The Ultimate Sacrifice (The 107th Hunger Games) [Fan Fiction]

1. Hype and Apprehension

Things definitely weren't what they used to be.

I brought in my nightwear (a dark blue camisole and sweats), stripped in the bathroom, and hopped in the shower, hot water spilling over my body. I closed my eyes, letting the steam engulf me as I thought about tomorrow. Tomorrow was an important day. Tomorrow was the reaping. The tributes for the 107th Hunger Games were to be chosen.

How the Hunger Games became an annual thing was rather tragic. Panem was originally split into thirteen districts, controlled by the government in the Capitol. The government still to this day was very strict. One day—way before my time—the districts decided they had had enough of the Capitol's rule. They began to rebel against the government, hoping to succeed.

The districts failed miserably, as District 13 (whose specialty was graphite mining and something to do with nuclear power) was defeated by the Capitol. They were thought to be obliterated.

The rest of the districts had no choice but to surrender to the Capitol. As a result of the failed rebellion, the president of Panem at that time declared that each year twenty-four tributes—one boy and one girl ranging from the ages of twelve to eighteen—would be picked to participate in the Hunger Games, a yearly televised fight to the death.

For the first seventy-five Hunger Games, District 13 was not included since they had been defeated and pretty much thought to be dead by all the other districts. However, not too long after the 75th Games did the twelve districts realize that 13 still existed, that there were people inhabiting it. 13 had become a base for a new rebellion, thanks to the work of the two victors of the 74th Hunger Games: Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark.

Unfortunately, even their rebellion wasn't good enough to overtake the Capitol. Most that fought for freedom had been killed during that time. Very few people from that time were still alive today, Katniss and Peeta being two of those people. I knew there were others still alive, but the names couldn't come to me.

The Hunger Games had yet to cease. If anything, they'd become more horrible each year—that's how many of the citizens viewed the event. Some years you'd get a handful of little ones who had to kill each other, other years you'd get a variety of ages.

Twenty-four tributes was a thing of the past now. Seven years ago, in the 100th Hunger Games, a special Games took place. Every twenty-five years, there would be a Quarter Quell: a Games that had a certain twist put on it to spice up the event. On the 100th Games, District 13 was introduced into the tribute pool and would have to give up two children, a boy and a girl, just like the other twelve districts. That special twist became permanent after it was introduced. Really, it was more of a new rule than just a one-time thing for a Quell.

The Hunger Games...that's all I could think about. Would I be lucky enough to get reaped?

For now, my fate was up in the air. It could go either way. If I wasn't picked, I'd volunteer. After all, District 1 tributes usually volunteered because we trained for the Games—even though it's not considered legal.

As I dried my hair with a towel, I could hear Mom and Dad bickering in the kitchen. I sighed. Mom was probably chewing out Dad because of what she saw us doing. See, unlike my dad, Mom didn't approve of the Hunger Games. She thought it was wrong, that watching children kill each other was a crime. Dad didn't think so, he thought of it as pure entertainment. How those two married and had me was beyond me. The phrase "opposites attract" came to mind, but even that didn't seem plausible.

"...if someone saw you?" I caught Mom's voice growling at my father. I stepped in the mouth of the kitchen. "Peacekeepers could have easily taken you to the town square and had you whipped for that!"