.

I stretch and go to the tub in the corner of the room I share with Cissni, my older sister. I turn the water on and am pleased to find that it's warm today. The water system can be so unreliable.

I decide that today I can afford to take a longer bath than usual so instead of getting out by nine or so I decide I'm going to soak until Cissni's alarm wakes her at 10:15. The water has started getting cold by the time Cissni's alarm goes off. She sluggishly pulls herself out of bed, with her alarm still blaring obnoxiously. She makes a vague motion at the bedside table that I assume is meant to turn the alarm off, instead her hand just thunks uselessly against the corner of the table and she mumbles in pain.

Cissni hasn't been the same since she got diagnosed. She used to be so full of life. I watch as she grumbles more and finally hits the button on her alarm. She also used to be a morning person. But she's tired all the time now. The only reason she's getting out of bed today is to come to the square with us for the Reaping. It takes her far longer to get ready than anyone else.

"Good morning," I say with a smile as I pull myself out of the tub and wrap up in a towel.

"Morning," she grumbles with a yawn.

"The water is warm today," I say as I drain my already cold water.

"Great," she says and brightens a bit. "Are you going to the market with Esbony and Winslow?"

"Yes, why do you ask?"

She strides over to wear her shoes sit by the door with a pair of socks stuffed into them. She peels part of the sole of the shoe up and pulls a couple bills out from between. "I want you to get us matching ribbons for our hair. I want to be out there with you."

I smile and take the money from her. I don't really care about the ribbon idea much, but I know it must mean a lot to Cissni for her to give me money she's saved for so long. "What color were you thinking?"

"What about green? It goes so well with your complexion," she says with a smile that is freer than my own. I don't think I could smile if I was given a death sentence like she was. "You'd better hurry or you're going to be late."

And I am, but not by long.

Esbony and Winslow are holding hands and talking when I approach our meeting place. It's an old tree that's limbs have grown into the building that houses the market on days when the market isn't supposed to be open.

"Hey," Esbony says as she unlatches from Winslow and bounces over to me with a smile. Esbony is one of the loudest people I know and I mean that in the best way possible.

Winslow just crosses his arms and smiles at me from behind Esbony. They are complete opposites, both physically and personality wise.

I smile back at them. "We have a request from Cissni," I tell them, "She wants me to get us matching ribbons for our hair, preferably green."

"Oo, I can help!" Esbony says as she grabs my hand and yanks me toward the entrance of the market, grabbing Winslow along the way.

An hour-and-a-half later I am looking for my sister in the crowd of spectators in the square. I finally spot her and quickly make my way over. There isn't much time before the Reaping starts.

"Oh it's perfect!" she squeals when I hand her the ribbon. It's a light green the color of the insides of limes. She ties her hair into a ponytail with it and makes a big bow. "Where's yours?"

I hand her mine and she motions for me to turn around. I do and she ties the ribbon as a headband because my hair is too short and thin to put into a ponytail like hers. I turn back around and she motions at a store window nearby and we go look in the reflection. I now have a light green bow just over my left ear. It makes me look older I think, having my hair pulled back from my face, my pointed ears are more prominent too. You can see the resemblance between Cissni and me more clearly now that my hair is out of my face. We share the same dark eyebrows and blonde hair although hers is much longer and thicker, though it has been thinning out as she gets sicker.

"You look great!" she says and gives me a hug. And I hug her back because now I'm getting scared that I may not get to again. I'm glad she isn't in the drawing anymore, but I still wish I could stand by her.

"Thanks," I say as I pull away. "I have to go now. I'll see you in a little while."

I go and stand next to Esbony in the lineup and she looks scared. "What if my name gets called?"

"It won't. You're even less likely than me and I've only got a .66% chance of being called," I say and I smile at her. For all of her bold talk, she's just as scared as everyone else.

She takes a deep breath and faces back toward the stage where Soul is talking about the tradition and yatti yatta. It really bores me.

No matter how zoned out I am, I focus when I hear "Ladies first."

Soul reaches into the ball, holding his long, robe-like sleeve up. He swooshes his hand around and makes dramatic faces and I can feel everyone around me cringe at his jewel encrusted teeth.

He yanks his hand out of the ball, scattering slips of paper everywhere and I see the eighteen-year-old girls scrambling to get a good look at the paper that fell out of the ball.

"Ophelia Whinters!" he announces excitedly and then comically shields his eyes from the non-existent sun and looks over the audience.

I release the breath I didn't know I had been holding. I look up at one of the monitors that have been set up around the square and I see the cameras are panning over the audience, looking for me. If I just stand still, maybe they won't notice me. Just as I think I am quite clever, Esbony shrieks and throws her arms around me.

I look back up and the cameras have found me. I give Esbony and awkward hug and then detach her from my neck. I look over my shoulder and spot my father, Cissni and Asmode, my older brother and Lerita and Tidia, my younger sisters. My older brother is holding my sister as she shrieks into his chest and my father is leaning against the façade of one of the old dilapidated buildings for support as she sobs. I make eye contact with Asmode and he gives me a small, reassuring smile. I know he is trying to hold back tears for the sake of my family. I see that Lerita is trying to comfort Tidia who is crying, mostly because my father is crying and she doesn't know why. Lerita has always been such a strong girl.

I feel a hand on my arm and I look up to see a young, dark haired Peacekeeper. He's trying to get me to go ahead and go. I nod at him and he releases my arm. I give Winslow a hug as I walk past the fourteen-year-olds. He won't volunteer and I wouldn't ask him to. Plus, he isn't safe yet either.

Soul grins at me with his bedazzled teeth when I take the stage and I offer him a smile of my own, the most convincing one I can manage. Starting now, my goal is to be as confident and appealing as possible. Sponsors like those people. Those people stay alive the longest. I just hope I can be one of those people.

James Cygnet

She won't last long.

That's the first thing that comes to mind when I see the poor thirteen-year-old get called.

Don't look at me like that, you know she won't either. Not without some major help. She's unique looking. That'll help, but stylists can only do so much and she is small and delicate looking. She better have some real fighting skills if she wants to last through the bloodbath.

Wow, she's frozen. Hasn't moved since she pried her friend off of her. Can't freeze like that in the arena, sweetheart.

Oh look, she finally comes back to reality and she's… smiling?

Well, if she's smart enough to play it off, maybe she does have a chance.

That's not how I would do it, personally. I mean, I've had six years to think about what I would do if my name was called.

Upon hearing my name I would smirk, not smile, smirk. And narrow my eyes; that's what makes my older brothers look so much more intimidating that me, they all have small eyes that make it look like they're perpetually glaring. So I'd smirk and narrow my eyes and then I'd walk, no stride, straight up to the stage and jump onto it. The stairs at the sides of the stage are for the unprepared. And me? I'm completely prepared. I stand up there and I would grin at them. Grin my most menacing grin so sponsors know that I am confident and sure of myself and entirely there by purpose. I'd take the microphone from Soul and say, "I thought you'd never ask. I thought I was finally going to have to volunteer." But of course that isn't really much of an issue. I know that your odds get worse the older you get, but come on. This is the first year I've had to take out tesserae and both of my brothers got out okay after they took out tons of tesserae. I made it through five years, what's so special about the sixth year?

"James Cygnet!" Soul calls.

I remember the plan but my face won't move.

Shit.

It's been too long to make the smirk work, hasn't it? Everyone knows I'm scared now.

Maybe I should have rehearsed this.

To hell with it.

I smirk and narrow my eyes and cut through the crowd. I hurtle onto the stage, landing in a crouch and straighten up, my back still facing the audience. I motion for Soul to give me the mic and he looks confused but complies. I take it and turn towards his, making sure the audience can see most of me now.

"Now how did you know I was going to volunteer this year?" I say as I cock my head to the side at him in mock accusation.

His face lights up and he snatches the mic back from me. "Well haven't we got a winner here, folks!"

I turn toward the audience and arch my brow which I know emphasizes the already piercing blue-green of my wide eyes.

The crowd roars, clearly pleased to have someone they think may be able to win.

I wish I shared their confidence.

I'm sure my father will be so pleased with me for my performance. My brothers will undoubtedly call me a dork for lying, but I know they mean well.

I turn to face the thirteen-year-old girl and she is watching me with a calculating stare. I know we're supposed to shake hands but I find myself reluctant to touch her. She looks alien, not human and I'm afraid she might zap me or something if I shake her hand.

But the audience and the sponsors are watching so I extend my hand with a grin and she accepts it. She seems just as reluctant as I am. She barely grips my hand so I decide to up the ante and grip her hand tightly and give it an enthusiastic shake before throwing an arm around her shoulder and waving at the crowd.

I hope you're watching, I think as I grin, praying that the Careers and sponsors are watching and thinking I'm a valuable candidate.

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