REAPING DAY! ((Open to all in District Four!))

Contrary to the past two Reapings he attended, before it was a small challenge to keep his head about him, but this time it was near impossible to hide how angry he was. His father had sent Peacekeepers to find him before the third Reaping. He wasn't allowed to attend any more Reapings and he was to return right home. He wasn't allowed to leave the Capitol in the first place and he was to be punished. Like always, Snow pushed it aside and sneered at the Peacekeepers to have his father come and tell him to his face. One then hit him across his face - again. Peacekeepers were bad as they were - but the slaves of the President were much worse. Of course, Snow had been kept hostage in the train for two days now. He was to return home with the tributes but as one of them was rather 'roudy,' he got away with attending one last Reaping.

It was weird, really. How much Snow wanted to be at the Reaping, and yet, hated every minute of it. It was just that - away from the Capitol. Away from his pathetic life and he had more freedom than he ever did at the Capitol. Here, he could sense the publicity and power. This was the power he would have for the rest of his life. Panem would be his.

He breathed in the fresh, salty air of District 4. The morning air was nice. Looking over the streets, there were few people. It was the morning and no one was up really early to start their shops. He had no admirers bombarding him and for once in his life, Snow felt like a normal teenager. He watched the crew setting up all the equipment on the stage.

- - -

Hours had passed and the last of the kids in the proper age group were getting their blood drawn. Snow fixed his hair behind the stage stage that had been set up. He checked closely in the mirror to see if the small bruising he had from getting hit by a Peacekeeper the previous morning was fully covered up. Smirking, he made his way around to the stage and took a seat. He saw his face on a large screen, his black suit and light blue tie offsetting blond hair, light skin, and stupid stereotype of "white as Snow." He nodded to the camera men and they found Xander, his face beaming as always.

"Welcome, welcome District four! District of fishing! Oh, I do love this District! Come, come, now! Everyone all sorted? Let us begin!"

What day is it today?" He began, rallying the crowd easily. Snow noticed that the amount of excited voiced was considerably less than one and two. But, Snow understood Xander's expressed excitement to the crowd. This was his last chance to get a response. The rest were non-Career Districts.
His blond curls bounced and his white teeth flash. "Oh, why don't we change it up today! Just for the fun of it! Guys first!"


((Xander Petry is the equivalent of Effie Trinket. He speaks in Yellow.
Snow, if he speaks at all, will do so in white.

Post away! Tallying for the Games starts now!
If your cahracter is being reaped in a special way, like by volunteering, please PM me!))

Reshia got up early on the morning of the reaping so that she could go out on the boat for a few hours before going to the town square. After all, if she was picked, she wanted her family to have a head start on the food. She went down to the dock, unmoored the boat and rowed around the coast to her favourite place- the cove. Fish were easy pickings in the deep, still water. The traps were all full to bursting, so she took about half of the prizes and left some in case Zoe came down later. When she had loaded the boat, she lay in the water for a few minutes, taking in every breath-taking angle of the cove- after all, it might be the last time she ever saw it. Eventually, Reshia hopped back into the boat, steered back to the docks and hurried home. After dropping the fish off in the kitchen, she headed up to her bedroom. On her bed, her mother had laid out a beautiful, turquoise dress along with matching ballet flats. They complimented her eyes perfectly.

Reshia arrived at the reaping, slightly nervous but excited- who would go into the games this year? She wasn’t a Games enthusiast but she almost enjoyed the knot that formed in her stomach every year at the reaping. The town square had been set out in its usual fashion- the signing in table at the very back, the pens for the oldest at the front and the youngest at the back. She carefully wrote her name in the allocated space on the signing-in sheets and made her way over to the pens for the seventeen-year-olds and waited. She had purposefully arrived at the reaping early so that she could get a good spec to watch from and she could use what could be one of the last days talking to the people that she had known all her life. From what she could see, Zoe- one of her closest friends- wasn’t here yet. Reshia rocked backwards and forwards on her heels, passing the time until the names would be pulled out of that big, glass ball.

At least she knew that Tom would be safe. Tom was her seven year old brother, and he meant the world to Reshia. She and Zoe had once made a promise- if one of them ever went into the games, the other would look after their family and keep them fed. Also, Tom was too young to go into the reaping. It would be five years before he knew and understood the coil of worry and anxiety that came around at this time every year. No matter what happened, no matter what the outcome of today was, she could rest knowing that he would be safe and alive. At least for now.

After about half an hour, Zoe appeared at the signing-in desk. She turned towards her pen, anxiety flickering across her face.
“Zoe!” Reshia called. “Over here!”. Zoe turned towards Reshia and smiled.
“Good luck today.” Reshia comforted. “Whatever happens, you’ll be fine”.
She turned to look at a small commotion on the stage. Xander Petry had arrived, along with his filming team and- Oh my God. Coriolannus Snow was at the reaping. It was a first. A murmur ran around the crowd as they gradually noticed. Girls ran up to the stage to get his autograph and boys glanced enviously at him. Xander was laughing and joking with some of his crew. It was nearly time.

Zoe didn't sleep a wink the night before the reaping. It was always a heart-stopping experience for Zoe, but this was the first year her favorite sister, Tara, would be eligible for the reaping. Tara was such a soft-spoken person, she couldn't even fish, she didn't want to hurt the fish. She couldn't survive the Hunger Games. But her name was only in there once, Zoe had more to worry about.

Her 16th birthday had come and gone, and she was in the reaping bowl more than she cared to admit. Her family was one of the poorer districts, so she had applied for tesserae. But at the same time, she couldn't help but think, Just a few more years left... Then she'd be too old, and she could fish in peace. Maybe she and Reshia, a friend she had made, could fish together. Maybe...

Zoe put on her reaping clothes, a ragged white dress she'd used for the last three years. It was the fanciest thing Zoe owned. She helped Tara and Sophy, her other sisters that were old enough, on putting their clothes on, then headed out to the square. She hadn't had a chance to go fishing, but she'd go later. Her sisters were probably going to arrive after her, and her parents and other siblings would be behind the lines, watching.

Zoe got to the main square later than she had planned. Most of the holding pens were full, and the last kids were getting signed in. She could see Sophy walking Tara through the process of signing in. They must have slipped ahead of her while she had been walking. Sophy was 14, the second-oldest, and she knew what she was doing. Zoe let them both walk ahead, then signed in quickly, her emotions bubbling in her chest. She felt like she was about to explode, and she hoped no one could see that. She signed in, then looked to where the rest of her classmates were standing. Hopefully, she'd make it through this reaping. "Zoe! Over here!" Zoe heard a friendly voice call out. She turned, and saw Reshia. She elbowed her way over, and smiled. "Thanks," Zoe responded, when Reshia had finished. But she was sure she'd be ok. She had to be. Who else woudl take care of her family? The odds had to be in her favor.

"I'm sure it'll be ok. We'll both walk away from this, and go fishing," Zoe said, more for herself than Reshia. She smiled again, but this one was a little forced. She patted Reshia on the shoulder, than headed back to her spot. She turned towards the stage, and saw Xander arrive, along with...Snow...at least, the younger one. Great. She glared at him, even though he couldn't see her, probably, then turned back towards the crowd. She craned her neck, and could just make out Tara, looking very scared. She'll be fine...

Xander rallied the crowd easily, of course. He was experience at this, and anyway, this was a Career disrict. Everyone was probably waiting on the tip of their toes to volunterr. Maybe, just maybe, if she got reaped, someone would volunteer. But with her luck, Zoe seriously doubted it.

Because she hated this, the reaping, she didn't shout back at Xander. She didn't cheer, or wave, or even smile. She stood stock-still, waiting for the names to be called, and for it all to be over, one way or another.

((really got into this, took a lot to get me to stop writing))

Today was the day of the reaping, and to be honest, Aft was not excited at all, which was in bad taste when you were a Career. It was one thing to imagine being in the Games, but it was quite another to actually be living the reality. The seventeen year old reluctantly cracked open his eyes and peered at the light shining through the window next to his bed. He nervously slipped out of his bed for what could be the last time. If he was picked or if he volunteered today and didn’t make it through the Games, then this was the last time he would ever be in the house, the last time he would have the pleasure of swimming through the sea in the morning, and the last time he would see the friends he had made in his seventeen years.

Aft tried to shake off the thoughts of what could happen and began to get dressed. Last night, his dad had sat him down and said that he would be dressing in the fanciest clothes possible because he happened to be the mayor’s son. In his father’s words, “He wasn’t to dress like the ruffians who thought that boiled scallops were the definition of fine cuisine.” With those words, resentment had fired up within Aft- if only he had been born to anyone besides the mayor. Then perhaps he wouldn’t be going through the extreme anxiety that was pulsing through him. Caspian, his father, was saying that if he didn’t volunteer in the case he wasn’t picked this year, then Aft would be disowned from the Mergoy family. But right now, volunteering sounded like something he wouldn’t do in a thousand years. The boy decided right then and there that the only way he was going into the games was if his name was pulled from the bowl, which wasn’t that likely. There were thousands of boys in the district who could be picked anyway. He decided to volunteer next year, when he was eighteen.

Aft straightened his tie and tucked in the white shirt his father had picked out last night. A black jacket topped up the look he had going at the moment. The only thing left was to brush his dark brown hair, which was a goal he achieved in less than twenty seconds. For once, it was a good thing that he had such short hair. Dealing with long hair right now would be a hassle he just didn’t want to fool with right now. Satisfied that he was clothed to his father’s high expectations, Aft walked out of his room into the kitchen, where, to his surprise, his father was seated with his tanned armed folded over his chest. Why would his dad be up so early? Aft had woken up so early so that he wouldn’t have to deal with his father’s “pep” talk, but it was apparent he was going to get it anyway. His dad gestured to the seat beside him without a word.

As soon as Aft had nervously taken a seat, his father launched into a speech, “This is what you’ve been training for your whole life. Mess this up, and your life is gone, probably painfully.” Aft winced at that- why did his dad have to be so blunt? His dad continued as if he hadn’t noticed Aft’s wince, “Partner up with the Careers immediately- you don’t want to be stuck on your own without support from strong allies. You’re a Career, so they’ll probably take you in with pleasure. If not, find one other person who looks like they can help you. Whatever you do, do not partner up with someone who will be a hindrance. Listen to your mentor, because they’re a person whose been through it and survived. Learn as much as you can in the training center, and make friends, but don’t trust them for even a moment. Now go and psyche yourself up before the reaping. I’ll see you there, and I better hear either your name pulled out of the bowl and you volunteering.” And that was it- no “Good luck” or “I wish you the best.” Aft swallowed down the disappointment welling up in his throat and walked out of the house without a reply.

Aft immediately began to head towards the sea. A walk on the beach would clear his worries faster than anything else- he had always been drawn to the sea and everything around it. For that reason, it was a good thing he lived in District 4. There was no other district he would prefer, Aft thought as he strolled down the beach. Every other district was boring, barbaric, or poor. District 4 was fun, richer than most, and not as barbaric as 1 and 2. They were a district of Careers, but that helped them survive in the Games. The other districts were kind of stupid not to train early. By not training, they were basically sentencing their kids to death without a chance of survival. Occasionally one of the other district won, but that was because they had a talented kid, not because they were a good district. More people had come out on the beach, mostly others who were trying to avoid thoughts of the reaping.

It felt like no time at all before it was time to head to the town square for the reaping. Not too many people were there yet, so the line for the sign-in wasn’t too long, which was one positive thing in this whole day. He carelessly scrawled his name down on the sheet, not really caring if it was neat and legible. He slowly loped over to the where the area for the seventeen-year-olds was. There were a few people he knew gathered around, but he stayed quiet, silently standing in one corner of a pen. Talking to others right now would be useless, since it would not ease the ball of anxiety that was curling up in his stomach right now. Slowly but surely, others began to arrive, some nervous, some crying, and some with huge smiles on their faces. Aft peered around the stage and to his surprise, Coriolanus Snow Junior was there. That was kind of surprising, but at the same time, rather exciting. Xander Petry began to excite the crowd with his happy words, but Aft chose not to cheer with the others, even though he was a Career. This was a depressing occasion and shouldn’t be treated like it was just a friendly gathering. Aft looked down nervously when Xander said that guys would be picked first. That meant he would be finding out his fate sooner than he had thought. The boy stared at the ground and prayed that his name wouldn’t be called. He would prefer to be older when he went into the Games.

Geysa is very nervous as it is her first year: She really wants to stay in District 4 but she will volunteer and sacrifice herself for a mere squirrel!!!!!

((Welcome to the site, Geysa. Thank you for your enthusiasm about joining in! However, you are not allowed to role play until you have had an accepted character sheet. So you'll have to send that in and get anything sorted before this post or any posts to come will be recognized.

Thanks!
- Taryn))

The only sound Snow could hear was that endless cheering. Despite his efforts to put the sound at the back of his mind, the noise was still so annoyingly loud. Walking up to the stage to take his place, he smiled at the audience. The smile was his normal faked one, and the happy manner he carried himself was faked as well. However, his personal life and discomfort didn't matter. People - everyone but his father - was happy he was attending (seemingly only) the Career District Reapings, but they honestly didn't care about him. They cared about the tributes and feared for their young ones or friends participating.

"May the odds be ever in your favor!" The ever happy Xander chirped from beside Snow. Moving to the edge of his seat, Snow rested his elbows on his knees and in turn, his head in his hands. The movement could be taken as an act of fatigue, but he made sure it was short lived all the same. Every move he made had to be monitored.

Quite on the contrary to the prior uproar of talking, an eerie quiet settled over the Distrcit as Xander's hand found the inside of the boys' bowl. He pulled out a lone slip of paper and cleared his throat. Enunciating the name, "Aft Mergoy!" Snow found the faces of the people and watched them take the news. Human minds were so simple... so pridictable and... ordinary. Maybe it was bliss though. Ordinary ignorance. But no matter. Snow found himself once again scrutinizing the boy before him as he walked to the stage stoically. Snow watched him as if he were in the Arena and this was his opponent. Reaping after reaping, he found himself doing this, he really didn't know why. Maybe the satisfaction of knowing the winner before the Games even started?

His thoughts were once again cut off by the sound of Xander's voice. "Oh! How truly wonderful! Come here Aft!" He gestured to the center of the stage, right beside him. "You look good and strong for the Games, aye?" The look on Xander's face was the most annoying part of it all. But they all tolerated it, didn't they. "Well... go have a seat there. We best be keeping our eye on you." He winked annoying as he gestured to the chair Aft was designated to sit in.

"To the girls, then!" He plucked off a name from the top of the large bowl. "Er... Reshia Petty - what a lovely name!" He waited for a moment to hear if there were any volunteers, but there were none and he called her to the stage.

“Er… Reshia Petty- what a lovely name!” Xander called out.
Gulp.
Reshia’s jaw dropped as her mind processed the news. She was going into the games. Out of all of the people in the reaping ball, her name was the one to be picked. Was anyone going to volunteer? Apparently not.
“Reshia Petty?” Xander repeated. Reshia closed her eyes for a moment and assumed the cocky, indifferent, half-smile poker face that she had been using for so long in her life. It was essential that she did not appear weak if she wanted to be included in the Career pack. And why shouldn’t she be? She was from District 4, and she had been training for years. Of course they would want her.
Wearing her fixed, calm expression, she ascended the steps to the stage. It felt as if every eye in the town square was penetrating her, trying to find the small knot of anxiety inside her heart. Not that they would be able to find it of course. A thousand memories flickered across her mind- swimming with her brother, Tom, training in the centre, fishing with Zoe. Hundreds of things that she may never again do. Wait, she couldn’t think like that. She already needed to be planning ahead, working on her tactics.
As she reached the top of the stage, she glanced at the young Snow before turning towards the crowd and lifting her head high. She found Zoe in the crowd and locked eyes with her for a mere moment, thoughts saying all she could not speak alive. She promised to keep them alive… Reshia thought. Let’s just hope she sticks to that promise.
Who was her district partner? Aft Mergoy. Aft… Reshia knew him but not well. They were the same age but had never actually become friends. She raised her head and turned it towards him. She caught his gaze and held it there for a few seconds. Nodding pleasantly at him, she took a step towards him, futiley hoping that the two of them could be noticed as the real competitors of the Games.
Let the 16th Hunger Games begin.

The moment before Xander’s hand pulled out a slip that would forever change someone’s life, there was a charged silence. Everyone was holding their breath, praying they or their loved ones wouldn’t be picked. Aft, even though he had trained since his birth for this, was among those hoping the name called wouldn’t be his. He was consciously aware of the seven slips of paper in that bowl that held his future. Even so, there were thousands of kids with the same number or more slips of paper in the bowl. There was no way his name was going to be picked from the bowl, unless the fates really had it in for him. Seeing as he had had it pretty good his whole life besides who he had been born to, Aft doubted that his luck would be that bad.

Then, the three syllables that Aft had been dreading since he had woken up this morning came out of Xander’s mouth, “Aft Mergoy.” Immediately, there was a hushed silence, and hundreds of eyes were on him. The feeling rushing through him was worse than any stage fright, since this wasn’t a school play- it was a fight to the death that he had been picked for. Despite this feeling, he kept his face completely as stoic as possible. What was probably the most important part of the Hunger Games was whether the sponsors and Gamemakers liked you enough to support you. No one wanted to back a scared kid who couldn’t control his emotions; they wanted a person who stood a fair chance of winning the Games, and that person was almost always the person who controlled their facial expressions.

The crowd easily made way for him to slowly walk towards the stage like he was Moses parting the Red Sea. For a moment, he was hopeful that there would be a volunteer, since this was a Career district known for kids eager to go into the Games, but for once, no one spoke up. The hope that had been blooming up within him wilted like a dying flower. Really? he thought in disgust. The one time I hope for someone to be eager to volunteer, and no one would speak up? It just isn’t fair. As he walked up, he noticed something surprising- the Coriolanus Snow Junior was actually looking at him. It shouldn’t be so weird, since he had just been reaped for the biggest event in the Capital, so Aft just threw off that thought.

Aft chose not to actually speak when Xander began speaking. It was a bit disturbing how excited Xander was about sending twenty-three kids to their death. Personally, Aft wasn’t one of those people who hated the Games with a passion, but it wasn’t like he loved it liked Xander and other Capital people. It was more of just a way to prove yourself to the country. Aft nodded politely at Xander’s comments about looking good and strong and keeping an eye on him. Saying anything would risk making him sound like an idiot, something he could not afford to do when every eye in the Capital and District 4 was on him and listening to any word he chose to utter. Instead of speaking, he sat in the indicated chair where he could wait to see one of the twenty-three people he was going to be facing in the Games. This girl, whoever she may be, could be an ally or enemy, and it all depended on which slip of paper was pulled from the bowl.

"Er... Reshia Petty - what a lovely name!" Xander called out after his fingers dug around in the bowl fatefully for a moment. Like everyone, Aft’s eyes immediately fell upon the brown-haired girl making her way through the crowd. She looked around seventeen, but her face was not one Aft recognized as familiar, which wasn’t very surprising. He didn’t know a lot of people, even the ones that were his age, like Reshia. Well, this was a good a time as any to meet her. He caught her gaze and nodded back. Now having acknowledged his district competitor, it all began to sink in that he was going to the Hunger Games, and chances were that he would never return, except in a coffin.

They made everyone in The Capital watch the Reapings, including the Avoxes. During small breaks they’d get up to serve food and drinks to the various people in the room, but other that that they were confined to hard, plastic chairs. Willow tried to slouch down a bit in her chair, but that only resulted in an uncomfortable cramped feeling in her spine. Her fingers drummed on her leg as she tried, and failed, to distract herself from the Reaping.

At least she couldn’t lose anyone now. No one she knew had his or her name on a slip of paper. Luke was too old, Kaya was dead, Storm was dead, and that was it, she didn’t know anyone else, nor had she wanted to. She was just collateral damage, as usual. One of the Peacekeepers came around and Willow looked up towards the screen showing a Reaping. District Four. She watched as the tributes climbed up the stage, knowing that one or both would never live to see District Four again, just like Storm had never seen District Two, or Eleven again. Willow tried to avoid sizing either of the tributes up—she wasn’t casting her bet in this Hunger Games. She wouldn’t even let herself hope for a winner.

The screen showed the crowd, a sea of faces that meant nothing to her. The people of district four had worried, but mostly relieved, expressions on their faces. And with good reason: their families were safe for another year. From the Games at least Willow thought darkly. But then again, most families were safe from starvation; Four had always been one of the wealthier Districts, and judging by the crowd, it seemed to remain that way.

The screen changed again, this time to show the faces of the Tributes up on the stage, as well as the sickening face of Xander Petry. “Well isn’t this just wonderful!” He said gripping the two Tributes by the shoulders. It wouldn't be long, and he knew it, it wouldn't be long until they were in the arena fighting for their lives. But he was smiling joyously as he said his goodbyes to District Four.

((And that's it! District Four's Reaping is finished!))