Reunited // Finnick Odair

Chapter 1

I'm running, squealing and laughing - a six year old wild and free. I race through the tall grass, splashing through the small lake that ran into the sea of my District, away from the golden haired laughing boy chasing me. I can hear him calling my name, struggling to breathe and laugh at the same time as I race through the main streets, saying a quick ''hello'' to anybody kind enough to greet me. I'm not stopping for him. I'm a butterfly - flying away from the net. We always play chase - it's our favourite game, Finnick and I. Everyday after school he'd wait for me by the gates and we'd race after each other until we reached our home. I love District 4. It's beautiful, calm, fun - unlike many other districts. You should see the sea in summer, glistening blue and the gentle rolling waves licking the sand. Every summertime, Finnick and I spent our days by the sea, sometimes with our parents but most often on our own. Some days, Finnick and I would learn how to fish with my father or how to weave nets and baskets with my mother. Life is always so laid back and easy. I love it.

''Got you!'' Finnick cries with excitement as he grasps my arm, having finally caught up with me.

''Yep, you got me!'' I laugh at him, stopping and panting hard, trying to regather air in my lungs.

''So, what do you want to do now, Anna?'' he asks me, setting off again - walking this time - towards our street.

''I dunno,'' I shrug, following him. He's much faster than me so is already ahead, my little legs trying to reach him. He notices my struggles and laughs before slowing down for me.

''We could collect driftwood?'' He suggests, raising an eyebrow at me.

I grin and nod. Driftwood is probably one of my favorite things, I find it so beautiful. Stripped of it's color and bleached by the sea, bent in weird angles from the salt reacting with the wood. In my house, my father made most of our furniture out of driftwood, saving most of our money for food and clothes instead of fancy furniture. We reach the beach, spending the next ten minutes in silence as we scrounge the beach for any decent sized pieces of driftwood, occasionally picking up pretty shells we can use to decorate anything dull.

''It's the Reaping soon,'' Finnick announces quietly after a while.

Instantly I cringe. The Reaping is horrible and it's also my future. Every year, twelve to eighteen year old's are forced to enter their names for the annual Hunger Games, where two tributes - one male and one female - from each of the twelve districts enter an arena to battle it out until twenty-three die and only one Victor remains, who then go on to live in their Districts' Victor's Village for a life of satisfaction, where they'll want for nothing.

''I know,'' I reply, bending to pick up a foot long piece of driftwood, inspecting it before nodding my head and piling it up in my short arms.

''Three years to go, Anna,'' he half smiles, one of those sad looks that always make me want to hug Finnick. I hate seeing him sad.

''Six for me,'' I say, equally as sad as we can't go through it together, him being older than me.

''You won't be chosen,'' he smiles at me, picking up another piece of driftwood and dropping it on my already large pile.

''And neither will you. But if we are - we will always be there for each other, right?'' I tell him, steadying myself as I walk with the heavy load in my arms.

''Right,'' he nods, taking a sideways glance at me. He chuckles before leaning over and taking most of the wood out of my arms and carrying it himself. ''You are so weak, Anna,''

''Shut up, you,'' I glare at him before cracking into a smile with him.

''Come on, let's get you home - your parents might be home now,'' he begins walking away from the beach, shaking sand out of his sandals as we go. ''They still working for the Capitol?''

''Yep,'' I nod. The Capitol is where everything happens. The people there don't live in a District, don't know what poverty is. They think the Hunger Games are entertainment for them, that sending kids into an arena to kill each other while they live up the high life with whatever food they want is enjoyable and not sick at all. I hate the Capitolites - with their stupid appearances.

''They work with Snow?'' he asks, glancing at me again.

I begin to chew my lip nervously and nod slowly. Snow. I hate Snow and I've never even met him - the graying president of the Capitol, the guy who rules the games. My parents work close by him, although I can tell they hate him, want him gone. Plenty of times his been at my house, pulled up on the side of the street in his black car. Sometimes to argue with my parents, or threaten them. Once, I overhead them talking about something called a ''rebellion'' although I don't know what they were talking about. I think my parents are doing something wrong and Snow doesn't like it. In all honesty, I'm scared he'll hurt them. He's hurt people before, surely.

''Ooh! How about we-'' he begins, trying to change the subject but breaks off as we turn into our street to find a sleek black car parked outside of my house - a few Peacekeepers guarding it. I freeze and drop the driftwood, letting it clatter to the floor. I throw a worried look with Finnick as I walk closer to the house, suddenly terrified by the large Peacekeepers in their fresh, white uniforms.

''Finnick?'' I whisper hoarsely, scared to make a loud noise.

He understands, lacing his hand in mine and gently guiding me up the street and through the gate into my house. More Peacekeepers litter the door as we edge our way inside, into the wide hallway. I suddenly find it hard to breathe, my lungs closing up. I grip Finnick's hand harder, glad for his support. I try to steady my six year old self, drawing in a deep breath and stepping into my lounge to find President Snow sat on one of the armchairs, as usual smelling of blood and roses. The scent made me sick to my stomach as it was so over powerful, attacking my nose with such a force my eyes begin to water.

''Ah, hello Miss Everly. Nice to see you again,'' he says pleasantly enough, but I see the look in his eyes that mean business.

''Why are you here? Where are my parents?'' I ask, getting straight to the point.

Snow smiles understandingly but he could never understand how everyone in the districts feel. ''I see you mean no nonsense,'' he chuckles slightly. ''To answer your questions, firstly I am here to deliver a few pieces of news. Secondly, your parents? Well, Vivianna, it saddens me to say they're dead,''

My eyes widen and my knees give way when he says that. I fall to the floor in shock, tears swimming in my eyes, threatening to fall. I feel Finnick gently put down his pile of driftwood on the table and kneel on the floor, wrapping his arms around my shoulders as I begin to sob. I'm only six years old and already I am an orphan - no parents, no family. Alone.

''W-why?!'' I choke, gasping for air.

''They died in an, should we say, ah...unfortunate accident,'' Snow goes on, not at all sounding like it was an unfortunate accident.

''What w-will happen to m-me?'' I asked, clutching Finnick tight.

''That's what I came to discuss,'' he links his hands together and leans forward slightly. ''You're moving.''

My eyes widen again and I pull away from Finnick sharply, looking at Snow in the eyes. ''What do you mean?'' I demand, my anger growing dangerously close to blowing. I'm an angry little girl, I'll tell you that.

''You're moving,'' he repeats, his eyes smiling but his face deadpan. ''To District 12,''

''District 12?!'' I exclaim, standing on my feet to be taller. Finnick hastily gets up, his eyes filled with tears. ''You can't send me there! I belong here, in District four, with Finnick! Who will I live with?!''

''We'll work something out. For now, Vivianna Everly - goodbye.'' He stands, brushes himself off and walks away, leaving the scent of blood and roses filling my empty house which now holds so many bittersweet memories.

As soon as I hear the car drive away I burst into tears again. Finnick wraps his arms around me protectively, pulling me close. ''Finnick! I c-can't go! I h-have no one! What a-about y-you!?'' I cry, loud, heartbroken sobs.

''Shh...everything is going to be alright, Anna,'' Finnick whispers into my hair. I feel his own tears drop onto my blonde locks, dampening them. So he's going to miss me, too?

''I'll see y-you again s-someday, right?'' I ask, pulling back to stare into his gorgeous eyes, shiny with tears.

''Of course,'' he whispers again before pressing a light kiss to my forehead.

A six year old orphan and her nine year old best friend...torn apart by the Capitol.
One way or another, no matter where I go, who I live with - whatever happens.

The Capitol are going to regret sending me away.