We are... [OPEN]

The sun had just begun to set over the horizon of District Two when Kimberlite Meyers stepped out of the training center. She wiped a stray bead of sweat off her forehead, visible proof of the hard work she had done today. Her muscles stiffened in protest as she began to take off in a soft jog. Despite this she quickened her pace, gravel crunching under her feet. There was more rock in District Two than anything else, this characteristic always present in her memories of childhood. Her home of sixteen years backed up to one of the many rock quarries of the district. A small smile danced on her features as she got lost in a past time, continuing her run in the present.

A small girl in a yellow dress stood in the middle of a yard, the modest home only a quarter of a mile outside of the city square of District Two. A wood panel creaked as a beautiful dark haired woman walked onto the porch overlooking the yard that the little girl was currently playing in. The girl in the yellow dress was too busy throwing rocks over the fence into the quarry; it was a game she liked to play. The woman had told the young girl that this game was pointless many times, seeing as the rocks would ultimately make their way under the fence and the girl would be in the same situation she was currently in. The brunette woman laughed and the young girl whipped her head around, the two dark braids on her head cutting through the air. A large smile made its way onto the little girl’s features, showing off her bright white teeth. She ran up to her mother and jumped into her arms.

Kimberlite looked up just as the street lights of the District square lit up; she had been running for a little over a mile, lost in old memories of her mother. The street had turned from gravel into smooth sidewalk. She felt a small sob come up her throat and choked it back down, memories of her mother were dangerous. They snuck up on her during times when she was allowed to get lost in her own head. This memory was set on reaping day when she was eight; Kimberlite registered this fact, exactly one year before she disappeared for good.

She decided against going home, knowing that her father was due to get off work at the quarry at any moment. She didn’t feel like going over today’s training with him like they did every evening. The air was warm so Kimberlite decided to go into the meadow near the fence that held all of the animals in the forest out and more importantly the citizens of District Two in. The ground was soft; this was the only patch of greenery close to the city part of District Two. The small girl laid on the grass, mindlessly humming a tune she had heard while listening to the old radio her mother liked to play while she cooked many years ago. Her thoughts drifted along with the awareness of her surroundings.