I held my eyes firmly closed, too nervous, too afraid to dare open them. My heart was pounding, and balance was more difficult to come by than usual. It was like this in almost every social situations, but Reapings were the worst. What did they call it, sweating bullets? I stuttered. It was a huge character flaw of mine, one that earned me the ridicule and monstrously biting words of children and adults alike. I hated people sometimes. Honestly I did. I hated their cruelty, their blind ignorance, their superiority, and I hated their greed, but more than anything I hated that I wasn't one of the group, that they wouldn't accept me. It would seem almost counter intuitive then, given how lonely I really am that I should avoid people like they carried the plague, but being lonely was far better than being lonely and verbally abused. Besides, I had my parents.

They had married young, sweethearts throughout their childhood, and had me young as well. They didn't mock or play cruel games with me and were always kind and encouraging even when others thought I was beyond hope. It might not seem like much as they're my parents but to me it means the world. Most importantly however, other than being loving they are neither ashamed nor embarrassed by me either, not even after I lost the leg.

It had happened in an electrical fire, the building had no escapes and I was lucky to survive with as few limitations as I did, not many could boast the same. None the less cripple and retard are both how I'm commonly known and still, sometimes even against my own beliefs my parents love me. I am very lucky to be their daughter.

Opening my eyes I could just barely make out the top of my father's curly red haired head from amid the crowd of spectators and feel, if only somewhat comforted as other girls knock and jostle me about, vying for position. They were very envious of our escort, Persephone LaHool, each one wanting to be her, from the top of her golden curled head to the bottom of her shiny black shoed feet, and getting a good look was as close as any of us could get. I my opinion she looked eerily like what was left of a porcelain doll that my mother had inherited, only her face wasn't cracked.

I decided not to hold their lack of manners against them, after all, I had been relatively invisable lately and no one had hurled either stone or insult in my direction since yesterday. So, nothing really to complain about. Besides they were all probably just as nervous, and sick to their stomachs as I was, standing around in their loosely bunched groups waiting to be Reaped from. I couldn't help but feel no matter was chosen Five didn't have a chance.

I was startled from my melancholy thoughts when someone brushed my arm with their fingers and said my name. Jerking to attention I looked and saw Betty Volt's deep green eyes staring at me with a sort of half smile on her round face. Betty wasn't fat, but she was plump and that had earned her some pretty heavy teasing, up until she managed to get in with the popular girls by stealing my crutch and leaving me stranded at school for the entire afternoon. I'd missed my shift at the generators as well, but Betty had gained her so desired infamy.

"Hello Annie, how are you?" she asked in a pleasant tone.

I smiled a bit and nodded, but this didn't seem like enough for her. "I, I-I'm doing we-ell." I said replied face falling slightly as I anticipated the jeer. "How a-are you?"

"I'm doing well myself." she beamed. This small talk with Betty wasn't half as confusing as it would have been if she were one of the other girls, after all Betty was still nice to me from time to time. Usually only when there were alterior or self serving motives involved though. "Here," she said pulling as my crutch. I immediately became defensive and bared down on it. Betty was stronger and pulled it away. "Give your arm a rest." To my surprise she ducked under my armpit supporting me. I was awash with guilt about it, but I couldn't help to wonder what was in it for Betty to be doing this.

It was about that time that Persephone LaHool with her tiny baby stepped gate appeared, the several layers of her pink lace dress ruffling and swaying just above her knees. "Hello, hello, hello my lovey, dovie, doves!" she called brightly to all of us, glancing around with a large white smile. "And how have my Fivey-kins been?" she asked, a low murmur without any discernable answer came from the crowd. "Yay!" she clapped bobbing her head back and forth. I could hear some of the boys across the isle laughing, girls everywhere turned to glare. "Ladies first!" Persephone practically sang.

I closed my eyes and crossed my fingers as were dozens of girls about me, I could even hear a quickly whispered prayer from Betty, close to her as I was. "Annie Elkiss!" Persephone called bouncing on her toes and waving the slip about. "Where are you my lucky ducky wucky?"

I was going to vomit. The crowd parted revealing Betty and I. "Aw such cute friends!" the Capitol woman crooned. Bile and stomach acid lurched up sharply, flooding my mouth and stinging my nose as Betty got once more exactly what she wanted at my expense.

Suddenly I was doubled over losing my breakfast. Remarkably the other girl didn't move from my side in fact she had begun to gently move my hair out of the way. I had finally stopped by the time the peacekeepers reached us. Betty face was paper white and her eyes were teary. "I'm so sorry!" she chocked out voice catching as my arms were seized away from her. "So sorry for everything!" she went on trying to shove my crutch to the officers who ignored her. "Hey!" she called sharply, angered at being ignored. One of the strong men turned on her hotly.

"Oh dear," Persephone could be heard from the stage. "It's ok, just, just take the stick thingy."

I was too confused, too afraid, and too confronted with the absurdities of life to take notice of what happened next, but I had my crutch, now, somehow. All I could think though was how funny the way life goes, as I realized now more than anything, even after all the hate that I loved Betty like a friend and ally for what she did for me in the final moments we would ever share.

Thrust into a tiny room with my parents, both their faces ashen, eyes red, reality was quick to catch up with us all. Frantically we embraced, began apologizing for any and every slight we had ever given any of the others in choked sobbing voices. Then the door swung open and another warm body stumbled in. My mother gasped and my father braced her shoulders. Turning I looked and saw, me. A cleaner, better dressed, more confident looking me who boasted two very strong looking legs.

My mouth hung open in a most unbecoming way, but at last I was able to choke out some pinched words, my throat still sore from all the vomiting and tears. "I-I d-don't understa-and." I said looking from the me to my parents, to the officials.

"Bonds of blood come before bonds of adoption contract." was all I could get anyone to say, and it was the head peacekeeper who had said it.

"I'm afraid that I don't understand either." said the other me in my voice that was for once clear and unencumbered. Silence fell and we found ourselves gawking at everyone in the room in turn, surely one of them had the answer.

"Yes, yes, this is all very, very confusing," piped up our scribe from where she sat half hidden under the numerous layers of orange plumed skirts she wore. "But please let us keep this up all day, time is of no matter, and it isn't like if Miss Alice Davidson survives this election that she won't be moved to that of Mr. George Davidson's." The woman spoke so quickly and her voice was so nasally that it was difficult to tell if she was being sarcastic or not, being from the Capitol I wagered she was.

"Annie," my father started his voice deep as he tried to reign himself in. "When you were born, you were born with a sister, named Alice, a twin." he paused swallowing hard, allowing me to absorb this new information. "We could afford to only keep one of you, and we chose you."

My head was spinning when my mom, our mom I guess, shouted out, "We're so sorry, we never wanted you to find out!"

Alice and I looked at each other for a long, long time, both a little scared, confused, and hurt by everything. I surprised myself by speaking first. "S-so, y-you're my sister."

"I guess so." she replied.

There was a clatter in the corner of the room, we looked and saw the five minute sand glass indicating that if we did not vote within the allotted time our choice would be void and the scribe would make the decision for us. She smiled smugly in our direction.

"I cast my vote for Alice Davidson." our father said almost immediately, our mother parroting him.

I whirled on them, first they denied me the right to know my sister in the first place and now they were taking her away from me again. "Y-you can't do tha-at!" I cried out. "She's m-my sister, your da-aughter, and you're sentencing h-her to die?" I was a realist and knew that there was no chance of my survival. "You-ou don't even kn-know her!" I said accusingly.

"Exactly, we don't know her!" our father bellowed, and suddenly the ease of their choice became clear, it was true, she might be their daughter, but she was also a stranger. Better her in their minds than either of them.

Alice and I looked at each other for as long as we dared with the sand running out before latching onto one another as if for dear life. I was too afraid, too angry and aashamed to say it, but Alice wasn't. In a tone clear as a bell she declared, "I cast my vote for Alice Davidson."

Stong arms began to pull us apart but we fought them, I wondered briefly if it had been like this when we were infants, did we fight to stay together? In the end the peacekeepers won and I was drug off to the train holding the torn sleeve that smelled of a sister I never knew or would ever see again, my enraged wails the last she or our parents would ever hear from me.