EDITING CURRENTLY The Dinosaur Games | An Alternative 3rd Quarter Quell

Final Goodbyes : Faces in the Crowd

Lutra, District 4

"Lutra Pendragon!"

Breathless, Lutra prayed it was a mistake.

Stroking her fish tail braid, she could feel hundreds of pairs of beady eyes glaring into her skull.

"Come on up dear ... C'mon C'mon." cooed Cassandra, the District 4 escort.

Lutra slowly stepped in between the crowds as they parted, staring constantly.

"We haven't got all day ..." Cassandra added.

A short, tired and mandatory applause accompanied the tribute-to-be's ill fated trek to the front. There was no effort behind it just done because it was forced.

Lutra stepped onto the first step and was snatched onto the raised platform and forced towards the left of the stage.

"Now, for the boys!" The escort cried, her dress shimmering like fish scales, presumably the desired effect.

Lutra scanned the crowd for her parents and her two sisters, Hester and Jana.

The Pendragon girls, including their mum, were infamous for their natural but modest beauty. They were kind and compassionate, every single one of them and adored among the coastal population.

Hester had avoided being chosen for the Games but the luck of the dynasty had obviously dried up.

Her family was nowhere to be seen probably near the back of the massive crowds piled into the mall, a huge open pavement that seemed to stretch back for miles.

She began to hyperventilate under the lights and cameras thrust into her face and she could feel her chest rising and falling rapidly. Her mouth was dry and her throat choked by tears.

If I die in these games, what will happen to Mum and Dad, to Hester and to Jana?

What will the repercussions be for my family?

She was so caught up in her thoughts, she didn't even hear the name being called.

" Now shake hands, you two"

Cassandra's voice revived Lutra as she turned to meet her tribute to be.

The face that greeted her was smooth with a chiselled jaw line and deep blue eyes.Textured auburn hair spiked from the roots bounced on her firm handshake, his muscles bulging beneath his shirt and sleeves.

It was the new boy in town, who had moved from one of the outlying villages which were few and far between in District 4. The best place to live was by the coast where the fish, and the industry, lived.

Lutra felt guilty as she retracted her hand, not even knowing his name.

Finalising the results, Cassandra shuffled to the front of the stage, leaning into the microphone and repeating the Games' signature tagline.

"Happy Hunger Games and may the odds be ever in your favour!"

Cassandra then turned, her silver scales shimmering in the spotlights and guided the tributes off stage with a hand on each pair of shoulders.

As they turned away, something caught Lutra's eye in the crowd, something she valued more than anything else.

With a glimpse, she could only hope you would see them in the meeting that followed.

It was Jana on the shoulders of Hester.

+ + +

Lutra paced back and to she had been locked in the room in the Justice Building for half an hour and still her family had not come. It must be taking a long time to clear the Mall.

It would not be long before the Peacekeepers would demand her presence on the train.

'Was that the last time I would see my sisters? My mother? My father?'

And as it seemed all hope was lost, the catch in the door unlocked and in charged Jana, her eyes streaming with tears and her face red from crying. Mother swiftly followed.

Her sister instantly embraced with her and her mother then joined a circle filled with cloth and tears.

"Lutra, I don't want you to go," cried Jana through watery eyes. "Who will read me bed time stories?"

Lutra forced a smile; Jana could always be relied upon to get her priorities right.

For all Jana knew, Lutra was running away to the Capitol and it was a one way trip. But she would grow up quickly, seeing her sister fight in a death match.

The two sisters hugged as her mother took Lutra's hands. Her hands were dry and worn from the sea air and manual labour but had a certain silky feel to them.

"I know you can do this," Her mother said glaring into Lutra's bloodshot eyes. "District 4 will have a winner this year ... and I have a strong feeling who it will be!"

"Okay, times up!" the Peacekeeper manning the door announced.

"No, no it's too little!" Lutra's mother cried, practically launching herself at the guard.

"I love you,Lutra!" Jana squealed painfully, the tones clawing at the back of her sister's mind.

Forced through the door, the conversation was cut short by the slam of the wooden door. Lutra sat down on a leather chair and tried to console herself, holding her hand across her face.

She could heard raised voices outside the door and closed her eyes, as the reality of the situation hit with tremendous force. The only sound she could muster was a unrestrained sobbing.

The door flung open again and Hester burst in, her hair flowing behind her.

"Two minutes." The guard informed her and she simply glared back in reply. "Keep it brief." He added.

"Keep it brief?" Hester replied, making her way towards the guard. "Do you know what it's like -"

"Calm it, Hester." Lutra's father added.

Hester grabbed Lutra and embraced her sister. Lutra buried her head in Hester's pastel blue dress. It smelt of sea salt and lemongrass .

Lutra had never seen her older sister cry as Hester did then. Even when the first family pet died or she broke up with one of her many boyfriends, these were tears from a deeper form of sorrow.

Tears streaming down her face, it was obviously hard for her to pull away so that her dad could see Lutra before she left.

Lutra pulled herself close to her dad as Hester glared resentfully at the Peacekeeper on the door. Lutra felt her dad cradle her head and twiddle with a lock of her hair as he always did.

"That's time." The guard announced, opening the door.

Lutra could see a wild look in Hester's sea green eyes, like the spark of an inferno. Before she could swing the first blow, their dad held her wrist with a firm grip. "Enough, Hester. What done is done. It cannot be undone."

Hester choked back yet more adrenaline fuelled tears. "Do your best Lutra," She said before she was marched out of the room. "We'll love you either way."

Her father was more reluctant.

He left silently and before he left the room, turned to Lutra and said. "Hester took the words out of my mouth."

With the slam of the door, Lutra was hit with a second wave of realisation.

She would never see her her family again.

As she was led to the train, she reunited with her district partner, who's name she still didn't know. They were then herded into the train and with a sudden jerk, the next stop was the Capitol.

The coves of home disappeared behind them. The houses stacked up on the steep hills and the gentle lapping of the sea were a distant memory.