"Maybe I'll be the black horse of the Games. Wait, black horse? Hang on. Dark horse . . . Black horse . . . Dark horse. Yeah, that's what I meant."
Irri Feldman 16, District 11 Male
In his dreams, life was normal.
All of his siblings were still alive.
There were no Games.
Everything was perfect.
Normal
But unfortunately it couldn't be like that.
Because three of his siblings were dead.
The Games happened every year.
Everything wasn't perfect.
Reaping morning started out normally. Like it always did. His father was at work again, putting in the extra hours, and his mother was still in bed, like she was most days. Irri let out a groan as he stretched his arms up, feeling some tension in his back pop. From the kitchen he could hear most likely Adair, the sound of pots and pans clinking filling his ears.
It was on reaping day that he missed his siblings that passed the most. Hyssop was only seven when she passed,most likely from a sickness. It had come on suddenly, and there was nothing they could do to stop it. Lavender was next, being taken from them just shortly after her fifth birthday. Fennel cried for weeks after that. The last and probably the hardest was Ter's twin, Oriol. He had only been three when he passed. Ter was too young to realize what happened, but ever since then, he always felt like a small part of him was missing.
Letting out a yawn, he forced himself out of bed, heading out of his room that he shared with Adair, and into the small bathroom. Quickly washing up, he ran a comb through his hair. He would be the one to wake up the younger ones and get them ready for the reaping. Blowing out a breath, he got dressed in a white shirt and a pair of jeans as he went into the kitchen.
"Morning." Adair greeted him softly, pointing to the small cup of coffee already brewed.
"You're a lifesaver."
"I know." His older brother grinned.
He started to help with breakfast, going out to their small apple tree that has been there longer than he could remember. Grabbing the apples that were ready enough, he went back inside. Cutting the apples small enough, he washed them thoroughly, placing them into the bowls of oatmeal already done.
Placing the cups down he grabbed the pitcher of water from the counter, pouring it into each glass. A tray was already on the counter, breakfast and another glass of water on it. Throwing the rest of the coffee back, he grabbed the trey and headed to his parents room. He knocked on the door, and opened it softly.
His parents room was still dimmed, the only light being from the rising sun.
"Morning Mom." He spoke softly, as he carefully placed the tray down on her lap.
"Good Morning sweetheart." Her voice was raspy, and he made sure to hand her the cup. "Make sure you get your siblings up and ready."
"I will."
Waking up his siblings took all of ten minutes. He woke the younger two up first, Comfrey and Yarrow. Making sure they made it to the kitchen, he moved on to waking Ter who scowled at him, and Ter who just rubbed his eyes and followed his sister down the could hear Fennel getting up from her room down the hall. Laughing lightly, he followed them into the kitchen, taking his spot next to Adair.
Breakfast was quick and easy, and he wiped Comfrey's face with a wet washcloth, before sending her back to her room to get ready. Irri washed the bowls, placing them upside down on a towel to dry. Humming under his breath, he used another towel to dry the rest of the dishes that didn't fit on the towel before placing them back into the cupboard.
He was ready to get this over with.
He wasn't one to lie; he was nervous about the reaping.
Their risk of being reaped kept going up every year.
He shook his head, clearing it of those thoughts, and turned his attention to getting himself ready.
Buttoning the last button of his shirt, he fixed the collar and the cuffs. Clearing his throat, he ran the comb through his hair once more as he pulled his socks, followed by his shoes on. He could hear his dad coming in from his shift. Adair came in, a smile on his face.
"Ready to go?"
He nodded as he straightened his shirt up and followed his older brother out the door. His siblings were waiting by the door, Comfrey already pulling on the sleeves of the worn blue dress. Their father led them out the door, after saying a quick goodbye to Yaelle. Ter grasped onto Irri's hand, and he could see the fear shining in his little brother's eyes.
"It'll be okay." He whispered softly.
They separated at the check in area, Comfrey and Yarrow going with their father, and then the other splitting up. Fennel and Ter went with the twelve to fourteen year olds, and Irri and Adair went with the older kids. He winced at the slight prick of the needle, pressing his finger down on to the book. He was waved through, quickly finding his way to an open spot in the sixteen-year old section.
Leticia Spade made her way out, her 6 inch heels clacking against the wood of the stage. Her bright pink makeup blinding the eyes of the District. Irri just shook his head, forcing his eyes down as she moved to the microphone.
"Welcome, Welcome to the Reaping for the 100th Annual Hunger Games. As always, we'll start with a video from the Capitol!"
"War, Terrible war…" Tuning out the video, Irri turned his attention to the people around him. Most looked nervous, the younger ones looking like they wanted to pass out. He, himself felt alright. A bit nervous as the minutes passed, knowing that in that bowl held more of his name than most.
Of course, the chances of him getting picked were slim, but with this year being the Quell, his name was bound to be in there more.
"... and that is how we safeguard our future."
"Oh how I just love that video." Leticia grinned, as she almost carefully moved her way to the bowl holding the female names.
"The female tribute is Saigon Kane!" From the eighteen year old section, a fairly tall female made her way out of the section. She was pretty, he noted. Her hair was in braids, her skin lighter than most of the district. She held herself well on her way up to the stage.
"And now for the male tribute!" her hand sank into the bowl, and finally selected a slip. "Irri Feldman!"
The breath was stolen from his body.
He froze.
No.
Out of all the names in the bowl.
It just had to be him.
Well this was about to get interesting.
Goodbyes were a thing of tears and fear.
Mainly tears from the young ones, who crowded around him. He pulled them close, tears threatening to escape his eyes. He had to pull it together. Couldn't cry in front of them.
Fennel pulled Ter close, and Adair hugged Comfrey and Yarrow.
"I'll be okay, you guys." He spoke, clearing his throat when his voice came out raspy. "I know I should have a decent shot." He shrugged. Comfrey and Yarrow burst into more tears, sobs racking their bodies. Adair smiled softly and quickly led them out of the room.
Ter looked at him, tears in his eyes.
"Promise you'll come back?"
Irri felt his heart break a bit more. How could he promise something he knew that most likely won't happen? He knew that his chances of surviving and winning were twenty four to one.
"I'll try my hardest okay?" He spoke gently. "I just need you to be good for mother and father. Listen to Adair, keep up with your school work and help out when you can." Turning to Fennel he smiled.
"Like I said, be good, listen to mother, father and Adair. School comes before play. If Adair needs you for something, you go to him okay?" She nodded, wiping the tears out of her eyes.
"You'll try your best through right?" A form of hope was in her eyes. He nodded, pulling her into a hug tightly.
His father handed something to him, a locket. When he opened it, it revealed a picture of all of them together. Even his siblings that passed. A sob got caught in his throat, and he cleared it.
"I- thank you." His voice came out in a whisper.
"Just, promise us that you'll fight. Fight until the last possible second?"
"I promise."
One more reaping to write and then we're finally through with them! I can't believe that I've gotten this far, and I can't wait to write more!
Huge thanks to a cluster of stars for Irri and I hope I wrote him well.
I'm aiming to have the next part of District Eleven up by Monday at the earliest, Wednesday at the latest.
dont forget to read and review.
theflowercrowns
