"Who's gonna miss me, anyway?"

"LORRAINE?!" the voice of a young girl could be heard from under a bed. Lily Bloom hid there, too scared of the loud noises to come out until she saw her sister bent down and grab her hand, pulling her from her hiding place.

"Come on, Lils!" the seven-year-old girl shouted before they both started running through the place they called home. The Baird sisters made their way to the back of the house, where the bunker was built, hurrying to get in before another bomb landed close or, this time, even on them.

Before exiting the house, Lori took a look around to make sure there were no peacekeepers around that could harm her or her sister. Since their surroundings were clear, the two ran as fast as they could to the right until they got to a wooden door.

The dirty blonde girl pulled with all her strength, allowing Lily to go through the hole and enter the bunker, and, in less than a second, she felt as if the door stopped weighing so much. But that was only because Reaper, her step-brother, held it so she could enter the safe place.

Without wasting another second, she jumped into the bunker, allowing Reaper to safely close it. "Are you okay?" he immediately came to her, helping her up and looking for any injuries.

"Yeah, I'm fine." she said as she scanned her body to make sure she wasn't, indeed, hurt. "Lils?" she asked, turning to her little sister.

"Yes." the four-year-old hardly spoke, still shaking out of fear.

"What were you thinking?" Lorraine suddenly heard her step-father say from the corner. "Running out of here and going back into the house like that?"

"I had to get Lily Bloom!" she responded, defensively. "She was too scared to leave her room."

The man sighed heavenly, clearly stressed because of the current situation. He looked around for a few seconds before fixing his softened gaze on Lily. "Are you cold, little one?" he asked, handing her her favorite fluffy blanket.

The brunette slightly smiled as she took the soft fabric, covering herself in it right before another loud sound struck District 11.

The three kids jumped once the explosion hit a nearby area, leaving them trembling out of fear. Lorraine went right next to her little sister, holding her tight in her arms, making her feel a bit safer.

To Lily Bloom, Lorraine was the only person left who could bring her comfort, ever since their mother's passing. She couldn't fall asleep without her sister singing a calming song while holding her the same way their mother used to until her eyes fully closed and her mind stepped into the world of dreams.

And, to Lorraine, Lily Bloom was the most important thing in the world. She took it upon herself to protect her sister at all costs. That was why she didn't even think twice before running back into the house to get her sister, despite the danger of exposing herself to the bombs launched by the Capitol. All she could think about was Lily's safety, regardless of her own.

___

JULY 4TH, the day every soul from every district dreaded, had come. For the tenth time, two children from each district were gonna get chosen to be thrown into a kill-or-be-killed arena. And only one could make it out alive.

This cruelty started not that long ago, once the Capitol won the war between them and the revolted districts, and, since then, they came up with this yearly tradition, as a way to punish not only the rebels, but also their innocent children.

Lorraine could not hate anything in the world more. She understood the consequences of losing a war, but to throw 24 innocent kids to kill each other is too much. And not just once, but every year.

This was gonna be the sixth time her name rested in the pool of District 11's people, but she wasn't scared for her. Lorraine's main concern was her sister, Lily Bloom Baird, who was just fourteen years old. She was aware that her young age meant a smaller chance of getting reaped, but that still wasn't zero.

The girl looked out the window to see the sun coming out from behind a hill. That marked the time District 11's citizens began their daily duties. So, she slipped out of her sister's bed, making sure not to wake her up, and went to change into her working clothes.

After that, Lori walked quietly down the stairs so she would not wake up the whole household, but, to her surprise, Reaper was already in the kitchen, waiting for her.

"You're up earlier than usual..." he spoke softly, placing a cup of tea on the table and giving her a look that made her understand it was for her.

"Didn't feel like sleeping anymore." she responded, taking a sip of the freshly prepared tea made out of the herbs grown in their garden. "I thought I would start my work earlier..." she added.

"So you can have time to go to the bridge, right?" he raised his eyebrows in a mindful look.

Reaper knew about her little trips outside the town and to the closest place that connected District 11's territory to District 12's. That's where Lori would always meet Lucy Gray, her cousin, whom she loved like a second sister.

He never had a problem with her breaking the rules, knowing she was very careful not to get caught, but now wasn't a good day. "Today's the reaping..." he added, making Lorraine roll her eyes. "You know every peacekeeper is making sure everyone is doing their jobs."

"They hardly even care. Besides, how's gonna miss me, anyway? They barely know when I'm there..." she pointed out, but Reaper already had his answer prepared.

"Umm, the mayor." he said, making the blonde remember that man's problem with her. "You know Mister Carrington's watching you, waiting for any opportunity to throw something in your face."

Lorraine sighed as she realized Reaper was right. She could not risk it, not today. Too much counted on it.

"Fine." she finally let out. "I'm gonna be a good little girl and obey his stupid rules."

"That's my girl." he smiled jokingly, making Lori release a soft chuckle.

The two finished their drinks before heading out to the working field, where most of the district's members gathered to collect all kinds of plants for the Capitol. That was their job, to pick out as many healing herbs and edible plants as they could, so the citizens of Panem could benefit from their abilities.

"What's on your mind?" Reaper suddenly asked.

Lorraine turned to him, not realizing how he knew something bothered her, "Why do you ask?"

The boy smiled before responding, "Well, I know you, Lorraine Angelina Baird... you're always humming a song when something's disturbing your internal peace."

He was right, she did do that. Most of the time, without even realizing it. The girl smiled as she came to realize how well Reaper got to know her over the years. It felt good knowing someone cared enough to pay attention to you.

Lori breathed in slowly before admitting, "It's just my sister... I'm worried about her. And I know she can see it, and that just makes her even more stressed by this day."

Reaper looked down, understanding her concern. "It's gonna be okay. We'll get this day over and go back to our normal routine, picking out flowers while you sing your unique songs that cheer everyone up." he tried to cheer her up, but the sad expression remained on Lori's face.

"Well, they didn't seem to cheer her up last night..." she said, recalling how hard it was for her to relax Lily so she could get some rest. "She could barely close her eyes because of how stressed she was. I stayed with her the whole night to make sure she got some sleep."

The boy didn't really know what to say. All he could think about was how good Lorraine was to her sister, how she always put her first and made sure to provide her with the best life possible.

"You are a good sister, Lori. The best I know." he said, kindly, as he reached for her hand, holding it gently in a comforting way. "Lily's very lucky to have you."

The blonde smiled at the sound of his words, knowing he was completely honest. That was the best compliment she could ever get.

Once the two finished collecting the plants, they headed back to town to drop them off when, out of nowhere, a familiar voice irritated both their ears. "Lorraine!" Atlas Carrington shouted, hurrying to catch up to them.

Lori rolled her eyes at the sound of that man's voice, and Reaper noticed. The two kept walking, ignoring the boy and continuing their way to the drop-off center where peacekeepers were collecting and depositing the herb supplies.

When Atlas finally caught up to them, he came to Lorraine's free side and spoke, this time quieter "Can we talk?"

Seeing how close that guy got to his sister, Reaper stepped in front of him, blocking him from coming any closer. "She doesn't want to talk to you, richie boy. So get lost!" he said protectively, but Atlas didn't seem to intend on moving.

"I wasn't talking to you, tough guy, now, was I?" the boy replied, provocatively. To most people, it would seem a bit too confident of him, given their size difference, but the girl knew Atlas had no problem initiating an argument or even a fight, because all peacekeepers would take his side since his father was Edmund Carrington, the mayor.

So, in order to keep her brother from doing something that would get him in trouble, even if it would've been very nice to watch, she took Reaper's hand, making him break eye contact as she got between them and said "It's fine, Reap. I'll see you back home, okay?"

The boy didn't want to agree to her request, but, once she realized why she was doing it, he backed up. "I'll see you soon!" he said, and with that, he turned around, disappearing through the crowd.

The girl then turned back to her job like the boy wasn't even there, "What do you want, Atlas?"

"To talk." he said, a smile curling up on his face.

Even if he was quite close to her, Lorraine didn't make eye contact, focusing on loading the boxes in the transporting vehicles.

"Hey, you!" Atlas suddenly shouted at a man in his late forties, catching both his and Lori's attention and leaving them both surprised by his sudden action. "Come and load those boxes!" he demanded.

Lorraine furrowed her eyebrows at the sound of his words. Could he be any more of an arrogant and spoiled pig?

The man walked to the truck, realizing who the boy was, and started doing Lori's job without saying a word back.

"No, there's no need —" she began saying, feeling embarrassed that an older man was made to do her easy job, but she was stopped by Altas immediately.

"Let him do his duty." he said, receiving an angry expression from the girl.

Realizing what was happening, the older man gave Lori an approving smile as he said warmly "It's okay, dear. I can manage."

Lorraine had never felt so embarrassed in her life, and it was because of him, that Atlas asshole. She grew to despise him more and more by the second.

"Thank you so much." she finally said with a grateful smile, "Have a good day!". She then started to walk away, blood boiling in her veins as she heard Atlas following her.

Before she got the chance to say anything, the boy spoke again "Why did you do that? Thank him for doing his job."

Lorraine breathed out, getting sick of his spoiled ass. "It's good manners. You should've learned about them a while ago, but it's better late than never."

Atlas let out a cocky laugh, "You don't need manners when you're talking to a lower life-form."

Lori narrowed her eyes and tilted her head as she kept walking. "Then I guess I don't need manners when I'm talking to you, Atlashole."

The boy kept quiet for a moment, not expecting that answer, but he quickly laughed it off, saying "Okay, see what I mean? We're gonna have to resolve this conflict between us somehow. We are to be married after all."

"Yeah, right." she laughed in the same arrogant way he did before. "Keep dreaming, buddy."

"Okay, I get it... it's not ideal for your step-father to arrange your marriage, but I don't understand why you're so resilient. I'm not the worst choice around here."

"Maybe to you..." she spoke her mind, this time upsetting him a bit.

"I am to become the mayor, Lorraine, and you'd be my wife, which would make you superior to anyone here...except me." he said, but seeing how the girl rolled her eyes upon hearing the last part, he tried to come up with another argument. "I could take care of you better than anyone around here."

"I think I'm doing pretty good at that myself, but thank you for the offer. Unfortunately, I'm gonna have to refuse, again." she said, relieved she ultimately reached her house, meaning she could finally get away from the brunette.

"Feel free to report this back to your father." she grinned, imitating his cocky smile, and with that, she closed the door behind her, leaving Atlas standing outside, slowly becoming more and more upset.

___

After Lorraine bathed herself of the dirt from the working field, brushed her long dirty blonde locks and put on her nicest dress, which belonged to her mother. It was a simple, but beautiful white dress that was long enough to cover her knees, but still allow her boots to be seen. That was the first time she wore it, because she finally grew enough to fit perfectly in it.

Once she was done, she made her way to her sister's room to see how she was doing. As she was approaching, she heard her sister play a song at her guitar. Just like her, Lily Bloom would always sing something when nervous, so Lorraine immediately knew how much her sister was dreading the moment of the reaping.

"Lily Bloom?" she spoke from behind the door. "Are you ready?"

She heard her say a quiet 'yes' after she stopped playing the guitar, so she stepped in. "Oh, Lils, you look so pretty!" she said, truthfully, seeing how her sister was wearing one of her old dressed.

The little girl put on a slight smile before saying, "You look prettier..."

It was a hard day for Lily, and her sister wearing their mother's old dress didn't seem to lighten her mood. "When you're my age, you'll be the prettiest girl around here. Then I'll be jealous." she said in a playful tone, succeeding in bringing an honest smile on her sister's face.

"Don't worry, Lils, everything's gonna be okay." she assured her, pulling her into a warm hug. "You know I won't let anything happen to you."

"But I don't want something to happen to you, either." she said, keeping her tears in. "I can't lose you too."

Lorraine breathed in heavily, realizing that just protecting her wouldn't matter to Lily if that meant losing the person she loved most. The blonde put on a reassuring smile before saying "You won't. You're stuck with me."

Lily laughed at her joke, letting go of the stress the reaping brought her, and said "I'm glad."

The two sisters hugged for a few seconds, finding comfort in each other's arms. The two meant the world to each other, and both of them knew it. All they wanted was to stay like that forever, but, suddenly, the alarms started echoing, announcing the time to assemble the reaping.

Therefore, the Baird sisters made their way to the Hall of Justice alongside Reaper and their step-father, Tomas. Each of the three kids went to their specific age and gender group and waited there anxiously for the mayor to arrive and announce who would get reaped.

"Welcome, everyone, to the reaping of the 10th annual Hunger Games." Mayor Carrington announced with a smirk on his face.

His expression made Lorraine a little stressed, but from the moment his cold eyes met hers, she knew something was up.

"Ladies first..." the man said, maintaining his joyful glare on the girl.

At that moment, Lori was expecting the worst. Of course he would say her name at the reaping, that was the perfect revenge for embarrassing him and his son by disagreeing to marry Altas. She should've seen it coming from the start.

The man pulled out a piece of paper from the bowl of females from District 11 and, after barely looking at the name written on it, he announced into the microphone.

"Lily Bloom Baird."

AUTHOR'S NOTE

First chapter out! I'm so excited that I finally published it.
I love the little Leia Organa moment I gave Lori. She's badass just like my bae, Leia<33
Tomorrow I'm going on a trip and, unfortunately, I won't have much time to write in the next three days:((, but as soon as I get back, I'll start making new chapters and post them as soon as possible.<33
Love you all and I hope you liked this chapter! See you in the comments!♡

~elenaswanwp