Hello! I'm posting this on my fifteenth birthday which is TODAY!(: So here's my present to you guys!
So… I'm back! With another story that's slightly confusing! But hopefully, you will catch on! So here I go!
The Boy on Fire and The Girl with the Bread
Chapter 1
I spread the dough out on the counter and grabbed the rolling pin off the shelf. I pressed the rolling pin onto the dough and started making it thinner and thinner. The fresh smell of dough and icing made me smile slightly. But quickly the smile was replaced with a scowl; due to the fact that today… was the day of the reaping.
It shouldn't bother me as much as it does; I mean I don't have to take tesserae. Tessera is where you have your name put in the drawing more times for a month's supply of oil and grain. Since my Mother owns a Bakery, we have plenty of bread to eat. We as in my Mother, my little sister Prim, and I. My father died trying to help injured miners out of a mine explosion when I was eleven.
Prim was only seven at the time so she does not remember him as good as I do. Which I'm glad that she doesn't, so she does not have to go through nightmares almost every night like I do.
"Katniss?" Prim quietly asked as she made her way down the stairs. "Why are you up so early?"
"I couldn't sleep, so I decided to go ahead and start on the pastries this morning. Go back to sleep Prim." I say. "It's still early."
She nods and heads back up the stairs, as quiet as she came down.
I take the cookie cutter and cut the cookies into flower shapes, making each as neat and clean as I can. When I press the last one I look at the 12 cookies I made. These will be perfect.
Slipping them into a cooking pan, I put them in the oven and let them bake. These will be Reaping treats, to several people. I make my way to the front door and look out, where I see the Morning Miners heading into the mines. They all have happy faces on, talking to one another. I know all of those smiles are fake, their put on due to the Capitol possibly watching them, day in and day out.
I flip the sign to Open and make my way back to the counters, where I sit and wait on the Hunters to come. The Hunters are two boys, Gale and Peeta. They hunt behind the fences of District 12, which is illegal, but the Peacekeepers don't get on to them. They are their best customers! When they come by the bakery if they have a squirrel, either my Mother or I will purchase it for two loaves of bread. Sometimes, if they have berries we might trade a few cookies for them.
Cookies…. Oh no!
I run to the oven where I pull the cookies out, they are slightly burnt on the edges. I'll give them to Peeta and Gale when they come in, for good luck.
I grab a bag of blue, orange, yellow, and green icing out of the cabinet in the side of the counter and set them out. I pick up the blue icing bag and start frosting the small cookie. I make small swirl patterns, to make it look fancy… Or that's what my Mother says. I pick up the orange icing bag after the blue and decorate the rest of the cookie. I continue like that until I finish all the cookies.
They look good, not my best, but they are pretty good! I smile at the cookies, and walk over to the sink, where I place the icing bags in the sink. I turn back and walk to the counter, where I sit back down on the stool. The sun is rising over the peeks of the small mountains, making the trees light up with colors. There was a small bustle of activity outside, but it was just the occasional Merchant, walking to other shops.
I noticed two boys, one with olive skin, dark brown hair, and a slim tall body. The other boy had pale skin, blonde hair, and had a slim, yet stocky build. Gale and Peeta. They were leaving the Hob, where Greasy Sae worked.
I tucked a loose strand of dark brown hair behind my ear and stood up, ready to greet them. Peeta and Gale, I don't know them to well, but I know them and their both nice to me. Peeta is the nicest to me, well… He is friendly to just about everyone. It's Gale that has my personality, quiet, rebellious, and couldn't care about a lot of things.
Gale and I also look alike; we both have Olive skin, brown eyes, and dark brown hair. So it appears that I look like I'm from the Seam, and Peeta is from a Merchant Family. My Mother and Prim look like they should be Merchants though; they both have blue eyes, blonde hair, and fair skin.
"Good Morning!" Peeta's voice erupts through the bakery, making me jump the slightest.
I hold my chest and laugh, "You scared me Peeta."
I look down at the ground for a second and notice; I'm still in my pajamas.
Peeta is silently laughing and Gale is showing the slightest smile, "Pajamas?"
My pajama consists of old plaid fuzzy pants that are a soft blue, an undershirt that is blue and old slippers. My top shows my cleavage, which I'm not fond of, but it keeps me cool in the bakery.
I feel my cheeks heating up and I turn, "I'll be right back!"
I run up the stairs of the bakery and into my room, where I pull on a shirt. I close my door gently and walk back downstairs to the bakery. Peeta and Gale are still in the same spots, but laughing at the situation. I walk back to the counter and clear my throat, to let them know I was there.
"Oh!" Gale said. "Okay, so today, we have…" He looked through his satchel and pulled out two squirrels.
"Two! Fantastic!" I smile, "Oh, and today, I made cookies, for you two and your families."
I take the squirrels and lay them on the counter, putting a cover under it. Peeta is fantastic at shooting Squirrels, he makes a clean shot straight threw the eye. Every time.
I make my way to the back of the shop, where I pick up four loaves of bread; I mean it's only fair to give them two loaves per squirrel, fresh game is hard to come by. I put them in a bag and carried them out to the front, and handed the bag to Gale. "Hold on and I'll get the cookies."
I walked over to the counter and unlocked it; I pulled out the cookies and set them on the counter. I split them up, six for each boy. Putting them in separate bags, I walked back to the guys and handed them both a bag.
"No, Katniss, We don't need this much." Peeta started.
I interrupted him, "No! The bread is fair, and then the cookies are a gift. For the reaping! Take them!"
Peeta eyed me suspiciously, "We only gave you two squirrels, and we don't deserve the cookies!"
I rolled my eyes, "If you don't want the cookies, give them to your siblings! I know you're hard headed but, just take them for crying out loud!"
Gale groaned, "Peeta for once listen! You're not going to win with Katniss! I never do, and you never will! You both will go on forever if you continue to argue!"
Peeta sighed in defeat, "Fine! Thank you Katniss! See you at the reaping." He said nicely.
"May the odds be ever in your favor!" Gale and I yelled at the same time.
They exit, and I can hear Peeta's mumbling about the extra food. They don't like taking a lot, because they think it's rude. I don't know it's something they do.
I lock the door back and flip the sign back over so I can go upstairs and get dressed. I walk up the stairs and open the door to my Mother's room. I see her body in the bed, still asleep. Prim is cheek to cheek with her asleep also. I sneak in and walk over to Prim, where I pick her up and carry her downstairs bridal style for breakfast.
I enter the rooms in the back, where we have our dining room, den, and a small bathroom. I sit her in a chair and squat down to make eye contact with her. I give her a small shake and her eyes flutter open. Those blue eyes, I love those eyes.
"Prim? Time for Breakfast!" I tell her.
She yawns and rubs her eyes, looking around. "Did Peeta and Gale come?" She asks.
"Yeah! They got two squirrels today!" I smile.
She smiles, "I love squirrel!" She sits up and I bring her a piece of bread with jam on it and pieces of old squirrel meat.
"Eat up." I say, "We have to go to the Mellark's house to get those remedies for Mother's headaches."
She nods and starts eating; I head back upstairs to get on some clothes. I put on a plaid button-up shirt, jeans, and laced boots, and a jacket. I pulled up my hair in its usual braid and brushed my teeth.
I head back downstairs, and enter the dining room, where Prim is finishing up her squirrel meat. That girl can eat food, fast! I give her a glass of water and she drinks it, chugging it down quickly. She smiles and I take her hand and lead her upstairs to her room.
We open the door, and the world's ugliest cat greets us.
Buttercup.
Ugly shade of yellow, mashed in nose, half torn ear, and he is fat. I was trying to drown him in a bucket full of water, but Prim came running out, begging me to stop. She cried and pleaded, but finally I gave up and agreed.
She insisted on naming him Buttercup, because she insisted that has his fur was the color of a buttercup.
He ran out and hissed at me. I hissed back and walked into Prim's room, where I opened her small closet. She picked out a shirt, blue flowing skirt, and a pair of old sandals. I pulled her hair pack into two braids and she washed up.
We went back down the stairs, and exited. I grabbed her hand and we walked through town. Getting the occasional "Hello" or "How are you doing?" and the every so often, "May the odds be ever in your favor!"
I pulled Prim along as we entered the poorest part in District 12, the Seam, where Gale and Peeta live. I live in the better part of District 12, in the merchant areas. We have a bit more money and more food for sure. But not by much.
I picked up my pace, and picked up Prim and carried her. She seemed to enjoy it very much. Since I've worked in a Bakery all my life, I'm pretty strong and can lift over one-hundred pounds easily. I don't have big muscles, but I do have muscles that are noticeable when I flex. They are a slight bigger than Peeta's muscles if that says anything.
I soon reached the Mellark's house, and Prim looked around. The house was two-story, white chipped paint, busted windows, and split wood. I didn't judge though, the Bakery is in bad shape too. I approached the door and knocked quietly and stepped back. I could hear heavy footsteps approaching the door. They door opened with a slight creak and Peeta stood there smiling.
"Hello Katniss! Primrose!" He greeted, "What do you need?"
Prim spoke up, "The remedy your Mother was working on, for our Mother's headaches she has."
Peeta nodded and stepped back, motioning for us to come in. Prim grabbed my hand and pulled me inside. The inside looked better than the outside at least, it was neat. It was as nice as a Seam house could get pretty much. He walked by us and walked into a small room to the left.
"I like this house." Prim whispered to me, "It's pretty."
Peeta stuck his head out of the doorway, "Thank you Prim!" He went back in the room.
Figures. Hunters instincts.
He came back out and handed me a bag full of mint leaves, sleeping syrup, and berries.
His ash blonde hair waved down his forehead and looked sweaty; he probably just got back from trading.
I reach into my pocket and pull out a few coins, enough for a loaf of fresh bread. I place them into his hand and smiled at him.
"Thank you. Tell your Mother I said Thank you also. Oh, and tell your Father his shipment of biscuits came in." I chirp, "See you at the reaping."
He smiles, "Bye Katniss. Bye Prim!" Prim smiles at him and we turn and leave.
There is a story between Peeta and I, which goes back to when we were eleven.
Sheets of rain poured out of the sky, soaking everything to the bone. It was the bitterest January anyone in District Twelve could remember. Peeta was out, trying to sell some old paintings his Father had drawn, but the rain had soaked the paint. It had rain, so all that was on the canvas was a blurred picture of whatever he had drawn.
Peeta stumbled around the sidewalk, hunger trying to overtake him. But he continued on, until he reached a hole. Where he dropped his painting, where if he was to bend over, his knees would buckle and he would not be able to stand again.
His Mother had just lost her voice forever, because of the Mine explosion. The ash went down her throat and caused her to not be able to talk. Peeta's Father was not able to hunt, since he was taking care of his wife. So his Father, Mother, Two older brothers, and Peeta were slowly starving to death.
He walked by the bakery, and went to our garbage cans. Where he was looking for old scraps or ANYTHING to eat. But earlier that day, my Mother had emptied the trash out. That day my Mother was upset, mad, angry, and every emotion you could imagine from my Father's death. She was taking it all out on me.
He dug in the trash cans, looking for food when my Mother noticed him. She ran outside and started yelling at him.
"You there! Get away from the trash cans! You seam brat! The seam brats always go through the trash! Go away before I call the Peacekeepers!" She yelled at him, "SCRAM!"
He stumbled away, and he made it to a tree; where his legs buckled under him and he fell. He had noticed me standing behind my Mother as I watched her yell at him. He buried his head in his hands and sobbed.
I felt sorry for him, so I thought of a way to help him. Then it came to me.
I noticed two loaves of bread in the oven cooking, so when it was done I did my plan. I pushed the loaves into the flames. They weren't badly burnt, but they could not be sold. My Mother came stomping into the room and noticed the burnt loaves of bread.
"Katniss! They are burnt! Go feed them to the pigs, those filthy creatures! No one decent will buy burnt bread!" She yelled.
She smacked me with the rolling pin she had in her hand, which sent me on the ground. I let out a scream, which could be heard throughout Panem.
I managed to my feet and stood, grabbing the loaves. I ran outside and tore a very small chunk off of the bread, and threw it in the trough. When my Mother was not paying attention I threw the first loaf at Peeta. Then I threw the second. He looked stunned but hurried to his feet and fled.
The next day at school, I had a swollen cheek bone and a black eye. Only a few people asked me what happened, all I said was; "I hit my eye on the side of the stairs then fell down the stairs."
Most people believed it, but I know Peeta didn't believe it. He heard my scream, he got the bread.
I saw him after school, we made eye contact for a second then I broke it. As I was walking home that day, he tapped me on the shoulder and gave me a dandelion.
He said, "Thank you for the bread last night. I owe you." Then he gave me a hug and ran off to his brothers.
I looked at the small dandelion he gave me, and smiled.
It gave me a hope for the future.
Prim tugged on my arm and I looked down at her, then I realized, I stopped walking.
"Sorry Prim, I had a moment there." I told her. "Let's go."
We continue to town and reach the bakery. We enter and go upstairs, to our Mother's room to give her the medicine. We enter and she is still asleep.
I give Prim the bag of medicine and she walks to the side of the bed and puts it in Mother's mouth. Moving her jaw up and down to chew.
She swallows it and Prim shakes her slightly, "Mom? Wake up, the Reaping starts soon!"
Mother groans, "What time is it?"
I think for a minute, "About twelve."
She gets out of bed and looks from me to Prim, "Thanks Girls."
We exit and head to our separate rooms to dress. I open my closet and pull out an old blue dress from when my Mother was younger. I slip it on, and look in my old dirty mirror. I look okay I guess.
I slip on some old blue flats with it and fix my hair back to its nice braid.
Prim slips into my room with a white blouse that sticks out in the back and a blue skirt. Her hair is in her two braids down her back.
"Tuck your tail in, little duck." I tell her.
She smiles as I stuck it in, "Quack."
I smile and give a slight laugh, Prim's the only one that can make me smile or laugh like that.
We walk out to the hall and Mother comes out of her room in a dark blue dress, with her blonde hair cascading down her back. Her blue eyes are worried that one of us will be reaped. She motions for us to follow her and we do so. We head into the Bakery and we exit.
The square is starting to fill in as we arrive, and we sign in and make our way to our sections. Me to the sixteen year old section, and Prim to the twelve year old section. As I'm standing in my section I hear someone crying near the twelve year old section and turn to look.
Prim.
I make my way to her and push through a small crowd to reach her. When I do, I hug her tightly and stroke her hair.
"Prim, your name is only been in there once. There is no way your name is going to be picked." I whisper. She nods and wipes away the tears, giving me a hug. I kiss her hair and walk back to the sixteen year old section.
I see my only friend Madge standing in the crowd, so I head to her. Her father is Mayor Undersee, Mayor of District 12.
The Baker Girl best friends with the Mayors only daughter? A very unlikely friendship.
She smiles at me; our chances to go into the games are slim to none. Compared to some of the people in this District. Like Gale and Peeta, whose name has been entered many times.
Madge nudges me and I look to the stage, where our District Escort, Effie Trinket is making her way up the stage. She has on a ridiculous pink wig, pink suit, and a pair of tall heels on. She gives us a grin and looks around the crowd. Apparently I missed the Mayors speech.
"Welcome Welcome. The time has come to select one courageous boy and girl to participate in these years, seventy-fourth Hunger Games!" She speaks into the microphone, with her ridiculous Capitol accent, "Ladies First!"
Does she realize that she is choosing the two kids that are going to die in the Arena? Putting their lives on the line for Adults mistakes seventy-four years ago? Well, the Capitol thinks of it as some sort of show that is fabulous. Watching Children the ages of twelve through eighteen brutally killing each other in an arena.
Effie dramatically picks a name out of the bowl and marches back over to her microphone at the edge of the stage. She unfolds it and reads the name over before saying it.
"Primrose Everdeen."
No! No! No! No! No! This can't be happening! Not Prim, she's only twelve years old; she will die in the matter of hours!
I see her march to the stage, hands in fists by her sides, the color drained from her face. The blouse in the back has come untucked, making her look like a duck once again.
As soon as it started the air refills my lungs as I scream.
"Prim! Prim!" I yell, running out to the isle. "I Volunteer! I Volunteer as Tribute."
I shove Prim behind me and start to the stage, when Prim grabs my leg and will not let go.
"Prim! Let go!" I mutter, forcing the tears back. I can't look weak, not since all the Tributes look at the recaps and see who is easy prey and is not. "Let go Prim!"
I fill Prim being lifted off of me, and see Gale picking her up.
"Up you go Katniss." He whispers.
I make my way up the stairs, looking down at me feet. I reach my destination beside of Effie and look out to the crowd.
Prim is kicking and screaming at Gale to let her go, Mother is bawling in the line the adults must stand at, and Madge has silent tears going down her face.
Effie smiles at me, "What's your name?"
"Katniss Everdeen." I mutter out.
"I bet my buttons that was your sister! Didn't want her to get all the attention did you?" Effie beams.
A drunken Haymitch Abernathy stumbles up the stage and hugs Effie.
Haymitch is our only living winner from the Hunger Games in District twelve. He won the second Quarter Quell, which was the fiftieth Hunger Games. He drinks heavily and is always drunk and late to every single reaping.
He makes his way over to me, slinging his arm over my shoulder.
"I like you. You have lots of…." He trails off. He's thinking of the right word. "Spunk!"
He marches to the front of the stage and points to several cameras, "More than you! And more than you!"
Then he did a nose dive off the front of the stage, making a few people gasp and a few laughs.
Effie lets out a sigh and she rolls her eyes before heading over to the boy's reaping ball.
She picks out a name from the top and heads back over to the microphone, smoothing out the small sheet of white paper.
She once again reads over the name and then announces it.
"Peeta Mellark."
No! Not Peeta! I don't want to kill him! Or him to kill me!
The sea of sixteen year old boys separates and Peeta slowly comes out.
His face his white as snow, and he has some sweat coming down his forehead.
He comes to the stage and stands next to me, taking deep breaths.
Peeta looks at me with a look of despair and sadness, while I return it.
"I give you the Tributes from District Twelve! Give them a round of Applause!"
Not one person claps.
Did you like it?
I will update fast but not this weekend cause I have a sleepover and a really packed schedule! So next update will be next week!(:
Review? Please?
~Mallory