district six reaping :: [ tarquin athenian ]

"We carry on through the storm
Tired soldiers in this war
Remember what we're fighting for"

♛

In front of the Justice Building was where they had us all gather. They didn't care who you were or what you stood for. If you lived in the District and were between the ages of twelve and eighteen, you had to be there. No one had a choice. The Treaty of Treason was read aloud, and District Six's head Peacekeeper approached the first of two glass bowls filled with paper slips. Upon those paper slips were the names of everyone who could possibly be chosen to have to fight in the Hunger Games.

The fact that there was a possibility of my younger brother being chosen for the Games instilled fear in me. I should have been more scared of something else, though. I should have been worrying about myself. They called the girl's name, and then moved to the boys.

"Tarquin Athenian," the Head Peacekeeper called out as he read the slip of paper he'd extracted from the glass bowl.

It was me.

It wasn't my brother. It wasn't a stranger, either.

It was me.

I felt the nervousness building inside of me, but I couldn't let it show. I was a soldier, and soldiers had to keep themselves together. Being calm, or at least appearing to be calm, was vital. This was survival of the fittest, and I couldn't survive if I let fear and anxiety take me over.

Making my way to the front of the crowd, Peacekeepers were immediately on either side of me when I got there. There was no escape from what was going to happen. My luck had run out and my fate was sealed. It was win and survive or lose and die. I heard my younger brother cry out as I was being taken away. He screamed for them to let me go, but of course, it was to no avail. I couldn't see my brother from where I was, but I heard a Peacekeeper bark an order to restrain him.

I just wished they'd let me say goodbye.

It was too late for goodbyes, though. I was being escorted to the train, now, and I couldn't do anything about it.

I had no way of knowing what I'd be up against, aside from the quick glimpse I'd gotten of the girl who'd been chosen. Everything else was to be seen, and I couldn't do anything to prepare myself. I wouldn't know who I was fighting until the time came, and to be entirely honest, that scared me. I couldn't let myself be visibly scared, though.

No, I had to be strong.

Fear wasn't an option.