Real or Not Real?- A Hunger Games FanFiction

Chapter 8- The Reaping

Chapter 8- The Reaping

Amazingly, Jay picked the right direction again and we find ourselves in the square. There are children everywhere. Most of them are crying and holding onto their loved ones. I squeeze Jay's hand when I see a familiar duck tail blouse in front of us.

"Jay!" I whisper. "It's Katniss and Prim!"

"Wow! It is!" he stares. I tap his mouth shut.

"Okay, I know Katniss is hot but don't start drooling!" I laugh. 

My chest tightens when I see the check in table. We get in line as firm voices move people along in a hurry. 

"Next!" I hear as I step forward. I see she has some needle-type-thing and start to panic. I absolutely hate needles. Jay pushes me forward encouragingly and I give her my shaking hand. I jump as I needle quickly penetrates my skin. She roughly pushes my finger against paper and scans it with some device. I expect it to start beeping and people to tackle us for being there, but amazingly it blinks my full name with a confirming beep.

I wait on Jay as the same thing happens with him and we're pushed by Peacekeepers with guns toward a roped area. I'm shaking as I look around for the people I know.

"It's okay." Jay whispers as Mayor Undersee from the book steps up to the podium. He begins a long speech about everything the book summed up in about about three paragraphs.

By the time he's done, I can tell the crowd is wound up and ready to just get it over with. Effie Trinket trots up to the podium in her crazy outfit and begins with, "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor!". It's strange but her accent sounds English. It makes me relax a little for some reason.

But the tension is back in my shoulders when she says, "For the third Quarter Quell, we are picking twice the number of tributes!"

My eyes widen and I stare at Jay. The book was wrong about more things...

A peppy "Ladies first!" breaks into my thoughts and causes me to jump. This is it. She strolls over to the glass ball and digs deep. After a few swishes of her hand, she comes out with a small slip of paper. She repeats this and gets another. 

The crowd is silent as she struggles to open it. I can feel everyone take in a breath with Effie as she says, "Blye Dot Marie Ivory!". Just as I predicted.

The crowd turns, looking for the person they've never heard of before. I look at Jay, tears in my eyes. He nods towards the stage, his face hard.

"Blye?" Effie voice breaks through my thoughts again. 

As I walk through the crowd and start to make my way up the stairs, I can't hear anything because my heartbeat's too loud. I try to go slow but I eventually make it up there.

"Why, hello Blye! Are you excited for this very special Hunger Games?"

I'm frozen looking over the crowd of nervous and pitiful faces. I just nod, hoping I'm doing the right thing.

"Well, let's meet the other lady to be competing with you!"

She opens the other slip very fast. It must have felt like longer last time because of the nerves.

"Primrose Everdeen!" she says, as expected.

This time the crowd turns right towards Prim because they know her. They split, leaving her room to walk. Most faces are relieved, some pain stricken like I see Katniss's. Prim just looks like she's about to be sick.

Also as expected I hear Katniss cry, "Prim! Prim!" and the crowd parts for her too as she runs to her sister about to walk up the steps. She pushes Prim behind her protectively.