The minute the mayor of my district announces that Capital City is hosting a survival game show for teenagers that has certain risks in exchange for financial support, I just know my father will jump at the opportunity to send me there for a buttload of money.

So I'm not surprised that entering my name is exactly what he does.

"Cheer up, Skylor," he says, giving me an indifferent pat on the back once we return home from the weekly district gathering, "You're great at surviving; daddy will be so proud when you win."

I remain stone-faced as I gobble up my supper, which consists of a small clump of rice because we can't afford anything more, then stalk upstairs and flop onto my bed. It sort of stinks, but that's expected since I can't remember the last time we were able to wash the sheets. Capital City "forgot" to deliver clean water to everyone last month.

And speaking of Capital City, there is no doubt in my mind that hosting this survival game show is a political tactic. The districts have been complaining about the lack of resources for ages, and even rumors of rioting have arisen, which the spies living undercover must've had no trouble hearing since we're not exactly quiet. Now they're providing aid if kids join this dumb reality tv show to entertain the mindless rich citizens as a "see, we are willing to give y'all money, you just have to earn it" moment.

Ugh, whatever, it can't hurt, right? From what I know, they just said it's a survival contest where they're taking one boy and girl from each district, and since there's risk factors involved that they haven't specified, they're going to pay people to participate.

They'll probably have to draw names with the amount of people volunteering. Since there's a lot of people worse off than I am, I figure that the odds are in my favor, and that I have a good chance of not being drawn, so I'm not worried. I have nothing to lose, but I'd rather not be thrust into some game with a bunch of strangers.

Sure enough, by the next day there's news on how the district government has been receiving an overwhelming number of submissions and must resort to random number generators. It's stupid how those rich people created a whole machine just to draw random numbers and yet can't "afford" giving everyone enough to eat. When I was younger, we'd have enough food and water for everyone as long as we rationed, but we've been hungrier and hungrier every year. Smart of them for making it subtle, though.

Either way, my father is going to be so disappointed when my name isn't drawn in two weeks.

...

Every single person in my district is present at the drawing ceremony. The boys in the appropriate age range are clumped into one area while the girls are in the other, and everyone else is standing in another roped-off area. Peacekeepers from Capital City have arrived to patrol and check to make sure there aren't any people hiding away in their homes.

I can also just hear Carina Fisher loudly complaining to her father, asking why she has to attend if her name wasn't entered. She knows she's privileged, since even though her family's wealth pales in comparison to anyone living in Capital City, at least they can afford three full meals a day, a complete fantasy to me even though my father is a farmer.

Rolling my eyes, I allow them to wander around the plaza. There's faint traces of color on the walls of the buildings around it that must've worn away with time. If I squint closely enough, I can almost pick out the cracks in the walls and the peeling outside layer. It's been so long since anyone has done any renovation that my father can't even remember the last time they did so much as to fix up broken boards. By now I've learned that if a building was rotting, nobody was going to do anything about it, so it would just sit there and add to the dilapidated ruins that is our district.

A booming voice jerks me back into reality as a strange-looking woman wearing colors so bright I could see her from a mile away yells into this horn thing. I wince, noticing that I'm not the only one who does.

"Capital City is pleased at the number of applications for Survival," she announces, a giant creepy smile plastered on her face, "But unfortunately, we cannot take everyone, so we will be drawing names to select who shall be participating in this show. May the odds be ever in your favor! Ladies first!"

Several Peacekeepers carry up a large machine up to the side of the stage, then set it down, and the woman excitedly hurries over.

"And the lucky girl will be..." she says as she presses the button and reads whatever it pops up, "Skylor Chen!"

At once I feel all eyes turn to me and my body freezes up. My father cheers, but his voice sounds distant as I numbly move towards the stage, the other girls stepping aside to let me through. Even the wind seems to stand still, and I wish I can turn invisible. It's already annoying enough being the girl with the freakishly red hair at school, something my father hasn't had to deal with in ages since his has been dulled after years of working in the sun, and the last thing I want is more publicity and attention.

I can feel my heart picking up speed in my chest as I slowly mount the steps up to the raise platform. The Peacekeepers direct me to a spot just off the center of the stage behind the woman, who has already begun drawing the boy's name.

"The lucky boy will be... Lloyd Garmadon!"

An anomaly as well with his blond hair and bright green eyes, he gives an awkward half-smile as he comes to join me. I suddenly don't know what to do with my hands as I twist my fingers together and stare at my pathetic cloth shoes. The woman is saying something along the lines of congratulations while the crowd gives a forced cheer, and there's definitely a certain amount of jealousy I can detect from people who want to go a lot more than I do. Everything feels muddled and blurry, yet my father's ecstatic shouts remain audible above the murmur of the crowd.

I'm so not interested.

The next few minutes are a blur as Lloyd and I are ushered into the town hall, yet another building that must've once been grand but is now just a mix of grays. I zone out as the mayor greets us and goes on and on about what an honor representing our district at Capital City is. Lloyd, on the other hand, pays careful attention as if whatever random thing he's saying is going to be crucial to his survival or something, but I don't care enough.

All I want is to just go, have as much fun as I can, then come back and hope that my father is doing well.

"The two of you will depart for Capital City in half an hour, where the official rules of the game will be explained. In the meantime, feel free to chat with each other, and your friends and families will be allowed in shortly to say their goodbyes. Good luck," the mayor says, then leaves the room with the other officials and Peacekeepers. I hear the sound of a lock click.

"So, uh... hi?" Lloyd mumbles, nervously reaching up to tousle his blond hair.

"Hi. You excited?" I ask flatly, my eyes fixated on a corner of the peeling wallpaper.

"Uh, kinda, yeah. You?"

I shrug. We don't know each other very well, which is a shame, since a friend would be great, but I'm awful at making new ones since I'm bad at being nice. All I know is that he's one grade below me at the local high school, though these days it's more like a mental asylum than an actual place people go to for education.

"Hopefully it'll be fun," Lloyd says brightly in an attempt to further the conversation.

I can already tell he'll fare decently in the games, since he seems pretty likable and friendly. It is partially my own fault for not even trying, but after the number of times I've been backstabbed by my ex-"friends," I'm not exactly ready to open up too much. Maybe I'm just finding excuses for my low emotional intelligence.

The door opens and in rush a dozen people at least, most of whom are here for Lloyd. My father and best―and only―friend, Talia, hurry in, the latter engulfing me in a hug.

"Okay, Skye, you're gonna do amazing," she says, squeezing me so tightly I wonder if my ribs will crack, "Just do your best and don't forget to make friends! They're gonna be really helpful. Ahh, I wish I could come, it sounds so fun!"

I would gladly trade places with her, but instead I pat her on the back sympathetically, since my father is watching.

"Go and show them how amazing our district is," my father says, his face practically glowing, "And make us proud."

Before I know it, time is up and Lloyd and I are shoved into the train.

...

As we pull into the station, Lloyd is enthusiastically waving at the crowds of people there awaiting our arrival. He doesn't stop marveling at the beauty of Capital City and excitedly points out little details that he finds to be simply wonderful.

I kind of wish I was that ecstatic.

The Peacekeepers form a sort of wall around Lloyd, the woman (whose name I've learned is Freya), and me as we are brought onto a horse carriage amid the surging Capital City citizens. I flinch every time the cameras flash, not used to this amount of artificial light concentrated in one spot. Lloyd continues to wave at everyone through the windows while I just let my hair fall over my face.

Thankfully, the hotel they've reserved for the contestants isn't located too far from the station and we arrive in less than ten minutes. Freya immediately sends us to the 9th floor to wash up and get ready to meet the other participants, and Lloyd seems extraordinarily giddy about the whole ordeal as I simply stare at the interior of what they called an elevator, wanting to spit at it. Of course the government is more worried about Capital City citizens getting tired when walking up and down staircases than the people going hungry in the districts.

Everything about this suite screams luxury, and as much as I want to spite the government by ripping everything apart, a part of me wants to relish in this lifestyle, which I hate. I sigh, knowing that whatever I do won't be making any statement and is just more likely to result in the government prosecuting everyone I know.

With nothing else to do for the next hour leading up to the interview I reluctantly head into my extravagant room and spend the next fifteen minutes trying to figure out how to use the shower.

I finish just in time for the stylists to arrive, and the session is a nightmare to say the least. The stylists keep complaining over and over again at how many split ends I have, and the waxing process is just painful. Lloyd seems to agree based on the pained look on his face when we're finally done. I do have to admit that they cleaned us up quite well, however, and when I look into the mirror I almost don't recognize myself.

Once we're done, Freya takes us onto another carriage. At this point Lloyd has realized that I'm not making any effort to talk to him and is no longer trying to start a conversation.

We step into the building and I immediately notice Peacekeepers guarding every nook and cranny. Freya says that this is where she'll be leaving, and that apparently we're going to be having an interview before the banquet so the Capital City citizens can get to know us. My stomach growls.

Lloyd glances at me and shrugs, then throws his head back, motioning for me to follow him down the hallway along the red carpet, so I do.

By the time we arrive in the lobby, the room is mostly full, and the number 9 flashes on the screens situated throughout the room. The other contestants clap and cheer as we enter, but it's probably fake.

Lloyd immediately runs over and begins chatting with people while I plop down onto the edge of the long, curved sofa in the middle of the room, glad that my hair won't stand out too much amidst all the other bright colors. Though I hate the idea of wearing something so sumptuous, I must admit that the pale golden dress is oddly comfortable, even if I'm exposing more skin than I ever have in my life.

I suddenly feel eyes on me.

Swiveling around despite my will to look anywhere but towards the room chock-full of random strangers from other districts, I meet eyes with a boy looking about my age, or maybe older, with brown hair somehow managing to be neat and messy at the same time and light brown eyes. He's kind of cute.

My stomach does a backflip, and at once I begin to feel all jittery despite having no reason to be nervous. The corner of the boy's lips twitch upward for a split second, but when I blink, he's back to talking with the girl he had just been engaged in a conversation with as if he'd never noticed me in the first place.

Heart still pounding, I find myself slightly annoyed then turn back to facing the direction of the wall. That must've been some dumb trick of the light.

I try to forget about the boy for the next few minutes, but somehow I keep catching myself glancing at him again, even going as far as to crane my neck when someone is blocking my view. Eventually, though, I manage to keep staring at the wall as the contestants from the remaining districts trickle in.

"Hey."

The voice most definitely isn't one I've heard before.

I feel my entire body freeze up temporarily before turning around and coming face to face with the same boy from earlier. Up close he somehow looks even more attractive, especially with the way he casually leans on the couch and watches me with a small smirk on his face.

"Kai, from District Two. You?" he asks, extending a hand.

The minute I hear he's from District Two, my defenses go shooting up. We've always known that Districts One and Two are the most popular with Capital City and have been told from a young age that if we ever run into anyone from either district we need to be careful since they're most likely brainwashed.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" I reply and take his hand, hoping that didn't sound too lame. I don't know why I'm doing this, since anyone from District Two shouldn't be easily trusted, but the sparks shooting through my body say otherwise. Still, I've learned the hard way that I cannot let my emotions take the lead.

"Well then, guess I'll find out in the interview," Kai says with a grin before lifting my hand up to his lips and giving it a quick kiss.

Warmth flows through my body, a kind that I don't think I've ever experienced before, and I begin giggling despite myself. Once I realize what I'm doing, however, I quickly cough, pull my hand back, and look away.

"So, why'd you sign up?" he asks, now running a hand through his hair.

I barely stop myself from telling him the truth. "Uh, wanted to. You?"

"Nice," Kai says, reaching over and fingering one of my curls, "We're kinda broke, that's why. I don't want my baby sister starving, ya know?"

"Oh." A part of me is skeptical of this sympathetic story, but he sounds like he's being honest. "How old is she?"

"Fifteen. She'll throw a fit if you call her 'little' but let's face it, she's a literal toddler," he shrugs.

"How old are you?" I ask, since I myself am fifteen.

"Seventeen."

"Oh, yes, you're so much older," I say.

"Okay, but in all seriousness, seventeen is way more mature than fifteen," Kai argues, "Wait, how old are you?"

"Fifteen," I answer, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh." For a second he drops his smile, but it quickly returns. "Well, my sister acts like she's seven."

"That's cute."

He nods, his eyes glazing over, and I assume he is going on a trip down memory lane. I think it's sweet that he has a sister he cares about, since the only family member I have left is my father, who would rather sell than keep me.

"Do you have any siblings?"

"No," I reply shortly.

Kai nods again, then gets up. "Anyway, I'll see you around," he says before leaving to go back to the cluster of contestants who actually know how to have conversations, and I find myself having never been more disappointed in my social skills, or more accurately, lack thereof.

...

When the screens turn on, giving us an audience view of the stage where we'll be interviewed, the entire room quiets down. The interviewer walks onto the stage in a glittering tuxedo reflecting so much light I can barely see him clearly, and the audience cheers. One of the backstage producers hurry into the room holding up a pink "1," and a blonde girl in a flowing green gown stands up then follows him out of the room. I noticed her talking to Lloyd earlier, and now he's staring attentively at the screen like it's the most interesting thing in the world.

The girl seems to practically glide onto the stage as the host announces her name, which appears to be Harumi.

I don't really pay attention, but everyone seems to adore her, and she mentions something about growing up an orphan and hoping that these games aren't going to be too hard. She also says something about hoping to make friends and whatnot.

The second and third interviews aren't of interest. I find myself eagerly anticipating Kai's, even if I've talked to him for only 5 minutes.

He walks out onto the stage, and the crowd starts screaming at once.

"Kai from District Two! Welcome!" the interviewer beams as Kai sinks into the armchair and crosses one leg over the other, "Now, your name means victory, doesn't it?"

"There's a reason for that," Kai says with a grin, winking at the camera, and the audience goes wild.

"So confident," the host croons, "Where'd that come from?"

"Well..." Kai replies, "Wouldn't you like to know?"

The air is filled with "oohs" and "ahhs."

Half of me wants to jump up and exclaim that he stole my line, while the other half realizes how stupid this would make me look, but at once I find myself getting way too excited.

"Mysterious," the interviewer comments, "Well then, I'm assuming you won't be telling us how you plan to win? No secret strategies?"

"This has been said many times, but," Kai says easily, "It wouldn't be a secret if I told you now, would it?"

"Of course, of course," the host replies as the crowd swoons, "Any hopes?"

"Need I say more? Live up to my name," he grins, and the interviewer nods in approval.

"Say, a guy like you, do you have a special someone out there?"

"Of course," Kai replies, and the camera zooms in on the faraway look in his eyes, "I'd do anything for her. She's the world to me and we've been through so much. If you're watching, Nya, I love you, and even if I don't win, I hope I can make you proud and give you everything you've ever wanted."

The audience screams.

He's talking about his sister, right?

"That's certainly heartwarming," the host says, wiping a fake tear from his eye, "Whoever's cutting onions, please stop, and thank you, Kai. We wish you the best of luck."

Kai gets up and shakes his hand, and before I know it, he's back in the room and sitting right beside me.

"Is Nya your sister?" I ask, it being the first thing my brain can think of as it desperately tries to find something to say.

"Yeah, why? Jealous?" he replies, playing with my curls again. I let him for some dumb reason, since normally that would not be the case.

"Pfft, no," I mutter, shoving his hand away, and out of the corner of my eye, I catch him grinning, "Imagine being that conceited."

Kai shrugs. "Every assumption has factual evidence to back it up."

My eyes dart around the room as I try to change the topic, knowing that I'll probably say something stupid if I keep letting him make me irrationally nervous. It so happens that at that moment, I notice how outside the lounge, about twenty-something kids looking around our age are being ushered into the door across the hall.

"Wait, what's that for?" I ask, "I thought this building was reserved for Survival interviews today?"

"Oh, didn't they tell you?" Kai asks, "I heard they're hosting two games at the same time, one with Capital City children and one with the ones from the districts. I guess they still think we're too filthy to be played with. Eh, whatever, who wants to hang out with them anyway?"

"Hmm, I guess the news didn't reach us 'cause we're too poor," I shrug, "Wait, but wasn't the whole point of this to show everyone that they're willing to give the districts money?"

"I think in a way they're trying to show that everyone is equal?" Kai suggests, "Though we all know that's BS."

"Yeah, maybe," I say, "Oh―"

"Kai!" the girl I recognize as the other participant from District Two cuts me off as she waves from the other side of the room, "Kai, you have to come see this!"

"Well, that's my cue," he says, standing up and preparing to leave me again before I can protest, "Looking forward to your interview!"

I want to yell at him for stealing my line, but by the time I remember, he's already surrounded by others. And so I spend the remainder of the time leading up to my interview staring at the wall and agonizing over what I could've said to Kai instead to save that conversation from dying so quickly.

...

The lights are blinding as I walk through the curtains onto the stage, my legs feeling like jelly. I can barely make out the audience sitting in the front row and my face aches from the strained smile. Hopefully nobody notices how I wobble to the chair, but at least when I finally sit down I don't have to worry about feeling unsteady.

"Ah, Skylor from District Nine, how are you feeling today?"

I quickly wipe away all thoughts of that frustrating boy from District Two out of my mind, my heart pounding as I try to figure out what to say.

"Okay, I guess?" I say, though it sounds more like a question.

The interviewer opens his mouth to ask me something, but I beat him to it. "Hang on, I have a question."

"Intriguing," he says, raising his eyebrows.

"What do we get if we win? What happens if we lose? And also, we were told that we'd be given the rules to the game today?"

"Ah, but you see, Miss Skylor, no survival game out there would ever give you the rules the day before! It's always improvisation, isn't it? And no one is here to lose, so why are you asking such a thing? As for winning, it's obviously riches beyond your wildest dreams!"

The crowd shrieks with laughter.

Richest beyond my wildest dreams, huh? Is it like a month's worth of your salary?

I nod curtly. "Ah, I understand, thank you for so graciously pointing that out. I must be stupid, and I am quite uneducated." I can almost hear my father screaming at the screen, but the audience certainly seems to find that line entertaining.

"Aww, come on, don't think so low of yourself," the host says, "I'm sure you know much more about various grains than I do! I can barely tell you the difference between wheat and barley, and I sure hope that's not offensive!"

"Oh, not at all," I reply, "In fact, my father's constantly tearing his hair out trying to teach me the different species. I still get them mixed up, I guess I should work on that. He's probably also annoyed that I'm embarrassing him on national television."

Everyone bursts out laughing.

"Interesting..." the interviewer remarks, "How are you finding Capital City so far?"

"Not as dusty or gray," I say, "I swear, I used to get so many allergies."

The audience finds this hilarious.

"Amazing," he says, "Anyway, wonderful meeting you, Skylor, I hope you enjoy the remainder of your stay."

I smile and get up, then shake his hand and go back through the curtains.

Kai flashes me a quick grin as I enter the room but doesn't make any indication of wanting to move towards me since his conversations are probably much more interesting, so I resort to staring at the wall again.

A/N: So, since I'm really busy this weekend, squidneyxd and I aren't going to do the weekly prompts, and sorry about that. To try and make it up to you guys, I figured I'd post this oneshot thing, and I hope you guys enjoyed it. Prompts will be back next week though

As you can probably tell, this is basically The Hunger Games, but I went and changed some things so that it's not a carbon copy just with Ninjago characters slapped on it. The Districts are all the same, and I put Kai in 2 for weapon manufacturing and Skylor in 9 for grain, so yeah lol. 

This story is also in its early stages, so there's a chance I'll come back and edit stuff in the future. 

Thoughts or predictions, even? (note that at this point, they don't know murder is involved and just think that it's a typical survival reality tv show)

Anyway, thanks for reading/voting/commenting as always, and have a wonderful rest of your day!