"Well, what great, great news! What is your name, dear?" Courtney smiles widely, glad for a solution to the issue she was not trained to solve.
"Zane Crutch." He stands next to me, but doesn't look my way. I felt like I knew him, but I had no idea where. He was taller than me, strongly built, unlike many in this district. He must work in one of the factories. I watch him carefully, unsure of how to approach the matter as Courtney Spark babbled on. His deep blue eyes were trained on the crowd, and it was difficult to read any sort of emotion from them.
"And now tributes, you may shake hands, and will be escorted into the Town Hall. May the odds be ever in your favor." Courtney eyes us encouragingly, and Zane smiles slightly as he shakes my hand, but then quickly changes back to being expressionless once more. The change in emotion was too quick for any of the cameras to catch, and as we were escorted into separate rooms in Town Hall, I was left wondering why he was willing to risk his own life for my brother's.
Scanning the room I was sent to, I sit on the couch and feel the soft, worn velvet under my legs as my feet tap impatiently. I remember this part, but I never thought I'd be sitting on the other side of the door, waiting for the Peacekeepers to escort my brothers and parents in to say their goodbyes.
I begin to pace, unsure of when they'll exactly allow my family to see me. It didn't feel like I had been waiting this long to see Kurt eight years ago.
Finally, a Peacekeeper opens the door and my parents come running inside.
"You have three minutes," he says, and shuts the door as my parents crush me under their arms and drown me in fresh tears.
The three of us collapse onto the velvet couch and none of us say a word. My father repeatedly kisses my forehead with his glasses practically falling off his nose. The only sounds in the room are my mother's sobs as she strokes my hair.
A Peacekeeper comes too soon and tries to usher my parents out. My mother hangs onto me and sobs louder, making it harder for me to keep my tears inside. A Peacekeeper pulls her off of me as she yells my name. Before my father is dragged out, he hugs me one last time, and whispers in my ear, "I'm so proud of you, baby girl. If I could, I'd bet every cent we have on you. We'll all be rooting for you." I tear up as he is dragged out of the room by a Peacekeeper and the door shuts behind them.
I fall to my knees on the floor and stare at the closed doors. All emotion is gone as I slowly begin to realize that I may never see my parents again. That the last memory I'll ever have of my mother is tears streaming down her face, her black hair mixing with the few grey strands as they fall onto her cheeks and out of her bun.
No tears fall, and I am numb. It feels like a century before the Peacekeeper reenters with Dean. He sobs as much as my mother and hangs onto my neck whispering how sorry he is and how he wished he could have stopped me and how scared he was that he'd have to go against me. His thoughts spill out a mile a minute as I rock him back and forth, rubbing his back and listening to every word.
"Ebby don't go. Don't go don't go don't go I can't let you go!" He screams at me, his blue-eyed gaze holding mine. He shakes and digs his dull nails into my shoulders. I barely feel the pain. "When you told me to run I did, I did what you said I couldn't hurt you Ebby, you gotta run they'll find someone else they can't take you away!"
His nose begins to run and he sniffs loudly, wiping it on his sleeve. He babbles and carries on the Peacekeeper comes back and pulls him out of the room, our three minutes up. He screams and kicks and I get a brief view of my father holding him back before the door is shut once more.
I sit back against the couch, now terrified that my baby brother could watch me die on the television screen. My parents will lose another child if I don't try my hardest to win. I hug my knees to my chest, digging my nails into my knees. I leave little pink half moons in my skin and hope that wherever the arena is, wherever we'll be staying, I'll have a view of the sky.
The Peacekeeper enters one last time with Chris in tow. Unlike my other family members, he has shed no tears, and comes and sits next to me against he couch. He sighs loudly and grabs hold of my hand, his finger entwining with mine.
"I feel like I cried myself out eight years ago when Kurt was in the games. I was terrified of losing my older brother and being responsible for you and Dean without any guidance. He was so much older than us, and had so much more experience. And now look at what has happened with me in control. Both of you were reaped in one day, and I couldn't do anything to stop it."
"Chris, this isn't your fault. The Capitol, it's all a game it's all chance…"
He sighs again. "I know, but I vowed I'd protect you and now that you're leaving, I can't. I can only watch. You're strong Eb. And you're smart. You'll come home."
"What makes me any different from Kurt? He had the highest marks of any of us, and he was physically stronger even at such a young age. What gives me more of a chance to win?"
"He didn't have a token." Chris shushes me before I say anything. "You know how superstitious I am. Some people in the games are lucky enough to have a token from their district. Kurt didn't bring anything from home. You on the other hand, will."
He pulls a silver chain from his pocket. There's a small, beat up iron gear on the end of it. "Because you've always held us together. And you always will." He unclasps the chain and clasps it around my neck, letting the gear rest just below the line of my dress. I'm speechless and just sit there fingering the outline of the small gear. "I found it in the factory one day. It was just sitting there, lying on the ground. There was nothing in the area it connected to, so I pocketed it. I was going to give it to you for your birthday, but when you got reaped I ran home and got it. That's why I was so late to see you."
I hug him tight as the Peacekeeper comes to take my brother away.
"I love you, Eb. You're better than those Careers. I'll see you when you get home."
"I'll see you then, Chris…" And the door slams behind him leaving me alone one again.
My token is warm to the touch, and I hold it close to my heart as Peacekeepers usher me from town hall and onto the train to the Capitol.