𝙎𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙗𝙞𝙧𝙙 // 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙪𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙂𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨

┊ 𝟎𝟏 ┊

On summer mornings in District twelve, the birds tend to chirp their songs a little louder. They always sounded happier when the sun was shining. Days like this, all of the windows in the Barrett house were open. The light breeze blowing the knitted curtains around.

Wren sat in a wooden chair which had been placed next to one of the opened windows. She was wearing a simple sundress that her mother had gifted her. She hummed along with the birds as they sang. Watching from the window as she brushed out her long auburn hair. Pulling it up into a ponytail, and carefully tucking the baby hairs behind her ears.

In District twelve they got a few weeks off of school, starting in the middle of June. Wren's mother would always find ways to keep her children entertained during those few weeks. A few years ago she taught the children how to make paint out of the flowers from the meadow. Talon loved it, by the end of the night he was covered in paint.

Evelyn would do anything to see her children smile. Last summer they spent every day for two weeks helping out at the grandparents' shop. Ellis and Ruby's clothing shop was small, but everything was handmade. Evelyn and Ruby taught Wren how to make clothes. Talon sat on the floor behind the counter painting, Ellis watching him closely.

Wren set down the comb on her windowsill, standing up from the chair. She reached for her shoes, slipping them on. There was a gentle knock on the opened door. "Wren, are you ready?"

The curly haired boy was smiling, he had a small bag in hand. She stood up, stepping towards her little brother. "All ready, little bird." Wren ruffled his hair with a smile as she walked past. "Do you have everything you need?"

He rolled his eyes, reaching up to fix his hair. Following Wren into the living area. "Everything is in my bag. Is Peeta coming with us?" She closed the windows as they got ready to leave.

"It's just us today." She headed towards the door, doing one more glance around the room. "Let's get going." Wren opened the door, Talon walked out, she followed closing it behind them. Their house had a small yard, surrounded by a waist high wooden fence. The gate in line with the door, a small hook held it closed.

Wren opened the gate, closing it as soon as they were out of the yard. The streets were crowded, it was always this way when school was closed. Giggles could be heard from some children walking pass with their parents. Other children were being chased by their older siblings. The sight brought a small smile to Wren's face.

The meadow was a ten minutes walk from their house in the Seams. When they made it, Talon picked a few flowers. They were small yellow flowers named Rue, their mother's favorite. He added a few different colored wildflowers into the mix. Wren watched, "Are you going to put them on the table when we get home?"

Talon looked up at her, smiling brightly. "Do you think dad will like them?" Wren returned the smile, nodding a little.

"I bet he will love them, now come on." She started to walk towards the forest, Talon quickly following. "The walk through the forest is at least an hour, just remember to stay close."

She hummed quietly as they walked through the forest, Talon walked close to Wren, listening to her hum. The trail was fairly clear, kids from the district made this trip often on nice days like this. Before they knew it, they were already on the other side of the forest. Wren checked around, making sure there were no peacekeepers before they continued on.

The lake was straight ahead, it could be seen from the treeline. Talon made a run for the dock, "Hurry up!"

Wren laughed, chasing after her little brother. He set his bag down near the dock, resting the bundle of flowers carefully on top. He knelt down, untying his shoes. Talon was quick to jump into the water, Wren watched him resurface. He pushed his hair out of his face, looking up at the dock. "How's the water?" She sat down at the edge of the dock, slipping her shoes off.

"Refreshing, see?" He splashed water at Wren, giggling. She laughed, kicking water towards him.

Days like this made life feel so simple, like in these moments nothing else mattered. They were just children being children.

They spent hours at the lake, once Talon

had gotten bored of swimming he got out. The pair sat in the sun, Talon's head rested on his sister's legs. She hummed softly, combing her hand through his hair.

"Ma would have loved this." Talon mumbled, Wren looked down at him with a slightly frown. "She always loved getting out."

"She was always very adventurous." She looked back towards the water, "Even though she is gone. The ones that love us never truly leave, I believe she is watching over us right now."

Talon sat up, pulling his knees to his chest. "You really think so?" Wren nodded, wrapping one of her arms around him. She watched as Talon started to smile. Thinking about their mother was still watching over him brought him comfort. There was a minute of silence before the boy spoke again. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Anything."

"Do you think one of us will be reaped?"

The question took Wren by surprise, it wasn't one she was ready to think about. Truthfully she didn't know, but she didn't want to tell him that. It was the first time Talon had even mentioned the reaping.

"It's your first year, your name is only in the bowl once. I highly doubt one of us will get picked." Wren pulled him closer. "So many other kids have way more entries than us." She tried to reassure him, Talon rested his head on Wren's shoulder. It became silent once again, both of their thoughts now occupied by the reaping. "We should head home." Wren finally spoke, Talon nodding slightly.

The pair gathered their things, Talon held the flowers he had picked. Wren held her bag close, "Are you ready to go?"

"Yep, I've got everything." He walked past his older sister, heading for the trail.

The walk home was a lot quieter than the walk there. Wren was now thinking of all the things that could happen come reaping day. It was only a week away. The thought of losing Talon to the games made her sick, she couldn't imagine her little brother in one of those arenas.