District 8 Reapings
Levi Sullivan, 13, District 8
"Read it again!"
"June, it's really getting late and you need to sleep," Levi smiles, ruffling his younger sister's hair as he closes the book, returning it to the family's humble bookshelf. Tomorrow was the reapings and he had promised his parents that he would have all his siblings in bed by a reasonable time, before they came back from work.
Normally, he didn't mind taking care of his siblings and letting them stay up a little later, but he did have some last minute schoolwork he needed to finish up later tonight.
"Why do Max, Jamie, and Nellie get to stay up?" June whines, crossing her arms and pouting out her lower lip. While the quivering jaw and pleading eyes of the four-year-old may have worked in the past, Levi had grown rather immune to her most manipulative methods of persuasion.
"Don't worry. When you are my age, you'll be grateful for any day you get to go to bed first," Levi responds with a chuckle, "You should enjoy the early bedtime while it lasts."
June doesn't seem entirely convinced but she relents, slipping deeper into the thin covers of her cot that's been set up beside her parent's bed. Much to Levi's relief, it appeared as though a wave of sleepiness had washed over his younger sister, making her far more agreeable to his instructions.
"Goodnight, Levi…" she mumbles as Levi moves to turn off the lights of his parent's room.
"Sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite!" he calls out, earning a sleepy little giggle from his younger sister. Doing his best to quietly return to the room he shared with the rest of his siblings, Levi sighs exhaustedly. From outside the room he could already hear Nellie and Max arguing, while sweet Jamie did his best to keep the peace between the two firecrackers.
"Can you two please keep it down? I just got June to go to sleep and I do not want to go through that entire process again," Levi says upon entering the small bedroom. It was a room meant for two people at most, but with the two sets of bunk beds pressed against either wall and all four siblings standing within the small space, the room felt even more constricting than usual.
"Nellie took my ball," Max complains, "She won't give it back."
"Nellie, please give your brother his ball back," Levi instructs, attempting to de-escalate the conflict as quickly as possible. He was used to handling these sorts of arguments that were commonplace when it came to have four siblings all under the age of 10. Max and Nellie, being his most rambunctious siblings, often seemed to clash the most.
"But Max was bouncing it non-stop while I was trying to work," Nellie responds, "I'm in 5th grade now. I have real, adult things to do now."
Levi thinks for a moment before nodding affirmatively. "Okay fine, Nellie, give Max his ball back," he declares, much to Nellie's initial chagrin, "But Max, no more bouncing inside. Either take Jamie and go play outside or sit quietly and let your sister work."
"Why do I always have to go outside?" Max groans. "Why can't Nellie study outside for once?"
"Keep arguing and I'll take away your ball altogether," Levi threatens, raising a brow.
"It's so not fair," Max responds with a disgruntled huff as he drags the ball and Jamie outside with him. Despite Max's apparent annoyance, Levi was sure he would forget about the entire incident within the next five minutes.
With the peace and quiet restored to the Sullivan household, Levi finally begins to start on his own work. After an hour or so, an exhausted Max and Jamie return back inside and hug him goodnight before retreating to their bunks. Eventually, Nellie, too, retires for the night, and for the first time all day, Levi has a moment to himself.
Gazing into the darkness from his tiny window, Levi smiles. In just a few minutes his parents would be home and he could truly relax for the night. It wasn't always easy handling an entire household full of his siblings, but perhaps tomorrow, after the reapings he might have sometime to relax, maybe even play a game of soccer with his best friend, Trevor.
Certainly, after tonight he had earned at least one day off.
Sabrina Davids, 16, District 8
There are few people in District 8 more hated than her father. It's why Sabrina has been trapped inside all morning as her private tutors do their best to keep her distracted from the angry, chanting crowd positioned at the gates of the Davids's residence.
"Should we do something? The crowd seems to be getting louder…" her tutor, Frills, commented worriedly to Sabrina's mother.
"Don't worry. The peacekeepers have it all under control. Besides, the Capitol has been monitoring the situation...closely...they won't let them lay a finger on us," her mother replies with an air of confidence. It was, after all, the second time this week the protests were taking place.
Anger always seemed to reach its peak around the time of the games and as the mayor's daughter, that anger often seemed to be directed at Sabrina. Her father had always been staunch in his pro-Capitolite policies, which only ever led to Sabrina to bear the burden of her classmate's resentment and hatred. Eventually, the cruelty of her peers was deemed dangerous and Sabrina was pulled out of school entirely.
"Sabrina, why aren't you dressed yet? The car will be here to pick us up in fifteen minutes and we simply cannot be late for the reapings," her mother scolds, though her attention remains focused on the crowd, "Your dress came in this last night and I left it in your room."
Sabrina sighs and heads up the spiral staircase towards her room where she finds a poofy, light pink dress resting on her bed. A quick glance at the tag confirms her suspicions that the dress has in fact been imported straight from the Capitol.
Frankly, she hated it.
Sabrina hated a lot about her life. She resented her parents' loyalty to the Capitol, but more importantly she hated how their fanaticism reflected upon herself. She appreciated the fact that her parents cared for her every need, but her comfort seemed to come at a very high price. A price she had no choice in paying.
Today, of all days, was not the right time to cause a fuss, so Sabrina slips into the dress and returns back to her well-styled mother, who's already waiting for her at the car. As the gates open, Sabrina watches with wide-eyed fear and the people launch their bodies towards the armored car, banging and screaming. She watches as the peacekeepers pull them away from the car, harshly beating down some of the more impassioned offenders. Something about it doesn't sit right with her, but she feels safe within the car, knowing she won't be harmed.
By the time Sabrina takes her seat on the stage in front of her mother and father, her earlier fears have lifted as she watches the reaping proceedings begin. Sabrina listens silently as District 8's escort and family friend, Poppy Loudmouth, catches up with her mother, keenly aware of the seething anger of the crowd.
"Alright my lovely District 8, looks like it's time to select your first fabulous tribute!" Poppy exclaims with a broad grin. She even throws a small wink in Sabrina's direction, as her way of reassuring the girl that she had nothing to worry about at all.
"SABRINA-" Poppy yells out before abruptly stopping in halfway, her eyes going wide with shock, "Sabrina Davids," she finishes quietly as the crowd erupts into the most ecstatic applause Sabrina's ever heard.
Sabrina turns pale, but stands up straight, striding up to Poppy with her parents watching in shock. Turning back momentarily, Sabrina sees that her mother has burst into tears, while her father has begun to furiously scream at Poppy, all while being held back by the nearest peacekeepers. Her parents' reactions, however, remain entirely drowned out by the celebration of the crowd.
Poppy does her best to remain on track, moving to the boy's bowl.
"Levi Sullivan," she calls out quietly, though she's unable to be heard above the cheering crowd.
"SILENCE!" Poppy screams into the microphone, causing the entire crowd to go still, "Can Levi Sullivan please come up to the stage?" she says angrily, glaring at the girls who have begun to jump around and dance in the 16 year old section.
Sabrina notices a slight shuffling in the thirteen year old section, as a shocked-looking boy wanders up on to the stage.
"Let's have it for Levi and Sabrina," Poppy says, as the crowd erupts once more. Poppy holds her hand out towards Sabrina, squeezing it tightly, but making no motion towards Levi at all. The crowd hated this blatant display of favoritism and they hated her and Poppy for it, but Sabrina knows she'll have to take all the support she can.
None of it really mattered though, one thing was clear: they weren't cheering for her, they were celebrating her impending doom.
A/N: Yessss! So we're back on track with District 8. A massive thank you to rising-balloons for both Levi and Sabrina. Sorry this chapter took a little while- for those of you who don't know I'm producing a short film for a film festival and have been having some major plumbing issues at my apartment these past few days. Either way, I hope you enjoy this chapter as we hit the 2/3s mark of the reapings! -Anya