*DISTRICT 1*

*RENEE CHARLOTTE MITCHELL*
*SEVENTEEN*

Renee sits in a small, square room. The rug is thin and bright pink, and the walls are painted a sickening shade of ivory green. She wraps her arms around her knees and dips her head.

The door opens. "Renee?"

"Mom!" Renee leaps up and embraces her mother. "Oh..."

"Why did you volunteer?" Sarah Mitchell questions. "I thought we discussed this. No-"

"Don't you always tell me to do what's right?" She doesn't let either of her parents respond. "I volunteered for Lust Aldivore because I thought she'd want to stay home and take care of Achilles. I had no way of knowing he'd get Reaped too, okay?"

Her father, Thomas, swallows, and places a hand on Renee's wrist. "Then you did something you believed in, and for that I am proud."

"Thank you," she whispers, even though this isn't what she wants to be talking about, not at all. She has two minutes left with her mother and father before she enters a battle to the death, and all they can talk about is volunteering? She embraces them fervently. "I'm going to miss you so much."

"You have my dagger," Thomas says. "Use it. Don't be afraid. You can break our rules. You can even break the rules of Christianity, if you must. Do whatever you need to get out of that arena, darling, and know we'll be praying for you. And, live or die, our love for you will never cease."

Sarah inhales deeply. "Don't let the Hunger Games change who you are."

Renee can't make promises. She doesn't know anything anymore. "I'll... I'll try not to."

"Trying isn't goo-"

"Sarah." Thomas massages her between her shoulder blades. "We'll be rooting for you, darling," he tells Renee, before steering his wife out of the room.

::

"Have you known you were going to volunteer?" Talia Cunningham asks as she enters what Renee has begun to think of as her holding cell.

"Talia!" Renee grins as she throws her arms around her best friend. "I was beginning to wonder if you weren't going to come."

"You're kidding." Talia plops down next to Renee. "Speaking of people coming, Luca's out there waiting for you. But your guard wouldn't let us both in, so he's next. And my sisters wanted to come, but I told them they wouldn't... they couldn't..."

"Alright." Renee's smile drops off her face. "Please tell them I'll miss them."

Talia nods.

"And to answer your question, no, I wasn't planning on volunteering at all." She lowers her voice and leans in to speak into Talia's ear. "You know my parents would never stand for that."

"They looked okay when they left," Talia observes.

Renee shakes her head. "They're upset. But it doesn't matter now, does it?" Her fingers tap out a rhythm on the seat arm. "I miss playing piano already," she murmurs.

"I miss singing along." Talia leans her head on Renee's shoulder, and they both remember their years of friendship.

::

When Talia leaves, Luca James is the next to visit Renee. He doesn't speak as he walks in, and appears as though he's unsure as to quite what to say.

"That's a new one," Renee teases. "I've never seen you lost for words."

Luca still doesn't talk. He rubs Renee's temple, his thumb running circles over her neck. Her knees weaken. "Luca," she hisses, "not now."

"Sorry," he says, but continues.

Renee swats his hand away. "Stop. Seriously. We need-"

"What do we need?" he asks quietly. "Because I think you need to relax. There's nothing left to discuss until you get back, anyway, Renee, if you think about it."

She does. And because there really isn't anything to talk about, she lets him keep going.

*ACHILLES ALDIVORE*
*FIFTEEN*

Achilles lies on a heap on the floor, not sure whether or not he wants his sister and parents to visit him. All they ever were was mean to you, insists those little voices.

But they're my family.

The voices don't answer him, so he just stretches out on the floor, absentmindedly fiddling with a button on his turquoise button-down shirt.

A light knock sounds on the door, which is suddenly thrown open. A medium-tall woman with short auburn hair stumbles into the room. "Achilles?"

"Aunt Marie!" he exclaimes, getting to his feet and lurching toward her too quickly, enough to make her stumble backwards and throw her hands up.

"Whoa whoa whoa," she says, but she's smiling. "You don't know your own strength, Achilles."

He beams. "I do have muscles, don't I?" He flexes his arms. "That's what my training instructors say."

"You do." Aunt Marie tries to grin, but the corners of her mouth are turned down. She knows Achilles doesn't have a chance. Her kind, caring, helpful, innocent nephew is going to die.

And not only that, he knows his family doesn't care, knows that nobody wants to be friends with him, knows that he won't have any allies in the Games.

Marie Aldivore would never say such a thing, because she doesn't complain, but it's not fair.

It's not fair.

::

Achilles is surprised when his family marches in.

Lust is still whining. "I can't believe that bitch volunteered for me! I was going to show them-"

"Yes, yes, darling. Don't worry, you still have two more years," soothes Mrs. Aldivore, who has had more plastic surgery than anyone in District 1, and now resembles a Capitolite.

Achilles's father sits on an armchair and crosses his slack-clad legs. "Make us proud, Achilles." He claps his son on the back so hard the room rings of flesh against flesh.

"Ow," he pouts, frowning.

"I can't believe we've raised a wuss," scoffs Mr. Aldivore, standing immediately. "Come, Lust." He turns to his wife. "Breena, we'll be outside."

She shoos them off and turns to Achilles. "This is great. It will be fabulous publicity for my jewelry company. If you win, we'll have a victor in the family (not that that will ever happen). And if you lose, everyone will pity us. They'll buy more diamonds than ever!" she squeals. "Just make it dramatic, kid." And with that, she spins on her high heel and saunters after her husband.

::

Breena Aldivore has barely gone when another girl walks in. Aja Fortris. She's a nurse at the hospital where Achilles used to get his medicine (his parents don't bother paying for him to take it anymore). But even though he doesn't go there anymore, Aja and Achilles remain friends.

"Hey," she says gently. Her beautiful ebony waves fall perfectly down her back, framing her face in loose curls. Her wide sea-green eyes search his bluer ones.

"Aja?" he asks out loud, confused as to whether she's real or just another figment of his endless imagination.

"Yeah, that's me." Aja smiles lightly.

"Um..." Achilles's had a crush on Aja for as long as he can remember. Ever since he was nine and had been diagnosed with autism, he's been in love with Aja. He needs to ask. He won't have another time to do it. "Aja?"

"Yeah?" There's a ring on the fourth finger of her left hand, but he doesn't notice.

"Will you... do you want to be my girlfriend?"

"Oh, Achilles." She brushes some red hair off his forehead. "I'm... I'm so sorry. I'm married."

His cheeks turn bright, hot red, and he turns away. "It's okay, Aja. I-I shouldn't have asked you."

She seems in a sudden hurry to get away. "I'll always love you, Achilles. Please just remember that."

*DISTRICT 1 TRAIN*

"Hello," says Halli Glamini pleasantly as the two tributes hurry along behind her. "Are you excited to go visit the Capitol?"

Renee nods. Achilles stares off into space, biting down on his already-bleeding lips.

"Are you okay, darlings? Usually the District 1 tributes are just so much more talkative!"

"We're fine." Renee cocks her head toward the escort and puts a smile on her face. "Completely fine, I promise. So, Ms. Glamini, how are you?"

"Oh, call me Halla, please!" she cries insistently, leading them onto the train. The silver doors zip shut behind them. "And I'm doing fine, dear." She looks fondly down at Renee. "But this isn't about me, dear. How are you?"

"I'm good, thank you."

They lapse into a comfortable silence (or as comfortable as one can get, heading toward the Hunger Games arena) and drift off into sleep.

They're woken by Achilles. "Excuse me?" He prods the two females. "Excuse me? Excuse me?"

Halla jolts up and glares. "May I help you?"

Achilles shrinks away from the purple-skinned lady. "I just... we're here."

so, readers. are you guys liking it? not liking it? are you feeling a little closer to the tributes?

by the way, i put up pictures on my profile, so if you want to look at those, you're welcome to do that and tell me if you like their portrayals.

please, pretty please, R&R! i'm updating quickly just for you! :)