The Hunger Games (Told by Primrose Everdeen)

Chapter 2

          When I wake up for the second time, it was late morning. My mom had already gotten up. I rub my eyes. I sit up and stretch. Then it hit me like it did in my dream. It was reaping day. My stomach dropped. I got out of bed and found my mom in the bathroom preparing a warm bath for me. Katniss still hadn't returned from hunting with Gale, but I knew she would be back soon. 

          "Good morning, beautiful girl," greeted my mom when she saw me. 

          "Good morning," I replied. 

           "Are you ready for your bath?" she asked. 

           "Almost. I have to milk Lady real fast."

            "Alright, sweetheart." I rushed to the back door and out to my goat's pen. I grabbed a bucket and milked her dry. I brought the bucket inside and I set it on the counter. I went back to the bathroom. 

       There, my mom helped me undress out of my nightclothes. I gingerly stuck my toe into the tub. Slowly, I eased my whole body into the warm water. I sighed. I loved baths. My mom helped me wash my hair and scrub my body. Once we finished, she wrapped me up in a towel and helped me dress in my new clothes. Well, not really new, but new to me. I recognize the skirt and blouse. It's what Katniss wore to her first reaping. She hadn't been chosen then, so maybe I won't be either. The outfit was a little big on me, but my mom fastened it with pins. 

                After we were both dressed, my mom braided my hair. After she was finished, Katniss came through the door. She held a bunch of good stuff. She smiled at me. 

               "You look beautiful," she said to me. 

               "Thanks," I replied. She noticed the back of my blouse came untucked. She tucked it in for me. 

                "Quack," I said. 

                "Quack yourself," she replied. I giggled. 

                "Katniss, a warm bath is waiting for you," called my mother from the bathroom. 

                 "Gotta go. Once I'm done, we can have breakfast," she said. She poked my belly. I smiled at her. She returned the smile. I found Buttercup and I brought him to sit with me on the old, beat up couch in the living room. My stomach growled. The thought of breakfast made me hungry, despite what the day held. 

                    A little while later, Katniss was dressed and was preparing breakfast for my mom and me. She had brought home bread, strawberries, fish, and greens. She saved the fish and greens for supper, the strawberries for later, and sliced the bread for breakfast. We ate the bread and drank the milk from Lady, and then we headed out. 

                    By this time, it was about 1:00. We headed for the square in the center of District 12. The square was crowded with everyone from District 12. We signed in and the Peacekeepers herded us to our appropriate sections. The sections were roped off areas that separated us by age. The older kids, like Katniss, were nearer to the front and the younger ones, like me, were in the back. 

                    I looked to the front of the square, to see Mayor Undersee and Effie Trinket sitting on chairs at the back of the stage. There was one chair that was empty. I was pretty sure that a man named Haymitch was supposed to be sitting there. He was almost always drunk. Who knows where he could be now? 

                     The big clock that sits in the middle in the square strikes two and the mayor stood from his seat. He sauntered over to the podium in the center of the stage. He read the story that he reads every year. The story of how the Districts rebelled and why we now have the Hunger Games. After that, he reads a list of the past victors. There are only two names. Only one of them is still alive. That would be Haymitch. Just then, he staggers onto the stage and falls into the empty seat next to Effie. The mayor hurries to finish his speech and introduces Effie Trinket to the front of the stage. 

                      "Happy Hunger Games!" she says in a bright, bubbly voice, "and may the odds be ever in your favor!" She smiles. "Ladies first!" She crosses over to the glass ball containing all the girls' names- just like she did in my dream. She chooses a slip of paper and returns to her place in the center of the stage. She carefully unfolds the slip and stares at the name. I cross my fingers and hope that it doesn't have my or Katniss's name on it. She reads the name on the paper, and in that moment, it's like a dream come true, but instead of a dream, was a nightmare.