Reapings

District 1

"Mable slow down, you're going to choke," my mother scolded me from across the table. She snatched my fork from me before I could shove more egg into my mouth, "Chew."

I glared at her as I reached across the table and grabbed back my fork, "but mom, it is Reaping day! I need to get there quickly so I can get a spot near the front."

"Well, you won't even get there, let only get near the front, if you're on the floor suffocating because you have bacon lodged in your throat," she stated matter-of-factly. This earned her another glare.

"Why don't I take a piece of bacon and shove it down your throat? Then would you stop pestering me?" I grumbled, as I put the remaining piece of egg in my mouth. Now it was my mother's turn to glare, but before she could retort, I spoke again, "Fine, but I have more important things to worry about."

Elbar rolled his eyes at this, "Like what?"

Rage boiled up inside me as I turned to face him. What gives the piece of vermin I call an older brother the right to challenge me? He's the one who not only chickened out of volunteering each year, but disappointed my parents too. After a lifetime of training, he told them that he would win the games and bring us fame and fortune. But whenever his chance came, he would never volunteer, simple saying, "I'll do it next year!" Well guess what? Next year never came, and now he's too old to enter the games. He was just to scared of losing his pitiful life.

"You wouldn't know, now would you? Coward!" I hissed at him. I pushed my chair back with such force that I almost knocked over the table as

I left. I shot him one last glare before I stormed off to my room.

I grabbed my brush from my desk and roughly began to comb the knots out of my short brown hair. Oh how I would love to backhand him with this right now. My pathetic brother had failed to bring honor to my family, and that was something I was determined to do. When I came home from winning the games, I would rub it in his face so much, that he would leave our house out of pure humiliation. Then I could actually be an only child, which I often pretended I was.

The only thought that was kept me from lashing out was that soon it would be the Reapings.

I threw on my dress and then admired myself in the full-length mirror. I looked stunning. The dress is a beautiful red colour, which contrasted nicely with my dark hair. It would have been short, but considering I'm short myself, it went down just below my knee. Black lace made intercut patterns on the dress and added a girly touch to my strong figure. I hated being girly, but I have to admit it looked pretty. Anyway, I had to look perfect for the fools at the capitol.

"Mom and Elby, I'm leaving!" I shouted as I went to open the front door.

"Stop calling me that, Mable!" Elbar yelled back from upstairs. He must have been getting ready for the Reapings as well.

"Shut it, Elby!" I shouted at him, "And bye mom!"

I made sure to slam the door extra loud just to bother Elbar. I breathed in the cool morning air before I began to walk down the street, towards the square. Not many people were out, which was good. The only people that were seemed to be eager careers like me. Too bad there was no way that I would let them volunteer before me. I watched them huddle around in groups near the stage. The girls, gossiping about things that I could have cared less about, and the boys, all flexing, comparing their muscles. That's when I saw the young boy behind the group of girls. He seemed about 4, and was picking a small ball off the ground. That's when an older kid came over, took the ball from his hands and pushed him over.

What a little, stuck up kid! Who does he think his is? Before I could help myself I was over by the young child. I pushed the older kid to the ground.

"Lay off!" I spat at him, "You little snot nosed brat."

"What the heck was that for?" he asked as he nursed a bruising elbow.

"That was for picking on a little kid. And that," I replied, kicking him in the shin, "is for being you."

The young child laughed at this, and a smirk spread across my face.

"Who are you?" the older kid questioned me, scowling at my smirk.

"Your worst nightmare," I smiled at him, "so don't do it again."

I assumed he took this as a challenge, for he said, "Or what?"

"Or what?" I said thoughtfully, before coming up with a good answer,

"Or I'll find you and cut your disgustingly ugly face off."

"Mable what are you doing? The Reapings are about to start."

I whirled around to see my brother standing behind me, arms crossed.

"Torturing little kids again?" he said smugly. I would have punched him if my mother weren't close behind him.

"Yes," I answered sarcastically, "just be glad it's not you."

With that, I left, joining the other eighteen year olds by the stage.

My brother really knew how to annoy me. But now was not the time for plotting revenge.

I zoned out the entire time the mayor gave his speech about the rebellion and our punishment blah blah blah, and I'm sure I wasn't the only one. But when the crazy capitol lady came on the stage, I gave her my full attention.

"Hello District one!" she squealed into the microphone with her weird

Capitol accent. She flicked her blues curls out of her face before she continued, "and Happy Hungergames!"

I wrinkled my nose in disgust. How the Capitol found wearing bright yellow eye shadow all the way up to your eyebrows attractive was a mystery to me.

"Let's cut to the chase," she said, with a large, fake smiling on her face, "Ladies first!"

I tensed up. Now was my chance! I saw that other girls around me had done so as well, so I edged closer to the stage.

After a dramatic swirl of her hands, the Capitol lady plucked one of the names from the top.

"Topaz Cattermon!"

"I volunteer!"

"Oh! Come up here dear and tell us your name."

"My name is Mable Myers, and I am going to be district one's next victor."