Peeta POV
It's Thursday night, and I recently found out that my family would be going into hiding. Over the past few days we've been collecting and packing as much food and water for the days ahead. I'm upstairs, in the bedroom I shared with Branne. It breaks my heart just to think about him; to think he died in such a horrible, inhumane way almost brings me to tears.
I try to get the thought of my late brother out of my head as my eyes scan around the small, cramped room for any possessions I have missed. I've already packed my 3 extra shirts, 2 pairs of trousers and a pair of shorts as well as my underwear and few pairs of socks in the shoulder bag I will be taking for the journey. I managed to find an old, thick wool sweater that will keep me warm on cold nights, and the hand-me-down ball cap Rye gave me a few years ago.
The logo has worn off but I faintly remember it being the symbol for a football team that plays in the capitol. I think I was 12 then, and Father had just bought a new television set. Although some other family used it before us, but to us it was still new.
And when we turned on the television, the channel that it turned onto was then playing a football game. As a family we sat down and watched, due to the fact that none of us had a clue how to change channels. It was confusing at first, but then my brothers explained the game to us. I had instantly gotten hooked and wondered if District 12 had any football team.
Later that night Rye told me that there was an unofficial football team here in District 12, made up mostly by Town boys with a few seam boys. Branne had always wanted to join the team, but everyone said he was too skinny, not enough muscle to play.
So he decided to prove them wrong and joined the wrestling team. At first he got his head handed to him but after a while he gained some muscle, got more agile and began winning match after match. At first he wanted to get good enough so the boys would let him on the team but after he began winning the matches he forgot about playing football and stuck with wrestling.
Me wanting to be like my older brothers I wanted to take up wrestling but since I was still so young, I wasn't allowed. I got Branne to train me, to prepare me for when I was of age. After school, before we had to work at the bakery we'd go down to the basement where we kept all the supplies, or in the back alley/yard.
By the time I was 14 and eligible to sign up for the team I had all basic knowledge of the sport, so I signed up and got a spot on the team immediately. So for the past two years I've been training and competing against the other teams here in 12.
I grab my old pair of sneakers, brush off the caked on mud and dirt onto the pale crochet rug beneath my feet and stuff them into the side of my bag. Then I grab my notebook and a couple pens and place them in the side pocket of my bag. I seize my toiletry's bag off the bureau and stuff it into the crowded shoulder bag.
I open my closet doors and pull out my canvas jacket and throw it on over top of my bunny-hug and zip it up. I snatch my pair of leather gloves off the counter of the bureau and grab my shoulder bag off the bed. I begin to make my way out of the room but as I stand in the doorway I turn around and take one last look of my bedroom.
I know very well that there is a very high chance that I will never return here and I suppress tears from falling. I've had so many recollections in this small, poky bedroom and it's hard to think about the fact that I will be moving onto a new chapter in my life and all this will just become memory.
I take one swift glance around the room and turn off the light switch and shut the door as I step into the hallway. I place my gloved hands into my pockets and I quietly make my way downstairs to the bakery. My fingers on my right hand scrape over a smooth, slim contraption and I furrow my brows together as I pull out the strange device.
I'm holding a lighter and a smirk flashes across my face, this might come in handy in the days ahead. I put it back inside my pocket as I meet my family in the basement of the bakery.
Rye is sitting on a bag of old flour whittling a stick with his pocketknife with his miniature duffel bag sitting on the ground beside him. Mother is standing in the corner clutching her knapsack hanging over one shoulder. Instead of her usual grey skirt and dull purple button up she's wearing a pair of old jeans tucked into a pair of lace up boots and a thick, brown knitted cardigan over top of a plaid shirt. Her blonde bob frames her tanned face and I notice she has dark circles under eyes, as do the rest of us.
Father has his knapsack on his back with an additional small duffel bag in his hand. He's dressed in his old checkered shirt with his canvas jacket over top. He's got a pair of brown trousers on his legs and hiking boots on his feet.
"Alright boys, your mother and I have talked and I will be taking Peeta with me on the way to pick up your cousins and aunt while Rye stays with Gemina and hides in the forest until we get back. I expect the trip not to take too long, only a couple of hours there and back," Father says in his raspy voice. Thank god I don't have to spend a whole day with just Mother, I don't think I'd survive.
"When will be leaving Father?" I ask
"I was hoping immediately, the sooner we get out of here the better" I nod my head in agreement and the rest of us follow him up the stairs silently. As we walk on the main floor of the bakery we have to crouch so that no Peacekeepers see us through the windows.
Father peeks through the blinds on the back door. He cautiously opens it and runs across to the next house and ducks down behind their shed. Mother follows in his steps and I'm about to run across when a pair of Peacekeepers come marching down the road. I quickly shut the door and lay my body against the dust-covered floor. I can hear the sounds of their boots stomping along the dirt streets; the occasional sound of dead leaves being crunched, or the sound of rocks being kicked.
As the sound drones away I slowly open up the door. Mother and father are laying flat on the ground and I hurriedly run across to them. Rye doesn't waste a second and is hot on my trail as I crouch down next to Father.
We continue to make our way towards the edge of District 12, being sure to keep in the shadows and out of sight of Peacekeepers. Eventually we make it to the seam and through the cracks in houses I occasionally see the eyes of frightened children. I bring my finger up to my mouth, motioning for them to keep quiet. Most run away back into the depths of their houses while others keep their eyes glued to me and my family.
In the distance I notice the field of dead flowers. That's where the meadow used to be, I guess it still is there but all the flowers have died for the year and tall weeds and grass have overthrown the field. And beyond that I notice the high, chain-link fence guarding the entrance to the woods.
My heartbeats with adrenaline, we're so close to freedom, I can almost taste it. Father and Mother run ahead and duck behind the house closest to the meadow as a group of 5 Peacekeepers walk noisily along the road behind us. Rye and I are laying in the crawl space under one of the houses, half hidden by a rusty wheelbarrow.
As soon as the Peacekeepers are out of sight Rye and I make a run for it towards the fence. Apparently we didn't wait long enough because as soon as we expose ourselves I hear someone shouting orders and the sound of feet running towards us. I notice a hole in the fence and my legs pick up the pace and within seconds I am on the ground, crawling through the hole. The ends of the chains claw and pull at my clothes but I force myself to keep going.
Soon enough I pull myself through and Rye starts pushing himself through. Behind him I spot Mother and Father running with the Peacekeepers hot on their tail. They're shooting at my parents but keep on missing. Rye has his torso through and is dragging working on dragging his legs out. I grab onto his arm and help him through as Mother and Father reach the fence.
Father pushes Mother through the hole and quickly forces himself through. One of the Peacekeepers comes and grabs onto his leg but father kicks him and drags himself to the other side. Rye and I help Father up and we begin to make our way deeper into the forest as a Peacekeeper tries to follow us through the hole.
I am beginning to run for my life and I completely forget about my family, my safety is the only thing on my mind at the moment. As my Brother and I conceal ourselves in the woods I hear a scream of pain. I look back and see my witch of a mother lying on the forest floor clutching her calf.
I curse under my breath and I go back and help her up. Shots begin flying at me and when I look up I see one of the Peacekeepers stuck under the fence while the other 4 are the ones firing the shots. I drag her behind the tree where Father is hiding, his eyes go wide when he sees her and immediately grabs for her.
"T-they shot me, in my leg" She cries out shakily as Father places his hands over her bleeding out wound. I open up the small duffel bag he was carrying which was holding the first aid kit. I grab out a length of bandage and wrap it tightly around her leg. I pack up the bag as Father throws Mother over his shoulder and we rush away from the fence.
Mother continues to wail the whole time, eventually I drone her out and focus on making sure I don't wander away from my family and continue to follow my Father. He seems to know exactly where he's going.
After what seems like hours of trudging through the damp, dark forest we reach a clearing. Sitting in the middle is a house, more of a cottage actually, with a small barn a ways behind it. A stream runs beside and attached to the house is a water mill. The roof of the house is made of hay and is built on the side of a gigantic tree. A pebble pathway leads up to the strange house and lining the clearing are bundles of berry bushes.
"What is this place?" I whisper in awe. Father carries Mother up to the house and Rye and I follow slowly behind him taking in the beauty of this place. He knocks on the door and almost immediately the door swings open, I strain my neck to see who opened it but the doorway blocks them. Father quickly walks inside and I run up to the door as it begins to creak closed.
I place my hand on the rotting wooden door and push it open. Inside the cottage I spot Father laying Mother down on a couch. I see a figure of a woman crouched beside her and I hear noises coming from what appears to be a kitchen. I cautiously step inside and take a look around.
The ceilings are rather low and the whole back wall looks like tree bark. A fireplace sits to the right of the door and an opening in the wall leads to what I assume is the dining room. All the furniture is bulky and the walls are all shaped strange making the home seem claustrophobic. An old man walks out of the kitchen, holding a tray with a pot of some concoction. His faced is embedded with wrinkles and his gray hair falls in wisps around his face.
The woman turns around and she appears only a few years younger than the man. Her silver hair is pulled back into a bun and she's wearing an ankle length green dress covered by a white apron.
Rye and me watch silently as they tend to our Mother, washing her leg, putting herbs and other things on it. Every now and then Mother lets a howl and Father tries to comfort her.
After a while Mother quiets down and seems to fall into a deep sleep. Father and the old woman walk up to my brother and I. The woman has a smile on her face and I notice how kind her eyes look, they remind me so much of my father's.
"Peeta, Rye, oh how you two have both grown" She says in a sweet voice as she brings us into an awkward hug. Who is the woman? How does she know our names?
"Boys, I doubt you remember, but this is your Grandmother Lyrah and your Grandfather Howard is washing up in the kitchen," My father says happily. The sudden information left me nonplussed. I was told that my Father's parents had died before I was born, but here they are, alive and breathing.
"It's nice to see you again Grandmother" I say shakily as I stretch out my hand remembering my manners. She gladly shakes my hand and gives me a sweet smile. Rye does the same and then we are ushered into the dining room.
Grandmother sits down at the table with us and Grandfather soon follows. It's a large table, probably able to seat 12 people at least.
"It's been so long since we've last seen you boys" Grandfather says as he stares at us
"You've both grown so much, and where is Branne?" Grandmother asks father. He simply shakes his head at her and her face falls. She bites her lip and then looks back at us.
"I think the last time we saw you boys was when Rye was only 5, and Peeta you were still an infant. You were both so adorable then, and now you've grown into men" Grandmother says in a joyful tone.
"Do you still own the bakery son?" Grandfather asks Father in his coarse, deep voice
"Yes, it was producing good business" Father says while fidgeting with his jacket "I'm sorry but we really need to get going, we're picking up someone. Come along Peeta" He says as he pushes his chair back into the table
"Oh please, we haven't seen them for years, and we probably won't again. They'll be safe here, please let us have some time with them before you leave" Grandmother cries as she grabs my hand
"Well alright, I'll be back in a few hours, hopefully before breakfast tomorrow" He says in defeat.
"I'll help you get the wagon ready," Grandfather offers as he shows Father outside.
"You boys must be so tired, let me show you to yours rooms" Grandmother chirps as she walks back out into the living room where mother is laying unconscious.
"Is she going to be alright?" Rye asks motioning towards her. Grandmother had already started up the stairs and looked back at us with a sorrowful look on her face. She opens her mouth to say something but then turns and continues up the stairs. Rye and me exchange an anxious look and follow her up the spiral staircase.
The second floor is a narrow hallway with 4 or so rooms concealed beyond the walls. A small stairway leads up to the attic but I don't bother going to explore, I'm exhausted.
She shows us to our rooms, which contain a large bed with at thick, duvet, an armoire and bureau vanity, a large rug and a bookshelf pressed against the wall with the sole window. I set my bag down on the bureau vanity and take off my jacket and gloves and place them neatly beside the bag.
I take off my boots and set them neatly beside each other at the foot of the bed. Then I crawl into bed and fall into a deep, needed sleep.
Ello people! Ok so I know that I wasn't supposed to update this story yet (if you are aware of my updating strategy) but I had to write this chapter! Gone is most defiantly my favourite story I've written on here, and I felt as though I've been failing my readers with horrible, short, badly written chapters so I hope to change that. And I am aware that that's why I've been getting no reviews…and because some people are lazy . so please write a review! You have no idea how it much it means, it motivates me to continue writing. Makes me believe that some people besides myself care about this story and are intrigued by it.
Anyways, I hope you all had a great summer, thanks for reading! ^-^