A Blooming Rose (hunger games fan-fic)

Chapter 1 (the Reaping of the 51st Annual Hunger Games)

Rosalinda Cobain hurried back to town from working in the fields. Her shift just ended and she was going to go and check on the people in her community. Rose, which was her nickname, was one of the only nurses in the area. Whenever someone was sick or injured, Rose would go and take care of them. The Peacekeepers honored her rulings; they were the ones who made sure people were working in the fields. If someone was sick or hurt and needed to rest, Rose would write a note and hang it on their door to signal to the Peacekeepers that they had to stay home. Everyone was glad to have Rose around to take care of them.

Rose was a young woman of sixteen. She had short brown hair which curled a lot in the back, but her bangs stayed straight. Her eyes were normally bright blue, but they changed colors depending on her mood. No one ever questioned this, since no one had ever seen her eyes another color except her family.

Rose had four brothers, a mother, and a father. Three of her brothers - Rigg, Thomas, and Alex - worked in the fields with her, along with their father. The youngest brother, Ian, stayed home with their mother, since he wasn't yet old enough.

Rose stopped by her house to gather her medical supplies, which included things like leaves to draw out tracker jacker stings or pain killers. She said hello to her mother and brother before she ran out the door.

"Rose?" her mother called. Rose stopped and looked back at the house. "Are you going out like that? It's Reaping Day, you know."

Oh, yeah, Rose thought to herself. Reaping Day.

Reaping Day was a day where two people, one boy and girl, were chosen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, held by the Capitol. Rose hated the Capitol. They cared nothing for the districts except their seemingly endless supply of tributes for their precious Hunger Games. Rose ran back into her house and changed into her Reaping clothes. Once she had her mother's approval, she hurried to her first patient's home.

~

"You better hurry along, Rose," her last patient told her. "You'll miss the Reaping."

"Like I would want to be there any way," Rose said with a smile. Everyone in District 11 hated Reaping Day. Everyone in Panem, except for Capitol people, hated Reaping Day. "Remember, take those pills twice a day. One before breakfast and one before bed."

"Thank you, Rose," the patient said. "What would we do without you?"

"You'd have to find a new nurse," Rose said before she stepped out of the home.

She sighed and hurried to the square, where the Reaping would take place. Rose made her way towards her section where the sixteen year old females stood. She placed her bag of supplies on her back, and stood among the other sixteen year old girls. No one spoke to her; no one was really supposed to talk at all.

A woman, whose name was Iris Pittree, dressed in a silly blue suit, who had straight white hair and was unearthly pale so it appeared her hair was part of her face, stood on the stage. She wore blue eye shadow and blue lipstick, making her look even more unusual. Behind her were multiple important people from District Twelve, including the two previous victors; Seeder, a middle aged woman, and Chaff, a man in his early twenties who lost his hand in the 45th Hunger Games and refused to get a prosthetic one. Chaff would be the mentor of this year's tributes.

"Welcome, people of District Eleven," Iris said. "To the 51st Annual Hunger Games! As you know, we will be choosing one male and one female tribute to participate in this year's Hunger Games. Now, for the female tribute."

Iris walked across the stage to the large glass bowl that held every name of twelve to eighteen year old girl in District Twelve's name, some more than expected. If a person wanted to sign up for extra grain and oil for their families, their name would be added again to the Reaping Bowl. Rose's name was in their four times already, but she had also requested the extra food, so she had about ten entries. Iris selected a name from the bowl and walked back to the microphone. She unfolded the paper and read it allowed.

"The female tribute from District Eleven is," she said, pausing. "Rosalinda Cobain!"

Rose froze in place. She closed her eyes, afraid they would change colors on her. She tried to keep calm as she made her way towards the stage, the Peacekeepers guiding her. Rose opened her eyes when she got to the stage and began to climb the stairs. Iris motioned for her to stand next to her. Rose did so.

"And now for the male tribute," Iris said.

She made her way to the other bowl. She picked out the name card and walked back to the microphone. Rose stared out into the crowd of people, completely shutting out Iris's voice. Rose spotted her mother, who had buried her face in her husband's chest. Rose found each of her brothers, one by one, in the crowd. Ian stood with their parents, and the others stood within their age groups. Some of their friends patted them on the backs to reassure them. Rose came back into reality when Iris tapped her shoulder.

"Shake hands," she told her.

Rose looked at the boy who stood on Iris's other side. He was well-built and had brown hair. His eyes were emerald green and sparkled that way too. Rose shook his hand, then looked back at the crowd.

"Happy Hunger Games!" Iris said. "And may the odds be ever in your favor."