Disclaimer: All the genius for the characters goes to Suzanne Collins, and to Pixar for the plotline (Loosely from "Up!")
Chapter 7
Peeta was on his way over to Katniss's house the next morning, the Adventure Book in hand, excited to show her what he had added. His father had loved looking back on all the photos he had taken, and they had laughed for hours when he had gotten home that night, reminiscing.
When her house was within view, his pace quickened and his grin grew. Knocking on the door, he heard footsteps, then a small voice he recognized as Prim's, "Who is it?"
A mischievous grin on his face, he cleared his throat and said in his best sinister voice, "Your worst nightmare."
He heard Prim shriek and her footsteps retreated quickly. She must have run to get Katniss, because when he heard footsteps again, he could hear her voice growing louder as she got closer, "Prim, you are crazy. I am sure your worst nightmare is not at the door. Your worst nightmare was Buttercup getting a thorn in his paw, and, as you can see, unfortunately, that has not happened." A moment of silence. "What? Don't look at me like that. You know I don't like that cat."
Then the door swung open, and the sight made Peeta laugh. Katniss stood before him, her hand on her hip, and prim hiding behind her, her face peeking through the gap of Katniss's elbow and torso.
With the same sinister voice, he said, "May I come in?"
"No." And with that Katniss slammed the door in his face.
Peeta was not quite sure what to do. He stood there dumbfounded until he heard giggling through the door, and it opened again to Katniss laughing and waving him in. "Yes. You may come in, Boogieman."
Walking into the living room, he sat down on a couch, and Katniss joined him shortly after giving Prim some crayons and a coloring book on the kitchen table.
"So, you're babysitting?" he asked her.
"Yeah. Mom got an urgent call from the hospital this morning, and rushed out of here, just telling me to stay handy. I guess they didn't have enough nurses on the early rotation. She was very frantic."
"Well, I'll just keep you company until she comes back. How's that?"
"I don't know. Prim, can Boogieman stay?"
Grinning wildly, Prim nodded her approval.
Turning back to Peeta, Katniss grinned and said, "The jury has said yes. You may stay."
"Thank you, kind lady," Peeta said to Prim playfully, making her giggle, and duck her head back toward her drawing, trying to hide her rosy cheeks.
"How did your dad like the book?" Katniss asked, pointing to the book in his lap.
"Oh! He loved it. We were up for hours laughing and remembering."
"Good, I'm glad!" Katniss said, a smile on her face.
"He especially loved the last page."
"What?! You showed him the kis- I mean the tree house photos?"
"No!" Peeta said, blushing, but grinning madly. "I showed him this," and he opened to the back of the page they had taped the photos to the day before.
Katniss's breath caught in her throat. She forgot how to breathe, and just stared at the page, mouth agape. Finally taking a short, shaky breath, she slowly reached over and gently took the book from Peeta, setting it in her own lap, running her fingers over the page in reverence.
It was a sketch. She knew Peeta sketched, and had seen a few of them, and he was very good. But this…. This one brought tears to her eyes, butterflies to her stomach, and her heart lodged in her throat. She didn't know if she was happy, or sad, or…. She had no idea.
In the sketch, her father was spinning her under the tree in the meadow the day of the bonfire. The smile on his face was exactly the same as in the photo of him holding her in the hospital, and Katniss was smiling, limbs flailing in the air. She could almost hear herself laugh when she saw the smile it was so lifelike. Behind them, her mother stood, her arms crossed over her chest in disapproval, but a grin giving her away. Her eyes even seemed to twinkle.
She turned her head slowly to look at Peeta, the tips of his ears red, and a sincere, heart melting smile on his face. She knew he didn't like to share his sketches, but he knew she loved them, so for him to put this in the book was a very big deal for him, she knew. And for her. "Thank you."
"You're welcome, but you missed something," and he pointed below the sketch to words written in light orange pencil. Katniss turned back to it, and focused on the words. It read, "Katniss, thank you for being my friend. I told you I wanted to freeze that moment in the tree house, and then I realized I also wanted to freeze this one, it was so perfect. I hope you like it. I know it isn't killing a dragon, or traveling through time and space, but it is every bit as amazing. Always, Peeta". Beside his name was small heart like she had drawn in doodles on her homework so many times, and an 'x' over it. He had also written the date of when the scene took place and the date of his sketch in the top corner.
Looking back up to Peeta, her jaw still agape, he crossed his fingers over his heart, and smiled a tight, slightly sad, but genuine smile, and whispered, "Always. Remember?"
"Always," she whispered back, still in shock, and her mouth going slack again.
Peeta laughed and reached his finger under her jaw and closed it, saying, "You are going to catch flies."
She couldn't smile. She couldn't do anything. She just looked back to the sketch, and running her fingers over it again, she said, "Peeta, thank you. I…. It's just…. So…. Beautiful."
Peeta smiled at her as she looked into his eyes. She didn't need to say anything. He could read the gratitude in her eyes.
"Prim," Katniss said, "Is my green pen on the table?"
"No," her sister replied.
"Then can I borrow a green crayon?"
"Sure! Do you want…." She stared intently at the name of the color on the crayon, sounding them out, "'Honeydew green', 'Limeade green', or 'Forest green'?"
"'Forest green'," Katniss smiled.
After Prim ran the crayon over to her, Katniss took the book, and on the page opposite the sketch she wrote 'Always' and dated it up in the corner.
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After several hours of watching TV, eating macaroni and cheese, and a popcorn war over the commercial breaks, the phone rang.
"That must be my mom," Katniss said, walking over to it.
Picking it up she said, "Hello? Hi, mom! I was starting to get worried when are you-"
She was silent as she listened to her mother. Peeta couldn't tell what was being said, but her tone sounded tired and anxious.
"Um, okay. We'll be here. Ten minutes? Okay. Mom, Peeta is here, can he come too? Okay. See you soon. Bye."
As she hung up the phone, a scowl on her face, she looked to Peeta and said, "We have to go to the hospital. She said to have a bag with a few things packed for me, her and Prim. She also said you can come if your dad says it's okay. He's coming to pick us up in ten minutes."
"What's wrong? Why do you have to go?"
"She wouldn't tell me," her brows were knit in confusion. "Can you watch Prim while I go and pack a few things?"
"Sure."
She was just walking back down the stairs with the bags a few minutes later when there was a knock at the door. Peeta looked through the peephole and opened the door when he saw it was his father and Gale.
"Gale?" Katniss asked as she saw them from the bottom step.
Gale looked at Katniss very sadly then stared at the ground.
Mr. Mellark wore a somber expression and stood motionless, staring at Peeta.
"Gale?" she asked again. "Mr. Mellark? Why do we have to go to the hospital?"
"Katniss…." Mr. Mellark trailed off, then made eye contact with her. "It's your father."
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Katniss shook the whole way to the hospital. Mr. Mellark and Gale kept looking at her through the rearview mirror, and looked away quickly when she made eye contact.
She sat between Peeta and Prim in the back seat, Peeta holding her hand, which despite her shaking, she held with a vice like grip.
When Prim asked what was wrong with their father, Mr. Mellark swallowed and opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
Gale saw this, and turned around where he sat in the front passenger seat, and faced Prim, a tight smile on his face, but reassuring nonetheless. "He is fine, Prim."
"So, daddy is going to be okay?"
Gale glanced at Katniss, and his look told her all she needed to know. He was not fine.
Looking back to Prim, "Yes, Sweetie. He is going to be fine."
Prim nodded in satisfaction and stared out the window to her left.
Gale looked back to Katniss, his smile fading and his brows knitting together. Finally his gaze fell, and he turned back around.
Katniss looked at Peeta, her eyes wide with fear, her mouth a tight, thin line. She looked him in the eyes and stared. They both remained unblinking. Those eyes that always made her comfortable, made her not so afraid, eased her worries. Today they helped, but also mirrored her own fear.
"What's going to happen?" she whispered to him.
"I don't know. But remember, we protect each other."
"It's what we do." She smiled sadly and leaned her head onto his shoulder, shutting her eyes tightly closed to keep the threat of tears at bay. She had to be strong for Prim. Swallowing down her fear, and willing the tears not to fall, she sat back up and started to rub Prim's back.
Her sister looked over at her and that was all it took. One tear fell down Katniss's cheek.
Prim's small smile faded and she asked, "What's wrong, Katniss?"
Forcing herself to smile, Katniss replied, "Nothing, Little Duck. I was just picturing that thorn in Buttercup's paw."
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When they got to the hospital, Mr. Mellark dropped them all off at the emergency room entrance, telling them to wait for him to come back from praking before going in.
Katniss was staring at the ground and looked up to find Gale staring at her. She walked the few steps over to him and walked into his already open arms.
"Oh, Catnip," he sighed shakily.
Peeta went over to entertain Prim, and let them have their moment. Katniss could hear him telling her jokes softly, and her softly giggling in return.
"Gale. What am I going to do?"
"I don't know, Katniss. I don't know. But I do know you are strong. Whatever it is, you can do it. It may be hard, but you know the whole gang has your back, including me, and you always have my shoulder to cry on."
He felt his shirt start to dampen with her tears.
"Hey," he said soothingly, rubbing the back of her head, pulling her closer and cradling her into him. "Hey… Catnip, it'll be okay. We'll figure it out." He pushed her away slightly, looking her in the eyes. Using his thumbs to wipe away the remainder of her tears, he smiled reassuringly, and crossed his heart. "I promise."
Katniss smiled tightly, and nodded once. As she pulled away, and rubbed her face with her hands, Mr. Mellark came walking up. Peeta walked back over and grabbed the same hand he had held in the car, squeezing it reassuringly, and Gale wrapped his arm around her waist, holding her close on the other side. He went to grab Prim's hand, but Mr. Mellark was already holding it and walking through the doors, so the three of them followed the two, still clutching tightly to each other.
After Mr. Mellark exchanged a few words with the receptionist, he told them to follow him, and led them to an elevator.
They went up to the third floor, and as the door opened, Katniss felt a wave a nausea rush over her. She hated hospitals. The smells, the needles, it was all so sterile. She just hated it. Gale's grip tightened around her waist and Peeta's on her hand, and it was just the push she needed to continue.
They walked to another desk where Mr. Mellark asked for her father. He was in room 319.
They walked to the door, and Mr. Mellark handed Prim's hand to Gale. "You guys stay here for a minute. I am just going to go in and make sure it's okay for you guys to come in." And with that he disappeared into the room.
They stood in silence for what seemed an eternity, but the clock on the wall said it had only been about five minutes. Finally Mr. Mellark opened the door and motioned them in.
Taking a deep breath, Katniss scooped up her sister and walked in, the two boys following closely behind. From the other side of the hospital bed her mother smiled sadly at her, but she couldn't return it. Turning to the bed, she saw her father, hooked up to all kinds of machines, and bruises on his face and arms.
Her heart lodged in her throat and she forgot how to breathe. It was similar to how she had felt when she saw the sketch, but this time she definitely knew it was fear.
She set Prim down, who ran over to their mother. Standing still, staring at her father, Katniss asked, "What happened?"
"A car accident. On his way to work, a drunk driver." Her mother could barely choke out the words.
"Is he going to be okay?"
When there was no answer, she looked over to her mother who sat in silence, a frown turning down her face, bottom lip slightly quivering, and tears racing down her face. Holding her gaze, she gently shook her head, then stared down at the floor.
Katniss looked back to her father, tears now threatening her, and slowly approached the bedside. She reached out for his hand, and his eyes fluttered open.
"Hey, Bullseye." His voice was weak.
"Hey, daddy." So was hers.
"Well, I didn't get those cupcakes I wished for…."
She chuckled through her tears. "I told you if you tell anyone, it won't come true."
He chuckled, but ended up coughing and wincing in pain. "Then it's good that I didn't really wish for that."
She looked at him quizzically, and he smiled that smile, the same one that Peeta had captured in the sketch, though slightly smaller. "I wished that you, your mom, and Prim would have a wonderful life full of love, happiness, and friends. And lots of adventures."
His voice grew weaker as he went on. Katniss squeezed his hand.
Looking toward the three men at the foot of the bed, he said quietly, "Gale?"
"Yes, sir?" he walked up behind Katniss.
"You have always been like a son to me. Thank you. Please always stay with Katniss. Watch over my girls."
Gale grabbed Katniss's shoulder and squeezed as he chocked out, "Yes, sir." Tears started to fall.
"Peeta?"
Peeta was hesitant at first but moved over beside Katniss. "Yes, sir?"
"What is it with all of this 'sir' business? I have to get in the hospital for you boys to start showing manners?" he said teasingly. Then, more seriously, "Peeta, as stubborn as she is, which means it will take her quite a while to admit it, she really likes you."
"Dad!" Katniss said embarrassedly, making him chuckle.
"Katniss, you know it's true. Peeta, she has liked you from the moment she met you, and does not stop talking about you."
"It's true," Gale said, elbowing Katniss in the ribs. "She never stops yammering."
"And," Mr. Everdeen said, a faint glimmer in his eye, "I heard about that kiss the other night."
Katniss and Peeta blushed.
"Take care of her, Peeta. Stay with her."
Peeta grabbed her hand and looked at her. "Yes, sir. Always."
"Carl?" Mr. Everdeen said, finally turning to Peeta's father.
"Yes, sir?"
"Not you, too!"
They both shared a chuckle.
"Yes, Mark?"
"That's better. Take care of my family. Please. And take them to our island someday."
"You got it, Mark," Mr. Mellark said heavily.
Mr. Everdeen turned back to Katniss. "And you. You tell me all about it when you get back."
Katniss nodded through her silent tears.
Turning to his wife and youngest daughter, Mr. Everdeen said, "Joyce? You are the light of my life and you always will be. Stay strong for our girls."
She nodded.
"And Prim? My little Rosebud, I love you so much. You are my little ray of sunshine. Look after your sister, okay? Lord knows she could use some sunshine. Always scowling. Oh! And take care of that cat of yours."
Prim nodded, a mirror of her mother, just in miniature form.
"I love you all, please know that." The room was filled with silent, nodding heads.
"Bullseye, I love you. Stay true to yourself. Fight for what you believe in. You are so strong."
She nodded. It was all anyone in the room could seem to do.
He squeezed her hand and said, "I love you, Katniss."
"I love you too, daddy."
Her father's eyes fluttered shut and he exhaled as the heart rate monitor fell into a flat line and beeped incessantly.
She gave his hand one last squeeze. "I love you, too."
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The funeral was a few days after. Many people showed up, all friends of her father, but Katniss felt alone. Empty. The one person she could always look to, was gone.
Among the people attending was her father's step brother, Haymitch Abernathy and his fiancé Effie Trincket. He had always had a drinking problem. Her father had said it was because of abuse from his father, and that is why his mother had divorced him and married Katniss's grandfather. Considering it was a drunk driver that killed her father, being around him made her uncomfortable, but she had always liked him.
And as for his fiancé, she just made Katniss uncomfortable. She was kind and all, but she wore so much makeup her face was several shades paler than the rest of her skin, and her hair was much too tall and odd colored for Katniss's liking. They lived in a nearby city named Capitol.
Haymitch came up to her and gave her a sad smile, which she returned. Then he gave her a tight hug, and she almost felt like it was her father hugging her, so she squeezed back.
When he pulled away, he got down onto one knee to be face to face with her. "I am so sorry, sweetheart. I miss him, too, but I imagine not as much as you. But I want you to know," and he looked from side to side, leaned in closer to her and whispered, "I am going to cut back on my drinking. I can't just stop, but I am going to try. Step by step. It doesn't feel right drinking something that contributed to what happened to Mark. Do you think you can maybe help me?"
"How?"
"Well, you see, Effie bought me this book of smoothie recipes a while back, some sort of health kick she was on," he rolled her eyes, making her giggle, "and I tried one, but it was disgusting, and she wouldn't leave until I drank the whole thing. I was thinking, maybe once a week I can come over and we can try a new recipe from the book. I'll buy the supplies, and that way, if it is good, I can drink it whenever I want a drink, but if it is horrible, we can just dump it down the sink and get ice cream. Just you and me. Maybe even a few of your friends. What do you say?"
She agreed, the smile on her face making it's way to her eyes for the first time in days, and he had one to match.
Patting her shoulders he said, "Good. Then it's a date. See you next week, sweetheart." He winked at her with a grin, and went to his seat.
After everyone was seated, Katniss between Gale and Peeta as usual, Finnick beside Peeta and Annie beside him, and Johanna beside Gale, the funeral started.
The man up front said a few words about her father, and then announced that Katniss was going to sing a song to start everything off.
Walking to the front of the audience, she said, "When my father sang, even the birds stopped to listen. This is a song I learned in school and I remember singing it to him, and seeing him smile." Her gaze fell slightly and a small grin appeared on her face. Snapping back to reality she said, "It's called 'The Valley Song'."
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 your 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.
If you don't love me, love whom you please,
Throw your arms 'round me, give my heart ease,
Give my heart ease, dear, give my heart ease,
Throw your arms 'round me, give my heart ease.
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.
Write me a letter,'Send it by mail,
Send it in care of Birmingham Jail,
Birmingham Jail, love, Birmingham Jail,
Send it in care of Birmingham Jail
Everyone applauded, several people were crying, as Katniss returned to her seat and the man once again stood at the front and asked if anyone wanted to say anything about Mr. Everdeen. Haymitch, and several other people she recognized but didn't know their names got up and said a few kind words.
Then the man said, "Mark's daughter, Primrose has asked to sing a song."
Katniss looked to her mother and sister in the row in front of her. Prim who was in her mother's lap looked up to her mother who nodded, and she jumped down and walked up to the front.
"Um, hi, I'm Prim. I uh, I loved my daddy very much," she sniffed and wiped her nose with the back of her hand, staring at the floor. "And, um, he used to sing this song to my sister Katniss and I when we were little. It's a lullaby called 'Deep in the Meadow'."
Her sister started singing, voice quivering at first, but strong and sweet by the end.
Deep in the meadow, under the willow
A bed of grass, a soft green pillow
Lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes
And when again they open, the sun will rise.
Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.
Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray
Forget your woes and let your troubles lay
And when again it's morning, they'll wash away.
Here it's safe and here it's warm
And here the daisies guard you from every harm
And here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.
Everyone was silent, absorbing the atmosphere of the room as Prim went back to her seat. Love, sadness, loss….
Everything was coming to a close when Katniss jumped up and said, "Wait!" Everyone turned to look at her. She went up to the front once again, swallowed, and said, "This is the first song my father taught my sister and I. It is a very odd song, and my mother hates it," she paused as people chuckled, "but I feel it would be best to sing the first thing he taught me as we say goodbye. It's called 'The Hanging Tree'."
Are you, Are you
Coming to the tree
Where they strung up a man they say murdered three
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree
Are you, Are you
Coming to the tree
Where the dead man called out for his love to flee
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree
Are you, Are you
Coming to the tree
Where I told you to run, so we'd both be free
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, Are you
Coming to the tree
Wear a necklace of rope, side by side with me.
Strange things did happen here,
No stranger would it be,
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree.
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A/N: Ahhhhhh! This was so hard to write! So sad!
If you have any ideas or suggestions for this story, please PM me, or leave a comment/review! (Comment/review/follow anyway. You know you want to. :P)
Also, you can find me on tumblr: Konzelwoman
In the hopes that you have read this far, thank you. May the odds be ever in your favor, the force always be with you, and may you live long and prosper.
And once again, Disclaimer: All the genius for the characters goes to Suzanne Collins, and to Pixar for the plotline (Loosely from "Up!")