Two Sides of a Coin

Chapter 1:

"AARRGGHH!!" I shriek as my axe slices through the cotton, misshapen dummy hanging from the roof of our makeshift training centre - actually a small building in our backyard. Victors Village has its advantages, as does being the daughter of a Victor. Without that I could not train. Without that I would be slaving away in the hot fields all day until it is too dark to see. Not a choice I would make willingly, but I don't have to. Being one of the richest people in our District, I can do nothing all day, and it won't affect my family in the least.

My mother, Praise McCarthy sighs irritably, "I do wish you wouldn't insist on destroying the equipment but wishes don't always come true."

I smile, and hang the blunt axe gently on the wall, "Oh, you know me mother, and old habits die hard - especially at the hands of me!"

"Addie!" My sister McKayla gracefully floats into the room, followed by husband Zach Bromine. Although our Fathers status has earned us high citizenship, McKayla married out of love. Being the heir to Mayor Bromine of District 9 makes you a popular suitor, but McKayla was the only one able to capture his heart. At one stage she hated him for his money, but now he makes her happy.

He better keep it that way, for his sake.

"Hey, Kayla. What to help?" My sister is one of those people who will cry if a cat gets stuck up a tree, but she is also deadly.Our parents made sure we would be prepared if we were reaped, and odds were stacked against us. Children and relatives of past Victors have been in the arena before, and more often than not they don't come back. It's another way to show that nobody can protect us, and vice versa.

Luckily for her, though, McKayla was spared. She faced her last reaping two years ago, surprising all of us. Undoubtably being the most beautiful person in the District, we assumed she would be the one chosen - beauty plays well with the Capitol audience.

Now, all the attention is fixated on me, clouds of worry floating around my well-being in arena-shaped patterns.

"Axe, bow, knives or sword?" I ask. I am adequately competent with any, but my specialty weapons are the axe and knives. One long range and one short range.

McKayla deliberates for a few seconds.

"Bow," she says eventually. Once it was evident which weapons we preferred, our parents discarded the others, instead concentrating on perfecting our chosen weapon. It worked. We trained with each other's choice as well, and are now skilled in four separate ways. Although we still prefer to fight with our original weapons.

We select the hardest option on our outdated simulation, and raise our bows, back to back. We have always worked as a team, me and her, and we know how this works. I've been practicing for 11 years, after all.

Flickering holograms spring to life, wielding weapons they hurl at us. We both leap out of the way of a throwing knife, and it hits a 'person ' behind us. I shoot two holograms easily, before I spy an arrow soaring over my head, and making contact with something that explodes into a million flesh coloured fragments. Damn. Missed that one.

We get carried away, before the power dies out, and and I scan the room for the source of the problem. The rest of the training room is shrouded in darkness. Power cuts are a common thing in 9, what with us being so far away from District 5. Plus, the lines have to get through the 20-meter-high, 5-meter-wide iron wall that surrounds the entire perimeter of the District. There used to be an electrified fence, before half the population tried to escape. Like I said, power cuts.

"Nice," my mother comments, "Adelaide, remember to cover all bases. You almost got hit."

I nod, and begin to light candles around the room, placed for these occasions.

"Sword fight?" I ask, wiping away a trickle of sweat.

"Erm..not right away. I need to talk to Mother about....something," McKayla finishes lamely. I raise an eyebrow, and my mother grabs McKayla's arm, and leads her out of the door. Zach hovers uncertainly for a few seconds, before following them.

As I lock the door to the training centre, and flick the switch that makes the building appear to be a heap of rubble and debris, I grow even more suspicious.

Using my 'Silent Assassin' training, I follow the footprints make in crumpled, yellow grass by my mother's heels. The trail leads around to the side of the house, and I stop in my tacks as I hear a whispered conversation.

This is obviously used as a regular meeting point, as there are dozens of footprints walking every which way. A stream of water splashes nearby, drowning out most of the hissed words. But I catch a few snatches as one house raises.

"No! McKayla, you can't honestly think.... not ready.... fine, if you insist....the reaping.....21st September, no later."

I hurry away as the conversation breaks off. Today is the 31st August, meaning there are 21 days until the date my mother mentioned....but what happens then?

Nothing, is the answer. The Games are usually over by that time, unless they decide to drag out the interviews longer than normal. Between now and then, I must find out what my family is plotting.

******

This year will be my last reaping. Consequently, I have some serious considering to do. If someone else is reaped, what else do I have to look forward to? When my father dies, we will have to move to one of the many shacks that take up half of our District. Me and my mother will, anyway. McKayla will move in with Zach and his family. Not that I blame her; I would do the same if our situations were reversed.

Without my father's reassurance of winnings, we will have to work the tough hours in the grain fields all day. Our diet will be poor, stale bread and unwanted wheat our only sustenance - and that's only if we meet our monthly quota. My life will be as miserable as everyone else's.

My only other option is if I am reaped or I volunteer. My 11 years of constant training and plenty of food has given me an athletic body, more so than some Careers. I have a slim frame, despite the luxury of rich foods, which could give me a game plan. My competitors wouldn't expect somebody from a poor District like mine to be a threat. But it is not in my nature to be shy or innocent, to appear weak or frail. In that respect, I am the complete opposite to my sister.

I surely have a good chance of winning. The Careers, from Districts 1, 2 and 4, would be my main and hopefully only adversaries, unless other tributes have had secret training too.

This is all assuming I volunteer. The night before the reaping, I stay wide awake almost all night, weighing up my options. I finally sway to the most desirable, and wake up in the morning wondering if I will survive the weeks to come.

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So, this was the first chapter in Adelaide's POV. Please comment constructive criticism, likes, dislikes etc...

And voting-I haven't mentioned it before (I think!), but it takes two seconds to press a button. It would be nice to know my work is appreciated.

I suspect the next Chapter will be up within the next 3 days. I try my hardest to post a such as I can, but I have to edit the whole story, write it out, type it out and fit that around my school work and home life. I apologize if I don't update for a few days, but life is getting in my way.

- Izzie :)