mad WORLD [open]

[MATILDA MONAE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,500,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true][atrb=background,http://i53.tinypic.com/34j7nrm.jpg][atrb=style,padding: 10px 0px 10px 0px; height: 340px;][atrb=vAlign,bottom] their tears are filling up their glasses NO EXPRESSION, NO EXPRESSION. HIDE MY HEAD I WANT TO DROWN MY SORROWS, NO TOMORROW, NO TOMORROW AND I FIND IT KINDA FUNNY Its a lot hotter than usual today, Matilda Monae thought, reaching a hand up to shield her eyes as she raked them over the herd of cattle that were grazing about twenty feet away. There were other herders in the field with her, but they were all off doing there own thing, leaving her with no company but the cattle that she was supposed to watch over, not that she really minded. She had been herding cattle since for over six years, having started when she was twelve and it wasn't a particularly dangerous job. Backbreaking? Of course. Stressful? Most definitely. Dangerous? Not really. She could be doing something a whole lot more dangerous than herding cattle, but just because she didn't think it was dangerous didn't mean that she wasn't careful. Her father had been killed in a herding accident when one of the bulls had gotten spooked by something and had barreled her father over before crushing the man's ribs. That had been an entire year of pain and grief for Matilda and her sister, but they had eventually gotten over it, Matilda's younger sister barely even remembering the man. She was so young when it had happened. Shaking her head to rid herself of those memories, Matilda pushed herself off of her pitchfork she had been leaning on it while she rested, before stretching her arms above her head and yawning. She hadn't gotten much sleep last night or the night before, maybe three hours each night at the most, because of the thunderstorms that had rolled in and the fact that she had to go out an check on the cattle. She could've turned it down and gone to bed, but she was getting pay overtime for doing it and she couldn't turn down extra money. God knows that her sister needed new clothes and that they needed food. She yawned once more before pulling the pitchfork from the ground and taking a few steps forward. She could already see a few bulls glaring angrily at each other. It was time to get to work. WORDS three forty-nine • TAGS open • NOTES first post of the site, anyone? MADE BY STARR OF ON THE EDGE!

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[VIOLET MONAE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background: #f1f1f1; border: 5px solid #2d2d2d; padding: 10px, btable] Violet carefully arranged the cheese and slice of pork between the brown bread slices. It wasn't much, but it was enough. Her stomach rumbled a bit, but she reminded herself once again that Matilda needed the food more than her, because her big sister worked hard in the fields. And she could eat later, at dinner. She chewed on her lip. Her sister wouldn't like it if Violet didn't eat for her sake, but what Tillie didn't know couldn't hurt her. The young girl placed the sandwich into the basket and tucked in the canteen of water beside it. Then she slipped the basket onto her shoulder and looked around the small house once before walking out and shutting the door securely behind her. She squinted at the cattle in the distance, and set about walking to her sister. Her shoes were sturdy but well-worn, and her steps disturbed the dust. She'd heard some men in the village talking about what it meant for the livestock if it didn't rain soon. It hadn't in a week. It was horribly dry and hot, and Violet's little nose wrinkled in distaste. She'd heard once that in the capitol they controlled the temperature inside the buildings. The best they could manage in district ten was throwing all the windows open and hoping for a breeze. Violet longed to see the Captiol with her very own eyes and not just the glimpses you got of it on the television during the preliminaries before the games. She wanted to wear a pretty outfit and be paraded around and noticed, even if she was dressed as a cow or something. But that kind of thinking was stupid... wasn't it? It would get her killed, just like her opinions on how very unfair it was that people people had indoor cooling and others didn't. And air conditioning was just the beginning of a long list of unfair things Violet had noticed in her thirteen years. She hoisted the basket higher up on her shoulders as she approached her sister from behind. Once she could clearly see Matilda's back, she called out for her. "Mattie! Tilly! I brought you lunch!" Violet grinned. Wouldn't Tilly be happy to see her? Couldn't cute little Violet Monae brighten anyone's day? Of course she could. She saw how the shepards and goat herders and swineherds smiled when she brought them water on a hot day, or even just offered a wave. Even the richer townspeople greeted her as she passed. The people of district ten loved her. She was optimistic and adorable, and she knew it. She was ambitious, too. Maybe one of those townspeople would have a son her age. She wouldn't mind being a bakers wife, or even the Mayor's wife. Maybe she'd find someone who would become the Mayor when they were all grown up. "And I brought the water, too," she added. "It's so hot out!"