Free To Be You And Me

Silence

Today was the day everyone had been waiting for.

Well, mostly everyone. Being the mayor's son, the Games were only a necessity and Castiel was completely indifferent to it. He would sit in front of the television with his siblings, listening to them squabble over who they thought would win.

By that, he meant he would sit on the chair farthest away from everyone else while Gabriel poked and prodded Michael and Balthazar, often making bets on who would win. Gabriel was extremely taken by the Games, rooting for some players and making obscene gestures at others through the screen as though they could possibly know what he was doing or saying.

Michael, the oldest, would only interfere when Gabriel got too rambunctious. Balthazar would join in when Gabriel riled him up, and on more than one occasion, Castiel would have to warn them and tell them to act in a more respectful manner, which would only result in more obscene hand gestures.

Today was the Reaping. It wasn't as bad as it sounded, not in his personal opinion. District 1 was the richest of the districts, famous for their luxurious items and close relationship with the Capitol. Their district took pride in the Games, and most children of acceptable strength and morale were trained to enter. They never once had a reaping in Castiel's short lifetime, 17 years to be exact, in which there were no volunteers. If a child wasn't trained, it didn't matter whether or not they were Reaped, because someone always volunteered. That was just how it went.

Of course, never before has anyone in the mayor's family been Reaped, either. They were the richest family in the richest district, and so the Hunger Games were merely an annual sport. A very, very important sport, but nothing the mayor's family would participate in except to put a singular mandatory name in with the others.

Currently, his family, which consisted of his brothers, his father, and himself, was crowded in with every other person in the district. Men in white uniforms stood guard, the lights beaming down on their suits and making them look almost holy. They had no real purpose, as nobody caused any actual trouble. The large space in the very center of the district was filled to the brim with people, all sharing an intense energy of anticipation.

The crowd was split by gender down the middle, which didn't matter much to Castiel, because his family only consisted of males. He didn't search the sea of faces for anybody he recognised, he never did and never had to. Truth be told, Castiel didn't socialise outside of the family boundaries. Being the mayor's son, he was homeschooled, and never made an attempt to make friends. He simply wasn't interested. He spent most of his time reading, whether it was inside or in his yard or in the street or in the park. If he wasn't reading, he was doing schoolwork, or following his father's orders.

His father, being the mayor of District 1, wasn't home a lot, as he spent his days with higher ups, doing district business, which Castiel hoped one day to become involved in.

Today would be a good day to read outside. The sky was a light gray, with the sun's rays burning through the clouds to cast her warm light upon their little world. He could have sat on a park bench and read of old poets, a subject he had just now decided to look into, if it weren't for the special occasion.

In front of the crowd was a very large mobile stage, with two sets of steps leading up to it on either side. Nothing could be heard over the talking, not the brightly coloured birds or the ridiculously tall purple heels that trotted their way onstage. A finger tapped a microphone, and a small cough blasted through the speakers. Everything went quiet.

The woman on stage would have been short if it weren't for her heels. Her face was a snowy white, and her lips matched the colour of her pointy, dangerous shoes.

The speech was the same, as was the video created by the Capitol, bringing the same cheers and hollers from the crowd. Castiel stood patiently through it all, wondering if he would be home early enough to finish his book. It was a biography on Edgar Allan Poe.

The first girl to be picked was a small one who couldn't have been older than 14. Before she could even move from her spot, a loud volunteer was shouted proudly into the air. The shout belonged to that of a fit blonde girl, with strong looking arms and small eyes.

Next came the boys.

The woman's slender fingers dipped gracefully into the overflowing amount of folded up name slips. As she fished, the suspension in the air thickened and thickened, making his fingers twitch in impatience.

She clutched one delicate looking piece, holding it above her head slightly. Squinting her eyes, she opened her mouth to speak. Thank goodness, this would be over soon.

"Castiel Novak."

Her voice sprang to his ears. His squirming insides froze.

He froze.

No, this couldn't be. His name was only in there once, while others submitted into the Games close to a hundred times.

"I-" a suggested volunteer rose from the back of the crowd which suddenly looked like a vicious mob. The voice did not finish their statement. Every single eye bore through him. He did not move.

Why was nobody volunteering?

Silence hung in the air like a dirty wet rag, squeezing his chest and his feet and his legs and his fingers.

"... Castiel Novak." It sounded more like a screech than a call.

Someone pushed him gently from behind, and he didn't look around to see who it was.

People moved out of the way to make a clear path for him, for Castiel Novak, straight towards that suddenly menacing platform.

The push turned into a shove, and he stumbled through the crowd, blood draining from his face with each step. His legs felt weak.

He was the mayor's son. The only tutoring he's had was in mathematics and science. This wasn't right.

A hand that felt more like a claw rested firmly on his shoulder. Castiel stared through the jumble of people, searching their faces for the very first time, trying to find some solace, some comfort.

Nobody said a word.

(And that was chapter 1! Please be sure to leave comments or reviews on what you'd like to see, what you liked, what you didn't like, etc. This is my first fic, so I'm sorry if it's a little shakey! The story won't only be told through Castiel's POV, so next chapter will be a different Reaping. Very, very different.

I'm really excited and I hope you like this!)