Two choices:
Live and die in District 12 like her parents or Run and hide for the rest of her life, leaving everything she has known behind including her only friends.
Carina chose a third option and became someone else, abandoning who she was and...
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Five years before the 74th Games, District 12
The sun's harsh rays beat down on them as Carina and Gale quietly trekked through the woods with Gale leading the way and Carina watching their surroundings. It was a quiet summer day, despite her grandfather's repeated warnings, Carina continued to go into the woods.
The Semor family had more than enough to eat and trade but now that Carina knew about Roan's plans, she couldn't help thinking the two needed more dried and preserved food along with money to make it out of 12. The two siblings had promised to keep it a secret from everyone including their grandfather and Gale.
Gale had noticed a sudden change in Carina in the past few months. She along with her brother had become more secretive and had started to forage and barter more. At first he decided to let it go but as more days passed, he couldn't help show some concern for his friend.
He glanced at her, only to find her lost in her daydreams yet again. It was one of the things about her which was making him worry lately. "Looks like there might be a drought this year." Gale commented, looking around, trying to lay low and grab Carina's attention. "The heat feels unbearable. When was the last time it was this hot?"
"Who knows? I just hope the lemon tree doesn't die. It's the only thing we've got." Carina tried to be hopeful about the lemon tree behind her house. She really did but the hotter the summer became, the more drier their district became. "You know my grandfather says that if the summer's really hot then the winter is going to be really cold."
"Great!" Gale fanned himself and breathed out loudly, forgetting for a moment about Carina's change. She giggled at his response. "Just great, this winter's gonna be unbearable as if last winter was easy." He muttered under his breath.
Carina shook her head, overtaking Gale and passing him. The two paused when they heard the sounds of leaves crunching like someone had stepped on them. The two friends looked at each other before Gale quickly grabbed Carina's wrist and dragged her to a hiding spot.
Craning her head to the side, she tried to look up and get a look at who or what made that sound. "Maybe it was a deer?" She offered, trying to be hopeful. Gale looked at her in disbelief. He really did get annoyed whenever she forced herself to be overly optimistic. "There's a stream nearby," She carried on, reminding Gale why the two were actually walking that way. "Maybe there's something near the stream."
"Maybe." He quietly agreed. "But we shouldn't take that risk, could be a Peacekeeper for all we know."
"In the woods?" Carina got up, much to Gale's dismay. He tried to pull her back down to their hiding spot but she hurried forward. "If the Peacekeepers were in the woods, we'd know. Maybe it's someone like us."
"Someone like us?" He followed Carina, lugging their shared satchel of hunting gear that they did not steal from Carina's grandfather. "Come on, I'm sure no one's that foolish."
