The Ballad of the Mockingjay Pt. 1

Instructions

I roll over and slide off the mattress, moving with practiced care to avoid waking my twin sister, Maude Ivory, who is still sleeping peacefully beside me. Everything has changed since the few of us left of the Covey found the others. It was a shock to discover we’d been cooped up like caged chickens in this place they call Panem. Alfie Pine, Anabelle Jade, Grace Sky, Robin Slate, and I had no idea how the rest of our people had ended up here in District 12. Creeping toward the back door, I misjudge the cramped space and trip over Grace Sky’s outstretched leg. When we first arrived, we had to take over a second house just to fit everyone—the Covey was far too big for one small roof—but looking at the crowded floor, it feels like we might need a third. Grace Sky stirs, mumbling into the dark. I freeze, praying she doesn’t wake the whole house. "Where are you going, Clare Ebony?" she mutters still half asleep. "Nowhere," I whisper back. "Go back to sleep." When the five of us were out on the road, survival meant learning to hunt and handle weapons. But once we crossed into District 12, those skills became useless—or worse, forbidden. The Covey despises we@pons of any kind, so I keep my affinity for them a strictly guarded secret. I quietly slip out the back door, inhaling a deep breath of the dawn air. The Meadow is the only place you can find semi-clean air in all of District 12, free from the choking coal dust. "Are you going hunting?" a quiet voice whispers from the shadows behind me. I let out a soft sigh and turn around. "Yes, I am. Now go back to bed, or start getting ready for the reaping." "I’m not even in it," she protests, crossing her arms. "I'm only eleven." "I know," I say gently but firmly. "But you can still get arrested just for not dressing nicely. Go inside." "Ugh, fine." Turning away, I head toward the edge of the Meadow where the high chain-link fence borders the wilderness outside District 12. I pause, listening intently for the telltale hum of electricity. As usual, the fence is dead. I slip easily under a loose patch of wire and bolt into the cover of the woods before anyone can spot me. I make a straight line for a dense clump of ferns that conceals my bow. Slipping the quiver over my shoulder, I grip the familiar wood of the bow and set out toward my usual hunting grounds. Lost in the quiet rhythm of the woods, time slips away. Before I realize it, the sun is already climbing into the sky. Panic pricks at me—I need to head back before the reaping preparations begin. I make a run for the ferns and shove my stuff under the bush and dash back to the house. To my surprise I don’t think anyone noticed I left. “You're next for the bath,” Maude Ivory says while smoothing out her dress. She is wearing a white fringe dress with little blue flowers and her hair is in two braids with blue flowers intertwined in them. Barb Azure walks out of the tiny bathroom in her patterned orange skirt and white laced top she got for her 17th birthday which was a few weeks ago. After my bath I walk out to my bed with our slightly damped, shared towel and find a huge surprise waiting. A pair of old boots and a rainbow ruffle dress with a corset lay on my bed for me.