The 1st Quarter Quell

Chapter 5 - The Reaping

"Althea you're not going to the Reaping with your hair like that!" Mother shouts at me from the door. She's so confident in me not being selected that she's even bought a new dress for me that I have to wear today; a white mid-arm sleeved dress with a pale floral print that buttoned up the front all the way up to my neck. She's perfectly matched the dress with her pearls that are tucked neatly under the collar at the top. 

"Mother I have to be there early so will you just let me go?" I reply, gently slapping away her hand before she could 'adjust' the headband plait I had worked so hard on. It's a double-plait that keeps my hair out of my face and around my head. I'm not one for appearance and glamour like my Mother, but I don't mind putting the effort in once in a while. 

"I don't see why you're bothering, all the ladies at work already told me who they're voting for." She mumbles as she folds up my sleeve for me. That comment annoys me, it's as if she's trying to remind me that I'm never going to stand a chance. Oh how wrong she is. I may not be a people person, but at least I can hold my own against a brutal fighter. I smile weakly at her as she takes one final look at me and gives me a quick hug. I try to embrace the hug as much as I can, it may or may not be one of the last times I would see my Mother, and even if I have a difficult relationship with her. 

The walk to the Hall of Justice is long, quiet and awkward, and along the way I see more and more teenagers making their way onto the street towards the same destination. By the time I get there, I given my Mother a parting goodbye as well as giving Alfie and Izzy a hug.

"Where're you going Althea?" Izzy whines grabbing onto my hand. How am I going to tell her about this without scaring her and Alfie? I can't tell them I was potentially going to die! At the end of the day I'm doing them a favour. If I win these Games, they'd never have to compete.

"Now guys," I whisper as I get down to their level. Mother's busy talking to a work friend, "I''ve got to go line up with all the other kids, and if my name get's called out, I get to go on an adventure!" I beam and both of their faces light up in excitement.

"I wanna' go!" Alfie whines crossing his arm in protest. This is beyond cruel. I've already made my mind up about entering these Games, and yet, here my siblings are, making me want to stay home and take care of them. Why am I so bad at making tough decisions?

"No guys, I have to go, but if I complete the adventure, you guys will be safe for the rest of your lives!" I beam, pretending to sound the slightest bit excited. I receive many sympathetic looks from the adults and other kids walking past, all of them sad that children are forced to watch. I remember getting nightmares from the Games when I was younger...

Alfie and Izzy absorb my words, and I hope they don't ask what I think they're going to ask, so before they can, I pull the both of them in for another hug. I will miss them dearly, Izzy's messy hair and even Alfie's whining! I know that it isn't definite whether or not I'm getting voted, but either way, I don't want them to get worried.

I follow the rest of the girls up to the Peacekeeper desk, and Maximilian happens to be sat there in his pristine Peacekeeper uniform. After patiently waiting a good few minutes for the line to recede, it's my turn to be checked in. 

"Sorry sis, I'm only blood duty," He smiles apologetically before bringing a tiny contraption to my finger. A sharp sting and he gently presses my finger towards the paper on the desk, the blood and fingerprint staining the page along with the countless other prints. "Good luck Althea." He nods with a weak smile, and I see in his eyes that he doesn't want me to go. He knows very well I want this, he just doesn't want to see me get hurt.

Once I make my way to the girls' section, I wait patiently, recognizing, but not acknowledging, almost all of the faces around me. People I see at school, at the Academy, in and around town, faces I may not ever see again if I entered these Games. I catch glimpse of Mason on the other side of the courtyard, and his eyes are like tunnels.