The Hunger Games discussion

((Btw, this happens after a rebellion of the capitol, who then reinstated the games... So we all know we've been chosen and one of my characters is lit freaking out. Also the rule from the 74th is valid now so two tributes can win if they are from the same district)

Thai picks apples diligently, filling basket after basket up. She doesn't want to think about the games, and above all the five little mouths she is leaving behind.

((Oh k thx))

A tear slips down Alen’s cheek as he sits in a tree picking apples. He knows he’s never going to survive in the arena.

Thailyn sees him nearby about to break down. "Chin up" she smiles, "If they come near us I'll knock them out with apples."

Althea shivers as a cold breeze blows through the tree she's sitting in. How am I ever going to be able to say goodbye to my family? she thinks to herself. She forces that thought out of her mind and begins to sing softly to herself.

Blake sat in the yard of his little shack, staring down at his blistered hands.
He had been picking vegetables all day and his fingers were sore and itchy.

Althea finishes her work for the day and climbs quickly down the tree. She runs back to her shack but doesn't go inside. She sits in the grass and picks wildflowers, making a flower crown. She hums to herself.

Blake sat back in the dirt and moaned, as he thought of the vicious games he would soon take part of.
'Could life get any worse?' he thought.

Althea hears him and stands up, walking the short distance to his shack. "Blake, are you okay?" she asks worriedly, a concerned look on her face.

Blake grunts as he sits up.
"Mmm, just the usual. Sucky job. Crappy life. Fact I might die in a few weeks. You know the normal stuff."

"At least you've got someone you know to help you through it, right?" Althea says, trying to find the silver lining, though there really wasn't much. Even this "silver lining" wasn't as much silver as it was metallic-spray-paint-ed plastic. One of them would most likely die defending the other if they chose to make an alliance considering the fact that they were both weak and malnourished.

Blake sighs. "Oh, come on Althea! You know we're both screwed.
I'll probably die defending you and you'll have a break down, cause you'll miss me so much."
Blake offers a sad smile at that last joke.

"You're not going to die, Blake. I'm not gonna let you die." She hugs him, silent tears streaming down your face. "We gotta fight till the end, together."

Blake squeezes her back but shakes his head, already seeing himself dead and buried. "Fight til the end ? What do you call this?" He mumbles, using his free hand to encompass the run down rows of shacks.

"Home, Blake. Home. Which we're never going to see again if we don't try our hardest and stick together," Althea says encouragingly.

Blake sucks in a breath, then nods. "You're right. I just had a bad day.
Well they're all bad days but this one was unusually crappy."

"Wanna talk about it?" she asks, letting go of him.

Blake sighs. "Someone was killed by a Peacekeeper today."

Althea gasps in horror. "Who?!" she asks, eyes wide.

Blake swallows the lump in his throat. "Willow."

Althea can't make words come out of her mouth. Finally, she manages to squeak, "That's terrible! Why?"

Blake shook his head, anger pulsing through his veins.
"You know her little brother Sid? He's been getting worse. He hasn't eaten in almost 5 days. Willow tried to put an Orange in her pocket for him."
Blake pauses and looks at his dingy shoes.
"They beat her to death."

"Oh my god. I wish I could say I can't believe it but, unfortunately, I can." Althea pauses. "I wish I could help them, but our family's not doing any better ourselves. I haven't eaten since Tuesday."

Blake nods sadly, then looks down at Althea's wrist.
It is as thin as his nine year old sister's.
"We haven't eaten since then either."

“There’ll probably be more food in the arena then we have in all of District 11,” Althea says, laughing humourlessly.

Blake rolls his eyes at her, then in a super sarcastic voice, says,
"that's a plus."

"Honestly, Blake, we'd probably end up dying soon, arena or not. At least in the arena they'll let us have a chance. Here we'll get punished or even killed if we try to survive," she mutters.

Blake slowly nods, realizing she has a valid point.
"I guess you're right. We either die here or in the arena."

"So I guess in a way we're lucky that we got reaped. Because here we don't even know if we're going to die with people we know and love around us, but at least in the arena I know if--no, when--I die you will be right there by my side," says Althea quietly.

Blake sighs and runs his hands over his face.
"I'm not gonna let you die Althea," he promises, with a renewed determination.

“Thanks, Blake. And in the small chance we win, we’ll be better off because of it. But if you died, I couldn’t finish the Games without you. I’d feel so lonely and guilty I wouldn’t be able to live with myself,” Althea says.

((Btw I’m kinda busy today so I might not respond right away))

((No problem!))

((It’s your comment))

Blake lays back and looks up at the gray sky."We have to win. There is no other choice."

Althea thinks for a moment. "We should try to think of as much of a strategy as we can right now. We won't know what the arena's gonna look like until we begin the actual Games, but it's still useful to make up even a few ideas to begin with. Do you have any ideas?"

Blake nods, then sits up. "I do actually. You and I are both pretty weak. We won't make it out of the first hour unless we get our endurance up. We need to train. Focus on our fighting and running. We may not be the strongest people but we could be the fastest. That'll be a start."

"So, when do you want to start?" asks Althea as her stomach rumbles.

Blake shrugs. "How bout now? We're done with work. Might as well get busy."

"Sure. Where should we go?" she asks as she stands up.

Blake shrugs. "How bout that wooded area a few miles from the orange field? The Peacekeepers won't see us there."

"Good idea." Althea holds out her hand to help Blake up.

Blake smiles up at her as he gets to his feet.
"Let's go."

Althea takes off running toward the wooded area, making sure to stick to the shadows so the Peacekeepers don't see her.

Blake follows behind her, ignoring the sharp pains in his stomach.

Althea stops for breath, clutching her stomach. "Ow ow ow. I can't run anymore, Blake," she pants.

Blake stops beside her and puts his hands on his knees. "Me neither. I feel like I'm about to pass out. We have to find something to eat."

She lifts the collar of her shirt up to wipe the sweat from her face, exposing her very prominent ribs.

Blake sighs and sinks to the ground. "We're not gonna last two minutes in the arena, like this."

"We need to get away from the Cornucopia as fast as we can. We can survive without the stuff they give us. We've survived like this for years. And while everyone is killing each other at the Cornucopia we can get as far away as possible and let everyone else kill each other. If we hide, they can't kill us. Because you can't kill something you can't see," Althea says.