Lincoln Haywood, 16, D11M - 3:00AM, 01/07/207

The anger stirred inside Lincoln, towards the world, towards people, and towards life itself. He hit Rita on the back of her head with a shovel. Such a kind woman. Death befalling her so early in life was a great shame. She lost consciousness, falling into the coffin behind her.

Damian's eyes grew wide at the apparent death of his mother. He hardly noticed Lincoln sneaking behind him to hit him in the head with the same tool. His scrawny body was carried to his grave, his lanky limbs bent to fit inside.

Lincoln slammed the two lids to a close, when a deep voice began to whisper.

"Why are you doing this, son? Don't destroy our family. Come to me." Jeremiah said.

The metal clanged on the ground, echoing throughout the cemetery. Lincoln walked towards Jeremiah, and embraced him. Then he snapped his neck, and pushed him into a third coffin. Jeremiah's eyes lost their life, and Lincoln began to wonder if he was ever alive at all.

But his anger remained. He couldn't let the cries of his mother or brother be heard once they awoke. He carried the three coffins to the graves he had already dug, his mind attempting to justify the murders he committed.

He started to cover the coffins with dirt, when Damian began to stir. He banged his hands against the walls of the box of death, yelling and screaming. Lincoln could tell he was panicking, and using up his oxygen while begging for his life. No one would hear him, they both knew this, but Lincoln began to shovel the dirt more quickly.

He became ensnared in a spiral of anger and anxiety as Rita's cries joined those of her favourite son.

The terror of this nightmare forced Lincoln awake, barely restraining his screams, unable to shake the image of his family's dead eyes. He never would have killed them, never. His eyes darted around the room of the orphanage, trying to distract himself from his guilt that made him think of something so reprehensible. Not that he had murdered someone, no, he had done so merely a day earlier. But being convinced that he could have killed his family, that their deaths were his fault, that idea terrified him.

He dressed himself quietly, ensuring the other children would stay asleep, and snuck out of the orphanage to the graveyard.

It was shocking how well his brain echoed his place of work while twisting and corrupting it, just as Lincoln ruined it with his sins. He didn't see the welcoming and fluttering foliage, but claws daring to scratch him and let him bleed on the ground. He didn't see lifeless wooden boxes, but coffins which had come alive, filled with undead corpses who would haunt him until his days were done. The scene was not brutish and stagnant, but terrifying and grim, the trees whispering his faults and threatening his demise.

He dug into the dirt, next to the coffin he had filled the day before. That death, at least, was simply due to starvation. Even though it wasn't his fault, the deep, dark rage within him shone as his shovel hit the ground again and again. After all, he couldn't express his truest self anywhere other than the graveyard, surrounded by lifelessness. No one could rat on him, no one could witness his anger and tell the tale. No threat of death faced him here, not since Elias.

Not anymore.

Kaitlyn Taylor, 15, D11F - 7:30AM, 01/07/207

"Come on in, everyone!" Kaitlyn exclaimed as she flung open the doors to the candy store. "Plenty of supplies for everyone!"

The candy store was the most joyous place in District 11. The short shelves were filled with chocolate and gumballs and liquorice. The most delicious treat a child from Eleven could dream of was within the walls of Taylors' Candies. Colour and merriment filled the room, and everyone's fears of Reaping Day were washed away.

"July 1st, everyone gets a free candy! Come up to the counter so we can give you a stamp!" Kaitlyn's mind wasn't too worried about being Reaped, but she knew the kids might be. The minute they walked out the door, the colour would drain from at least half of their faces. If she gave them something nice, maybe they wouldn't be so scared.

"What can I do you for, Blake?" she said, jokingly mimicking the Capitolite accent. A boy no older than ten, she thought he would have no fear of the Reaping. But he was stuttering and blushing, apparently a little nervous.

"Could you… could you uh… please get me a… um… a caramel chocolate?"

"Of course I can Blakey, my boy!" Then she realised why he must be upset. His older brother, Jacob, was 18 and took tesserae for the rest of the family. So did Benjamin, who was the same age as Kaitlyn.

It'd be a shame if Ben went into the Games, Kaitlyn thought, entirely oblivious to Blake's feelings and the threat of the Hunger Games, he's pretty fun to flirt with.

"Hey," she whispered, lowering her voice in a way she rarely did. "You're my favourite, you know that? I'll give you an extra, free of charge."

Blake could hardly speak. Kaitlyn had just called her his favourite! She, of course, thought that she had terrified him about the prospect of his brothers' deaths even more.

"Thank… thank you, Kaitlyn."

"No problem," she said, hoping the boy would be okay.

She pushed her wavy, black hair out of her face, and she saw Kyle walking into the store, followed by her best friend, Marissa.

"Hey, Kyle," she said, adding a layer of seduction to her voice. "Free candy today, is there anything you're looking for?"

Somehow, this worked, because of course it did. It would help to mention that Kaitlyn was quite beautiful, and for every strange statement like that, there were fifty flirtatious ones.

"I'm looking at the jawbreaker and the dark chocolate. What would you recommend?"

Kaitlyn made her way around the counter, being careful not to bump into the sharp corner. She saw Marissa snigger across the other side of the room as she maneuvered her hips around the table.

"Well, the chocolate is a constant, it's safe. Boring. You get it way too much." She paused, kicking herself internally for admitting she had paid attention to what he bought. "But the jawbreaker is fun, colourful. Maybe a little riskier, but what's the harm in a little candy?" She brushed her hands against his as she reached for the overly sweet treat. Intentional, but not obvious.

"Sounds fun, I think I'll go with that then, after you made such a convincing argument." He gazed into her eyes, as she tried to keep herself from losing herself in his.

"You chose the right day to take a risk. Reaping Day. Free candy."

"Don't worry, I'll pay," he said, smitten with her even more than he was when he entered the store.

"Are you sure? It's just one candy," she replied, knowing he'd pay anyway. Her kindness wasn't great for business, but all the boys in town wanted to pay anyway because of her charm. And who was she to refuse their attempts to win her over?

"Exactly, it's just one candy. And if I go in, I want you to remember me as giving you what you deserve."

"And what do I deserve?" Kaitlyn grew breathless.

"Everything I can give you."

The pair leaned in for a kiss, Kyle holding Kaitlyn in his arms. It went on for longer than Kyle wanted to admit, but it happened and they loved it.

"See you after the Reaping?" Kaitlyn asked.

"See you then," he replied, walking out of the store with his jawbreaker.

Kaitlyn's best friend Marissa walked over, having watched the entire interaction.

"Nice job!"

"Thank you, thank you, hold the applause," she said, as she made her way back behind the counter.

"He's really cute. I knew you were good but I didn't know you were that good!"

"Neither did I. Maybe this time's different. I actually kind of like him."

"Don't you like everyone you flirt?"

"Kind of? It's hard to explain. It's like, yeah, they're cute or whatever but I'm only really doing it for fun. This time though, my insides were exploding. Wait. Is this how it feels when other people talk to me?"

"Probably. Hey, you want to go to the square, pick up someone with the threat of death looming over our heads?"

"No, no, and no," Kaitlyn responded, smiling.

"Buzzkill."

"Look, A. I have to stay here and give people candy. Here you go, by the way," she said, momentarily switching her attention to a customer. "B. No one is going to die, that was just a way for me to get kissed. C. I don't want Kyle to see me flirting right after kissing him."

"And you can't just come to support me because? I could die, you know."

"Maybe it's just the optimist in me, but that's not going to happen. And I can't support you, remember? See reason A. Hold on, I have a customer."

Kaitlyn perked up, switching into customer service mode. "July 1st, free candy! What do you want?"

"Uh, do you have any newspapers?" the intimidating boy asked, his azure eyes piercing Kaitlyn's soul.

"Nope, but there's some two doors that-a-way," she replied, pointing to the right. "Want a free candy before you go?"

The boy, not much older than Kaitlyn, seemed to be on a mission, but he grabbed a raspberry chocolate as he walked past.

"He's kinda cute," Marissa said. "Will you come with me to approach him? He's only two doors down." She leaned into her friend as Kaitlyn pushed her away.

"No way, I don't think he's that into either of us."

"But a challenge!"

"No!"

Lincoln Haywood, 16, D11M - 11:30AM, 01/07/207

The newspaper had two purposes. First, he would be able to see if he had been caught, which was crucial. If he knew, he would be able to run away, or at least prepare for his death. Second, he'd be able to hide his face if necessary.

Like from that blonde in the candy store. Her friend, who he was pretty sure ran the shop, seemed bubbly, but at least a bit respectful. Her friend was something else. Did she not know how paper thin the walls were?

Lincoln walked over to the newspapers, shoving the raspberry chocolate into his mouth. Not half bad. The front page didn't bear his name or image, just a reference to his, for a delicate term, activities.

Poor Penny Parks, the newspaper heralded. More on page five.

He began to turn the page, almost tearing them with his speed, as a voice snapped him out of his trance.

"You'll have to pay for that, kid," the gruff voice spoke.

"Sorry. It's just such a tragedy. She was my friend, you know. I can't believe someone full of life could be so dead." Crocodile tears began to fall from his piercing azure eyes, making them almost glow in the dinghy store.

Did he care for her? Not really. Did he care to not get caught? Absolutely.

"Alright, kid, didn't ask for your life story. Just pay the money and make your way over to the Justice Building."

Lincoln handed over the coins and read the newspaper on his way to the Reaping, but that was the last thing on his mind.

"'Full of life,' called it. 'Such a sweet girl,' sure she was. 'Body not found' and it never will be. 'Must be the work of the so-called Disappearance Killer because the bodies are never found, they just disappear.' So I have a nickname now. Awesome," Lincoln muttered until he got to the Peacekeepers' station, where they took his blood.

I have to be more careful, he realised. If he ever killed someone important (read: Capitolite), his blood would be on file. He wouldn't be able to leave any evidence from his body, the Capitol could track that.

Lincoln made his way into the 16-year-old male section as Viola Nightshade made her way to the stage.

The Reaping had begun.

Kaitlyn Taylor, 15, D11F - 12:00PM 01/07/207

"Welcome to the Reaping of the District 11 tributes of the 97th Annual Hunger Games!" Viola Nightshade announced.

She went through the same spiel she did every year, talking about the Victors and the Capitol, playing the same propaganda. Did anyone actually listen to these?

Kaitlyn took this time to study how the escort had changed her look over the past year. Viola Nightshade was the youngest escort on the circuit, but one of the most experienced. As such, she kept up with every new Capitolite trend. Her skin mimicked the night sky, a deep blue flecked with some rare stars.

Kaitlyn thought the rate spots of white strange. Didn't the Capitol see beautiful constellations every night, just as she did? How could they change the sky?

Viola's hair was more similar to what Kaitlyn knew. Her tight curls were piled high, creating a blue and white scene with the same texture as clouds. It reminded her of the cotton candy they sold in her family's store. It was in stock yearly, because it was so easy to make.

As the video came to an end, she wrote her guesses on the theme of the Capitolite fashion trends on her hand. It was a little game she played with Marissa. Even though they didn't know how to confirm who was right, it was fun to mock their false colours and artificial nature.

Sky

Nature

Time

Contrast

Distance

Above

Some guesses were more general, others were more precise. But you never really knew with the Capitol, you could only guess and hope.

Viola Nightshade opened her mouth to speak, and Kaitlyn saw the backs of the girls in front of her tense, preparing themselves for her sharp voice.

"Ladies first, shall we say?"

Viola put her hand into the bowl and pulled out a name. Kaitlyn didn't expect or fear anything, she held onto the dream she would be okay. All she thought of was the children in her candy store. She wished she had at least given one of them a treat on their final day at home.

"Kaitlyn Taylor! Come on up here!"

The girl walked up to the stage with a sad smile, trying to hold in her tears. For what she could still control, she wanted to be remembered as herself, the kind and cheeky girl.

Viola, to her credit, knew how to put on a show and boost her tributes. She would do neither if she forced Kaitlyn to speak, so she moved on.

"Time for the boys!"

She pulled out another name. "Lincoln Haywood!" she cheered.

The boy began to cackle, as if some twisted joke had been pulled on him. He stepped into the aisle to make his way onto the stage.

Wait.

Kaitlyn recognised him. The newspaper boy.

She was glad she stopped Marissa, he seemed unhinged, to say the least.

He muttered something under his breath, which she later discovered was "well-deserved" and "karma", but she didn't understand the second word.

Even Viola was taken aback, not knowing if she should push him further or shirk away. But the information she relied upon wasn't from her job, but her life as a teenager in the Capitol.

She stepped behind the pair, throwing out her arms. "Your tributes for District 11!"

She held for the unwilling applause, and made sure that, when she turned around, the Peacekeepers were there protecting her.

A/N: Hi everybody! I hope you enjoyed reading about the tributes from District 11, Lincoln and Kaitlyn, just as much as I enjoyed writing about them. Thanks to Paradigm of Writing for Lincoln and wiifan2002 for Kaitlyn! Feel free to drop a review if you have anything to say, and have a great day either way!