As I say goodbye to my mentor, Hufflepuff, he zips up the back of my suit and gives me the final tips of survival and wisdom he has to share with me. Go for the swords and get out of the cornucopia as fast as you can, is the only thing I hear besides my heart raising. Thump. Thump. Thump. My heart beats faster and faster as I step into the metal tube that will send me up into the arena. As the floor under me starts to rise, I wave my final goodbye to Hufflepuff who mouths, you got this Tammy. I feel sweat starting to collect on my face from the nerves inside of me. Twenty seconds go by and I am in the arena. 60 more seconds until the Hunger Games starts. What I have trained my whole life for, is finally here. I am from district one, the favorite and most wealthiest district of them all. If anyone deserves to win it is me. All the other tributes mean nothing to me, besides my friend who was chosen. We will become an alliance when the Games start and we will be the last standing. Then, I will kill him and claim my rightful victory. I will make it out alive. 30 seconds. My heart starts racing even faster. 20 seconds. I look at my surroundings and see that it is a tropical setting. There is water surrounding me and the other competitors. 5…4…3…2…1…GONG.

The Hunger Games have officially started. I sprint to the cornucopia and scan it for swords. Four others are close behind. Quickly, I grab my swords and run by them. I push one of my enemies into the water, let out my loud roar to frighten the others, slice off the head of a person about to tussle with me, and run off. I climb up a tree that is sturdy enough, lay my swords beside me, and camp out for the night. As the minutes pass, more and more gongs go off. I count at least four not including the person I killed. I am proud of the start of the Hunger Games and that I am still alive. I will not let my family or district down. The Cottonhead will survive.