TOp!! 

What season is it when the reaping begins? 

NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! This thread is dying! Keep it alive, people, keep it ALIVE!!!!!!!

Okay, I know this is kind of long but nobody else is posting so I hope you don't mind...

Fina-

I started at the sound of modern music blaring out of my speakers. I had connected my radio and sound system to the districts generator when I was just 5 years old. Maybe less, I’m not quite sure. My older sister, Adira, waltzed into the room. “It’s reaping day! Wake up, or mum and dad will miss us!” “Ok, coming, coming,” I muttered inaudibly. How could I forget? Reaping day. Every year, my 2 siblings and I had a tradition of going to the forest early in the morning. “Meet you out back!” Adira skipped out of the room, humming a happy tune. I tumbled out of bed, pulling on tight-fitting khakis, a t-shirt, my fleece,and some old tennis shoes. As I dashed out the door, I grabbed my hat off the hook. Just as I arrived at Adira’s side, my brother Chale stumbled up. “Happy Hunger Games!” He joked. My sister and I giggled. As the oldest of us three, at the age of 18 it was Chale last year in  the reaping. Adira at 17 had one year left, and I two, at 16. We grinned at each other as unspoken words led us to sprint towards the forest, neck and neck with each other the whole way. My long red hair tangled with Adira’s as our speed and the wind combed out our knots. All of a sudden we were darting through the trees, weaving in and out, until we reached the old familiarity of the tallest tree in the forest. We leaped up at once, scrambling for the best holds until we reached the top, where we tried to catch our breath. We were positioned at the very top of the tree, facing east. The sky was turning a brilliant orange by now, the few clouds that were there scattered sparsely throughout the world above us. “It’s coming..” That was Chale. “Coming…”Adira. “Coming…” myself. Finally, the sun peeked up over the hills, and the wild blue yonder burst into a much more brilliant array of colors. We all breathed a contented sigh. “Why does the reaping have to spoil our happiness? It’s not fair!” Adira wondered out loud. “Not fair at all,” I agreed. “But just think, soon enough we’ll all be over 18, and we will be free.” Adira and I gave each other a glance. I knew her thoughts as she knew mine; just how free can we be in Panem? I gasped suddenly. “We have to get back! We’ve stayed too long already!” We hustled back down the tree, and rushed back to the house. To our utmost disappointment, our parents were waiting right at the door for us. “Good morning children,” Father said stiffly. “G-g-good m-m-orning father.” We stammered. “Care to tell us where you’ve been?” Mum asked calmly. “Uh, nowhere!” Adira said uneasily. “Just out for a walk and a spot of fresh air before the reaping. You know, calming the nerves, clearing the lungs,” Chale lied. “I see. is that why you are covered in pine needles and…” Father paused, leaning forward to brush something off my shoulder, “tree sap?” Why did my parents have to be so calm about it? Being yelled at would be so much easier to take. Well, I guess it’s because being the most respected electricity scientists in District 5, you have to retain some composure, and yelling at your children certainly isn’t what a highly respected person does. At least, in District 5 it isn’t.

“Well, we will decide what to do with you later. Hurry to your rooms now, and get ready for the reaping. Oh, but before that, Chale, dear, could you nip over to the market and get some bread?” Mother asked. Well, told him, really, because when Mother asks you to do something, you do it. Adira and I trudged off to our rooms. Mother and Father didn’t know of our tradition, and ever since we started when Adira turned 12, we intended to keep it that way. Oh well. We always could come up with an excuse, and besides, our parent’s punishments were only harsh if they had been gone from work for a few days. At the lab where they worked, designing new stuff that I would learn about later, they worked long hours, and often came home too tired to even make dinner. I thrust open the doors to my wardrobe. Hanging on the front hook was a purple flowy dress, wrapped tightly at the torso, then flaring out at the waist as it fell to my knees. The sleeves hung down below my shoulders. It was a new dress that Mother had bought for me, as my I had grown out of my old reaping dress. I tugged it on, and went over to my mirror, arranging it. I brushed out my hair, and it fell in long curly waves just past my shoulder. I used some hairpins with sparkly jewels on them to pin my hair on one side to my head, then swooshed the rest of so that it was hanging over my right side. I gazed in the mirror, and the face there gazed back. A deep sigh was released from within me, and I stood up to go see how Adira was doing. She wasn’t there, so I went to the kitchen, and the rest of the family was already there, eating breakfast. “Wow!” Adira  exclaimed in amazement. “You look…” “Beautiful,” my mother finished for her. “Well, compared to you, I’m a slob!” I laughed, trying to direct the attention away from me. I didn’t like being under the spotlight. “Oh, this old thing?” Adira joked. The three of us laughed, because we knew how much she adored her dress. Lime green, it matched her hair perfectly. Chale looked smart in a button down shirt and khakis. Mother and Father had been able to change out of their work clothes for once, Mother wearing a powder blue pant suit, father a pressed plaid shirt and a tie. A delicious smell hit my nose as I noticed on the table a delight that danced before my eyes. A banquet was laid out before my very eyes, or at least, as close as you get to a banquet here in district 5. Though definitely not as lavish as the food in the Capitol that I had heard of, it was much better than what a banquet would be in District 12. Sizzling bacon, buttery rolls with raspberry jam, sausages, and bright fruits, it was enough to make anyone here faint. I sank into my chair, full of complete and utter happiness. Well, almost complete, what with the reaping always nagging at the back of my thoughts. It was like in my parents lab, something always waiting to be fixed, always lurking with some sort of imperfection. “Hey, pass the jam!” Chale elbowed me in the ribs, jerking my thoughts back to the meal. I loaded my plate with a little bit (or in some cases, a lot) of everything, not wanting to sacrifice a single crumb. My favorite was the butter rolls, as well as Adira’s. As I snatched three from the plate, she exclaimed, “Leave some for me!” I laughed and slid the bowl over to her, and we all sat, munching in silence that turned solem as we thought of the reaping that lay ahead of us. Though the victors in our District were more than most, we all still feared the tragedy that would fall upon two unlucky families. We didn’t know everyone in the district, but all of us felt for each other as we watched the Hunger Games. Sometimes I wondered if it was still worth it for the Capitol to punish us. It’s a new generation, right? We wouldn’t dream of rebeling now, after what happened to District 13, and the Hunger Games for so many years. But I didn’t dare voice my opinions aloud, not even with my siblings. We have all seen what happens when you criticise the Capitol. I don’t know how it is in other districts, but here in 5 the peacekeepers are everywhere. And they are brutal! Just a few weeks ago I saw one of them hit a kid with his big old gun just for pressing his nose against the window of the candy shop. Nope, you couldn’t put a toe out of line here, not in District 5. When there was a punishment to be had, we were all forced to watch the ruthless torture of the so-called criminal. Many secretly go over to the house of the abashed. Well, that’s how it is in District 5, and District 5 was my home. I wondered about that… moving to other districts had never been done before, at least, not that I had heard, but could someone do it? I was pondering over this when there was a loud rapping on the door. “Now who could that-” Father was interrupted by another bout of banging. “Coming, coming!” Father shouted angrily as he stormed down to the entry hall. “What? Why?!!” We heard Father exclaim. We heard a low voice, and muttering. Then the door slammed, and Father stalked back into the room. “The reaping time’s been moved,” he announced. “Why?! It’s been at the same time for years! Hasn’t changed!” Mother exclaimed. “We’ll discuss it later. Get a move on kids, it’s scheduled to start in half an hour!” I nearly choked on my roll. Half an hour?!!! It wasn’t supposed to start until 2 o’clock! We all scarfed down what was left on our plates. Mother and I set to work, washing dishes two at a time, Adira drying and putting them away. Then I hurried to my room. I stood in front of the shoe rack, trying to make up my mind about what shoes to wear. I finally decided on some gold sandals. “Hurry up kids!” My father shouted. “Coming!” 3 voices chorused back. I dashed to the front hall, and my parents were waiting. “Let’s go, then,” my mother said softly. My mother was not normally a quiet person, but I guess today everyone’s parents would be quiet. We went out the door, and started walking down the street to the square. Our district is wealthy, and our family one of the wealthiest of them all, but nobody here could afford to buy a car, or even the materials for one. So we set out on foot everywhere. Many of the children in our district have very weathered feet, from carelessly forgetting shoes in the warm, dry season. As we made our way towards the square, others joined us, more and more people as we got closer. We nodded to each other, some people saying hello, and a few awkwardly trying to make conversation. But really everybody wanted to walk in silence with their families, trying to enjoy what could possibly be our last minutes together. Finally we arrived at the large area where the reaping takes place. Suddenly Mother grabbed my wrists. A panicked look was in her eyes. “Just know that whatever happens, I will always love you. And you. And you.” She choked, grabbing each of us and looking into our eyes one by one. “My beautiful children…” Father murmured. My eyes teared up. I wished that this didn’t have to happen. We were pulled from Mother’s grasp as the movement of the crowd swept us towards our age sections. I tried to get one last at my family, but a new surge of bodies had already gotten in the way.

Name: Maple Everdeen

age : 14

district: 12

skills : stealth , knives

family : grandmother ; katniss Melark grand father ; peer melark mother : willow Melark  father unknown

personality :some what shy but has a feirce side and loves mockingjays 

mitch says tvvu we wants me to watch tv!