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Whipped into shape
AMARANTH DID HER BEST TO CLIMB DOWN THE APPLE tree belonging to one of the many orchards in district eleven. In all honesty, she was sick of all the constant work she had to do, the only reason she was even allowed to take a break was because of the games. Her and all the other young workers were let off early to observe, seeing what their futures might entail.
The peacekeepers ushered the young girl along, no doubt angry looks on their faces as they did so. You could never see under their masks but you could always tell they were unhappy, constantly malicious in their actions. It was hard to believe a world without guards, and fences, and whippings had once existed but it did, and Amara was just itching to live in that world.
"Pst, you get any fruit?" A boy whispered from next to the Reed girl who's eyes immediately widened. She had taken from the orchards before and was whipped the one time she was caught, that was enough to keep her from doing so ever again.
"No, and if you were smart you'd get rid of whatever you have, now." She responded, not looking in his direction.
"If you were smart you'd eat up, I see how hard you work out there, the rations they give us ain't enough." He said quietly, slipping a small slice of apple into her hand. "I'm Basil."
"Amara." The Reed girl responded, checking her surroundings before popping the small piece of food into her mouth and chewing slowly, she had to savor every minute, it could be her last bit of food for days, maybe even weeks depending on if her parents would steal her rations or not.
She was too busy working in the orchards most days, which left her little time to be home and eat, and in return, they'd eat her food up, the very reason Amara felt like she had no family at all.
Her body, along with the others of district eleven had become accustomed to the small amounts of food they got in their lives. If they kept working, the hunger eventually would go away. Or at least they couldn't feel a burning hunger anymore.
"Who do you think is going to win?" Basil questioned, referring to the large screen that was showcasing the games. It was down to five but the Reed girl knew who she was rooting for the minute the two district elevens were killed.
"Finnick, he's our age, and he's good with the trident the sponsers gave him." She said, folding her arms over her chest as the pair stopped at the back of the large crowd around the monitor. "He's been fishing for his own food too, seems like he was built for this arena."
"I doubt that pretty boy is gonna win, my bet is the guy from district two." The Covyn boy watched the screen carefully, everyone else practically being forced to watch the unspeakable things happening on the screen, he didn't enjoy violence but, each year since he turned twelve, he'd force himself to watch, thankful he hadn't been chosen.
Originally, both Amaranth and Basil were rooting for the kids from their district but they died early on, being killed by the careers, or tributes from district one and two very early on. Nobody ever expected any district elevens to win, they were the most famished of everyone and that didn't exactly help their health. So, they were probably the easiest target to go after in the beginning of the games, along with twelve of course.
"Whatever you say, B." Amara replied, Basil smiling slightly at his brand new nickname.
Both sighed, still staring at the brutal scenes in front of them. The remainder of the day was filled with watching what was happening with all the tributes, but at nightfall, it was time to get right back to work again.
Something they were both dreading.
AS THE SUN APPEARED THROUGH THE HORIZON, the children picking fruits from the orchards were yet again called to watch the games. It was near the end now, only three were left and Finnick was one of them. Amara stuffed her hands in her pockets, waiting to see what would happen next but, what she didn't expect to see was Basil being dragged off by a group of peacekeepers.
"Hey! What is going on?" Amaranth quickly ran up to the group but immediately felt herself being restrained by a few of the men, feeling their brute force around her arms immediately.
"They caught me with fruit—" Basil was cut off as his mouth was covered, the Reed girl feeling her arms being yanked behind her back, and further away from the boy.
"It was me! I took the fruit and asked him to hold it for me." Amara blurted out loudly, a few fellow district eleven members watching the scene unfold and boy was this something interesting.
Amaranth had no idea why she took the blame for something she didn't do but, she couldn't watch someone get hurt for something that they should be able to do in the first place, it was their orchard, they picked the fruit, why couldn't they eat from it?
Basil was pushed to the ground harshly, his face falling straight into the dirt. Everyone knew what would be next, Amara would be dragged to the stage and whipped for her "wrongdoings" and everyone would be forced to watch, willingly or not.
There was nobody to try and stop this from happening. Amaranth didn't exactly have the most present parents, and even if she did, nobody can stop the Peackeepers. So, as she was dragged up onto the stage, she closed her eyes and was completely ready for whatever fate she would receive.
Swish swish swish. Swish.
Amara heard the sounds of the whip hitting her repeatedly but she was already numb by the fourth time. She tried her best to drown out the sounds of people yelling as she opened her eyes, facing the screen everyone was now looking at. In the moments she was being reprimanded, Finnick Odair became the victor of the sixty fifth Hunger Games.
Swish swish swish. Swish.
That was the day that she decided she would make a better life for herself. It could take years but she'd still do it because at the end of the day...
Amaranth Reed was meant to make a change.
AUTHORS NOTE: Hey everyone! , so I don't think I messed up too badly on any details of how things work in Panem but if I did, bare with me since it's a fanfic.
I wanted you to see how fourteen year old Amara was before she gets chosen for the games so I hope this was a good introduction into that!
Hope you enjoyed!
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