Game of Survival- Finnick Odair

II

"some children are simply born 

with tradedgy in their blood."

-unknown

⭑･ﾟﾟ･*:༅｡.｡༅:*ﾟ:*:༻✧༺:*ﾟ:༅｡.｡༅:*･ﾟﾟ･⭑

"Athena Marie, you better get up now." My mom called out from the other room, sounding stressed. The games always made her worry too much every year and I can tell it's even worse now that am of age to get chosen. "The Reaping starts in twenty minutes and we cannot be late."

I groaned, covering my head with a pillow. I laid there for a minute then threw the pillow at my wall. As my feet hit the floor, one of my brothers came running in. His eyes filled with fear, he wrapped his tiny arms around me and hugged me tight. "You're not going to get picked right Thena?"

I bit the inside of my cheek and knelt down so I was face level with him. I lifted his chin up so that our eyes were meeting. "Of course not Zeke, what makes you think such a thing?"

A tear rolled down his cheek as he broke eye contact with me. "Lawson said that you were going to get picked and that we would never see you ever again."

I raised my eyes brows, discomfort on my face. I never liked discussing the games with my brothers, but even more so now. The last thing I wanted to was for them to lose me. It was one of my biggest fears. I would not let them see me die. Ever. "Lawson was just making up a lie to scare you, and don't worry my name isn't in there as many times as other people. It's only in there two times. Remember when we needed more food?" He nodded, and I wiped his tears off his cheeks. "Well in exchange for food, I put my name in the bowl another time. So the chances of me getting picked are very low."

He hugged me tight again. "I don't want anything to happen to you. You're my best friend."

I hugged him back and kissed the top of his head. "And you are mine. Now why don't you go put your nice clothes on for the Reaping."

He nodded, obviously in a much better mood now. "Okay! Are you going to wear that dress I helped mama make for you?"

I smiled, "Yes, I am. You did such a good job on it, and I just know I'm going to look amazing in it."

"You're going to look like the most prettiest princess." Zeke exclaimed, before running out of my room.

I stood up and took a deep breath in. I hadn't told him the truth. I had to put my name in many more time then that. Our family was one of, if not the, poorest families in District Four. I got made fun of for it at school and the Academy. The other kids

often saying that the Capital should just kick my family out of Four and into Twelve. I knew that I had at least put my name in fifteen times, due to the amount of food and other necessities we needed, and could not afford. It made me scared but I knew that there was nothing I could do about it now. Only pray and hope.

I walked to the chair in the corner of my room and picked up my dress, slowly putting it on. I had a very small room, it contained a bed and a chair. My brothers slept on a bed in the living room, the two of them sharing it. My parents had their own room with a bed, mirror, and dresser with all of our clothes in it. I knew the house wasn't much but I was thankful for it nonetheless, because I knew that in the poorer districts, many didn't have homes.

My mom had done my hair the night before, two Dutch braids into a low bun, so I didn't need to worry about that after getting dressed. I walked out of my room and to my mom who was standing in the kitchen, talking to my dad in a hushed, urgent voice. They had been fighting a lot lately and I wasn't sure why. I did even like they knew I noticed.

"Mom, can you zip the back up for me please?" I asked, interrupting them. She turns, her eyes turning soft when she sees me. "Of course I can honey.

I beamed at her before turning around, moving my two braids to the front of me. "All done." She said. "Since you're ready we should get going. We are running on a tight schedule right now. I asked your father to wake you up twenty minutes ago and he never did." She glared at him, from the corner of her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I was making sure the boys were ready." He held up his hands defensively causing her to roll her eyes, her lips lifting up into a small smile. Even when they were frustrated with each other it was still very easy to see how deeply and how much they loved each other. I wanted love like that one day.

"Boys!" She called out to my brothers. "It's time to go."

Their loud stomping feet could be heard coming towards. "Okay, momma." Zeke said, sweetly, slipping his hand into mine as he reached us.

"Lawson, your hair is all messed up." Mom said with a sigh.

He brought his ands down and tried to smooth his hair out. "Sorry momma. I was trying something new with my hair, but it didn't really work out."

"Just leave it." She answered. "It doesn't matter. We have to get going now."

She led us out the door, Zeke and I following close behind her and Lawson after. My dad closed the door behind him and I could hear him let out a deep breath. He was nervous, I could tell. He just didn't want us to know that he was.

The loud crunching of the gravel filled my ears as I tried to avoid the scared looks on the faces of the people around me. I didn't want to see them, it was too hard knowing that I might never see them again. We were like soldiers, zombies even, quietly making our way, under the careful watch of the Peacekeepers. No one said anything. Not a single word.

Zeke's grip on my hand tightened as we neared where the Reaping took place. I smiled at him, trying to put on a brave face so he wouldn't be afraid, before handing him off to my mom. It was time for sign in. The long was line but I didn't notice the wait, The nerves overtaking me.

They pricked my finger with something before telling the next person to step forward. I went over to the rest of the little kids and stood next to my best friend, Galvia. She was like a sister to me, my twin flame. She reached her hand out and grabbed mine, our eyes up on the screens watching as people continued to come.

I don't remember anything much until I heard Galiva's name getting called. I wasn't paying attention, more focused on my shoes than anything. I remember my head shooting up and my eyes feeling extra wet. My mind was fuzzy, so many, too many, thoughts rang through my head. I didn't know what I was thinking when I spoke up, just that I wasn't going to let someone I love time. I would protect them with every part of my soul, and do anything I could to keep them safe.

The crowd parted for me, I stood there for a second before making my way through the open space. My feet carried me on as I listened to my brother's screams, I tried to drown them out. I would not cry. I couldn't. I wasn't going to show any sign of weakness.

Lolita was younger then and har hair was cut short. I remember that, her short straight hair, perfect. She was a symbol of the Capital and what they could do to.a person, even if that person wasn't from the Districts. She smiled at me. "What's your name my dear?"

I avoided her eyes. "Athena Flores."

She nodded, raising her hand in the air before gesturing at me. "May I present our volunteer. Your female tribute for District Four is Athena Flores."

My head raised at the sound of my name, my eyes looking into the crowd. People raised their hands, fist in the air. That was the first time it had down. It was for me, for what I had done. It made me raise my head even taller. I would be brave. Not only for myself. Not just for my family. But for all of them.