District One Female: Treasure Lace (17)
"Treasure!" My father's voice sounds through the fairly thin walls of our house. "Why in the world are you not up yet!"
I groan and turn over. I'm too tired to leave bed. It doesn't help that it's the reaping either. I really shouldn't be that worried, as there are so many trained and bloodthirsty girls in the district, but I can't seem to help it.
"Treasure honey," My mom's voice calls, sounding nicer than Dad's ever could. "Saffron is up and getting ready. You'll have to be ready in twenty minutes if you want to walk with her!"
This propels me out of bed. Saffron is nineteen and my next door neighbor. She and I have been as close as sisters ever since she moved in when I was four. She is out of the reaping age, so she doesn't have anything to worry about. But me? I have two more years.
I rake a comb through the mess of black curls that doubles as my hair. It never does what I want it to do, and stubbornly refuses to make me look pretty. My mom always says that it's because I didn't eat my vegetables when I was younger. Of course, now I know that she's just teasing, but when I was small, I think I consumed more lettuce and carrots than anyone in the district.
I throw on my reaping outfit, the same one I've worn three years in a row. My family isn't really that well off. My parents work as furriers for a rich family, and they don't get too much money. It doesn't really matter to me, especially as richer families always seem to afford and force their kids into the academy. Most of them turn into bloodthirsty monsters, and there is no way I could do that. I'd probably end up getting kicked out and disappointing my father.
Again.
He's never liked me much, and I only have the slightest idea as to why. He wanted my mother to have a boy. I was a girl. He wanted my mom to have another kid (preferably a boy), but it hasn't happened. She got ovarian cancer, and she was forced to have them removed. My dad was furious. He didn't blame her, he blamed me. I can't even think as to why. He is stern and is always telling me off.
"TREASURE CRYSTAL LACE! YOU COME DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW YOU LITTLE-" My father everyone. The sweetest guy ever.
His voice is silenced by my mother, who is the only one who can get Dad to calm down. She sticks up for me a lot, because I'm too scared to do it. Yes, Dad doesn't hit me, and occasionally he jokes with me, but he always can turn mean and cold in a second. And besides, nothing ever says that he won't start hitting me.
I adjust my gray dress, gray scarf, dark gray leggings, and grab my gray jacket. Everything about my outfit is kind of disappointing to an outsider, but I'm not drab, depressed, or colourless. I just happen to like the simplicity of gray.
I sprint down the stairs at top speed and am greeting with the fuming face of my father. He controls himself however, and simply says, "Hurry up next time, will you?"
My mom is cooking something. Normally we just eat oatmeal and occasionally toast, but today my mother is making pancakes. It's a special meal, once a year, and I always make it last as long as possible.
Today is no different.
I grab a plate and take three, each one stacked on the other. I drizzle them in honey, which isn't too expensive, and take a seat. My father sits across from me, and Mom sits next to me. I eat painfully slowly, even though I really want to inhale my meal. Dad disappears behind a pile of paperwork, and Mom and I proceed to pretend he isn't there.
"Excited for the reaping?" Mom looks at me, her narrowed eyes seeing right through my fake smile.
"Um," I falter. Somehow, I can't seem to meet her eyes.
"Treasure." My mom sounds sterner than I've ever heard her sound.
"No. No I am not," And without further ado, I start to rant about the reaping and how I'm not ready and how I have this feeling I'm going to be reaped.
"Honey," Mom reaches over and squeezes my knee. Her small, chocolate-brown hand is delicate to the touch. "Even if you are reaped, someone will volunteer. That's why it's so great to live in District One."
I nod and change the subject, not convinced. "Is Saffron almost here?"
My mom tosses back her black curls, which look so much like mine, except on her, they look good. "Should be soon. Why don't you start walking?"
I stand up and take my plate to the sink. When I'm sure she isn't looking, I lick the remaining drops of honey. Then I toss the plate into the sink, wipe my hands on the dishcloth, and run out of the house.
As I sprint out of the doorway, I knock into something. Or someone. I scream and fall over. The person I ran into does the same. I groggily sit up and rub my bruised head, nervous that it's Shimmer Paris again.
Shimmer is the daughter of the wealthiest family in District One. By wealthy, I mean seriously wealthy. Shimmer, so far, has worn a different outfit every day, has slaves that wait on her, and her driveway alone is almost a mile long. The Paris family also happens to be the most influential family in District One, and it doesn't help that she hates my guts.
When I was in the fourth grade, I brought a lunch to school. Mom always would give me tomato soup, tessera bread, and cheese. Shimmer was in my class that year, and we ate lunch in our classes. I was taking my soup back over to my seat, after the teacher helped me open the container, and I was looking down at my feet.
I ran straight into Shimmer Paris. Shimmer screamed so loudly you would've thought the building was on fire. She started yelling at my, her shrill voice punctuated with angry shrieks. I could only mutter an apology while she yelled at me for burning her and ruining her pink dress.
The same week, coincidentally, my parents were fired from the Paris company. They scrambled to find work, but they never rose as high as they were. We were forced to sell most of our things, and we had to stop paying for someone to come and fix our house.
Now everyone, besides Saffron, a boy at school called Jet, and Saffron's cousin, Satin, are too afraid to talk to me. I don't fully mind though. I've never liked conversation very much.
I look fearfully up at the person I ran into. With a whoosh, I let my breath out, and stand up. I help the girl to her feet and then grin.
"Hey Saffron."
Saffron glares at me. "Thanks a lot Treasure. Now I have a freaking dirt stain on my dress. And you messed up my hair."
Saffron touches her blonde ringlets, which are actually perfect. Still.
"They're fine," I say impatiently. "C'mon, if we hurry, we can watch them set up the stage and stuff."
"No," Saffron looks back at me, abandoning all attempts to fix her clothes. "No, lets go meet Satin."
"Ugh," I groan disappointed. "That child is a demon disguised as an angel. I swear, she's going to freaking kill us all someday." I wince as Treasure punches me, a bit harder than necessary.
"Please? I promise she'll behave!" Saffron begs me, and we both know who's going to win this battle.
"You said that last time." I mutter, but reluctantly allow Saffron to drag me in the direction of Satin's house.
Satin, who just happens to be Saffron's cousin, really isn't a child. She's actually a year older than me, but whatever. The way she acts, she may as well be an eight-year-old girl. She's bouncy and peppy and hyper, she sometimes loses her train of thought and starts the whole sentence she's saying all over again. I pretend to hate her, but no one can. Her happiness is contagious.
When we reach her small, squat gray house, she's already outside, bouncing on her toes and humming a song under her breath.
"Oooh! Hey!" Everything about Satin bounces, from her blonde ringlets to her tiny feet. "I didn't know if you were coming, and I was gonna go ahead and leave, but I thought that I would wait, because it would be awkward if you showed up and I wasn't here!"
I nod and turn around. "Can we go now?" I call over my shoulder. "We have five minutes to get to the reapings."
The two girls jog to catch up with me. We walk in silence for a bit, and then without any sort of warning, Satin screams, "RACE YOU!" and takes off, her blue dress flapping in the wind.
"No." I say, grabbing Saffron's arm as she makes to break into a run. "No way."
Saffron makes a face. "You're no fun."
"Gosh, fine. RACE YOU!" This time it's me who takes off without warning. "Haha loser!" I call back over my shoulder.
We arrive at the reaping, breathless and panting. We both laugh a bit, worn out, but as I approach the station to get my finger pricked, the familiar panic seizes my chest.
You aren't going to get reaped. Stop thinking about it. Someone will volunteer.
My chant soothes me a bit. I barely notice the sharp stab of pain as the needle enters my finger. The lady shoos me away, and I mutter a goodbye to Saffron and Satin.
I walk to my section, pretending to not notice the wide berth the girls my age seem to give me. I look over and catch Jet's eye. He grins at me from the eighteen-year-old boys' section, and I smirk back. As usual, he's decked out in fancy clothes, giving condescending smiles to the poorer kids. I shake my head and smile.
Jet is a good guy, just a bit full of himself. As I see it, the more time he spends with me, the more down-to-earth he becomes. We could never be anything more than friends, and we even discussed it once, after someone told me he liked me, and not in the friendship kind of way.
I'm jerked out of my thoughts by the feedback from the microphone. Everyone winces. Our escort, Euterpe Bloom, ascends the stage, the usual sickly smile stuck to her face. Her severe face gazes out over us, her cold blue eyes searching us, and her blue hair pulled back so tightly that it's pulling at the skin on her face.
I probably shouldn't judge her, but I think she ought to look a bit more happy. I mean, she's escort for One.
"Hello District One, Happy Hunger Games, May the Odds be Ever in your favor, etcetera, etcetera, let's watch a video-" She rushes through all of this. I couldn't be more thankful.
"Oh, no Mayor, you are NOT reading that speech this year. Oh no mister, don't you look at me like that I'M LATE!" Euterpe's shrill voice fills the still air, and titters sound all around as the Mayor disappointedly sits.
She plays the video, and I proceed to zone out.
What seems to be a few minutes later, I hear her voice once more.
"Okay, I'm picking the ladies first and all that, if you have any objections speak now or forever hold- No, no that's for weddings." She makes her way to the girls' bowl and I close my eyes.
Not me, not me, not me. I chant.
Euterpe unfolds the card and leans forward. "Hmph." She looks up and down. She does this, keeping us in suspense as long as possible.
"TREASURE LACE!"
Me. Me. Me.
No, I'll just sit here and wait for someone to volunteer. Because somebody will. Right?
The crowd is silent.
"Lace, get your butt up here right now, I still have a boy to pick. We don't have all day." Euterpe's words are like ice. To the Hunger Games. Me. Me. Me.
They picked me.
A girl shoves me from behind, and she speaks loud enough for the peacekeepers to here. "Go. That's you."
Before they can reach me, I speed-walk around them and find myself on stage.
I fight the conflicting emotions on my face, but I feel confusion take over. Why isn't anyone volunteering? Where's the girl who was supposed to volunteer?
"Volunteers, going once, twice, three times!"
I blink. I'm going to the Hunger Games.
I miss the boy's name, preoccupied with my fate. Why? Why? Why?
I'm ushered into the Justice Building, where I'm put in a small, velvet room, and told to sit, because this is where I can say my goodbyes. I will myself to stay strong, and I succeed for about ten seconds.
I break down as Mom rushes in. "Ooh, Treasure, baby, honey, it's okay, it's okay. You can do it. You can!" She puts me on her right knee and rocks me, back and forth, back and forth, just like she did when I was small. I cry and cry, silently though.
"Here." I look up, and I see Mom hand me a small package. "Your token," She smiles. I open the box, and find a small, shining, diamond ring sparkling up at me. Mom's anniversary present from Dad. I start to cry again.
As soon as the peacekeepers come, I let out a scream. It must have been terrible, because Mom also starts to bawl. "Let me stay a bit longer, please!" She begs the entire way as they drag her out.
"Bye Mommy," I whisper.
As soon as she leaves, Dad walks in.
"God Treasure, were you crying? No, Treasure you can't. You have to seem strong."
His words are strict but his voice is tender. '
"Daddy, I'm not strong." I whisper, but my tears slowly dry up.
Dad actually takes my face and uses his thumb to swipe off the ones that linger. He hasn't been this loving and caring since I was born, basically.
"But you hate me." It's a statement, comes out of my mouth before I can stop it.
To my surprise, tears fill my dad's eyes as well. "No, sweetie, I don't hate you. I love you so much. I love you so much babygirl. Don't ever think otherwise ever again."
I sob, and we embrace. He feels safer, stronger, more comforting than anything else I could ever remember. We're broken apart by a peacekeeper, and I think, that the scream I let out for Dad is worse than the one for Mom.
I let my tears dry, and all of a sudden three figures burst in.
"It was her!"
"That witch!"
"That bi-"
"What?" I ask, before Saffron could finish her sentence. "Slow down please."
Satin spills the whole story, quickly and efficiently. A girl called Sparkle was meant to volunteer. She didn't because I was reaped. She didn't because she was afraid of Shimmer, who had caught her eye and given her a glare and a shake of the head.
"It doesn't matter now," I sigh heavily. "I'm going into the arena."
"I should've volunteered!" Satin cries, and then promptly bursts into tears.
"You couldn't have," Jet says. "Your parents would lose their job, and you wouldn't have enough to get by on."
"Shut up Jet." Saffron puts an arm around Satin's shaking form.
"Guys," They turn and look at me. I mean to give a speech about how much I love them and how amazing they all are, but all that comes out is a hoarse, "Bye."
"Bye." They all say back. I think I even spot water in Jet's eyes. Tears.
The peacekeepers come, and I am alone and afraid.
oOo
So. Hey. First real chapter up and ready to be reviewed. They're kind of long, so the boy isn't in this chapter. A special thanks to A M4D TE4-P4RTY for Treasure Lace. She was super fun to work with, and I hope you liked the way I portrayed her. Next chapter coming soon! No specific review questions until the next chapter, so just give me an overall review: What did you like, what didn't you like, suggestions, et.
Bye Lovlies!
Grace