Chapter Twenty-Nine: Ignorance is Bliss

The Parade

Janice Goldfinch, Capitol Citizen

It's time for the big parade that happens once a year!

I can't wait for this. For the first time ever, we actually get to be right there, not just watching everything from a TV screen. This is going to be so awesome!

Daria and I are both trying to get a good view of the door (albeit, from separate positions), so we know when everything begins. It's really hard, though. So many big people standing in the way! Somethings, things like that can be so annoying.

As things turn out, we don't need a good view of the door! The noise coming from it is so loud that even without a good view of it, I can figure out that it's opening anyway.

The chariots are starting to pass by. I'm. So. Excited! And the crowd is so busy running towards the front to get a good view first that the section we're in is almost empty. Meaning, we can still get a pretty good view. Yay!

The chariot for District One is pulled by two pretty horses that both are all white. The two kids in them are both tall and serious. They're wearing these weird white clothes with what I think is supposed to be blood staining them. Of course, the costume is covered with so many sparkly gems I can hardly see it. The two of them wave for the crowd, but that's about as far as they get. Strangely, when they begin to pull away, the gems all start to turn red. I think that has something to do with there being more blood, but I'm not sure.

For District Two, two dark gray horses lead a chariot filled with another two serious kids. The boy- at least I think it's a boy due to his short hair- is wearing heavy metal armor and holding a sword. The girl (if it's a girl, anyway), however, is dressed as some kind of big bird and is crouched down next to her District partner. The boy waves for the crowd just like the first two kids did, but the girl isn't doing much except looking angry.

Why is she so upset? Her costume looks amazing!

Just like that, District Three moves along, their chariot being pulled by two light brown horses with patches over their eyes. Somehow, numbers and words appear to swirl around their chariot, switching from green to red and back again, even though I can't see what's making that happen. Both the boy and the girl are moving their fingers like crazy, but I'm not sure why until I see the glowing thing they appear to be using.

We might not have that much money, but we do have enough that I know what a keyboard looks like. What they're typing for, I have no clue. However, from this close, I can see that both of them are wearing these weird glasses that don't look like you can even see out of them, they're so shiny, along with black hoodies pulled tightly.

But then they move onward, and District Four takes their place. And their chariot looks awesome! Behind two reddish-brown horses, their chariot is covered in wave designs, and unless I'm mistaken it has a few inches of water in the bottom. Both the tall girl and the shorter boy are covered in green, well, something, and are holding shimmering tridents that are so bright I have to look away. They're mermaids. Not the most unique costume ever, but still pretty cool!

Then comes District Five. Both of them are wearing tuxedos covered in lightbulbs that flash and change color. They're waving like crazy to the crowd, but the crowd doesn't react back. That makes me sad. Maybe some candy would help. I take one of the leftover pieces of the bag Daddy bought us that neither Daria or I could finish and try to throw it to them. Somehow, I make a good throw, and the gigantic boy catches it in midair before smiling at me.

He. Did. Not. Just. Do! That!

I feel dizzy and like I'm about to fall over, but if I did that, I know the results would not be good. Besides, District Six is coming up, anyway.

The District Six chariot is odd. They're both wearing some sort of bulky suit with a clear pane near their faces, making it hard for me to see them. And there's this number that keeps flashing above their heads, counting down from ten over and over and over again…

Oh, I get it! They're astronauts! Just like on that cartoon I used to watch when I was really young, where three friendly astronauts had to save twelve planets from destruction, teaching them the values of goodness and obedience along the way.

Right after I figure that out, the boy falls to his hands and knees for a split second before getting back up again. The few cheerers the chariot had suddenly stop, and everyone moves on to the next chariot.

District Seven, led by two horses that look much older than the ones we've seen so far, are wearing pretty classic costumes: the girl is dressed in a lumberjack outfit, complete with plaid clothing and a fake beard, and the boy is dressed as the tree, a blackened, gnarled thing that looks ready to tip over at any second. The girl clutches an ax that looks like it weighs as much as she does, and occasionally takes a swing at the tree. Not too hard, but enough that a dull thud comes out whenever she makes contact. The girl barely seems to acknowledge the crowd, and even if the boy did, I couldn't tell, since he doesn't have arms.

Then comes District Eight. And that's the first District I feel bad for.

Both of them appear to be stitched into some kind of enormous patchwork quilt, with only their legs and faces sticking out. The boy, a taller, skinny-looking kid with yellowing teeth, is all smiles, but the girl seems kind of… blank. She freaks me out a little! I'm not sure whether I want to stick around or run away screaming. Before I can figure that out, though, the girl topples with a screech, and the boy has to move over to try and help her up, at least as much as the costume will allow.

They probably can't catch it, since they can't use their arms, but I hope I can get some candy to them and make them feel a little better. My first few throws miss, but one piece lands right on the chariot, at the boy's feet. I watch it for as long as I can, but then District Nine passes by and I lose focus.

Both the boy and the girl are wearing brightly colored, tight-fitting clothing and crowns on their heads, and they both clutch at a glowing thing that I'm not sure how to take. Tall, brown stalks of what I think is fake wheat are clustered around them, making me even less sure of what they're even supposed to be.

Oh well. You can't win them all.

Then comes District Ten. And now I'm really confused. These costumes don't make any sense together! The boy wears some kind of oversized hat, along with a brown jacket and badly-ripped jeans. He even has a fake mustache and what appears to be a toy gun. (I know just enough to know that real guns aren't bright yellow.). However, the girl has flowers woven into her hair, along with a pretty flower-patterned dress I would love to be wearing. She even has a bunch of flowers in her hands. However, all that does is make me more confused as to what they're supposed to be.

There are only two chariots left to go, meaning I'm kind of sad when the chariot for District Eleven comes along, being led by two horses who look far older than I am. The boy is what I'm assuming is a farmer, complete with a hoe and a straw hat. However, I can't even see where the girl is supposed to be. The only other thing in their chariot is a bush with some greenish fruit or something on it that I don't recognize! What gives?

Then the bush moves a little. Before I flee screaming, the tiny part of my brain that actually has some sense in it makes me realize that that's probably what the girl is wearing, and I just can't see her.

District Twelve brings up the rear. Their chariot looks like it could fall apart at any second, and the horses don't look much better. Both of them actually stop in front of me for a few seconds, panting, before continuing to drag the load behind them. Both of the kids in the thing are dressed up like some kind of bird, I don't know which. At least, the boy is. Before I can even blink, the girl rips off her costume- the top part of it, at least- revealing her tiny form. Without hesitating for even a second, she hurls the thing out of the chariot.

Straight at me.

It hits me in the front, knocking me to the ground. The thing is much heavier than I expected, as I struggle to get to my feet and show it to Daddy, who isn't too far away.

However, some mean man snatches the thing away from me before I can take three steps! How rude!

And as it turns out, he's not the only one. A woman grabs the costume away from the man, then two more people join in, and in seconds, it's before a full-scale battle. I turn to try and get it back, but then come face to face with Daddy, who's clutching Daria's hand.

"Sweetie, it's time to go."

"But-"

"It's time to go."

He then takes my hand and begins to lead us away from the parade grounds, adults fighting and yelling and screaming behind us.

This parade, even if I didn't get the costume from that girl from Twelve, was awesome!

I can't wait for next year's parade.

Author's Notes:

-Yeah, this came out quick. I might be a few minutes late to the one-year anniversary of this fic going online (or I might not) but I still banged this out pretty fast.

-Trying to replicate the innocence of a ten-year-old Capitolite was pretty hard- I had to rewrite it a few times to get the hang of it. (Special mention goes to DefoNotAFanGirl, who gave me the idea of all the Capitolite cartoons being propaganda. It should have been a logical step to take, but it went completely over my head last time.)

-Just to clarify things, here's a list of all the costumes that were NOT made clear in the chapter:
-Nascar and Clara: Roman gladiators.
-Godric and Galadia: Warrior and his hunting falcon.
-Rhaemyr and Sotia: Stereotypical computer hackers (like the kind you'd see in cheesy movies).
-Marius and Toren: Fairy king and queen. (Had to stretch that one a little)
-Faolan and Artesia: Old-timey outlaw and Demeter. (Yes, I know those don't go well together. It'll get chalked up as their stylists not communicating well)
-Odysea: An olive bush.
-Maxxer and Fox: Canaries.
The others are easy enough to figure out if you actually read the chapter.

-One more pre-Training chapter, then we start to get into the good stuff.

-See you next chapter!