Brief change of view: in which, Peeta goes home, to the Cullen household.
*Peeta POV*
The car follows the road closely, spare rain collected throughout the day shattering out against the moonlight like glass shards. The phone buzzes in the dashboard cup-holder, the third time in the past ten minutes. It seems to continue for hours, before dying off. It whines once more, a notification at the missed call, before going still.
All at once, the voices begin, the gasping my own but the words foreign. A sheen clings to the memory of her, and my throat feels on fire. The flesh, the hot coursing of her blood, the sweet scent of her-
"My name is Peeta Mellark," the mantra Aurelius taught me fumbles out from my lips. "Also called Peeta Cullen."
Barely keeping myself steadying against the onslaught, I swerve myself back into the proper lane, grateful that there had been no one else around.
"I'm seventeen years old."
Only the thought doesn't finish quite there. Because 'sort of' always amends that part of the statement.
I don't want to hurt anyone, goes unsaid aloud.
It's all that fills in my mind.
I don't want to hurt anyone.
Just the idea, of something happening... I could never live with myself.
(Living isn't really the problem, though, is it, Peeta?)
Fingers curl tighter about the steering wheel, before the familiar pathway appears. Senses go on autopilot, as if mind and body are two separate entities. After one left turn, a short drive lays itself before me. I cut off to the right, into the family's gravel driveway. The sheen, which sets the roads to glitter, coats the foliage lining the way into slick mirrors.
My housemates all appear to be here, from my quick assessment of the cars parked outside. Times were, I would already be hearing their thoughts, from this distance. Blissful silence is kept, more or less, in my mind. Soundproof glass, installed last winter, likely plays its part.
Aurelius, Effie, Johanna, and Finnick all have their vehicles on the premises. If Katniss has gotten home, Madge must have been home for some time now. It seems they are just waiting on me, then.
My adoptive mother (adoptive aunt, really), should be pleased. Effie always insists we all try to be home for dinnertime, despite there rarely being any meals inside of the house.
Tonight, technically speaking, is my birthday. Effie told me she has a surprise. Johanna asked if it was porn.
I'm surprised Effie manages to keep her wigs on, sometimes.
I set the silver Volvo to park behind Finnick's Jeep.
"Entirely impractical!" Effie had said, months ago when my adoptive cousin brought home the contraption. "It doesn't have a door, dear, how on Earth is it meant to protect you from the elements?!"
She had created an entire list of more secure cars, which Finnick had promptly lit with one of Johanna's spare matches.
It's not as if safety ratings are an issue, where our family is concerned.
The heat in the house washes over me, and muffled conversation I can now better perceive to be a heated argument. Indifferent senses merely acknowledge rather than feel the difference in temperature. Wet rubber soles squelch against the floor, as the dampness of my coat makes it hang limp on the doorframe. Despite having hardly stepped closer than a foot to Katniss, I can still smell the scent of her home on my jacket, as well as pants and shirt. I take a moment, to let that sink in.
No buffers, and nothing happened.
No arms holding you back, and everything is fine.
(She must be a lucky girl, then, huh?)
Wet shoes are barely kicked off before the facets of the argument begin to become clear to me.
The words, though, aren't all I can sense. Madge's jacket smells distinctly of raw, dirty dog.
Instincts make me recoil, and I immediately head in to where the family is gathered.
"How could you be such an fucking moron-?!"
"Johanna, language!" Effie attempts to interject.
"Shut it, wiggy, don't get me started on your sorry ass."
"Don't talk to her that way!" Madge snaps.
"I can talk to whoever I damn well please-"
"Because you always have the best judgement."
"Excuse me, am I the one came home smellin' like a damn mutt?"
"She gets it, Jo," Finnick adds, running a hand through his hair. He shifts in his spot on the corner of the coffee table, meeting Johanna's resentful glare with an impassive expression. "Leave it alone."
Effie wrings her hands, pacing back and forth behind the couch, where Madge is seated.
A flow of calm slowly precipitates through the room, emanating from the bronze-haired boy. It eases the nerves, less potent as it would be with someone with active hormones, but still effective enough. I can see Johanna squirming, clearly trying to fight the relaxation.
"God, Finn, keep it in your pants," the black-haired sprite mutters.
"We just have to figure out where to go from here," Finnick talks over Johanna. He glances over at Dr. Cullen.
"Precisely," Aurelius' even tone helps the group. The conversation pauses, as I come to stand next to my adoptive uncle. Aurelius puts a hand on my shoulder. "Everything all right over there?"
I nod. "Just a misunderstanding."
When I had come in from hunting earlier, Effie had practically been having an aneurysm or something, she was so worked up about Katniss's phone call. I hadn't had much time to explain who Katniss was, or time to grab Finnick or Johanna along with me. I suppose Effie must have explained to the family, but obviously a distraction has so graciously befallen us.
"What's going on?" I ask, glancing over at Madge.
She averts her eyes, the set of her jaw making me assume she must be quite upset. I glance about at my other company, barely resisting the urge to break down the barriers I've built up over the past two years.
"Lil' Madgepie ended up in La Push," Johanna quips, collapsing onto the couch. A decisive crack, and a sudden slump in the area under Jo's weight predictably signals the breaking of the couch.
Effie immediately begins to scold her, earning some spitting comments in retort.
However, the elephant is still in the room, and I frown at Madge.
"You went to La Push?"
Me, perhaps, or even Jo (to challenge the rules), or Finnick (to be an ass), but Madge? Never has she been one to break the rules. Her following Aurelius and Finnick out of the Volturi court had been the closest she ever came, but even that had been with some form of their oversight.
If I hadn't been approved by the Volturi President I doubt I'd be more than a decapitated corpse buried on a mountainside.
Madge meets my eyes, but her face offers no explanation.
"The kids went there, today," Aurelius says evenly. He steps away, checking his phone, before looking towards the front of the house. "The Lahotes and some of the elders have agreed let it go. This time, that is."
I frown at Madge.
"I didn't know they were going there," she murmurs.
I suppose it is intended for me, but Johanna chooses this moment to push herself up, narrowing her eyes. Madge glares in response, before looking back at me.
"They said they were going to the beach," she says, flatly. "They gave a different name, Delly changed the plans last minute."
"Why didn't you persuade them to go somewhere else?"
"I couldn't with your girlfriend there, now could I?" she asks icily, before standing and pushing past me.
The room stills, and I try not to visibly cringe.
"What?" Johanna asks sharply.
Madge sets herself up at the piano, her back to me.
It would have come out at some time or another, she thinks. My blonde 'sibling' glances over her shoulder momentarily, before she begins to play.
"Peeta?" Aurelius inquires.
I hesitate, turning to face them all only when I feel the tension about ready to take corporeal form and bite me in the bum.
"Yes, Peeta, do discuss," Madge murmurs. Her fingers gradually works out a somber, unfamiliar melody. It is slow, haunting, with all deeper tones, few higher pitches interspersed.
She and I have had this conversation, after the day I attempted to get the administration office to switch about my schedule, and since- but I have only told Madge, out of curiosity. Effie's empathy, Johanna's strength only work on the physical. My ability, and Madge's, works on the mind.
"Are you saying you couldn't persuade Katniss?" Finnick tilts his head. Curiosity flickers in his eyes- for once their natural amber, and not the false hazel-green contacts provide. "Peeta?"
I sigh, shaking my head.
"What is he shaking his head for?" Effie frowns. "Peeta, dear, what are you shaking your head for?"
"Madge can't manipulate Katniss's mind," Finnick clarifies. The young man exchanges a look with Aurelius. "And Peeta can't read her mind, either."
"So brainless... really is?"
"Johanna," Effie chastises. "It is inappropriate to discuss someone's intelligence-"
"Blah, blah- what's Katniss's deal, bread boy?"
This is precisely why I haven't brought it up. Typically, Madge's confidence is just that- but in this sort of situation, of course she would break it. It's effected us, and our tenuous-at-best relationship with the Quileute.
"I don't know," I admit.
"We should figure this out." Finnick squints slightly. "Have you tried-"
"I don't want to discuss it." I give Finnick a hard stare, but he appears undeterred.
"Well, I was able to fiddle with her emotions a few times, so obviously she's not completely immune-"
"Shut up."
"Peeta, this could effect all of us, not just you and Madge-"
"We're not discussing this!"
"We have to, if it interferes with our living arrangements-"
"It won't. It was just a coincidence."
"And next time?"
"You don't know that there will be a next time!" I yell.
Finnick's hands clasp together, and he studies me intently for a while. "It's on the table, Peet."
"Right," bitterness escapes on my tongue, and I have a hard time containing a sneer. "Unlike Annie?"
Finnick stands up, a head taller than me, and looking as if he's about to pummel me. I know I've stepped over a boundary, but the anger is welling up beyond what I can suppress.
(Annie, Annie, Annie, in all different shapes and forms; it's practically all Finnick can think about half the time. A pretty girl with sunkissed skin, flowing hair, and seagreen eyes- bound up and screaming and crying, but never from memory so much as imagination. Lovely young lady, who no one ever dares discuss.)
"Let's give her a call, Finn, see what she has to say about this?"
Aurelius steps in between us, putting a hand on Finnick's chest. I hear Madge's song faltering, though not stopping entirely, and Effie is blabbering something about behaving ourselves.
"Calm yourself," Aurelius tells Finnick.
They hold one another's gaze for a while, before Finnick breaks off, walking away to the fireplace. Johanna watches him like a hawk, but all of us remain silent. Aurelius turns to me, puts a hand on my shoulder.
"That's not a topic for you." the doctor's grip is firm, but his tone remains gentle. "Understand?"
I give a terse nod, before glancing over at Finnick. In turn, the golden boy looks over his shoulder, meeting my gaze with an even enough expression to even give me a slight smile. I don't bother apologizing, because I realize I've already been forgiven.
"I don't want any more trouble," Aurelius releases his touch, looking around the room at all of us. "Madge?"
The blonde pauses, turning to face us all.
"We're all going to keep some distance." Dr. Cullen glances at me. "Not enough to cause notice, though."
I nod, before putting my arms across my chest, and staring at Johanna.
"Why are you looking at me?" Johanna snaps.
Everyone simply stares at the girl.
"Fine." Jo raises her hands as if in surrender. "I won't touch brainless with a ten-foot pole."
I glance at Finnick, who simply rolls his eyes. To his credit, he places his hand on his chest.
"I solemnly swear I am up to no good," he mocks.
"Finnick," Aurelius intones, voice implying no-nonsense.
"I'm her study-buddy, remember?" Finnick gives me a wink. "I promise I won't bother your girlfriend."
"She isn't my girlfriend," I grumble. If I still felt a heart beating in my chest, I might be blushing. Fortunately, I don't. "But thanks."
The tension eases somewhat, as Aurelius musses my hair, then sets himself up in the recliner chair. Madge continues her melody on the piano, and I pointedly ignore her. Johanna shifts on the couch. I'm waiting for the moment when the slouching couch frame creaks further apart, and Johanna ends up on the floor.
Finnick must wonder the same thing, as clear from his kicking the base of the frame. Johanna, in turn, catches his foot in one hand, and slowly squeezes it, until a distinct 'crack' signals her strength is far greater, even, than his reinforced bone structure.
"Well, children!" Effie claps her hands together. "Who's hungry for some cake?"
Unsurprisingly, no one raises their hand, except Effie.
After all, I already have to excuse myself, five minutes in, to retch out the undigested Chinese food lurking in my stomach.
It's nearly sunrise when I finish the sketch. It's fragmented, really. Scavenge from images, none having just the right capture; but, still, I take a step back, checking the symmetry of the framing. I begin to map the colors out in my head, noting the mixture to create the correct tone for her eyes; the correct highlights of red within the dark brown of her hair.
Looking at the sketch before me, I feel as comforted as I ever could, since the accident.
Just as relieved at the mystery that she is. A rush of curiosity, and desire.
This is my birthday present to myself, I decide.
A portrait of Kat Everdeen to try and satiate what I know I'm not meant to want.
another short one, just to clarify a few things. Mainly that: Johanna, Finnick, and Madge are all somewhat conglomerations of the Emmet/Rosalie/Alice/Jasper, and so they will have a combination of attributes, along with their own traits from THG canon. IDK if that was confusing at all x.x
thankyouforreadingggg! I'm snowed in and been trying to get this out of my head in between shoveling mounds of snow! hope you're all safe and happy and healthy! as always comments/crit/etc are appreciated! 3