a/n [I don't even know what this is.]
He knows her cat almost as well as he knows her. Which doesn't mean much at all because he doesn't really know her. He never really did. But that cat of hers, it's something else entirely. It sits outside the bakery on occasion, on the little post outside the bookshop across the street. Its eyes are cruel and judging as it looks at everyone who passes. Peeta finds it amusing.
He doesn't actually know it's her cat until a year after he first sees it. She's walking with her little sister, who stops to stare at the cakes in the window. Katniss stands by grudgingly, not wishing to ogle at the things she'll never afford; it'll only give her false hope, and her sister has got enough hope for the whole family. It's her who notices the cat first. She scowls and walks up to it; she shoves it softly, but not gently. He hisses at her, and she hisses back. Primrose runs over to the cat immediately and picks it up, kissing it's head. Peeta smiles from his station at the window, only turning away when his mother scolds him for being distracted.
Peeta feeds the cat a bit of bread when no one is looking.
A year later the cat is caked in mud, and when it approaches the bookshop, Mrs. Kelley yells at him to shoo. She doesn't want mud splatters all over the pristine pages. So the cat waltzes over to the bakery, and plops himself down on the first step; a trail of muddy paw prints zigzag across the road. Peeta laughs at it, and even though he's certain it can't hear him, it's ears flick up threateningly.
The cat's gone for over six months, and Peeta wonders silently if it's dead. Katniss doesn't look particularly remorseful, but she never really does. He marvels at how strong she always is.
Primrose calls the cat Buttercup one evening. Peeta thinks it's an odd name.
Katniss walks by the bakery one morning, her head held high and her chest jutted out. She looks purposeful, like a soldier going into war. A few yards behind her, Buttercup trots delicately, his head high and his ears alert. Together, they look like they're going on a mission. They look like a team heading out to defy all odds. If it's possible, Peeta falls even more in love with the dark-haired girl.
It's been three years since that hideous cat came into Peeta's life, but he hardly even notices. He's up on a stage with the girl he loves, and the people that crowd before him are deadly silent. Buttercup's in the background, sitting on the chimney of the nearest shop, grooming himself. Peeta meets the cat's eyes for a split second, and for some odd reason, it feels like a warning; bring Katniss back safely or else. He knew there was a reason he liked that cat.