District Nine and three quarters

On The Train

Andrew and I were walked to the train by a load of peace keepers. Quil greeted us as soon as we were on the train,

"Now," she said, "as this is the first year that your district has competed so obviously there are no previous winners to be your mentor therefore we have brought in someone else, say hello to your mentor Mags!" An old lady stepped out from behind Quil. She offered her hand to me and I shuck it,

“Yazzie,” I said,

“Andrew,” Andrew said.

"You two look very district proud," Mags said indicating too our jumpers. I smiled weakly, I knew Mags was trying to lighten the atmosphere but it wasn’t working. There was an awkward silence for a moment but then Quil said,

“Why don’t you going and have some dinner and then we’ll watch a recap of the reaping.” Andrew and I nodded and followed Quil down a corridor. We turned into a small room in the centre of which stood and wooden table on which sat lots of food,

“Wow,” Andrew gasped, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen as much food as this at one time!” I just smiled. I had seen as much food as that, more even at Hogwarts banquets but I couldn’t let Quil or Mags know that.

“Please tuck in,” Quil said with a laugh. I slipped into a seat next to the window and started to help myself. I piled my plate high with bread, curry, rice, chips, green and purple vegetables (I’m not entirely sure what the vegetables were!)  We ate in silence, Andrew was too busy enjoying the food and I didn’t really want to talk about fighting to the death. Once we’d finished Quil clicked a button to the arm of her chair and a board slid away from the wall to reveal a TV big screen. Quil clicked another button and the screen flashed on. The reaping recap had already started. I watched the district one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight and nine’s reaping go by. I tried to remember the people who I was going to be up against but it was hard and most the names just seemed to go in one ear and out the other. But the only three people I could remember were Essmee, the girl with scruffy brown hair from two, Liarna, the girl from district four who just looked like a dancer not a fighter. She’s a career as well (somebody who trains their entire life to be in the hunger games and then volunteers to go in!) and the boy from district six, who was dragged kicking and screaming from the stage! Then it came to our reaping. There was more talking at the start of our reaping as the capitol were introducing our district. But then the actual reaping part came on screen. I watched Quil draw Rio’s name out of the bowl them she ask if anybody wanted to volunteer.

“I volunteer!” somebody cried but to my surprise it wasn’t me on screen, it was Andrew! I glanced at Andrew, he was staring at the screen in shock.  Next Quil pulled out Elethia’s name and I volunteered. The screen then flicked onto district ten but neither me nor Andrew were watching it.

“How dare you!” I screamed at Quil,

“That’s not how it happened!” Andrew cried,

“I don’t know what you’re complaining about,” Quil said, “This was the only way the capitol would let the two of you volunteer!” I didn’t say anything. I just got up and left the room.