A/N: This is it chief. This chapter's probs gonna be a bit long but yEet

Dorothea Barone, 18

District 1 Female

"Cass! Almost time to go, hurry it up!"

Dorothea gave the bathroom door a quick knock, pulling her hand away to tie the white bow around her lavender dress carefully. After a peppy, muffled response from her sister, she stepped off toward the staircase, trotting downstairs with her heeled white boots in hand. Upon hitting the last step she heard a small gasp from the direction of the kitchen, furrowing her brows and glancing over her shoulder, she found her mother standing in the archway with her hands on her cheeks.

"Oh my... darling you look incredible.."

A smile graced her lips as she moved forward to embrace her mother tightly, holding her close for a moment. She loved her mother's hugs, they were so genuine, so filled with pride and joy for her children. She could feel the love in each embrace she gave. As she began to pull away, she caught sight of her father's emotionless stare from where he was silently eating a piece of toast at the kitchen table. Thea felt the smile slowly fall from her features as she offered him a brief glare before putting on the happy facade again for her mother.

"You picked the dress, mom."

Her mother waved a hand, grinning as she went to back up and take in Dorothea again.

"Well, you picked the color, my dear and you never fail to pick correctly. What a beautiful color on you!"

"Thank you.."

She smiled and went to take her mother's hands in her own, taking the moment to silently appreciate her for her support before her mom took her by the shoulders and went to usher her into the dining room where one of the biggest mirrors hung. She picked up a brush that she had set there and began to slowly brush through Thea's long blonde curls, smiling all the while. Thea watched from the mirror, her own very small smile lingering for a moment before it slowly faded.

"Why's he here?" she made sure to keep her voice quiet.

The brush stopped halfway through her hair, pausing for a moment before it slowly continued. Her mother's smile didn't disappear entirely, but it was smaller.

"He wanted to see you off."

Oh that was rich. Dorothea gave a small scoff, shaking her head quietly.

"He should've stayed holed up in whatever shack he found for himself..."

"Thea..."

Dorothea turned then, not in anger, more so just frustration, quickly softening her annoyed expression once she saw the look on her mother's face.

"He nearly killed you..."

"I know... I know, dear... but... you're still his daughter... you know how he feels about you volunteering..."

"It's not his decision to make. It's yours and mine and we've made it.."

Thea then turned back around, hoping that her mother would understand that she had made her point and that she didn't want to carry on the conversation anymore. It was hard to think about, what her own 'father' had done to her and her mother. He killed her unborn sibling, just out of fear they'd end up like her, a volunteer for the Games. Just because he was afraid everyone who volunteered would be his sister. She once felt pity for him but now only hatred and the scars he left behind were left.

"Well... then... would you like down or up.."

Her mother's voice snapped her out of her rage and Dorothea glanced into the mirror, staring at her own fiery hazel eyes before giving her hair a quick glance.

"Maybe a braid.."

"Down the back?"

"Mhm."

Her mother smiled and began to tie her hair back into a loose braid, finishing after a few moments before moving to gently turn Dorothea to face her again. She watched as her mother's eyes began to tear up slightly.

"You.. are going to be the most gorgeous volunteer District One has ever seen..."

Thea gave a soft smile and a scoff, opening her arms to embrace her mother gently. Though, being careful as she did.. it wouldn't be long before she would have the twins.. and she had hoped they'd come sooner so she could be here for her and them when they were born. So that she could make sure her father stayed as far away from them as possible. But she would just have to wait for a few weeks until she came home, then everything would be okay.

"Oh wow, Thea, you look amazing!"

Dorothea turned to eye her sister who had dressed herself up in a long, flowing white sundress with little yellow splotches near the sleeves. She looked absolutely adorable.

"And you look like the cutest little thing.." she smiled, watching as her mother went to embrace her next.

"Oh, absolutely adorable!"

Cass hugged her mom back then went to squirm out of her grasp.

"Moooooooom, you'll mess up my hair."

Thea gave a small shake of her head, a fond smile on her lips as she looked to her sister's fancy up-do. She wasn't the one volunteering today but she looked just as good.

"You trying to steal my spotlight, you little punk?" she smiled and passed her sister to go to the steps, playfully flicking one of the little braids she had in her hair.

Cass gasped dramatically and scrambled away, nearly slipping on her long dress and went tumbling into the arms of her giggling mother.

"Oh please, you're volunteering for the Quarter Quell! That's totally wicked!"

Dorothea smiled as she went to sit down on the steps and slip her feet into her white lace up boots, tying the knots carefully so they looked good, but were still functional. She gave a roll of her eyes as she got up and went to nod her head toward the door.

"Time to go."

Cass perked up and trotted away from her mother who seemed to have a small bit of an issue letting her go. Thea went to step on outside, a pleasantly warm breeze ruffling her hair the instant she opened the door, waiting for her mother to follow after her before she quickly slammed the door behind her, not waiting to see if her father was coming or not. Slowly, she stepped down the stairs and onto the stone path that led to the center of the district. Thea glanced over to her smiling sister who seemed entranced with the way her heeled shoes clicked on the stones.

She was fifteen years old... certainly not a child anymore but she had that way about her. She was the way District One tributes were often thought of. Ditzy, blonde, dumb as a bat but with a fiery temper that could be enough to take anyone down. She was a good thing to study for Thea actually, so she could practice that ditzy and dumb part.

The crowd of overdressed teenagers became bigger the closer they got to the square. Thea received smiles and waves from her younger friends still training in the academy. She'd become sort of a role model there for a while, she wasn't an arrogant bitch like the last few female volunteers, but she was confident and just as hardworking as they were. Then she received the jealous glares, the unhappy scowls, the narrow-eyed pretentious stares.

None of them phased her as she signed in and took her place in the eighteen-year-old section, offering a smile and a wave to an over excited Cass as she went off to her own section, and her mother who waited in the back proudly with the rest of the parents. They had gotten there a bit late to be honest, nothing horrible, but it was just a bit hard for her to worm her way to the front of the group and find a place closest to the aisle.

As she finally did, the pink-clad escort, Cress strut onto the stage wearing a pretty kick-ass pair of gold, six-inch heels. Thea smiled, she was a Capitolite and therefore dressed pretty ridiculously, but she also had her own flare that brought her just a little bit closer to home and her voice wasn't annoying and squeaky like most of the other escorts, she had a pretty normal voice actually, if not for a bit of a thick Capitol accent.

"District One, how are we this morning!"

The crowd around Thea reacting with a loud cheer, clapping their hands excitedly, mimicking Cress' own excitement.

"Well, well, wonderful!" she clapped her own hands slightly, grinning out at the crowd before rubbing her gloved hands together.

"As you know, we'll just watch our brief video from the Capitol and get right down to business!"

The crowd offered another few claps before falling silent as the video began to play, the sound coming from all sides as the four large speakers set up around the area blared. Thea could hardly focus on the video, one minute felt like an eternity, butterflies flitting about in her stomach and her hands trembling slightly at her sides. Not out of fear or nerves, but of excitement and anticipation. This was it.. everything she'd been working toward the past six years of her life. It all came down to this. It had all paid off and today was going to be about her.

When the video faded, Cress's gold painted lips pulled into a smile and she took a deep breath, almost at the same time Thea did.

"Well now! Thank you to the Capitol for supplying us with that wonderful video.. hm? Now.. for the moment you've all been waiting so patiently for... the time for us to meet our tributes from District One!"

The crowd erupted again as Cress walked steadily over toward the bowl to her left, wasting no time in sticking her hand into the names within and pulling out a card. She went to the microphone and began to unwrap the name. This was it. This was it.. this was her time... finally.

"Citrine Sitterly!"

"I volunteer!"

Dorothea's hand shot up as the crowd of girls by the aisle instantly parted, some patting her on the shoulder or grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze as she passed. Others avoided her gaze or stared silently. She was on the aisle in a second, the crowd offering a pretty loud applause for her.. just for her! The rush of adrenaline sent her into almost a sort of excited daze.

"Oh, how wonderful! Come on up here, beautiful, let's get your name!"

Cress's smile was wide and genuine, as it normally was when she got a decent looking tribute to present to the Capitol. Not that it was any sort of hard work for her, there was a sort of appearance check you had to pass before you were officially granted permission to volunteer. Thea guessed that it was to maintain the perfect image of District One.

Cress took her into her arms and placed her right in front of the microphone where Thea stuck her head up confidently, speaking clearly and precisely.

"Dorothea Barone."

The crowd cheered again as she finished her name, prompting an excited squeal from Cress.

"What a lovely name, my dear. Your parents have great taste."

"Yes, my mother does enjoy a more traditional name."

Cress smiled and gave Thea's cheek a little pinch, must to her disdain.. but she grinned along with it anyway, offering a small wave to the crowd as she positioned herself at the left side of Cress. After a moment of speaking with the mayor, she nodded and stepped over to the boy's bowl where she snatched up a name quickly and walked back over to the microphone.

"Carnelian Pianka!"

"I volunteer."

Dorothea tilted her head toward the voice. Her district partner. The voice was young sounding, though rather cool and collected, not as peppy and excited as Dorothea had made her statement. Though when she saw the rather small figure step out of the crowd of sixteen year olds, she couldn't help but only try and mask her surprise. The crowd however, seemed to know him quite well, she recognized him too, from training. He was a knife thrower, and a damn good one at that. But she never really paid the guys too much attention. She had herself to focus on, and she didn't have to compete with them before so. If she recalled it was a rather close call between the boys, as usual. But she assumed an eighteen year old would be chosen.

"Fantastic! Come join us up here, cutie! What's your name?"

The boy couldn't have been more than 5'7, but he was pretty handsome, dark wavy hair and shockingly icy blue eyes. Dorothea knew better than to judge on size and looks though, he was confident and for good reason, just like her. She kept the smile on her face as she looked over every inch of her partner, his body language, the way he carried himself, how he was presenting himself to the Capitol. They were going to be partners, but not allies yet, she wasn't going to choose just anyone, besides only one would come back to One. She watched as he confidently walked over to the microphone and smiled.

"Arsenic Stiletto."

The crowd cheered loudly again, a few hoots coming from the back of the girls' section. God, some of them were idiots.

"Oh how fantastic, what a name. And aren't you just adorable too!"

A few laughs could be heard from the crowd then as she reached forward to pinch his cheek as she had done with Thea. The absolute loathing for Cress became apparent in his gaze, but he let her fawn over him for a few moments as had Thea, and it took Thea everything in her power not to laugh. Not at him, but at his spunk. In a way, he already reminded her of a chihuahua she once owned. The thing was tiny but would rip your finger off she got the chance. Maybe he wouldn't be so bad.

When Cress was done giving her farewell speech to the District, she waited for Thea her new partner to shake hands. Thea turned with a small smile, looking down slightly as she reached forward and took his hand, giving it a shake. He had a strong grip, nice. But he quickly let go and turned to head into the back, as did Thea, the smile never leaving her face.

Finally.

Denton Sigmund, 18

District 5 Male

Damn, he'd fallen asleep on the roof again.

He only awoke to the sensation of a cold drizzle of raindrops on his face. Slowly, he sat up, rubbing his eye as he looked around. Hm. Waverly's roof. They always stayed up and watched the city lights go on, but he rarely fell asleep. He must've been tired. And then his throbbing nose reminded him of the fight.

Yep, that was it, that's why he felt so dead tired. He squinted quietly as he eyed the street below, normally bustling with people on their way to work, it was now fairly silent. Ah, Reaping Day. It was a shame really, a nice quiet day spurred only by the fact that innocent kids are being sent off to die. Nothing like a Reaping to brighten things up.

He frowned and gave a small sigh, rolling over onto his hands and knees to begin to climb back up toward the window that Waverly had left open for him, peering inside to catch her sitting at her vanity, slowly brushing out her ashy blonde hair. He blinked, watching her for a moment before giving a small frown and climbing through the window, landing quietly inside the room, before walking over and giving her shoulder a gentle tap.

He watched as she smiled to him through the mirror, eventually turning her head to glance up at him with a bright smile. Denton offered a smile back, which faded slightly as he moved to sit down on the edge of her bed, waiting as she did up her hair. Her smile, it both offered him joy and haunted him at the same time. How could anyone be so optimistic and happy like that? Always sure that everything would work out in the end, always there for everyone, even when they were nervous themselves. He wasn't sure how Waverly could do it, how she was so kind and caring.

Which was exactly why that girl was the light of his life. His best friend no matter what. Not that he had any other friends, but she would be his best one by far if he did. She was the first one he came out to, the only one he cried to when his aunt, his only caregiver, passed away in his arms. The only one had ever told anything, the only one he ever even talked to. She stood up to the bullies when Denton couldn't or refused to. She understood him like no one else could, and in turn he was there for her. Every little problem she could face, he was right by her side to help her face it. Happy to do it too.

He blinked when Waverly's hands began to move, shifting so she was facing him as she signed.

'Aren't you going to get ready?'

Denton gave a small shrug of one shoulder, getting up off the bed before walking over to the mirror, giving himself a once over. He was already dressed in some of the nicest clothes he could be in, his hair wasn't too bad either. Typically frizzy and unruly, it was actually alright since the rain had wet it down a little bit. He brought up a hand and went to fuss with it a little bit, making it look a little less raggedy. Not that he cared, but Waverly did, so might as well give an attempt.

He noticed her smiling, looking a bit amused as he struggled with his hair. He offered her a gentle shove, holding back a smile of his own as he nodded toward the door, rolling up the sleeves of his shirt a little bit, before holding the door open for Waverly as she trailed after him. She offered a small roll of her eyes at the gesture, walking out into the narrow hallway and down the stairs.

Denton followed her down, noting that as usual, her father wasn't there. He never was on Reaping Day. God knows where he went, not that Denton cared. He was a coward. He refused to support his own daughter on the one day she needed her most. He was too scared of something that wouldn't even happen. He noticed the way Waverly looked over the entire kitchen to make sure he definitely wasn't home before walking out onto the street. It hurt her.. so it frustrated Denton.

At least the drizzling had cleared up, leaving only a dark, overcast sky, perfect for the occasion. He pondered the dark colors for a moment before picking up the pace to walk beside Waverly, watching as a group of frightened looking little kids walked past them, all holding hands. They only looked to be about twelve or thirteen, maybe their first Reaping. He caught the sad look in Waverly's eyes, reaching out for her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze, receiving a soft smile in response.

He didn't let go of her until it was time to sign in, and even then he remained close until they reached the gate, walking into the square. Waverly glanced back at him, signing subtly.

'I'll be near the back of my group, I'll meet you here right after, okay?'

Denton nodded, smiling back and signing a quick 'okay' before watching her head off into her own group, turning to slip into the group of eighteen-year-olds, lingering near the back. He ignored the glares and small grumbles of some of the other guys as he shoved his way toward the closest spot near the gate so he could get out of there as quickly as he could when this was all over. He mostly hated the Reaping for this very reason, having to be crammed in with people he hated.

He slowly stretched out his arm as he watched the district escort, Azo, real annoying guy, walk onto the stage with that big old fake Capitol smile. The only thing he hated more than the people around him was Azo. He was just so clearly fake, so in-genuine, it really got to the core of Denton, made him feel that strong sense of loathing one could only feel for someone like that escort.

The moment he greeted the District, Denton began to block out his unusually high-pitched voice and the way he blinked every time he started and finished a sentence. Too much blinking. Too annoying. Finally, he turned away, allowing the video to play. It was a moment of brief relief for Denton. Gosh, he wasn't even worried about getting his name picked he was more bothered by the fact that this guy had a job as an escort... He glared all the way through the video, watching the way Azo spoke along with each word, wiping a tear from his eye every now and then, before turning back to the microphone and waiting until the very last part of the video.

"Ugh-! Brings a tear to my eye every time..." he breathed out with a smile, causing Denton to wrinkle his nose.

The crowd was silent as Azo looked out, hoping for any sort of response, but he wasn't met with any. So he offered another fake smile, throwing in an awkward laugh on top before taking another deep breath.

"Why don't we just.. go ahead and get this show on the road then?" he smiled again before briskly stepping over to the girls' bowl. Rather than jamming his hand into it and mixing around the names, he plucked on off the very top, gingerly as if it was too hot to touch. He then positioned himself right in front of the microphone, smiling.

"And... our tribute for our Quarter Quell is..." he paused, smiling out. "Waverly Crystal!"

Denton's heart dropped.

That couldn't happen. No, she was deaf, that wasn't fair. She'd already be at a disadvantage...they couldn't do that to her... They couldn't do that to him. They couldn't take his light like that... she would never make it. She could never kill.

Before he even knew what he was doing, Denton, shoved himself forward, ignoring the annoyed grunts and quiet protests he earned as a result. He moved right for the aisle, watching as the Peacekeepers obscured his view of Waverly who had shakily walked out from the back of the eighteen-year-olds. His breath caught in his throat as he continued to shove his way through the crowd of boys before appearing at the back of the aisle, drawing the attention of the Peacekeepers near the gate. Waverly had already made it to the stage, talking quietly to Azo who moved back to the mircophone, before he could even say another stupid.. squeaky word, Denton rushed forward, ignoring the sound of the Peacekeepers lunging forward behind him.

"I volunteer to be the male tribute!"

Azo blinked, pausing with his mouth hanging half open, looking around for a moment before holding up a finger and glancing back toward the mayor. The Peacekeepers were right behind him, but as soon as he volunteered they hadn't laid a finger on him. He had paused only when Azo turned his back, the escort finally looking back to him.

"Um.. unfortunately we have to draw the male tribute's name... before there can be any volunteers so if.. you..." Azo broke off, holding up his finger again as he scurried to the boys' bowl. "If you could just hold that thought ahehe..."

Denton scowled as Azo reached his hand to the bottom of the bowl and pulled out a name, decidedly walking forward to the stage as he did so, his eyes never meeting Waverly's horrified gaze. Azo went right back to the microphone, having unfolded the name card before he even got there.

"E-"

"I said I volun-fucking-teer."

Azo gave a startled gasp as Denton made his way to the steps in a matter of seconds.

"Yes- well, fantastic! We have District Five's first volunteer in... uhm... many years, what's your na- oh dear-"

Denton ignored the question, brushing past Azo roughly and nearly causing the man to fall over, going straight to Waverly and wrapping her up in a shaky embrace, feeling the girl's arms wrap around him tightly.

"I'm... I'm so very sorry, but I still need your name, young man..." Azo faked a smile, but the disdain was very clear in his eyes as he looked to Denton.

"Denton Sigmund." he barked in response, still not letting go of Waverly, though he offered a glare back up to the man who turned his head back to the crowd, who had fallen dead silent.

"Well, Denton, thank you so much for volunteering... You're very brave."

Azo went ignored, until he placed a hand on both Denton and Waverly's shoulders gently, allowing the Peacekeepers to take over in ushering them into the Justice Building. Waverly was stiff as a statue, her eyes wide. But Denton refused to give in to whatever fear was nagging at him in the back of his mind. He couldn't afford to allow it in. The only thing he was allowing himself to do now was protect Waverly.

No matter the cost.

Quinn Vasilev, 16

District 7 Female

Click, click.

Quinn focused on evening her breathing with the pace of her knitting, watching as the needles weaved slowly in and out of the yarn, the soft baby blue color she had chosen was soothing, very soothing actually. It was enough to keep her occupied for a good while. Until it wasn't. Her foot began to tap idly on the floor and her breathing had become shallow and quick, her hands trembling and making it nearly impossible to keep steady as she tried to continue her scarf.

No. She couldn't finish.

Quickly, she set down the needles and the half-knitted scarf, wringing her shaking hands together slightly as she glanced out the window, watching the frightened, nervous faces pass by and toward the center of town. They were going early.. or maybe she was going late. She always was a bit of a procrastinator. Maybe if she got there late that would somehow keep her from getting picked? No, that was ridiculous.

Quinn stood up then, rubbering her clammy palms on the sides of her tattered green dress. She took another deep breath to try and slow down all her racing thoughts. It would be okay, everything was going to be okay.

She wasn't always this nervous about the Reaping.. maybe it was because she was older. Or maybe because she would have to be in a crowd with all those people. All those people who thought she was a murderer. She was innocent. She didn't hurt anyone, especially not the love of her life.. but the false accusation, the five months in that cold, scary hellhole.. doing everyone's chores... only to have the overwhelming relief of being freed, of being proven innocent, to be dashed by the people of her own district who still only saw a killer. It wasn't her, she could never, she would never!

But she knew the way they looked at her, not that she had too many close friends to start off with, but she was also regarded as nice, she was always nice to everyone. But no one thought of her that way anymore. Nobody saw Quinn Vasilev anymore.. they saw Prisoner 24007. They saw a killer. God she was desperate, she was desperate to be Quinn again.. but she wasn't sure if she could, if she would ever be able to. Not without Lizbeth, not without the friends who had supported her in the past. Nobody trusted her, and she barely trusted herself.

"Quinn, honey?"

Quinn gave a startled gasp, glancing over her shoulder. Her mother, it was just her mother.

"I'm sorry, baby, we have to get going.."

Quinn's heart sank as she stared back at her mother, unsure if her fear was shown on her face. Based off her mother's expression, she assumed it was. Slowly, she walked forward, right into her mother's warm, comforting embrace. She was safe here, she was safe with her mother and with her family. Suddenly, there was another pair of arms around her, as her mother pulled away she leaned into the second embrace, her sister.

After a few moments of embracing, Lara pulled away from her sister and glanced down at her, Quinn hesitating to look up as tears began to pool in her eyes.

"Look at me." Her voice was strict, but not harsh, so Quinn looked up. "It's okay... you'll be alright..."

Quinn swallowed thickly, her throat almost feeling as if it had swollen up, for a second it caused her a brief moment of panic before it slowly passed as Lara pulled her sister into another hug, holding her there for a moment before running her hand through Quinn's curly hair, pulling away again to neaten it up a little bit.

"There you go.."

Quinn smiled slightly up at her sister. At least she was always there for her... Lara and her mother. They were the only two that she felt okay around, that she felt safe around. She wondered if they would be that way forever. Lara then reached out and moved to take Quinn's hand, which had latched onto the side of her own dress, an attempt she often used to ground herself. Though she felt more at ease when her hand was in Lara's. With one more smile from her sister, she stepped forward and toward the door, their mother following along quietly behind them.

When the door creaked opened, Quinn finally spotted her younger brother, Tielo. He was dressed up as nicely as he could be, Quinn actually though he looked really nice, so she offered him an almost desperate smile. But as usual, he rejected it, hardly giving Quinn even a glance as he stood up and waited for Lara and Quinn to get down the stairs before joining their mother in the back.

She frowned, her gaze finding the dirt road beneath them until Lara gave her hand a gentle squeeze. Quinn glanced up and over at her, but this time she couldn't smile, even though she tried for Lara. She was too scared, her hands were shaking too much. It was just like her first Reaping.. she was petrified. She tried her best not to look around at the faces, feeling as if each and every pair of eyes was on her.. were scorning her.

Finally, they made it to the square, before signing in, Quinn let go of Lara's hand and glanced back at her mother who's eyebrows were knitted together in concern. Quinn stepped forward and gave her mother a quick hug as the other parents and kids walked past them, even bumping into them a little bit. After a moment, Quinn stepped back, allowing her mother to place her hand on Quinn's cheek for just a moment before smiling and moving to do the same with Tielo and Lara next. Slowly, Quinn turned around and got in line to sign in.

The pricking of her finger got better, which was nice. She was always scared of that part, she didn't really like the whole blood thing, at least she'd grown out of that. Now came the part that scared her now. Walking into the sea of kids. She paused before slowly walking into the square, keeping her head and eyes down. She hoped that they were all too nervous to be worried about her for today, maybe no one would notice her. She picked up the pace, quickly wedging herself into group of sixteen-year-olds, breathing a quiet sigh of relief as she did so. Still, she kept her head down, that's all she could do as she waited.

For a moment, she was calm. That wasn't so bad.. no one even looked at her.. And then the sound of crowd's voices dying down and the clicking of heels on the wooden stage sent a stab of anxiety through her again. She finally glanced up to see Friselle, District Seven's escort... dressed as a glorified tree... Nice...

She tapped the microphone with a gloved hand and grinned out at everyone.

"Hello, District Seven."

She was met with silence, not that it seemed to bother her really. Quinn always thought she was pretty nice, almost normal for an escort. She was never really over the top, except for her wardrobe and she was always extra nice and talked softly, almost soothingly. If it weren't for her job, Quinn might think she had pity on the tributes.

"No worries, wasn't expecting a huge response, you all are typically a quiet crowd... Happy Hunger Games."

There was another pause, as if she expected that to get a response. But there wasn't one. Quinn hugged her arms to her chest, watching quietly as she resisted the urge to nervously bounce on her toes.

"Well.. I should say Happy Quarter Quell. This is a big deal.. yes, big deal indeed... ahem.. which is why... we should get right into it!"

With that she turned to face the screens in the back, having to step back a little bit, teetering slightly on her giant wood-inspired heels. And then the video began to play. Quinn mentally recited the words in the video to herself, a way to keep herself in the moment instead of having to think ahead to the horrifying possibility of being chosen.. No, she wouldn't even allow herself to go there.

But then the screen went black and Friselle turned back to the crowd, clapping her gloved hands together slightly, only to be hit with a wall of silence again. She pressed her lips together slightly into a pretty forced.. almost sad smile, before pulling at the end of her glove a little bit and walking over to the bowl silently.

The silence was broken by the sound of paper crinkling together as the escort dug around in the names. Quinn took a long, slow deep breath, holding it in as the escort walked back toward the microphone. She could feel her own heart beating rapidly against her chest, it almost felt like it would jump right out. Her stomach twisted painfully as she thought of her own name being read over the microphone. No, no, no. It wouldn't happen. It wouldn't.

"Quinn Vasilev."

No.

Quinn let out the breath of air she had been holding in, startled by her own loud raspy sigh. Her breathing hitched and she could hear a muffled cry of despair from the back, toward the group of parents. She tried to move, but her feet wouldn't listen. She was frozen in place, her knees wobbling as she took in another raspy breath, holding a hand to her mouth as she tried to stifle the sob that escaped her.

No.

The sound of marching could be heard, and the crowd of girls scattered as two Peacekeepers suddenly appeared beside her, roughly grabbing her arms and dragging her to the aisle. Finally, her feet moved, but the tears were still streaming down her face. She tripped once, but was able to catch herself before she fell, the next few moments blurring together until suddenly she was on the stage beside Friselle, feeling a gloved hand squeeze her shoulder. Rather than reassuring her, it only spurred her panic, sending a shiver through her body.

She didn't dare look up, all of the eyes would be on her. They'd all be looking at her. She waited until Friselle went to the boy's bowl to give a quiet sigh, her breath shaky and raspy. It was because she was a prisoner... it had to be, it wasn't enough to take five months of her life..

"Everett Harper!"

Quinn glanced up slightly as she heard a few mumbles and saddened sighs from the crowd. Her gaze swept over the rather disappointed or shocked looking young faces until she caught movement in the sixteen-year-olds. Slowly, a gentle looking boy with reddish-blonde hair stepped out onto the dirt aisle, the crowd of sixteen-year-olds barely parted for him. Quinn was surprised.. there were no tears in his startled hazel eyes, but she could see his lips quivering slightly.

And that's when she recognized him. He passed her once, on the street. He stopped her. It had to have been two days or so after she had been released. But he didn't insult her, he didn't glare at her or reprimand her or tease her.

"If there's anything I can do for you, let me know. I'm two houses over."

She never went. She never saw him again, she was too ashamed, she was too guilty, too scared. Oh god, he was going to hate her.. why did it have to be him? She watched in terror as he stepped up onto the stage slowly, even though he was smaller than her by a little, she felt intimidated. And then, the staring started. He looked at her, quite a bit actually, all through Friselle's closing speech. And then they had to shake hands, her heart jumped into her throat as she reached forward... and then met his gentle grip. He brought his other hand up too, placing it over Quinn's hand.

"It's okay.."

His voice was very quiet and gentle, only audible to Quinn. She furrowed her brows slightly, and felt a sudden warmth wash over her. He was being nice to her...? He wasn't mad..

Quinn blinked, watching as he brought his hands away slowly to turn and head toward the Justice Building. Quinn gripped the sides of her dress again, hoping to try and calm herself again as she stepped after him into the building. However she noticed that as she got closer, Everett had slowed down, and suddenly, he took her hand in his as they walked inside. And Quinn let him. She couldn't tell if it was for her or himself, but she let him.

Briefly, he paused, turning to her, Quinn wanted to keep holding his hand, it felt almost like Lara's.. but he pulled away.

"It's going to be alright, Quinn. Okay?"

Quinn stared back at him, focusing on his calm, steady gaze, despite the shakiness of his voice. She nodded almost frantically. The Peacekeepers then walked forward, one putting a hand on Everett's shoulder. Quinn felt the second one's hand on hers, pulling her toward one of the doors, where she would say goodbye...

"Keep your head up."

He spoke one last time before he turned and disappeared into the door across the hall. Quinn was walked inside the door across from it. The door closed and Quinn was plunged into silence. Finally, she took a deep breath, drifting between crying and not, before she slowly began to calm herself, sitting down in a chair by the window.

Maybe it would be okay...

A/N: And I OOP. There are our first round of Reapings! I know there were only three POVs but they were all kinda long and I didn't want to overwhelm you guys with a bunch of tributes in one chapter! So there you go!

Part 2 will be out soonTM.

I'll see you all then and happy holidays!

~ Anna :D