24 Years, 24 Tributes

Chapter 5

Sarla Mondins POV:

I tried to stand still as Daniel finished braiding my hair. He may be a foot taller than me and the bravest boy I know, but with me he's a teddy bear. Since Mom and Dad never do anything with us, Daniel pretty much took over. He's always checking on me at school and making sure I get my homework done. He won't even let me walk home alone.

"Goodbye, Dad!" I called as we left. Mom was at work.

Daniel took my hand as we walked. He only left when we separated into our age groups, and I could see him peeking over at me every few minutes.

I stood with some of my friends and we whispered to each other as Ambrosia Poppet walked onstage. She was wearing a huge ball gown with rainbow stripes and her face was painted to match. She certainly was a sight to see.

She held a slip of paper between two fingers and read it.

"Sarla Mondins!"

I stood in shock. My friends gasped and recoiled.

No... I don't want to die. No I want to go home.

I started crying and shuffled toward the stage. I looked at Daniel in terror. He was completely calm and stared straight ahead.

I stood at the edge of the stage right in front of Daniel and clenched my hands around the waist of my dress, staring at my feet. I wanted to run to Daniel and bury myself in his arms.

Ambrosia called another name. A boy stood next to me on stage.

"Are there any volunteers?" Ambrosia asked.

"I volunteer," Daniel said calmly.

I looked up in shock. He was walking placidly to the stage.

Daniel? I don't want you to die too, I thought. I started crying harder.

Daniel reached the stage, and I ran to him. I grabbed him as tight as I could and sobbed into his chest. He wrapped one arm around me and stroked my hair with the other.

"It's all right, Sarla. It's gonna be okay," he said.

But I knew it wasn't.

Daniel Mondins POV

I tried not to shake as I brushed my sister's hair. She wanted to look pretty for the Reaping. She'd asked our mother, but she said she had a memo to write. So there I was, braiding Sarla's hair like a boss.

I could have told her Mom wouldn't do it. If she wasn't at work or "networking" with her friends, she was harassing the servants or drinking with my dad. I don't know why they bothered to have children. Sometimes I thought they forgot they had us at all.

Sarla called out a goodbye as we walked out the door. I didn't bother. I knew they wouldn't answer, and they didn't.

I gripped her hand tight as we walked toward the Reaping center. This was the one day of the year I couldn't protect her, and I hated it. I could pack her lunch for school and watch to make sure her friends didn't bully her, but I couldn't take her name out of that bowl.

I watched Sarla until she found her friends and stood with them. I liked to see her giggle and whisper with the other girls. I didn't have many friends. Some of the kids thought I was a rich snob. The others thought I didn't want to hang out with them. The first group was wrong. The second wasn't.

I focused my gaze on Ambrosia as she held a slip of paper up to the light. She opened it.

"Sarla Mondins!"

I felt nothing. My body relaxed and I knew exactly what to do.

She reached into the other bowl and called a name. I wasn't listening. A boy walked onto the stage, so it must not have been mine. Sarla stood in front of me and softly cried.

"Do we have any volunteers?" she asked.

"I volunteer," I said immediately. I walked up on the stage and stood next to Sarla. She looked at me with terror and ran into my arms.

There was no need to make a big fuss about it. I was just doing my job. I was her brother.

Ambrosia announced us as we were still hugging.

Backstage, the Peacekeepers let us sit in the same room. I held Sarla and she snuggled into me.

Mom and Dad came in. Dad was wearing golf cleats, and I saw him wave away a caddy.

"Sorry this had to happen, kids," Dad said.

Sarla looked at Mom expectantly, and a tear streaked her cheeks.

"I'm sure you'll both be fine," Mom said. "You're Mondins. Oh, you two need a token." She fumbled around in her pocket and handed something to Sarla. She handed another one to me.

It was a gold coin.

Wow, thanks. Maybe I can buy the Hunger Games, I thought.

"It seems appropriate," Mom said.

Dad checked his watch.

"Woah, I gotta get going! Murray's not going to beat me this time! See ya, squirts," he said.

Mom patted us both on the shoulder and followed him.

Sarla looked at the coin in her hand. She turned back to me.

"Forget them. I'll take care of you. I'll take care of you forever," I said.

Author's note:

I guess there are a lot of tributes with missing relatives, aren't there? The user who sent in Dane didn't say anything about his mother getting eaten by a shark, though. I added that part myself. There wasn't much in his profile, so I got creative.