The day had finally arrived. It was reaping day. Two tributes from District Four would be sent to an arena to be slaughtered for the entertainment of the Capitol citizens.

I hated reapings. Not only did they bring back bad memories… they were boring, and the sun was very strong, which really sucked when we were crowded in a plaza at noon. I also hated to see the families suffer. I still remembered Andrew's mother when he had been picked three years before. She died a couple months after Andrew had been killed. She had gotten very sick; she wouldn't eat, or go out at all, and the doctor said that she had no energy to fight disease… so she passed away.

"Hey, Finn, looking good," whispered a girl passing by. She was in my grade, I believe, and was followed by a group of her giggling friends.

"Yes, Finn… looking amazing. Oh, Finn, just kiss me, please I beg!" mocked Annie, who had walked up to me after she had checked in with the peacekeepers. I rolled my eyes and she laughed.

"Well, in all seriousness, you look very nice," I said. She was wearing a light blue dress my mother had helped her pick. It had no sleeves, and it was tied at the waist with a thin, silver ribbon. She wore her hair down, but kept it out of her face with a thin headband that matched her dress.

"You think so?" she asked, blushing deeply.

"I do," I smiled. "Now, go with your age group, Gertie's coming."

"Alright," she said. "See you after the reaping?" she asked. I nodded.

"Yeah. Good luck, Annie," I whispered. I really doubted she would be picked, but I had doubted Andrew would get chosen with a single slip of paper in that bowl, and the opposite had happened. She hugged me tightly and kissed my cheek.

"You too, Finn." Then she turned around and went to the other side of the roped area, where the other thirteen-year-old girls stood.

Gertie finally made it to the front of the stage, which seemed a miracle considering the shoes she was wearing. They were tall stilettos that somehow managed not to snap under her weight, which was not much at all.

Gertie hadn't changed very much, she was still tall, thin, and boring. Her clothes were just as crazy as it was every year, and her hair was dyed a bright orange color now. She wore yellow dress, it was short, and had a lot of tulle. Her neck and arms were covered in jewelry, and her makeup made her look sickly.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the reaping for the 64th annual Hunger Games," she spoke into the microphone, with the same monotone voice as always. "Now, the video. Enjoy."

She pressed the button and the movie started playing. It was the same they showed every year about the rebellion and the reason the Hunger Games were created. I knew the words by heart. If we were going to be forced to watch that thing every year, then some variety would have been appreciated.

When she was done, she made her way to the bowl containing the girl's names. She plucked a slip of paper out of the huge mound of slips and opened it up. She made her way to the microphone and read the name. "Serena Philips."

Immediately, a girl emerged from the crowd. She was tall, maybe my size, and she looked very strong. She was a career, I recognized her from school. She spent all of her time training and learning survival skills; she had a great chance of winning.

Serena Phillips got onstage and shook hands with Gertie, who then cleaned her hands on her dress. She walked to the bowl of the boys and she dug around for a while. Finally she picked a slip and took it back to the center of the stage, where she opened it and read it to us.

"Finnick Odair."