Just A Game

Somewhere. Anywhere. Away from here.

I rise from my worn bed at dawn and silently dress in my old clothes. I pull my father's leather hunting jacket on and zip it up, concealing my torso. I quickly braid my honey-brown hair down my back and lace up my boots. I leave the small, broken down house and jog down the dusty dirt road. My gray eyes shine in the early morning sun and I try to push down the feeling of impending doom.

Of course, I know what it is. The Reaping. It terrifies me, not like I can ever voice those thoughts. If I was Reaped, my terror being known would mean certain death.

So I keep quiet. For now, at least.

Once I reach the boarders of town, I crawl under a hole in the fence and run to the confines of the forest. About fifteen meters in, I pull my bow from a hollow tree trunk and tug my quiver free from under some shrubbery. Lightly treading deeper into the forest, I sling my quiver across my back and yank a branch from a blueberry bush. I chew a few of the berries and hear a branch break. I string an arrow in no more than a second and turn, ready to strike.

It's only a chipmunk.

I sigh and relax my hold, continuing my journey to Gale and I's special spot. It's hidden on the hill overlooking the valley. Beautiful this time of year. It's late April and the flowers are in full bloom.

Too bad we'll be forced to watch kids viciously murder each other. Kinda ruins the beauty of the forest when you consider the ugliness of the situation.

I'm such an optimist, huh?

Sarcasm intended.

I push through the bushes that hide our clearing from the world and see Gale waiting for me.

"Hey Vi," he says and I see a smile creep onto his face.

Gale's smiles are reserved for three things only: me, a good day of hunting, and his family.

"Hey," I grin. Like him, my smiles are also very hard to come by.

I walk over and sit down next to him, reclining in the soft grass. I pass him the berry branch and he pulls a few off and pops them into his mouth. I do the same and the sweet juice invades my taste buds.

"How many times is your name in today?" I ask, looking over at him.

"Forty two," he replies, not moving his piercing stare from the forest before us. "Guess the odds aren't in my favor, huh?" After a beat, he looks over at me. "I almost forgot. Here." He hands me a medium-sized roll and my eyes widen.

"Oh my gosh! Is this real?!" I exclaimed, excitedly pulling apart the bread and handing him half.

"It better be," he chuckled lightly. "It cost me enough."

We bite into the bread and know it's worth whatever he had to pay for it. It tastes a thousand times better than the bread we make from the tough grain we receive from tesserae.

Once we finish the bread, our spirits lifted, we meet eyes and a feeling rare in District Twelve passes between us. Happiness.

"Happy Hunger Games," he says, mocking the ridiculous Capitol accent, and tosses a blueberry my way in the air.

I catch it in my mouth.

"And may the odds be ever in your favor," I finish, also using the high-pitched accent.

We sit in silence for a while, just taking in the beautiful scenery.

"We could make it, you know," he finally says and confusion sets in. I glance at him. "Run away."

"And go where?" I ask, the idea impossible.

I mean, sure, Gale and I could make it, but our families? Not likely.

"Somewhere. Anywhere. Away from here."

"Gale, we can't. Our families," I remind him but he only shrugs.

"They can come with us," he replies.

"Can you imagine Lily in the woods?" I ask with a roll of my eyes.

The silence sets in once again but the tension leaves quickly. I want to think the previous conversation is forgotten, but I know it isn't.

After several hours, we leave the forest and make our way home, but not before selling the game we managed to catch. It's a good amount, enough for us to afford a decent meal tonight to celebrate our safety. After this year, Gale's safe. This is his last Reaping, whereas I have the next two years to think about. Then, of course, there's my little sister, Lily, for whom this is her first Reaping.

We stop at the Mayor's house to sell strawberries, which he always buys.

"Violet!" Madge Undersea, the Mayor's daughter, says happily upon our arrival.

Madge is in my year at school and we're friends. She's quite nice and neither of us talk much in social scenes, so I guess we gravitate to each other. She's wearing a white dress with matching flat shoes and her blonde hair is curled and tied back with a light pink ribbon. On her dress is a gold pin. Real gold. It could keep a family going for months.

"Pretty dress," Gale says, his voice hard.

"Gale," I hiss, nudging him sharply in the ribs.

"Well, I want to look nice if I end up getting sent to the Capitol," Madge says, deciding Gale meant it not in the slightest as a compliment. And I know he didn't.

"Like that'll happen. You have your name in, what? Five times?" he sneers and even though it's true, it's still rude.

Madge ignores him and takes the basket of strawberries from me, handing me the money.

"Good luck," she says to me, smiling.

"You too."

-----

"I'm home," I call out and am instantly greeted with the shaky, terrified voice of my sister.

She isn't a fool. She knows exactly how horrible the Games are and she knows that she's eligible now. She also knows that she has no chance of winning. That she would more likely than not be killed almost immediately in the initial Bloodbath.

Or maybe she wouldn't. Maybe she'd escape, seeing as she poses no threat of any kind. The Bloodbath is for taking out all the main threats. But sooner or later, she would be pursued. And if she had gotten a knife somehow, she wouldn't know how to use it well enough for it to be even worth having.

I stand at least some kind of a chance.

"I left out some clothes for you," my mother smiles from her place at the doorway.

"Okay," I force out.

When my father died, my mother went into depression and I was forced to provide for the family. Ever since I was eleven years old. I haven't trusted my mother since then.

I find a familiar light gray dress on my bed, with matching shoes. My eyes widen. These were my mother's, back from when she lived in the wealthier part of the District. She's the daughter of wealthy merchants, but they died long ago and when she married my father, she gave up everything. What she still has from her old life is very special to her.

I change into the clothes and let her rebraid my hair. Soon enough, I'm ready for the event we're forced to celebrate. Lily is dressed and together we proceed to the Town Square. We sign in and my mother joins the other parents as my sister timidly nudges into the crowd of the other twelve year old girls. I force myself in with the sixteens and eventually, it all begins. The Mayor gives a short speech and then reclaims his seat.

Gale sends me a smile.

Our district escort, Effie Trinket, prances onstage, looking especially freakish. Her hair is bright orange and she's dressed in a loud pink outfit. I tune her out until it's time.

"Girls first!" she exclaims excitedly, her manicured hand plunging into the pool of names. She finally chooses a slip of paper and unfolds it. She clears her throat and reads the name loud and clear, her annoying accent ringing out clearly.

I'm safe.

But Lily isn't.