Expulse // Reaping
“Lars! Lars, wait up!”
Hilarian turned around to see Daesie, smiling and breathing heavy. The peacekeepers herding the group of juvenile delinquents through the forest path took little notice of her, simply giving Hilarian a hard look and telling them to keep walking.
“Daesie, what are you doing here?” He touched her arm and a P.K. barked at him, so they walked side by side, letting their fingers brush where it seemed natural. They were about halfway to the town center, where the reaping would take place. Hilarian noticed something altered in Daesie’s expression that day so kept his eyes on her until his foot hit a rock, almost hurling him to the dirt.
“My god, you tripped? There’s literally nothing but flat ground here.” She pulled him up from the ground in a smooth motions, easily practiced from late nights when it took two sets of legs to stand.
This put them closer together than they were before, their faces inches from each other as people walked around them. Daesie smirked at him, and he leaned in, so close, only to have her turn around and keep walking. A couple other inmates snickered, making comments about how whipped he was. Daesie sashayed ahead, never even looking back to see if he was catching up to her. Which he was. Of course he was.
“I hate you.” He hissed in her ear. She tsked, grabbed his hand and put it on her waist so his arm was behind her, pulling her in. The P.K.s yelled at some boy who snuck food out of the cafeteria, their attention called elsewhere.
“Aw, Lars. You love me.” She said this with her usual teasing tone, but there was something real lurking behind it, in the way she leaned into him for support. Hilarian could always tell when something was bothering her.
“Something’s wrong.” A fact, not a question. Something was wrong. It was just his job to find out what. “Is it the orphanage, or another P.K.?.” He grit his teeth. “Please tell me it’s not another P.K.”
“Jesus, no. It’s just... She motioned around them, to their town in migration. “The reaping is today. I have a bad feeling about it.”
“Everyone does, Daesie, 23 kids are riding a high-powered train to their death today.”
“No, I mean about you. I had a dream last night, a nightmare, really. It was you. Your name was picked out of this huge stupid glass bowl, but instead of making a big announcement when you got up there, there wasn’t any fanfare or shit like that. They just shot you, Lars. Right in the head. And then everybody left, went back to their business, and when I got to the stage... You were gone.”
Hilarian stared down at her, having little idea of what to say. Nightmare haunted him time and time again, but when had the events taken place? Hilarian’s hands stayed tightly on his wrists, his mother stayed tightly in her grave and Daesie hadn’t been abducted by ravens last time he checked. So in the end, he himself found little meaning in his dreams, but it was scaring Daesie. He thought before he spoke. “Daesie, I don’t think that’s going to happen today. Do you know the population of 12? It’s so unlikely-“
“I know the statistics, okay? I just have this.... This sixth sense in me.”
“What’s your sixth sense?”
“Knowing when you’re going to get screwed over by life again.”
“Subtle.”
“I’m completely serious about this.” She turned to stand in front of him, blocking his way. Her eyes pleaded with him. “Believe me?” He nodded hesitantly. “Good enough. Here, I made you this.” She pressed a piece of cloth into Hilarian’s hand.
“What is it?”
“Don’t read it yet. I want it to stay with you.”
“What about when I get out of the town square in one piece?”
She grinned and brushed his hair from his face. “We’ll read it together.”
“You’re getting sentimental. You must really be feeling bad.”
“Oh, shut up.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
A whole new set of P.K.s showed up, and Daesie took this as a chance to sneak away unseen. She pressed a kiss to his palm and was gone. He looked at the place where she stood, debating wether or not to read it until a voice like a whip snapping told him to fall back in line. He decided against it, and he put it in his pocket. Every time it brushed his leg he thought of her. Her dark hair twirling as she left, the crumpled space between her eyebrows when she was worried, the terrified look on her face.
He wondered if she was right.
Fortunately, he didn’t have much time to think about it at they arrived at the newly clean and sparkly town center. It was almost unrecognizable, with silver streamers and a huge television screen set up that was bigger than his jail cell. The people around him, now both prisoner and civilian, stared up at the decorations and electronics, the children smiling at their ashen-faced parents. If something is beautiful, they knew; District 12 has a way to see it destroyed.
They were grouped loosely into gender then ages. Hilarian got a glimpse of where Daesie was standing, among the younger girls of her home, one on either hand and a third on her shoulders, sucking her thumb. She didn’t see him, but that was alright. He liked the way Daesie looked when she didn’t know he was watching. Defiant, reserved, but a softness was there too, one he could pull out of her only with time. He moved onwards, too close to the stage for comfort.
The Mayor was standing on the platform, and it looked like he was being less of a bitch today, which was a nice change. He had only screamed at two servants, and was smoothing back his hair with pursed lips. A Capitol copy-cat. The perfect person to lead their fair city.
The crowd was beginning to settle down. The mayor was wringing his hands. Probably more concerned about his wig falling off than anything else, honestly. “Welcome-“ The microphone screeched, causing protest in the crowd. “Wel-“ A P.K. ran up to help him while the whole population of 12 laughed at his expense. “Alright, here we go, welcome- to the first annual Hunger Games!”
The screen flashed bright with Panem’s flag and the audience made little noise, mostly observing this truly foreign piece of technology. Highly realistic and enormous, the screen made a boy next to him ask if his friend how this existed in the Capitol and his grandmother still churns her butter. “If I could have everyone’s attention...” Another screech and more laughter. “I’m picking the names now!” He yelled, spiting on the audience below. “Pipe down!”
The communal joy was suddenly gone, replaced a with dead quiet. The change was so quick it felt as though the temperature had dropped. Mothers held onto their children. A girl somewhere near the middle let out a small sob and was shushed by those around her.
“Ladies first.”
Another sob, but from somewhere else now.
“District 12 tribute is...” Hilarian suddenly felt his heart jump to his throat. What if the gods had finally found him guilty and made Daesie’s name come out of that glass ball? Why hadn’t he thought of that before? He cursed himself and crossed his fingers. The slip of paper was clutched in the Mayor’s finger and he opened it. A whole city held it’s breath.
“Tobias Ether!”
Little sound was made, flushed out by the relief that Daesie would be safe from the games for a year. Two more and she’d be out. He vaguely recognized the girl’s name as she took her place on stage, but didn’t put too much thought into it. She’d be dead soon anyway.
“And for the boys!” More crying, gasping. Less oxygen. Hilarian peered over the crowd to find Daesie. She was looking directly at him, eyes wide. He saw her, and she saw him. He smiled, and a tear rolled down her cheek.
“Hilarian Delacroix!”
...
Wait. Did he- Was that his name? Was he just called? His thoughts were jumbled for roughly two second before he leapt from his spot, pushing people over that were in his path.
Daesie had the same idea, putting her sisters aside and running. They met in the middle, crashing into each other. Everything felt like fire around him, temperature blinding hot as shock and pain mixing oddly with the pleasure he felt when Daesie was near. They didn’t have time, he knew that, but he kissed her hard anyway, wanting his last breath would be one of hers. She was clutching him, fingernails digging into his neck and shoulders, and they’d never been this close is broad daylight before. Little attention was paid to their surroundings until they were pulled off each other by peacekeepers.
Hilarian fought them, making it out for a few seconds only to be dragged back in. Their grips were cold and tough, bruising his wrists as they were shoved in to handcuffs.
Daesie was deadly calm, giving him a strange smile, only half her mouth. She was smiling as P.K.s pulled her away. She was smiling like he was already dead.
“I’m coming back!” He yelled in vain as uproar began around him. “Daesie, I’m coming back, I swear!”
He got one last glance at her, his miraculous Daesie. She didn’t look like she believed him.
