Power to the People: The Thirty-ninth Hunger Games

Chapter 21

Ree Morning

No matter where I went, it felt like I was in the way. I would have stuck close to my mentor, but Lena was a little scary. I didn't know what to say to her and she seemed preoccupied with her strange thoughts. I kept an eye on her, though, because I was afraid she was going to fall out a window or something.

It was the night before training began, and I had no idea what to do. I couldn't learn anything in the time I had. I certainly couldn't learn enough to stay alive. I planned to try, of course, but that's all I could do: try. I dreaded every moment that passed and wished I could run away. I'd run into the city and no one would ever find me. I would have preferred to starve in an alleyway than go into the Games.

Every floor had its own lounge for the different Districts, but there was a general one below all of them. Anyone could go there, but most of us never did. Most Tributes stayed on their own floors or with their allies, if they weren't exploring the building. When I went into the lounge, I was the only one there. I was hoping to just be with someone, even if I didn't talk to them. I started thinking about the Games and the footage I'd seen in the past. It wasn't long before I started crying. I curled up beside one of the couches and tried to disappear into its fabric.

"Are you okay?" someone asked. I uncurled a little and saw it was Juniper, the girl from Seven. She was really pretty, like a princess. She was a lot older than I was and really tall. She seemed nice from what I'd seen. Sometimes she laughed, even though we were about to go into the Games.

I was glad she was there, but I didn't say anything. I wanted her to stay, but I didn't want to make her deal with my problems. She knelt down next to me and sat back against the couch.

"I bet you're scared," she said. It wasn't mean, though. She sounded understanding. "I am too."

"You?" I asked. Tributes like me and Alinta were small, but Juniper was big. She could take care of herself.

"It's going to be scary in there by myself. I wish I had someone with me," she said. I knew what she meant, but I was ashamed to ally with anyone. I didn't want to drag anyone down with me.

"Maybe you could help me," Juniper said. "Would you stay with me a while? It won't be so scary with someone else." That would be different. If I was helping someone and not getting in the way, it would be okay to be an ally. It probably wouldn't last long. Juniper was strong enough to win by herself. After a few days I'd leave so she could go faster.

"Okay," I said. "Can we just stay here a while?" I felt safer already, but it was even better scrunched behind the couch with my new ally.

Juniper Brett

I always hated the Games more than anything else in the world. I wanted to save life, and the Games destroyed it. Now that I was stuck in them, I was determined to make something good come of them. If I won, I could use my riches to open hospitals all over Panem for people who couldn't afford Capitol care. And if I didn't win, I could help Ree. In the meantime, helping Ree was my first priority. As soon as I saw her alone and scared, I knew I had to help. That's what the Games were to me: scared little children who should have been playing at home. They were taking Ree's childhood away from her, and I was determined to help her keep as much as she could.

That's how we wound up touring the stores in the Games center. We had set out with the intent to visit every candy store and try something from every one. We didn't have any actual money, but the storekeepers let us sample whatever we wanted. It was good for business to tell people two of the Tributes liked your candy. So far we'd tried thick fudge, powdery fruit-flavored candy, stringy candy that came in a braid, crystallized sugar as hard as a rock, and so much more. If I ever did build all those hospitals, I'd be my own first patient with a dozen cavities.

"What's a roe-cher?" Ree asked as she looked at a bunch of round chocolates with little crunchy things in them. I looked at the label.

"I think that's a foreign word. It's probably roe-shay. Hazelnut rochers," I said. Hazelnuts... Hazelnuts had been my favorite food since I first had one back when I was a toddler. They were the best nuts in the world. They were like a candy all by themselves. Chocolate-covered hazelnuts had to be the best thing in the world. I picked one out and popped it into my mouth.

It was the most delicious thing in the world. The chocolate covered a thin, crispy shell that gave way to a velvety cream that was a mix of more chocolate and nuttiness. In the very center of the ballw as a plain, perfect hazeulnut. It was crunchy and smooth and sweet all at the same time. I could have eaten nothing but those chocolates for the rest of my life.

Then I knew the Games were worth it. It was worth it to be with Ree and be able to help just one Tribute out of all of us stuck in this thing. If I did win, it would be worth it to help so many more people so they wouldn't have to get hurt like we did. And finally, it was worth it for hazelnut rochers.

Silver and Gold works, and now I don't have to think of a name. Thanks!