The Forgotten District [Percy Jackson and Hunger Games Crossover]

The Reaping

        Well, today's the day. The Reaping. Chiron told us what's going to happen, about how we all have to show up at the Square, about how we all have our names is some magic crystal ball, about how one boy and one girl will be picked to die for our district, all for the Capitol's amusement. I walked off to the bathroom, took a shower, and forced myself into this (http://www.polyvore.com/reaping/set?id=111851725). I honestly hated it, but apparently, we all had to look nice before we started walking toward our deaths. I braided my hair into a loose ponytail and walked back to the cabin.

        As I closed the door behind me, Mom walked up to me and started tugging at my dress and fussing with my hair. Percy walked up to me wearing a simple button-up shirt and khaki pants. His hair was still a mess, but there was only so much we could do. "You ready to die?" I asked him, kind of smirking. "Not in the slightest." he replied, giving me a grin. We heard a horn sound in the distance. "Well, that's our cue." I said. With every step, I cursed Kronos, I cursed the Capitol, and I cursed myself for taking this without a fight.

        We trudged on to the Square with the rest of the kids. I guess Percy walked off to find Annabeth, because I couldn't find him anywhere. I kept walking through the crowd until we came to a group of Peacekeepers. They checked us off, one by one as we passed their checkpoint. I walked off into a small crowd of teenagers where I found Percy, Annabeth, Jason, Piper, and a few more people I didn't really know. As more and more people poured into the Square, I looked around a bit, taking in the surroundings. There was a ginormous stage in front of the Square with 2 chairs, 2 large glass balls, and a microphone set up. There were small crowds scattered everywhere, from 12-year-olds to 18-year-olds. I looked around my own group a little more. Percy and Annabeth were clinging to each other like there was no tomorrow. Jason and Piper weren't much different, so I was the odd man out with all of the C-lists. Yeah, C-listers.

        I stood there awkwardly until Chiron came onto the stage in centaur form. Following him was a tall woman with a bright blue wig. She was wearing a frilly shirt that was so gaudy, I wouldn't have been surprised if I doubled over right then and there and started puking rainbows. Chiron took his spot next to Mr. D while the strange woman took the empty chair. They started whispering to each other, occasionally taking a glance back at us. Finally, the woman stood up and walked up to the microphone. "Welcome to the 74th annual Hunger Games!" her voice boomed. "My name is Zeedee Clockwork, and I will be District 14's escort for the Games. Now, happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be EVER in your favor!" I stifled a giggle. Her Capitol accent was so over the top, half of the camp was snickering and the other half was trying to cover their smiles. "First the girls." She walked up to one of the balls and picked a name out. She read it to herself over and over again, probably meaning to add suspense. When she finally decided to open her mouth, she enunciated very carefully "Annabeth Chase."

        My mouth dropped. I looked over at Percy and saw his face had been flushed. Annabeth was hyperventilating. She slowly started walking up to the stage, her face a ghastly white. Percy tried to pull her back, but the Peacemakers kept Percy at bay. The Square was silent as she continued to inch toward the stage. As her feet hit the hard wood, the sound echoed through the empty air. As she took her place, Zeedee finally said "Do we have any tributes?" We all looked at each other really confused. When she realized her mistake, she rephrased, "Is anyone willing to take her place?" I quickly looked around, but saw no volunteers. I knew what I had to do, but I had to make sure there was no other way. "I volunteer!" I shouted as I stepped into a clearing.

        Everyone's heads turned toward me. "Well, looks like we have a tribute!" she said, absolutely delighted. "No, duh." I mumble as I walked up to the stage. I look back at the group. Annabeth had already run off and had her face buried in Percy's shirt. He was giving me a pleading look. I reassured him with a nod, and turned back around. I made my way next to Zeedee and stared out into the crowd. "What's your name, sweetheart?" she asked me. I gritted my teeth and said "Andromeda Jackson." Gods I hate that name. But, I guess Mom thought it would be "cute" if both of our names were in the same Greek myth. 'Aww!', right (Note the sarcasm). "But please, call me Andi." I add quickly. "Well, let's give a hand to Andi Jackson, the female tribute for District 14." she said cheerfully. She started to clap, but no one joined. Instead, everyone got down on one knee and bowed their heads (At Camp Half-Blood, this was a great sign of respect). She cleared her throat and said "Onto the boys." She walked over to the other glass ball, reached her hand in, and pulled out a slip of paper. "Leo Valdez." she read. My eyes got wide. Oh crap.

(5 years ago)

        It had been 2 weeks since Percy and I had left District 12. We had decided that we just couldn't take watching all of our friends die of starvation and have the Capitol do nothing about it. We found a hole in the fence (which wasn't very hard) and had been fending for ourselves ever since. We were in even worse shape than when we had started (if that's possible). We had been walking until either our feet went numb or it was too dark to see, so we had covered so pretty serious ground. At least, I thought we did. With all of the bear attacks, tracker jacker incidents, and run-ins with monsters, we had lost a lot of time.

        We were barely alive when a bronze bull slowly walked in front of us. It huffed as Percy and I huddled close. We were so weak, we didn't even bother to fight back. A few tears streamed down my face as I pulled Percy closer. I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for death, but it never came. I cracked my eye open and saw a boy about my age, riding the bull as it bucked like crazy and shot fireballs into the air. He was yanking wires and bolts out of its neck as it kept jumping and shooting fire out of its snot. Soon, the bull powered down and the trees were engulfed in flames. He got off and yelled "RUN!" We ran away as fast as we could, but we didn't get far before we got tired. I tried to keep running, but my legs went limp and I collapsed.

        I couldn't move a thing. My vision started turning black around the edges. I was only able to make out the boy's face. All I could describe him as is one of Santa's Latino Elf. His eyebrows were scrunched together in a worried expression. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing. The rest of my vision was swallowed up with the darkness and I blacked out. When I came to, I found myself at the Camp Half-Blood infirmary. In all of the chaos, I lost my favorite ring that belonged to my grandmother before she died. In the next week, I learned that my father was Poseidon, I learned that I was in a secret 14th District, and I learned that boy's name. Leo Valdez had saved my life.

(Right Now)

        As he approached the stage, I realized just how nervous he was. He was staring down at his feet and twiddling with a spring. I almost forgot where I was when Zeedee asked "Any tributes?" I looked over at Percy, but he seemed a bit preoccupied with Annabeth. I looked to the right a bit and saw Jason and Piper making out. Two of us were about to die and they were sucking face. Nice (Note the sarcasm). No one was stepping up, so she just walked back to her seat as Chiron walked up in her place with a scroll. He unrolled the paper and started reading, but I sort of zoned out after a while. I was thinking about this kid that saved me from starvation. This kid that brought me to my real home. This kid that I was going to have to kill in a matter of weeks.

        I snapped out of my daze just in time to see Chiron motion for us to shake hands. He offered me his hand, and I took it. It was really boney and warm. I looked him in the eye and saw a glint of pure terror. I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and let go. As the anthem began, so did my journey to fame and fortune or (more likely) painful death.

A/N: Sorry that I can't do more with the Percy Jackson half of this. I just couldn't see how it would fit with the Districts of Panem, so this is how I'm going to do it. And sorry about the sucky escort name, I just couldn't come up with anything and I thought back to Effie Trinket. See if you can see where I'm going with this.