Hazel Elm, age 13
District 7 Female
For once, my mood wasn't shifting as I watched the reaping crew walk onto stage: our escort, Eltheia, the mayor, and the victors. It was just a reminder that the reaping for the giant Quell was today. Twelve kids were about to be sentenced to their death.
My leg bounced from nervous energy. I knew it was stupid - everybody gets nervous during the reaping - but I couldn't help it. Having already gotten through my first reaping, I knew firsthand how anxiety-rising this was, amplified six times because of the twist.
I could hear the twelve year olds behind me, some of them whimpering and crying. I wanted to comfort them so badly, but I couldn't. Eltheia was at the microphone, beginning her spiel.
"Hello, District Seven!" she called enthusiastically. There was no response, and Eltheia cleared her throat and presented the video like she did every year. That helped to calm me down. A normal routine was good. But once it ended, the anxiety returned.
"Alright, now lets chose your tributes!" Eltheia trilled. "As always, ladies first." She sashayed over to the girl's reaping ball, and grabbed a slip from the very bottom.
"Here we are," Eltheia said. "The first female tribute is Miss Hazel Elm!"
My breath caught in my throat. This wasn't happening. This was a nightmare, right? I was scaring myself, right? My parents couldn't lose me. Not after losing Spruce when she was so young.
The Peacekeeper's hands on my shoulders made me panic. I couldn't go! I wasn't going to survive! But the Peacekeepers didn't care. They guided me to the stage, while I was sobbing.
I was going to the Capitol, a tribute for District Seven.
Luciana "Lucky" Brown, age 18
District 7 Female
I was still sore from last night. My arms ached and I could barely lift them. Maybe taking the dare to see just how much I could lift wasn't a smart idea, especially considering how much I'd had to drink last night. That tree trunk was pretty heavy, but I got it off the ground.
To my girlfriend, Gaia, my drinking was an issue. I didn't know why. She would always tell me I was an alcoholic, but I wasn't. I only had the occasional drink here and there, okay? Not enough to be considered an alcoholic. I wished she could be standing here with me right now. But she's nineteen. Gaia's finally safe from the reaping, so all I have to do is get out, and we'll be set to live the rest of our lives together.
But, of course, I had my family to think about.
It's not like I was their main source of food and income. Everybody in my family took out one tesserae, while they were still eligible for the Games. My oldest sister, Tansy, was twenty so she couldn't take any out. But the rest of us did. Me, Bruce, Spring, even little Oaken. But we did what we had to get by.
As Eltheia chose the second name, I thought about last night. There was always an annual party for the eighteen year olds to have good luck in the reaping, but also to have an amazing final night in the district if you were reaped. I did so much crazy stuff...to pass up a dare was like a sin to me. It was just something I had to do.
"The second female tribute is Luciana Brown!" Eltheia called. A large rock fell into my gut, and my stomach clenched around it. Blinking back tears from pure terror, I forced a smile. As I walked out of the eighteen year old section, I started waving at the cameras, trying to make a good impression to the Capitol. I mounted the steps and took my place as tribute next to the other girl. Looking out into the crowd, I found every single one of my siblings in their reaping pens, then Tansy and my parents in the perimeter. Then Gaia. She looked absolutely heartbroken, and that look almost made me cry. I didn't want her to be like that.
Eltheia quickly chose another slip, and unfolded it. The name nearly caused me to pass out.
Spring Brown, age 14
District 7 Female
The reaping was boring. There was so much more to watch besides a bunch of kids being picked to go die. My head whipped up, a fast flash catching my eye. Whoa, it's a bird! That was cool. It flew by so quickly...That cloud looks like a fork.
I gazed past the heads of everybody else and into the forest. District Seven was the best! There were so many trees to climb, it was all pretty in the fall when the leaves changed, and there were lots of places to explore in the woods. It was so fun. I asked Lucky if I could go with her to the party last night, but she said no. And I asked her why I couldn't go. And she said...I can't remember. Too many little details. I probably wasn't listening after she said no.
Somebody put their hand on my shoulder, stopping me from bouncing on the balls of my feet anymore. It was my friend, Amarielle, who was always the calmer one in our friendship. Honestly, I didn't understand how she could be so calm all the time, without any energy or anything. It was...She has something on her face. Wow, her hair is smooth. I wonder if she'll let me touch it.
"Hey, calm down," Amarielle said. "That can wait until after the reaping, right?" I just nodded eagerly, starting to space out again, when I noticed Amarielle's face was white, whiter than the snow that comes in the winter during blizzards. She was staring at me in horror. I frowned. "What?
It was then somebody grabbed me, and that somebody was not Amarielle. What was going on?
"Will Miss Spring Brown please come to the stage?" Eltheia asked, and the realization hit me. I was reaped. Tears poured out of my eyes; sobs shook my body. When I looked up at the stage, I cried harder. Going into the Games was bad enough.
Going in with your older sister was a million times worse.
Maple Setvkins, age 18
District 7 Female
I knew I should have cared. Those two girls who were reaped were sisters! But I couldn't bring myself to pity them, even as I watched them embrace each other on stage, the younger one sobbing. Even I could see that, despite being almost a foot shorter than everyone around me. If it wasn't helping my family get money and a home, frankly, I didn't care.
My family and I worked at the lumber yards, like a majority of the district. What was unique - or, well, miserable - about our situation was that we didn't have a home to return to after a hard day's work. We either slept in the yard or out on the streets. The only bright spot was that I was so small - barely five feet - people thought I was younger and they took pity on me. They would give me food scraps and things like that.
My parents always told me not to worry, so I never did. I trusted that they would fix it.
That was six years ago. They never did.
I craned my neck to get a better view of the stage, all of the jokes people could have made at my expense swirling in my mind. There was the classic "How's the weather down there?" Or "Hey, can you help me fix my collar? Oh wait, you can't reach." The possibilities were endless. I cracked jokes all the time, but hearing ones at my expense was different.
The sound of Eltheia clipping across the stage filled my ears, then the slight ruffle of papers as she picked a piece. She strutted back to the microphone, and I just barely saw her unfolding the slip. "The fourth female tribute is Miss Maple Setvkins!"
Immediately, I put a mask over my face, washing it with emotionlessness. It felt like my intestines were reconfiguring themselves into different swirls, while ants marched up my back. Not the Games. Anything but that. Let me live on the streets the rest of my life, or work in the yard until my fingers snapped off.
Anything but being a tribute.
Ava Burnham, age 16
District 7 Female
"So then I said 'Better safe than sorry, am I right?'" I whispered to the girl next to me, smiling. She sighed, looking exasperated and annoyed, but I took another breath to continue my story. "Then Rowan took my sandwich and took a bite! Then..." I babbled on and on, retelling the entire affair to the girl, who still looked annoyed. She gave me a look of pure annoyance and I paused mid-sentence.
"What?" I hissed, ready to defend whatever I had said. She simply put a fighter to her lips and looked back to the stage. A wave of anger washed over me.
"Fine," I whispered. Then I sighed. The only person who ever listened to my stories and actually had a conversation with me was my older brother, Bark. But he died a few years ago, after a tree fell on him. Well, he wasn't the only one. I had my friends, Rowan and Leaf, and they put up with me. They genuinely enjoyed my company, unlike my mother. She was rude, and even though she tried to tone it down, she never did with me. Sometimes, I wondered what my father ever saw in her.
I combed my fingers through my brown hair, smoothing it out as Eltheia plucked another slip out of the bowl. She crossed back to the microphone, and unfolded the paper. Eltheia cleared her throat and called out the name, "Ava Burnham!"
Instinctively, I looked around, searching for the girl who's name was called. Where was she? What was her name... Ava Burnham? Ava Burnham. Oh, no. Please no. My eyes burned, and I blinked back tears. My body shook as I stepped into the aisle, almost falling from my jittery legs. I furiously wiped my eyes, not wanting to cry.
I climbed the steps, and took my place next to the rest of the girls. Fifth girl reaped - I had almost made it. Almost survived another year. But the unreal numbers in this Quell didn't spare anybody. Two sisters, a little girl, and me.
All subjected to die in a few weeks' time.
Willow Kandle, age 12
District 7 Female
I picked another string off of my dress. Just the fact that the fabric wasn't perfect black gave me anxiety. It neeed to be neat and clean and - was that a piece of lint? I quickly brushed it off.
If something wasn't perfect, I fixed it. It was as simple as that.
After I finally finished plucking all of the flaws from my dress, I rolled my eyes and looked at the girl next to me, who I recognized as Drea Leifs, the granddaughter of Mimosa Oakley. I smiled at her. "The reaping sure is terrible, huh?" I said, loud enough for several girls around me to hear. Drea gasped, looking horrified at my boldness. So did all of the other girls.
"What?" I said.
"Don't insult the Capitol at it's prime power showing," Drea whispered. "It'll get you in trouble." I smirked.
"I'm not scared of the Capitol," I said, all of the other girls paling and turning away. They just didn't understand. The Capitol was just a big city flexing it's muscles trying to scare the districts. They got my sister, Lily, under their grasp, but not me. Maybe that's why I was so bold and standoffish all the time.
Eltheia selected the final slip, then crossed back to the microphone. I watched as she unfolded the slip, and Drea glanced timidly at me. "The final female tribute is Miss Willow Kandle!"
I'm going to die.
I know this update is a week late. I'm sorry, but last week I just didn't have a writing drive and Fanfiction was being weird. But, here are the District Seven females! Thanks to:
Foxfaceisthebest for Hazel,
SparkALeah for Lucky and Spring,
Fire'sCatching for Maple and Willow,
and BabyRue11 for Ava.
I hope I did them all justice! This chapter's song: This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things by Taylor Swift.
I posted the D5 poll a few days ago, so go vote if you haven't already. Again, sorry to keep you all waiting. Next chapter, we'll get to meet the males for District Seven. Until then!
-D9T