The 200th Annual Hunger Games - The Ultimate Games

District 8 Reaping

Alejandro Hale POV

“Xenia, hurry up!” I yelled into my twin sisters room. “We need to be at the town square by 2!”

The only reply I got was a muffled profanity.

My twin sister and I had just turned 18, and this year we were both volunteering to enter the hunger games. I would have no problem killing off my twin if it came to it, and I was about 99% sure Xenia felt the same way.

“Why are you being so bossy today?” Xenia scoffed as she walked out of her room.

I grinned evilly at her. “I’m allowed to be bossy. I’m the oldest.”

“Oh please, you’re older than me by 5 minutes!” Xenia rolled her eyes.

“And don’t you forget it.” I smirked. Xenia sighed and gave up, walking over to the mirror and adjusting her hair.

Both Xenia and I were very attractive. Especially me, if I do say so myself. We inherited out raven black hair and olive skin from our parents, however where Xenia had blue eyes, mine were green. I had my mother’s eyes, but no one in our family knew where Xenia got her blue eyes from.

Xenia was wearing a simple dark blue dress that fell to her knees, and I was wearing a simple white collared shirt and black pants. Finally, Xenia stopped adjusting her hair and we left for the reaping. As we passed, people began to dart out of the way, fear in their eyes. Most people had heard stories about what my twin and I had done. Some were true, some weren’t.

‘I heard they killed a little kid and his mother got blamed for it!’

‘I heard that they beat up all the kids at school!’

‘They’re nutjobs!’

‘I heard they are, like, legitimately crazy. Like, the type of crazy that gets you locked up somewhere.’

Xenia and I smirked at all the attention we were getting, even though it may have been for the wrong reasons. After a few minutes of walking, we reached the town square. We walked into our respective fenced off areas, and everyone standing around us shifted uncomfortably.

After a few moments, our escort Silvermoon bounced onstage. Her hair was piled ridiculously high on her head in a beehive style, and was sprayed a silver colour. Her smoky eye makeup looked like it had been applied by a toddler, and her lips had been puffed up and were charcoal black. Her dress wasn’t any les ridiculous. It was silver and fell to her ankles, and flowed around her like a ballroom gown. The sleeves had large dangerous looking spikes on the shoulders, and her neck was covered by the dress.

Basically, she looked like a demented nightmarish fairy godmother.

“Welcome, District 8!” she squealed loudly. “Welcome to the reapings! Let’s get this started!”

She bounced over to the female bowl and plucked out a slip. I smirked. Xenia and I had agreed we would both volunteer straightaway. Silvermoon opened up the slip and read it out loudly.

“Kaylee Usdan!”

Unless, of course, that name was called.

Kaylee was my sister’s worst enemy. Xenia had always acted shady about it, but she would rant on and on and on daily about how annoying Kaylee was. The funny thing was, Kaylee and Xenia used to be best friends. But something happened a few years ago, and ever since then, Xenia had a strong hatred for her.

Although Xenia had agreed to volunteer straightaway, I knew it wasn’t going to happen when Silvermoon called out Kaylee’s name. Xenia was probably already thinking of different torturous, excruciating deaths she could inflict upon Kaylee in these games. As annoying and irritating as she may be, my twin shares the same cunning mind as me. She’s determined and stubborn as anything. If she was to believe that pigs could fly, she would defend that theory until the day she died, no matter how many people told her she was wrong.

Kaylee slowly walked up to the microphone, her eyes wide.

“I’m 17, turning 18 in a few weeks.” She murmured.

“Wonderful!” Silvermoon shrieked. She gestured at Kaylee to take a seat as she picked out another slip.

“Rachel-“

“I VOLUNTEER!” Xenia’s hand shot up into the air as she yelled out the two words. She raced towards the stage, and Kaylee’s face froze in horror. Xenia reached the microphone and wiggled her fingers at Kaylee.

“Miss me?” she sneered. Kaylee shrunk back as Xenia turned back to the microphone.

“I’m Xenia Hale, I’m 18, and I am making it to the Ultimate Games!” she shouted enthusiastically. Silvermoon smiled broadly and ushered her over to the seats. Xenia sat down next to Kaylee, who looked absolutely terrified. I stifled a laugh.

“Now for our final female!” Silvermoon grinned, pulling another name out of the bowl.

“Yasmine Davis!”

A pretty looking girl walked upstage, her eyes set and determined.

“I’m 14.” She said into the microphone, before sitting down next to Xenia. I blinked in surprise. She didn’t even look fazed sitting next to my twin, whilst most people shit their pants just being around us.

Hats off to you, Yasmine.

“And now, for the boys!” Silvermoon trilled happily. She picked out a slip and read it loudly.

“Qu-“

“I VOLUNTEER!” I yelled. I ran forward, eager to impress. Silvermoon grinned as I jumped onstage.

“I am Alejandro Hale, I am 18, and my twin and I will make it to the Ultimate Games!”

Silvermoon clapped cheerily, smiling hugely. I sat down next to Yasmine, who continued to examine her fingernails indifferently.

“Next boy!” Silvermoon trilled, opening the next slip.

“Simon Hanson!”

A tall lanky looking boy walked out of the 15 year old section and stared out at the crowd.

“I’m 15.” He said quickly. He sat down in the chair next to me, clenched up nervously as if he were afraid I was going to explode.

“Now for our final tribute!” Silvermoon said dramatically. She pulled out the last slip of paper and opened it up, reading it loudly.

“Eddie Graham!”

Suddenly, someone front the 12 year old section cried out as a scuffle began. A little kid was pushing through the other children, his cried hysterical as he tried to escape. A peacekeeper ran forward as the kid burst through the crowd and sprinted away from the town square. The peacekeeper spear tackled him, and the kid cried out in pain. The peacekeeper flung the child over his shoulder and carried him to the microphone, all while the child was screaming and yelling.

“IM 12 YEARS OLD!” Eddie screamed at Silvermoon as the peacekeeper put him down. He ran to the seat and sat down in it, quaking uncontrollably.

“Well, that concludes our reaping this year!” Silvermoon trilled. “Please give a round of applause for District 8’s tributes! Kaylee Usdan, Xenia Hale, Yasmine Davis, Alejandro Hale, Simon Hanson and Eddie Graham!”

No one clapped, as usual. Silvermoon didn’t let this faze her.

‘Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favour!”