Chapter Text
In penance for their uprising, each district shall offer up a male and female between the ages of 12 and 18 at a public "reaping." These tributes shall be delivered into the custody of the capital and then transferred to a public arena where they will fight to the death until a lone victor remains. Henceforth and forevermore this pageant shall be known as The Hunger Games.
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DISTRICT 12, 3 HOURS BEFORE THE REAPING.
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1 victor, survivor and 23 people die. Every year. That's the way the games have always worked. Shoyo Hinata knew this, he also knew that the odds were not in his favor. His name was in the bowl 20 times so he could have enough bread to feed his family for a month at least. That's the way it always had been for him, having to sacrifice parts of himself for the betterment of his family. Did he care? No! It became his responsibility the second the mine exploded, killing his father. So, when he woke up and remembered that day was reaping day, he began to panic. His mind raced with every possible outcome and scenario of what could happen, like Hinata getting chosen for the games only for him to be brutally murdered on camera in front of his family. Or, what if Hinata managed to make it to the final 2 only to die by the hands of the other person? Shoyo laid on his back while he thought. It was a good 15-20 minutes before he decided to finally get up.
Shoyo saw his mom sitting at the table with her head in her hands. Her beautiful orange hair turning more gray by the day, her pale skin visible in the darkness. Small sobs could be heard from her as she cried, the loss of her husband and son within the time-span of 2 years would be too much for her. Hinata walked over the table and pulled out the chair next to his mom and starts rubbing circles into her back. "Mom. it's going to be okay." Shoyo leans his head against her shoulder, closing his eyes.
"I know.. it's just that.." She wipes her tears from her eyes, taking a deep breath. "What if you get reaped? What would I do without you here?"
"You'd have to manage." He says sternly as he stopped rubbing her back. "I know it'd be too much, but you'd still have Natsu. You'd have to manage for her."
His mother nods, calming down. "I know, Shoyo, I know." She stands up and walks over to the sink. "I need to do the dishes, can you get some water from the pump?" Shoyo nods and grabs the bucket by the door before walking outside. He was lucky to have a pump so close to his house, others had to walk up to 15 minutes just to get water. He pumped it until the bucket was full, picking it up and being careful not to spill it. He kicks the door open with his foot and puts the bucket on the counter for his mom before walking over to the front door.
"I'm going to the Hob for a bit, I need to clear my head." He says as he puts his shoes on and grabs his satchel off the ground. His mom tries to tell him something before he leaves but he closes the door before she can finish. Normally, his walk to the Seam would be his favorite. The place was like a second home to him, his father had brought him there as a kid tons so the smells and sounds helped him when he was missing him. It also was where he had a job, a small cafe/bar that operated out of there had hired him as a busboy soon after his father died. The owner, Hiroki Kurokawa, used to be a close friend of his dads. They got beers together once a month to catch up, and Hinata had become like a son to him after the passing. They were close, so it's where Shoyo would go when he just needed to talk Today, his legs felt heavy as he walked there, this could be the last time he ever saw Kurokawa. The thought alone made his throat gain a lump in it, which he quickly swallowed. The smells of the Hob weren't that unique, but nonetheless, made Shoyo feel welcome. There weren't as many people in today due to it being the day of the Reaping and so tons more peacekeepers were in the area, I mean it was technically a black market and therefore illegal, but still some showed up. Shoyo walked over to his place of work and sat down at the bar. He rang there and heard some unhappy grumbles from behind the door.
"What the fuck do you want? It's Reaping day, we're closed-" Hiroki said, his forehead covered with sweat and the same tired look on his face as always. He locked eyes with Shoyo, his expression softening as he noticed him. "Shoyo, it's you. What're you doing here?" He walked over to the edge of the counter and ruffled his hair.
"I just wanted to stop by. I'm just... scared." Shoyo started to tense, his nails digging into his knee. Hiroki's expression quickly turned from one of softness into one of concern, "It's the reaping day, you know? And it's only the second one since the incident and my mom is a wreck. I keep thinking of the worse, what's gonna happen if I chosen?! What if I die in those stupid, meaningless games?!" He starts curling up into a ball in the chair, his hands moving to his head and digging into his bright orange hair as his breathing becomes quicker. Hiroki notices this and quickly goes to the other side of the bar, pulling Shoyo into a hug.
"Look, Shoyo, you might not be my kid but I've seen you as my son since your old man died." Shoyo hugs back, feeling safe and comfortable in his arms. "Even if you die in that arena, I sure as hell won't let anything happen to your family. Plus the odds might not fully be in your favor but they are more than others. Your name is only in there 20 times, right?" He nods, slowly calming down. "Then you probably won't get called. Some poor kids have their name in there 128 times or more." Shoyo nods at this, pulling away from the hug. Hiroki ruffles his hair and then pats his back.
"Thank you, Hiro." Shoyo smiles at him before hopping off of the bar chair he was sitting on.
"Now, go home and make yourself more presentable. If you do get chosen, you at least want to look nice." Shoyo nods at this, hugging Hiroki goodbye before he goes. However, Shoyo doesn't leave the Hob immediately. He instead wanders the building to get the last bits of bad thoughts out of his head. He wandered for what felt like forever, the slight sounds and smells comforting him as he looked around the place. This could be the last time he was ever there so he wanted to take it all in. Every store, every smell, every sound, everything. A sweet old lady, no younger than 70, ended up giving him a free pin of his choosing. A crow's feather ended up getting his attention, which he gracefully accepted. Shoyo's walk back home felt less heavy, like a weigh had been lifted off of his shoulders which caused him to sigh with relief.
The Seam, where he lived, was more depressing than usual. Usually, it was just depressing in the sense that almost nobody had enough to eat and everyone could barely afford to even live.But, since it was Reaping day, everyone was scared. What if it was their child who would be killed in a massacre disguised as a game? Shoyo arrived home 5 minutes later, his sister jumping into his arms the second he walked into the door.
"Shoyo! You're home." Natsu was half the size of Shoyo and much more happy. Her eyes shown brighter than the stars in the night sky and her bright orange hair was like a beacon of light for anyone who knew her. Shoyo was like her primary caregiver, especially on his moms hard days. They were close, which is even more of a reason to be terrified of the reaping. He hugged her back and spun her around before setting her down. "Can you play with me, Sho?"
He sighed and patted her head, slightly ruffling her hair. "I can't right now, sorry Natsu." She very visibly pouted at this, crossing her arms and turning away from him.
"Fine then, I didn't want to play with you anyways." She mumbled, still in a pout. Shoyo didn't want his sister to ever change, her liveliness and kindness was enough to make the world a better place which he cared deeply about protecting. What if Shoyo got picked and the last thing Natsu ever saw of him was his cold, dead body as he laid lifeless in whichever arena the gamemakers had decided on. Shoyo shook his head to get the thought of his head and walked into their shared bedroom, flopping down on his bed. He closed his eyes and unknowingly fell back asleep, sprawled out on his bed.
TIMESKIP: 1 HOUR
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Shoyo jolted awake from a nightmare, his breathing getting heavier and him curling into a ball. He takes a few deep breaths and shakes his hands as he stands up, pacing back and forth. It was now only an hour and 20 minutes to the reaping. Shoyo heard the capitals hovercraft fly above him, signifying the tributes escort had arrived. He had calmed himself down by then and walked into the kitchen, being greeted by his mother and sister. He sat down at the table, his leg bouncing up and down as he stared at the table. Natsu came up next to him and hugged him tightly. "Morning Shoyo!" She smiled brightly at him, even though she had seen him less than an hour ago. He smiled at her and hugged back, which seemingly calmed him down. Shoyo pat her head and stood up walking back to his room. "Where are you going?"
Shoyo stopped walking and turned to her. "I need to go get dressed. Stay with mom, okay?" Natsu nods and goes back to where she was previously, playing with a little straw doll on the floor. Shoyo closed the door and walked to his dresser and picked out his best outfit. A sky blue button down shirt and a pair of beige pants. If he was going to be reaped and sent to the Capital, he might as well look nice. After getting dressed, he tried to tame his wild hair, to no avail. Sighing, he saw other kids walking to the town center where the reaping took place. They probably wanted to get there, Shoyo knew he had to leave soon. It was a 15 walk to the center of town from his house and he only had around 45 minutes left. Plus the line for admissions was always long so he figured he would leave early to not be waiting in line for what felt like forever. He put the crow feather's pin in his pocket and walked back into the kitchen.
Shoyo noticed his mom's red and puffy eyes, feeling bad for the amount of stress she must be under. Shoyo sighed and walked over to the cabinets, grabbing a small piece of bread to eat before he goes. "Shoyo, why are you dressed all fancy?" Natsu tilted her head, looking up at her brother from her position on the floor.
Shoyo sighs and kneels down beside her, "I have to go to the reaping, you know what that is right?" Natsu nods, she had remembered learning about it in school. "I have to go and be entered in there, but I'll be back later." He ruffles her hair again.
"Do you pinky promise?" Natsu sticks her hand out, all of her fingers balled into a fist but her pinky.
"Pinky promise." He locks their pinky's together and stands up before walking over to his mom. "Mom, your coming to the reaping right?
"I don't really have a choice, do I." She sighs and stands up, giving Shoyo a hug. "Just.. don't volunteer if you're not picked. Please." Shoyo nods as he hugs back, tightly. She smiles and pulls away from the hug, her hands on his shoulders. "Now, go. You'll be in trouble if you're late."
"You make it sound like I'm just going to school." He slightly laughs, trying to bring up the mood. His mom smiles and shoo's him out the door.
THE REAPING, DISTRICT 12
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Shoyo stands within the crowd of boys. He wished boys were picked first, so the pit in his stomach could leave faster and his heartbeat could slow down. He was in a trance like state, nothing to do but wait. He hated waiting, he hated standing still, he hated the reaping. He was quickly snapped out of his state by the escort walking onto the stage, tapping on the microphone to make sure it works. The escort is a short man who looks no older than the teens in the crowd. His hair was brown with a yellow streak in it which resembled a bolt of lightning. His outfit was a bright white suit, it looked fancier than anything people in the crowd were wearing. The man had a fake smile on his face, his eyes covered by sunglasses. "Welcome, welcome to the 72nd annual hunger games and may the odds be ever in your favor." He smiles slightly, pulling a piece of paper out from his coat. "The Hunger Games were started 72 years ago as a form of punishment for the districts after they rebelled against the Capital. Each year, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district shall be chosen and brought to the capital where they will train to fight to the death for a week and then be sent into an arena where one of the twenty-four will emerge a victor." He sighs, continuing to read, "We have had 2 past victors from district 12. Only one, however, is still alive. Udai Tenma." A man with long black hair jolts awake from the chairs behind the microphone. He nods and waves, obviously drunk. "Now, ladies first!"
His white glove dances over the ball, trying to increase the suspense. He then reaches in and picks one off the top, opening it carefully as he reads the name, "Nozomi Watabe." The crowd is silent as a small, frail girl emerges from the crowd. Her hair is dark brown, like chocolate. Her skin is pale, she looks around with a begging look on her face. A face begging for someone to take her place, but nobody does. The odds of her making it out of the games alive certainly weren't in her favor. As she walked up on stage, tears began to fall down her cheeks as she covers her mouth. The man awkwardly pats her back as he walks to the other side of the stage. "And now, for the boys." His hand dances over the ball again before picking a card. Shoyo's chest begins to beat faster as he walked back over the microphone, gently opening the card. Surely it wasn't him, surely it was some other unfortunate soul.
"Shoyo Hinata." He says, looking around the crowd.
He stood there blinking, not processing. He walks out of the crowd, a look of defeat on his face. He walks up the stage next to the escort, the only thing being heard from crowd was silence and occasional sobs from Nozomi. The man sighed and spoke into the microphone, "There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, the tributes from District 12 for the 72nd annual Hunger Games." He hands the microphone to Nozomi, and through broken sobs she says, "Nozomi Watabe." He then hands it over to Shoyo, "Shoyo Hinata." The look on his face is still one of utter defeat. The 2 are gestured into the building behind them. The peacekeepers explained to them that they had 5 minutes to say their goodbyes to their families and close friends.
Shoyo is pushed into a room, and a few seconds later, his mother and Natsu burst in. His mother is sobbing, she pulls him into a tight hug."Shoyo, please.." He hugs back, his nails digging into her back. " I can't you loose you both."
"You have to stay strong for Natsu. She needs you." His mom nods, pulling away from the hug. "I'll do my best to come home, but if I don't, you need to step up. I won't be here to pick up after you again. If you even think of abandoning Natsu or putting her in a community home, I'll haunt you from beyond the grave." He pulls away from the hug, placing his hands on her shoulders.
"I know, Shoyo." She wipes her tears and sits on a chair behind him. Natsu walks over to him, tears starting to form in her eyes.
"Natsu, come here." She walks over to her older brother and he bends down to hug her. "Big brother has to go away now, okay?" She nods, hugging him back. Tears begin to fall from her eyes as she hugged him as tight as she could. Shoyo pulls away from the hug and takes the crow feather from his pocket. "Here, this is for when you miss me." He pins it to her dress.
"I don't want you to go." She says weakly, staring into her brothers eyes with a begging look on her face. "You pinky promised you would come home!" She sobbed, covering her face with her hands.
"I don't want to leave but I have too." The peacekeepers come in to take the 2 out, his mom begins begging them not to take her son and Natsu screams for her older brother. He sits on a chair in defeat as Hiroki comes in.
"Shoyo." He hugs him, "Stay safe."
"I'll do my best." He hugs back, starting to cry. "Just, please, make sure my family is okay." Hiroki nods. Shoyo begins to sob harder, the only thing being heard from the room. Hiroki soothingly rubs his back, and the god awful peacekeepers come in. Shoyo had always hated them, and this just confirmed that. He then was taken to the train, it was sleek and gray. Everything on the train was much fancier than anything in District 12, even the clothes. Shoyo sighed as Nozomi came in, still crying. Shoyo wished he could comfort him, tell her everything was going to be alright, but he knew it wouldn't. Nothing in the games was alright.
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DISTRICT 1, 3 HOURS BEFORE THE REAPING
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Tsutomu Goshiki had always admired the games. He was going to volunteer this year and prove he had what it took to be a victor. The idea of basking in the glory of being a victor, being showered with gifts and love on his victory tour after proving his worth by killing 23 other tributes brought him joy. He had been training for this his whole life, he was a career. Since he was 2, he had been tried to kill without thought. He had become heartless, or heartless enough to kill another human being in 500 different ways at least. He new every way to cut, strangle, stab, break, and gut someone. Especially with a sword, that was his specialty. He loved this method most, especially after seeing his hero, Wakatoshi Ushijima, take down 3 people in one move with one weapon. God how Tsutomu looked up to and admired him.
So, when Goshiki volunteers, he wants Wakatoshi to be his mentor. To help him win his games, to be the best mentor in the history of mentors. Tsutomu smiled at the thought of meeting his hero, he daydreamed of all the ways he was going to kill his fellow tributes. He got up after lying in his bed for 5 minutes, working out for a bit to wake himself up. He then left his room and went to the kitchen where his mom had made breakfast.
"Morning Tsutomu!" His mom said happily, "Breakfast will be done soon. Happy reaping day!" She didn't turn to look at him, but he didn't care. All that was on his mind was making his hero proud and volunteering for the games.
"Morning mom!" He smiled and walked to the door. "I'm going to do some last minute training at the gym."
She nodded and shoo'd him away with her hand. He smiled and exited his house. The air felt cold, but he didn't care. He jogged his way to gym, which was about 5 minutes from his house. He noticed how the town square decorated for the reaping. He stopped to look, the colorful banners and streamers scattered around the area. It was an honor to be selected to the games where he was from. He would make his district proud and add another victor to their ever-growing list. He smiled at the thought and continued the jog to the gym. The gym was a tall, black building with no windows. Tsutomu like it there, entering through the big double doors at the entrance of the building. He checked in at the front desk for a 45 minute workout. His coach, Washijo, stared at him with a look of anger as he walked in.
"Your late, Goshiki." The old man continued to stare at him, which made the boy slightly scared.
"I'm sorry, I overslept." He walked over to the weights and picked a pair up, starting his warm-up.
"Do you plan on volunteering this year?" Tsutomu nods. "Good, I won't have to deal with you and how pathetic you are again." These words made him feel like his heart had been ripped out, though his coach had always been like this. In the 15 years Tsutomu had known him, he had only ever heard him compliment him 5 times. He sighed, and began stretching. Tsutomu had always been flexible, just another one of his many strengths. After 5 minutes of stretching, Washijo beckoned him over. "Go work on your hand to hand fighting, you've been falling behind in that lately."
Tsutomu looked kind of hurt at this, he was hoping to get words of encouragement or something, but no. It was something he did wrong, again. He sighed and nodded, getting ready and getting into his fighting stance with the worker. After about 2 minutes, Tsutomu obviously won. Washijo smiled and walked to the other side of the gym, pointing to survival training. "If you expect to win without knowing basic survival skills, your wrong. " Tsutomu nodded and began learning about all the different plants and stuff, noting the especially poisonous ones in his mind. After 30 minutes of this, Washijo called him over again.
"Look, Go- I mean Tsutomu," Tsutomu visibly got happier when his coach called him by his first name, "I know I've been hard on you. And I know I've been harsh, but it's because I saw potential in you I didn't see in others." Tsutomu smiled at this and nodded. "So, when you get in those games, just do what you did during practice. Win and make everyone proud." Tsutomu nodded. He had to make his district proud, unlike his older brother. He had died in the games, made it to the top 3. His mother had been so disappointed and his father had punched a hole in the wall out of anger. Not because their son was dead, but because their family had failed the district. Tsutomu was only 7 at the time so he didn't understand, but he knew now. He never would forget the looks on their faces as they watched him die, Tsutomu cried, but they didn't. He had disappointed their family, which is something Tsutomu couldn't do. Something in him missed his brother deeply, but he had rejected that part of himself, it was weak. He couldn't be weak.z
On his walk home, he ran into a young child, no older than 4. He smiled at him, causing the child to smile back. Tsutomu loved kids and hoped to have some of his own someday when he got out of the games. Settle down with a nice woman in Victors Village and have a happy rest of his life. He entered his home, his father was at the table and his mother was plating their food. The aroma filled the air, causing his mouth to slightly water. His father hadn't noticed him come in, which was normal. He took a deep breath and sat down at the table. His mother placed his breakfast in front of him. It was mostly protein, a breakfast fit for a future victor. He thanked the gods for his meal before digging in, his mother looked at him with a slight disgust for the mess he was making but he didn't notice nor did he care. Tsutomu cleared his plate in 15 minutes, getting seconds and thirds. He thanked his mom for the meal and went to his room.
His room was small, but Tsutomu didn't mind. His room would be the biggest in his house in victors village. It would be next to Ushijima's and they would become good friends and grow old together. That's the way his life was going to go, he decided on it. He dug through is closet and pulled out a baby blue suit and bow-tie. He wanted to look nice for the capital, they were being gracious enough to let him stay there anyways. For a whole week no less. He admired his outfit in the mirror before exiting his room.
His dad was waiting for at the bottom of the stairs, a cold look on his face. "Son, you're volunteering this year." It didn't sound like a question but more like an order or statement. Tsutomu nodded, standing up straight and maintaining eye contact with his dad. "Good, you'll fix our family name. Make me proud, son." His dad pat him on the shoulder which made Tsutomu smile. He would make his dad proud, he would make everyone proud. He had too.
TIMESKIP: THE REAPING, DISTRICT 1
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Goshiki stood in the countless rows of possible tributes. He had known some of them since he was a toddler and some he had only met recently. They all knew he would be volunteering so they were relaxed, even if their name was picked he would enter the arena instead. Tsutomu took a deep breath, he waited patiently. He began thinking of his brother, how confident he was and how quickly he was killed. It went just like that. One wrong move and he died. Tsutomu knew better, he was going to evaluate his fellow tributes and make sure he knew how to fight them. Just because they looked weak, doesn't mean they were. The escort, Taichi, had been the escort of District 1 for years. He walked up to the microphone at the edge of the stage, his outfit of choice that day was a bright pink suit with a long coat then when buttoned looked like a dress and black pants sprinkled in white. His dark orange hair was somewhat covered by a pink beret the same color as his suit. He cleared his throat before speaking, "Welcome to the 72nd annual hunger games. They were started 72 years ago as a way for the capital to punish the districts for their uprising during the Dark Days. Since then it has become a way for the country of Panem to come together as one to celebrate the momentous occasion." The crowd clapped as he finished the speech, he smiled and pulled a paper out of his pocket. He began reading off the past tributes, some were as old as Coach Washijo and some were young, like Wakatoshi.
"Now, the special young lady chosen for the games is.." He moved his hand around in the bowl for a good 5 seconds before picking a name out of the top of the bowl. He walked over to the microphone and opened the small piece of paper, "Akari Kobayashi." A muscular woman with brown hair and tan skin exited from the crowd, she would be tough to beat but Tsutomu would do it. He had too. The crowd erupted in applause for her, she waved to them and bowed before stepping back. Taichi then crossed to the other side of the stage, selecting a piece of paper in a similar fashion. Goshiki felt his heart-rate increase and his legs felt heavy. Was he nervous? He couldn't be, nervousness was a sign of weakness and Tsutomu wasn't weak. Taichi read the name from the piece of paper, clearing his throat, "Yoshi Sagae" he said.
Without missing a beat, Goshiki emerged from the crowd and yelled, "I volunteer as tribute!" up to the stage. Everyone's eyes were on him, he could feel them staring into his soul. He couldn't disappoint any of them, that's all that was on his mind.
He walked up to the stage and shook Taichi's hand. "What's your name, young man?"
"Tsutomu Goshiki." He leaned into the mic and said, as the crowd applauded and cheered for him, louder than they were for Akari. A look of jealousy crossed her face, if looks could kill then Tsutomu would be dead.
"There you have it folks, the tributes for District 1 of the 72nd annual hunger games." Everyone in the crowd cheered for them as they were shoved into the town square building. It was fancy in there, chandeliers hung from the ceiling and a nice looking red carpet draped across the floor. Tsutomu was taken to a room no bigger than his at home, it was comforting. He sat down on a chair, like his fathers at home, but it smelled more like lavender than it did smoke. Tsutomu side and leaned back, his parents come into the room a few minutes later.
"Tsutomu, my baby!" His mother peppered his face with kisses and then hugged him, "Everyone out there loved you, I'm so proud." She smiled, Tsutomu slightly confused. Why were they being so nice to him? They never were before. they treated him like a roommate less than a son.
His father pat his soldier, giving him a look of approval. "Make me proud, son." Tsutomu smiled nodded, he would make them proud. He swore on it. He would make them prouder than his brother ever did. He was 17, a year younger than his brother when he entered the games, but he would be the best. He knew he would.
˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗
DISTRICT 9, 3 HOURS BEFORE THE REAPING
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Tobio Kageyama had nobody left. God, why did his sister have to die in the games? She should've won. But the Capital liked that pretty boy Oikawa and wanted him, so he won instead. Tobio laid in his bed, staring at his bed. The urn containing the ashes of his sister they could find was sitting above his bed. He polished it everyday like it was his prized possession, and it was. He talked to it when he had issues like he would with his sister, it was all he had left of her after all. Tobio groaned as he remembered it was the day of the Reaping. He didn't really care what happened to him, whether he was alive or dead, it didn't matter to him. He rolled out of bed, a loud THUD could be heard as he hit the floor. He said good morning to his sister and put on his shoes for a morning run. Tobio had proved to a court he was able to live by himself, so he owned a small apartment on the outskirts of town. Tobio preferred being alone, the silence was comforting for him. It meant he had nobody else to loose.
He ran for 15 minutes before heading back home and making himself a small breakfast. Tobio hated how insignificant and boring district his district was, sure it was his home, but he could admit he hated it. He would rather live in any other less boring district. The seemingly endless wheat fields were enough to make anyone go insane, but combine that with loneliness and grief, and Tobio was one bad day from exploding. When he arrived home, one of his friends was sitting at his doorstep. Kunimi's hair was in it's usual middle part but just a lot more messy. He was still in his PJ's, and sitting in front of Tobio's door. He didn't expect this, he and Kunimi had never been close and had only known each other through Kindaichi.
Kunimi noticed him and stood up, wiping his eyes,"Kageyama, can we talk?" There was a certain desperation in his voice, a desperation that made it impossible for Tobio to say not to him. He nodded and walked over to the door, unlocking it. Kunimi followed him inside and sat on the couch. Tobio sat next to her, there was an awkwardness in the air. "Look, Kageyama, I know we've never been close but I need a place to stay." He began twiddling with his fingers, "My parents, they found out about me and Yutaro. They weren't to thrilled, as you can guess, and kicked me out. I would've gone to someone else but you were the most reasonable one to come too." Tobio nodded, looking at the ground. Him being the most reasonable probably had to do with him living alone.
Tobio thought for a moment, he enjoyed the peace and quiet of having his own home and space to himself. Not having to wake up to someone in his house everyday was ideal for him, but couldn't just leave someone in need like this. "You can." Kunimi's face lit up at this and immediately hugged the other boy.
"You have no idea how much this means to me," He smiled and continued to hug him while Tobio just sat there, stunned from the sudden physical contact. He pat his back and pulled away from the hug, going to his room.
"It's reaping day, we have to go soon." He said while walking to his room. Kunimi nodded and grabbed his bag from the floor, digging through it. Tobio closed the door behind him and leaned against it, sighing. Now he had somewhat of a reason to not want to get reaped, he had to take care of Kunimi. He sat on the edge of his bed and stared at the ground. If Miwa was here, she would be comforting him right now and he would be telling her all about his problems. But Miwa wasn't here. She would never be here again. Tobio sighed and flopped onto his back, staring at the ceiling. He laid there for what felt like forever, until he decided to get up.
Tobio got dressed in a black dress shirt and dark blue jeans. Was it his nicest outfit? No. But did he care how he presented? Also no. If he was reaped into the games, he planned to die there like his sister before him. He entered the living room again to see Kunimi eating some bread at his table. Kunimi didn't notice him until he pulled out a chair next to him. He was startled but nodded, the silence consuming the room. They both don't mind, however, and focus on their food. Kunimi noticed the time after a while, "Hey Kageyama?"
Tobio makes eye contact with him, "What?" He tilts his head, not trying to look scary or mad but doing it anyways. Kunimi shudders but takes a deep breath.
"I'm going to meet up with Yutaro and walk to the Reaping with him, do you want to come?" He nods, and stands up. Kunimi follows him and they put on their shoes, before walking out the door. The walk to Kindaichi's house was a silent one. Tobio was thinking about volunteering for the poor kid who was chosen, weighing the pro's and cons in his mind. He ultimately decided that if it was someone he knew that was chosen, he would volunteer himself. As they approached Kindaichi's house, he was already out there waiting for the 2.
"Aki! Tobio! Hey!" He waved, a big smile on his face. "I didn't know you guys were close." Kunimi hugged Kindaichi when they got to each other, it lasted for longer than normal. Kindaichi didn't question this, hugging back. Tobio felt a slight sting in his heart watching this, seeing two people so in love made him jealous. He had hoped to find love like this one day, if he doesn't die in the games like he plans to, then he definitely will. Tobio cleared his throat, getting the couple's attention. "Sorry, Tobio." His friend said, his only friend. Probably one of the only people that would miss him.
"It's fine, Yutaro." Tobio said, patting his shoulder. Kindaichi smiled and the trio walked to the Reaping together, Kindaichi talking about random topics and Kunimi listening intently. Tobio was in his own world, disconnected from everyone else.They arrived at the gates, with Tobio leaving the 2 behind. They didn't seem to care much, neither of them tried to stop him.
THE REAPING: DISTRICT 9
-
Tobio stared ahead, a stoic look on his face. He felt his heart rate increase as the time for the Reaping grew closer. He looked around the crowd, nobody here looked terrified. Sure, they were all probably scared, but nobody was terrified. Even if they were, they were good at hiding it. Tobio wasn't really scared, he was more nervous. To be honest, he wanted to enter the games. He snapped out of it quickly, hating the part of himself for even thinking that. God, why did Miwa have to get chosen? If she were still alive, he probably wouldn't even be thinking this. Tobio's attention was snatched away from his thoughts after the escort, Shohei Fukunaga, entered the stage. Tobio recognized him immediately, he's been the escort of District 9 for the past 5 years and the only escort of the district Tobio has ever known. He had the same short, black hairstyle. The escort was such a huge fan of cats, he got 2 surgical attachments that looked like a cats tails and ears, his tail twitched behind while he walked. He wore a red and black suit with gold embellishments, his cat like eyes stared into the crowd as he started talking. "Welcome girls, boys, and everything in between, to 72nd annual Hunger Games." He smirked, going on a rant about how happy he was to be there again and how much he loved everyone in the district. He went on and on about the importance of the games and how they were more like a tradition than a punishment now.
"Now, ladies first, as always." He strutted over to the bowl containing the names of all the girls in the crowd. His hand swirled around in there before picking one in the middle, and carefully opened it as he walked back to the microphone. "Now, the female tribute for District 9 is.." He cleared his throat before saying her name, "Maiko Yonezawa!" Fukunaga slightly clapped as she walked up, but the crowd was silent. Thee girl had brown hair and black eyes, her clothes were slightly tattered and she didn't look familiar to Tobio. They went to the same school, but that was about all he knew. She stood up there behind her bowl, shaking. Tobio felt bad, she probably wasn't going to make, realistically. He sighed, this was his least favorite part of the Reaping. Time felt as if it slowed down while the man walked to the other side of the stage, carefully selecting one of the pieces of paper. "The male tribute of District 9 is.." He cleared his throat again, "Akira Kunimi."
Tobio noticed Kunimi exit the crowd, without a second thought he emerged from the crowd and yelled, "I volunteer as tribute!" The crowd went silent, all eyes were on him. He didn't care, he just wanted to make sure his friend was safe. Nobody would care if he was gone, nobody at all. He walked up to the stage with an emotionless look on his face, staring into the crowd.
"What's your name, young man?" Fukunaga asked, tilting his head and gesturing the microphone towards him.
"Tobio Kageyama." He said, without missing a beat.
Fukunaga nodded and turned his focus towards the crowd, "There you have it folks! The District 9 tributes for the 72nd annual hunger games. May the odds be in their favor."
The 2 were escorted into the building behind them by peacekeepers. Tobio was taken to a small room, just as all the other tributes were. He was told people could come visit him here, but who would want to visit home? He had nobody left. Not since his sister died. Tobio waited in there, then Kindaichi and Kunimi came in. They both were holding back tears as Kunimi hugged Tobio, whispering his thanks into his ear. "Why'd you do it?" Kindaichi asked sternly. Tobio looked slightly confused, wondering why he was mad that his boyfriend was safe.
"Because nobody's going to miss me." Tobio said, not caring. "My family is all dead, Kunimi's family might hate him right now, but he still has you. Nobody loves me enough to miss me."
"But that's no reason send yourself into a game where you're probably going to die!" Kindaichi yelled at him, tears starting to flow down his cheek. "You don't think, do you?! I'm going to miss you idiot!" He hands were balled up into fists, Tobio walked over to him and hugged him.
"This is what I want, Yutaro." Kindaichi hugged him back tightly. Kunimi hugged them too and they stayed like that for awhile.
"You better do your damn best to win." Kindaichi pulled away from the hug, placing his hands on Tobio's shoulders. "I'm not only just now getting on a first name basis with you just do you die in some stupid game." Tobio nodded, as the peacekeepers came in, the 2 were pushed out. Tobio sat there in silence for the next 5 minutes, those 2 were the only ones who cared enough to visit him. Something in him wished others cared about him, that would miss him if he died, but nobody would but his friends. He sighed as the peacekeepers dragged him to the train, he was at peace with what was about to happen to him. Tobio was okay with his death.
˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗
DISTRICT 8, 3 HOURS BEFORE THE REAPING
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Yachi Hitoka could never please her mom, no matter how hard she tried. Straight A's, perfect test scores, college level classes, none of it mattered to her. Hitoka sighed as she laid there, it was reaping day and her anxiety definitely wasn't helping her nerves. She stared at her ceiling, tracing random patterns with her eyes. Doing this normally helped calm down, but it didn't today. She eventually got out of bed after God knows how long and wandered into the kitchen where she grabbed an orange off the counter and sat at the table. Her mom always told her "don't eat too much, you'll get fat and unlovable" but Hitoka didn't care. Nothing her mom said mattered to her, not after she had spent her whole life trying to please her and nothing had worked. She wandered around her house searching for her mom, but to no avail. She wasn't surprised, her mom was almost never home. Hitoka had understood how busy 'mommy' was since a young age. It was one of those things she didn't question. And, to be honest, she was glad her mom wasn't around much. Less time with her was the best thing for their relationship.
Every thought of the Games and the Reaping made Hitoka's heart beat faster. The idea of her inevitable death while she was in there terrified her, she had wished she was born in the capital so she might kind of enjoy the games instead of being terrified of them. She felt her breathing getting heavier as she collapsed behind a door, all she could think about was the games and her mom. How she despised her, how she never cared, how she probably wouldn't care if Hitoka died in the games. She began to cry, alone and afraid on her kitchen floor. Nobody would care for her, nobody ever did. She would just have to wait this out like always. All she ever wanted was to feel a mothers warmth, a mothers love, but she would never know that. Not with her mom staying the way she is now.
Hitoka stayed like that, hyperventilating, crying, panicked mess, for a good 45 minutes. She calmed herself down the best she could with those stupid breathing exercises her counselor had taught her after she had a panic attack in school for the first time. They didn't help much, but the little that they did was enough. She stood up shakily and walked over to her bed where she hugged her pillow, which calmed her down more and she was finally able to breathe normally again. After remembering it was reaping day again, she reluctantly got out of bed and walked over to her closet, putting on a white shirt with an ankle length muted pink skirt. Her mom would make her wear something fancier, but she wouldn't listen to her. God how she hated her mom but loved her at the same time. She wanted to rip her eyes out and then be held and comforted.
Hitoka went to the door and put on her shoes, if she was going to be reaped then none of her books were going to return late to the library. She spent an embarrassing amount of time there, the smells of old books mixed with the smoke coming from the factories was comforting for her. Her mother would never approve of this, of her daughter wanting to bury her nose in a book, of her being like an exact carbon copy of younger her. Hitoka sighed as she walked into the library and her old friend, Mai Nametsu, was working the front desk as always.
"Hitoka? What're you doing here?" She noticed the younger girl placing books on the counter, locking eyes with her. She sighed as she broke the eye contact, a small blush appearing on her cheeks. God, why were girls so pretty?
She smiled and looked up, "Well if I get reaped for the Games, I don't want any of my books to be returned late." Mai nodded and logged her books as returned. There was an understanding between them, Hitoka used to confide in her about her mother while Mai did the same with her father. The 2 had grown apart over time but still knew the other inside and out. Hell, she was even the first person that helped Hitoka experiment with kissing girls. Hitoka nodded as the books were scanned in, exiting the building. There was still an hour until the reaping which caused Hitoka to sigh and trudge back home. There wasn't a long walk between her house and the Town Center, it was 5 minutes on a bad day.
She didn't know what to do to kill time, so she decided to study. It was what she did best, after all. Her Geometry was the next day and she wanted to be prepared. Would it help her if she got stuck in the games fending for her life? No. But was it a good distraction? Yes. Yes it was. She had her nose deep in the book, taking notes and and doing the problems in the workbook. After 30 minutes of this, she finally decided to leave and walk to the town square where the reaping took place.
TIMESKIP: DISTRICT 8 REAPING
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Hitoka stood in the crowd of girls from her district. One of them would go into the games and would probably die, she just prayed that girl wasn't her. Hitoka felt her heart rate increase as the time grew closer, trying to calm herself down she began to pick at the skin around her fingers. She took multiple deep breaths, none of which helped more than the skin-picking. After a few minutes, their escort came up to the microphone, clearing his throat into it as to get the crowds attention. Hitoka's focus was immediately brought to the stage, the mans pink hair was in a high, spiky ponytail. He was wearing a baby pink suit with sakura petals all over it. His face was slightly obscured by a pair of black sunglasses he had. "Welcome to the 72nd annual hunger games, and may the odds be ever in your favor." He smirked after saying the last part, something slightly sinister about it. He ranted about the importance of the games for what felt like forever. Going on and on about the importance of tradition, how it was integral to any good society, comparing it to things like Christmas and New Years. "That's enough of my personal opinions, though. Now, ladies first." He walks over to a large fish bowl looking thing a pulls a piece of paper out of the middle. As he walks back over to the microphone, Hitoka thought about her mom. Was she watching? If she was chosen, would she visit her?
Hitoka felt her heart rate increase as he tapped on the microphone, regaining everyone's attention. "Hitoka Yachi."
She almost didn't want to go up there and have them drag her up, but her legs moved on auto-pilot as her mind raced with thoughts. Maybe all the thinking she had been doing about it had somehow manifested it into existence? Or maybe the whole thing was rigged against her because for some reason whoever put the names in there put her in the most? She tried coming up with some rational idea other than "fate" but nothing else made sense. The walk up to the stage was a long one, it felt like thee grim reaper walked behind her. She was sure to die, if she knew she was going to be reaped, she would've lived the day differently. She would've visited the animal shelter and gotten some toast from her favorite place. She wouldn't have had a panic attack on her dirty kitchen floor or studied for a geometry test she wasn't going to be able to do. And then the thoughts of her mom came. She thought of everything her mom did to her, how she felt so unloved by her but at the same time wanted to be loved in a maternal way, she wanted to have a relationship with her. Tears started streaming down her face, she couldn't stop the flow of them. No matter how hard she tried. It was like she was grieving her life while she was alive, thinking about her impending doom. When she got to the stairs, she walked up them though her legs felt like they were being weighed down like mountains and her breathing was becoming more rapid. Not knowing what to do, Shunki walked over to the boys bowl and pulled out a card, gently opening it as he walked back to the microphone.
"Morisuke Yaku." He said, slightly clapping. A short man appeared from out of the crowd, there was a certain confidence as he walked. He didn't look scared, he looked like he was going to win. Hitoka looked like a mess, Morisuke looked like he had everything together. The 2 stood on each side of the microphone as Shunki had one last small speech about how good these tributes were going to do this year and how, surely, one of them would be a victor. The pair was then dragged into the building behind them and put in different rooms where loved ones could come visit them. Hitoka didn't know if her mom would visit her, so she waited. Her work was probably taking priority over her daughter again. She still waited though, drowning in her own thoughts as she was sobbing and curled up in a ball on her chair. And then, she heard a door open.
"Hitoka?" It was her mothers voice. It was softer than she had ever heard, which caused Hitoka to look up at her and they locked eyes. "My baby.." Her mom said, going in for the hug. Everything in Hitoka's body was telling her to push her mom away, to scream and yell at her, but she still craved the warmth that came from maternal love. So, she accepted the hug, melting into it as she sobbed. "I'm sorry I wasn't a better mother." Hitoka was shocked when she heard this, her mom actually felt.. bad. This caused her to sob harder, she wanted to say everything on her mind, to scream, to cry, to yell, but the lump in her throat blocked any words from being said. They stayed hugging until the peacekeepers came in and dragged her mom away, Hitoka collapsed onto the floor and was dragged to the train car by her arms. Oh, how she was going to miss her mother.
˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗
DISTRICT 10: 3 HOURS BEFORE THE REAPING
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Tadashi Yamaguchi cherished the normality of his life. How simple it was, being grateful that nothing too terrible had happened to him. The strangest thing about him was that his best friend, Kei Tsukishima, was a victor of the Hunger Games. He had won the year after his brother died during them, becoming the youngest ever Victor at 14. However, this put a wedge in their relationship. They had grown distant, too distant for Tadashi's liking. They used to tell each other everything, from their deep dark secrets to what they ate for breakfast that morning. But recently, Tadashi had begun finding it harder to even get Kei to look at him. He didn't know what he did, it had to have been something bad for his best friend of years to basically ignore him. Truthfully, Tadashi had romantic feelings for him. He had since they were 14 and Kei won the games, something about it was incredibly attractive to Tadashi, as morbid as that sounded. He laid in bed, daydreaming about Kei coming into his room and sweeping him off his feet and into the sunset where they lived happily ever after and got married and nothing bad ever happened to them. Ever.
But, that didn't happen, sadly. Tadashi sighed and got out of bed, sneaking out of his window. His dad was probably up and Tadashi didn't feel like facing him in that moment. They had never gotten a long, with Tadashi never fitting into his fathers masculine standards. His mom stopped them from arguing most of the time, but when they did argue, it was big and loud, like a ticking time bomb. One wrong thing would set them off, its just a matter of circumstance. Tadashi was going to Kei's house, he wanted to talk to him. He knew Kei often woke up from nightmares from his experience in the games as well as Akiteru's death. He wanted to be there for his best friend, so he was planning to confront him on their lack of communication recently. He got to his house around 10 minutes later, climbing up to his roof and knocking on his window. Kei opened it for him soon after and Tadashi climbed inside.
"Tadashi, what are you doing here?" He shuttered hearing his full name, usually Kei would call him Dashi as a nickname, but this time he didn't. Kei set on the edge of his bed facing away from the smaller boy, which caused Tadashi to feel even worse about this.
Tadashi gulped before speaking, "Tsukki, we need to talk." He said, walking over to him and sitting next to him.
"About what?" There was a coldness in his voice.
"Look, I've noticed you've been.. ignoring me as of late." Tadashi tried making eye contact with the other boy, but he just ended up looking away.
"You know I've been stressed."
"Yeah, but you can talk to me. You know that, right? Whatever's been bothering you, I would probably under-"
"You wouldn't." Tadashi was surprised at the cut off, Kei turned to face him, his eyes looked red and swollen from crying. "This isn't something you would understand. You haven't been in the games, you don't know what it's like to have to kill someone in order to live."
Tadashi, nodded. He understood what he meant, he couldn't understand. This didn't make his best friend ignoring him hurt any less, though. "Then try to make me understand instead of just shutting me out." Tadashi said sternly. "We've always told each other everything, it hurts me to not know what's been bothering my best friend." Kei shuddered at the last words. Best friends. That's all they would ever be, best friends.
"I don't have to tell you everything."
"You didn't have a problem doing it before! What changed?!"
"My brother died and I had to kill 5 people with my bare hands, that's what happened!" Kei snapped at him, slightly raising his voice. "I killed a man, Tadashi, and that really fucked with me!" They just stared at each other for a moment, each of them upset for different reasons but they had an understanding with each other. Tadashi nodded, getting up to leave. Kei realized what he did wrong and grabbed the other boys hand to prevent him from leaving. "Dashi, I want to talk to you. I really do, it's just.. hard right now." The other boy nodded, holding back tears.
"I'll see you after the reaping, Kei." And Tadashi was gone, just like that. On the walk back home, he had time to think. He thought about their relationship, if it would ever go back to the way it was before. He thought about what Kei had said, about how he would never understand what he had to go through. Maybe, if Tadashi could enter the games and come out a victor, he could finally understand what his best friend had gone through. But could he even kill a man if it came down to it? Would he be strong enough or would he cower away like always. As he climbed back into his room and back into his room. He paced around his floor, trying to come up with a solution for his dilemma. Was he even capable of winning the games? He didn't want Kei to suffer another loss, to not have anyone but his mom left.
His mom came in half an hour later and told him it was time for breakfast. Tadashi nodded, walking downstairs and sitting at the table across from his dad. He was a butcher and a traditional masculine man. That's why he and Tadashi never got a long, because he was too 'feminine.' Could winning the games finally prove to his dad that he was just as strong as him? Everything his mind was saying pointed to him volunteering for the games was a good thing. Though, Tadashi probably wouldn't win. He could barely stand up to his bullies from elementary school, let alone win a game that he had to kill at least one person minimum in order to win.
"Hey mom?" Tadashi was fiddling with his fingers, looking down at the table as his mom served him breakfast. A piece of bread and eggs.
"What up, baby?" His mom said, ruffling his hair.
He sighed, thinking about his next words carefully, "If I.. volunteered for the games. Would you be upset?"
His mom paused for a moment, looking at him. She cupped his face, gently stroking his cheek. "It depends on the reason. Why do you ask?"
He gulped, making eye contact with her. "I'm.. considering it."
She nodded, and walked away. "Can I ask why?"
"It's something personal.."
She sighed, "Tadashi, I pushed you out of me. There's nothing too personal between us."
His dad set the newspaper down, sipping his water. "You should do it, son. It'll turn you into a man." Tadashi froze after hearing his dads voice, his shoulders slightly tensed up.
"Thanks for the input, dad." Tadashi then got up and went to his room without touching his food. He heard his parents start to slightly argue before he went into his room and slammed the door, not caring. He collapsed onto his bed, today was not his day.
Tadashi laid there for about 5 minutes before getting up, deciding to get dressed for the reaping. He wore a dark blue button down dress shirt and khaki pants. It was his nicest outfit, nice clothes were hard to come by in his district. A lot of things were hard to come by, the most prominent being wheat. It was a miracle his mom had found it when she did, which made him remember his breakfast. He walked back downstairs, his dad nowhere to be seen. Tadashi didn't question this, he was glad he was gone. He sat down at the table and began to eat his food again, savoring every bite he took. He loved his mothers cooking, he loved the warmth it gave him, he loved her. Tadashi finished eating and walked over to the front door so he can leave and not be late to the reaping.
His mom hugged him before he left, "Goodbye, Tadashi." She kisses his forehead, "If you do volunteer, please don't just do it so you can make your father happy, okay?" Tadashi nodded, that wasn't the reason he planned to do it anyways. He wanted to fix his and Kei's relationship, and to him, this was the only way to do it. He would understand how Kei felt, if it was the last thing he did.
DISTRICT 10: REAPING
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Tadashi hated crowds. He hated being in a confined space, he hated the Hunger Games, he hated the capital, he hated everything about Panem. All he could think about as he stood there was that he would rather be anywhere else, especially because he had made up his mind and he was going to volunteer himself if he wasn't chosen. He looked around the crowd, there was nobody around him that looked familiar. He did, however, notice Kei sitting on the stage in the row of victors behind the microphone. That made him want to volunteer even more, the idea of sitting next to him on that stage in future Reapings, completely understanding what the other had gone through in the games, fixing their broken relationship. It also sounded so perfect, too perfect. Tadashi stood tall, he was normally nervous about the games, the idea of entering them used to make him sick to his stomach, but today he had accepted he was entering the games. There was no uncertainty about this. The districts escort walked out onto the stage, he had the same golden hair and piercings as always. He wore a gold, reflective suit and there was a long tail to the coat of the suit that dragged behind him while he walked. "Good morning everyone, and welcome to the Reaping of the 72nd annual hunger games." He winked after saying the last bit, and went on a little speech about how glorious of a country Panem was. Tadashi blocked out most of his speech, however, and disagreed with almost everything he said. Panem was the farthest thing from great and, at best, was a shit show.
"And now, to start the Reaping itself." He smiled, and walked over the girls bowl. "Ladies first, as always." His hand swished over the bowl in a menacing manor, he was trying to make them scared, and it was working. He walked back over to the microphone, there was a brief pause before he said her name. "Aoi Hamasaki." A girl no older than the age of 12 walked out of the crowd, she had jet black hair and tan skin. Tadashi recognized her, she always had kids around her when Tadashi saw her downtown. She had to watch them because her mom had died during childbirth with their most recent and her dad worked long hours in a slaughterhouse to support them. He wondered what would happen to them when she died, he wondered how long she would survive, he wondered what their dad would do for childcare while she was in the games. Tadashi sure did a lot of wondering, especially about people he didn't know.
The escort welcomed her on stage and walked back over to the microphone, "Now, for the male tribute." He walked over to the other bowl on stage and pulled a name out of the middle, Tadashi was nervous, he was going to enter the games even if his name wasn't on that slip of paper. The time it took for the escort to reach the other side of the stage, grab a piece of paper, open it, and walk back over felt like an eternity. When he finally read it, Tadashi felt a weight being lifted off his shoulders. "Tadashi Yamaguchi." He was glad he didn't have to volunteer, but still upset he couldn't make his reaping a spectacle like some of the others likely had been. He walked up to the stage with a slight confidence in his step, making eye contact with Kei on his way up there. He stood directly in front of him while their escort went on another small rant on how good the tributes would do before finally finishing with, "Happy Hunger Games everyone, may the odds be in these brave young tributes favor."
Tadashi was taken into a fancier room than he had ever seen where he could say his goodbyes to people. Kei was the first one who came to see him, they made eye contact for a moment while Kei closed the doors. Kei immediately went to hug him, but it took Tadashi a second to hug back.
"I'm coming with you to the capital, Aoi needs a mentor and I gave some bullshit excuse on why it should be me." He grabbed Tadashi by the shoulders while he said this, their eye contact becoming more than Tadashi could handle, so he broke down into tears.
"I'm sorry, Tsukki." He cried into the taller boys chest, "I was going to volunteer anyways because I thought I could handle it. I thought I could handle the games, I thought I would be strong enough to win them, but I don't think I can. I don't think I'll be able to kill a man, I don't think I'll ever be able to understand how you feel." He just continued sobbing, Kei doing his best to comfort him. Kei couldn't lose anyone else and Tadashi sure as hell wasn't going to be the next.
"Dashi, look at me." They made eye contact again, tears flowing down Tadashi's cheeks. "I will make sure you're ready for the games, if it's the last thing I do." Tadashi nodded, the tension filled up the room as they hugged until the peacekeepers came to drag Kei away. Nobody else was able to come see Tadashi, their escort had arrived late so they were behind schedule. Tadashi wished he could see his mom's face and feel her warmth one last time, he wished he could've said goodbye and told her one last "I love you." but he couldn't. The games were fair to nobody, not to the careers of districts 1, 2, and 4 to the more poor districts like, where Tadashi just so happened to be from.