#primrose everdeen grows old
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Oh you're sad that your favorite character is dead???? Well none of my faves are dead bc I have been living in denial (reading fanfic) since 2011. Y'all stay safe tho
#ash is living in japan with eiji#thorin fili and kili see erebor prosper and dis watches her family grow instead of shrink#tony stark watches morgan and peter grow up#natasha romanoff is healing with her sister#primrose everdeen grows old#rue grows old#maes hughes adds more children to dote after in his family and sobs at every milestone they reach#flapjack and waffle are besties and pester hunter into selfcare#they all get to know peace in life and not death#''you're delulu'' yeah i've been reading fic since i was 11 and imagining fics for as long as i can remember idk what to tell you#fanfic#fix it fic#ash lynx#eiji okumura#banana fish#thorin oakenshield#kili#fili#tony stark#natasha romanoff#primrose everdeen#rue hunger games#maes hughes#flapjack toh
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WIP
How Katniss and Peeta chose their children's names
prologue of my fanfic in progress about Katniss motherhood. "The Flower and the Willow"
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My name is Katniss Everdeen.
My parents named me after a long-stemmed flower that grow on the edge of lakes. You will never starve if you find one of them. Its roots are sweet and juicy like a potato. The delicate and small white petals contrast with its arrow-pointed leaves.
My sister got her name from the Primrose flower. Different from katniss flower, primroses are everywhere. It has small petals, but its vibrant colors make it stand out among the undergrowth.
They chose beautiful names to decorate us with.
Beautiful things like the songs my father sang before I went to sleep.
Beautiful things like the colorful dresses my mother wore on Sundays.
Things that keep ourselves alive.
When my father stopped singing my mother stopped wearing her dresses. And then it was like she was dead too. That's when I realized that those things made us live.
Without the laughter, without the songs, without the hugs that my father gave me covered in dust from the mines, without the dresses, without the beautiful braids that my mother gave me and Prim. Without anything beautiful, without anything happy. We had nothing but hunger, cold and misery.
Peeta's parents had a similar idea. They chose their children's names from bread. Peeta, for a wheat bread that's as thin as a sheet and hollow inside. Rye, for a bread made with rye flour and very soft. Bran, for bread made with bran and molasses. Sweet in taste and brown in color.
It was kind of funny for a family of bakers to take their children's names from a cookbook, but they followed the same logic as my parents. Naming their children after the only thing that keep them together: work.
In the Mellark household no one had an empty stomach, but everyone woke up before sunrise to grind the wheat, sift the flour and heat the wood fire and work until night fell. Peeta once told me he never thought he would be the one to run the bakery. Her parents decided to have children to pass on the business to when they got old. The first was planned. The second was accidental, but useful in a world where your son could always go to games. The third was unwanted, but at least one more hand to work with.
Until shortly before giving birth I didn't know what name to choose. Peeta said he wanted me to decide, but nothing felt good enough. When I discovered I was a girl I started singing the lullabies my father always sang. I hummed them when I helped Peeta knead bread in the morning, I whistled them when I walked through the forest. Every time my head was empty, some new song came back to the surface. One day I found myself singing an old song that I had forgotten for a long time.
Deep in the meadow
Under the willow
A bed of grass, a soft green pillow
For so many years I even banned myself from humming its melody, I preferred it to disappear from my memory completely.
All the little girls I had sung that song to were dead. But I got pregnant and I couldn't stop it anymore. It was a girl, I would have a daughter. Even with the horrible pain in my chest I wanted her to hear that song.
Here your dreams are sweet
And tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you
Deep in the meadow
Hidden far away
I chose Willow after that in honor of the willow tree in the song. Peeta liked it.
Two years later when I got pregnant with my second I gave Peeta a taste of his own medicine and made sure he chose the name. He spent hours listing names for me, looking for inspiration in books, names of important people. Until one day he put down the history books and picked up a recipe book. He flipped through the pages... sponge cake, carrot cake, cinnamon rolls... as if it was the first time he was reading it.
Even the recipes he made every day, like wheat bread from the bakery, he read again. He said he would wait until the baby was born to finally choose a name, but I had the impression he already had some ideas in mind. When Peeta took our boy in his arms he said he saw his brother Rye's eyes on him.
So, following the tradition of our families, our children's names are in honor of what is important to us.
Rye, a bread to satisfy our hunger.
Willow, a tree from an old song.
#WIP#the flower and the willow#the hunger games#thg#katniss everdeen#peeta mellark#everlark#fanfic#willow mellark#rye mellark#prologue#looking forward to posting this fanfic#some days who knows
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Wild girl - Part 3 (Ended)
(Katniss Everdeen x Fem Reader) ❀
Summary: After you and Katniss grow closer, and you finally gain the courage to ask her on a picnic.
Warnings: Slight lanauge. This is an interactive story—the poll at the bottom will be open for a week and will choose the direction of the next part! <3
Word Count: 1927
After a few days of tagging along with Katniss’s hunting, learning how to squeeze your way onto her good side (mostly by aiding her with hauling game), and learning some of her rarely shared details about her life, you brought up the idea of a picnic.
The two of you were scaling the hill up to what had become your hangout spot before returning home. The sun had begun to set because you’d set out later than usual and the sky was cloudless, it was even more beautiful like this.
Katniss sat beside you on your usual log with a soft sigh, dropping the sparsely filled game bag. Her lips formed a teasing grin when you looked her way and she bumped her head against your shoulder by accident.
It was now or never. By the time a new peaceful opportunity like this arose, you’d probably be too old to climb the hill.
“What if… we hung out more?” You slowly brought the topic into conversation, fidgeting with long pieces of grass. “I mean, we never see each other outside of hunting.”
Katniss, although not appalled, seemed surprised by this and turned to look at you. “Hung out? What would we do?”
“Whatever friends do.”
“Friends?” A real smile broke out across her face this time and she looked in the opposite direction to try to hide it. “You think we’re friends?”
“Well, you know my deepest darkest secrets, and I know just the top layer of stuff about you, so… yeah.” You chuckled, gently elbowing her. “Do you think we’re friends?”
Katniss seemed content with this response. Her gaze lowered down to the ground as she pondered the question, then she looked back up at you again.
“I’d like to be friends.”
“Good. Because we already are and there’s no going back.”
“Good.”
The two of you exchanged a glance, then laughed. It felt good to laugh with Katniss. Her laugh was raspy as if it didn’t get a chance to come out often, but it sounded like honey to you.
When the laughter eventually died down, you took a deep breath.
“What about a picnic?” You finally mustered the courage to ask. “I know this spot in the woods… Nobody would bother us there, and I could cook all of the food so you wouldn’t have to worry about that. We could just have fun.”
Katniss’s eyes glimmered at the suggestion and she seemed to run thousands of fantasies through her head in a blink. Her lips twitched once more into a smile.
“A picnic sounds good.” She nodded in agreement. “When?”
“T-tomorrow afternoon?” Had she actually agreed to this? Were you dreaming?
Katniss nodded once more, nudging you with her shoulder. “Alright. Tomorrow it is.” She chuckled. “Will you pick me up?”
“Gladly.”
You each exchanged a warm smile and fell into a gentle silence.
The rest of the sunset went by far too fast. All you could think about was that you had just secured a date, if you will, with the girl of your dreams. You’d somehow managed to break through the harsh barbed wire walls of Katniss Everdeen herself and now you and her were going on a picnic together.
You hardly slept that night, buzzing with uncontainable excitement.
The next day, you showed up at Katniss’s door bright and early. If the two of you left now while the sun was still waking up, you could make it to the woods at just the perfect time and finish up far before you’d need to hunt.
Primrose opened the door and looked up at you with a smile. “I knew you’d come.” She stated proudly.
“What do you mean?”
“Katniss told me all about your plan. She didn’t think you’d actually show up, she said you’d probably ditch her.” Prim’s proud smile faded a little, then came back. “But I knew you wouldn’t.”
You smiled at the young girl and scribbled down what she said in the back of your mind. “Well, thank you for believing in me.”
Katniss seemed to have heard the chatter and appeared in the doorway. She’d attempted to ditch her hunting jacket in favor of wearing only the nicest shirt she had, which was a warm yellow color, but the damp chill of the morning breeze brought the other layer back. Her eyes weren’t solid ice anymore and they looked at you with a certain fondness, and surprise.
“I-uhm… thought you’d come later.” Katniss tried to excuse her messy, unbraided hair and untied boots with a lie, even though the two of you had decided this time when you dropped her off at the Hob yesterday.
“I know you like to be up early.” You simply shrugged and held up the picnic basket you’d found. “Are you ready? It’s about a ten minute hike into the woods.”
Katniss’s anxiety seemed to ease and she nodded. She waved goodbye to Prim and then followed you out to the fence which the two of you crossed with ease.
She didn’t say a lot on the way there. This was the first time you’d actually seen her nervous and it was kind of cute, you had to admit. Everytime she caught your gaze she smiled and nodded as if trying to reassure the both of you.
Eventually, after crossing a few creeks and scaling a hill, you came upon the small clearing. It was nestled right beside another creek and was pretty dry from the direct sunlight seeping through the trees.
You laid the old picnic blanket in the grass and set the basket down. You pulled out a few wrapped sandwiches that you’d been saving up to buy and a bowl of fruit.
Katniss sat down gently and reached to remove her bow but found she hadn’t brought it. Her face flushed with embarrassment and she awkwardly waited.
“Here.” You presented her with her sandwich and a helping of fruit. “I have some water too.” You were a bit awkward too. You’d never done anything like this before.
Katniss accepted the food gratefully. “Thank you.” She smiled once more, settling down a little. “This is… really nice, y/n, thank you. I haven’t hung out with anyone in a long time. At least, not like this.”
“I’m honored to be the first one, then.” You responded, sitting down beside her. “So, you thought I wouldn’t come?”
Katniss’s face paled a little, then her cheeks flushed a bit. She lowered her gaze to the sandwich clutched tightly in her hands. “It’s not exactly like that.” She stammered. “I don’t think bad of you, or anything along those lines. I just… I don’t know, nobody ever wants to do this with me, and I know why. I don’t know why I thought what I did… but it isn’t your fault.”
Your expression of confusion dimmed to one of a little concern. You took a bite of your sandwich and swallowed it, then spoke. “I really like hanging out with you Katniss, I wouldn’t just invite you on a picnic and ghost you.”
“I know you wouldn’t.” Katniss mumbled, embarrassed. “My mind tells me things that aren’t true and makes me believe them even though I know they would never happen.” She started picking at her fingernail. “You’re too good of a person to do that but I feel like I don’t deserve this.”
Once the truth was out, she paled even more. It was very clear that Katniss never opened up like this. Ever. To anyone. And now that she had, she was ashamed.
“I’m sorry. I should go.” Katniss tried to stand up but your fingers latched around hers like a hook and gently pulled her back down.
“Don’t go.” You said softly. She didn’t try to pull away again but she wouldn’t meet your gaze.
Gently, you took Katniss’s hand into yours. You could see the little raw spots around her fingernails from her nervous habit of picking and biting there, and the bruises and calluses from hours of using her bow. Her hands were rough but they fit perfectly into yours.
“It’s okay, Katniss.” Your murmur was enough to finally get her to look at you. Her gray eyes were full of pain and fear as if you’d get up and run away now because she let you in. You took her other hand too and held them both. “Have you always felt that way?”
She quietly nodded. “For as long as I can remember.”
“Well… fuck that.” You said with a small smile, trying to cheer her up. “Katniss, I think you’re a wonderful person. I love being around you and I want to keep being around you. I’ve wanted to be your friend forever and I’ve finally just gotten that opportunity and I don’t want to lose it.”
“You… what?”
“You always just seemed… so cool to me, back in school. You weren’t mean like the other kids, and you stuck out, in a good way.” You squeezed her hands. “And you’re still so cool to me now. I want to be your friend and I want to be there for you, but you’re going to have to learn to trust me… okay?”
Katniss blinked a few times, unshed tears simmering in her eyes, but her lips forming a shaky smile. “O-okay.” She croaked. She wiped her face with her arm, not wanting to pull her hands from yours. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have anything to be sorry for.” You assured her with a shake of your head. “It’s alright.”
“It’s… alright.” Katniss echoed softly. She was really smiling now, though she was still emotional and wiping her face.
You nodded confidently and smiled too.
The rest of your picnic was quite peaceful.
Now that Katniss had opened up, having gone through the deep stuff first and leaving the more ice breaker things for later, the two of you really got to know each other aside from silly little small talk.
You learned about her family, about Primrose, about how she got into hunting, and in turn she learned about your family, your hobbies, your dreams… It was practically perfect.
About an hour or two went by but the two of you hadn’t noticed. Until it started raining, that is.
The droplets were thick and cold and fell from the sky quickly, soaking both of you and your empty picnic basket.
Katniss squealed and you laughed. You each quickly shoved everything back into the basket and held the blanket over your heads as you began the trek back.
“I love the rain.” Katniss said, holding your hand as you crossed the last creek. The water was rushing a bit harder now and it nearly took you out, soaking your shoes. “Well… I don’t love getting stuck in it like this.” She added with a sympathetic smile. “But I love sitting on my porch and watching the rain.”
“Me too.” You nodded in agreement, then frowned a little as the edge of the forest came into view.
It would most likely rain all day so you wouldn’t see eachother again for hunting if you split up here. You felt like you were really getting somewhere with this wild maze of a girl and you didn’t want to be apart from her.
Maybe she would be up for… hanging out some more?
Katniss looked at you with a curious gaze as you stopped after crossing the fence. “What is it?” She asked, wondering if you forgot something.
You came up with a few ideas on the spot.
Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 4
#the hunger games#catching fire#the mockingjay#katniss everdeen#katniss everdeen x reader#katniss everdeen x fem!reader#katniss everdeen x you#x reader#interactive story
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Hi! Any everlark fics where Prim and Peeta are reaped, and Prim dies while Peeta wins?
Hello Anon!
Below are some fics that may fit what you're looking for (I personally have not read them or any story that fits this exact prompt)! I'll be adding this to future masterlists to release! Hope these are helpful!
Burn-ellembee (ao3)
Summary: Snow outlawed volunteering nearly thirty years ago. Katniss never steps foot inside the arena. An alternate road to rebellion.
Fates Reversed-icbiwf (ao3)
Summary: Prompts in Panem AU week day 7: What if Katniss was reaped instead of Prim? - "I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!" As I hear this, my heart sinks. My sister has taken my place, and there's nothing I can do to stop her. Prim will be going into the Hunger Games.
Fighters and Survivors-rhymeswithblue (ff.net)
Summary: Snow outlawed volunteering nearly thirty years ago. Katniss never steps foot inside the arena. An alternate road to rebellion.
Growing Primrose-SubeteAishite (ao3)
Summary: I lock eyes with my older sister, a sixteen-year-old named Katniss whose gaze normally burns with a quiet intensity. Her facial expression changes from shell-shocked horror–the usual expression of anyone who had just been reaped for the Hunger Games–to pure anguish as my legs guide me past her, my hand waving in the air to catch the attention of the gaudy Capitol announcer on stage. “I volunteer as tribute!” I repeat the words; I understand my decision. My name is Primrose Everdeen. I’m twelve years old and was born in the Seam. I volunteered for the 74th Annual Hunger Games to protect my older sister. Now, I only have two weeks left to live.
JAGGED-annieoakley1 (tumblr)
Summary: What if volunteers weren’t accepted? Peeta and Prim compete in the 74th Annual Hunger Games.
Just a Game-gleeksandtributes (ff.net)
Summary: Single chapter ficlet. AU in which Katniss is 19 at the time of the reaping and Prim and Peeta are chosen as the tributes for District 12. She is forced to watch as they participate in the Hunger Games. Mild violence. Everlark and some Clato.
Mortality-Amata le Fay (ff.net)
Summary: AU. The strengths of the Everdeen sisters have always come from different places. This would have happened any other way. For Starvation's August prompt, "sacrifice."
My Dreams Smell of Roses-RipredtheGnawer (ff.net)
Summary: What would happen if Prim had to compete in the Hunger Games. Prim's POV, may possibly switch to Peeta's.
One Chance-MtnDew26 (ff.net)
Summary: Maybe if Prim had been a little braver, a little quicker, maybe, just maybe, she wouldnt have let Katniss volunteer. How Prim deals with the Hunger Games, Peeta, and a choice. Go home to her sister, or bring home someone who deserves to love her sister.
Peeta's interview with Ceaser Flickerman if Katniss couldn't volunteer-sassycasbutt (ff.net)
Summary: This is just a one shot of Peeta's interview with Ceaser if Katniss couldn't volunteer for Prim.
Prim's Games-madeleine_writes (ao3)
Summary: Primrose Everdeen is not the scared child she was when her father died nine years ago. Now 16, Prim has been Reaped while her sister Katniss is helpless to watch. But when she falls for another tribute, Prim must make a choice. After all, how will a healer and a harvester endure a Game designed to kill? AKA The Hunger Games but it's Prim x Rue
Prim, the Tribute-NadineBrandes (ff.net)
Summary: Katniss is too old to volunteer for Prim. Prim gets reaped and goes to the Games with Peeta - the boy who seems to know her older sister. Prim doesn't want to kill anyone, but she doesn't want to let her sister down, either. She can't give up, but she refuses to become a monster.
The Baker and the Healer-TomHRichardson (ao3)
Summary: AU. Katniss is at death’s door on Reaping Day, so is excused from the 74th Reaping for District Twelve. Thus Katniss is not there to volunteer when Prim is Reaped. A kind Capitol doctor heals Katniss of her blood poisoning, but too late to prevent Prim from being a tribute in the 74th Hunger Games. Katniss/Peeta, Haymitch/Effie
The Mercy of the Fallen-slightlykylie (ao3)
Summary: AU: When Prim is reaped, Katniss is nineteen and too old to volunteer. Prim is going into the arena. These are Prim's Games.
The Storyteller-stephensmat (ao3)
Summary: Effie let out a long suffering sigh at Katniss' shout. "I'm sorry, miss; but the time for that has passed. If you wanted to volunteer, you should have said so when it was your turn." A canon-divergent Fic: Prompt: What if Katniss wasn't allowed to Volunteer for Prim? Peeta and Prim are Reaped and go to the Capitol for the Games. Peeta has only one goal: To keep Prim alive. He has only one tactic: To make sure he's more than just a Piece in their Games. He knows that if he comes back alive, Katniss will never forgive him. But if Prim survives, he's certain to die. What results was something the Capitol never saw coming.
If anyone knows of any that fit the prompt exactly please let us know! As always, if you have any questions, comments, or recommendations feel free to send them my way!
-Admin:E
#thg fanfiction#everlark fanfiction#thg#admin:e#anon ask#masterlist#mini masterlist#inpanemau#primandpeetarepeaded#ask
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Yellow Flowers
Yellow is associate with hope in The Hunger Games. In the upcoming chapter 4, Katniss will remember eating dandelions and it giving her hope. The dandelions are linked to Peeta in Katniss' mind. He was looking at her when she saw them. (This will come up again in Mockingjay, if we get there.)
The yellow flowers come up again later. "Rue is a small yellow flower that grows in the Meadow. Rue. Primrose," Katniss thinks, explicitly linking Rue and Prim together.
Rue is a yellow shrub that can be decorative or used as an herb. There is "common" primrose and "evening" primrose. I believe Prim was named after evening primrose. It is also yellow and has some medicinal uses which is apt for Prim who wants to be a healer.
It's worth noting that katniss is white but has a yellow center. It's a flower but also edible, making it a bit more functional than rue or primrose (although rue can be used as an herb) to someone like our Katniss who is looking for food always. (Aren't we all?)
There is also one other character who is a yellow flower that Katniss will never explicitly link with hope but has a symbolic function in the novels: buttercup.
Buttercup the Cat is Prim's guardian. He and Katniss never get along but I always thought it was because they were too similar, both prickly and overprotective of Prim. He also prefers the Everdeen's old house in the Seam, like Katniss does, over the house in Victor's Village.
Buttercup is also a survivor. He doesn't die when Katniss attempts to drown him. He makes it through the firebombing of District 12. He somehow makes it back from District 13 to appear in 12 at the end of Mockingjay. Compare this to what Katniss goes through in the novels, how often she escapes death and her own difficult, winding road back to the house in the Victor's Village.
Anyway. TLDR, there are a lot of flower names in THG. I haven't even gotten to Posy (a "posy" is a bouquet of flowers) or Snow's unnatural, genetically engineered roses that are in opposition to the wildflowers like rue and evening primrose.
#symbolism#katniss everdeen#primrose everdeen#rue#posy hawthorne#buttercup the cat#buttercup everdeen#dandelions#yellow
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Growing Primrose
read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/9NEFjSb
by SubeteAishite
I lock eyes with my older sister, a sixteen-year-old named Katniss whose gaze normally burns with a quiet intensity. Her facial expression changes from shell-shocked horror–the usual expression of anyone who had just been reaped for the Hunger Games–to pure anguish as my legs guide me past her, my hand waving in the air to catch the attention of the gaudy Capitol announcer on stage.
“I volunteer as tribute!” I repeat the words; I understand my decision.
My name is Primrose Everdeen. I’m twelve years old and was born in the Seam. I volunteered for the 74th Annual Hunger Games to protect my older sister. Now, I only have two weeks left to live.
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A rewrite of the Hunger Games in an alternate reality where Prim volunteered for Katniss. Could she light the spark of rebellion, too?
Words: 1449, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English
Fandoms: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Categories: Multi
Characters: Primrose Everdeen, Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Mellark, Effie Trinket, Haymitch Abernathy, Gale Hawthorne
Relationships: Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Rewrite, Primrose is in The Games, Katniss/Peeta is on the side, This is a Prim story, and Prim isn't getting any romance, Internal Monologue, Dystopia, Platonic Relationships, Matter of Life and Death, Character Death, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Study, Writing Exercise
read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/9NEFjSb
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Well, our Knabstruppers and their pregnancy has defintely not been a secret, but it's not exactly something we have talked about a lot either! This morning around 6am, when I got into the stable I found this little girl in Prada's stall! I have already named her EIEC Coco Chanel to follow the designer theme of her dam.
She is the first Knabstrupper (Sports horse) foal at Echo International, and she is such a cutie! She is very shy though, hiding under her mother's tail xD
She has probably been born some time after me giving the horses hay for the night. She seems clean though, so she was probably born around midnight.
Only a few hours later, we heard noise coming from Ultraviolet's stall (EIEC Ultraviolet). Yet another little girl! She is sired by our own EIEC Pax, and I have named her EIEC Primrose - Prim for short - after Katniss Everdeen's little sister from one of my favorite books: The Hunger Games.
She was quick to stand, quicker than Coco Chanel I imagine, though a little unsure on her feet. She is beautiful. I really wished for another blanket spots Knabstrupper, and that's what I got! Then again both her parents are blanket spots, so I guess there wasn't much luck involved.
As Coco still seemed very unsure of her surroundings, and more nervous than Prim, I decided that she would stay in the stall for today and join Prim and Ultraviolet in the pasture tomorrow. So I took the filly and her mother to one of our big pastures.
They seemed to enjoy going outside, even if I had to call up Ismael and his sister Neha to get the foal all the way to the pasture without any accidents. After all the foal wasn't used to the leadrope, and I didn't want to stress her, so I just kept Ultraviolet on lead and then baby Prim just followed under the stern and watchful eyes of Ismael and Neha.
I decided to kneel on the grass a little from the mare and baby. Ultraviolet is very used to me, so she came closer, and so did brave baby Prim! Soon after she sniffed my hands. I'm sure she will be a great show jumper when she grows up, as she is already so brave!
After a while mom Ultraviolet went to the back of the pasture, and began grassing. She was feeling completely safe with me intertaining the baby, while she ate.
Also our 'baby' Opaline HF has grown up! She is now 1.5 years old, and has been greying beautifully! She was a little confused that she wasn't brought to the pasture, and didn't understand why her friend Prada didn't answer from her stall, as she was of course busy with baby Coco.
Around midday (as two mares can now not be ridden) Neha brought out Pax (EIEC Pax) for a lesson in behaving. But Pax was being Pax as always.
"Yeeehaw!" Neha laughed as Pax bucked yet again. It seemed like he had a lot of energy today, so Neha just let him 'run it out'.
"Hold on Neha!" I told her, and shook my head as she seemed to be enjoying the ride. I swear sometimes she and Pax seems equally crazy!
#EIEC Coco Chanel#EIEC Ultraviolet#EIEC Pax#EIEC Primrose#narcisa foremann#echo international ec#the sims 3#the sims 3 pets#sims 3#sims 3 horses#EIEC Prada
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✧ ⸻ [ grace van patten, cis woman, she / her ] ; congratulations on surviving the parapet, cadet waverly dunbar, and welcome to the rider’s quadrant ! at twenty - five years old, you should know exactly what it takes to make it to graduation, especially being so warm and selfless. though, i do suppose your tendencies to be callow and paranoid may make it hard to survive until threshing. other cadets say you remind them of watercolor bruises blossoming against your fair skin from hours in sparring, weeping into your palms after your first kill, the stark contrast of floral scented shampoo and the metallic scent of blood, but we’ll have to see how true that is. remember: if you want a dragon — earn one.
I. BASICS .
full name. waverly rose dunbar.
age. twenty - five.
gender. cis woman.
pronouns. she / her.
current location. rider’s quadrant.
status. single ; unattached.
orientation. bisexual, biromantic.
siblings. two older brothers.
signet. not yet manifested.
dragon. not yet bonded.
allegiance. the rider’s quadrant.
II. APPEARANCE .
hair. golden hair that falls to her collarbones, typically worn in a french braid, a tight ponytail, or in loose waves.
eyes. the color of dark chocolate.
height. five feet six inches.
scars. none yet.
relics. none yet.
III. MISCELLANOUS.
position. first year. second wing, flame section, first squad member.
strengths. warm, selfless, approachable.
weaknesses. callow, paranoid, uncertain.
hogwarts house. hufflepuff.
alignment. lawful good.
zodiac sign. pisces.
media inspirations. violet sorrengail ( fourth wing ), beth greene ( the walking dead ), lexie grey ( greys anatomy ), dani clayton ( bly manor ), missandei ( game of thrones ), jennifer jareau ( criminal minds ), primrose everdeen ( thg ).
IV. BIOGRAPHY.
raised by a rider family, waverly always knew she was destined to be a rider. from a young age, she watched with envy as both her parents & both her older brothers experienced the inexplicable bond between a dragon & its rider & she always knew that that’s what she wanted. growing up, people often told her she should plan for something else instead -- she was tender-hearted, empathetic, & soft, & everyone insisted that those qualities wouldn’t make a good rider. in response, she simply held her head higher, shutting them all out & leaning on her family’s support to chase her own dreams. she didn’t spend her childhood training to be a rider, however. her interest in being a rider is one thousand percent about an insatiable admiration & need to appreciate a dragon up close & wanting to experience that bonding, & has literally nothing to do with the thrill, the stakes, the gore, or the power that comes with being a rider. all of those things are moreso the negatives in waverly’s brain, the things she has to ‘tough it out’ through in order to achieve her dreams of seeing the world through the clouds. for that reason, much to the quadrant’s dismay after her two stellar rider brothers have passed through, waverly isn’t much of a fighter & has continuously come out on the bottom in every way that counts so far in basgiath. she barely made it across the parapet, i imagine she was one of the last few, limbs trembling & collapsed once she got across... but she still made it ! where she lacks in brawn, she makes up for in dedication. she works hard in her classes to learn all she can about being a rider, & volunteers at every opportunity to take on more duties or more learning. she’s optimistic about it all, despite the fact that she’s literally.... getting & going to get the crap pummeled out of her & has a very slim chance of survival but tbh she thinks the chance of bonding with a dragon is worth it.
personality - wise, she’s like a ray of sunshine that doesn’t know when to stop. she’s like prim everdeen crying over that mean cat.... & she probably barfs at the things she sees at basgiath even more than violet did tbh... but she’s also captain america getting the shit kicked out of him & then standing up & being like ‘i could do this all day !’ even when it’s like baby no you really can’t.... she’s sensitive but hides it, both out of fear of being targeted by other cadets & bc fake it til you make it. in the same vein, she can be super naive bc she just genuinely wants to see the best in ppl, but is also a Paranoid Pisces so like. she’s in a constant dilemma & anxious quite a lot but yanno that’s how i like my muses : suffering < 3
V. WANTED CONNECTIONS.
other cadets who give a found family vibe~ people she feels... semi-safe around
the rhiannon to her violet, someone who wants to show her the ropes & help her not seem so helpless... or simply can’t stand to see her get her shit rocked lol
corruption moment... someone who is kind of like ‘grow up’. bad stuff happens. get used to it ! a little tough love if you will
someone super protective over her please please i will give my first born
ppl to kind of play with her feelings a little bit... make her your fiddle & PLAY HER
i’d LOVE a professor who is kind of helping her out a little more whether it’s bc they pity her or because they’re skeptical of whether she deserves to be here or not
anyone who doesn’t like her simply bc they think she doesn’t have what it takes ( she probably doesnt ) or because they just annoy each other... i want someone to bring out a meaner side to her
anything & everything else !
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Primrose Blossom
I wanted to write a story for Katniss’ birthday given that I’m barely a year into the fandom. I waited and waited for May 8 to write something, and this story went through a lot of different beginnings until I found this one that felt right. I wanted to write a senior!Peeta and senior!Katniss because I just thought of them growing old together -- like 70 or 80 years old. But this is a story for some other time. So, even though this story is a day late from May 8, cheers to you, my lovely Katniss Everdeen!
Belated happy birthday and happy mother’s day, my love!
….………………..
A story from the perspective of the primroses that Peeta planted in Katniss’ garden. Post-Mockingjay. Peeta and Katniss grow back together.
P.S. Suzanne Collins owns The Hunger Games Trilogy!
https://archiveofourown.org/works/38885724
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14078743/1/Primrose-Blossom
...............................
"You're back," the girl with dark matted hair says as she tumbles down the house, looking as if she wants to scream but coming up short.
"Dr. Aurelius wouldn't let me leave the Capitol until yesterday," the boy with curly golden hair answers. This morning, he dug my family and me out of the ground, disturbing my sleep and cutting some of my side roots.
"By the way, he said to tell you he can't keep pretending he's treating you forever. You have to pick up the phone," he adds and frowns slightly at the sight of the disheveled girl.
"What are you doing?" she asks defensively. She tries to push the hair out of her eyes, but it is no use because her hair is all clumped and oily.
The boy drinks her in before answering. "I went to the woods this morning and dug these up. For her," he says softly. "I thought we could plant them along the side of the house."
She studies my family and me, our roots wrapped in cloth and the soil secured by kitchen twine while we wait to be transplanted. We didn't have any say in our fate and could not protest because we had no thorns. I wished I could have drawn blood from the rough and scarred hands of the boy. Then again, he looked determined and somewhat hopeful as he was digging us out this dewy morning, and we couldn't help but relent and have him take us. He was careful and respectful, even thanking us as he wrapped us securely.
The girl doesn't say anything back after looking like she wants to viciously scream at the boy. Her face softens, and she gives him a nod, then she runs back inside the house, and I hear the door being locked. More sounds of fumbling and running upstairs follow then there is a loud smashing sound of glass. The boy winces every time he hears a thud from the house. The girl seems to be throwing things around and rearranging the furniture with haste.
I'm grateful though, that the boy continues his work and plants my family and me thoughtfully on the ground. He surrounds us with rich soil and drenches us with water, alleviating our drying roots and lifting our spirits. As I watch the boy return to his house and push his creaky wheelbarrow down the road, I fall asleep from the stress of being uprooted from the woods.
….…….
The boy waters us every morning, checking our leaves and hilling up the soil around our base to make sure we grow upright. He looks thin and pale, and there are dark circles on his face, but his eyes are like the sky in the woods -- impossibly blue and very clear.
Every morning, the girl rushes out with her bow and sheath of arrows on her back. I saw her before in the woods, she was gone for a long time, but I never forgot her face. Many years ago, she used to come with her father, then alone, then with a tall older friend. She wanders the woods a lot as if she belongs there, respectful and quiet, observing everything and drinking in the sounds.
An old lady comes to the house bringing a pot of stew every morning. I've never seen her before, but as she shakily walks towards the house with the young girl holding the edge of her skirt, I can't help but feel glad because the young girl always smiles at me. I think she wants to talk to me, but the old woman keeps her by her side all the time.
As my roots grow deeper and become stronger, I relish the quiet in this village. It's not the woods that I am used to, but it is still a serene place. The boy planted my family and me where we could receive morning sun and a shade at midday. He plucked out all the weeds around us, so we won't have any competition for nutrition. I can see everything from where I'm planted -- who goes into the house, walks by the road, where everyone lives. It's a nice shift from my usual environment, and I became more observant of my new habitat.
The boy brings two loaves of bread every morning to the girl's house, one of which always goes to the old lady and the young girl. I hear voices inside the kitchen, some friendly conversation between the boy and the old lady, but I never catch the voice of the girl with matted hair again. She seems very quiet and reserved. Nothing has changed, I suppose. She was like that too in the woods when she was much younger.
As the sky darkens, I hear a hiss on the porch behind me. I'm much too short to see above the wooden platform, but I am certain that there is a wild cat in the house. The girl with matted hair just came home, assisted by a man she calls Thom. In a few minutes, I hear the girl's raspy and sad voice.
"It was the waste of a trip. She's not here," the girl says, and I'm certain that she has gone delusional. The man Thom already left, and there was no one else in the house to talk to.
The cat hisses again then I realize that she is speaking with the scraggly feline.
"She's not here. You can hiss all you like. You won't find Prim." There's a pause, and then she continues. "Get out! Go away! There's nothing left for you here! She's not coming back! She's never ever coming back here again!"
It sounds like things are being thrown inside the house, and the cat hisses and meows as if hurt and abandoned.
"She's dead," I hear her say, and the sound of knees falling heavily on the floor follows. "She's dead, you stupid cat. She's dead."
The cat wails loudly as the girl sobs with despair. It's heartbreaking hearing them both cry. Feeling and receiving their energy as it dissipates around the village makes my leaves droop heavily towards the earth. Their weeping fills the darkness of the night until exhaustion overtakes them.
….…..
"Peeta," I learned, is the name of the boy with golden hair, and "Katniss" is the girl with the matted locks. There's a gruff, old man who visits every now and then, smelling like death with the stench of alcohol that I only recognize from fermenting berries in the woods.
The girl remains silent as ever, and the boy and the old man spend their afternoon playing a board game with some small banter. Sometimes the girl waters us, looking depressed or blank on most days. Today is an exception though, and there's a slight hint of a smile on her lips. It doesn't reach her eyes, but to me, she is already very lovely.
The boy comes to her side, and he kneels on the ground, plucking some stray weeds that have grown near our roots. He smiles at her softly, squinting as the sun hits his eyes, making his corn hair eyelashes translucent. Their companionable silence is refreshing, and I watch them work together amiably from where I am rooted.
….……
I wake up to the incessant honking and guttural noises of geese coming into the yard. They've been corralled in the gruff old man's house, but somehow they had escaped today. Seven of them litter the yard and are making a mess of things. Two are relieving themselves in the brick path, three are attacking the ground, looking for food, and two are nipping at my family's leaves. Being a plant, I have no way of escaping, so I succumb to my ill fate. A lot of leaves are already half plucked on the ground, and two more geese are coming my way to dig out my roots. I brace myself for imminent death.
"Haymitch!" the girl screams from the house, and I am thankful to see her stumble towards the yard with a broomstick. The geese are protesting and fighting back, squawking and flapping their wings wildly, but they're no match to her blazing fury. "Haymitch, get your geese out right now, or I swear I will shoot every one of them with my arrows!"
The old man, who I now know the name of, comes barreling down the yard with a bag of grains on his back. He calls his "pets" (I call them pests) with his deep voice and pats the bag of grains to signal feeding time. They seem to recognize him and honk their way toward him, screaming for food and leaving the mess they created in the yard.
"Hey, what's happening?" the golden boy suddenly chimes in, and he blushes profusely at seeing the girl. I guess the girl didn't realize her delicate presentation. She's practically flashing him with her skimpy night shorts and a threadbare old shirt. She might have forgotten to wear any underwear underneath it all too.
"It's his geese! They ruined the primroses …" she cries and falls down to the ground. I never knew we mattered so much to her.
The boy gives her his flannel robe and wraps it around her body as she shivers in anger. "It's all right, Katniss. We'll fix it together. I'll help you."
The girl nods and wipes her tears, sinking into the boy's chest as she looks at our half-eaten state.
….….
In the days that follow, the girl sets up a perimeter around the garden. She also spends more time lounging on the grass, watching the house across the yard intently for its fowl (and foul!) intruders. The old man, Haymitch, says that she looks ridiculous guarding a set of primroses with her bow and arrows, but she just scowls at him and gives him a death stare. I wish I could do the same.
The boy looks amused and supports the girl, saying that is just what she does. "She fiercely protects the ones she loves," he explains confidently. I knew the boy understood the girl very much.
I wish I could produce a bloom right now just for the two of them.
The boy brings out a blanket and lays it over the grass for her to sit on. She eyes him warily, but he shrugs his shoulders and goes back to his house to get a picnic basket. Splaying bread, fruits, and cheese, he invites her to eat as he busies himself with drawing the sky. He says he's sketching the sky, but he's really rendering her on paper instead. How very sneaky of him.
….….
The air grows colder as fall comes, and the shortened daylight brings in more and more nightmares for the girl. She's screaming and shouting three to four times every night, and the boy comes running from his house to comfort her while sporting his pajamas. He should have just moved in about a month ago, but he is much too scared to do it.
"I'm so tired, Peeta," she says as he holds her in his arms by the porch. I've grown a little taller now from all the compost the boy gives me, and I can see above the porch.
"I know … It's really hard, Katniss," he coos and rubs her arms, comforting her like he does every night.
"I just want it to stop, Peeta. Even just for one night," she says -- it sounds like a plea. I see the boy's heart yearning for her as he looks far into the darkness. "Just stay with me," the girl whispers.
The boy blinks back tears, but a few escape the corners of his eyes. This is not the first time they've had this conversation before, and conflict riddles his expression.
The boy always seems scared to live with her, as if there is a monster living in the house or something.
The girl tries to be strong, and she is, except during the night when nothing is within her control. She can fight off any enemy in the daytime, but the battle in the darkness is beyond her capacity somehow, and she's wearing thin from exhaustion. I didn't understand then how difficult sleep is for human beings.
A few weeks ago, I thought they would have changed their routine as the boy was staying in her house longer and longer, only leaving in the middle of the night to catch a few hours of sleep in his own house. But one day changed everything, and it was like they were back to square one.
It was a beautiful summer day, the boy and the girl were splayed on a blanket in the yard, busying themselves with the blades of grass and wildflowers around them. I was basking in the soft sun, storing its warmth and growing my stems and leaves out while I watch them.
The girl was weaving a crown of flowers while the boy fiddled with her hair, claiming that he was practicing his knots. I'm not sure what the knots were for, but the girl allowed him to do it. The scene before me looked very romantic with her head on his lap, and they were both gently grinning at what they were doing.
"This feels very familiar," the boy said out of the blue. He looked so happy and calm, the best I had seen him in a long time. "I wish I could freeze this moment, right here, right now, and live in it forever."
"You already said that to me before," she answered and tilted her head up to his direction, smiling charmingly at him. She looked content and peaceful, like the few plump robins that lingered in the apple tree in the yard.
"Yeah? I did?" he asked, looking curious and a tad bit sad. "I wish I could remember ..."
"It's okay, Peeta," she said after a pause. She then gestured for him to bring his head closer to her. He obliged naturally, their faces only a few inches from each other. I heard my family swoon at the sight of them almost kissing.
"There, you look very pretty now, Peeta," she laughed as she looked at him with the crown of flowers over his head. The boy's eyes were watery, and she cupped his cheek to pull him down for a kiss, but then something snapped, and the boy grabbed her wrist painfully. She yelped and cried out as she sat upright, her face twisting in surprise and pain.
"No!" the boys shouted, then he pushed her away so forcefully that she fell to the ground completely. Scrambling to his feet, he was able to take a few steps before he started convulsing and crouching with his head firmly planted on the ground. He was mumbling words incoherently, rocking himself back and forth and bunching his hair, almost pulling them out.
"Peeta, it's not real," the girl said unyieldingly as she ran towards him, but he held her off with his hand, gesturing for her to stay away and not to touch him. "Peeta, please …," she appeals, tears streaming down her face.
"No!" he snarled and pounded the ground with his fist. My roots felt the energy of his aggressiveness.
The girl cried and cried by the dirt path, pleading quietly to let her come close to him. She took a step towards him, but he bolted upright like an animal before stumbling again in the middle of the road. Just then, the old man, Haymitch, came out of his house with a thick, heavy blanket and covered the boy up from the bright sun. They stayed like that for a good two minutes, but it seemed like forever with how thick the anxiety was. Since then, the boy had kept his distance from the girl, only being alone with her when outside so he could run away easily if he needed to.
"I can't hurt you again, Katniss," the boy bitterly says. "I'm not well ..."
"You're just saying that," she replies strongly against his chest. "You won't hurt me. I know it."
"But I don't."
"You're hurting me more this way, Peeta," she says, then to the boy's surprise, the girl kisses him right on the lips. "Peeta, please … forgive yourself."
What could he possibly respond to that?
He kisses her temple to let her know that he's listening, but he does not give her an answer. Confusion, guilt, and anger pepper his face, but when he takes one good look at her crestfallen expression, everything dissipates, and compassion fills him again.
They stay like that for a long time, the girl embracing him while she sits on his lap and buries her head in his neck. Her right-hand goes up to the back of his head, gently caressing his hair as she begins to hum a lullaby. Everything falls silent, even the breeze comes to a standstill.
….….
She hunts, he bakes, and they write and draw on a big book together while out in the yard. They're farther out from me, staying under the shade of the crab apple tree. I see photos pasted on the paper and the boy painting faces from pure memory on parchment. One time, I saw the girl holding dried-out petals from another old book. It's familiar and looks like my own flower petals. I see strange bits of happiness in their eyes as they grow back together. It encourages my roots to grow deeper and my stems to grow stronger and more upright. I bask in the energy of their blossoming love for one another.
….….
Slowly as the harsh winter in this district comes, I begin to lose my leaves and retreat down to the soil. The boy and the girl cared for my family and me, covering us with mulch and constructing an evergreen bough over us. I'm grateful for the added protection because blizzards in this place can be devastating for a wild plant like me.
I wake up to the soft sun as winter passes and the ground warms up. I feel like stretching my leaves and stems and spreading my roots wider and deeper to feel the enlivened earth. Life is beginning again after the hard cold months, and I see that life has treated the boy and the girl well in my hibernation.
She looks radiant and well-rested, her cheeks and body have filled out some, and her hair is the most magnificent I have ever seen. Her eyes are still a stormy gray but no longer as sad and empty -- I see much hope in them now.
The boy has grown a scruff on his face, much like some of the hunters who ventured into the woods in my youth. He looks older with his light set of beard and mustache, partnered with his growing body that has served him well during winter. Every now and then, I would hear the tell-tale sound of wood being chopped and imagined it to be the golden boy preparing the house for his beloved.
"Why hello there, lovelies," he greets us with a smile that could contend with the bright sun. He no longer looks scared and has maybe found peace in himself.
The girl rolls her eyes behind him, smirking at the sight of him talking to us. I bask in the energy that they are radiating and get energized for the days ahead.
"Let's get them prepped for spring," the girl says and messes with the boy's head. Ah, they're touchy now. Winter really did them good, and I'm glad.
….….
It only takes a few weeks for my family and me to start producing flowers. With the care and love surrounding us, it's easy to fructify our tips and form flower buds. I'm sporting white flowers with a small yellow center, and my family has slight variations of purple, blue, orange, and pink. We are a mixed set growing up wild in the woods and now showcase a variety of colors for our new home.
"Okay, just one more step," the boy says to the girl as he guides her down the porch step. "Don't open your eyes, okay? We're almost there."
"Peeta, what is it that you want me to see?" she whines, and it's the cutest thing. She's wearing a light orange spring dress that reaches a few inches below her knees. Her scars have healed, and she seems more confident in her skin -- especially when around him.
"Okay, right here. Just one more step," the boy says, then he rubs her shoulders from behind, before shifting his palms over her hips. "Now, open your eyes."
"Oh my god, Peeta!" she gasps as she sees us in full bloom. I feel so grand and proud, and I hold my flowers high for her to see. She crouches down to the ground, not minding that her bare knees touch the soil. As she inhales our fresh scent, her lips quirk up, and her smile reaches her eyes fully. I admire how she is very at home with nature.
"I love them. They're so beautiful," the girl says as she touches us delicately with her slender fingers.
"As pretty and wonderful as Prim," the boy adds as he kneels beside her. "She will always be here with us through them."
"Thank you, Peeta," she whispers, then gives him a quick kiss on the lips. They settle on the grass, the girl leaning her body on his side and holding his cheek with her left hand. They just watch us and smile with the look of remembering a distant memory.
I once heard them talking about the girl's sister who had golden hair and big blue doe eyes -- how she loved to dance in front of the fireplace and feed her goat named Lady. She used to own Buttercup, the orange cat with a chipped ear that came home months ago.
Sometimes, Buttercup also comes here in front of us, curling up in the soil and rubbing his fur on our leaves. I wish I had known the girl's sister as she seemed like a really extraordinary human being.
…...
I am surprised to be cut from my stem and placed in a glass of water this spring morning. It didn't hurt when the boy did it, and it was nice moving around to a different place. My blossoms are relegated to three places -- the kitchen counter, the coffee table in front of the fireplace, and the bedroom upstairs.
It's interesting being in the kitchen, it's warmer than outside, and the smell of baking bread and simmering stew is very much new to me. The girl comes to me every now and then, taking a whiff of my scent and brushing my petals lightly. I know I keep saying this, but I just love her. She's a wood fairy from olden times.
I know that the boy bakes a lot, but I didn't grasp just how much work goes into baking bread. He seems to enjoy it though, and sometimes even hums or whistles to himself while he bakes. Today, he's baking a raisin and nut loaf with a pure glint in his eyes. Not that I have any comparison, but I never saw a man so happy to be kneading dough.
In the living room, the girl is pushing the coffee table a little farther away from the fireplace. She sweeps the floor quickly and then lays out a thick, soft carpet in front of the hearth. There's a permanent smile on her face, and she keeps touching her lips for some reason. She seems a little frazzled and excited, maybe even tingling out of her skin. I don't know what it is, but she seemed like electricity and fire combined.
The afternoon comes, and everything is quiet again. I hear the sound of the shower being turned off in the bedroom, and then the girl comes out in her robe and goes to the closet to pick out a dress. Her humming is infectious, and if I could only move, I would sway my petals along with her exquisite notes.
When she comes out of the wardrobe, she's wearing a simple all-white dress that reaches the middle of her calf. The fabric is light and flowy, following her movement elegantly like how a willow tree plays with the wind. Her hair is down, and she carefully sticks small wildflowers in her natural waves. Her lips are nude, colored slightly with the berries she picked in the backyard this morning. Like I said before, she is a wood fairy incarnate.
The living room is dimly lit with candles, and more primroses in clear drinking glasses fill the space. I see my family happily watching as the girl descends down the stairs while the boy never takes his eyes away from her face. He is beaming.
They settle before the fireplace, kneeling first and then sitting back as the only guest begins to sing. I didn't know that the old gruff, Haymitch, could hold a note, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear his low baritone as he sang a love song from old. I remember this song from a man who silences the birds in the woods a long, long time ago.
The old gruff brings out a set of gold rings from his pocket, and I'm impressed with how clean and presentable he looks tonight. He hands the rings, wrapped in a dainty white handkerchief, to the boy and then sits on the armchair by the corner of the room. He looks merry and proud.
"Katniss Everdeen, I give you my heart, my life, and my future," the boy starts while holding the girl's hands with so much devotion. "You have me fully since I was just five years old and will have my full attention until the day that I die. My mind might have forgotten you briefly, but my heart never forgot how much I love you. Thank you for loving me unconditionally, for protecting me, and for never giving up on me despite everything. I promise to cherish you, make you happy, serve you, and stay by your side for as long as I live. Always."
He shakily slides the simple gold band on her ring finger and kisses her hand after. A soft chuckle comes out of his lips, breaking his nervousness and helping him breathe. He was like an overripe strawberry.
Now it's the girl's turn.
"Peeta Mellark," she starts, and immediately her voice hitches. The boy squeezes her hand right away, fighting back tears as he looks at her endearingly. "Peeta Mellark, my boy with the bread. I give you my heart, my life, and my future. You saved my family and me on that unfortunate rainy day and have been saving me ever since. I know you said this to me before, but you also don't know the effect you have. I didn't realize that I loved you then, but now, after everything, I know surely that I love you with all my heart." The boy smiles as she says this, and tears just escape the corners of his eyes. "Thank you for being patient with me and affirming my strength. Most importantly, thank you for coming back to me from the dark depths of your mind. I have always known that you have a good heart, and I'm honored that you are giving it to me now. I promise to protect you and honor you, to love you because you deserve every ounce of happiness in this world. You have heart and my love. Always."
With sure hands, the girl slips the wedding band on his finger and places his palm over her heart for him to feel her strong heartbeat. Together, they rise from their sitting position, and their lips meet right in the middle of the hearth while kneeling.
"Ehem … mmmm …," the old gruff interjects. "You're forgetting the bread, kids. This is a toasting ..."
The boy and the girl shyly retreat from each other, settling back down on the carpet. They shoot each other a mischievous look and proceed to do their part. The boy skillfully cuts two squares from the raisin and nut loaf, and the girl skewers them at the end of two metal brochettes. Holding each other's hands, they toast the bread together in the all-consuming fire. The boy cools the bread first with his breath and places it near the girl's mouth for her to bite into. She smiles as she chews, a tear escaping her eye as she has a mesmerizing look on her face. They repeat and toast the other piece of bread, the girl keeping it in the fire longer than the boy.
"I'm the girl on fire," she says with a soft laugh. She blows out the bread with her breath, her pink lips almost touching it. She tells him to open wide, and she pops the piece easily into his mouth. He chews it with vigor, winking at her playfully. It's great to see them having fun.
They both turn to the man Haymitch who is smirking at both of them. "What are you waiting for? A go signal? Just kiss already so I can eat some cake!" the man announces, then stands up to go to the kitchen while rubbing his gray beard.
As much as he wanted to hide it, I saw the contented look on his face. He's elated for them, and his love for them is spilling out of his ears.
They eat cake and tell stories, and then the old gruff gives them a small wooden box with his gift inside it. He tells them to open it later when he's out, then proceeds to cut another slice of cake. As he leaves, he shoots them a knowing look and then picks up one of my family from a water glass, twirling it with his fingers.
"Make sure you close the windows, kids!" he shouts, then shuts the door behind him. His laughter reverberates all over the village, and he sings like a drunken man outside.
The boy kisses the girl passionately, then lifts her up in his arms and bounds for the stairs. She squeaks a little and laughs jovially while hanging on his shoulders.
"Wait, Haymitch's gift!" the girl says with glee. The boy grabs the wooden box from the couch and gives it to the girl for her to open. I wish I had seen what's inside because there's a mutual blush on their faces that rivals even the reddest of flowers.
- The End -
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ᴡʜᴏ: PRUDENCE WARREN & PRIMROSE EVERDEEN ( @damagedflames )
ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ: PRESIDENT SNOW'S MANSION
ᴡʜᴇɴ: THE TRIBUTE BALL
Growing up, Prue had always loved dancing. One of the few things her parents had taken with them when they fled District Twelve was an old music box. When she was a baby, they'd played it, over and over again, to get her to go to sleep. As she grew older, her parents would play it and they would all sing and dance together in their tiny living room. She kept it, after she lost her parents. But she hasn't played it since.
Tonight, Prue doesn't feel much like dancing. She's much too on-edge for that – mind whirring over all the different ways their little plot could go wrong. The ways that she and her squad would be punished if it did. It was such an odd juxtaposition – watching countless carefree individuals dancing without a care, all the while knowing that several lives could depend on the events of the next several hours.
Prue is only pulled from her thoughts when a figure clouds her vision. She blinks a couple of times, before a genuine smile forms on her face at the sight of PRIMROSE EVERDEEN. "Prim," She greets, "Sorry, I... I almost didn't see you there."
#with. primrose#prudence & primrose 002#where. snow mansion#thread. prudence#event 002#when. pre games
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CLOSED STARTER | @damagedflames
on days like this, when everyone seems preoccupied with training and making sure they’re as prepared as they can possibly be before the games begin, it left maxim feeling useless. there was only so much one could do in the tribute center when they weren’t working, and maxim didn’t have to be on air until later that night — meanwhile, livinia prepares her arena, and augustus prepares their tributes. he was no more than just a sponsor at this point, wandering from the bar down to the training room to watch. that became old relatively quickly; all he had to do was think of how all of the people he was looking at would be dead except one of them soon. so he wanders into the medical part of the training center in search of a certain everdeen in particular, but this is much worse than the training room. children sit around with minor cuts and wounds as if in mere weeks the capitol wouldn’t be disposing of their bodies.
the thought frightens him; he’d loved the games growing up. watched them with a fervor, donated his money to sponsor many. maxim tries not to think about why this year is different, how it’s been different since the moment he’d condemned himself on live television—
he turns to leave, figures he can find her later, but is stopped nearly as soon as he takes one foot out of the door. of course she’d be entering just as he begins to leave, after a moment of spiraling no less. “primrose,” maxim let’s that charming cheshire grin form on his lips — no sign at all of any traitorous thoughts. he’d long since perfected how easy it is to raise that mask. “i was just looking for you. i just had a question — actually, are you busy right now?” he asks, as if he hadn’t come to bother her while she works. he glances over his shoulder and then back down to her. “i’d like to get your opinion on something, if you don’t mind.”
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willa fitzgerald . thirty-three . she/her ➶ i recognise that face ! that’s posy hawthorne , the thirty three year old teacher & trainee healer from district twelve . they’re lucky to have escaped to district thirteen during the 94th games, and have been here long enough to gain a reputation for being so stolid & somber .
┊ ➶ ｡˚ ° 𝑩𝑨𝑺𝑰𝑪𝑺
𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 … posy hawthorne
𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 … po ( preferred ), popo (exclusively allowed to be used by brothers only )
𝗮𝗴𝗲 … thirty-three
𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 … cis woman
𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘀 … she / her
𝘀𝗲𝘅𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 … bisexual
˚ · • . 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐬 ...
— (+) stolid, tough, soft-hearted, courageous, observant
(-) somber, harsh, clinical, unforgiving, dishonest
˚ · • . 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 before the capitol ...
— circumstances for the hawthorne family meant that posy took on a maternal role in her home very young. She didn’t have a lot to remember or say about her dad, she got used to that because she had to. Her mom crawled inside her own mind after losing two husbands, posy was old enough to recognize she had to step up, in a different way from how gale had to but that was just it : they both had to. An observant kid, she was able to pick up rudimentary skills that became necessary for them to survive. Before her mom became a ghost, a shadow at best, she’d learned how to make soups and stews out of pretty much anything. In school she learned to read as quickly as she could, knowing her time there would be limited. She made friends in the hob and asked people questions she felt would help her help her family, like where certain seeds might grow when they thought she was wasting money she didn’t have to buy the seeds.
With help posy planted a secret garden, all it grew was potatoes but the staple was enough to keep them all fed most of the time. When gale and katniss started hunting, Posy figured out how to skin and clean the animals, how to identify the good bits, how to cook them and fill bowls evenly. Posy planted a few herbs when she could, not a lot could grow in twelve but she gave what she could to katniss and primrose. In exchange for the herbs mrs. everdeen taught posy some basic first aid. Posy was grateful to the everdeens, but even though she knew gale trusted them entirely posy had never been very good at trusting anyone but flesh and blood.
Posy managed to stay in school longer than most of her peers, she was smart enough to understand more complicated concepts and her teacher gave her as many lessons as possible until she ran out. Posy was fourteen, she asked to teach the younger kids and the job stuck until the day she ran from district twelve.
Though she had never confided in anyone except gale, posy had dreams of a better life. She was wary of romantic entanglements after seeing what the loss of their partner had done to her mother and to mrs. everdeen. The probability of loss was much too high in district 12 to risk it, and she’d lived the life of a woman with young children to look after and keep safe and fed. Children who had no future, no prospects, no hope. Maybe posy buried her desire for her own family in the dirt with the potatoes, maybe it leaked out of her over the years of struggle and starvation and fear, maybe maybe maybe ….
When gale first whispered of revolution, Posy was immediately on board, no questions asked because in her sharp mind she knew that change required too much and she was willing to give all of it because nothing could possibly be worse than the hell she’d spent her entire life living.
˚ · • . 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 after the capitol ...
— once posy got to thirteen she saw to it that her younger brothers were taken care of before she accepted any care herself. Once they got settled in their spaces she began to worry about gale and couldn’t settle down until he arrived safe. After a few days posy decided she needed to make herself useful, she’d always been driven to help even if she wasn’t the warmest of people. It was ironic really, she was different with the children, the young ones that needed a kind word. But with everyone else she revealed nothing. There were not a lot of children in thirteen and it was tragic learning why, and her brothers were adults even if she still saw them as kids.
Thirteen had no need for a teacher, not yet so she had to pursue her only other real skill set. Mrs. everdeen had taught her when posy had had the time to help, now she asked to be trained as a healer in earnest. They’d started a war, there would be a need for medics and healers and she had a good foundation. They agreed to train her and she learned fast, she had to and she’d always been so smart. Seeing the soldiers and innocents wasn’t difficult for posy, she had a thick skin and she wasn’t a stranger to adversity, pain, injury, blood. She was a good fit and she enjoyed being close to primrose and mrs.everdeen again. Life wasn’t necessarily easier, but it was simpler somehow and posy could accept that.
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Book pages project - Hunger Games
Collins, Suzanne. Hunger Games. Scholastic, 2008.
The book, Hunger Games, written by Suzanne Collins, takes place in a post-apocalyptic, dystopian future ruled by a tyrannical government sometime in the future. In the nation of Panem, most likely located in what used to be North America, there are twelve districts, with district one being the wealthiest and district twelve being the poorest, which are all ruled by the rich tyrants in the capitol. Back in the beginning of Panem, there used to be thirteen districts, however, when the districts rebelled against the capitol, the government launched a nuke and wiped-out district thirteen, forcing a surrender of all districts. As punishment, each year every district must forfeit two candidates, a boy and girl from the ages of twelve to seventeen, to participate in what’s known as the Hunger Games. Every time a candidate put their name in the jar for a possible draw, they’re family got more food so the more food someone’s family got, the more likely their child would be chosen, hence called the Hunger Games. During the Hunger Games, all the participants would be paraded around the capitol, dressed in luxurious clothing, and interviewed. After the week of interviews and tv programs, the participants are then dropped into a large arena, usually themed to some kind of natural environment, where the participants must survive the elements and each other, battling to the death until one last survivor is standing. Katniss Everdeen, a sixteen-year-old, from district twelve illegally hunts daily to provide food for her family and district when suddenly on Reaping day, the day the participants are randomly picked from the pool of candidates, her little sister, Primrose Everdeen, is picked from the names. In a desperate attempt to save her sister from the horror of the games, Katniss volunteers herself for the games in Primrose’s place. Along with this, Katniss’ secret admirer, Peeta Mellark, is also picked for the games. Katniss and Peeta must now work together as an unlikely pair in order to survive the brutality of the games, fending off both the dangers of the wilderness and the other blood thirsty participants.
Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins, is an incredible story of survival as Katniss must not only survive the Hunger Games and tyrannical government she lives under, however, she must also keep her sister safe. This book constantly kept me on the edge of my seat as the constant threats and challenges Katniss would face would be more strange and intense than the last. From other murderous and psychotic participants, to hallucinogenic super bees, to even mutant hyena-like creatures, there was no end to the dangers that would surround our beloved main character. The relationship between Katniss and Peeta was also quite interesting as their relationship kept changing and growing throughout the book, however, each saw each other as something else, Peeta constantly seeing Katniss as a love interest to keep safe and Katniss seeing Peeta as a key to survival, and eventually, a friend.
This book very much relates to young adults, especially siblings, as there is a constant theme of family throughout the book. Throughout the novel, Katniss is always trying her best to protect her younger sibling, Primrose. Older siblings, especially in more dangerous and abusive households, can definitely relate to this book as they, just like Katniss, constantly do what they can to protect their younger siblings. Many older siblings in these households have very similar stories of taking punishments and taking the abuse in order to keep their younger siblings sheltered and safe, away from the danger and harm.
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My thoughts while reading The ballad of song birds and Snakes...
( I’ll be refering Coriolanus to Snow in this because I am not about to write that name who know how many times) ( Please note Many many spoilers ahead)
How do I say these names... Flips through the book yeah I’m screwed..
Trigis is Snow’s Older Cousin Didn’t see that coming
What’s this... Am I actually Feeling sorry and bad for snow... ( lets see how long this lasts for)
Point 2 seconds a little upset you have to mentor Lucy gray from District 12 then your over it once she shows her vaule...
Lucy Gray wow you sure know how to make an entrence. I like you...
Is she the first winner from District 12?
Did that really happen...
Roses on the roof really...
Okay that was kinda sweet ( showing up to the train station with the rose)
Wait what it’s not the luxury that is seen in the other books.They are treated like well zoo animals. anywhere outside of the zoo ( before a certain point they are in handcuffs also they are literally all in the same cage at the zoo and people can visit them too) ( Not fed/ mot trained basically they go into the arena as they look and wear the same clothes too) (( I am doing this in one big point so then I don’t do like 50 points on this)
No wonder there is a law “No fighting with the other tributes before the games start”
Who the actual **** is this Dean Guy...
Okay thats sweet Snow is actually trying to make Lucy Stand a chance.... Whats this Snow is actual kinda sweet what are you doing to me..
Sejanus Is feeding them too...
Okay the Picnic was kinda sweet..
He knows Marcus... Oh wait I forgot hes from District 2
Well that escalated Quickly...
How didn’t these games get cancled... I said this to myself about 10 times...
Okay you did what to that girl because she told a lie...
Dr Gaul I have so many questions but frankly I am scared for your answer..
Okay Kids lets go on a field trip where you will die in a few days..
What is this arena...
Boom....
How is this guy on the loose...
Then I realized the games haven’t even started yet...
About the public humlationn really you treated them bad enough... but now the dead... ughhh
Okay Snow is being sweet again. Why am I blushing..
Okay I am convinced this Lucy Gray is related to Katniss somehow...
SUGAR COOKIES PEETA MELLARK....
Okay that was sweet for Trigis to help out for the interview cleaning her dress and making sure lucy was washed up a bit...
Is it that hard to find a gutair....
It’s not over until the Mockingjay sings...
Lucy Grays Interview wow.. BRAVO BRAVO..
Wait a second. Snow you didn’t just say that You own Lucy Gray.... Just because her interview was amazing... and she’s a bigger shot then you... Takes a sip of a drink... Well I should of seen this coming..
Okay its okay to let Lucy Gray cheat in the games But when Katniss pulls out those berries its like oh hell no...
Now I see why they check the Tokens from home befroe they are approved for the arena..
She really kissed you and we were about to whitness a makeout session... ( I almost yelled get a room)
Now the games are gonna beggin actually I was like is this a false start..
Oh its Happening...
Whats the point of throwing Marcus pretty much dead in like that...
Who is Lucky Flickerman and this guy with the camera in there faces...
What in the actual were those Parachute gifts...
Guess there are no trackers on them...
How in the hell. Did Sejanus get in the arena... Why are you making Snow go and get him... Grow some and get in there your self... I just defended Snow whats wrong with me...
Snow actually Killed a tribute... what the....
Why is guy from 11 Making a morgue....
Laughing a little when other tributes grab the gifts
Oh a little Jealous of Lucy Gray and her District partner
Okay did I really just read the words STAR CROSSED LOVERS.. your killing me here..
OH wait.... Okay that was kinda sweet.. What the mentor for the male of District 12 did to save Lucy...
Well that Alliance is over...
Rat Poison....
District 11 your no fool...
So let me get this you can only send gifts if you can see them where the hell are all the cameras...
Really messing with the snakes so they don’t attack Lucy... ugh... so you can win the prize to pay your way... Pops another bottle
Lucy Gray looks like this snake whisper....
This morgue is weird...
I like my town with a little drop of Poison...
How the hell did she Poison that pond...
Well Lucy gray is the winner... ( As expected..)
Oh shit now Snow is in trouble...
And how in the hell he got approved to be a peacekeepr in district 12...
Okay it is kinda sweet he is going after someone he loves...
Snow one step in District 12.. Oh my god air nature get me outta here... Me rolls eyes....
Thank god Sejanus is here.
Are you are you coming to the tree...
Snow sees one Mockingjay and is like Oh hell no... Me Katniss Everdeen ....
Maybe once he sees Lucy he will change
The only Days free is Sunday ....
The Hob really...
trading Sejanus Ma’s goods...
Hmmm they are kinda looking like the peacekeepers from 12 around Katniss’s time... Kinda chill..
Okay Maude Ivory shes cute.. The Covey Love them..
When you think oh they are finally going to meet face to face again Bam... Billy Tate and Mayfair Lipp ruin it.. ‘
You really went to the bakery... HELLO DARKNESS MY OLD FRIEND..
During this point I thought Snow you have seen how food doesn’t come by really good here....WHY HAVEN’T YOU FED THEM BETTER IN THE 65 DAMN YEARS.. .
Really from the seam... ( Starts to make a list of every possbile place that Belongs to Katniss Everdeen)
Not only does Snow Find Lucy Gray in the medow ( Deep in the meadow) But with a goat too... ( adds it to my list) and shes Sing the song she wrote the hanging tree... adds to my list....
And now they start making out/ Which basically almost ends up in make out session every single time they meet up.. ( Now i was okay with this since I am sucker for a love story)
Did Lucy Live in the same house as Katniss did....
Snow also realized real fast how the Districts don’t watch the games too much...
Billy whats his last name and Sejanus hmmm Hiding a map but wait Snow saw it... That could of happened smoother...
Snow has this plan to Kill the mockingjay.... ( Sweetheart that didn’t work 65 years later)....
They go to the lake in the woods on a sunday no less... damn 3 things to add oh my god Katniss everdeen list...
Snow literally 2 seconds into the woods oh hell no... ROLLS EYES...
Now your swimming in the lake and in the “house” Keeps writing down)... and the Deep in the meadow song is sung... I am going to need a bigger piece of paper..
Finds Katniss plants... now at this point i am not surprised...
Gets approval to Kill the Mockingjays because they care me BIG WOOF....
Trapping the jabberjays... why is snow so interested... Oh shit the scientist knows me..
Sees Lucy again at singing at the hobb but he has a little before the show if you know what I mean.. then he notices Sejanus sneaks out ( which he clames he was going to the bathroom... which was a lie)
Maude Ivory is Wearing a buttercup dress... whats next Primrose is gonna make an apperence...
Snow really looking threw Sejanus stuff... ( I was so like hes gonna take the money and run)
Sejanus oh my dear Sejanus He played you like a fool ... He recorderd the whole damn thing... at least he cannot get worse then that... your kinda like the idiot in those movies that lays out the whole evil plot to someone to only 10 seconds later get caught for it....
What the actual BEEEP happened in that shed.. Please let this be the first and last gun Snow ever gets his hands on...
The fact that Maude Ivory found the bodies is not okay...
The gossip at the BASE is gold..
At least snow felt Guilt for his killings...
are you are you coming to the tree
Well Sejanus Sorry to see you go..
Now a little make out session at the commarders party when the Covey sings... She really wrote a song for him okay thats kinda sweet..
Now Lucy asks Snow to run away with her.... ( Writes this down) And he says yes... he literally didn’t make it five miles... but then he found out he passed a test the day of but attemps to run away with Lucy... but....
Before this tho Snow sends all of Sejanus Money to trigis ( oh yeah i forgot to add basically they are loosing there place)
Now in the Woods...
5 seconds in snow is like oh hell no....
Lucy Figures out that Snow is the reason Sejanus is dead...
Lucy says shes gonna get katniss plants and then she get the hell outta there this is after Snow finds the murder wepons...
Snow gets bitten by a snake... ( Sips wine)
Who in the hell Let Coriolanus Snow touch a gun... he is shooting left and right...
Lucy Grey GAME ON.... ARE YOU ARE YOU COMING TO THE TREE.... and then bam gone...
My reaction to those events was what the actual hell did i read there.. Oh it gets better...
So snow makes it back thinking hes gonna die from a non poisnous snake bite... and hes outta district 12.. But back to the captiol to where Dr Gaul said you passed the test...
Now here is the part I literally almost threw my book...
When Snow used Sejanus Parents to his full advantage... never telling them oh he is the reason there one and only son is dead.. and Basically the parents “Adopt snow..” pay for his schooling now, makes sure he is well fed and dressed..” I was beyond pissed at this point...
So now my last point Snow said the games must go on which duhh ( since we meet Katniss everdeen ) and that they will be better and everyone must watch... and more twists and turns in it...
#the ballad of songbirds and snakes#ballad of songbirds and snakes#ballad of songbirds and snakes spoilers#tbosas spoilers#tbosas#bbs#bosas spoilers#bosas#lucy gray baird#coriolanus snow#sejanus#spoilers#my reaction#sorry not sorry
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Sunset on Grass
Written by: @alliswell21
Prompt 67: Her parents said that it was just a childhood crush and that she will outgrow it. But why does her heart flutters. When she’s finally old enough to get a job, she immediately gets a part time job to be close to him. Will is pursue her love against people’s negative views because he’s so much older than her. Or go for it and make him fall in love with her. Age Gap Older!Peeta. [submitted by @animekpopxx]
Rated M: for later chapters/ this particular one is actually G.
Tags: Age Difference- Peeta is 19 years older than Katniss, but there won’t be any romance until she’s of age, so I might as well tag this as Slow Burn. Time Jump. Mr Everdeen is alive in this one, which makes Katniss OOC. Tags will update according to chapter posted.
Unbetaed. All mistakes are mine. This chapter closed at around 4200 words. Happy reading.
Thank you to @javistg and @xerxia31 for once again hosting Our Beloved Exchange. You guys are the best!!!
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CHAPTER ONE:
It was a very cold day; Mama made us wear hats and gloves and clunky snow boots, but the worst offender in my 8 year old opinion, was the fact she forced me to wear a fleece over my long sleeve shirt with the sparkly pink hearts, and then a heavy winter coat to top it all, covering my favorite outfit that happened to be perfectly apt for the month of February… who had time to worry about layering for the weather, when Valentine’s Day gave us the perfect excuse to wear mushy, pink, glittery hearts in public?!
Prim had just turned four recently, and Daddy decided she was finally old enough to sit through a movie at the theater with us ‘grown ups’ like a big girl. Normally, he would’ve let Prim pick the movie, since it was her first time joining us, but when we got to the theater, I begged to see Bridge to Terabithia, because all the girls in my class had a crush on the main character actor, some Josh Hutcher-something or another, and I really wanted to see what the fuss was about with the boy.
Well, none of my little girlfriends bothered to tell me the movie was so darned sad!
Prim wailed and sobbed despite not really understanding what happened in the story. All she knew was that Mama sniffled and dabbed at the corner of her blue eyes with a wadded-up napkin, and that was enough for her to let her tears fall freely, clinging to Daddy’s neck until hiccups raked her tiny frame.
At the end of the movie, Mama’s eyes were red rimmed but she at least was done sniffling. Daddy and I just sat there stoically, like the hardened leaders of our small clan, we were… if my lips trembled, it had nothing to do with the sap fest we just endured.
Daddy sighed, “Some movies should come with disclaimers.” He grumbled, adjusting Prim on his hip while pulling open the exit door.
“I thought it was great. The young actors were marvelous. Such range of emotion…” Mama gushed, before wiping the corner of her eye daintily. “I’d recommend it to other people, personally.”
Daddy gave her a look, and then Mama amended, “With a warning for grief and depression.” Her lips formed a thin line, but Daddy seemed satisfied, so we walked into the frigid February afternoon and winced in unison as soon as the cold hit our faces.
Prim was still intermittently sobbing.
“Primrose, honey, will a treat help you cheer up some?” Daddy asked quietly, tenderly caressing her cheek.
My baby sister nodded, her pitiful big o’ blue eyes shining with unshed tears.
“Let’s get you a nice treat then. Let’s take advantage of those neatly shoveled sidewalks our tax money afforded us.” Said Daddy smiling sweetly, his gray eyes twinkling.
We crossed the street and kept on going until we reached the square a block away and then hesitated for a second in front of the ice cream parlor, finally settling for the quaint little bakery two doors down.
Immediately, my cheeks warmed up and I tried to walk with my back a little straighter, just in case a certain baker boy was working that day. My heart rattled against my ribs and I tried real hard to keep my eyes up, but as usual, chickened out last minute and all I could see was the ground.
Daddy walked in making the bell above the entrance chimed cheerfully; he held the door open so Mama and I could scoot into the building. We all stood just inside the door, taking a collective sigh of relief at the warmth and inviting aromas of the bakery: Yeast, sugar and freshly brewed coffee mingled in the air, welcoming.
“Afternoon Everdeens!” Called a deep, velvety and familiar voice from somewhere ahead. “Come on in and make yourselves at home, please!” Mister Peeta smiled, like us, walking into his family’s shop was the highlight of his day.
It surely was mine, of course; not that anyone would’ve been able to tell just by how gun-shy I acted, except from my parents that is.
They knew alright.
They knew all about my crush on the young baker, and at least Mama thought it was cute. Daddy wasn’t too comfortable acknowledging it, so he usually rolled his eyes at Mama about it.
But who wouldn’t have a thing for mister Peeta, really? He was nice, polite, and handsome, with a soft looking face and bright blue eyes, always smiling, and wavy blond hair that curled under the many baseball caps he wore (currently, he donned one with the Mellark’s logo on the front.). He was also strong… or at least I figured he had to be, since he was school wrestling champion and all. I hadn’t witnessed it myself of course, mister Peeta and my folks were ancient compared to me, but I grew up hearing the stories.
Mama and Daddy had been high school sweethearts who’d been in the same grade as mister Rye— mister Peeta’s older brother— so they knew the Mellark brothers some. Daddy said Mr. Peeta was the pride of the town as a teenager, since he became State Wrestling champion in his senior year of high school, a full two years after my folks graduated Panem
high.
“How are you doing, Peeta?” Said Daddy reaching a hand over the counter to shake the baker’s.
Mama waved and smiled, offering her own little “Hello, Peeta.” Then nudged me to do the same, and my eyes about popped out of my sockets when the baker smiled and winked one of his bright, blue eyes at me.
“I heard you’re leaving for Europe soon?” Asked Daddy.
Mister Peeta smiled widely, “Yes! Got accepted to study pastistry at a prestigious school in France. I can’t wait.” His excitement was contagious.
“That’s great, Peeta!” Interjected my mama. “I bet your folks are pleased. The bakery will boom with everything you’ll bring back with that training.”
Mister Peeta nodded, and though he was still smiling, he didn’t look happy. “Full scholarship ride, and I came up with my own ticket and expenses money from a year’s worth of savings. My mother is really pleased.”
For some reason, it didn’t sound like Mrs Mellark was truly pleased. Not for the first time, I thought adults could be so weird when they talked, not saying what they truly meant.
Still, Mama and Daddy offered congratulations again and I felt my stomach knot when Mister Peeta spoke again, and for once my eyes were glued to his kind face.
“Enough about me. Y’all came in right on time,” Mister Peeta clapped his enormous hands once, “I just pulled a tray of cheese buns out of the oven, and sat them to cool on a rack in the back. Let me go grab y’all some. I heard cheese buns are Miss Katniss’ favorites!”
I almost choked at that, and turned my head owlishly to glare at my parents, wondering who’d spilled my secrets behind my back to the handsomest man ever.
Mama was already sitting at a table; she was covering her smile behind the gloves she just pulled off her hands, while Daddy rolled his eyes slightly before sliding into the bench with Prim still wrapped around him like a baby Koala.
So Mama then. She tattled on me.
Traitor!
At Daddy’s behest, I came and sat next to him; Prim on his lap, and all of our coats in the space next to Mama on the opposite side of the half booth.
Mister Peeta came back with a tray bearing hot chocolate in white mugs engraved with ‘Mellark’s’, and a dish piled high with pastries. He placed four small plates in front of each of us, and gifted us with one more of his wide, welcoming grins.
“Tuck in, Everdeens! Enjoy!” The bell above the door chimed with more customers, but right before he left, mr. Peeta leaned closer to me and suggested, “Dip your bread in the chocolate. Is my favorite snack on cold days like today.” He winked again and I almost fainted.
He truly was the handsomest man ever!
Mama’s smile just widened. She tried to hide it behind her cup of cocoa though, but Daddy let out a noise, like a grudgingly amused grunt of sorts.
“Lily,” He warned halfheartedly.
Mama looked up at him, wide, blue eyes innocently. “What?” She mumbled.
“Stop teasing.” He said, sinking his straight teeth into his cheese bun. “She’s too young for crushes. Even on bakers that make amazing cookies and cheese buns. Ain’t that right, Catkin?” Daddy looked at me, arching one bushy eyebrow.
I scowled and turned my nose up at the lot of them before tearing chunks of my bun and dunking them in my hot chocolate. At the first bite, I had to admit, the baker was onto something!
“I don’t know what y’all are yapping about,” I said haughtily.
“There you go,” said Daddy grinning smugly at Mama, “That’s my girl!”
Mama rolled her eyes and waved us off. “Oh well, it’s just puppy love. She’ll grow out of it soon enough, especially when he’s away in Paris and out of sight.”
I chewed on my chocolate infused cheese bun, and my eyes lifted to watch mister Peeta bagging a customer’s order, taking payment with a grateful smile.
My heart drummed harshly in my chest.
I had no idea what the love of puppies had to do with anything, but I found it hard to believe the strange feeling of bubbles popping in my tummy would go away any time soon, even if I didn’t see the baker ever again.
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My 16th birthday brought me a set of wheels, in the form of my daddy’s ancient but still reliable pick-up truck. But with the wheels, came Daddy’s caveats.
“Young lady, if you want to be driving around town, here are the rules,” he stated, “You gotta drive your sister to and from school. No boys—“
“Or girls!” Interjected Mama, passing to the couch with a bowl of popcorn in hand.
“Or girls,” Daddy continued glaring at Mama, “Unless Mama or I are in the truck with y’all.”
That one earned him a big groan from me, not that I’d planned on having friends ride with me places; after all, Gale had been driving his daddy’s old Jeep for the last two years, and Madge just got a new Volkswagen Beetle for her birthday, despite having failed her driving tests… twice! So we all had our own transportation, thank you very much.
“And, you are to keep the tank of the truck at least half full at all times.”
“Alright. That’s cool—“ I started, but was swiftly interrupted.
“What your daddy means is, Sweet pea, you are responsible for your own gas. We won’t pay for it, unless it’s an emergency.” Said Mama delicately, her eyes shifting to Daddy’s for support, which he gave in a curt nod of his graying head.
“Wait… what?” I stared at them in turn. “You mean I need to come up with my own gas money?” I asked just to clarify. “Even while having to chauffeur Prim around, like I’m a courtesy shuttle driver?”
“Lily, our daughter is a genius!” Said Daddy with his goofy dad smirk, “Haven’t I said so a million times before?”
Mama giggled, “You sure have, Dear. Our Katniss is one bonafide genius!”
Truth be told, the prospect of having spending money of my own was actually exciting for me. We lived a decent life, not luxurious like the Undersee’s, or as tight as the Hawthorne’s, but comfortable enough to always have a pocketful of allowance dough; but having my actual money, without having to ask for it or justify why I needed it, was very appealing to me.
I still groaned at my folks for their exuberance. I didn’t mind working hard; I’ve always helped Daddy doing house work around our place, and never complained about the daily chores imposed by Mama growing up; having an honest to God paying job sounded kind of… liberating. Like I was an adult, instead of a kid.
“You should try the shops in town,” Mama suggested. “Something close by that won’t interfere with school—“
“Or archery club—“ Father chimed in.
“Or soccer.” Said Prim crossing the room out of nowhere and plopping on the couch next to Mama, to munch on her popcorn. The demand was for her, since I didn’t play the sport. “I can’t miss practice. Rue would have a fit if I get kicked out.”
“Fine! I’ll go ask around town if anyone needs help.” I made a show of rolling my eyes and shrugging, but inside, my blood quickened with the excitement of my impending job hunt.
Twenty eight hours later, I was stumbling out of the Sweet’s store in town square, walking backwards and grinning like a lunatic.
“Thank you so much, Ms. Donner! Really. You won’t regret it! Thank you again!” I gushed and barely repressed a squeal of excitement, “I’ll see you Monday. Bye!”
I had to grab on to the frame of the open door, not to fall on my bottom like an uncoordinated noodle when I tripped on my own feet, and finally pulled myself away from the store front. I turned on my heel and practically skipped down the sidewalk, giggling non-stop. I managed to reel it in and climbed on my truck before pumping the air with my fists in a tiny victory dance.
Everything was coming up Katniss, and my spirits soared high!
I got myself a job, and while it wasn’t my first option— Mr. Mellark said his bakery was fully staffed at the time— I had effectively secured myself a source of gas money, which was my main concern and the literal driving force behind my job hunt. I counted as a perk, the fact that Mellark’s Bakery was sitting across the square from the Sweet Shop and I was granted an unobstructed view of the front room of the bakery from behind my counter, because watching the Mellark men working was just inspiring. And I meant that in a non creepy way… hopefully.
I tried not to be as obvious with my crush on Mr. Peeta, but I wasn’t deaf and his mama— dubbed The Witch, by the town youngsters— enjoyed bragging loudly about her successful business, and a good chunk of that came from Peeta’s success as a baker. I pretty much knew anything a nosy sixteen year old girl could know about a guy twenty years her senior, hoarding all kinds of gossip about him like a dragon hoards gold.
Being only a few years younger than my own father, Mister Peeta graduated from Panem U when I was a toddler. He earned a business degree he’d really never used; then, he went to Paris-France for almost three years, and trained with the best chefs in the pastry business, returning to our small town to open up his own high end patisserie, but since the economy had taken a dive those days and his shop was so new and fancy, he was forced to close up and take over the cakes and pastry side of Mellark’s, until things stabilized for new businesses. Sadly, he never ventured back on his own, which was a downright shame, because the man was a culinary genius and so artistic at that.
Currently, he worked weekend’s at Mellark’s while teaching at the Pastry school in Capitol City… not that I was keeping tabs on the man or anything.
I was just observant that way…
Sort of.
Mrs. Mellark liked to boast about things she had no hand in doing, like her youngest son’s accomplishments and success abroad and locally, but she was also a ruthless disparager who couldn’t care less when and where she criticized her sons or husband when something didn’t go her way. The Witch was always going on and on about Mr. Peeta going to France and becoming an expert cake decorator, and teaching pastrity at some hoity-toity culinary school in Capitol City, as if she herself had done it for him, and in the next breath she’d be groaning about how much of an inconvenience to her it was he went overseas for the training. The woman was a hag, but I couldn’t help people in town were so gossipy and when she started with the stories. I just perked up my ears and gobbled up all the information she was sharing.
Anyway, my mama’s prediction about my infatuation with Mr. Peeta ending, kind of flopped. The crushed endured all the years between his absence to Europe and his return; it was still going strong even at age sixteen, but I had learned to pine discreetly, surreptitiously sneaking peeks at mister Peeta from a distance and daydream about scenarios where the handsome baker finally noticed me, and we fell madly in love with each other and lived happily ever after in a marzipan house, eating all kinds of bread and cake without ever gaining an ounce of weight… Also, in those scenarios, Mr. Peeta was like ten years younger, and nobody batted an eye at us being together.
Of course, I wasn’t delusional. I knew nothing like it would ever happen; after all, Mr. Peeta was nineteen years older than me and devoted to his craft. But dreaming was free, and as long as the fantasies stayed locked in my head, I wasn’t hurting anyone but myself.
————————
My first Saturday morning working at the Candy shop, I parked in the public parking lot, diagonal to the town square, before opening time. The lot was built adyacente to a few city offices to accommodate anyone running errands downtown, like paying their license tags, filing taxes, getting permits of miscellaneous natures, or simply taking a stroll around the square at dusk, licking on a frozen treat from the ice cream parlor or having dinner at the pizza place. It wasn’t too much of a stretch to park there if one worked in one of the mom-and-pop shops littering the picturesque merchant center of Panem.
I could’ve used the designated parking spaces on the road behind the sweets store, but there was a humongous dumpster next to ours, and Ms. Donner hadn’t given me a key to the back door yet, so even if the threadbare upholstery of my truck wasn’t threatening to absorb the stench of the whole neighborhood’s trash, there wasn’t any benefit to me parking there.
I yawned dispassionately tossing my keys in the new purse Prim gave me when I announced I’d found a job, because according to her, I was now a grown-up and needed a proper purse instead of my ratty messenger bag, that honestly had seen better days. I swept the bag off the bench and slammed the door shut without bothering to lock it. There was nothing in the cab worth stealing; everyone knew me and my folks, we were just another run of the mill middle class family, without any wealth to our names.
“Ouch!” A velvety, deep voice spoke from a little ways over, and my whole body went rigidly straight. “Shouldn’t treat your steed so harshly, Hunter. I don’t think old Francine appreciates it.”
I turned on my heels and peered at Mr. Peeta trying to keep myself from screeching in a panic or something equally embarrassing.
The man was just straightening up from retrieving a chef jacket from the back seat of what I surmised was his car, and lifted his gaze in my direction with a slight smirk on his lips that quickly fell off, giving way to a confused expression, as his bright, blue eyes fixed on mine. “You ain’t Hunter,” he mumbled, squinting a little.
To his credit, it had been a while since he saw me last, despite me keeping tabs on him and stealing glances when I could. He had no reason to seek me out or anything, plus he was a busy man, always in the back room of the bakery working his pastillage gifts. Then again… ‘Francine’— my daddy’s former ‘89 F150– was like forever linked to Hunter Everdeen’s persona or something.
“Katniss?” Mr. Peeta frowned, like fog was slowly lifting from his mind and vague recognition finally set in, making my heart lurch and beat unbearably fast.
I nodded mutely, but soon I answered a spastic, “Morning, mister Peeta. How do you do?” My mama hadn’t drilled sixteen years worth of relentless Southern hospitality for me to stay silent for long. I hesitated a second and trudged along without giving him a chance to respond, scowling at the ground, “Francine, she’s sturdy,” I chance a glance at his face, “But you’re right, she’s too old to be treated poorly. I’ll make sure to be gentler with her in the future.”
Mr. Peeta arched his eyebrows, as if surprised by my mere voice. He tugged the collar of his plain white t-shirt, and then huffed a chuckle.
“Little Miss Katniss is driving now,” he said with a rueful shake of his head. He eyed me curiously, “Well, I guess you’re not little anymore. But wow! What a way to humble a man about his old age.” A deep chuckle rumbled in his chest, making me shift in place in mild arousal.
He draped his chef’s shirt over his forearm and closed his car door softly. “I have no words to describe how I feel, discovering young Katniss Everdeen is old enough to drive Francine,” He tsked at his boots, but his smile made his eyes crinkle in the corners. “End of an era… for me at least. Beginning of a new one for you, I supposed.” He smiled self deprecatingly.
My face burned and my chest tightened at his words, not sure if I felt elation or embarrassment.
“Oh… you ain’t old, sir.” I waved him off, still scowling for no good reason.
Mr. Peeta laughed. “You’re too kind, Miss Katniss, but my I.D. disagrees. Plus, knowing you’re old enough to drive is a sobering thought.” He smiled kindly again.
“I turned sixteen a week and a half ago. Daddy gave me the truck for passing my driving test.” I volunteered without prompting.
“Neat! Spring baby, then. Makes sense. Suits you.” Mr. Peeta smiled, and I got incredibly shy, excited and happy at his short words.
“Yeah, May 8th.” I offered softly, “That’s me. Spring baby.”
“As I said, it suits you. I’m a wintry kid myself, so I try to be extra warm to counteract any cold disposition I might have.” He said, checking his watch.
I panicked slightly; I knew time was closing in, and I’d be dismissed soon, so I blurted out the first thing that popped into my head. “What brings you out here so early on a Saturday morning, anyway?”
Mr. Peeta cocked his head sideways and glanced at me curiously. “Work.” He said in an amused, lilting tone. He lifted his arm to point at his chef uniform laid neatly folded.
I clamped my mouth immediately, to prevent any other ‘brilliant’ questions might escape.
Mr. Peeta smirked, probably realizing what a dork I was. “How about you? It’s awfully early for a kid to be downtown.” His face took a distant quality for his next words. “When I was your age, my mother would beat me out of bed for my Saturday shifts at the bakery… all I wanted to do was lay in bed until noon, you know. But, baker’s hours aren’t exactly flexible.”
My whole face twisted at that tidbit of information. I couldn’t read his emotion about his comment, which bothered me somehow. I started talking just because I disliked the way his face turned blank.
“I’m a morning person myself.” I shrugged. But my folks made me get a job so I could finance my gas addiction,” I was smuggly pleased when the baker started laughing heartily at my silly joke. It felt nice, knowing I said something he found funny. “Anyway, I’m working too. At Ms. Donner’s shop.”
“Nice! Good taffy. Did old Maysilee offer to pay you in candy? I swear she did that to my brother, Bannock, one summer he decided to give another shop a try. ” He said conversationally, activating the alarm of his car.
“Oh, gosh!” I laughed, “No, she offered to give me a check every two weeks.” Then I looked at him dead in the eye, “Now the Christmas bonuses, those are in candy.”
We both laughed at that
Mr. Peeta nodded. “Well, Miss Katniss, I won’t keep you much longer, but if you need anything… a cheese bun for example,” He winked, putting my heart a flutter again, “Don’t hesitate to come in!”
With that, he started walking towards the narrow street behind the row of shops, no doubt heading to the back door of the bakery.
“Bye, Mister Peeta!” I croaked out belatedly.
Peeta waved over his shoulder.
All I could think after the encounter was how wrong my parents had been about my “puppy love” being a passing crush.
……………………………..
Josh Hurcherson starred in Bridge to Terabithia, which came out in February of 2007. To this day, I can’t watch that movie without bawling my eyes out. Everyone should see it!
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Happy Birthday, jbsaucy!
Apologies for the delay on your gift, @jbsaucy! We hope you had a wonderful day back on the 16th, and celebrated in style! To bring the good vibes back around, the lovely @mega-aulover has written a story just for you!
For: Jbsaucy
Rated T just in case
AN: Special thanks to my beta and friend @norbertsmom. I am sorry for it being late I hope this brings a smile to your face and that you had a wonderful birthday.
Prompt: I’ve had a tough year and need some romance. Can I request a soul mark story?
A/N: In Panem au. There are no games because there was never a rebellion. There are still districts, in fact, there are fourteen. The Capitol is just a city located in District Fourteen. Seventy-six years ago the position of the presidency was abolished in favor of a senate run country. It was all done peacefully. Soon after, strange marks began showing up on young people’s bodies and the pull to be with the person with that same mark began.
--------------------------------------------------
Katniss watched from her perch in the tree as Gale brought one of his harem of floozies to the forest edge. He used the forest to seduce unsuspecting girls. Katniss was tired of his philandering. She was trying to hunt as winter was fast approaching and she needed to make enough jerky to supplement her family.
The high feminine giggle that spilled forth from the woman’s lips no doubt scared the game away. “Flipping Gale,” Katniss muttered under her breath.
“You’ve never been to the forest before?” Gale’s tall lanky body broke through the brush.
“No this is the first time. I thought it was dangerous.” Ginny Pastures came next; she held his hand. Her large brown eyes widened as she looked up into the canopy of trees. “No wonder you love it here, it’s magical,” She whispered.
“It’s my second favorite place to be.” Gale grinned.
Katniss rolled her eyes to hear Gale speak. He was winding up that poor girl. Ginny was a sweet girl and extremely gullible. Gale was a rake. He liked to lure pretty girls who just turned 18 into the forest and seduce them. Katniss rolled her eyes.
“What’s your favorite?” Ginny asked innocently.
“By your side.” His voice was smooth, his eyes hooded.
“Oh Gale,” Ginny said, slapping her hand against his chest.
"I have a Soulmates mark in a rather interesting place."
“Oh, Gale, don't do it,” Katniss whispered when she heard him say Soulmates mark.
The soul mark was something that appeared as soon as you turned eighteen. It was light pink in color until you ran into your soulmate then it turned a bright purple. Katniss had a mark. She turned eighteen five months ago. Her soul mark looked like splotch and it was located on her wrist.
"You do?"
"I was wondering...really hoping," he said giving Ginny his puppy dog face.
Katniss wanted to barf. It was true Gale was devilishly handsome, he was taller than anyone in the district, and he had good teeth. However, when it came to women he was cavalier.
He wasn’t always that way. When he was younger Gale wanted to get married. He was hopeful that when he turned eighteen he would quickly find his match, the person with his exact same soul mark. It was all he spoke about when they were in the woods. Katniss often rolled her eyes because Gale only wanted a girl from the Seam. He didn’t want a Merchant. He couldn’t stand the idea of being matched with a merchant.
The year he turned eighteen, none of the eighteen years old’s in his year had the strange little hammer mark. Gale then became hopeful Katniss would be his match and he waited two years for her to turn eighteen. However, when Katniss’ soul mark came in and didn’t look like his little hammer Gale went rouge. He angrily called it a Capitol plot. He thought the entire system was rigged.
Katniss didn’t really care about the soul mark thing. She knew it was real. She also knew what happened when the soulmate died. It was like a light was extinguished in the soul of the survivor. Her father died unexpectedly of a rare illness her mother couldn’t cure. Her mother stopped existing the day they buried her father. Katniss swore she never wanted to get married. Like Gale, Katniss hid her mark. She wore long-sleeved shirts or a cuff when the weather was warm. Gale's mark was on his neck right below his ear. He hid his mark with long hair.
It was her hope to never meet her other half. Katniss leaned back in the tree as Gale’s persuasive voice wafted up into the brightly fall covered leaves. In a few week’s time, all of the leaves would fall onto the forest floor and Katniss knew it was only time before the snow came.
"I was hoping you'd be mine.”
Ginny's eyes widened and her cheeks turned pink. "You think it's me?"
"I would like it to be you." He put his hand over his heart, his lips pouted. “So where is your soul mark?
"Gale, my soulmate mark is on my hip."
"So is mine."
Katniss had enough. She jumped down from the tree in front of Gale roaring, gnashing her teeth. She witnessed Gale’s grey eyes grow round on his face. She noted the way his face grew pale and his jaw hung slack. She’d never seen Gale scared and this caused her shoulders to shake with mirth.
Ginny screamed and ran. Katniss fell down laughing. Her game bag slipped from her shoulder.
“EVERDEEN!!” Gale growled.
Katniss picked herself up, grabbed her game bag and began running.
“UGH YOU’RE SUCH A…” Gale screamed out the top of his lungs.
Katniss was quick on her feet and she easily outran him. Gale wasn’t in great shape for a guy who was a miner. She made it underneath the fence. Then collapsed in the meadow into a bout of laughter when she recalled Gale’s face of sheer terror before he realized it was her.
“Katniss.”
A shadow fell across her form. Peeta Mellark stood overhead, his blond hair looked like a halo. Katniss couldn’t stop laughing and it caused her to begin coughing.
“You okay?”
Sitting up, Katniss nodded but she was still tickled by Gale’s stupid face.
“I just saw Ginny Pastures running. She was scared, said there was a monster in the forest.” Peeta watched her momentarily then raised his eyebrow. “I take it there wasn’t a monster in the forest?”
Katniss bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing.
“What were you up to?”
Katniss had never spoken to Peeta until graduation when his parents were forced to give him the bakery. Both of Peeta’s older brothers found their mates within hours of their birthdays. His oldest brother to Petunia, the Florist’s only child. His other brother to the daughter of the Mine supervisor. Both readily left the bakery. The bakery passed down to Peeta as soon as he graduated, even though he hadn’t turned eighteen yet.
For Katniss speaking to the boy who’d saved and changed her life was terrifying at first. She tried to keep it professional. She did, but Peeta had a way of making her talk. Katniss found herself spewing all sorts of nonsensical information about herself. Like she’d shared with him how she liked green, not all shades of green, but that blue-green that was found in certain evergreens. She told him how much she enjoyed savory flavors over sweet, that is until he managed to get his hands on some contraband chocolate. Katniss still craved its velvety bittersweet taste.
His stunt caused her to open up to him. Somehow the bakery became her favorite stop in her trades. Her day was not complete until she spoke to Peeta. One of her secret favorite things was to see the way his blue eyes lit up when he saw her. Katniss couldn’t help the way her heart thumped a little harder in her chest when she was near him. Just like now.
“Okay Everdeen, fess up what did you do?”
“Me,” she sounded offended. “I did nothing. I am innocent.”
“Sure,” Peeta sat by here.
“Okay…okay…but if you breathe a word of this to anyone I will deny it.”
“You do know you’re a horrible liar right?”
Katniss took a swipe at his shoulder but she missed. He leaped up quickly. Katniss got him in his shin.
“Ow!" He rubbed his shin sitting back down next to her. "You know it’s true, you couldn’t even tell me that streusel was horrid.”
Katniss did not want to admit she was a bad liar. In all honesty the streusel wasn't that great, but it was edible. You just didn't throw food away in the Seam. “Do you want to want to know what happened,” she scowled at him.
He nodded.
“You know how I told you Gale has been taking girls in the forest?”
“Yeah, which, by the way, I think it's lecherous.”
“I was in the forest, up in a tree trying to aim when Gale showed up. I lost good game because of him. He brought Ginny with him to the forest today.”
“But she’s so…”
“I know, immature.”
“So, what did you do?”
“At first I thought they would move on but they just stood there talking. Then I thought I could ignore them and wait it out.” Her shoulders slumped. “I couldn’t take listening to Gale. He was so cheesy." She made a gagging face before continuing. "Seriously, I couldn’t let him do something stupid to such a sweet girl. So, I jumped down in between them; scared Gale good, but I also scared Ginny.”
“You mean…”
“You should have seen his face, Peeta. He turned as pale as snow and I thought he was going to faint.” Just recalling the way Gale looked caused her shoulders to shake.
“I’m sure Gale must have been angry.” Peeta chuckled.
“Like a bear,” Katniss couldn’t help but laugh.
He began to laugh too and together they sat in the meadow shoulder to shoulder. She was so near to him she could feel the heat radiating off his body. She could also smell cinnamon on him, a sign that winter was approaching as everything in the winter tasted of cinnamon.
Peeta cleared his throat. “So are you going to go to the Fall Festival tomorrow?”
“I don’t want to, but Primrose has been harping that she wants to go and mother will not let her go alone.”
“You should go. I’ll be there with my booth.” He rubbed his shoulder against hers. “There may be free treats if you do go.”
Katniss tried to stop herself from grinning but couldn’t. “Alright.”
“Just do me one favor, reserve a dance for me on your dance card.”
Katniss glanced at him, shocked. No one ever asked her to dance. She rubbed the back of her neck, “I don’t know how to dance.”
“Will you dance with me if I show you? It’s kind of a special day.” Peeta picked up a piece of dry grass in his hands. “It’s my birthday. I was born at 9:06 at night.”
“You’re turning eighteen,” Katniss whispering. It was a sobering thought. Peeta turning eighteen meant his soul mark was going to appear at precisely the second of his birth. Katniss was filled with incredible sadness at the idea that there was a girl out there that would have his exact same mark. Abruptly she became angry and shot up.
“Katniss,” Peeta said jumping up beside her.
Mutely she picked up her discarded game bag.
Peeta touched her shoulder and asked, “What's wrong?”
She lowered her head. There were no words that could explain what she felt. She was rendered paralyzed.
Peeta gently enfolded her tiny frame into a comforting hug. “It’s going to be alright,” he said as if sensing her inner turmoil.
His embrace felt good, impossibly off the charts good. Katniss inhaled his scent and she winded her arms around him. Her worry about what if there was someone out there for him was silenced by the feel of his solid body wrapped around her and the way his heart seemed to tap her name. Kat-niss, Kat-niss, Kat-niss.
He stepped back slightly took her smaller hand in his larger ones and began to sway to silent music. Katniss, without realizing it, laid her head on his shoulder. It was better than being wrapped up in the sweet freshly washed warm blankets.
Katniss closed her eyes, feeling secure and safe, something she hadn't felt since she was a kid and her father was still alive.
They swayed slowly in the meadow. The cool wind and the sounds of birds singing were their only music.
When Peeta stopped swaying, she sighed.
"You see that wasn't that bad." He hugged her briefly and then said, "I have to get back to the bakery, but promise me you'll be there tomorrow?"
"I’ll be there," she said breathlessly. She watched Peeta walk away and admired his broad shoulders.
"You have a thing for the baker’s youngest?" Gale angrily questioned her from behind.
Startled, Katniss turned to face him, her mood dropped.
"Of all of the guys in the district, you chose a Merchant to...to…"
"To what?" Katniss narrowed her eyes. She didn't like what Gale was inferring.
"He was TOUCHING you!!"
Katniss couldn't deny Gales accusation. Peeta was holding her. They were dancing. Still, it was none of Gale’s business. “So what?”
“So what?” Gale ran his hand through his hair and looked like he was pulling it. “Mellark’s a damn Merchant! They don’t play nice with gullible pure Seam girls.”
“Unlike you who prays on us pure gullible Seam girls like Ginny?” Katniss wasn’t going to let him get away with his double standards. He was just as guilty as any man on this planet.
He opened his mouth then shut it.
“That’s why I jumped down from my tree. Ginny is a sweet girl. You know how protective her paw is over her. Yet you want to go messing with her head putting ideas in there. That will break her heart.”
“That Merchant will be worse…”
“No, he won’t be Gale because I don’t want to get hitched. And unlike Ginny, I know the probabilities are like 1 out of 2000 or more that I will be paired with anyone I can remotely tolerate.”
“I feel sorry for the person who will be matched with you.”
“Well, DITTO!” Katniss marched away. The girl who got Gale had to have either the patience of a saint or be absolutely bat-shit crazy.
"You know the odds are not in your favor," Gale shouted.
She wasn’t one to curse and she wanted to turn around and tell him to ‘F’ off. But didn’t, instead she went home and slammed the door.
Her mother was in the kitchen she raised an eyebrow. “Gale?”
Katniss gave her mother a murderous look to confirm.
“Is there anything I should speak to Hazelle about?”
“No,” Katniss calmed down, but just barely.
“Will you tell me what happened? Or will you ignore me?”
“He was trying to seduce Pasture’s little girl and I kinda stopped it, then he tried to push my buttons.”
“Ginny?”
“Yup.”
“Ugh…” Her mother uttered. “What did he use to push your buttons?”
Katniss felt her cheeks turn pink.
“Hmm…” her mother stated.
“He caught me trying to learn to dance with someone…” Her anger turned to nervousness. No one but Gale new about Peeta.
“So you were dancing with a boy,” her mother frowned. “Huh...didn’t see that happening.”
“What do you mean by saying that?”
“It’s just I thought you’d be one of those girls that don’t like boys or anyone one for that matter.”
Katniss felt her cheeks heat up even more. She was a little confused by her mother’s statement. It wasn’t that she didn’t like boys, it was just none of them were Peeta.
“Guess I was wrong.” Her mother took her coat with her, “I’m going out, gonna visit Hazelle after all. She should know about her son’s dealings. Mr. Pasture will surely strangle Gale if he heard about him making a pass at his precious Ginny."
Katniss sighed and wondered if Gale understood how stupid his actions were. Probably not, because he was like Buttercup when he got a splinter lashing out to everyone. He was lashing out in the most destructive way. Taking her catches from her game bag, Katniss began to prepare them to be salted and turned into jerky.
Her mind, however, was on the dance and later that night she stood arms wide trying to imitate what Peeta taught her in the meadow. With her eyes closed she pictured how he held her hand and the way, their bodies moved together.
“What are you doing?” Prim asked.
Katniss stumbled and fell on the floor.
“Katniss, are you okay?”
Looking up, Katniss pushed her hair away from her face, mortified that her sister caught her trying to dance. “Yeah, I’m good.”
“Were you trying to dance?’
Her face crumpled not sure how she was going to explain why she was practicing. Katniss sat up, her ears burned no doubt she was completely red-faced. Prim was 14 and smart as a whip, no doubt she connected the dots easily.
“So dancing huh?’ Prim sat next to her.
Katniss nodded.
"So you're going to the fall festivities and you're going to be dancing tomorrow night…." Prim gave her an expectant smile.
"Yeah." For some reason admitting this was as painful as getting her tooth pulled.
Prim stood. "You're going to need to know how to dance, so come on get up," she said extending her hand. "I'm going to lead, so you follow, okay."
Although her sister was younger, Prim was taller than Katniss, it was awkward looking up to her baby sister for instruction. Cautiously she put her hand in her sister’s hand.
“Now stand straight don’t hunch your back and don't look at your feet.”
Dancing was something that everybody knew how to do except for Katniss. She lost her childish awe and wonder when her father died. Music, laughter, dancing, and celebrations were traded in for food, housing, and survival. These celebratory youthful activities, such as going to dances were nothing but a waste of time for Katniss. She did encourage her baby sister to participate though.
“The last time we danced was that last Christmas with dad,” Prim said. Katniss tripped and Prim frowned and said, “Remember Katniss, when I step forward you step back. Remember you have to follow my lead.”
“Oh right,” Katniss was stunned by her sister’s remark. After a little bit, Katniss said, “We stood on his feet. He wanted to dance with us at the Winter Celebration.”
“That was seven years ago. I remember you danced with Peeta Mellark. I remember he tapped daddy’s shoulder. I remember you and Peeta dancing.”
Katniss tripped again this time she took down her sister. They landed on the bed. Katniss fell hard on her sister and she was afraid she inadvertently jabbed her sister in the head. “Oh my goodness, Prim are you okay did I hurt you?”
“Please! Katniss I’m twice your size,” Prim chuckled sitting up.
Katniss sat back worrying her bottom lip. A myriad of scenarios ran through her brain.
“Stop, you’ll be fine tomorrow. I know what your thinking and no you won't maim anyone.”
“Thank’s Prim,” Katniss whispered.
Prim stood up from the bed. “You were always there for me Katniss and if whoever this person is doesn’t see how amazing you are I’ll punch him in the face.”
“Prim!”
Prim gave her an unreadable look. “Now come on, you’re not going to get better if you don’t practice.”
Thankfully Prim didn't say anything more and there were no other questions. Her sister just helped her perfect her dance and the next day Katniss continue to practice in the safety of her woods.
As she practiced in the woods she reveled in the memory of the feel of Peeta’s arms around her. She thought back to their conversations. She could see the way a blush spread from his neck and up into his cheeks whenever he spoke about baking or painting. Katniss was fascinated with the way his long translucent lashes never collided. Katniss loved watching the way his large hands worked kneading bread or painting the smallest of her flowers on cakes.
Peeta was incredible. He was stunning to look at, generous with the little kids regardless if they were Seam or Merchant, and unbelievably talented. He was sweet and shockingly funny. He was a stunning human being. Just thinking about him caused her cheeks to warm up, her heart to race, and butterflies to flourish in her stomach. He even smelled wonderful. He smelled of vanilla, warm cinnamon, and spicy man. Her brain focused on his solid firm lips and she had an urge to kiss him.
At that thought she abruptly opened her eyes. She searched her mind to see if the prompt was a fluke, but it was there, a deep primal urge to plant her lips on top of his. KISS HIM her brain thought. Katniss questioned where this idea of kissing Peeta came from. It occurred to her what she felt went beyond friendship. Burrowing deeper into these latent feelings unearthed a whole new box of complex emotions that flooded her entire being. Katniss recognized them as love and it scared her witless. Her instinct was to flee, to get away. But as she stood there with the sounds of nature as her only companions Katniss realized there was nowhere to hide. In the woods there was no one to lie to but herself.
Katniss had fallen in love with Peeta.
She slumped to the floor of the forest and tears poured out from her eyes. Tears of joy and tears of sorrow. She was elated at her discovery and she knew Peeta was wonderful, yet the elation was stopped by the splotch on her wrist. Gale’s words mocked her, the odds were not in her favor. There was a good chance Peeta wasn’t her match.
It took her some time to quietly process her sentiments. To become okay with the idea that, when he turned eighteen tonight his mark could very well be different than her own. She was determined not to spoil tonight as she left the forest to get ready.
By the time she and her sister reached the dance Katniss’s stomach was in knots. It didn’t matter to her if Peeta wasn’t her soulmate. She intended to have the time of her life and make sure Peeta’s birthday was a memorable one.
With Prim’s help Katniss elected to wear Peeta’s favorite color. She’d found a soft orange dress her mother wore when younger. She left her hair down and she wore her most daring accessory, a smile.
People kept on staring at her as she walked by. Katniss whispered to Prim, “Why are they staring?”
“Because, you look amazing human tonight. Normally you smell like rotting carcassas and you growl.”
“Prim,” Katniss laughed.
“You’re smiling Katniss, people never see you smile,” Prim winked and walked away.
Alone, Katniss searched for Peeta. She looked for his booth. It was getting closer to his birthday. She saw Gale around the corner and turned around to leave.
“Katniss?” Gale uttered.
Katniss rolled her eyes and plastered a smile on her face. “Gale.”
“I should be angry with you but you did save my life. Ginny’s father split open a log with his bare hands.”
“He’d kill you,” Katniss affirmed.
“So you look like a girl tonight.”
Katniss punched him hard on the shoulder. "And you got a haircut."
“OW!” Gale whined.
Katniss focused in on his neck. “Gale your soul mark on your neck is purple.”
Gale slapped his hand over his mark. “Really…”
In the crowd there was a squeal. Both of them turned to face a group of blond girls. Amongst them a plump girl was jumping, “It's a little hammer and it’s purple.”
“Delly your soulmate must be here somewhere!” One of the girls said.
Katniss grinned. She hit Gale on the shoulder, “Looks like we found your soulmate.”
Gale nodded mutely.
Katniss pushed him.
“But.” Gale sounded nervous.
“Gale please tell me this isn’t because she’s a Merchant.”
“What,” Gale looked at her.
“Because if she’s your soulmate you need to give her a chance. So go out there, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, show her your mark.” Katniss put her hands on his shoulders and pushed him forward.
She watched Gale shyly walk over to Delly and show her his mark. Delly flew into his arms. Katniss smiled then sighed, it was time to find Peeta.
She was near the dance floor when she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. Katniss whipped around, ready to tell the person to bug off when she saw it was Peeta. She went limp, all thoughts went out of her mind and she stood there mouth agog looking and feeling dumb.
“Wow,” Peeta said rubbing the back of his neck. “You look, just wow!” His face was beet red, he swallowed several times, and his eyes were wider than a full moon.
Seeing Peeta lost for words caused a silly grin to fill up her face. Katniss shyly glanced down.
“Do you wanna dance?”
“Yes,” Katniss whispered.
There were no other words needed. Peeta offered her his arm and he escorted her to the dance floor. As soon as his arm slid to the small of her back and she was once more surrounded by his calming scent and aurora she calmed down. Dancing wasn’t a hard thing to do with Peeta. She didn’t stumble. She gracefully swayed to the music, her eyes glued to his expressive beautiful blue eyes. Katniss could see reflected in his eyes exactly what she felt for him.
They danced two songs together, by the third Katniss looked up at the clock by the Justice Building. “It’s almost your birthday.”
Peeta’s arms tightened, drawing her closer. “Only three more minutes.”
Katniss put her head on his shoulder. The moment of truth was on them and she didn’t want to think about the ramifications. Not when they were on the cusp of something beautiful.
“Katniss,” Peeta whispered.
She reluctantly raised her head and looked into his eyes.
His hand cupped her cheek then slid his hand to cup the back of her head. “You are so beautiful.”
Katniss heart leapt into her throat. She wanted to tell him everything hidden within its depth.
He looked down to her lips before looking back up to her eyes. “Katniss,” Peeta whispered.
She stepped closer to him, lifting her chin. Although she’d never been kissed, her lips anticipated the feeling of his lips on hers.
His face grew nearer. “I’m in love with you, Katniss Everdeen and I don’t care if my mark doesn’t match yours. I want to spend all of my time with you for the rest of my life.”
A tear slid down her face. “Yes Peeta.”
His lips swooped down and pressed against hers a soft kiss that caused her to sigh and her entire being was filled with light, the music blurred, the sounds and smells of the fair were gone. Everything in her world stopped and it was only filled with Peeta.
When they parted Katniss knew they were bonded in a way no mark could ever bond them. They drifted to the side to her family.
Her mother stood with a smile on her face. Prim beamed when she caught sight of them.
“So is this the young man you’ve been mooning over?”
“Mooning?” Peeta questioned.
Prim suddenly squealed. “LOOOK!” She grabbed their wrists, “YOU’RE A MATCH!”
There on Peeta’s wrist was an identical purple splotch. Katniss was speechless Peeta was her match, her one and only. Her heart burst into a thousand points of lights.
Katniss turned to Peeta, shyly she glanced at him. “Together?”
“Together,” he whispered right before he kissed her again.
Katniss toes curled, in fact her toes still curled seven years after that kiss. Peeta still had the ability to make her eyes twinkle. He was in her heart, and imprinted on her wrist. Her splotch turned out to look like paint splatter. Peeta loved to paint. Marriage was wonderful and with him she learned to take chances.
“Mommy, mommy, daddy showed me how to dance,” Melody said skipping outside, her blue eyes shining like her father's.
Katniss grinned at her daughter Melody. “Did he?” She put a hat on. It was the coldest Fall Festival yet.
Peeta stepped outside and closed the door to the bakery.
“He showed mommy how to dance as well. He taught mommy so well she got in trouble,” Katniss patted her rounded belly.
“Trouble?”
“Pumpkin,” Peeta quickly redirected their child. “ You going to tear up the dance floor tonight?” Peeta picked up their five-year-old girl up in his arms.
“Oh daddy I am not going to break the floor, that’s silly.”
Katniss smiled as they walked to the dance. Gale’s twin boys came running. “MEL,” they cried in unison.
Peeta frowned.
“Settle down their Mellark, they’re only a year older.” Katniss grabbed Peeta’s arm. He was overprotective of their daughter, especially when it came to Gale’s boys.
“Yeah but, she’s my little girl,” Peeta grumbled.
“I know Peeta, but she’s going to grow up.” She squeezed his arm and gently said, “however, we still have plenty of time for that.” They watched her play with Gale’s twins. The trio ran into Prim who searched for Katniss. Prim smiled then indicates she would keep an eye out for Mell and the boys. Katniss turned to Peeta and put her head on his shoulder. “May I have this dance?”
Peeta smiled as he lead her to the dancefloor. “I love you and I love our life together and I am glad you wanted me even without the mark.”
“Peeta, it was always going to be you. I love you.”
Peeta grinned as she swayed to the music. She loved to dance with Peeta Mellark.
And they lived happily ever after.
#everlark#everlark fanfiction#everlarkbirthdaygifts#everlarkbirthdaydrabbles#fan fic#by mega-aulover
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