Blood Of Panem: The 101st Hunger Games

Chapter 1 - Reaping Day

I hated being woken up, especially on weekends, but my little brother Conifer, or as I call him "Conny" can't seem to understand that, no matter how many times I tell him about this.

"Hick! Wake up!" Conny yelled at me, I swear that kid was just born to piss me off
"What the fuck do you want Conny," I said, with my eyes still refusing to open
"It's reaping day, come on! Get up, take a bath, or I'm going to drag you out of that bed myself!" Another voice said which I recognized as my other little brother, Silver.

"I hate you too so much!" I said as I got down off my bed on the top bunk, a lot of the other kids in the lodging house had already started to take a bath and shave, I grabbed the outfit I was wearing to the reaping and I started to shave off the very little facial hair I had and started to take a bath, and after I finished I rushed to get my clothes.

I put on the clothes that I had prepared, which were a dirty brown T-shirt, a black leather jacket, blue jeans, and brown boots with black socks. I looked around the room and saw the mess that was my co-workers, 15-year-old Shade Thicket had tripped and was on the floor because he was trying to tie his shoes while walking, 15-year-old Cypress Hibiscus was more organized than Shade because she had already put on an old brown dress and black heels, Timber Radcliff and Willow Barnabas who we're both 18 had already dressed well but we're making out in the corner which I rolled my eyes to, and then there was 13-year-old Kane Hargreaves, he had only joined last month because his parents had gotten killed in woodchipping accident which makes most of relate to him because most of us don't have parents anymore.

We all ran downstairs of the lodging house at the same time, we all ate a slice of bread and some tomato soup, which was the cheapest food in the district costing around 2 Panemian Dollars, but it was delicious, we all paid for our food and so all of us were good to go and rushed to reaping square, we were glad we didn't have work on weekends and didn't have to hand out more newspapers that were just Capitol propaganda, or Hunger Games Promotional Material, and of course, Victory Tour Posters, but just is life for Newsie living in a lodging house in The Sticks, a.k.a. the poorest section in 7.

We got to the reaping square and let the peacekeeper take a drop of blood and led us to our part of the reaping enclosure which for me was 17, Silver's was 16, and Conny' was 13, and waited for the reaping to start, there was a 5-minute delay since there was some mill in "The Crest" that collapsed, and I was getting impatient because it was hot as fuck outside. After all, they're was a heat wave going through Panem.

5 minutes later, the Mayor gave his speech, and then introduced Tritica Macdonald from District 9 (Victor of the 100th) stepped out and thrust her hand in the female reaping bowl before saying the female tribute's name, "Laura Oakers" Tritica announced, and a blonde girl from the female reaping enclosure gasped, she near the end so I could see her clearly cause I was at the edge of the enclosure, she was wearing a dirty brown dress if you were wondering.

Peacekeepers had started to approach her so she stepped out, walked to the platform, and shook Tritica's hand, I looked her up and down to see her,  she couldn't have been older than 16 but just then Tritica reached in for a male name, and when she read out the name I think every Newsie from The Sticks gasped, "Kane Hargreaves" she said out loud, I think every Newsie had stopped breathing as they just found out that their newest brother/friend was about to be a pig for slaughter, the last time 7 won, was the 78th Hunger Games when Mrs. Asha Seetle won her games, so Kane a 13-year-old going into the games was like an immediate death sentence.

As Kane walked alongside the peacekeepers along the way to the platform, I started to feel sad for the boy, he had lost his parents and was going into the games in just 1 month, I realized then and there that this boy deserved to live, I knew I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't save him, so I did the unthinkable, and yelled: "I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE!"

As I yelled that, I could almost feel the stares I was getting, but when I stepped out of the reaping enclosure, Kane started to scream because he didn't want me to enter the arena, but I didn't want him to die so I continued onwards, making sure to be smiling, because if there was one of the most important things my parents taught me when they were still around, is that bravery is the strongest weapon, so I walked to the platform and shook Tritica's hand still smiling doing so, and then I introduced myself, as 17-Year-Old Hickory Quell, and shook Laura's hand who looked as surprised that I had volunteered as the rest of Newsies, I noted to myself that I had never seen her before so maybe she was from The Crest, and we're taken to the Hall of Justice building, to say our last goodbye's

Silver and Conny were crying because they were going to lose another family member, first Mom and Dad, and now me, I felt sorry for them, but I wished them well, and told them to try to be happy, Shade laughed when I told a joke about how I would die just like the Paper Mill that collapsed and just told me just to survive, Cypress on the other hand slapped me hard for being an idiot and lectured me that Kane would feel guilty, before being dragged away by peacekeepers, I swear to god that girl is strong as fuck.

The rest of the newsies came in and started to cry, Timber and Willow were crying as they said goodbye, and Kane was sobbing even harder than them and said sorry like 30 times while bawling his eyes out, I told him how it was his fault no matter how he looked at it because I chose to do I and probably would have done it for anyone of the Newsies, as he left I was taken to the train.