A/N: I have a lot planned for this, but it is already so long, so I am just going to make it multiple posts then combine them at the end. Disclaimer: I do not own any of THG or any of the mentioned Disney/Pixar movies.
X-X-X
Katniss' favorite movie growing up was Disney's Tarzan. She loved the idea of loving someone else who was so different than you as one of your own. Her little sister Prim would sit beside her and watch it every day, all summer long.
She would point at the screen and shout, "Monkey!" and clap her hands in approval of her own voice. Whenever Sabor the leopard came on the screen, she would gasp and cover her eyes, stealing glimpses through her fingers, only to see the cat once again, and whimper as she closed the gap in her fingers. Katniss would just smile and rub her back.
Prim also loved it when Katniss and Gale would imitate the characters, Gale with a confused look on his face, and Katniss wearing her best impersonation of her aunt Effie, chin in the air, as she pointed to herself, "Me, Jane." then to Gale, "You, Tarzan." Prim would giggle as Gale cocked his head to the side, a befuddled look on his face. He would grunt, then point to Katniss and say in a deep voice, "You, Catnip." then to himself, "Me, Gale." Prim would roll on the floor with laughter.
"Again! Again!" the little blonde toddler would cry, and her father would scoop her up as she squealed.
He placed her on his hip and pointed to her. "You, Prim." then to himself, "Me, Daddy."
Prim would get a gleam in her eye and point to her father. "You, Prim." then to herself, "Me, daddy." At which point he would just tickle her belly and walk her up to her room for a nap.
Katniss would lean her head on Gale's shoulder and close her eyes as she heard her father's lilting voice falling down the stairs. "Come stop your crying, it'll be alright. Just take my hand, hold it tight. I will protect you from all around you, I will be here, don't you cry…." She sighed contentedly and drank in the words to her favorite song from her favorite movie sung by her favorite voice.
Time was lost until she heard the last words, "Just look over your shoulder
I'll be there always."
X-X-X
Katniss hated hospitals. They were so stagnant and cold, and much too white.
The nurse called her name and she stiffened. Gale held her hand tight as they both got up and walked toward the room her father was in. "An accident at work," her mother had said.
The word accident was usually used in reference to their cat Buttercup not using the litter box, or Prim tripping. Not something that ended up with you in the hospital.
As they reached the door, Gale gave her hand a final squeeze and let go. She immediately missed his calming and familiar presence. He looked down at her and held lightly to her upper arms. "I'll be right here, okay?" She nodded and noticed the window looking into her father's room, allowing visitors to look in, but still give privacy to those in the room. She looked back and found his eyes, the usually clear, steely grey now dark, and cloudy. "Just look over your shoulder
I'll be there always."
Again, she nodded, then walked into the room. "Hey, there's my little girl," she heard her father say, though his voice was small and crackly, a stark contrast to his usual deep and sparkly voice.
As she walked up to his bedside, she saw the extent of the "accident" and it did not look good. She choked back her tears as she tried to think of something to say when her father poked her chest. "You, Katniss." then poking his own chest, "Me, daddy." She started to cry, something she had told herself was stupid and to not do and she heard him whisper, "Shhhhh…. Katniss, come here." He softly grabbed her hand and pulled her toward him.
She climbed up into the bed and lay beside him. As she leaned into his shoulder, she took a deep breath and was accosted with the smell of the hospital gown and the sheets of the bed, but the little bit of her father she could smell, the smell that always reminded her of the forest calmed her enough to slow her tears, though the pit in her stomach dropped further.
She felt him take a deep, rattling breath, and felt his chest begin to vibrate as her breath caught in her throat. "Come stop your crying, it'll be alright. Just take my hand, hold it tight. I will protect you from all around you, I will be here, don't you cry…." She sighed brokenly as she drank in the words to her favorite song from her favorite movie sung by her favorite voice for probably the last time.
She listened to every syllable, every note, committing this moment to memory. He reached the end of the song, "Just look over your shoulder," she remembered Gale looking through the window and turned to look over her shoulder, seeing him standing there, tear tracks down his face. He pointed to her as she saw him mouth, "You, Catnip." She smiled weakly, and a sad smile grew on his own face as he pointed to himself and mouthed, "Me, Gale."
Her father's voice brought her back from her mere seconds of distraction. "Just look over your shoulder
Just look over your shoulder
I'll be there," she looked up into her father's eyes, and they both smiled as he sang the last word, "Always."
X-X-X
Katniss hated funerals. More than she hated hospitals, she had decided. She sat in the front row, Gale at her side holding her hand tight, much like he had in the hospital only days before.
Prim was in her mother's lap beside her, quiet, but not fully realizing the situation. She looked over at Katniss and asked, "Where's daddy?"
Katniss had no answer to that but tears, but she choked them back and cupped one hand on her little sister's face, "Oh, Little Duck," was all she could get out.
Her whole class had come to attend sitting several rows back. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, and the feeling of being watched. She slowly turned around and was met with a pair of piercing blue eyes staring right at her. They went round when she made eye contact, and quickly darted away, the face following with them, leaving her with only a view of curly blonde hair.
Peeta Mellark.
The baker's son. The one who always brought cookies on valentines day, but hers always had an arrow drawn on each side, made to look like an arrow had pierced the cookie.
The one who she had stared at herself more than she cared to admit.
After the service, Katniss was holding Prim when Peeta approached them.
"Gee, Katniss. I, um, I'm really sorry."
"Thank you, Peeta."
He looked startled and a little shocked. "Y-you know my name?"
Katniss laughed for the first time in days. Granted it was a small one, but it felt good to feel again. "Yes. You never forget the face of the person who gives you a special cookie every valentines day."
Peeta blushed and stared at the ground, a goofy grin on his face as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Oh! Speaking of," he took his backpack off and reached in, pulling out a bakery box with a scrolling "M" printed on the front. He opened it and handed it's contents to Prim. She instantly smiled and took the cookie from him. Katniss felt like the wind was knocked out of her. A cookie decorated perfectly to look like a Primrose. "Prim, what do you say?"
"Thank you, Peeta!" the little girl said, a toothy grin on her face. She looked down to the cookie and pointed to her chest, "Me, Primrose." Then to the cookie, "You, Primrose." She giggled and as quickly as it came, it went. "Where's daddy? I want to show him my cookie and tell him my joke! It will make him laugh…."
Just then Gale swooped in and scooped up Prim from her arms, causing her to squeal in delight and forget all about her question. He looked at Katniss sadly, then walked off with Prim, asking about the cookie and what she thought it would taste like.
Peeta cleared his throat and Katniss turned back to him. "Um, I, uh, I made these for you." He handed her another Mellark Bakery box with the giant "M", a lopsided grin turning up his face. She had never noticed his dimple before, but now she couldn't forget about it. The smell of cheese quickly pulled her thoughts away from blue eyes and dimples and down to the box in her hand. She opened it, and had to use all of her strength to not drool. "W-what are they?" She asked, her voice small.
"My own invention. Cheese buns. They haven't even been released at the bakery yet. You are like our trial run." He winced. "Not that I would ever make you try something we thought might be disgusting. I mean, I would never-"
"Are you kidding me?" Katniss lightly shoved his shoulder, and he continued to stare at it while she continued to talk as if she had left a handprint on his shirt. "Anything Mellark Bakery wants to throw at me, I will try. Especially if it has cheese."
He looked up to her, a mischievous glint in his eye. "Even burnt bread?"
Katniss looked up and tried to appear deep in thought, making Peeta chuckle. "Does said bread have butter?"
"Peeta!" A woman's shrill voice rang out over the solemn crowd. Mrs. Mellark. "Peeta! Come here, now!"
Peeta quickly picked up his backpack and leaned into Katniss, talking quietly. "Again, I am really sorry. Can we hang out sometime this week? I just got the DVD of Toy Story. It's my favorite movie and-"
"PEETA! NOW!"
Peeta winced. Katniss hurriedly said, "Yes, that sounds like fun. Tomorrow, my house, lunch then movie?
Bring more cheese buns!"
His smile was so big, she couldn't help but return it as best she could. "See you then!" And with that he was off.
Her aunt Effie walked up beside her and put a hand on her shoulder as they watched Peeta run to his mother. "Who was that dear, the boy with the bread?"
Mrs. Mellark was wagging a finger in Peeta's face and talking exaggeratedly, but quietly so no one would hear, but Katniss didn't miss her rude gestures and dagger eyes in her direction. If looks could kill….
"That was Peeta Mellark." The boy with the bread.
X-X-X
That night Katniss slept for the first time since her father's death. She had tossed and turned with nerves from thoughts of the day ahead, but they were quickly squashed with thoughts of blue eyes and dimples, and after she fell asleep, she dreamt of blonde curls.
She woke up around 10 the next morning, a time way past her usual wake up call. Her mother was still in bed, and the Hawthorne's had volunteered to babysit Prim for a few days.
Katniss took a shower and let all of the funeral and sadness wash off of her. A new day, a new start, a new…. Friend. That was a new concept. A friend. She hadn't ever really been good with making friends.
She was down in the kitchen, making macaroni and cheese when the front doorbell rang. She opened the door to Peeta's smiling face. "Hey there, partner!" he said, in what must have been an attempt to sound like a cowboy, making her giggle. She quickly scowled at the sensation. She never giggled.
Still in the door way, Peeta's face grew somber when he saw her scowl and said, "I come in peace," and handed her a box which carried the unmistakable warmth and smell of fresh cheese buns.
She smiled again. "Thank you! I'm sorry. I was just…. Cold," she lied. "My father usually built up the fire, and splits the logs, but given that he isn't here anymore…." She faded off and stared at the floor, not knowing whether she felt worse from talking about her father, or lying to Peeta.
Peeta held up his hand to stop her from saying anymore. "Say no more! I'll do it!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, but only because I'm gonna be in there watching the movie and I wanna be warm, too!"
"Oh…." Why did that make her feel bad?
"I'm just kidding, Katniss," he said, the sound of her name making her stomach flutter. What on earth was happening to her?
She went back to finish up the mac and cheese, and came back into the living room to see Peeta put the last log in the fire place, and stand up to take his jacket off. As he did, his shirt rode up a little on his torso and exposed a bruise.
"Peeta! What is that from? Did you hurt yourself chopping the wood? I should have just called uncle Haymitch to come over or something!"
Peeta had a sad smile. "No, that's not from splitting logs."
"Oh, thank goodness."
Peeta chuckled softly looking at the floor. "It's from a rolling pin."
"Do rolling pins usually attack you in the bakery? I can just picture it. A line of rolling pins in military formation, marching toward a baker-"
He cut her off with his first real laugh since he arrived. "No, no. They only attack when my mother comes in."
He met her stare, and she understood what he meant.
"She, uh, she didn't really like the idea of me coming here. Much less bringing more cheese buns."
Katniss grabbed the box of cheese buns and offered it back to him. "Peeta, I am so sorry. I don't want to cause trouble. Here, just take these back and-"
"No."
Damn butterflies again.
"Why? Peeta, I don't want to come between you and your mother."
"Katniss, the only thing between me and my mother is a rolling pin."
Katniss had no response. When she saw he was serious, she decided to go for sarcasm. "Well, good. Because I really didn't want to return these cheese buns."
"Cheese buns with mac and cheese? So much cheesy goodness!"
Katniss rolled her eyes as she went to dish up the cheesy pasta and Peeta lit the fire.
They sat in front of the coffee table with their food and glasses of water a good foot away from each other, and their backs to the couch.
Peeta popped in the DVD and came to sit beside Katniss. "There's a snake in my boot!"
Katniss laughed. "What's that from?"
Peeta stared blankly at her. "Toy Story?"
"Oh," Katniss blushed and stared at her food. "I've never seen it, so-"
"You've never seen it?!"
She chuckled. "No. My favorite movie is Tarzan."
Peeta's face adopted a confused look and pointed to himself. "Me, Peeta." Then to her, "You, Katniss."
She couldn't contain her smile, but her stomach dropped as memories flooded her mind.
"We can watch that if you want," Peeta offered.
"No!" Katniss said too quickly and loudly, making Peeta jump. "No. Sorry. I just have a lot of memories attached I that movie and I don't want to open them right now."
"Okay. I can understand that."
They both smiled at each other, then Peeta pressed play as they dug into their food.
He would quote lines here and there, badly, and Katniss would laugh. As the credits rolled, Peeta sang along to "You've got a friend in me", very loudly, and very off pitch, but Katniss smiled none the less.
When it was over, he turned to her with and expectant smile. "Well? What did you think?"
"I liked it."
"Good!"
"Peeta?"
"Yeah?"
"Do I really have a friend in you?"
"You have to ask?"
Katniss played with her fork, drawing doodles in the leftover cheese sauce coating the bowl. "Sorry."
"You have no idea the effect you have, do you?"
"I've never been very good at making friends."
Peeta pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Well, you did fine today."
They both smiled at each other in companionable silence.
Peeta finally broke it as he glanced at the bakery box. "Only two buns left! But they are cold."
"We could toast them over the fire," Katniss suggested. Peeta agreed.
Katniss ran into the kitchen and grabbed two grilling forks.
When she got back, she handed one to Peeta, and Peeta put a bun on the end of her fork.
They sat shoulder to shoulder and twirled the bread over the coals. "You know," Peeta said, "there is an old story that this is how people used to get married."
"Really?"
"Yeah. It was called a 'toasting', but I don't know if I believe that. A baker can only dream…."
She nudged his shoulder with hers. "We can make it a toasting."
"W-what?" Peeta stammered.
"To friendship."
"Oh," Peeta smiled and blushed.
"Do you take me, Katniss Everdeen, to take you, Peeta Mellark, to be my friend, in sickness and in health, till death do us part?"
"I do. And do you take me, Peeta Mellark, to take you, Katniss Everdeen, to be my friend, in sickness and in health, till death do us part?"
"I do." They both smiled giddily.
"You know, I have a favorite song from Tarzan," Peeta said.
"What is it?"
"The lullaby the mom sings."
Katniss tried to keep her breathing steady to keep tears from coming.
"But I like the Phil Collins version better. It ends in, 'Just look over your shoulder, and I'll be there always.'"
She leaned her head onto his shoulder to keep her grounded.
"I know. My dad used to sing it to Prim and I every night."
"Oh." Peeta looked like he was going to be sick.
"And he sang it to me in the hospital the day he died." A single tear slipped down her face.
"Oh. Katniss, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean-"
"It's okay."
"No, it's not." He turned to face her, setting his bread and stick on the edge of the fire place, and taking hers and doing the same, turning her towards him. "I was going to tell you that I will always be here for you. But I don't want to replace your father. He doesn't deserve that."
"You won't."
"I will always be your friend, Katniss. Heck, we toasted on it."
She laughed. "So you'll stay with me?"
His smile made his eyes twinkle. "Always."
X-X-X