Blood, everywhere. She sees it in the textile workers walking slowly to the square, in the emaciated children sitting in the seats, in the eyes of those who have lost loved ones to the Games, on the hands of the Peacekeepers lined up against the streets. She sees it everywhere.

"Chunhua?" A small voice calls her back to her senses. She looks down and ruffles her brother's hair. "What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing." The lie comes to her as easily as any other words. Casting a glance at the line in front of the sign-in table, Chunhua bends down to look Xian in the eye. "Listen to me. You're going to stay with Mrs. Lu, okay? I'm going to go sign-in, and afterwards, I'll find her and pick you up, and then we can go home." She sees a protest forming on his lips and shushes him. "No buts. And in the case I..." she hesitates-- "don't come back, Mrs. Lu will look after you."

Unable to bear anymore, she plants a kiss on top of his head and hands him off to the portly woman, hurrying off to the table. It's not like she doesn't want to come back, it's really not, but District 8 has much less girls than they do boys, and reproduction rate is low in the first place. Most eligible girls -- both to reproduce and for Reaping -- die from exhaustion in the fabric factories.

It's a hard life, and Chunhua is no stranger to it. She's been living a nightmare ever since she was born, and sometimes, she wishes she never was. Why did her parents choose to bring her into existence when they could barely afford anything for themselves? But that's not fair to them, and Chunhua wonders if maybe they used to make enough, but then the wages were cut. It's happened at least twice just in her memories.

She takes a seat next to someone named Sooyoung. They're familiar with each other, having been classmates in school before Chunhua dropped out to work full-time. Sooyoung flashes a nervous smile, and Chunhua takes the time to look around.

There are, at most, maybe five hundred girls in the square. She wonders if some of them hid in the factories and refused to come out, but more likely, many of them are so sick or starving that they can't leave their beds. It happens a lot, and people die every year on Reaping Day.

"Hey, she's pretty," Sooyoung whispers, pointing to someone onstage. Chunhua scoffs.

"That's the mentor. She lives in the Victor's Village, of course she looks better than us."

Heo Solji. She's infamous in the district, maybe even the entire country, for her method of winning. She seduced some tributes and led them far into the forest where she then killed them with a knife to the stomach. Her killings were brutal, and the cameras made sure to zoom in on her crazed eyes. Chunhua had never seen her in person before, but now that she looks, Solji doesn't really seem like a coldblooded killer.

Her eyes aren't crazed at all. In fact, they're cold and calculating, sweeping the crowd like she's analyzing each person. Chunhua shudders. It reminds her too much of the Supreme Leader, whenever he makes an appearance on TV.

While she was lost in thought, the mayor had read the entirety of the long and boring Decree, the document that founded Greater Asia. Wow, Chunhua must have been thinking for a long time, because reading the Decree usually takes about twenty minutes. She doesn't have time to think anymore, though. Solji steps up to the glass ball beside the podium, and all Chunhua can think about is not me not me please not me please--

But of course it is, and Solji asks for "Zhang Chunhua" and Sooyoung gasps and grabs her hand as if to say goodbye and some of the surrounding crowd gasps too but most of all there's a scream, a young scream, and Chunhua feels her heart being ripped out of her chest as she stumbles onto the stage.

"CHUNHUA!" Xian screams, and she sees Mrs. Lu desperately hugging onto him, trying to keep him quiet, but he's thrashing around and crying and screaming and eventually, Mrs. Lu has to lead him away. Chunhua hears a quiet laugh by her, and she turns to see Solji.

"They're always like that," she murmurs, lips tightening for a moment. "Well, congratulations, girlie. You and I will be getting to know each other soon."

The next thing Chunhua knows, she's sitting on a couch in an empty room and Xian and Mrs. Lu dash in through the door. Xian propels himself towards her and ends up on her lap, nose buried in her neck, sniffling and sobbing. Mrs. Lu takes a seat next to her, hugging her awkwardly with one arm and dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief.

"I'm sorry to bother you like this," Chunhua says, because she doesn't know what else to say. "Could you please look after Xian for me? For..."

"Forever, if I have to." Mrs. Lu blows her nose. "But dear, you must come back, you must." She puts a hand on Xian's back. "He needs you."

Chunhua looks at her elderly neighbor, at her young brother, and can't do much else but nod and promise. "I'll try. I'll try my best."

But her best, she knows, may not be enough.

heyyyyyy i wasn't sure if she was supposed to have blonde hair or black hair hhhhhhh. i just came back from showering after a ing TIRING classwide icebreaker. so many people, so much sweat, i was so glad when it finally ended. i should have worn better shoes LMFAO. i keep making plans to meet up with someone i knew in middle school but likeeee just keeps happening because we're in different houses LMAO.