What's In a Name?
Disclaimer: The Hunger Games doesn't belong to me. I'm not making any profit from this story.
Summary: 10 year old Brutus is tired of being picked on because his name is bigger than he is. He gets a different perspective from an unexpected place.
A/N: Set in the same continuity as my last two HG stories.
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From as far back as Brutus remembers, everyone's always laughed when they hear his name.
At first, he just thinks they're laughing because they're proud that he's a big boy who knows things, even though he's only three.
Mama and Dad laugh too when he spells it out for them, and they give him hugs and kisses and he's happy because he has the best family ever.
As the years go on, though, he learns the difference between what proud laughter and ugly laughter sounds like, and he realises that the laughter from some of the grown-ups and the kids at school is cruel.
Brutus is good boy- Mama tells him so all the time- and he's smart, so he gets angry when he can't figure out what's so funny and bad about his name.
One day, when he's 6, he asks Mama what his name means.
She works at the Victor Pensions office, and he gets to go there when he's not doing the Pre-Club try-outs after school. He likes it because it's nice and cool and quiet and the water bubbles up in the little machine outside Mama's office when he goes to get a drink of water.
Mama stops tapping away at her desk to look at him over her glasses. Her eyes are pretty and blue, just like his and Brutus holds his breath a little because Mama never lies to him, and if there's something wrong with his name, she'll tell him straight and it's a little scary.
"Your name means 'heavy', like the stones in the quarries." She tilts her head and softens her gaze a little. "It's a good, strong name. Your daddy chose it for you. Did someone ask you about it at school?"
"No ma'am," he says, relief mixing with confusion in his stomach.
She looks at him a little longer, like she's about to ask him something else, but eventually she just nods and goes back to her work.
Well, there's nothing wrong with his name after all, so now he's really confused.
Still, he manages to be excited that he's learned a new fact, and he smiles for days afterwards whenever he sees someone trying to lift a heavy stone. He makes up his mind to try to ignore the laughing people as much as he can.
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By the time he's ten, he's angry again.
It's all very well and good to have a strong name, but that's not much help when he's skinny and short and all the other boys in his year can out-wrestle him.
They say his name with a sneer now and call him 'little Brutus'; tell him the only thing he'll ever be good at is working in an office just like his mom.
(Brutus punches Tobias in the face when he mentions his mother and gets a broken finger for his trouble. Mama may not be big and tough like everyone else's parents, but she's smart and funny and Tobias doesn't get to talk about her just because his aunt's a tough Victor. When he's suspended for a few days and tells Dad the reason why, his father gives him a look between exasperation and pride.)
He starts dreading Pre-Club because even though he's good at a few things like target practice and wall climbing, all the other boys are way ahead of him in other areas. He really wants to join the Athletic Club in two years, and they only take the best and the strongest.
The bullying gets worse when the trainer praises him for his aim, mostly because he struggles with lifting the heavier objects, but can throw the small ones they mostly use for the girls with no problem.
He doesn't complain to his parents about it, because they think everything he does is an accomplishment. He's grateful for their support, but it doesn't help him with his problem.
One evening, training gets cancelled because of some sort of parent teacher meeting for the year above his, so Brutus heads to his mother's office since Dad is definitely not home yet and he's got geology homework that he might actually enjoy doing.
After all, geology doesn't laugh at him and call him skinny.
He's so wrapped up in his thoughts that he doesn't see the girl sitting in the chair right outside his mother's office door.
His mother's closed office door.
He sighs and sits two chairs away from the girl, next to his favourite water machine.
The girl stares at him and he turns his head and glares at her.
"What?" he snaps. It's not very polite, and Dad would be upset, but he really doesn't like when people stare. Mama tells him it's rude.
He expects her to flinch away, but all she does is smile at him and then Brutus' stomach does something he doesn't understand.
"What's your name?"
He tenses up again.
"What's yours?" he shoots back, trying-and failing- to keep the defensive tone from his voice.
Her smile doesn't drop, but her eyes tighten a bit around the corners.
"Zenobia."
Brown eyes flash at him as if daring to him to say something, and Brutus' breath catches in his chest because he knows that expression, he knows that tone, that feeling of waiting for the other person to laugh.
He just never expected to find it on another person.
"You don't have to be that way; I'd never laugh at you. Kids laugh at me about my name all the time too and I hate it," Brutus did not give himself permission to say all of that, but oh well.
He feels himself blushing, but forces himself to look at her.
Zenobia looks…a little stunned, to be honest.
"My name's Brutus," he says, to fill the awkward silence.
She frowns. "What's wrong with that? My daddy's best friend's name is Brutus. He's a peacekeeper."
"Yeah, and I bet he's not short and skinny," Brutus grumbles, pulling out his geology homework.
More silence.
Then, "So what do you do about it?"
"About what?" he asks absently, already getting absorbed in the first question.
"The people that laugh at you."
Brutus freezes. To his horror, he feels his throat start to close up. He hasn't cried since he was 6 years old, but he recognises the signs all the same.
All of a sudden he gets angry again. This is why the others laugh again. He's weak. He must be, to start crying over some stupid words.
"The last time someone laughed at me, they got a throwing star to the shoulder." She says it like she's just discussing the weather, and actually manages to startle a laugh out of him.
At this point, Brutus is starting to think that he's going crazy. He hasn't even been here with this girl five minutes and already he feels like he's gone through all the feelings he's ever felt before in his life.
Zenobia grins at him and leans back in her chair.
"One day," she says –and Brutus sits up straight because he can hear how serious she is- "one day I'm going to be a victor. And then everyone will like my name."
She sounds so certain about it that Brutus can't help but believe her.
His chest is doing that fluttering thing again, so he ducks his head and studies his homework.
She doesn't say anything else and there's a comfortable silence before his mother's office door opens and a woman strides out, giving him a nod of acknowledgment before turning to Zenobia.
I know her, he thinks. She's a victor.
A few seconds after that, he has to stop his jaw from hitting the floor. He knows EXACTLY who she is.
Amaranth Willets. District 9. Victor of the first quarter quell.
Brutus is so stunned at seeing a victor from another district up close that he almost misses it when Zenobia calls her 'mom'.
MOM?
"Bye Brutus! It was nice meeting you."
Zenobia smiles at him and skips after her mother, leaving Brutus to pick up his thoughts as he enters the office.
Zenobia's mom is the most special victor…the only quarter quell winner so far. And the girl still had to deal with people making fun of her name.
Mama might not like it, but maybe he should give Zenobia's idea a try.
After all, he might not be as big and strong as the others yet, but he IS good at throwing. He won't be able to do it at school –they're not allowed to use weapons there- but the trainers won't get him in trouble if he does it at Pre-Club.
Gabriel even broke Darius' wrist last week and all they did was tell him how to do it more easily next time.
He realises he's grinning when he hears his mother's amused huff.
"Someone's happy."
Brutus settles into the chair across from her and ducks his head.
"Yeah. I am."
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This has been sitting in on my computer for the last 2 years, so I figured it was definitely time to publish it. As always, constructive criticism is welcome!