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She Reaches In, Digs Her Hand Deep Into The Ball, And Pulls Out A Slip Of Paper. The Crowd Draws In A Collective Breath, And Then You Can Hear A Pin Drop, And I'm Feeling Nauseous And So Desperately Hoping That It's Not Me, That It's Not Me, That It's Not Me. Effie Trinket Crosses Back To The Podium, Smoothes The Slip Of Paper, And Reads Out The Name In A Clear Voice. And It's Not Me. It's Primrose Everdeen.

-Suzanne Collins

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She Reaches In, Digs

Suzanne Collins

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She Reaches In, Digs Her Hand Deep Into The Ball, And Pulls Out A Slip Of Paper. The Crowd Draws In A Collective Breath, And Then You Can Hear A Pin Drop, And I'm Feeling Nauseous And So Desperately Hoping That It's Not Me, That It's Not Me, That It's Not Me. Effie Trinket Crosses Back To The Podium, Smoothes The Slip Of Paper, And Reads Out The Name In A Clear Voice. And It's Not Me. It's Primrose Everdeen.

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Today I Might Lose Both Of Them. I Try To Imagine A World Where Both Gale's And Peeta's Voices Have Ceased. Hands Stilled. Eyes Unblinking. I'm Standing Over Their Bodies, Having A Last Look, Leaving The Room Where They Lie. But When I Open The Door To Step Out Into The World, There's Only A Tremendous Void. A Pale Grey Nothingness That Is All My Future Holds.

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Ally." Peeta Says The Words Slowly, Tasting It. "friend. Lover. Victor. Enemy. Fiancee. Target. Mutt. Neighbor. Hunter. Tribute. Ally. I'll Add It To The List Of Words I Use To Try To Figure You Out. The Problem Is, I Can't Tell What's Real Anymore, And What's Made Up.

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And She's My Fiancee. So If You Want To Get To Him, Expect To Go Through Both Of Us.

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I Reach For Prim In The Twilight, Clamp My Hand On Her Leg And Pull Myself Over To Her. Her Voice Remains Steady As She Croons To Buttercup. "it's All Right, Baby, It's All Right. We'll Be Ok Down There." My Mother Wraps Her Arms Around Us. I Allow Myself To Feel Young For A Moment And Rest My Head On Her Shoulder.

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It's Strange To Be So Physically Close To Someone Who's So Distant

You Don't Destroy What You Want To Acquire In The Future.

I Don't Think It's Going To Work Out. Winning...won't Help In Any Case. Because...she Came Here With Me. - Peeta Mellark

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Beetee Is Still Messing Round The Tree, Doing I Don't Know What. At One Point He Snaps Off A Sliver Of Bark, Joins Us, And Throws It Against The Force Field. It Bounces Back And Lands On The Ground, Glowing. In A Few Moments It Returns To Its Original Color. "well, That Explains A Lot," Says Beetee. I Look At Peeta And Can't Help Biting My Lip To Keep From Laughing Since It Explains Absolutely Nothing To Anyone But Beetee.

We Could Do It, You Know." "what?" "leave The District. Run Off. Live In The Woods. You And I, We Could Make It.

Capitol In Hunger Games

Since Mags Seems To Have No Ill Effects From The Nuts, Peeta Collects Bunches Of Them And Fries Them By Bouncing Them Off The Force Field.

As We Curve Around Into The Loop Of The City Circle, I Can See That A Couple Of Other Stylists Have Tried To Steal Cinna And Portia's Idea Of Illuminating Their Tributes. The Electric-light-studded Outfits From District 3, Where They Make Electronics, At Least Make Sense. But What Are The Livestock Keepers From Distric 10, Who Are Dressed As Cows, Doing With Flaming Belts? Broiling Themselves? Pathetic.

Turn And Turn And Turn Again You See The What, But Not The When Remedy And Wrong Entwine And So They Form A Single Vine

Katniss Everdeen, The Girl Who Was On Fire, You Have Provided A Spark That, Left Unattended, May Grow To An Inferno That Destroys Panem," He Says.

Hey. I Just Wanted To Make Sure You Got Home," I Say. "katniss, I Live Three Houses Away From You," He Says.

I Trusted Him. I Put What Was Precious In Haymitch's Hands. & He Has Betrayed Me

And Then He Gives Me A Smile That Just Seems So Genuinely Sweet With Just The Right Touch Of Shyness That Unexpected Warmth Rushes Through Me.

I Drag Myself Out Of Nightmares Each Morning And Find There's No Relief In Waking.

Even Though I Don't Ask, Plutarch Gives Me Cheerful Updates On The Phone Like "good News, Katniss! I Think We've Almost Got Him Convinced You're Not A Mutt!" Or "today He Was Allowed To Feed Himself Pudding!

It’s The First Time I’ve Ever Kissed A Boy, Which Should Make Some Sort Of Impression I Guess, But All I Can Register Is How Unnaturally Hot His Lips Are From The Fever.

Girl Talk. That Thing I've Always Been So Bad At.

I Vote Yes....for Prim.

And Some Small Gnarled Place Inside Me Hated Her For Her Weakness, For Her Neglect, For The Months She Had Put Us Through. I Had Taken A Step Back From My Mother, Put Up A Wall To Protect Myself From Needing Her, And Nothing Was Ever The Same Between Us Again.

As I Descend The Stairs, I Can’t Help Brushing My Fingers Along The Unblemished White Marble Walls. So Cold And Beautiful. Even In The Capitol, There’s Nothing To Match The Magnificence Of This Old Building. But There Is No Give To The Surface - Only My Flesh Yields, My Warmth Taken. Stone Conquers People Every Time.

The Evil Thing Is Inside, Not Out.

You're Not Going To Die. I Forbid It. All Right?" "all Right," He Whispers.

They Can't Hurt Me. I'm Not Like The Rest Of You. There's No One Left I Love.

Here, Cover Yourself With This And I'll Wash Your Shorts." "oh, I Don't Care If You See Me," Says Peeta.

My Little Sister, Prim, Curled Up On Her Side, Cocooned In My Mother’s Body, Their Cheeks Pressed Together. In Sleep, My Mother Looks Younger, Still Worn But Not So Beaten-down. Prim’s Face Is As Fresh As A Raindrop, As Lovely As The Primrose For Which She Was Named. My Mother Was Very Beautiful Once, Too. Or So They Tell Me.

And We Must Fight Back! President Snow Says He's Sending Us A Message? Well, I Have One For Him. You Can Torture Us And Bomb Us And Burn Our Districts To The Ground, But Do You See That? Fire Is Catching! And If We Burn, You Burn With Us!

And There I Am, Blushing And Confused, Made Beautiful By Cinna’s Hands, Desirable By Peeta’s Confession, Tragic By Circumstance, And By All Accounts, Unforgettable.

Right Before The Explosions Begin, I Find A Star.

I'm Sure They Didn't Notice Anything But You. You Should Wear Flames More Often," He Says. "they Suit You.

I Swear If You Cry, I'll Kill You Here And Now.' Cinna Just Smiles. 'had A Damp Morning?' 'you Could Wring Me Out.' I Reply

What Will Break Me Into A Million Pieces So That I Am Beyond Repair, Beyond Usefulness?

Let Me Go!” I Snarl At Him, Trying To Wrest My Arm From His Grasp. “i Can’t,” He Says.

He Became My Confidante, Someone With Whom I Could Share Thoughts I Could Never Voice...in Exchange, He Trusted Me With His.

Did You Love Annie Right Away, Finnick?" I Ask. "no." A Long Time Passes Before He Adds, "she Crept Up On Me.

How Do You Bear It?” Finnick Looks At Me In Disbelief. “i Don’t, Katniss! Obviously, I Don’t. I Drag Myself Out Of Nightmares Each Morning And Find There’s No Relief In Waking.” “the More You Can Distract Yourself The Better, ” He Says. “first Thing Tomorrow, We’ll Get You Your Own Rope. Until Then Take Mine.

In The End, The Only Person I Truly Want To Comfort Me Is Haymitch, Because He Loves Peeta, Too.

Let The Seventy-forth Hunger Games Begin, Cato, I Think. Let Them Begin For Real.

Because It Doesn't Matter Anymore, And Because I'm So Desperately Lonely I Can't Stand It.

Only.. I Want To Do Die As Myself

Ll I Can Think About, Every Day, Every Waking Minute Since They Drew Prim's Name At The Reaping, Is How Afraid I Am.

Smiling Is Mostly About Smiling More.

But I Don't Know What To Him About The Aftermath Of Killing A Person. About How They Never Leave You.

I Don't Like Self-righteous People," I Say. "what's To Like?" Says Haymitch, Who Begins Sucking The Dregs Out Of The Empty Bottles.

We Each Get Fifteen Minutes Before The Gamemakers To Amaze Them With Our Skills, But I Don't Know What Any Of Us Might Have To Show Them. There's A Lot Of Kidding About It At Lunch. What We Might Do. Sing, Dance, Strip, Tell Jokes. Mags, Who I Can Understand A Little Better Now, Decides She's Just Going To Take A Nap.

Because I Can Count On My Fingers The Number Of Sunsets I Have Left, And I Don't Want To Miss Any Of Them.

Roses. Wolf Mutts. Tributes. Frosted Dolphins. Friends. Mockingjays. Stylists. Me. Everything Screams In My Dreams Tonight.

This Is What Birds See. Only They're Free And Safe. The Very Opposite Of Me.

Look, If You Wanted To Be Babied You Should Have Asked Peeta.

Is That Why You Hate Me?" I Ask. "partly," She Admits. "jealousy Is Certainly Involved. I Also Think You're A Little Hard To Swallow. With Your Tacky Romantic Drama And Your Defender-of-the-helpless Act. Only It Isn't An Act, Which Makes You More Unbearable. Please Feel Free To Take This Personally.

Actually, Katniss Isn’t Complaining Because She Has No Intention Of Staying With The “star Squad,” But She Recognizes The Necessity Of Getting To The Capitol Before Carrying Out Any Plan.

I Guess There Isn’t A Rule Book For What Might Be Unacceptable To Do To Another Human Being.

Well, I Knew That Goat Would Be A Little Gold Mine," I Say. Yes, Of Course I Was Referring To That, Not The Lasting Joy You Gave Your Sister You Love So Much You Took Her Place In The Reaping," Says Peeta Drily.

I Wish They Were All Dead And We Were, Too. It Would Be Best." Well, There's No Good Response To That. I Can Hardly Dispute It Since I Was Walking Around With A Syringe To Kill Peeta When I Found Them. Do I Really Want Him Dead? What I Want...what I Want Is To Have Him Back.

‎what Is To Prevent, Say, An Uprising?

On And On We Seal The Pages With Salt Water And Promises To Live Well To Make Their Deaths Count.

Remember, We're Madly In Love, So It's All Right To Kiss Me Anytime You Feel Like It.

Hunger For Love

Yes, They Have To Have A Victor. Without A Victor, The Whole Thing Would Blow Up In The Gamemakers' Faces. They'd Have Failed The Capitol. Might Possibly Even Be Executed, Slowly And Painfully, While The Cameras Broadcast It To Every Screen In The Country.

Let The Hunger Games Begin!

You Could Do A Lot Worse.

Great. Now I Have To Go Back And Tell Haymitch I Want An Eighty-year-old And Nuts And Volts For My Allies. He'll Love That.

If My Holding Out Those Berries Was An Act Of Temporary Insanity, Then Those People Will Embrace Insanity Too.

Temporary Insanity

Frankly, I Could Use A Little Sugarcoating.

And When Again It's Morning, They'll Wash Away. Here It's Safe, Here It's Warm Here The Daisies Guard You From Every Harm.

We Follow Instructions To My Destination, A Chamber For My Preparation.

If You Had Hope, Maybe You Could Find A Way To Make Things Change,. Because If You Thought About It, There Were So Many Reasons To Try.

Your Favorite Colour . . . It's Green?" "that's Right." Then I Think Of Something To Add. "and Yours Is Orange." "orange?" He Seems Unconvinced. "not Bright Orange. But Soft. Like The Sunset," I Say. "at Least, That's What You Told Me Once." "oh." He Closes His Eyes Briefly, Maybe Trying To Conjure Up That Sunset, Then Nods His Head. "thank You." But More Words Tumble Out. "you're A Painter. You're A Baker. You Like To Sleep With The Windows Open. You Never Take Sugar In Your Tea. And You Always Double-knot Your Shoelaces.

But Gale Is Not One To Keep Secrets From Me. "katniss, There Is No District Twelve."

But Once I Saw Fulvia Cardew Crumple Up A Sheet Of Paper With Just A Couple Of Words Written On It And You Would’ve Thought She’d Murdered Someone From The Looks She Got.

He Wants As Many Victors As Possible For The Cameras To Follow In The Capitol. Thinks It Makes For Better Television." "are You And Beetee Going?" I Ask. "as Many Young And Attractive Victors As Possible," Haymitch Corrects Himself. "so, No. We'll Be Here.

Katniss, I Don't Think President Snow Will Kill Peeta. If He Does, He Won't Have Any Way To Hurt You." "so, What Do You Think They'll Do To Him?" I Ask. "whatever It Takes To Break You.

My Mockingjay Pin Now Lives With Cinna's Outfit, But There's The Gold Locket And The Silver Parachute With The Spile And Peeta's Pearl. I Knot The Pearl Into The Corner Of The Parachute, Bury It Deep In The Recesses Of The Bag, As If It's Peeta's Life And No One Can Take It Away As Long As I Guard It.

When I Break Into The Clearing, She's On The Ground, Hopelessly Entangled In A Net. She Just Has The Time To Reach Her Hand Through The Mesh And Say My Name Before The Spear Enters Her Body.

You Can’t Miss Your Schedule. Every Morning, You’re Supposed To Stick Your Right Arm In This Contraption In The Wall. It Tattoos The Smooth Inside Of Your Forearm With Your Schedule For The Day In A Sickly Purple Ink. 7:00—breakfast. 7:30—kitchen Duties. 8:30—education Center, Room 17. And So On. The Ink Is Indelible Until 22:00—bathing

Eyes On The Forest, Not On The Trees.

For Me, It's Better To Wake Up With A Paintbrush Than A Knife In My Hand. -peeta

Poison. The Perfect Weapon For A Snake.

So It's You And A Syringe Against The Capitol? See, This Is Why No One Lets You Make The Plans.

District 12. Where You Can Starve To Death In Safety," I Mutter. Then I Glance Quickly Over My Shoulder. Even Here, In The Middle Of Nowhere, You Worry Someone Might Overhear You.

Middle Of Nowhere

Finnick!" Something Between A Shriek And A Cry Of Joy. A Lovely If Somewhat Bedraggled Young Woman--dark Tangled Hair, Sea Green Eyes--runs Toward Us In Nothing But A Sheet. "finnick!" And Suddenly, It's As If There's No One In The World But These Two, Crashing Through Space To Reach Each Other. They Collide, Enfold, Lose Their Balance, And Slam Against A Wall, Where They Stay. Clinging Into One Being. Indivisible. A Pang Of Jealousy Hits Me. Not For Either Finnick Or Annie But For Their Certainty. No One Seeing Them Could Doubt Their Love.

She Must Have Really Loved Him To Leave Her Home For The Seam. I Try To Remember That When All I Can See Is The Woman Who Sat By, Blank And Unreachable, While Her Children Turned To Skin And Bones. I Try To Forgive Her For My Father's Sake. But To Be Honest, I'm Not The Forgiving Type.

As We Ride The Elevator Gale Finally Says “you're Still Angry.” “and You're Still Not Sorry,” I Reply. "i Will Stand By What I Said. Do You Want Me To Lie About It?” He Asks. “no, I Want You To Rethink It And Come Up With The Right Opinion,” I Tell Him.

Whose Is It, Do You Think?" I Say Finally. "no Telling," Says Finnick. "why Don't We Let Peeta Claim It, Since He Died Today?

Buttercup, Miserable Even With Prim’s Constant Attention, Huddles In The Cube And Exhales Cat Breath In My Face.

Having An Eye For Beauty Isn't The Same Thing As A Weakness...except Possibly When It Comes To You.

Slowly, With Many Lost Days, I Come Back To Life.

There's Always Hand-to-hand Combat. All You Need Is To Come Up With A Knife, And You'll At Least Stand A Chance. If I Get Jumped, I'm Dead!" I Can Hear My Voice Rising In Anger. "but You Won't! You'll Be Living Up In Some Tree Eating Raw Squirrels And Picking Off People With Arrows.

When I Ask Plutarch About His Absence, He Just Shakes His Head And Says, "he Couldnt Face It." "haymitch? Not Able To Face Something? Wanted A Day Off, More Likely," I Say. "i Think His Actual Words Were 'i Couldn't Face It Without A Bottle,'" Says Plutarch.

Maybe Everyone Is Just Trying To Protect Me By Lying To Me. I Don't Care. I'm Sick Of People Lying To Me For My Own Good.

The More You Can Distract Yourself, The Better.

What Do I Mean When I Say I Love Gale? I Don't Know. I Did Kiss Him Last Night, In A Moment When My Emotions Were Running So High. But I'm Sure He Doesn't Remember It. Does He? I Hope Not. If He Does, Everything Will Just Get More Complicated And I Really Can't Think About Kissing When I've Got A Rebellion To Incite.

Cato Kneels Beside Clove, Spear In Hand, Begging Her To Stay With Him. In A Moment, He Will Realize It's Futile, She Can't Be Saved.

What Do You Think?" He Asks. "i Hate Them," I Say. I Can Almost Smell The Blood, The Dirt, The Unnatural Breath Of The Mutt. "all I Do Is Go Around Trying To Forget The Arena And You've Brought It Back To Life. How Do You Remember These Things So Exactly?" "i See Them Every Night," He Says.

So Instead Of Acknowledging Applause, I Stand There Unmoving While They Take Part In The Boldest Form Of Dissent They Can Manage. Silence. Which Says We Do Not Agree. We Do Not Condone. All Of This Is Wrong.

Ladies And Gentlemen....." His Voice Is Quiet, But Mine Rings Through The Room. "let The Seventy-sixth Hunger Games Begin!

You Want A Piece Of Advice?" Said Ripred. "don't Bother. I Know What You'll Say. The Whole Thing's Stupid," Said Gregor. "quite The Contrary. I Was Going To Say That Life Is Short. There Are Only A Few Good Things In It, Really. Don't Pretend That One Isn't Happening." Said Ripred.

Scores Only Matter If They’re Very Good, No One Pays Much Attention To The Bad Or Mediocre Ones.

He Frosted Under Heavy Guard.

You're Hideous, You Know That, Right?

The Raw Hunk Of Meat That Used To Be My Enemy Makes A Sound, And I Know Where The Mouth Is. And I Think The Word He's Trying To Say Is 'please'. Pity, Not Vengeance Sends My Arrow Flying Into His Skull.

Peeta Looks Me Right In The Eye And Gives My Hand What I Think Is Meant To Be A Reassuring Squeeze. Maybe It's Just A Nervous Spasm.

When You're In The Arena...you Just Remember Who The Enemy Is" - Haymitch

Once I'm On My Feet I Realize Escape Might Not Be So Simple, Panic Begins To Set In. I Can't Stay Here. Flight Is Essential But I Can't Let My Fear Show. Winning Means Fame And Fortune, Losing Mean Certain Death, The Hunger Games Have Begun . . .

I Volunteer!" I Gasp. "i Volunteer As Tribute!

It Sends Out A Very Clear Message: "mess With Us And We'll Do Something Worse Than Kill You. We'll Kill Your Children.

So That's Who Finnick Loves, I Think. Not His String Of Fancy Lovers In The Capitol. But A Poor, Mad Girl Back Home.

The More Likable He Is, The More Deadly He Is.” -katniss Everdeen

Hunger Games Book

Capitol In Hunger Games

I Can Almost Hear Haymitch Groaning As I Team Up With This Wispy Child. But I Want Her. Because She's A Survivor, And I Trust Her, And Why Not Admit It? She Reminds Me Of Prim.

The Arenas Are Historic Sites, Preserved After The Games. Popular Destinations For Capitol Residents To Visit, To Vacation. Go For A Month, Rewatch The Games, Tour The Catacombs, Visit The Sites Where The Deaths Took Place. You Can Even Take Part In Reenactments. They Say The Food Is Excellent

Fire Is Catching! And If We Burn, You Burn With Us!

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