87th Games

Avery Vada

We had no chance to say goodbye to our families, Magnus rushed us onto the train saying we were already late. Apparently we were the last district to hold the reaping and most of the tributes were already waiting for us to arrive. I couldn’t help but cry as I watched my town melt away in the distance, unable to say a few simple ‘I love yous’ to my family.

I hated the Capitol and this just made me hate them more.

Sure, I had a respect for the law but that was only because they hung people on the spot for disobeying. And yeah, I did steal food every now and again, but I wasn’t going to steal a whole lot and end up dying because of my own stupidity. But thinking back on it, I should have binged on as many apples as I could have before the reaping, maybe then I’d feel a little less miserable.

I’m sure my family knew that I loved them, but I wish I was able to at least say good bye and to give my little brothers a bone crushing cuddle. Tears continued to stream down my face as I realised I was going to die soon.

Last year the Capitol held the games in a scorching desert. Eight people died in the first 5 minutes in what I dubbed the ‘cornucopia blood bath’. Then two people died the next day, and following that five people died of heat exhaustion, three of dehydration and eventually the remaining careers killed each other off as usual. It was probably one of the shortest hunger games in about fifty years and the people in the Capitol weren’t happy about it.

Watching people run around in an area killing each other and dying was the peoples favourite past time but not every games could be as thrilling as Katniss and Peeta’s year. That was the 74th Hunger Games, and they fell in love with each other during the games. That was the only time in the history of the games has President Snow or any president for that matter allowed two victors.

 “Now sit!” Magnus said to me pushing hard on my shoulder in order to make me sit down on a plush leather seat.

Magnus was supposed to be the capitol coach. He was supposed to teach us capitol etiquette and prep us for interviews as well as organise district 10 sponsors. From memory, district 10 has never received any sponsors before, probably because no one from my district has ever won. That meant me and Arrow had no proper previous victor who could guide and teach us.

Sometimes really old victors would volunteer to help us, though they would usually be well past their expiry date and unable to string even a coherent sentence together. District 10 was doomed.Other times the Capitol had to pay previous victors to help us, not that it ever did us any good. We weren’t bred to be natural killers like they were.

We were farmers. We could picket the harvest, ride donkeys and horses, help deliver pregnant animals and could even make a sturdy hat out of straw. Animals rarely died in my district because we cared for them like they were people. Once I climbed a cliff-face to save a stranded baby lamb. I had no idea how he got up there but I wasn’t going to let him die. I loved every kind of animal and worked extra hard to make sure they got the proper nutrience they needed.

There was a small bump in an otherwise smooth ride.

This was the first time I wiped away my tears and really looked at my surroundings. The train carriage was magnificent, beautifully decorated with crystal chandeliers and golden arches. The walls were covered with unique symmetric patterns and every object in the room seemed to sparkle.  

“You are not going to act like that with your fellow tribute!” He spat while shaking his head vigorously at us.

I looked at Arrow who was snickering, sprawled out in a seat beside mine.

“He is an ungrateful brat that has never done anything to-”

“You are lucky I was able to make best of the situation! How dare you cause a commotion at the reaping, especially on live television!” His face now looked like a red tomato, not that I’ve seen many of those before.