The sun slipped beneath the not so distant mountains behind them. Lavinia’s red fiery hair blew around her face as her little brother silently followed her. Only a few more miles, She told herself, only a few more miles till we are safe in the woods of District 12. Her and her younger brother had escaped from the north-eastern part of District 4 not two weeks ago. Though they had been born and raised in the Capitol their father had moved them to district 4 for some unknown reason six months before he had died.Their parents had both been killed in a fishing accident only a few months ago. The explanation from the officials had been half-hearted, not really telling her anything about why the ship had mysteriously gone under. So, not wanting to waste their lives away, she left the district with her little brother. They had set off with what meager supplies they could find, their destination in mind, District 13. For over a week they had been traveling over land ranging from marshes to mountaintops and even the ruminants of a long lost battlefield.
The steep incline of the mountain forced her to stop for a few minutes to regain her breathing, her little brother doing the same. She scanned the distant horizon, gasping when she saw the view in the quickly fading light. Refocusing herself from the beautiful sight that the setting sun and landscape created she looked around for a suitable place to camp for the night. It would be dangerous for them to keep walking at night. The only time she allowed them to do that was when they passed by a town and there was no other place to go.
Up the mountain side about twenty-five feet lay an old oak, this was where they would make camp. She waited for her brother to catch his breath before climbing the last few feet for the day, her silent shadow following a little while after.
The oak was nearly dead from some unknown cause and had many dead branches that would make a perfect fire. Unfortunately a fire was not a luxury she could afford. Instead, she had many blankets she had stolen from District 4, knowing that it would get colder the farther north she went. Every one of the eight blankets was needed though in the bitter cold reaches of northern Panem though. She set up their ‘camp’ that consisted of two blankets on the ground one bunched up at one and to serve as a pillow and four on top of them. It was not a proper substitute for a fire, but it had to work.
She allowed herself a small piece of dried fish and one cracker and gave her weary brother the same. She washed down her ‘dinner’ and lay down on the makeshift bed and promptly fell asleep.
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The sun shone brightly in her eyes, forcing them open. Her little brother still lay asleep under the pile of blankets, his eyes shielded from the blinding sun. She shook him awake before eating the same thing for breakfast that they had last night and for weeks before. She packed up the blankets and urged her brother to wake up and start walking. She allowed herself a glance over her shoulder before she started the walk over the mountain and into the woods. The sight she saw shook her to the very core.
There was a Capitol hovercraft not twenty-five miles away, seeming like it was headed strait towards them! Wasting no time, she grabbed her little brother by his shirt and started dragging him to the pass of the mountain. They reached the pass not five minutes later thanks to her hasty efforts. They ran down the mountainside, stumbling and almost falling numerous times. The woods were only a few minutes away. She could see them now only a little bit longer. The hovercraft won’t be able to find us there, we will be safe.
Her legs seemed to be turning to jelly as she ran, she slapped her thighs a few times while she ran, and made sure her brother was still keeping up with her. They plunged into the woods, not even looking where they were going. Darkness seemed to envelope them. Branches scratched her face as they kept running, the early morning light not penetrating the dark forest. She could hear the hum of the hovercraft not far behind them. No, no this could not be happening!
The woods were getting thicker and thicker, she couldn’t stop though, she couldn’t let them catch her. No not after what had happened she sped up, red hair flying behind her. It was nearly impossible to see anything around her, save the thing two feet in front of her. A large branch hit her right shoulder. Pain burst into her right shoulder, but she kept running, the adrenaline coursing through her veins. Willing herself not to stop from the pain, she kept running. Despite her obvious determination, she was not invincible or all knowing. A log suddenly presented itself directly in her path; she jumped over it, but her left foot, the one that she had broken only months before did not want to cooperate and was caught on the log, sending her to the ground. Her little brother tumbling behind her. Recovering quickly she stood up and helped her brother up before running again.
Ahead she saw a meadow, she tried to swerve and run around the meadow, but her legs would not cooperate, instead they threw her into the wide-open meadow. The hovercraft was right above them now. A wordless scream escaped her lips as she saw her brother trip. An arrow sped down from the hovercraft, piercing his body. She was soon being pulled up by the hovercraft, before she lost consciousness she saw two tan faces with dark hair in the bushes around the edges of the meadow. They could have saved us... was all she thought before her world turned black.
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Lavinia awoke to a bright light again, but this was not the warming natural sunlight. No this light was harsh, piercing and offered no warmth whatsoever. Her eyes slowly adjusted as she opened them, wary of what she might see. Even before she opened her eyes though she knew exactly where she was: the Capitol. A bitter cold splash of water jolted her fully awake. Apparently her torturer was not very patient. Finally she opened her hazel eyes, seeing fully now where exactly she was.
A vast window lay sprawled before her, she could see the northern part of the Capitol. In the room around her, she saw many things that she recognized... then it dawned on her. This was her room, and around it lay her old house. Before she could do anything though, a man spoke. “So you finally decided to wake up from your beauty sleep, huh?” The voice was deceptively soothing. It reminded her of a recording she had once heard. The recording had been hundreds of years old from before the Great War that had destroyed most of the world, therefore creating Panem. The recording was a song about night and music. “Now, are you going to talk?” The velvety voice spoke again jarring her from her memories of the past.
She looked at him, her eyes narrowing. “What do you want from me.” Each word was said between her clenched teeth.
“Only answers dearie” under his breath he muttered “And maybe your tongue afterwards.”
Her tongue...? for the second time that day she had an unwanted revelation. They wanted to make her an Avox. But why? Did her father do some heinous act? Is that why he moved them to District 4? What crimes had her family done against the Capitol to provoke such actions?
“Whatever my father did, I know none of it!” she suddenly cried. “I’m innocent.”
“Only I get to decide that.” And with that he pulled a blindfold over her head.
I am not continuing this story. Frankly I don't care, we all know what happens to her, I feel no need to elaborate anymore on it.
