District Ten, unsurprisingly, smelt of animals. Even when the main township had been totally cleared of them, the smell still lingered in the air. Though all the stone houses had been cleaned, they were still brown and squat. The Capitol might turn their noses up at them but the people who lived in them were perfectly comfortable. The people of Ten were, by and large, a comfortable people, built for work rather than looks. They were warm hearted and affectionate, despite the daily business of killing animals, and the whole atmosphere surrounding the square was one of a family saying a tearful goodbye to two of its most beloved children.
Almost every adult was crying already. A few remained resolutely stony-faced in a show of bravado and defiance, but they were the exception. The teenagers, sensitive to the irony of being kept in pens, were either standing in total silence or talking to friends in hushed, panicked tones. All of them were tanned, some burnt, and most kept their hair off their faces with clips or bands. Even on their day off, some habits were difficult to break. Their clothes, despite rigorous cleaning, were still faded and shabby, and even the youngest teenagers seemed ancient and earth-bitten.
It was just the sort of place to make the newest Capitol escort, Lorenza, feel good about herself. It was her first day on the job, and when she walked out onto the stage everybody's ears pricked up, wondering what had happened to Benoit. They'd liked him, as much as it was possible for them to like someone from the Capitol.
Lorenza was young, although she didn't think so, and stunning, which she also didn't believe. Her soulful dark eyes gazed out at the crowd as though she was on the brink of tears herself. The crowd gazed up at her expectantly, like a herd of cows who knew when it was milking time. She'd been warned that they might look angry or hateful, but that didn't seem to be a problem. She breathed a small sigh of relief.
"Hi, District Ten!" she chirped, and instantly cursed her stupidity. You weren't supposed to be friendly, you were meant to say 'hello' instead of anything more informal. It didn't seem to have done any damage, so she carried on. "I'm Lorenza and I'm your new Capitol escort!"
A few people clapped half-heartedly and she faltered, unsure what to do next.
"The speech!" hissed the friendly voice in her ear, "Just listen to me and repeat what I say."
Lorenza was sure that she should probably know the speech off by heart, but there were so many people, not to mention that the whole Capitol was watching her, that her mind was suddenly empty of everything except wondering if she'd left her cooker on. She copied the voice in her ear, but even she knew it felt flat and she was almost certain she wouldn't be invited back for another year.
District Ten listened to her pleasantly, trying to look interested. They could tell that the poor girl was nervous and many of them felt sorry for her. It was obvious that she was being prompted from somewhere because every so often she paused in the middle of a sentence and tapped her ear. She never once met the eyes of the audience. A few of the teenagers in the pens started to snigger, forgetting the impending ritual for a moment.
They were an odd bunch, mostly short and hefty, though they still looked underfed. Most had light hair; with some it was difficult to tell because they wore faded suncaps with huge brims to keep the harsh light off their face and neck. Many were crying or close to it, even those who knew that the odds were in their favour. Every so often one of the younger ones made a snuffling noise, and to try and keep the mood light one of the more confident older ones would moo ironically. It failed to amuse anyone.
Eventually, Lorenza stuttered through the last line of the speech, blushing with embarrassment. She was really going to be in for it when she got back; her big chance and she'd mucked it up. "It's okay," soothed the voice, presumably looking at her horrified image on a screen, "They chose you for your looks. You'll get the hang of it."
She nodded, and people gazed quizzically at her. Only a few; most were focusing their full attention on the little clay bowls perched on the podium that Lorenza was clinging to desperately. Some people wondered absently what would happen if she knocked them off and they broke. Lorenza jumped suddenly, staring at them with big dark eyes as if she'd never noticed them before. She was worried about this part. Her mentor had said it was the worst part, having to see the children and their parents, knowing that at least one of them would die.
She would be okay, she told herself; they deserved it anyway.
She still struggled to believe that any of these hefty, open people in front of her had ever killed anyone and had to remind herself that they killed animals on a daily basis. Some of them even had cracked bloodstains on their clothes.
"I'm going to draw the female tribute now," she informed them, realising that her voice sounded stilted. There was a flurry of movement, people grabbing family member's hands or scrambling for tokens, or just moving out of nerves. Lorenza reached into the bowl, letting her hands scrape the cool inside of the clay and wishing that she would fit in there. The slips of paper fluttered around her hands like little white butterflies. After what she judged to be a suitable amount of time for tension, she withdrew her hand.
Everyone leant forward.
She was holding two slips. With a furious blush, she stuffed one back in. One person had just had a very lucky escape.
"Lizzinia Cambell!" she announced, the name digging itself into the back of her mind as the first person she had ever reaped. Years later, she would remember it. Two girls in the thirteen year old girl's pen gasped and instantly pulled on the hands of a third, whispering furiously.
Lorenza peered at them, letting Lizzinia come up in her own time. They were all wearing little sunhats, but it was still clear that the three girls had the same short, skinny frame and sharp face; they had to be triplets. Two looked desperate, tears dripping from their cheeks, and the other was trying to push them out of the way. People in the crowd were sobbing, too many people for them to all be related. Lizzinia and her sisters were well known for being susceptible to tragedy. Their little brother had died aged only two and their mother followed not long after. Even though Lorenza knew nothing of this, she still felt herself tearing up.
Lizzinia finally broke free from her sisters, staring up into the sky above the stage with a distasteful expression, like she thought the whole world was against her. For a second Lorenza believed it entirely; from here she could see that Lizzinia's lower arm was encased in a pot. She trudged up to the stage, her eyes never leaving the same point. The two sisters wailed louder than anybody, grasping each other's hands tightly.
On promting from the voice, Lorenza called for volunteers.
"I volunteer!" yelled the two girls at the same time, glaring at each other with identical love and irritation. Lizzinia didn't react, gazing out to the horizon. It seemed like she was somewhere else, on a different planet, immune to the pleas of her sisters. She had to have a heart of steel; nearly everyone in the square was in tears. Lorenza had a sister herself...
"Loz, tell them no. Only one volunteer," urged the sensible voice in her ear, prepared for anything.
"Only one of you is allowed to volunteer," she informed them, her voice impressively neutral. She knew that the Capitol were lapping this up.
"I'll do it!" they both shouted simultaneously, and burst into tears, the noise melting in with the other sobs that were slowly taking over the square. Horrified, but also sensing that there was no way to resolve it, Lorenza quickly moved on to the boy's names.
"No..." whimpered one of the girls, but a girl from behind her leant forwards and draped a comforting arm around her shoulders and she gave up, burying her head into the girl's shoulder and still clutching her triplet's hand.
"Good luck, Lizz!" the other shouted, before doing the same. Lizz stared straight past them, her bright green eyes dull, her sunhat shading her face. Under it, her hair was short and jet black. Somehow she had managed to stay pale in the brash sun.
Praying that this one would be simple, Lorenza took the other bowl and picked a name from the middle.
"Sasha Etzie!" she announced, having to double-check that she'd read it right. Sasha was a girl's name. He looked like a girl too, with a neat little mouth and delicate features. He stumbled up onto the stage, clearly trying his hardest to look brave. His little mouth was wobbling.
"Any volunteers?" she asked.
"Get yourself up there, son!" shouted a gruff male voice from the crowd. The people who had just about recovered from Lizzinia's reaping gasped and whirled around to see who it was. It was immediately obvious; a squat man with a shiny red face and a bulbous nose. Next to him stood a very upright woman, her nose crinkled as if a smell offended her. Lorenza was about to question this statement - it was very unparentlike behaviour - but then she realised that the demand was being followed. A boy with wavy golden hair and a strong chin was heading silently for the stage. She wanted to tell him to go back, but just one glance was enough to assure her that he was stronger than Sasha and stood a better chance. As soon as he was up on stage, the microphone was shoved into his face.
"Raylum Duke," he grunted. Then he crossed his arms and glared into the crowd like they'd all personally insulted him.
Lorenza decided to leave it there. "Your District Ten tributes, everyone!" she announced, waving a hand at the pair. Lizz carried on staring into the distance, her face not even flickering at the people clapping and crying and wishing her luck. Her sisters howled, pleading with her to let one of them take her place, but she didn't seem to hear. Raylum glowered down aggressively into the audience; everyone his fierce expression passed over stopped clapping and instead stared at the floor, suddenly guilty for reasons they didn't quite understand.
Lorenza left the stage as briskly as she could, resisting the urge to wipe her eyes in case it looked like she was crying. The two tributes followed silently, forgetting to shake hands.
Ten minutes later, when the stage was being packed up and the square had miraculously cleared, leaving the worn smooth cobbles visible, shouting could be heard from the Justice Building. Lizzinia's sisters and father had gone in to say their heartbroken goodbyes, but the shouting was coming from the other side, roaring out of the window for everyone to hear.
"I don't care! Don't you get it? I'd go in there and throw myself in front of the Careers just to get away from you! You're supposed to be my parents but you've treated me like one of the District One Capitol slaves; all that practicing when I should have been working! It's like you want to get rid of me! I'll be glad if I don't come back! And if even I do, you can be happy because I won't be coming back here!"
Then there was silence.