The Untold Story of District 10

I wake up to the sound of my mother screaming.
I throw off my covers and bullet from my bed into my mother’s room. She is having an anxiety attack again.
My brother, Pacey, was reaped last year for the 73rd Hunger Games. He was sixteen years old. He died from dehydration a week into the games. Our family was devastated. I didn’t talk to anyone for three months. My mother didn’t leave the house for a while. My dad coped a bit, then “shook it off”. I can tell he still misses him horribly. In all honesty, we all do. A day doesn't go by without me thinking about him. At least once a month, I just spend a day crying and screaming in the middle of a field on our family's farm. It releases the pain and numbness from my body.
Ever since that dreadful day last year, my mother has panic attacks and she worries I’m going to end up like Pacey. I’m fifteen and I haven’t been reaped yet. I’m planning to stay that way. I will not put my family through that. Ever.
“Mom, it’s okay. I’m here, Mom.” I try to sooth her as I rub her back. “Take deep breaths and count to ten, Mom.”
I've noticed it helps a lot when I call her "mom" when she's panicking. I think it reminds her that she still has a child that she calls her own.
Her breathing slows only slightly. “Good morning Lilianne. I’m terribly sorry. It’s just that you’re my only little girl and I don’t want to lose you to the them.” She spits when she says "them."
She's referring to the Capitol, our government. The source to all of our problems and agony.
“Of course, Mom. I completely understand.” I say softly.
My name is Lilianne Dubay. I am from District 10 in Panem. I live on a small farm with my parents and raise cows, chickens, pigs, and horses. District 10 is the Livestock District.
Panem lies in the ruins of this place once called North America. Due to the multiple disasters that occurred, it was destroyed, but the people who survived built this place called Panem. There are 12 Districts and the Capitol. There used to be 13 Districts, but 13 revolted against the Capitol. The rest of us followed. One through 12 were defeated; 13 was completely obliterated. Those days are known as the Dark Days. As punishment and a reminder to never revolt again, the Capitol has the Annual Hunger Games.
The Hunger Games are brutal and barbaric. Twenty four children from twelve to eighteen are chosen to go into the games; one girl and one boy from each district. Where the chosen children (once reaped are called tributes) are sent to fight is called the arena. It can be anything from a frozen tundra to a boiling desert. Those kids fight to the death on live television. It’s all about survival and sanity. Twenty four go in; one comes out.
This year, my name is in the pool four times. If your family is starving, you can sign up for a tesserae. Each tesserae is worth a year of grain and oil for one person. The catch is your name is put into the pool more times. So this year, if my family was starving, my name would be in there twelve times. Two other family members and me. Three people times four name slips because of my age equals twelve slips in the pool.
I focus on not hearing my name at the reaping. Visualization is the key.
My father used to tell me a story when I was a child that he made President Snow angry when he was a young man. He told me that they were friends when my father was in his twenties and when the president was in his thirties. Yeah, my dad is from the Capitol. He moved here after Snow took office. A few months before the inauguration of Snow, my father talked about starting another uprising against the Games. Snow was upset with this idea, since his father was the president of the nation at the time. He ended their friendship right then and there and arrested my father. He was imprisoned for seven months. He escaped and changed his name once he moved to District 10, where he met my mother.
He believes that Snow found out where he fled to and had the reaping rigged to pull Pacey's name. I worry that one child sacrificed isn't enough for Snow. I'm very worried that he will punish my parents by rigging it to be me this year.
And that scares me more than anything else.
“Come now, Lilianne. You must get ready for the reaping.” My mother says. She gets up to heat some water for my bath.
I go find my best dress. You must dress well for the reaping. I pick the same dress I wore to last year’s reaping. It’s light purple with matching shoes. I lay it out on the bed and go get into my bath.
Since I am a farm girl and my family isn’t all that rich, I only bathe once a week to save water. District 10 isn't the poorest District (that's 12), but it will never compare to the Capitol or the first few Districts.
I scrub the grime and the sweat off. I use a scrub brush to wash under my nails and my skin. It's even a gift to wash my hair! I wash it every other time I bathe, which disgusts me, but you do what you have to do.
I dry off and my mother lets my hair air dry for a while and then she towel dries it. She combs through it and then puts it up in a bun.
I change into my dress and my shoes.
“You look so beautiful.” My mother says. My mother wears a simple sky blue dress and small shoes.
My father walks in with his best clothes on. No boots or mud anywhere. "Don't you look all tidy and girly, Lilianne!"
I glare at him. I'm not much of a girly girl. I work on a farm. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty.
“We should be leaving now. We shouldn't be late on a day like today." My father says.

We walk down to our town square. I run into my boyfriend, Gage.
Gage is a simple sixteen year old boy. He has dark brown hair and these beautiful blue eyes. And his smile could make any girl weak at her knees. He’s sympathetic, smart, talented, brave, strong, tall, and very handsome. All the girls in school have their eye on him, but he only has his eye on one girl; me. I met him last year. We had this friendly banter thing going back and forth for about three months and then finally he asked me on a date. We’ve been together ever since.
His family owns a farm too. Much bigger and wealthier than mine though. It doesn’t seem to bother him so it doesn’t bother me either.
“You look amazing.” Gage says with a smile.
“And so do you.” I reply as I look at his mudless clothes.
Everyone is District 10 has mud on their clothes, no matter where you go in the District.
He takes my hand and walks over to registration with me. The line is long; full of anxious twelve to eighteen year olds.
“It’s not going to happen to you, Lili." Gage says. "They can't do that to your family. They just can't take you and your brother."
“There’s no law against it, Gage.” I sigh.
“Well, it’s not going to happen and I will make sure of it. I can’t lose you to them.” He says sternly.
“It may or it may not happen. We just have to take it as it comes.” I say calmly.
We finally make it to the front of the line.
“Name?” A Peacekeeper asks flatly.
“Lilianne Dubay.” I answer just as flat.
He looks at a list, writes something down, and points to a female Peacekeeper. I go to her and she snaps a bracelet on my wrist. It has my name on it; last then first.
I wait for Gage and he gives me a long hug.
He whispers in my ear, “It’s going to be fine. If you’re picked, I’ll volunteer as the male tribute to go with you.”
I whisper back, “Let’s say by the slim chance we make to the final two. What happens then?”
“Kill me. You have so much more of a chance than I do.”
“No!” I cry.
“If you’re picked, I’m going with you, Lilianne, whether you like it or not.” He smiles at me and goes with the other boys.

I line up with the fifteen year old girls which are around the middle of the group. We line up by age. Older in the front, youngest in the back.
At exactly two, the reaping begins. Our mayor and his wife, our escort, our mentor, and some Peacekeepers are on stage.
To start off, the mayor reads out all of the past victors in the Hunger Games. We have seven. Five are dead, one is dying, and the other is a middle aged woman named Liza. She is very proper and strict. Mitch is our escort from the Capitol.
“Good afternoon and happy Hunger Games!” Mitch says excitedly.
Mitch is a little creepy. He has light green skin and he’s wearing a forest green suit with a matching hat and shoes. The Capitol has very strange outfits and skin tones. For the life of me, I will never understand why someone would wear those clothes or dye their skin.
“For a change in plays, we are going to pick the male tribute first.” Mitch announces.
Gage looks back at me with worry. Since male is going first, there’s no way he can volunteer for the boy tribute if I get picked. I give him a reassuring smile.
It's like Snow planned it like this. It's like he overheard the conversation I just had with Gage. I bet you he did.
Mitch reaches into the left glass bowl and pulls out a name.
“Collin Gaspar!” Mitch reads.
An eighteen year old boy mopes out of the crowd. He’s about Gage’s height. He goes up to the stage and looks down at the possible tributes and then to the back of the crowd. It must be his family out there.
I notice the way he walked onto the stage. He has a limp. His left foot is crippled. No one volunteers for him when Mitch asks. I feel awful. Someone with a disability shouldn't have to go in. I guess that's the way it is. These Games have to stop. They're torture. The Capitol is just a bunch of murderers.
“Ladies next!” Mitch says, still way too excitedly.
But he isn't going to his certain death. The Capitol is safe; they will always be safe.
I hold my breath, picturing anyone's name but mine.
His hand goes into the bowl and he digs into the paper then picks one out and unfolds the name.
It’s Lilianne Dubay.