District Four
Malakai Mavericks
I wake up completely regretting ever signing up to be in the Hunger Games. I've trained most of my life, and yet on the day when I actually am about to do something I've wanted to do since I was a baby, I feel extremely nervous. I always knew that it was a great possibly I wouldn't return home from the Games, but it's only actually dawning on me now that I might die. I throw off my tangle of covers and step out of bed. I suppose a nice walk along the beach will clear my head.
I'm only wearing underwear, so I pull on a pair of jeans and a white T-shirt, which is my normal training outfit. I might stop at the training center to get in some last minute training with Kata before the reaping. Right now it's much too early. Peering out my window I see that the sun has barely risen. I pull on some shoes and head outside.
The air is slightly chilly, but I like it like that. I quickly stretch my legs before starting along the beach. My family is fortunate enough to live right next to the beach. Like most District Four citizens, my parents are fishermen. They're normally out in the water for most of the day, but now they're asleep in bed. The air has the familiar smell of salt, and the only noise is the waves lapping up against the shore and the occasional squawk of a seagull.
I run along the beach, as close to the water as I can get without getting wet. My shoes get caked with wet sand, but it's worth it. It's nice to clear my head from all the big things coming up. Namely, the reaping.
I've trained to be in the Hunger Games since I was ten, and got paired up with Kata. In District Four's training academy we get assigned to a partner who we'll go into the Game with if we get chosen to volunteer. They don't assign partners until we're twelve, since by then they know who you'll be good with. Kata and I were paired together because we have opposite personalities. Despite this, however, she's my best friend.
I never was a big Hunger Games fanatic like some people I know (including Kata), and only enrolled in the Academy to provide money for my family. We aren't as bad as people in Eleven and Twelve, but money has always been tight for us. I know my parents aren't thrilled about me volunteering, but they always support me. I figure that if I don't follow through with volunteering, they'll be nice and understanding about it. They may even be glad.
My run is stopped by a large stone wall where the beach ends. On the other side is the training center, which I realize I've arrived at. I climb the steps up to the street, and see that the training center has just opened. If I'm guessing right, Kata will be in there right now. I open the main door and am glad to hear the yells and grunts that can only belong to my best friend. I move into the corner of the gym, where Kata is practicing her hand to hand combat. She doesn't notice me at first, so I cough. She looks up and sees me.
"Oh. Hi, Kai." She says dully. She wipes a bead of sweat from her brow and resumes her practice.
"I expected a more enthusiastic greeting." I inform her, grinning. She looks back up at me, and contorts her face into mock-enthusiasm, smiling so wide her mouth takes up half of her face.
"Malakai Mavericks, I am so glad to see you!" she says loudly in the weird, slow voice she uses whenever she mocks me.
"Very funny." I say, and make my way over to the weapons closet. As I walk away, I hear Kata start practicing again. I gulp as I realize at least one of us will be dead in a few weeks. If I go through with volunteering, that is. Of course, when Kata undoubtedly returns she would be appalled and disown me. That thought almost convinces me. I select my two twin daggers from the shelf, and move to a group of dummies around Kata.
I begin attacking the dummies. I have a strategy of darting in and out to stab my victim. I'm kind of small, so it works really well for me. It looks weird with dummies, but in an actual fight it's very effective. I work on this for a while, but it becomes tiresome. A few other people have entered to train, but not a lot come in on reaping day. In District Four the academy chooses partners to volunteer beforehand, so most people wouldn't bother training. The only people who do are really committed to getting chosen next year. I recognize most of the other people training, but don't bother saying hello to them. I've learned that most people dislike talking while training, unlike myself.
"Kata, do you want to fight?" I ask, stopping my fight with the dummy. Kata finally lets her hands fall to the side.
"Sure, let me just go get my sword." She says, breathing heavily. She jogs off to the weapons cabinet, while I stand next to the fighting ring. It's currently being used by two partners, who are pretty intent on volunteering next year. They're younger than us, I'm guessing only fifteen. The girl thrusts her trident at the guy's chest, and he blocks the blow with his sword. This time he swings at her, and she ducks. They continue this long enough for Kata to join me in waiting, until the guy finally lets down his guard, and the girl's trident hits his armour. They shake hands and walk past us over to the dummies.
"Good job, Clark." I say, hoping I got his name right. He smiles and fist-bumps me.
"Thanks." He says, and follows his partner away from the ring.
Kata and I step up into the ring. She has her sword and I have my daggers. We both pull on badly-fitted armour and begin our fight. I lunge at Kata and thrust one of my daggers at her gut. She jumps out of the way, and swings her sword at me. However, I've already returned out of her reach. We do this dance for a while; me running in and attempting to stab her, she swinging at me whenever we get close. Finally, she manages to connect her sword with my chestplate, and is awarded victory. I smile and shake her hand, squeezing harder than necessary. She grins and squeezes my hand even harder, forcing me to let go.
"I'm stronger than you." She points out, and chuckles, picking up her sword.
"Okay, if you think so." I say. I'm blushing, but smile anyway. She walks down to the weapons closet and I follow her.
"I'm going to get ready for the reaping, now." She announces as she returns her sword to its place in the closet. "Got to look good for the cameras." I return my sword as well. She was joking about looking good for the cameras, but I want to anyway. First impressions matter a lot for the Hunger Games, so I better make mine good.
District Four
Kata Brighton
The walk back to my house isn't far. My parents have always had a good amount of money, so they were able to afford a house close to the Training Center. I open the door to my house and step inside. The minute I close the door, I'm tackled to the ground. I easily wrestle my attacker down to the ground to see that it's only my brother, Zabi. Zabi wriggles out from under me, a giant smile on his face.
"Kata! Kata! Mom made breakfast! It's really good!" Zabi says very fast as he runs back into the kitchen. I hear my Mom shout at him to slow down so he doesn't break anything. I take off my shoes, because Mom is very finicky about sand in the house. I walk into the kitchen, greeted by the good smell of breakfast.
"What did you make?" I ask as I take a seat at the table next to Zabi. My mom is currently standing over the stove where I can't see the food. She turns around to look at me.
"Kata, have you washed your hands?" She asks me. I shake my head and she frowns at me. I sigh and stand up. I go over to the bathroom sink and wash all the grime off my hands. While I do so, I twist my head to try to look out at the kitchen. The more I smell breakfast, the more I want to eat it, or at least know what it is. As soon as my hands are removed of most of the dirt, I shut off the water and rush back into the kitchen, shaking the water off my hands.
I take a seat next to Zabi, who's already eating breakfast. I look at his plate and see fried fish, eggs, and an untouched orange. I'm impressed. Despite being well-off in one of the richer Districts, food from different Districts isn't very common and is very expensive. The fried fish we practically eat every day, eggs are weekly, and oranges are more yearly, saved for a specific day: the reaping. My mom sets a plate down in front of me, and I begin eating.
"Are you going to go through with volunteering today, Kata?" Dad asks me through a mouth full of eggs.
"Of course. Why wouldn't I?" I ask.
"Well, sometimes the chosen volunteers have chickened out." he says, and I feel myself growing annoyed.
"And you think that would be me? You think that I would be one of the cowards?" I ask angrily, raising my voice. My dad's face pales when he sees how angry I'm getting.
"No, I'm just making conversation." He turns his attention away from me. "Zabi, how's school?" I resume breakfast as Zabi launches into a story about his teacher and how she almost volunteered for the Hunger Games. I almost listen in, but decide against it. I need to clear my head for when I volunteer. I want to appear as a threat in the Games, but not unlikable. I need to gain a lot of sponsors from first impressions. When I've finished my nice breakfast, I begin walking to my room.
"Kata, are you forgetting something?" My mom calls as I exit the kitchen. I stop, and think for a minute, trying to remember what it could have been I forgot. My mom clears her throat and makes an exaggerated nod to my empty plate, which I have left at my seat.
"Oh, right." I say, and walk back over to get it. I bring it over to the sink and quickly rinse it under the water. "I must have been so focused on the Reaping I forgot about cleaning my plate." I tell her as I wash it off, even though I probably would have forgotten the plate even if I hadn't been thinking about the Reaping. My mom looks satisfied, and I leave my now clean-ish plate sitting in the sink and escape back to my room.
I need to get ready for the Reapings now, since they begin soon. As I said before, I need to look intimidating and I can't do that in the cutesy pink dress my mom has chosen for me and lain out on my unmade bed. I sweep it off, and begin searching through my closet for something I can actually wear without looking like a twelve year old from District One. My mom has often said that my closet is a mess and completely unorganized, but I can find everything just fine. I end up choosing something a little edgier than the original outfit.
I pull on a pair of tights followed by a black skirt. Next I pull on a dark red shirt and a black leather jacket. As a finishing tough, I roll my jacket's sleeves up to my elbows, so everyone can see the elegant tattoos on my forearms. I don't have to do much when it comes to my hair, since it's pretty short and in a mohawk. Peering in the mirror, I decide it looks good enough and don't both doing much. I just trained with Malakai, so I'm kind of sweaty. However, it's not noticeable and we don't have much time remaining before the Reapings begin. I kind of smell, but it's not like the cameras can smell me. I quickly use some deodorant, and go over to the front door.
I slide on some combat boots, and begin shouting for Zabi to join me. It's not as important for our parents to be at the Reaping on time, but for Zabi and I it's crucial, since we're both eligible. I call for Zabi some more, until he comes running out of the hallway barely ready. His hair is in disarray and he's still not wearing his shirt. As he runs over, he pulls it on. He quickly pulls on his shoes, prompted by my yelling, and we finally leave the house.
In an hour I'll be in the Hunger Games.
District Four
Malakai Mavericks
I choke down my nausea as I shuffle forward in the line. Despite my being scared of needles, I'm about to make the decision that determines my life or death. The people in front of me obligingly let the Peacekeeper prick their finger, and then walk into the pen. I step forward nervously and hold out my palm. I squeeze my eyes shut and hold my breath as I feel the cold hand grab my finger. A second later I feel a slight pain shoot through my finger, and let out a slight yelp. As usual, it barely hurts, but it's the blood that I don't like. I have a really weak stomach when it comes to stuff like that, which I do realize is a very unfortunate trait for someone going into a fight to the death.
I wipe the blood off on my jeans and move passed the Peacekeeper. The denim is black, so the blood will hopefully not show up on them. The aisle is crowded, but I manage to squeeze through to the seventeen year old section. I don't both searching for Kata because one, we'll be in completely different areas; two, it would be impossible to find her in this madness; and three, knowing Kata she'll be here at the last second. I just scoot into my section and next to a few kids I know. I have quite a lot of friends, since I like being friendly to people. They aren't my closest friends, but they're cool.
"Hey, Malakai." One of them, Trent, says.
"Hi." I say back.
"Congratulations on getting to volunteer and everything." Moore says.
"Yeah, you deserve it."
"Thanks, guys." I say, and fall silent, averting my eyes back to the stage. The other guys, taking the clue that I'm not in my usual talkative mood, resume the chatter amongst themselves. I think about the fact that they envy me for getting the chance to volunteer. How would they feel if I passed up this opportunity? They would probably be mad that I didn't recognize my good fortune, and I never want anyone being mad at me. While this is another good reason to volunteer, the one I most care about is Kata, and how she'll resent me if I don't.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the District Four reaping for the 247th Annual Hunger Games!" I jump, shocked at the sudden noise. I look up and realize our escort has already taken the stage. Tiernan Briastos, who is wearing his usual teal suits. Everyone knows he's very pleased to have our District. He claims District Four is his favorite, and proves it by always wearing clothes related to the sea or fishing.
"As usual, I must tell you all how pleased I am to be here in your District. The ocean gives the Town Square a lovely salty smell. Before we can begin with our favorite part of this ceremony, let's go over our previous Victors." He begins listing off all of them, and as he does they all stand up. We have a good number of Victors, so I have no idea how Tiernan has memorized all of them, but he somehow has. Next he shows everyone a video reminding us of the dark days, even though they were almost two and a half centuries ago. When the video finally ends he announces, "now is the part we've all been waiting for. The name drawing."
I swallow hard in anticipation. The girl are always first, so I still have some time to think. Tiernan fishes into the bowl, and plucks up a slip of paper. Everyone knows this doesn't matter as much as in the outer Districts, but Tiernan still tries to make it as intense as possible. He takes his time returning to the microphone, and when he does he makes a big show of unfolding the paper.
"Yolana Dy-"
"I volunteer as tribute!" Kata announces, cutting Tiernan off. She pushes through the crowd and up to the stage next to Tiernan. He smiles at her.
"What is your name?" He asks.
"Kata Brighton." She says confidently. She's searching the crowd and I know she's looking for me. The thought makes my heart jump.
"We will now draw the male tribute!" Tiernan announces, and begins doing the same process of slowly choosing a name, walking back, and unfolding it. I clench my fists together in preparation. I feel everyone around watching me, waiting to see me volunteer. "Clay Benchel!"
I don't do anything. I feel everyone watching me expectantly, and Kata takes this moment to finally find me in the crowd. Her eyes narrow when she sees I'm not doing anything. It's only been seconds, but it feels like hours before a twelve year old kid slowly begins to walk up the aisle, his eyes widening when he realizes that no one has yet volunteered for him. It's his big eyes watering that snaps me out of my daze. I start pushing through everyone in front of me, trying to find the word to come to my mouth.
"Me! I-I volunteer! I'm volunteering as tribute!" I sputter, as everyone parts to let me into the aisle. The twelve year old kid returns to his group, looking relieved. No one looks more relieved than Kata, though. I see her sigh in relief as I climb the stairs to the stage and take my place next to her and Tiernan. I can't believe I almost didn't go through with it. Instead I created a bad impression of myself. When I watch the recap on the train a few hours from now, I'm going to regret looking like an idiot trying to make myself a known volunteer.
"What your name, son?" Tiernan asks me, holding the microphone in front of my face.
"Malakai Mavericks."
"Good. District Four, may I introduce your tributes for the 247th annual Hunger Games!" A good amount of people cheer, most coming from my wide array of friends. I reach in front of Tiernan to shake Kata's hand, as I've done a million times before. The first when we were eight years old in the training academy. She firmly shakes it back. She's scowling, but after a moment of looking in my eyes she offers me a rare smile. I guess even if we're going into the Hunger Games together, we'll still be friends.
We are forced to let go as two Peacekeepers walk over. They don't bother leading us into the Justice Building. They know we won't attempt to escape after volunteering. I'm stopped at one of the first doors in the Justice building. I enter and plop down on a sofa. The furniture is nice and must be expensive, but it's not exactly my taste. It's comfortable regardless, however, and I am fine with waiting here until my guests arrive.
After a few minutes, the doors open and my parents enter. They walk over to me, and sit down beside me.
"Are you nervous, Malakai?" My mom asks, quietly.
"Yeah." I admit. "But I can make it out okay. I've trained for this."
"Of course you can, sweetie. Just be careful." I nod, and give her a hug. I feel my dad pat my back as I do so.
"I'm proud of you, Malakai." He reveals carefully. "You're doing a noble thing, risking your life to earn your family money. Just stay alive. I would feel very bad if you died just so your old man could afford a new pair of boots." His voice begins to crack, and I reach out to include him in the hug. He hesitates, but then joins us. I feel him squeeze me so tight my ribs almost crack, but I don't say anything. I accept hugs as all we need. When the Peacekeeper comes in to bring them out, they leave with a simple 'goodbye'. The moment they leave, my heart begins to ache for them.
I sit on the sofa, waiting for any other guests I may have. A big number come in, including Trent, Moore, and all my other friends. There are so many, the Peacekeeper begins to let them in in big clumps, whether they know each other or not. When it seems everyone I've ever met has said goodbye, the Peacekeeper finally comes in to escort me to the train. As he walks me to the car transporting us, I catch one last glimpse of my home and contemplate the fact that I may never see it again.
District Four
Kata Brighton
I pull Zabi along as we rush along the street. Normally this part of town would be alive and bustling, but today everybody's at the Reaping. We cut across an ally to get into Town Square. The line has died down, so I don't need to bother waiting. We rush to the check-in table and I hurriedly thrust out my hand for the Peacekeeper. They grab it calmly and prick it with the needle. As they press it into the book, I try to scan the stage to see if the escort has begun or is about to begin.
The moment the Peacekeeper releases me, I rush passed them and up the aisle. When I realize it has not yet begun, and everyone is watching me, I slow my pace to a walk. I move to the very front and turn into my section on the right. I squeeze in next to some unfamiliar girls. It's unfortunate, because none of my female friends have turned eighteen yet, which means I don't know anybody around me. I patiently watch the stage, until our escort walks on, his blue shoes making clicking noises on the stage as everyone falls silent. He reaches the microphones and smiles at the crowd.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the District Four reaping for the 247th Annual Hunger Games! As usual, I must tell you all how pleased I am to be here in your District. The ocean gives the Town Square a lovely salty smell. Before we can begin with our favorite part of this ceremony, let's go over our previous Victors. First, the winner of the 185th Hunger Games, Amartus Merstar! Next, the winner of the 193rd Hunger Games, Morris Kames!" The escort continues, talking about every living Victor we have. It used to be all Victors, but as soon as District Two had gotten thirty, they decided to just talk about the living Victors.
"Now, let's see a video from the Capitol. This is very special because it's about the dark days!" He says, and turns around to watch the screen. The 'special' video has not changed since the first Hunger Games. I don't know if that's an actual fact, but I wouldn't doubt it. "Now is the part we've all been waiting for. The name drawing." He says when the video finally ends. I take a deep breath, preparing to volunteer.
The escort slowly walks over to the female bowl. He draws a name and walks back. He unfolds it at a torturously slow pace.
"Yolana Dy-"
"I volunteer as tribute!" I shout, pushing through everyone in front of me. They move away, giving me a path straight to the stage. I walk up and stand next to the escort.
"What's your name?"
"Kata Brighton." I scan the crowd, trying to find Kai. I hear the escort walking away from me to draw the name. I keep searching the crowd, and don't even look up when he calls the male name. My eyes finally meet Kai's and I realize he's not moving. From the twelve year old section a little boy emerges. My eyes narrow when I realize Kai's abandoning me, and leaving me with a twelve year old as a District partner. Suddenly, Kai bursts through the crowd and begins to shout that he volunteers. He looks stupid and it's a bad first impression for him, but at least he didn't abandon me.
"What's your name, son?" the escort asks him when he has made his way up next to us.
"Malakai Mavericks."
"Good. District Four, may I introduce your tributes for the 247th annual Hunger Games!" The crowd cheers, and Kai reaches across the shake my hand. I shake it back, and smile at him, because he seems terrified. I let go of his hand when I see two Peacekeepers coming over to escort us into the Justice Building. We walk inside, and they bring Kai into one of the first rooms. I have to walk slightly further, but they finally stop and usher me into the room.
It's filled with hideous furniture, all either dark wood or maroon velvet. I choose to sit on the sofa in the center, which I assume is for waiting, since it faces the door. I force myself not to relax, because I'll have to go back out again in fifteen minutes, and I need to keep my tough exterior. After a few minutes, my family comes in.
"Kata, you're going into the Games!" Zabi says, his voice a mixture of excitement and admiration. My father walks over to me and gently touches my shoulder. He's usually pretty stern, so this is the closest he'll get to a hug.
"You're going to do well." He says, and steps away. I take that as an 'I love you, and couldn't stand it if you didn't come home'. My mom comes over next, and gives me a great big hug, almost crushing my ribs. I hesitantly hug her back, even though we aren't very close. She steps back, rubbing her hand together, a nervous habit she has. She tries to say something, but gets choked up. Zabi comes over to me. His face is serious now.
He takes off his puka shell necklace and presses it into my hands.
"As your token." He says, then gives me a big hug. I hug him back, not even hesitating this time. I'll miss Zabi the most when I'm in the Hunger Games. "I love you." He whispers.
"I love you, too." I say, and we remain hugging until a Peacekeeper barges in.
"Time's up." He says, and my mother leaves, saying goodbye to me one last time. My dad has to peel Zabi off of me. Zabi has begun to cry, and the last thing I hear before the doors are closed are his sobs. I stare at where they were, then sink back into the sofa. I look down and realize I'm still holding Zabi's puka shell necklace. I pull it over my head and stare at the ceiling.
It's been about five minutes before my next guests arrive. It's my closest friends from school, Paloma, Tyler, and Loli. Paloma stands by the door, not really saying anything. Loli walks over to me, and smiles.
"I hope you do well in the Hunger Games, Kata. We'll be rooting for you." She says. She looks like she wants to hug me, but thinks better of it and steps away.
"You better be." I laugh, and turn around to look for Tyler. He's currently standing by a big, ugly grandfather clock and staring up at the face in disgust.
"What the heck is this thing?" He asks.
"It's a clock, Tyler." Paloma says. "You know, the thing that shows time. Time is-"
"I know what a clock is." Tyler says. "But it's not even showing the right time." Loli walks over to see if he's right, while I stay on the sofa. Paloma walks over to me.
"Good luck, Kata." She says. "You'd better come home." She then goes over to Tyler, Loli, and the clock. I remain on the sofa, staring at the ceiling until the Peacekeeper comes in to say that our time is up. My friends head out without protest.
"Bye, Kata!" Tyler shouts as he leaves. "I'll see you in a few weeks!" The door slams closed and I am left by myself. I don't get any more visitors, but I am forced to wait here for almost thirty minutes. I assume it's because Kai got a lot of visitors. He's very friendly, and as such a lot of people must want to wish him well. When the Peacekeeper finally comes in, I follow him without hesitation. The room got very boring after a while.
He leads me outside through the back of the Justice Building, where a car is waiting to take us to the train station. I slide inside and Kai comes in after me. I look around at the place I've lived all my life, and desperately hope to be able to see it again soon.
There was the District Four reaping! Once again, sorry if there are any errors because I'm too lazy to proofread. By the time I finish a chapter, I just want to post it. Thanks to The Girl With Then Knives for both Malakai and Kata. Next week will be District Five! Anyway, I've created a blog for this story, but I still need a lot of photos. If you're a guest or have PMs disabled, please send me your tribute's faceclaim in the reviews. The link to the blog will also be on my profile, but here it is:
flames
Also, a lot of people last chapter were confused about Weepo. Basically, here's his situation in a nutshell: he grew up on the streets and as a results has become slightly crazy. He acts sort of like an animal, and thinks of things weirdly. I'm sure he's had a good amount of brain damage throughout his life. His friends, such as Rashburn and Top Hat Skitters are made from random things he's found on the streets. They are not real people. Rashburn, for example, is a butterfly ornament. If you have any other questions about him, just ask and I'll explain them the next chapter. Sorry if anything was unclear, but I wanted to show everything through Weepo's eyes, which meant things became pretty confusing.
1. What is Malakai's weapon of choice?
2. Who is Kata's brother?
3. How did Malakai and Kata meet one another?
Thanks for reading! Please review and stay tuned for District Five!
- Lilah