Liesel Leenheer, 17

"Fuck you. Fuck you very, very much."

(Eleven Months Before the Reapings)

"Liesel! We can't be up here! We'll get caught and we could get arrested—"

"Aw, come on, Noor! Have a little fun in your life," laughs Liesel, pulling her girlfriend along by the hand. "No one is going to see us. It's late at night, and this tower is taller than just about any other building in 5!"

She's not wrong. This building, which Liesel's family just happens to own, is one of the tallest in all of District 5. It's so high up, and so far away from the power plants, that you can see the stars if you squint. People aren't exactly allowed up here, ever since one of the Leenheers' workers pitched themselves off of the roof a few years back, but that's never stopped Liesel before. It's certainly not difficult to steal the keys to the roof and come out here late at night.

Still laughing, Liesel pulls Noor closer to the edge of the roof. The stars twinkle dimly overhead, some constellations vaguely visible through the clouds of pollution. 5 is not as bad as 6 or 8, or even the Capitol, but the sky is still dimmed by the smog.

"Seriously, Lise—we shouldn't be up here," Noor says, adamant.

"You're no fun," Liesel chirps, sitting down with her legs hanging over the edge.

"Liesel! You might fall," Noor says, grabbing on of Liesel's hands in an attempt to pull her back.

"I've done this before, Noor," Liesel answers, leaning forward and looking down toward the streets below. From up here, all of the people and lights appear to be little ants, scurrying around with little purpose aside from hunting for money. "And I'm still alive, right?" She grins and pulls those puppy-dog eyes she knows Noor will just melt for and reaches up for Noor's hand. "Come on, sit with me."

"I…I don't like heights very much, Lise," Noor says, rubbing her arm nervously.

"Oh," Liesel says, immediately springing to her feet. "I—I didn't know. I'm sorry, Noor."

Noor takes a step closer to Liesel. "It's…fine. I'm…fine."

"We can go back inside if you'd feel better," Liesel amends, taking both of Noor's hands in hers.

"No—no, it's fine. If I just look up…it's really pretty," Noor smiles up at the sky and the distant stars, her eyes shining.

"…if you're sure," Liesel says after a moment, staring up at the sky as well. "I wish we could see the stars better."

Noor looks back to Liesel. "You know, we could get caught up here."

"Well, I'll get off easy," Liesel says casually, shrugging. "I'll just give the keys back to my parents, and we'll never speak of the incident again. That's kind of how it works around here. I mean, last week, Tena came home with a boy on her arm at three a.m. and all she got was a lecture."

"Yeah, okay." Noor throws back her head and laughs. It's a beautiful, singsong sound that makes Liesel's heart explode. God, does she love her girlfriend. Everyone says it's a relationship that will never last. They're not even adults yet. They'll obviously break up eventually, right? Liesel says they're all wrong. She and Noor will, with any luck, get married one day.

Liesel grins and closes the space between her and Noor. She leans in and kisses her girlfriend on the lips, a kiss which Noor immediately returns. Liesel sort of loses track of time—that tends to happen when she kisses Noor—and when they pull apart, Liesel's cheeks are flushed. "Gosh, I love you," she says quietly.

"I love you too," Noor answers, resting her forehead against Liesel's.

Nothing could break this up, Liesel thinks. There's nothing that can come between us.

(Nine Months before the Reapings)

Ohoho, is she wrong.

Liesel knows that Noor was out at a party last night. She knows Noor probably got drunk. But she never expected this.

She told Noor she was going to come by this morning. Which means Noor knew she would come by.

"Liesel…!" Noor exclaims, bolting upright in bed. Liesel takes note of the fact that she's completely naked. "I-I didn't think—I didn't know—what are you doing here?"

Liesel is, for once, too horrified to speak. She stares at Noor with anger and shock evident in her face, her eyes bouncing between Noor and the girl next to her in bed. She recognizes the girl's long mane of red hair. It's one of Noor's co-workers, Iona O'Hare. A girl who has slept with half of the girls in District 5.

Noor jumps to her feet, grabbing a shirt from the floor and rushing closer to Liesel. "Liesel…I-I-I'm sorry! I didn't know you would be here so soon and I…"

"Have you done this before?" Liesel asks quietly, her voice hollow.

"…maybe once or twice," Noor admits, clasping her hands in front of her and staring shamefacedly at the ground. "Different girls, I'm so sorry…"

"I can't believe you!" Liesel shouts. "I thought we fucking HAD SOMETHING! You know what? Everyone else was right! This was a relationship that could never last! So, you know what, Noor? Fuck you. We're done. We're breaking up." With that, Liesel whirls around and storms from the room, her furious footsteps echoing through Noor's house.

"W-wait! Lise! Liesel, please, come back! I'm sorry!" Noor yells, hanging onto the door frame of her room, Iona standing a few feet behind her and casually putting her pants back on. "Liesel!"

But Liesel doesn't come back.

She runs out onto the street, seeing nothing but red. She sprints until she reaches her own home, jamming her key into the lock so hard she misses and stabs it against the door instead. Steam practically pouring from her ears, she yanks open the door and shoves her way into the house.

Ignoring the questions of her family, she stalks past them and up the stairs. She slams the door of her bedroom in Tena's face.

It's odd that Liesel feels no need to cry. There are no tears in her eyes. The only thing that fills her veins is anger. Absolute fury for no one but Noor. Liesel loved Noor. She loved her more than she loves her family. She loved her more than anything else in the world.

And Noor has the audacity to cheat.

Who gives a fuck if Noor was drunk? She still made the decision to get into bed with Iona O'Hare. She still made the decision to go out and get drunk in the first place. She still made the decision to take at least two other girls to bed. Liesel finds herself wondering just how long Noor has been cheating on her. Days? Months? Maybe even for the whole two years they've been together? Just how many girls has Noor taken to bed with her? Just Iona? Maybe that one girl, Honora? Or Amberly Cristan? Coraline Folsom? For all Liesel knows, Noor could fucked Tena before.

She clenches her fists as she stands near the shut door of her room, breathing heavily with her eyes screwed shut. "I cannot fucking believe this!" she shouts furiously, whirling around and punching her fist against the wall. Her knuckles scream at her, but she finds the pain feels good. She slams her fist against the wall again and again before she stalks over to her desk. She snatches up a picture of her and Noor together, smiling and laughing. It's a moment that has now been forever lost to the void of time, a moment to never be repeated. Whatever she and Noor had is gone.

Liesel never knew it was so easy to fall out of love.

(Three Months before the Reapings)

"Liesel! Hi!" Dyna exclaims, waving and grinning excitedly at her girlfriend. "I didn't know you'd be coming by today. How are you?"

Liesel amends a small smile. "Hi, Dyna. I'm pretty good today, actually. How about you?"

"I'm doing great!" Dyna says, her grin only growing. Liesel doesn't quite understand how Dyna can manage to be so peppy all the time, but it's not like she and Dyna will be together for the rest of their lives. Eventually, they'll break up. They just don't click in the same way that Liesel and Noor did. But Liesel needs some way to make Noor jealous, and Dyna Halsey is the best option. After all, Noor had a crush on her for years, and Liesel has to wonder if she ever stopped truly pining after her. "So, I assume you want something?"

"Can we go for a walk?" Liesel asks. "Or are you busy?"

"No, I'm not busy," Dyna replies, reaching for Liesel's hand. "Where do you want to go?"

"Oh, I don't know," Liesel says, although she certainly does know. "How about we head that way?" She points toward the direction of one of District 5's only parks, a place she knows Noor goes to study every day at around this time. Besides, Dyna isn't all that smart. It's not like she'll ever figure out what Liesel is actually going for.

"Sounds good to me!" Dyna says, powering forward.

As they approach the park, Liesel peers through the fence and spots Noor laid out in the grass. Satisfied, she leads Dyna through the gates.

"I'm going to dash off to the bathroom, okay?" Dyna says, letting go of Liesel's hand.

"Okay," Liesel says. "I'll be over on that bench." She points to a bench placed a few feet away from where Noor lays, engrossed in her books.

Dyna nods and hops off to the bathroom as Liesel walks over to the aforementioned bench. She flops down and leans back, stretching and looking up to the sun.

"…Liesel."

She looks up at the sound of Noor's voice. "Oh, Noor," she says flatly. "I didn't see you there."

Noor shuts her book and meets Liesel's eyes. "Is it pointless to apologize again?"

"Yes," Liesel mutters sharply. She raises her voice. "It's not my fault you cheated on me."

"I'm still sorry," Noor says, her voice sincere.

"You're just sorry you got caught," Liesel growls. "We had something, Noor. I thought I could spend the rest of my life with you. I suppose I was wrong."

Noor grimaces and reopens her book. "I never meant to destroy our relationship, Lise."

"Yet you did," Liesel says curtly. "And besides. If you didn't want to ruin our relationship, then you shouldn't have cheated in the first place."

"I'm still sorry," Noor repeats.

Liesel spots Dyna returning from the bathroom, and presses on. "So, how's school going? Having difficulty paying the bills? I bet it's pretty hard to get through college without my family's funds."

Liesel knows she's hit a sore spot with that remark.

"I'm doing my best," Noor says in a low, venomous voice. "I'm still going to get through college, with or without you."

"Oh, look. Here comes Dyna," Liesel says, getting to her feet. She starts to walk away when Noor calls out to her.

"You need to grow up, Liesel."

"And you need to fuck off," Liesel says without turning around. "You ruined our relationship, so now you should pay for your mistakes. So, yeah. Fuck you."

With that, she quickens her pace and heads off to meet Dyna.

Bayou Hacksom, 18

"You gotta be careful. Sometimes there'll be a snake in the water, ya know?"

(Six Years before the Reapings)

Bayou knows he's in for it when he realizes he is walking alone, after dark, behind Faustus with a gang of tidewater trainees following him.

Backwater trainees aren't exactly popular around Faustus. Or anywhere in 4. Nobody really likes backwater citizens except for their fellow throwaways. After all, they're the scum that they don't really show on T.V. Bayou can't remember the last time a backwater trainee managed to make it into the Games. He plans the change that, but he has his doubts. He's been training since he was eight, and even with six more years ahead of him, it seems doubtful that they won't find some bullshit reason to kick him out. That's what happens to most backwater trainees, anyways.

He can hear the voices of the tidewater trainees, laughing and joking together as they wander, on the prowl. He knows their names well; they're considered the best trainees in his year, the ones who will undoubtedly volunteer one day. Their leaders are the shoe-in boy and girl in their year: Matira Kendari and Lir Solomon. Both of them are plenty bloodthirsty, seeming more like they should hail from 2 instead of 4. They, assumedly gaining the feelings from their parents, hate the few backwater trainees of Faustus as much as anyone.

Bayou takes a deep breath, stopping under the street light with his eyes shut.

"Well, if isn't Backwater Bayou," Matira says in a low voice.

Bayou glances down at his shoes. "Hey there, Matira."

Lir gives him a hard shove from behind, but Bayou doesn't stumble. He's grown enough muscles in the past few years that he doesn't fall over himself when someone dares to touch his shoulders. Bayou turns around to face them, looking apathetic at best.

"What?" Lir says mockingly. "You gunna fight back this time, huh?" He's clearly trying to (rather poorly) imitate Bayou's drawl.

Bayou doesn't really remember who throws the first punch. All he knows is that it wasn't him.

Because the next thing he knows, he's laying in the gutter, covered in bruises and drying blood, his feet sticking into the streetlight at an odd angle. He rakes through his memory for what exactly just happened, and comes up with random snatches of a fight. A punch thrown at his eye. His fist slamming into Lir's nose. Somebody kicking his stomach, forcing him to the ground. His head hitting the hard blacktop on the street. Him elbowing Matira in the stomach. His teeth sinking into one of Lir's goon's arm.

His head pounds and the stars above are slightly blurry. He squints and shuts his eyes again, drifting off for a moment before a voice brings him back to the present.

"…Hack?"

He carefully turns his head to the side, wincing in pain as he squints at the figure in the shadows. "Mm," he ventures as he lets his eyes slide closed again. He's pretty sure he recognizes that nickname, but he's kind of tired and his eyelids are heavy and, well…sleep sounds pretty good to him right about now.

"Bayou." He hears them again, and suddenly someone is shaking his shoulder.

"Mm…" he hums, weakly lifting his arms and pushing the stranger away. "Leave m'lone…"

"Bayou, open your eyes," the stranger, their voice feminine enough for Bayou to assume that it's a girl (maybe someone around his age as well) commands, still shaking his shoulder.

Bayou obliges, forcing his eyes open and staring up at the girl's slightly blurry face. After a few moments, he recognizes her as his friend Marjorie. "…hi."

"Hack," she says, her eyes shut and sounding slightly disappointed. "what in the hell happened to you?"

It takes Bayou a moment to process what she just said. "…Lir and Matira?"

"Ah," Marjorie says. "Alright, come on."

"…wha?" Bayou mumbles, wincing again as Marjorie grabs his arm and slings it over her shoulder. "What're you doin'?"

"I'm takin' you home," Marjorie says firmly, dragging Bayou to his feet. "Come on. I'm not just goin' to leave you here, now am I?"

Bayou doesn't answer. He's too busy trying to remember how walk. His feet just don't seem to be cooperating. Occasionally black spots start dancing in his vision, but he continuously manages to fight them off and stay awake. He would really rather not pass out right here with Marjorie. For all he knows, she could just leave him on the side of the road. Honestly? It wouldn't surprise him if she just dropped him to the ground right now.

They slowly run out of streetlights as they leave the tidewater part of town. The backwater area is more friendly, less snobbish, but generally more trashy. The mayor never bothered to put streetlights into the area, meaning they live mostly in the dark.

Bayou doesn't really pay much attention. After all, his head is pounding in his skull and everything is kind of blurry and he's pretty sure his nose might be broken? And he's definitely going to have a bruise on his jaw tomorrow. One of his ribs might be broken? Or at least bruised? That's what he's guessing, at least.

"You don' happen to have a key on you, do you?" Marjorie asks, bringing Bayou back (slightly) to life. They're now both standing in front of the Hacksoms' dumpy little house. Bayou can see the silhouettes of his family moving around inside, their shadows cast on the brown lawn through the curtains.

"…no," Bayou murmurs, letting his head loll sideways and rest on Marjorie's shoulder.

Marjorie purses her lips and knocks on the door with her free hand. They stand on the doorstep for a few moments with Bayou leaning heavily against Marjorie before the door is pulled open by Bayou's little sister.

"Marjorie? Bay—what happened ta you?" Etienne exclaims. "Ma! Ma!"

"Who's at the door, hun?" Bayou's mother says concernedly, appearing over her daughter's shoulder. "Bayou! Marjorie! Goodness gracious, Bayou!" She reaches for Bayou's free hand and pulls him inside. She helps him over to the couch, where he collapses and promptly passes out.

So maybe he gets in trouble the next day at Faustus. But the satisfaction he feels when he sees Lir's black eye and the bruises on Matira's face makes it all worth it.

(Two Weeks before the Reapings)

This is the day Bayou has been waiting for for ten years. This is the day he finally, finally gets what he has been waiting for. At last, at long, long last, this year's volunteers will be announced.

Bayou sits in Faustus's auditorium while the trainers and Victors stand on stage, reining in all of the over-excited trainees. Marjorie, being only seventeen and being considered underprepared for the Games, isn't present, which leaves Bayou sitting with the other two backwater trainees who have made it this far.

"Alright, alright!" Aran Delarosa, the head trainer of Faustus Academy, calls from the stage. "I know you're all excited to find out who our volunteers for this year are, but you have to be quiet before we can make our announcements!" He manages to garner a few laughs from the trainees in the audience, but most people are too on edge to smile. After all, this is, for many of them, including Bayou, their last chance to get what they've trained for. If not, that's ten years of their lives they've wasted. "As always, we will start off with our female volunteer. If you are interested in the tier list, please see the bulletin board outside the auditorium. Our female reserve volunteer is…Matira Kendari!"

There's a smattering of applause, but the loudest thing in the room is Matira's shout of "I CANNOT FUCKING BELIEVE THIS! I SPENT TEN YEARS OF MY LIFE FIGHTING FOR THIS SPOT! AND WHO IN PANEM COULD BE BETTER THAN ME FOR THE SPOT?"

Aran powers on, curtly asking Matira to come to the stage. "Thank you for that lovely speech, Miss Kendari," he says tersely. "And now, our female volunteer is…Ottilie Blackwell!"

Bayou looks around. He recognizes that name, but he's pretty sure she's not eighteen. Or even seventeen. He watches the girl head to the stage, walking with pride in her step and realizes she can't be more than fifteen. That's new, he thinks, biting his lip. They said Marjorie couldn't compete for the spot because she was too young but let a fifteen-year-old take the spot?

"And now, onto the male," Aran continues. "Our male reserve volunteer is…Crockett Montgomery!"

That one is no surprise to Bayou. He practically knows the spots already; the reserve is Crockett, and the volunteer is Lir. He knows he should allow himself at least a little bit of hope for himself to be chosen, but what's the likelihood when there are people like Crockett and Lir running around?

Once Crockett steps up to the stage, Aran smiles at him and continues on. "And finally, our male volunteer is…" The pause feels like it lasts for hours, despite being no longer than any of the others. It's a stretch of time that will change the course of Bayou's life. Either he goes into the Games, or he doesn't. One way or another, his life will change with this announcement. "Bayou Hacksom!"

For a moment, the world stops spinning. And then Bayou shoots to his feet and makes for the stage, a grin splitting across his face. He shakes Aran's hand as he stands on the stage, looking triumphantly out across the audience of trainees.

He'll prove everyone wrong. Everyone who says no backwater trainee can win the Hunger Games will be sorry they ever said he can't make it out. He'll make his family proud, come home, maybe finally get with Marjorie, and spit in the face of every person who ever said he can't do it.

So, yeah, fuck the tidewater trainees. Fuck Lir. Fuck Matira. Hell, fuck Ottilie Blackwell.

Either Bayou wins, or he doesn't. And it's certainly going to be the former.

Sterne Colvin, 14

"I'm not sure if I'll make it back home, but if I die, somebody's coming with me."

(Three Months before the Reapings)

Sterne is no stranger to being asked if he's doing okay. And unlike many people he's come across in his fourteen years of traversing the streets of District 5, he is, in fact, just fine. So maybe he makes some jokes about death. So many he makes jokes about his little amount of will to live. But it's not like he's ever going to make good on that. It's not like he's ever going to go suicide. No, Sterne Colvin finds life far too entertaining to just end it of his own accord.

So, Sterne is just fine. Honestly, it's begun to get rather annoying. Like, he's just trying to hop a fence into one of the rich-people parks. Just leave him be when he hops a fence. That's a seriously bad time to start asking somebody about their wellbeing.

"If I were to climb this fence and get spotted by a Peacekeeper, d'you think I would shot on sight or arrested and executed?" Sterne asks Ty and Ricky as he tests the strength of the fence. It will definitely hold his weight.

"I'd say you'd be arrested, but I don't think you'd be executed. Probably just given a few dozen lashes," Ty answers nonchalantly, his hands in his pockets.

"Hm," Sterne says. "Seems worth it to me." With that, he places his foot in one of the holes of the fence and pulls himself up. There's enough trees on the other side of the fence to shroud him in shadows. It would take someone expressly looking for him to spot him. "But…do you think, if I were to jump off the top, would I crack my neck?"

"That's an awful thing to say!"

Sterne turns his head at the sound of a girl's voice instead of Ty's or Ricky's. "Uh, what?"

"Are you okay? Like, how can you just talk about that kind of thing?" the girl continues, seeming completely affronted.

"It's not like I'm actually going to do it," Sterne mutters, shrugging. "It's just a joke."

"I'm sure it's not very funny to someone who has been in the Hunger Games!" the girl exclaims.

It's a comical statement, and although Sterne knows it's not supposed to be funny, he still laughs. "Well, when that happens, maybe I'll stop joking about cracking my neck. Until then, I'm gonna continue laughing at things I find funny, thanks."

"My sister happened to die in the Hunger Games last year!" the girl cries. "She fell and cracked her neck, you—you—you heartless jerk!" The girl storms away, sounding like she's about to start crying.

For a moment, Sterne is quiet. He grimaces and says, "Didn't realize that."

"Yeah…" Ty says. "Oh well. Are you gonna climb the fence or not?"

Sterne laughs, shelving the incident for later as he starts to pull himself further up the fence. As he climbs higher, the branches from the trees inside the park start to get caught in his hair as they hang over his head. After a few minutes, he reaches the top and swings his left leg over the edge of the fence.

As he straddles the fence, trying to figure out exactly how he should climb down, a new voice interrupts him. "Stop, boy!"

Uh-oh, Sterne thinks, looking up to see two Peacekeepers charging across the park toward him. Gotta get out of dodge. Quick.

He swings his leg back over to the other side and drops toward the ground. He grabs Ricky and Ty by the wrists and pulls them away from the fence, noting that he didn't break his neck as he runs for an alleyway.

His feet slap hard against the ground as he lets go of his friends' arms, hoping they're keeping up with him. At last he reaches the safety of the alleyway and ducks into the shadows, waiting for Ricky and Ty to catch up.

"Well," he says, putting his hands on his hips. "That certainly didn't go very well. Maybe we should try…not breaking the law next time. Sound good to you guys?"

"Definitely," Ricky says, sliding down the wall. "I'd rather not get arrested. I don't want any scars on my back."

"Same," Ty agrees.

"I don't know. Scars sounds pretty cool to me," Sterne says, shrugging.

"Yeah, but you could die from infection," Ricky mutters, getting to his feet. "Should we head back toward your house, Sterne?"

"Yep," Sterne agrees, following Ricky down the alleyway.

He knows the streets of 5 well. He's been to practically ever corner of the city, investigated every nook and cranny, and met almost every person who will talk to him. It's not everyday he and his friends get into something that could get them arrested, since even Sterne would really rather not die or get whipped. After all, no matter how much Sterne jokes about it, death is not fun. And the longer Sterne can out run it, the better.

They slow their pace as they get closer to Sterne's house. It's where they tend to hang out; he has the nicest house of any of them. The only downside is Sterne's older brother, Burton, who views Sterne as a nuisance and nothing more. By default, that means that Sterne's friends must also suck shit. Or at least, that it what Sterne assumes. Burton doesn't exactly tell him why he hates him so much. Aside from his sense of humor, of course.

But that's not really anything new, is it?

"Hello there, boys," one of Sterne's neighbors, Mrs. Solano, says cheerily. "How are you all doing today?"

"As great as always, Mrs. Solano," Sterne says, grinning. "How about you?"

"Oh, I'm fine," she answers. "Just heading out for my shift at the power plant."

"Don't die!" Sterne calls after her. It's one of his favorite ways to say goodbye. And besides, it's pretty good advice, isn't it? It would really suck to hear that Mrs. Solano got caught in the machinery and died. Mrs. Solano is a great neighbor, after all. She makes good cookies, and used to babysit Sterne and Burton when they were really little.

He, Ty and Ricky make their way past Mrs. Solano's house and into the Colvin home. It's comfortable, a cozy place, and Sterne is always happy to return to it. Even if it means having to deal with Burton again.

Ty flops down on the couch, Ricky taking the floor and Sterne sitting on the coffee table. "So, that was a close one today, wasn't it?" Sterne asks, fiddling with one of the coasters sitting on the table.

"Yeah," Ricky says. "Let's not do anything illegal for a while, sound good? I'd hate to see you get hurt, Sterne."

"Ah, come on, guys. I'm strong. I could survive a few dozen lashes," says Sterne.

"Could you survive the Hunger Games, though?" Ty asks, his voice soft. "I mean, you could crack your neck like that girl from last year's Games and—"

"I can dance with lady death any day of the week," Sterne says confidently. And sure, he probably could, but he'd really rather not. He can joke about death all the live long day, but the moment he's really faced with the prospect…he doesn't really know what he'd do. Maybe he'd run? Yeah, he'd probably run. If he runs, it's less likely he'd get killed or seriously injured.

Sterne lays back against the coffee table, staring at the light hanging above his head. He's strong. Surely he could survive the Hunger Games, even if all he did was run and hide. Who knows? Maybe Sterne Colvin would be the first Victor to ever make it out without taking a single life. It would certainly be one way to make his mark on Panem.

A/N: Sterne's intro is very short. That's because I'm finishing this when I'm supposed to be asleep, and I'm afraid my parents are going to hear me typing.

1. Thoughts on Liesel?

2. Thoughts on Bayou?

3. Thoughts on Sterne?

4. Favorite of the three?

Next: Eris, Calista and Quinn.

-Amanda