prologue

prologue; before the reaping

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Shutting the door to her house behind her, Isla walked down the streets until she made it to the beach. Barefoot, she stepped onto the sand and walked closer to the ocean, letting the cool water wash over her feet as she closed her eyes and felt the breeze blow over her.

The reaping for the 64th hunger games was tomorrow. Isla was a confident girl. She knew that if she were to be picked, she would have a strong chance of winning. And winning meant food for her district. District 4 had not had a victor in so long, the last one being Mags, the victor of the 11th Hunger Games. But, she had hopes.

Isla didn't intend to volunteer, especially not if the girl picked was older than her, but she might volunteer if they chose a younger girl. No one should have to go through that, especially the ones with minimal academy training.

The academy was where District 4 trained for the games. They were considered to be one of the Careers, and so, the academy came to be. Isla had been training for a good few years, her strong suits being tridents first and foremost, and throwing secondly.

The redhead was young, but she was ready.