A million shards of glass
That haunt me from my past
As the stars begin to gather, and the light begins to fade
When all hope begins to shatter
Know that I won't be afraid
Dante Blackstone
District 2 Male / 18 years old
He parried and jabbed with his sword, fending off an attack from his opponent. Dante slashed ferociously with an attack that would've done a lot of damage, but his sword cut through empty air. Unprepared for this turn of events, he was thrown off guard. He spun immediately, realizing that his contender must've danced behind him while he wasn't paying full attention. He was met with his opponent's spear resting inches from his face. Dante pushed it aside with his own weapon and laughed lightly.
"You deserve that win. I already beat you the last four matches," he said teasingly.
His sister Victoria, who was sparring with him, wiped the sweat away from her forehead and smiled. "Well, I think you're ready for the Games," she answered with a shrug. "But be sure to watch for where your opponent is. Don't just assume they won't be moving around, okay?"
Dante saluted her. "Got it."
She fanned herself with her hand and then looked at him. "How about one more round and then we can call it quits for today?"
He nodded and got into a ready stance, preparing himself for the last fight. He gripped his sword tightly in front of him and studied his sister. By the way she was bouncing lightly on the balls of her feet, he knew she was going to pounce on him the first chance she got. Sure enough, she did. Dante quickly sidestepped, and then ducked to avoid her next swing with her spear. He kicked her in the gut, taking her off guard and making her stumble to the ground unexpectedly. Then he countered a final attack with his sword before pointing it at her chest.
Victoria blew a few sticky strands of hair from her face and nodded appreciatively at Dante. "Good job, brother. I think you're ready for the arena."
Dante smiled. He set his sword aside and held out his hand, helping her up. "I'm gonna head back home. I told Ares and Grace we could hang out today." Ares was his best that he'd known for ages, and Grace was his steady girlfriend whom he had been with for a few months now.
"I'm going to head to the marketplace to grab something to eat, then. I'll see you for dinner, Dante," she replied as she grabbed her belongings. Dante bid her a goodbye as well, and started for the exit of the Academy. The sun was shining brightly as he made his way outside, and he smiled appreciatively. It was a beautiful day outside—finally sunny, as it had been raining for the past few days now.
He heard sudden whispers nearby, and he glanced around. There were two kids standing close to him—a boy and a girl who looked to be about thirteen. The girl glanced at him and asked the boy, "Is that Dante Blackstone? The chosen Volunteer for this year?"
The boy nodded excitedly. They both looked at Dante with awe in their eyes, as if they were seeing a celebrity. Well, he could possibly be considered a celebrity in District 2. He'd been training for about his entire life, and from the start, his talent had been no secret. People had alway said he was destined to Volunteer, and now that he was eighteen, he was finally going to do it. Not so much for the fame and glory, but to make his family proud. He raised his hand and waved at the two teens, who waved back enthusiastically. He smiled, knowing he made someone's day better.
The girl and the boy turned to each other and began to talk happily, glancing at Dante every few seconds. He gave them one last grin and headed off in the direction of his home. Knowing Grace, she was probably already there, as she was always punctual. Consequently, Ares was probably going to be late. He didn't mind, though. It was just in Ares' laid back nature to not pay attention to the time.
He put his hands in his pockets and glanced out at the scenery as he walked. His home was right by Victor's Village, so he got to walk by it everyday. He stopped at the gate momentarily and looked at the huge mansions occupying the space. Most of them were full, since District 2 had so many Victors, but there was one house in the very back that he thought would be perfect for him. It was right near the park, too, and he could picture himself going for early morning jogs there.
After a few seconds, Dante continued to walk. Soon, he entered his neighborhood, which had appealing houses. He lived right near the entrance, so he headed up his lawn and through the front door. Sure enough, Grace was already there in the anteroom, waiting for him. His mom had probably let her in.
She gave him a kiss as he entered. "Hey, Dante."
He kissed her back before peeling away with a laugh. "I'm sweaty, sorry."
Grace smiled at him. She seemingly didn't mind, as she stole yet another kiss. Then she said, "Ares is on his way, I hope. What do you want to do?"
Dante thought for a second. "Well, do you want to watch previous Hunger Games reruns? Reapings are tomorrow, so it's probably on almost every single channel."
"Sure," she agreed, taking his hand and leading him to the living room. She supported his training evidently, and was excited by the prospect of him being a potential Victor. Though she wasn't really into training herself, she was enthusiastic for him.
He watched her take the television remote and flick on the TV. He said, "Thanks for supporting me, Grace. It really means a lot."
She smiled. "No problem. I know you would do the same for me, if I was passionate about something."
And she was right. He would do the same. As Dante leaned forward to kiss her one last time, he contemplated how lucky he was in his life. He was fortunate enough to have a great family and the opportunity to be in the Hunger Games, but most of all, he was fortunate to have a supportive girlfriend who cared about him. He was lucky to have her.
Dele Otavite
District 2 Female / 17 years old
Dele laid back on her bed with her best friend, Alexis, and kept her eyes peeled on the TV screen. They were watching the 83rd Hunger Games, which occured the previous year. Alexis grimaced as one of the younger tributes fell to the ground, a knife sticking out of their gut. Dele, on the other hand, didn't even flinch. She was used to all the blood and gore. After all, she'd been obsessed with the Hunger Games since she was a young girl. And this year, she'd finally get the opportunity to be the female representative for her District.
"I can't believe you like watching these, Dele," Alexis commented with a shudder. She'd never been really into the Games and had never fancied being in it herself. Though she and her best friend both had contrasting interests, their personalities were similar, which enabled them to get along more than anything. They were both devout troublemakers who liked to stir up drama at any given time.
Dele squared her shoulders. "Not just watching them, but training for them," she said confidently, flicking her hair over her shoulder.
Alexis rolled her eyes in faux-frustration. "Yeah, and then you're going to go off again about how you're the chosen Volunteer, even though you're only seventeen. I've heard it all before."
She laughed. "Shut up," she said playfully, and smacked her friend with a pillow. Alexis gasped and grabbed a pillow of her own, hitting Dele back. They went on like this for about another minute or so before the door unexpectedly opened. Rutile, Dele's adoptive brother, stood in the doorway, holding a plate of chocolate chip cookies. His eyes bounced back and forth between Dele and Alexis, who were smacking each other and laughing like crazy. Dele caught sight of his confused expression and started laughing all over again.
Alexis calmed down, somewhat. "Hey, Rutile," she said with a smile and a wave.
He pushed his blonde hair out of his eyes as he walked across the room to Dele's desk. "Hey. Mom told me to give you guys these cookies. I hope I'm not interrupting your…" he paused for a second, trying to find the right words. Then he settled on, "Pillow fight."
"Thanks," Dele said, reaching over Alexis to grab one of the cookies.
"No problem," Rutile answered. He smiled at both of them, his eyes lingering on Alexis for a second longer. Then he turned and headed out of the room, closing the door partially behind him.
Dele nudged her friend. "I think he likes you."
Alexis raised her eyebrows. "No way. He's sixteen."
"That's only a year younger than we are."
"Well, whatever," Alexis said, turning away to grab one of the cookies. But Dele thought she saw a small smile on Alexis' face.
She leaned forward again, this time to grab the TV remote and turn down the volume a few notches. "Okay, so have you heard any gossip lately?" A favorite pastime of theirs was to analyze the drama in their District and then create some more.
Her friend paused for a second, and then seemed to remember something. "Yes, actually. Yesterday I heard Mariah tell someone that she was going to ask out Holden." Alexis rolled her eyes. "As if that fat whale has any chance of Holden liking her."
Dele smiled sneakily. "This is perfect," she said, beginning to orchestrate a plan in her mind. "We can write Holden notes from Mariah, only that the notes aren't going to be from Mariah, of course. We'll write them, and we'll put really embarrassing things in there."
Alexis giggled. "That sounds like a plan. When Holden gets them, he'll definitely think she's creepy, and when Mariah hears about it, she'll be so confused and upset."
"She'll probably start crying like she always does," Dele commented, and they both laughed. It was probably true that Mariah would tear up. Since they were all young, she had always been notorious for crying over almost everything.
When they both had calmed down a bit, Dele added, "But I'm not going to be here to pull off the prank. You're going to have to do it at school, when I'm already in the Capitol. We can write the notes now, but it'll be up to you to slip them into one of Holden's notebooks."
Alexis nodded in understanding. "Don't worry, I got this."
Dele smirked, and got out two pens and some paper. "Let's start. Don't forget—we're going to make them as embarrassing as possible."
"Yup," Alexis answered, and held up a hand for a high-five. "Let's go, partner in crime."
"Partner in crime," Dele repeated, liking the sound of it. She smacked her best friend's waiting hand cheerfully before grinning slyly. "We have a lot of work to do."
A/N: There is more to Dele's backstory, but I'm going to cover it in later chapters. Also, since I have a bit of a long weekend, I'm going to try to get out some more chapters so I can finish the Reapings soon. I'm excited to move on with the story and can't wait to get to the Capitol. Hope you enjoyed this :)