Trigger warning: mentions of sexual assault. Please proceed with caution.
Cameron Solidago, 12
District 9 Male
Six weeks before the Reaping
It's dinnertime when the Peacekeepers come.
Everybody, except Moira, is sitting at the table. The food's already been served. Dad answers the door and I watch him freeze up as two men in those pristine white uniforms force their way inside, without even politely knocking first. It can't be a good sign when they want to enter the house like that.
Dad nervously wrings his hands together. He looks awfully pale from here and so small compared to the Peacekeepers, despite being taller than one of them. "Good evening, sirs. How may I help you?"
"Does Xavier Solidago live here?"
All of us glance over at Xavier, who looks ready to slip under the table. Benji shoots him a rather poisonous look, Patrick scowls, and Mom just slowly raises a hand to her mouth. Why? What happened?
Dad leads the Peacekeepers over to the dinner table. "Um, yes. Xavier, these gentlemen would like to talk to you…"
"Wait," Mom says suddenly. She glances at me. "Mary. Take Cameron upstairs please."
"But I can stay-" I start to protest. I don't need to be protected or anything. I want to stay down here.
"Now."
"Come on, Cameron." Mary gently grabs my hand and leads me away from the commotion. I don't get why I'm not allowed to hear everything. I'm not a little kid anymore. I can handle this. I can handle a lot of things. I can handle more than anybody here would suspect.
Upstairs, we run into Moira, who is carrying a fussy Sophie in her arms. "What's going on? Why are the Peacekeepers here?"
"They're here for Xavier," Mary tells her.
"What? What did he do this time?"
"I don't know." Mary folds her arms and stares uncomfortably at the floor. "I don't know if I wanna know."
"Well, if you two don't mind, I could use some help putting somebody to sleep." Moira gently boops Sophie on the nose, causing her to give a little giggle. I hold my hands out and Moira gently passes Sophie to me. She's always happy to be held by anyone. Not many kids my age are uncles or aunts. But then again, not many kids have nine older siblings like me. It's crazy to think I'm not that much older than Sophie is. Actually, it's pretty cool.
"Hiiiiii Sophie! Uncle Cameron is here!"
"Gaaaah!" Sophie reaches for a strand of curly brown hair on my hand and gives it a tug. It was Mom's idea for me to get a haircut; she said that I might appreciate shorter hair for the summer. Works for me, because Sophie is very grabby. Nobody's hair is ever safe.
After some baby-talk, I place Sophie down in her crib in Moira's room. My two sisters are at the top of the stairs, attempting to eavesdrop on the conversation. I hear Xavier yell a string of cuss words, before a Peacekeeper tells him to shut up, and Davis screams something back that leads to a shouting match between him and Xavier. Between all this I catch Mom's faint crying, Patrick whispering awfully loud, cutlery slamming down on the table, footsteps, a lot of noises that can't mean anything good.
"Sweet Panem," Moira sighs. "They're definitely mad."
"What happened?" Mary asks in a small voice. "Do you know?"
"No. If he did something wrong, it's news to me."
Suddenly, it all dies down and Dad calls for us. "Kids? Whoever's upstairs, please come down."
Despite the fact I'm way too old for something so uncool, I grab onto Moira's hand, the way Sophie or another little kid might do it. She leads me downstairs and into the living room where everybody else is. The meager remains of dinner have been completely forgotten.
Dad sits in his favourite leather chair, Mom standing behind him and gripping his shoulder. The rest of my siblings, sans Xavier, are spread out on the couches and I join them. The entire Solidago family, most of it anyways, is all together now. Moira, Davis, Benji, Agnes, Patrick, Cydney, Nate, Mary, and me.
"This is serious." Mom's voice is shaky. "Xavier was just arrested by the Peacekeepers for multiple charges of sexual assault."
Moira gasps. Nate and Mary look at each other. But for me...I am surprised, yet...at the same time, given what I know and what secrets Xavier whispered to me assuming I'm too stupid and afraid to blab them out…
"There were several accounts of him drugging teenage girls around the district and...and...having his...way...with them afterwards. I don't know all the details. This isn't easy to say. And your father and I...this is hard and we wish it didn't have to happen...but for any of you, if Xavier touched you in a way that you were not comfortable with, or he did something, please say something right now. You have to tell us."
"That rotten jackass," Davis mutters as Moria just shakes her head. But slowly the dirt begins to air. Benji says that Xavier took a compromising photo of him with his boyfriend in exchange for silence. Patrick claims he overheard Xavier bragging about it once. I can't tell if they're lying or not because I know that plenty of my brothers and sisters have done or said things they don't want to share with our parents. But when it comes to throwing the others under the bus, they don't have a problem doing that.
Too bad that I don't either. I'm not the innocent little baby everyone treats me like.
I could say it all. But I won't. I don't think that's fair. Also, that just isn't me.
"Cameron? What about you?"
All eyes are on me now. But my siblings don't look concerned or anything. Many of them look worried. Because if I know that Xavier was a rapist before they found out, what do I know about everyone else? What could I say about them?
This is what happens when you're the youngest. Everybody underestimates you. They tell you their secrets like the way grown-ups might have a conversation. Like you're too dumb and too little to understand. They just assume you won't get any of it. But I get all of it. I just keep my mouth shut because it's better that way. If I were to share it all right now, we'd need one hell of a therapist to get this group together.
"He never touched me," I finally say. That is true. I don't delve any deeper and nobody presses further.
"Thank goodness," Mom sighs in relief, though the tone of her voice indicates she doesn't actually believe me. "However, you know that your father and I love you all very much. So you can always come to one of us. We beg you to come to one of us if you feel unsafe or uncomfortable at all. Okay?"
We all take our turns nodding. Finally we can get back to dinner because I'm starving and no Solidago ever lets food go to waste. Xavier's plate is untouched. Tainted. Nobody else wants it.
After dinner, as I head upstairs to finish my homework, Davis nudges my shoulder. "You didn't tell them, right?"
"Tell them what?"
"About me," Davis hesitates. "And Melis. You're not to tell them, alright? You're not telling anyone."
"I didn't say anything." I look my eldest brother dead in the eyes with as much honesty as I can muster. I don't even know why Davis keeps that a secret. Mom and Dad would be over the moon if they learned they could have a second grandchild and little Sophie could have someone to play with.
But fine. If Davis wants me to keep quiet, I will. Even if it did cost him his late girlfriend. Her parents still won't talk to him. He refuses to even try and find a way to see his son.
He looks relieved and I head to my room to do my homework. I share my room with Nate, but he's currently in the next room over, with Cydney. I can hear them talking in hushed voices and I think I know exactly what conversations might be occurring. I just keep my ear pressed against the wall, trying to eavesdrop and complete history questions at the same time. I don't get much done when someone knocks on the door.
It's Agnes. "Hey Cameron. Feeling okay?"
"I didn't tell anyone."
"Why can't I just check up on my baby brother without needing an ulterior motive?"
"Oh. I'm doing fine. Just working on history stuff."
"Good," Agnes says nervously, and then she's gone as soon as she came in. Ulterior motive my ass. She's perfectly fine ignoring me unless she needs my cooperation. Everyone's a sneak.
Man, my entire family is just so jumpy tonight. I kinda wish that my friends would show up now, so I could go play with them and get out of the house. I'm really tired of everyone being a bunch of hypocrites and interrogating me left and right.
My bed sits above the front door, so if I crack my window open, I can hear if anyone is entering the house or waiting outside. It gets cold in here sometimes, if I forget to close the window before bed. But the outside air is actually quite warm right now and I spot a pair of familiar faces approaching the house. About time!
"Hey Mrs. Solidago! Is Cameron home?"
By the time Mom's turned around, I've already come running down the stairs and stand expectantly right behind me. Mom jumps a little and in the doorway I see Emmer dramatically slap a hand across his chest in mock surprise. "Yeesh, Cam! How do you do that?"
"Can I go with them, Mom? Please? I already finished my homework and everything. And Moira's home so she doesn't need me to watch over Sophie."
"I don't know, sweetheart. I understand your friends are good people, but what happened at dinner has me a little worried for your safety-"
"It'll be fine! I promise! It's just my friends. We're just going to the fields."
Mom finally gives in. "Alright. Be back home in an hour."
Score! I give Emmer a high-five as he, me, and Spelt take off running. We're not going anywhere fancy, just to go hide in a wheat field and hang out. But with them, I can feel like a little kid. It's weird to me that in my house, I feel so much older than 12.
Maybe it's because I'm an uncle now, so I have to be a grown-up for Sophie. Or maybe it's because I know more secrets than the actual adults do. The kinds of things that children aren't supposed to know until they've gotten older.
Spelt throws a weed at my face. "Cameron! We saw the Peacekeepers taking your brother to the slammer! What happened?"
"What do you think happened?" I can't tell Spelt and drag him into this because it makes even me feel queasy. So I just vaguely wave my hand around. "He did something dumb and got caught."
"That must suck," Emmer sighs.
"I guess. I mean, it doesn't affect me much. Maybe some time in prison will straighten out Xavier's head a bit and he'll get his act together."
"You mean his shit?" Emmer snickers.
"Emmer!" I smack the back of his shoulder. "That's a dirty word! Don't say that!"
"What, I can't say shit-"
"If my mom heard me say that, especially around Sophie, she'd ground me for a month!"
"You're such a dad," Spelt cackles. "What's next, you gonna wash my mouth out with soap?"
"Oh, it's tempting. Really tempting, especially with you."
"I promise I'll be a good boy!"
Now it's Emmer's turn to smack us. It's all just for fun, though. Someone's gotta be the dad friend anyways, otherwise we'd all get in serious trouble. And enough of my siblings have landed in hot water anyways. Not me, not Cameron. As far as my Mom and Dad are concerned, Cameron is a good boy.
At least with my friends, they don't care about that. If anything, they think I'm too good. Kids should get the chance to misbehave every once in a while, right?
"Who do you guys wanna do?" I ask them. "Play a game? Go for a run?"
"I brought a bouncy ball." Emmer pulls a small black round thing from his jacket. "Wanna see how high we can make it go?"
That's all we pretty much spend the rest of the evening doing. Taking turns throwing Emmer's bouncy ball up in the air to see how high we can send it and if we can beat our previous records. At one point, I accidentally stand too close and the thing comes down on top of my head. A red bump forms under my hair. Bouncy balls hurt.
It takes forever for the sky to get dark nowadays, but that happens regardless. I can't stay out any longer, or else Mom would freak and there goes my outdoor privileges. Spelt and Emmer find this absolutely hilarious, because neither of their moms care how long they run around for, as long as they come back home at some point. We still say our goodbyes and agree to meet up again tomorrow.
I'm pretty tired. I wanna take a shower and maybe find a cold press for my head. But I know I'll sleep well tonight. The same might not apply to the rest of my family.
Leonita Pantera, 49
District 9 Escort
Hiding out inside the Justice Building to escape the intense heat, Addison Warnes and Desmond Chong sat together on an old couch. For the past few years, Addison was nothing more than a nervous wreck when it came to the Reaping. Well, more of a nervous wreck than she typically was. Something about her son now being eligible and the fear that his name would actually be the one called.
Leonita ignored her.
Addison mumbled to herself. Desmond wrapped an arm around her, pulled her close, and whispered something in her ear. It was hard to make out what he was saying, but his words held as firm as his grip on his former mentor and fellow Victor. Slowly but surely, Addison began to relax. Her hands, clasping each other tightly with intertwined fingers, slowly pulled apart. Desmond took Addison's hand and gently laid it in her lap as he finished his whispering.
Leonita still ignored them.
Who cared if it made her look like a bad escort? It wasn't her fault they weren't talking about anything pertaining to her very specific interests. It wasn't her fault she was stuck in a district that didn't at all cater to the kinds of things she liked.
Finally, Addison was back in her normal state. She pulled herself off the couch. "Okay, okay. I'm calm now. Thank you, Desmond."
"Any time, dear."
"I guess we best be going now. Leonita? Leonita. Are you ready to go?"
Leonita folded her arms and shrugged. "Sure. Whatever."
Another year, another Reaping. Time to see what cannon fodder 9 offered up from the wheat fields this time. Well, if there was anything good about being here, it was picking the poor saps who'd find themselves in the Games. Sucked that nobody seemed to appreciate all the exciting carnage, violence, and gore as much as Leonita did.
Again, proof she was wasted here.
The heat made Leonita briefly consider if she should've brought a different outfit. Already, she was starting to work up a sweat. The tank top and leggings were fine, but the wig, jacket, cape, and cat ears headband may have been a bit too much. All in leopard print, of course. Leonita would never be caught dead wearing anything else.
She pulled a small little mirror from her purse (leopard print, of course) and checked her makeup (leopard print, obviously) one last time. At least it was still intact. Perfect.
As usual, there was no joy to be found in District 9, nobody interested in Leonita's appearance on the stage. Fine by her; clearly nobody in this district gave a damn about leopards anyways. At least there was some fun to be found in picking out the names of the tributes. Right away, Leonita drew the first one.
"Grail Drowen!"
Silence. Then a tall and sturdy 18 year-old stepped out from the crowd and Leonita had to admit, she was rather impressed. Grail's dark brown hair was short and choppy, as if they cut it themself. Their skin was tanned and their arms toned and muscular. And they didn't even seem to care that they had been Reaped for the Games, taking their spot beside Leonita after a leisurely stroll.
Leonita drew a second name. "Cameron Solidago!"
This one got quite the commotion. A woman screamed as she dashed into the divider separating the adults from the eligible kids, only to be held back by her husband and a Peacekeeper. Two more Peacekeepers weaved through the kids and ignored the concerned voices fighting to be heard over another, until they returned with a 12 year-old boy.
That made Leonita grimace. Little kids sucked at the whole violence and gore thing. Cameron didn't even look particularly strong either. His skin was slightly darker than Grail's, almost a caramel colour. His hair was light brown, slightly curly, and he had big brown eyes filled with tears darting this way and that. By the time he was onstage, he was already a teary, sobbing mess.
Too bad there'd be no volunteers. Leonita didn't even bother asking this time. 9 never produced a volunteer.
Oh well. Time to go back into the Justice Building, where it would be a little cooler. And soon they'd be in the Capitol. The place where people truly understood the importance of leopard print fashion.
Woahhhhhh, we're halfway there...
Honestly, I'm just happy to be halfway through Reaping hell. Not much else to say here I guess. Anyways, it looks like a lot of us are back in school, so best of luck there!
See you all in the next chapter,
-Vr