When I wake up I hear noise coming from downstairs. I get up and go look, I see Gale and my father talking. My father has traded Gale bread for a squirrel. I don’t think that it’s his best trade, but since today is the day of the Reaping I guess he is feeling sentimental. He always is on Reaping day. I go back upstairs and change my clothes real quick. When I go back downstairs I see that Gale has left. I ask my dad if he needs any help with baking and he said sure. After a couple hours of baking and decorating cakes it’s time to get ready for the Reaping. I bath quickly and get dressed in nice black pants and a white shirt with nice shoes. My mom slicks my hair back and tells me good luck. She says this to me every year and quite honestly I don’t believe she means it. She is always yelling at me and hitting me and telling me I am a worthless creature. We leave the bakery and head to the square where I sign in and go to my age section. I look around and hope to see her. I spot her ellabrent braid. Her mom most of done her hair I remember when I first saw her.
It was the first day of school and I was excited. I tugged on my dad’s arm and told him to hurry up and go. He said “Peeta calm down , if we leave now we are going to be early.”
“So” I said “I want don’t want to be late, I wanna leave now!”
My father sighed and we left and when we got there I saw a pained expression on his face.
“What’s wrong” I asked him.
He said “See that little girl? I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner.
“A coal miner? Why did she want c coal miner if she could’ve had you?” I asked
He said “Because when he sings…even the birds stop to listen.”
I asked if they stopped when she sang to.
He said “ I don’t know.”
The Reaping was now beginning with a speech from the mayor. I wasn’t paying attention because it’s always the same thing every year, about how we owe the Capital and blah blah blah. I think that it is quite unfair, for the Capital to have us send our children in for their entertainment. I’m glad I’m not from the Seam, because I would have my name entered in lots of times. I just wish that Katniss wasn’t because I couldn’t bear it if she went in there. I know that this year is her little sister, Primrose’s, first Reaping. She probably has one entry, I know Katniss loves her sister more than herself and wouldn’t let her take any tesserae.
The mayor’s speech is now ending and he is reading the list of past victor’s, we have had only two and only one is alive, Haymitch Abernathy. He has now decided to show up and slump in his chair and the audience is now clapping. He is an embarrassment to our district. He looks confused and tries giving Effie Trinket, District Twelve’s escort, a hug. She has a pink curly wig on and is wearing a light green suit. After she gets Haymitch off of her you can tell that she is wearing a wig because it has shifted to the right a bit.
She quickly stands up and introduces herself and begins the reaping by saying “Happy Hunger Games. And may the odds be ever in your favor!” She rambles about it being an honor being here, but we all know she hates it here and wants to be put into a better district.
She begins the first drawing by saying “Ladies first!”
She walks over to the glass ball and I am hoping that it is not Katniss. She digs her hand in and pulls out a slip of paper, the crowd holds in the breath, parents wishing that it’s not any of their children and kids hoping that it’s not them. Effie makes her way back over to the microphone and read the name. It’s much worse than it being Katniss.
The name is Primrose Everdeen.
I see Katniss in the crowd she is paper white and she is shaking. I see Primrose walking toward the stage and Katniss all of a sudden becomes alive. She runs towards Primrose and pushes her back and yells “I volunteer, I volunteer as Tribute!”
