Not Seeing in Color

by dontmissasinglesunrise

In the life of a Navajo Indian orphan girl, Katniss Everdeen faces racism in the southern most part of Arizona. The white man's hate is enough to make her certain they're all the same. Until she meets Peeta Mellark, and learns to do one thing the white man can't. She learns to not see people in color.

1. Chapter 1

Warning: This is an accurate and unfiltered depiction of racism against Native Americans in Arizona. My apologies if any of it offends you, but I can promise you it is only to educate people of the way this race has been treated, and to this day still is treated. Thank you.

...

Not Seeing In Color

Mrs. Stencil taps her pencil against her clipboard as she takes roll.

"Ansley Riverboat."

"Here." The girl says, rolling her eyes.

"Okay, thank you. Ben Pager."

"Here,miss." The boy drawls in his southern accent, raising his hand.

"Paige Ivey."

"Yes'm?"

"Nothing sweety, just making sure you're here."

"Oh." The girl blushes, scooting down in her seat. A few girls nearby giggle.

"Pee-Peter? I think there's a typo."

"There's not, I just have a really weird name." A boy at the back of the room pipes up, a crooked self deprecating grin spreading over his face. The teacher laughs easily. "Ah, I see. That clears it up. Thank you Peeta."

The whole class bursts out laughing.

"Peeta?! Like the bread? Bwahahah"

I turn around in my seat to look at him. I smile at him looking from the class to him that lets him know I think they are idiots, then shaking my head and rolling my eyes. His body shakes in silent laughter as he clutches his stomach. I smile. He straightens up and winks at me. I huff, flipping my braid over my shoulder before turning back around.

How dare he have the gall to wink at me, I think to myself. "Katniss!" The teacher yells at me. I straighten up in my seat,all of a sudden rigid as a board.

"Yes ma'am. Here."

"You should have answered me the first time." The teacher says sternly.

I gulp. "Yes ma'am, I'm really sorry."

"Stupid cherry nigger." Somebody mutters.

I have to fight the instinct to look around for who said such a thing by balling my hands into fists and squinting my eyes shut.

I'm used to it. But that doesn't make me like it any better.

I'm Katniss Everdeen, and this is my life story. I wasn't always an orphan. I was the beautiful baby of a Navajo woman and a white man. Sure it was a one night stand that landed me here, but I still had a family. Except the pressure was too much for my father, so he put me on the doorstep of Panem Orphanage. As soon as my mother found out, she tried to fight for me. But there wasn't much money to the the Everdeen name, therefore not a lot of support possible for raising a child. So the law was on my father's side.

So here I am.