Jasmine Whital and Dante Blackwell are in the forest hunting for food.

"Dante, snares," Jasmine tells him while she takes out the crossbow from her bag. Dante prepares making the snares as he's told.

It's a usual thing for both of them to do this. It's their way of bringing home food for their families. They both wait for animals, but their luck today is worse compared to their luck on any other day.

"This is odd," says Jasmine.

They wait for about an hour and a half. Dante and Jasmine take turns walking around the forest, but no potential food approaches their lair. Jasmine gets bored at one point and starts a conversation.

"I miss my mom, and my sister too."

Dante looks at her, and looks back down. "Me too. We didn't have money to buy the medicine."

"Yeah, same."

Dante looks at Jasmine's bag and notices a book inside. "May I borrow your book?" Jasmine takes it out and gives it to Dante. He looks at the book to see that it's a manual for surviving in the wild. He leafs through the pages, and he carefully reads the one about snares. He didn't know there are more intricate ones that exist in comparison with the snares he currently knows how to build.

"Dante, you need to know more than just making snares. Let me teach you how to use the crossbow."

Dante closes the book and pays attention to Jasmine's actions. She shoots for a nearby tree.

"You should try." Jasmine hands Dante the crossbow. "Hold it like this." She helps him adjust the position of holding the crossbow. Dante tries to shoot the same tree, but misses it completely.

"Let me show you." Jasmine takes the crossbow once more and hits the tree. "Your turn." She gives him the crossbow and he tries once again. This time, it went too high. Jasmine takes the crossbow from him once more, but she doesn't aim for the tree. She shoots for the wild boar that finally appears. There are also other sounds nearby, and Dante goes to check his snares.

"It looks like we'll call this a day." They both head home to the same direction, since they are neighbors who became close after losing their mothers, and sister as well for Jasmine's case.

"Don't forget, tomorrow is reaping day." Jasmine reminds it to Dante before they both go inside their respective houses. Dante gives her a thumbs up.

"Oh my gosh!" is the first thing Dante hears after entering his house, which doesn't look much. "Dante, did you see my book!? It was right here!"

"I don't know, Ebony."

"Ugh!"

Ebony makes loud thumps as she walks away. Dante just brushes off her younger sister's anger. It's called normal to him. He is about to use the washroom, but he sees his older sister cleaning the place.

"Oh hello, Dante. You're home!" Ember greets. "The tesserae came just today. You should eat."

"I'm fine." Ember goes back singing, while Dante leaves the rabbits he caught today at the kitchen. He sees Ebony eating the tesserae food.

Dante goes to the bedroom instead to read more about snares. He also has a book for himself, but he just like Jasmine's book more, because he has read his several times already. After Ember finishes cleaning the washroom, she prepares for dinner. Dante uses the washroom for a while, and when he comes out, Bronn is already home.

"How's work, Dad?" Ember asks.

"Normal." He changes from his mining outfit afterwards. Everybody in the house waits for Ember to call them for dinner, which she eventually does.

The whole dinner is about Ebony ranting on how stressed she is looking for her book. Dante doesn't give a listening ear as he just looks around the house to see what's new after Ember's household chores. Dante feels forgotten as Bronn and Ember listen to Ebony attentively, but he's okay with it. He actually prefers it that way.

After dinner, Ebony continues to look for her book, while Bronn and Ember both help her search for it. They eventually find it, and Ember irons everybody's clothes for tomorrow. When she's done, she goes to the room they all share.

"I'm done ironing all your clothes."

Dante looks at it. It's a pair of brown trousers with a long gray tunic.

"Tomorrow is my last reaping," Ember says. "If I make it out, I'll sing to everyone."

Dante just nods in silence. Bronn and Ebony are asleep by this time.

"Good night, Dante!" Ember blows off the candle, and the world around them goes dark.

Corinna Pickett wakes up early enough to see the sun rise from the horizon. She goes outside and stretches for the morning. "Good morning, District Twelve!" She stretches some more before going for a jog around the neighborhood. Well, she plans to do that, then go to the meadows. She always loves a good view of nature.

"Good morning, Mister Blackwell!" she greets while he waves back.

She arrives at the meadows not long after. She gets a better look of the rising sun. She knows it's bad for her eyes, so she doesn't stare at it for too long. She looks at the flowers around her. They are not much, for she knows other districts have more flowers in their meadows. Nevertheless, she looks at every flower like they are all significant to her. She smells her surroundings, and stretches some more.

"What a nice morning!" she says with a breath of fresh air. She wants to go wandering around the forest, but today is reaping today. She'll be late if she goes wandering, because she knows she'll get out later than she expects. She decides to go home instead, jogging.

As she gets back, she's greeted with her father and brother already finishing up breakfast.

"Good morning Dad! Good morning John!" Corinna says. "Today is reaping day."

"It's my last," adds John.

"I'm halfway through, so I think that's close to my last."

"Go eat now, Corinna," says Quint.

"Yes, Dad. Where is Mom?"

"She's still asleep. Don't disturb her."

Amy comes out from her bedroom.

"Good morning, Mom!"

"Have you eaten breakfast, dear?"

"Nope, not yet. Let's have it together." Corinna says it with a bright smile.

"Why are you so happy on reaping day?" John asks.

"Life is too short to be sad, John." She smiles once again.

Corinna eats breakfast with her mom. John and Quint prepare for the reapings. Corinna eats her bread fast, so she can prepare sooner. She goes to the room to get her overall dress, which was already prepared the night before. She is already wearing a white shirt, so she just puts the overall dress over what she's already wearing.

"I look good!" Corinna says with optimism. "I'm ready for today!"

She makes it out of the house with her parents and brother. She looks at the sky and says, "Why is the sky blue? Why do clouds float?" Her family doesn't really know the answer, so it looks like they are ignoring her.

"Good morning, Mister Whital!" Corinna greets.

"Good morning!" he replies. Jasmine is following her dad. They are headed to the reapings too.

Corinna doesn't keep a lot of friends close to her, but she likes talking to people, especially those around the neighborhood.

"You're Jasmine, right?"

"Yeah."

"I'm Corinna, fifteen years old."

"Nice to meet you." They both shake hands. "I'm fifteen as well."

"Are you an only child?"

"I had a little sister. She died with my mom four years ago when the flu came."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I almost lost my mom from the same flu."

"Well, you should be glad you still have a complete family."

They both smile, then Corinna starts another topic.

"Have you ever wondered what this world has?"

"Um, no?"

"Do you think it's a flat world that extends forever?"

"Um, I don't know."

"Oh it's okay."

Corinna is about to talk more about the world she is curious about, but they register themselves for the reapings. They aren't too early, but they aren't late as well. Corinna goes on an endless talk about the world and what she thinks about it, but the escorts comes, and Jasmine doesn't have time to respond to her.

"District Twelve! I'm once again so excited escorting for the best district ever!" The escort says. She is all covered in white, whether it'd be her clothing or her skin. She is wearing pink boots and gloves, as well as bows with flowing ribbons above her left and right ears and also by her neck. The ribbons are pink at the center and white on the rest, while the white ribbons flow really long with the tips ending in the colors pink, blue, and light blue. She seems to be wearing a headband with animal-esque ears, colored pink on the outer portion and blue on the front's center.

"The video is long and lame," she says. "Do you want to skip it?"

Only a few respond, but she can't hear a person saying no.

"Okay! So all we have to know is that the dark days blah blah blah and the mockingjay rebellion blah blah blah." A lot laugh in amusement with the way she is saying it. "Oh come on! I'm pretty sure y'all are sick of hearing it, so I just have to summarize it like that."

More people around the area laugh.

"Let's start then!" She turns around to reveal her pink tail. She also puts her blue fairy-esque shades up, to reveal her shiny blue contact lenses. She goes to the girl's reaping bowl first and quickly draws out a name.

"Drum roll!" she says. She waits, and it comes after a while. "District Twelve's female tribute is…"

The eligible girls all wait in suspense, some trying to hold back faces of anxiety. After what seems like three minutes since she draws the name from the reaping bowl, she finally announces the name.

"Corinna Pickett!"

The girl with joyful, round, brown eyes and straight light brown hair from the fifteen-year-old section is awestruck. She tries to smile brightly with her youthful and innocent face. She remains optimistic and tries to be as confident as she can, but the thin and fair-skinned girl with an average height stumbles to the stage slightly, trying to keep up a smile as hard as she can.

"I know this is a sensitive question, so you don't have to answer it," the escort says. "How are you feeling now?"

"I'm surprised," she says while still holding on to her smile.

"Now for the boys!" She picks a slip from the bottom of the bowl. "Aha!" she says as she grabs the paper out. "Drum roll, please!"

The drum rolls sooner than it did earlier for the girls'.

"District 12 will be represented by Corinna Pickett and…"

The eligible boys try to remain calm, but the suspense is making most of them wanting to explode. Anxious stares are waiting for the escort's lips to move, while also waiting for the name of the reaped tribute to be called.

"Dante Blackwell!"

The short, skinny, and stern-looking boy with olive skin and gray eyes takes a deep breath as he moves from the fourteen-year-old section. His black hair covers his face, but that's also because of the fact that he is looking down. He moves silently to the stage, to be asked with the same question.

"Same rules apply. How are you feeling now?"

He looks up shortly to shake his head in reply to the question.

"District Twelve, let us support our tributes in this year's hunger games!" The escort waits for a round of applause, but realizes that this is sending two teenagers to their deaths, not just some random show with many excited audiences. "I'm sorry, wrong setting. Anyway, let us wish our tributes good luck, hoping that one of them will make it home."

Silence fills the area, then Corinna optimistically says, "Yeah!"

"That's the spirit!" She lets the two tributes shake hands.

"Once again, I am Evezleya von Evezelle running for… I'm sorry, wrong universe." She clears her throat. "Once again, I am Evezleya von Evezelle, your escort for the third time, District Twelve!" She is not aware that she forgot to introduce herself at the start of the reapings.

Dante looks down on floor, thinking what he should do next. He knows there's nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. He begins strategizing for the games, but his family comes in.

Bronn starts, "Son, I may not be around all the time, but I want to let you know that I love you." He sniffs. "I am proud to have you as my son."

"Dante, life is worth fighting for. You have to come back!" Ember says. "I know you can fight your way through, so please do."

Dante nods. Bronn then tells him, "Son, I suggest you look for a girl on your last days of life."

"Dad, he's coming back for us! Don't be such a pessimist."

"Okay, okay."

Ebony then comes closer furiously. "Brother! Why are you leaving us!? Mom already left us, and now you!?"

"Ebony, this is not my fault."

"THEN COME BACK! I KNOW YOU WANT TO LEAVE!"

Dante just stays silent. He understands that his ten-year-old sister doesn't know much yet.

"I'll try?" Dante says.

"No!" says Ember in a worrisome tone. "You really have to, please. You're the only little brother I have."

Dante stares at the gray eyes of his eighteen-year-old sister before saying, "Okay."

"Yay! We're gonna celebrate once you come back. We don't wanna lose you like how we lost mother."

"Okay."

Dante exchanges his last hugs with his dad and older sister. Jasmine comes in not long after Dante's family leaves.

Jasmine starts with a tight hug. "Dante, I need you to listen to me."

He nods.

"During training, you need to focus on your strengths, but also learn new things. Focus on how to make traps, do well in hiding, learn camouflage, et cetera. If you want to come home, you have to learn how to attack. Were you learning something when I was teaching you how to use the crossbow?

Dante nods.

"Good. Please pay attention to your strengths. Only you know what you're good at and what you're bad at. I suggest you get at least one ally, but I won't force you on it. Just make sure you have a good strategy working, because only you can help yourself now."

He doesn't speak but just nods once more.

"Please do well. I'm counting on you to come home. You're one of my only friends still by my side."

He nods, then says, "I will."

"Please take this. Remember that I'm always with you."

Jasmine gives Dante an acorn on a piece of string. It's the one thing Dante always notices Jasmine bringing around her all the time.

"Be strong." Jasmine leaves in tears, trying to cope up with the situation.

Dante looks at the small token he received. I have a strategy ready. I just have to execute it properly.

Corinna waits in the building looking confused, but inside she feels a mix of good and bad emotions.

I'm gonna be okay. At least I'll get to see the Capitol. I'm gonna leave my family for a while. I'll be fine.

Her family comes in.

Quint says, "Corinna, we're gonna miss you."

Her whole family is already in tears, but Corinna tries to remain positive with the situation.

"It's okay, Dad. If I don't come back, remember that I will always be with you, in your heart."

"How could you say such a thing?" Amy says while wiping her face with tissue.

"I'll be fine, Mom. Life goes on."

Nobody speaks for a while.

"All is well. I'll try to win for me to come back, but if I don't, you are all fine. It's me who is in trouble."

"We are feeling troubled for you, Corinna," John adds.

"Don't."

"But we are family," Quint says. "I am worried for my only daughter."

"Hmmm…" Corinna tries to think of a way to make it sound optimistic for her family.

"We don't know whether you're coming back or not," Amy says tearily.

"I will." Corinna says it with sincerity.

"Are you sure?" asks John.

"Oh come on, I'll be fine." Corinna tries to smile.

"Make sure you are not lying to yourself," John says.

"I'm trying to make this as happy as possible. Don't you see?"

"There's nothing happy when you are going to die." Quint gets more tissue from Amy.

"We're gonna miss you," Amy says.

"If I don't come back, my spirit will." Corinna closes her eyes for a while.

What skills do I have to fight well!? Maybe I am doomed, but maybe not.

"Life in our family won't be the same without you," John adds.

"I know. Just hope I come home. Wish me luck!"

After moments of tears and emotions, Corinna gives her parents one last hug and kiss on the cheek, and she gives John a tight hug too.

AN:

2 of the SYOTs I was following finished, and each of them had a sequel, so I was busy submitting my tributes to them. That's my excuse for why this update took so long.

I don't know when my next update will be. I will be on vacation to another land, and then I will have countless of school outputs after that. I hope to finish all the reapings before the end of the year, and that's the goal I'm setting for now.

Next, we'll move to the career district, District 1. I have the male tribute decided, but not the female tribute. I received 3 submissions that are equally or almost equally good, and their submitters only submitted to the D1F slot, nowhere else. It shows how competitive career slots are, and female slots too. :D Speaking of female slots, I've been receiving more female submissions than male ones, so if you want a tribute in my SYOT, better submit a male tribute soon. ;) If you are not confident with your submission (because I have not yet written his or her reaping chapter), you can PM me about it or submit an entirely new tribute.

That's all for now! I hope you enjoyed this one. :)