And From Those Moments: Fallen
"Look after my little Katniss." After the first moment I saw her, I promised myself that I would grow up to marry the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen, the girl with the beautiful voice: Katniss Everdeen. I hoped that the hardships we both faced when we were eleven and twelve would help us grow closer; I suppose I've got a few more years to try. Peeta: pre-Hunger Games
Chapter One
"We were five. You had a red plaid dress and your hair...it was in two braids instead of one. My dad pointed you out while we were waiting to line up. He said, 'See that little girl? I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner.' And I said, 'A coal miner? Why did she want a coal miner if she could've had you?' And he said, 'Because when he sings...even the birds stop to listen.' So that day, in music assembly, the teacher asked who knew the valley song. Your hand shot right up in the air. She put you up on a stool and had you sing it for us. And I swear, ever bird outside the windows fell silent. And right when your song ended, I knew -just like your mother- I was a goner."
(Peeta Mellark's POV)
I am woken to the sound of loud footsteps outside my room and the voices of my two brothers hollering at each other down the corridor. I groan and cover my head with my pillow, pulling my threadbare blanket over me again. The sun's only just risen, why do they want to be up now, I wonder.
When I hear the squeak of my door, I stay in the same place until I hear my mum whisper, "Pete, honey, time to get up."
I push the pillow off my head and rub my eyes, sleepily mumbling, "Hey mum. Why do I need to get up so early?"
"It's your first day of school," she explains, sitting down on the edge of my bed and gently rubbing my messy blonde hair. "You don't want to be late now, do you?"
"I suppose not," I reply, sitting up and crossing my legs in front of me. I look out the window at the sunrise, through the ripped curtains and mutter, "It seems really early to get up though."
"Well, school starts at eight and you need to be there before so you don't get in late," she answers, standing up and offering her hand out to me so I can get up too.
I fall back onto the mattress and lay there until my mum's hands have grabbed me beneath the armpit. I squeal as she lifts me up and places me on the floor, tiggling me as she moves me.
"Come on," she laughs, ruffling my hair. "Go and have a shower then I'll help you get ready."
I nod and grab the thin towel of the end of my bed, making my way down the corridor to the bathroom.
"Hey muffin," shouts my second oldest brother, James.
"Morning Jim," I call back. "Morning Matt," I add for my eldest brother, wherever he may be.
I put my hand on the door handle for the bathroom and begin to turn it as James asks, "Has mum sent you to get ready so you look nice on your first day of school? Recognise that this is the only day she'll care about your appearance-"
"Be quiet, James," I hear mum shouting from downstairs.
I smile and quietly answer to him, "Put you in your place, didn't it?"
Suddenly, the bathroom door opens and Matthew walks out, to find me fallen on the floor, my heart racing unbelievably fast. "Woah, muffin, what happened there?" he questions, stifling his laughter a lot more successful than James, who is now lying on the floor in his room, his laughter ringing through the house loud and clear.
"You gave me a fright, that's all," I complain, taking the hand he offers to help me back to my feet. I brush the dust from the wall off my shoulder as I feel my cheeks heating up. "I'm fine now though." I push past him and into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me, embarrassed by my reaction to any everyday occurrence.
I sigh, dropping the towel onto the floor and taking off my too-small pyjamas before stepping into the shower and drawing the curtain around me as I start the water. As the first drops of cold water hit my head, I gasp at the temperature, finding it refreshing though. I quickly wash myself and my hair, knowing that I can't waste any water, and then turn off the shower.
I step out again and look around for the towel, unable to find it where I left it. I search the whole room, under everything until the thought occurs to me that James never likes to leave things easy for me. I scream out in frustration and kick out, stubbing my toe on the bathroom cabinet. Grabbing the only thing available, I throw my pyjamas back on and storm into my brothers' room, desperately planning to give them a piece of my mind.
When I walk in and find them both sitting on their own bed, I notice James holding my towel. He looks up at me and smirks, chucking the towel at me. "You may need another shower, muffin," he suggests with the hint of laughter in his voice as I catch the towel.
"Why?" I snap, attempting to incorporate some fierceness into my tone.
"Looks like you may have had an accident," he notes, looking at the dampness on my pyjamas from where I had to put them over my wet body.
"That's your fault!" I shout, running towards him and throwing myself on top, trying to punch him.
Within seconds, he's rolled us off his bed so I land on the floor with him on top. I try to roll us back over so I have the advantage but there's no point with him having been on the school wrestling team already for a year. After a few minutes of struggling to move, I attempt to punch him but he pins my arms down by my wrist and he stops my legs from moving by kneeling on my legs.
I glare at him and he knows instantly what I plan to do because he quickly grabs my towel from behind him and stuffs it into my mouth.
He smirks as Matthew says from the other side of the room, not at all worried about the fight in front of him, "There's no point fighting him. He knows every trick in the book, he tried them all on me."
"James Mellark!" screams mum as she makes her way to the top of the stairs and sees him pinning me to the floor. "Let go of him at once."
He pulls a face and mocks her quietly under his breath but doesn't actually move until mum grabs hold of his arm and pulls him off, throwing him against the wall. She then kneels down and picks me up, carefully hugging me to her chest. I hold back onto her tightly and hide my face in her hair.
"James, you know not to hurt him in the slightest," mum continues her rant against my brother. "He's only five, for Heaven's sake! How do you expect him to behave?"
"He started on me," argues James. I glance up and see him leaning up against the wall, arms crossed over his chest and a stony expression on his face.
"He stole my towel from the bathroom which is why I'm in my pyjamas again," I complain.
As his frown deepens and he throws death glares at me, he mutters under his breath, "Snitch." Something tells me that he should be grateful that I'm in the room with him but he does nothing to show this gratitude, quite the opposite in fact.
"Don't do it again," mum warns simply and my idea is completely supported because I've heard her use much harsher words before.
She walks out of their room quickly and back into mine, sitting on my bed and loosening her grip around me. I, on the other hand, possibly tighten my grip as I mumble, "Is everyone at school like that?"
She sighs and rubs my back, which I now realise is throbbing from the impact of the fall plus the weight of my brother. "That's just your brother being you brother," she replies. "No one else is like that."
"Good. I wouldn't want to go if they were like that," I admit, finally letting go of her and sliding onto my mattress next to her.
"Well, you are, honey," she reasons. "Do you want to dry off whilst I get your clothes?"
"I guess I should," I agree.
She smiles and kisses my head. "I'll be fast," she promises, standing up and swiftly exiting the room.
Once she leaves, I shut the door before taking my pyjamas off again as I wrap the towel around my body and beginning drying myself.
At the sound of a knock on the door, I ask, "Who's there?"
"It's me, darling," answers my mum. "May I come in?"
"Yes, of course," I say.
She walks in and shuts the door behind herself, kneeling down so her face is level with mine as she puts the clothes on my bed. She ruffles my hair and then brushes it flat. "They're brand new clothes," she promises, smiling.
I look at her, shocked by the fact. I've never had new clothes that I've been the first to wear; one or both of my brothers have always had them first. I watch her carefully as she first shows me my new pair of grey shorts, then my perfectly ironed white shirt, a black tie, and finally a matching grey jumper with a dark blue lining around the edge.
I quickly change into the new outfit, careful to not crease the shirt. Mum smiles again as she ties the tie around my neck and whispers, "My baby's all grown up."
I laugh and hug her. "Thank you," I mumble.
"Don't worry," she replies. She grabs my hand and leads me out of the room, downstairs into the bakery where my dad and two brothers are waiting to walk with me to school.
James sniggers when he sees me, which results in elbow in the ribs from my dad, who also smiles at me. As he brushes the flour off his jacket, he says, "Are you ready yet?"
I nod and turn to mum, where she places a kiss on my hair before I finish walking down the stairs to my dad. He takes his turn to ruffle my hair as my two brothers begin making their way out of the house and I follow them.
As I make my way to school, I keep silent so I don't embarrass myself once again. I glance around the town as we walk and take note of the coal dust that covers everywhere in sight. I can't empathise with the coal miners who are the foundation of this District and can sometimes die from their job because my job will be much simpler as a baker, which has always been the work of my family.
I wonder what the school will be like. Maybe the teachers and students will be like what my brothers have said they're like, or maybe they'll be completely different. I'm wishing that it will be much more exciting and interesting that I've heard tales of. I hope that I will make some good friends there that I can hang around with when I have free time from the bakery. My mum's really my best friend at the moment because she's always there for me and I can tell her anything.
"Have fun today, muffin," shouts James. I snap out of my thoughts and realise that we've reached school. "Good luck getting past the older kids," he adds as he leaves the courtyard in a run.
I laugh nervously and pull at my jumper until my dad says to distract me, "Don't stare, Peeta, but look over there."
I look over in the direction that he inclines his head and notice a girl my age, wearing a red plaid dress and a grey cardigan. She has olive skin and shining grey eyes, her dark hair tied in a braid down either side of her face. How can such a beautiful girl be the daughter of a Seam coal miner?
"See that little girl?" he asks, well aware that I've obviously noted her presence by now. I nod before he continues. "I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner."
I look back at him, staring incredulously at his reminiscent face, and repeat, "A coal miner? Why did she want a coal miner if she could've had you?"
He smiles sadly as he nods. "Because when he sings...even the birds stop to listen."
I don't know what to say in response so I'm lucky in that moment that the year is called to be registered for the first time. I wave at him as I walk away, finding my place in the line, which is in alphabetical order. I scan up and down the line as it slowly moves, noting a few boys and girls that I've seen around town.
After a few seconds, I find my eyes locked onto the girl that dad pointed out earlier. Now that a few have already gone through, she is at the front. As she steps forward, the teacher calls, "Katniss Everdeen," to which she just nods before she seems to float away. I gaze longingly at her simple movements and try to remember her sweet name.
Soon, without realising because I was too busy staring at some particular classmates of mine, I find myself at the front of the line too.
"I know that you are Peeta Mellark but will you please consent it?" I hear the teacher beg after I've snapped from my thoughts due to a sharp kick in my shins.
"Err... Yes," I mutter, my focus still directed behind her.
She sighs and ticks my name. "I hope that you pay more attention in class, Mr Mellark."
I nod and finally walk into the hall to sit with some of my classmates for our first lesson: music. I glance around and note that Katniss is on the end, on her own, of the second row. I make my way to the end of the third row and sit directly behind her, gradually trying to pluck up the courage to talk to her as I study the back of her in more detail than before.
Just as I decide that I now have enough courage to at least ask if I can sit next to her so she's not lonely, the teacher shuts the doors and walks to the front of the hall with a smile on her pale face. I look up at her for a second to see that she has light brown hair pulled up into a bun, with piercing blue eyes in the sharp features of her face, then I direct my gaze back to Katniss.
"Good morning class, my name is Miss Beale," she introduces.
The class manages a small, "Good morning Miss Beale," in reply.
She nods her head, seemingly approving. "Thank you," she mutters as she turns around to find something that she needs to take from her bag.
"Excuse me, but would you like me to sit next to you so you're not on your own?" I ask in a whisper next to Katniss' ear.
She jumps slightly and turns to face me. She looks me up and down for a moment before saying, "I don't mind either way. I'm not really the most talkative of sorts so I don't mind being on my own, but you can sit here if you'd like."
She turns back around and I allow a small smile to pass over my lips as I slide off my seat and climb into the one next to Katniss. She flashes me a smile as I find my seat in the chair and I have to catch my breath; that was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.
"What's your name?" she asks quietly, keeping her eyes pointed forward, whereas mine are still staring at her because of that smile.
"Peeta Mellark," I tell her.
"Katniss Everdeen," she replies.
"Right, class," Miss Beale calls, turning my head to the front of the hall again and interrupting what could have been the start of an amazing and life changing conversation. "As you all know, this class is music. I'd first like to ask, does anyone know the Valley Song?"
At first, no noticeable hands are raised from the class because no one has time to sing here and now. Then, slowly and more obviously, a hand of the girl beside me is raised and I, once again, am left staring at her. Katniss looks around the room for a second and notices my expressions so laughs, lifting my chin with a soft hand and gentle touch to shut my mouth.
"Well then, Miss Everdeen, would you like to come to the front of the room and sing it for us?" questions the teacher, not really leaving Katniss with much choice but to say yes.
However, as she drops her hand, the expression on her face shows that she definitely doesn't want to sing it for us. I nudge her and admit, "I'd like to hear you sing, Katniss."
She glances at me as if she's trying to work out if I'm being truthful or not. After a short analysis of the pleading in my eyes, she sighs and stands up, muttering, "Just for you, Peeta," as she walks down to the front of the room.
Miss Beale pulls out a three-legged stool for her when she reaches the front. Katniss sits on it and crosses her legs up, waiting for the silence to fall in the class. As it gradually does, the only sound we can hear are the birds outside, singing their own sweet melody. Then Katniss begins her own.
"Down in the valley, the valley so low,
Hang your head over, hear the wind blow,
Hear the wind blow, dear, hear the wind blow;
Hang you head over, hear the wind blow.
Roses love sunshine, violets love dew,
Angels in Heaven know I love you,
Know I love you, dear, know I love you;
Angels in Heaven know I love you.
Build me a castle, forty feet high,
So I can see her as she rides by,
As she rides by, dear, as she rides by;
So I can see her as she rides by.
Roses love sunshine, violets love dew,
Angels in Heaven know I love you,
Know I love you, dear, know I love you;
Angels in Heaven know I love you."
By the time that the final word has passed through her lips, the children in the class have all been drawn in by her enchanting voice. You can't even hear the birds outside anymore, they have stopped to listen too. And I now know that, like her mother, I'm a goner. I smile at the fact and hope that the same fate that joined her mother and father will join the two of us.
After a few minutes of silence, during which Katniss' cheeks turned a beautiful pink rose colour, the teacher finally claps and allows her to sit back down, but at the front in case she may be needed to sing again. As she finds a seat at the front, I stare longingly in her direction, wishing she could be sitting next to me again. She must feel my stare because she turns momentarily in my direction and smiles the captivating smile once again.
The rest of the lesson passes without me paying any attention, which is therefore lucky that none is needed. Then the class makes their way into an actual classroom, where Miss Beale teaches us to count and read, both of which I know how to do already from being in the bakery.
When we're in the classroom, I find Katniss in the room and focus my gaze on her as she concentrates. She does some cute things when she's concentrating: she twists one of her plaits around her hand when she's trying to work out a tricky problem; and she shuts her eyes and leans back, a smile crossing her lips, as she tries to imagine something. I'd really like to just sit next to her and help her because I've done it all myself already.
By the time the other students have half mastered the alphabet, I notice that Katniss looks as bored as I do. She stares out of the window and to the meadow, which is past our District's boundaries but I know that a few people from the Seam go there to hunt. I wonder if her father does and if she'll do so when she's older.
The final lesson of the day is art and we're told that we can draw whatever we like. This is the part of the day that interests me. I'd personally like to draw the most beautiful thing in the class but something tells me that wouldn't be the best idea so, instead, my decision rests with her earlier song.
Down in the valley, the valley so low,
Hang your head over, hear the wind blow.
First, I draw a deep green valley, full of tall trees that look like they're blowing in the strong wind.
Roses love sunshine, violets love dew,
Angels in Heaven know I love you.
Next to the trees, I draw pink roses, mixed in with the violets. Then, in the sky, I draw a layer of clouds and, on top of that, two human figures in white and gold clothes, with wings on their back.
Build me a castle, forty feet high,
So I can see her as she rides by.
The final things I draw are a tall castle with high turrets and flags, also fluttering in the wind, and a girl with dark hair riding by on a horse. Then, for added effect, I draw a boy with blonde hair looking out at the girl from one on the highest windows.
"You know, those boy and girl look like you and me," laughs the soft voice that I've fallen in love with.
"Hey," I mutter, turning around to see Katniss, who I didn't even notice move. "You were great at singing earlier."
She shrugs. "Is it based on the song?"
"Yeah," I admit. "But, Katniss, I really did think your singing was beautiful."
"And I really think your drawing is beautiful," she promises, smiling as she returns to her seat.
Angels in Heaven know I love you, if only you knew that too.
When the bell rings, signalling the end of the school day, everyone exits the school quickly. The hope of speaking to Katniss again is soon crushed as I lose sight of her when I get stuck in the corridor full of older kids. I don't worry about how much bigger they are than me until someone catches my head and I fight to get them off, scared of what they'll do to me.
"Stop struggling, muffin," hisses James. "I'm being nice and getting you out safely."
"Gerroff!" My shout comes out muffled and I manage to push his arms off once we arrive outside in the bright sunshine. I frown in his direction as he walks away with his friends, but turn a deep red colour when I catch Katniss' eye. She's looking in my direction and laughing as well as smiling, no doubt at my scowl and messed up hair. I smile as well at her as she walks away with her dad and I make my way over to mine.
"Had fun today?" he asks as his first words to me.
I nod. "Dad, that girl you pointed out to me this morning, well, I want to marry her when we're older."
He chuckles. "Give it some time, son. You don't want to rush things."
"But I love her!" I argue.
"I'm sure you do but these things take time," he reasons.
"Fine," I sigh, following my dad as we make our way back to the bakery in silence.
When we step in, I catch sight of my mum and run forward into her arms. She smiles as she kisses my head and then stands up. "How was your day, darling?"
"It was great," I say.
"I think he may have made a new friend," dad mutters.
Mum looks proud and laughs. "He did? And who was that then?"
Dad looks awkward and walks out of the room as if he never heard her.
Mum rolls her eyes and then repeats the question to me, to which I answer, "Her name is Katniss Everdeen and I think I love her."
Even before the final words have left my lips, mum's hand has smacked me around the side of the face as she screams, "How dare you do that, you stupid boy? You fell in love with Seam trash! What kind of son are you? And that girl especially, she doesn't know the definition of half the things you want to love her for."
Tears are already streaming down my face from the force of the blow from the mother who I thought loved me more than anything as I shout in reply, "She's not trash, she's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen and I'm going to marry her when I'm older, whether or not you like it!"
I receive two more slaps on the same spot for this comeback and, before she can do anything else, I've run away to my room. I slam the door behind me and push a cabinet to block it before I throw myself on my bed and rest my sore cheek on my pillow, crying myself to sleep with the only comforting words from the song swirling around my head with the definite knowledge that Katniss will marry me one day.
Author's Note: So, as I'm sure you've realised by now, this is my one shot about Peeta and Katniss' first day of school. I know that in the story, Katniss and Peeta have never spoken but in this they have, Katniss just decided to forget everything about the Boy with the Bread. Peeta's mum is obviously nice to him before in this until she finds out about his love, where she then discovered an instant dislike for him. I imagine James to be about two and a half years older than Peeta, and Matthew to be about seven years older.
Anyway, I will probably write other one shots about other major points in Peeta's life in the fanfiction. I hope you enjoyed it and please review to let me know!