Thanks to everyone that reviewed! I can't believe the story is almost at 100 reviews! Keep up the great work! BTW, it's Reaping day! :o

Chapter 13

I wake up at dawn, when the sunlight is just starting to peak through my window. I gently release Prim from me and tiptoe to the corner of my room to change. I put of my usual hunting clothes and grab my bag as I make my way out of the house. I hurriedly make my way to the fence, checking to make sure I cannot hear the low hum of electrical currents. You never know on Reaping days. Once I retrieve my gear, I jog to the rock where I wait for Gale. I always like to get here early and take in the beauty of the valley below me. It really is beautiful here, it's a shame more people can't enjoy it. It seems like I wait forever for him to appear. While I wait, I lie back on the rock and stare up at the sky and think about Merrick, and what happened last night…and what could have happened last night had we not been interrupted. My thoughts are broken when I feel a shadow on my face. I sit up and see Gale smirking at me.

"Daydreaming?" he asks.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." I say as I scoot over to make room for him.

"How's Prim doing today?"

"She was still sleeping when I left. Last night was pretty bad. How's Rory?" I ask with concern. It's his brother's first year in the Reaping as well.

"Terrified. I feel bad for the little guy. You can tell he's trying to hide it but you can see it written all over his face."

"And what about you? How are you feeling?" I ask with concern.

"I'm good."

"How many slips do you have this year?"

"42. What number are you up to?"

"Twenty." I say. I look over at Gale who's staring into the distance with a furrowed brow. He looks deep in thought.

"What is it?" I ask him. It's one of the few occasions where I don't know what he's thinking.

"We could do it you know…" he trails off.

"Do what?"

"Run away, you and I. Live in the woods. Be free." I don't where this idea is coming from, him thinking I would just run off with him. He looks to me for a reply but I'm sure what to say. "Or not."

"What made you think of that?" I ask him.

"I was thinking the other day…I thought that I could be happy if this was my life, living out here instead of working in the mines."

"And why would you need me?" I ask. I'm curious as to how I managed to fit into his plan.

"Forget it. It's a stupid plan." he says shrugging it off.

"It's ok to dream Gale." I say patting my hand on his back.

"Not in the sorry state we live in."

"It sounds nice…your plan. It could never work, but it would be nice." I tell him, hoping to make him feel better.

"Really?" he asks, his voice going up at the end of his question.

"Yes, you know I love it out here." I say with a smile. He returns the gesture.

"Oh, by the way, look what I shot." he said reaching into his hunting bag. He pulls out an arrow with a small loaf of bread pierced through the middle. I can't contain my laughter as I look at the ridiculous image. I pull the arrow from the bread and return it to him before inhaling the amazing aroma of the fresh bakery bread.

"How did you get this?"

"I already told you…I shot it." he says giving me a smirk. "Just kidding. I checked the snare line early today and found a few squirrels. The baker was interested and gave me quite the offer."

"Well I can only hope that the others will be as generous during our trades today."

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Gale says before putting on his best Capitol accent. "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds—"

"—be ever in your favor!" I finish after catching the berry that he threw my way in my mouth. He then slices the bread and we eat the warm bread and berries from the bush before starting our expedition. We make off with a good hull, and quickly make our way to the Hob to trade. We then make our way to the Mayor's house to drop off strawberries. Madge answers the door and Gale says some smart comments to her that deeply embarrass me. He knows that Madge and I are sort of friends. We walk back to the Seam, reaching his house first. He takes the food we bought and traded for at the Hob, since his mother will be preparing the celebratory meal as she always does. I say goodbye to him and anxiously make my way home. I can only hope that Prim has kept it together this morning.

I walk inside and find Prim and my mother are ready. I quickly make my way into the bathroom and scrub myself clean in the water waiting for me in the bathtub. I walk into my room and find an outfit laid out for me. It's a new dress, one I have never seen before. It is a soft blue and there is a pair of matching shoes to go with it. I quickly dress myself and my mother braids my hair and pins it up. Prim tells me I look beautiful. I shake my head and insist that she is the beautiful one.

We make our way to the square and I show Prim what to do and where to go. I stand with the other girls my age and look around crowd until I find Gale on the other side of the aisle. His eyes seem brighter than usual as he gives me a little smile and wave. I hear Effie Trinket's voice ring through the sound system and I know it's time to begin. A short video plays and then speeches are made before she announces that it's time to select the tributes. A panic rushes through me as I hope that no one I know is called. I look over to him as he mouths me 'Good Luck!'. I mouth 'You too.' back to him and then we turn to face forward. Effie reaches into the bowl, carefully selecting a name from the girls' bowl. She slowly opens the folded slip and reads the name. That is when my world falls apart.

"Primrose Everdeen." she calls. The crowd goes silent and everyone has a watchful eye as they wait for my sister to appear. I watch as she slowly makes her way to the center aisle. I feel helpless, like there is nothing I can do. Except there is something I can do. I've seen it happen in other Reapings. I can volunteer to take her place. I find myself pushing girls around me out of the way as I struggle to make my way to the center aisle. I shout her name and run towards her, not stopping until she's in my arms. "I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute." I shout loudly for all to hear.

The whole crowd looks shocked as most of them have never seen this happen before. Effie Trinket calls me to the stage. I feel Prim's grip tighten on me and I tell her to let go and to go find mom in the crowd. I then feel a hand on my shoulder and I turn around to find Gale behind me.

"I've got her." he said, taking a panic-stricken Prim into his arms. "Up you go, Catnip." he says, trying to keep his voice from wavering. I can see the emotion in his eyes though. He's clearly upset. Effie's bright and bubbly voice rings out as she calls me to the podium to tell everyone my name. She says something about being Prim's sister and I nod as I try to keep myself from falling apart. She asks for applause but the crowd remains silent before I see them kiss their three fingers on their left hand and extend them towards me. This happens in waves until everyone's left hand is saluting me, honoring me for what I have done.

Haymitch Abernathy, our only remaining Victor and town drunk, interrupts the moment, ranting about something that I don't care enough about to pay attention to. He then causes quite the commotion as he falls of the stage. Effie Trinket brings it back around to the task at hand and then draws the name of the boy tribute. It's Peeta Mellark, the son of the baker. I don't know him at all. I've never had a conversation with him in my whole life but I do catch him staring at me now and again. I've always wondered what that was about. What he could possibly be thinking? He looks nervous as he makes his way to the podium. Effie forces us to shake hands and then we are led inside the Justice Building, to separate rooms. Now is when our final goodbyes begin.

First, my mother and sister are escorted into the room by Peacekeepers. Prim rushes to me and holds onto me for dear life, telling me that I have to win. I tell I will try my best. I then give my mother instructions about what to do when I'm gone. I stress for her not to check out like she did when my father died. Prim needs her now that I will not be there. After a few minutes, they are shown out of the room and then Gale enters. I run to him and we embrace each other.

"I'm fine…I'm fine." I say. I don't know why I say this. No one who is reaped is ever fine.

"Katniss, I'm sorry about everything I said to you. All the times I was mean to you about Merrick. I only said it because I…" he pauses and he puts on a more serious expression. "You can do this…win this. Get your hands on the bow and it's yours."

"Gale, they might not have a bow." I say.

"Then you make one. There's always some source of wood in the Arena." he tells me. It is true, but I know I am not skilled at bow making. Making arrows to go with it is also a challenge. He then tells me the Games is just like hunting but I disagree. Hunting people is a lot different than hunting animals. I just nod back at him. The door opens and the Peacekeepers enter. I feel Gale pull me closer to him.

"Gale, don't let them starve." I shriek.

"I won't, you know I won't." he murmurs. "Katniss I—" His last words are cut off as the Peacekeepers yank him away from me and carry him out of the room. The door closes with a force. A minute later, Madge Undersee comes into the room and gives me the gold pin from her dress and asks if I'll wear it as my District token. I tell her I will and I let her fasten it onto my dress. She wishes me luck, and even hugs me before leaving the room.

I walk over to the window as I wait for the Peacekeepers come to collect me for the train station. I look out onto the square, watching small groups of people converse. Most of the people have already dispersed. I hear the door open and close from behind me but I do not turn around. I know it's not the Peacekeepers because I only hear one set of footsteps echoing through the tall room. I feel a pair of arms wrap around my waist. It's Merrick. He presses his face to my hair and breathes me in. I place my arms over his, making sure he won't let go of me. We stand there for a couple of seconds in silence.

"You can do this. I know you can. You're the strongest person I know." he tells me. "And the bow…and everything else you can do. I just know…" he trails off. I turn around to face him and I can see it's taking every ounce of him to keep himself together. I think about how this is the second year in a row he'll have a friend going into the Games. After what happened last year, I don't know how he isn't in tears.

When I look up at him, I think about my future and everything I will not get to experience if I don't make it out. I will never get to have sex. I wish I had had more time with Merrick last night. It might have happened. I also think about the fact that I will never get married or have children. I never wanted those things but now that they are being taken away from me, I think I might want them. Of course I would want something I could never have.

"I wish we had more time." I say with a sigh. Merrick leans down and brushes his lips against mine.

"What would you do with more time?" he mumbles. I feel the blush hit my cheeks. "Oh, those kind of things." he says with a grin, knowing that there is no way I'd say it out loud. "We'll have plenty of time, don't you worry." He must really believe in me.

"Merrick, kiss me." I whisper to him. He obliges and I feel his mouth on mine, kissing me with deep, passion-filled kisses. I feel his mouth leave mine, probably to explore other parts of my body, but I want none of that right now. I direct his lips back to mine and lightly brush my tongue against his, letting him know what I want. I hear him moan deeply before I feel his tongue dance around with mine. My hands grasp on to the fabric of his shirt and I pull him with me as I back up against the wall. His hips press against me and I feel a moan escape from my mouth. I release my hands from his shirt and lead them down to his belt. As soon as I begin to pull the belt away from the buckle, I feel his hands on mine.

"I don't think the Peacekeepers would appreciate walking in on that." he says with a chuckle.

"Yeah, I guess not." I say sheepishly. To be honest, I had forgotten about them.

"Don't worry, there will be time." he says cupping my cheek. "When you come to District 2 for the Victory Tour, I will be there, I'll make sure of it. And we can do whatever you like." he says nuzzling his nose against mine. I can't help but smile. The way he says it, it's like it's certain. That I will make it out of the Arena, that I will see him in his home district. His words give me confidence and I find myself actually believing them. I stand on my toes to give him a brief kiss and then the Peacekeepers come in. Instead of taking him away from the room, they take me, which leads me to believe that they didn't even know he was in there. They guide me to the car, where Effie Trinket and Peeta are waiting for me. The Peacekeepers shove me into the car next to Peeta's side. Effie drones on about something but all I can concentrate on is Peeta's tear stained face. I reach my hand over to his and give it a firm squeeze. Maybe I can be strong enough for the both of us. I see him look over at me with surprise, his mouth hanging open. I release my hand from his and turn to face out of the window. I watch District 12 rush by me and I try to take in every last glimpse of it before I leave for the far off land of the Capitol.

I make my way onto the train, and Effie leads us to our sleeping cabins, telling us we have time before dinner. I go into mine, locking the door before collapsing on the bed. I can no longer keep the tears in now that reality has sunk in. I am no longer in District 12, or with my friends or family. I'm headed to the scariest place a child in Panem can go, with only a small chance that I will ever return. Even if I do return, who knows what condition I will be in.

I hear a knock on my door and Effie tells me through the door that dinner starts in 10 minutes. I go to the bathroom and splash some cold water on my face before going to the dining car. When I enter, I see Peeta and Effie waiting at a table with elaborate place settings. Haymitch, our mentor, is still missing. We beginning the meal without him, gorging on the multiple courses they bring us.

Once dinner is over, we are escorted to another car to watch the Reaping Recaps. As I watch the brute of a boy from District 2 volunteer with a cocky grin, I can't help but wonder if he knows Merrick; if he was one of the friends that betrayed him. Other Reapings play on the screen and I size up the competition. The Careers look rather intense this year. They will definitely be a challenge. My heart sinks for those that I know don't have a fighting chance: the crippled boy from District 10 and the little girl from District 11. District 12's Reaping is last and I don't have the heart to watch. I already know what happened. I stand up and turn for my room, brushing shoulders with Haymitch as he appears in the car. Just before the door closes I can hear him vomit. I clamp my hand over my mouth as I make my way back, stifling the choking sound as my tears return. I fling open the door to my room and rush to my bed, burying myself under the covers.

"I don't want to be here." I whisper to no one.

Katniss is going into the Hunger Games (like you didn't see that coming)! I'm not going to spend much time on the Games in this story (a chapter or two). That's not what I really want to focus on.

Also, I need your help. Should Peeta die in the Games or make it out alive like in the original book. If he lives, it could complicate things with Katniss and Merrick but if he dies there will be no spark for the rebellion. What a dilemma! Let me know in your review or you can PM me to tell me which way you'd like to see the story go.

P.S. I was really tempted to put Merrick into the Games with Katniss but decided not to. I am planning on writing a spin off where that does in fact happen. Would anyone be interested in reading that?