Semper Fi
"Always Faithful"
a Hunger Games (© Suzanne Collins) fanfiction

Prologue

Opening Song: "The Ruler and the Killer" - Kid Cudi

From the treaty of the treason: In penance for their uprising, each district shall offer up a male and female between the ages of 12 and 18 at a public "Reaping." These Tributes shall be delivered to the custody of the Capitol. And then transferred to a public arena where they will Fight to the Death until a lone victor remains. Henceforth and forevermore this pageant shall be known as-

It cuts off. The parchment is faded and old, yellowing and curling on the edges, but the final words have been deliberately censored. A black box, created by some thick marker, conceals the words.

Nature itself is never responsible for secrecy.

This declaration is everywhere in Unified Panem - books, scrolls, newspapers, magazines - but everywhere it is the same. The last phrase is blocked out. For some time, children ask their parents about the missing words, but they receive no answer. Sometimes the parents remember and are too afraid to answer, but most of the time they themselves do not know.

Then the children forget about the mystery because it simply does not matter. Unified Panem is, after all, in a state of near perfection. A loyal president stands at the head of the newly adopted democracy, and all regions are equally represented by two representatives they vote for. All the former Districts of the past no longer exist; in their place stands a strong, united state. There are no strict District lines or borders, and diversity among the people is highly encouraged.

In order to promote integration, there exists (right in the middle of the country) an academy where children from all over are invited to receive a top education. Here, the children learn everything they need to know in order to succeed in new Unified Panem. They learn how to be happy, because these are happy times.

And happy times cannot be so easily shattered by forgotten words.

Closing Song: "Stripped" - Shiny Toy Guns