As soon as the ceremony drew to a close, Dean was whisked away by a few rather large Peacekeepers. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the crowd's empty eyes watch him leave.

He was well aware that most of them believed that it was for the last time.

They held him in a small, overly embellished room near the train station. Once the Peacekeepers left, Dean felt as if a rock had been lifted off of his chest. Collapsing into a velvet armchair, Dean shoved his face into his broad hands, breathing in the distinctive District 2 smell of sand and stone. This was it; the Games had started. From this moment on, he was property.

There was no turning back.

Dean knew what his father would say during their final meeting. They would go over tactics and battle strategies, just like every other day. Their meeting would be a time of instruction, not one of love or compassion.

But when the doors first opened, it wasn't John who stumbled in. It was Ruby who wandered through the large stone doors, her eyes still swollen and red from her earlier crying.

"Ruby?" Dean asked, still hunched over in his chair. He stood to meet her, but she shoved him back down.

"Ok, listen up," she started, her inflamed eyes surprisingly frightening, "You win, Winchester, and you do anything to do it! You do it for me, got it?"

Dean stuttered at his threatening friend. He had always thought that she would win, so now that he was alone he had no idea what to think. Instead, he just sat and watched her ramble on.

"I-I," he eventually tried to respond, but the words he wanted to say just didn't flow.

"Yes, you!" she shouted back, cutting off his incomplete thought. "Now I'll see you after the Games, ok? And you will be alive and well, got it?"

Ruby left without another word. She did, however, pause by the door and turn for one last look. That one look, empty yet so full of regret, said everything Dean had wanted so desperately to hear from his father. She truly cared about him, even if she wouldn't show it.

"Thanks, Ruby."

He sat for a few minutes in the chair, a bit shaken by the emotional experience he hadn't expected to have. Breathing heavily, he tried to calm himself. The career tributes always looked the calmest, and he wasn't about to be the exception.

"Dean!" John burst through the doors, sending a decorative table and the countless fragile items on top of it onto the floor with a terrifying crash. Dean was on his feet in seconds like a soldier ready for battle.

That was always what he was, wasn't it?

"A little fidgety up on stage, weren't we?" his father said in a disappointed tone, his heavy black eyebrows arching unsympathetically. "Make sure not to do it again."

Dean felt his stomach sink. Managing to keep a straight face, he stood through his father's comments. This was likely the last time he would ever see him, so he fought the undeniable urge to talk back.

"Now, remember what we said? Stay with the other careers until you're close to the end, but spend that time learning their weaknesses, okay? If you let yourself think somebody might be too much for you, you'll never win, you hear me, son?"

Dean stared unwaveringly at the far wall, responding with a stiff nod. He knew he couldn't look into his father's eyes. Not again.

"And remember, son," he said, patting him on the shoulder as he turned to leave, "The Gamemakers love a violent killer."

.o0o.

Castiel was held in the town's City Hall for his goodbyes. He had never been in a building other than his apartment and the power plant, so the decadence was surprising. A sliver of what he could only assume was fresh air wafted out of a small vent in the ceiling, filling the room with a heaven-like aroma. Hypnotized by the smell, Castiel pulled a thin metallic chair over to the vent and climbed to get closer to it.

Taking in a single deep breath, Castiel imagined what it was going to be like at the Capitol. From what he had gathered through the past Games he had watched, it not only had much, much cleaner air than District 5, but was it completely and totally pristine. Not heaven-like, but a real heaven on earth.

Captivated by the smell, he didn't even notice Anna wander in the thick metal door.

"Cas, are you trying to escape through a foot wide vent?" she asked mockingly, causing him to almost stagger off the chair. "Because I don't think you'll fit through."

As he turned to meet her, he was quickly overcome by her embrace as she wrapped herself around his lanky shins. While they were a relatively close family, Anna had never hugged him like she did now. It seemed to last forever. Eventually, he felt a small damp spot form at the knee of his woolen pants. She was sobbing, and although he hadn't noticed it at first, he was too.

"I – I guess that's the end of the Novaks, huh?" she said into his leg, refusing to pull away for even one second. Castiel leaned over and held her long orange hair in his hand one last time. As much as it hurt, this awkward, perfect hug seemed an appropriate end to their wayward family.

"Yes, I guess it is," he responded solemnly.

Within seconds, Peacekeepers burst into the room and pulled the two apart.

"Time's up," one grumbled.

Castiel watched his older sister go quietly.

At least he wouldn't have to be alone much longer.

.o0o.

Sam walked very slowly, a wall of Peacekeepers surrounding him. None of his guides measured up to his six-foot-five frame. Had Sam been chosen rather than volunteered, he probably would have tried to overpower them. But he had volunteered, and he knew who they would send into the arena if he was killed trying to escape.

He hoped that no one would come to see him go, but he knew that wouldn't be the case. Dread plagued his mind as he realized who would most likely want to see him off.

As he had anticipated, Gabriel followed him into the room, relying on his cane to walk on his own.

"You idiot!" He shouted up at Sam, hitting him lightly with the walking stick. Sam turned to defend himself, but was thrown off by Gabriel's shockingly depressing expression.

"How do you function, you are so stupid!" Gabriel continued, his usually playful eyes on the brink of tears, "Why the Hell did you do that?"

Sam looked down at his friend with a soft smile.

"I owed you one," Sam said gently. "Plus, it wouldn't be fair, what with your leg."

Gabriel shook his head angrily, making a small mumbling noise as he did.

"The Capitol doesn't care about fair!" was all Gabriel could retaliate, balling his fists in rage.

"I know that," Sam placed his hands on Gabriel's shoulders, holding him in place, "but in my situation I can't think of a better way to spend my life."

Gabriel rolled his head back and laughed sarcastically, tugging his way out of Sam's grasp.

"Living is always the best way to spend your life!" he spat, his unparalleled anger burning in his eyes.

Sam tried his hardest to keep his smile. His friend had a point, but he still knew his decision was right.

"Then you live, Gabe," he finally said, playfully poking his friend in the shoulder, "You take over your family's business and live a nice long life with a wife and maybe even a few kids. You never would have made it, but I can. I honestly think I can win this."

And Sam finished his speech with a lie.