Yours [Prim/Cato]

Chapter 1 - The Reaping

I look through the crowd at the 74th Hunger Games reaping ceremony. Every single person that lives in District 12 is standing around the Square, eyes set on the stage that has been made up for the occasion. I try to keep a hard set look on my face, but I can't seem to control the tingling feeling in my hands. Katniss told me before the reaping that most likely, I won't be picked for the Games, but I'm not sure that's very true. I've always had faith in her, but every family goes into the Reaping convinced that it will never be their family, it will never be their child. But then it is.

I don't want to be reaped because that ensures my timely death. If I go in, I will not be able to survive the Games... Or maybe I don't think that I would have much of a chance. I am a small 15-year-old. A person not even twice my size could probably kill me in an instant.

The only thing I'm capable of is medicine, and even with healing, I still have lots to learn. It's become one of my favorite things to do. My mother taught me everything I know, and given she's been doing this herself for years, she's somewhat of an expert. It's an exciting trade, to say the least. Whenever someone would come to our home for help healing a family member or a friend, we would get right to work. I loved helping. It made me happy knowing that I could heal someone. We didn't always heal everyone, but it was enough for me that we were trying.

Before the reaping, I peer to my left to find Katniss amongst the 18-year-old group. She mouths a little "quack" at me and smiles. This has been our ritual since my very first reaping, a silent good luck tradition that we do, naively believing it is the reason we haven't been reaped yet. This is Katniss' last year to be reaped, and while I am happy for her (if she doesn't get reaped today), I can't stop thinking about how I still have 3 more Reapings to go if this one isn't my turn. I don't want it to be either of us, but I especially don't want it to be my sister.

Katniss has always been the best sister. I always find myself thinking back at how she took care of me when my father died in the coal mining explosion. I was young, but I still remember the conversations my mother and Katniss had following his death.

*FLASHBACK*

"MOM! PLEASE LISTEN TO ME! MOM PLEASE!" Katniss would yell at her.

"I'm alright Katniss, I'm fine. Now go on and get ready for dinner."

Katniss stared at her for a second before she got up and went to get ready for dinner.

My mother came and picked me up, tickled me, and whispered "I love you" in my ear before she put me down, picked up a bag, and walked out the front door. I didn't know what was going on, but when Katniss came back into the room and saw that mother was gone, she knew something bad had happened.

My mother had abandoned us.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

Mom came back 2 weeks later, and though she's tried to make amends ever since then, Katniss could never bring herself to trust my mother again. Katniss was the one that went out to hunt for food to trade and bring home for us to eat. She made sure our family was well even though that was my mother's job. She kept our family afloat, and if something were to happen to her, I don't know what we would do. She cannot be reaped into the Games. I would rather it be me, because then at least my mother will have someone that can take care of her.

Speaking of my mom, I wonder where she is. After scanning the many faces around me, I find my mother in the back with the other parents. She can't seem to hide the horrified look on her face. I know our position is hard being the potential victims, but I also cannot imagine the pain the parents must go through each year. It would kill her if one of us was chosen to be in the Games. And let's not forget that she had to go through seven Reapings of her own. I don't know what Mom would do if one of us was gone. She may leave again. She could even kill herself. When my dad died, I thought she was going to hurt herself.