A/N: In honor of the new Mockingjay trailer I have a new chapter. Enjoy!
Let's talk about Primrose Everdeen. Prim, who straddled a fence with one side containing snakes and the other ravens, taken from life before she could ever decide where to jump.
Albus Dumbledore said that maybe they sorted children too early and he was right. Most children aren't sure who they are or what they value at 11 or 12 or 13 or sometimes even 14. Identity is not a fixed concept (although some children know themselves better than others), especially for those who are exposed to ideas different than their parents. At such an early age who you are is a constantly shifting idea and is ephemeral and adaptive. Not to mention sometimes, children are not ready to announce to the world (and their family) who they are and what they stand for. Sirius Black was the exception, not the rule. By Sorting at such a young age people are placed into titanium molds that people can only live up to, not grow out of, and so of course almost everyone grows that way. The only way to break free is to have a core made of diamond and a will of fire hotter than titanium and they are so, so few people like that who exist.
Children above all learn by example and Prim's mother may be a Ravenclaw and her father a Gryffindor but it was her sister that raised her. Katniss, who would always give Prim the bigger portion of her food even though she was also starving but would do anything for Prim. Katniss, who gave Prim her cat even though she hated the animal. Katniss, who would do anything to keep her baby sister alive even if that meant dying in her place. Katniss, who would rather bite than roar to keep her family safe.
Let's talk about a girl who saw her sister carted off to death and thought if Katniss lived Prim would take care of her for once. Let's talk about a little girl from the Seam who dreamed of being a doctor and didn't care about her place in society, it was what she wanted. Katniss could fight and Prim could barely hurt a fly even if she tried, but she could make sure her sister was alright before slithering off to the next fight. She never wanted to feel as useless as the day her. Doctors are always needed, especially in the Districts, and Prim wants her life to be meaningful.
Let's talk about a little girl whose life was cut and although she will live on in the history books, forever remembered as the springboard for the Mockingjay's first flight, she will never be remembered for her own talents or make her own name. It will always be because of someone else (she could have cured cancer, made the next medical breakthrough but no one will ever find out). She could have made her own name, she had the ambition of a snake and the mind of a raven but she never had the opportunity to use both in tandem.
The ability to stop even death is a power worthy of a god, and even if it is for altruistic reasons Prim knows the value of power, has seen it take away her District's children and her sister and she hates the feeling of being powerless. The desire for power is not a sin, it's how you get there and what you do with it that determines who you are.
Let's talk about a girl who can keep her head in a crisis. Her sister brings in her pseudo-brother, beaten and bloody and so very pale (her sister's pallor is not much better) and is able to look at her sister and analyze the cut on her cheek, sees her mother's hands shake and with steady hands takes away the medicine and gives Gale the Morphling herself. Prim is a girl that
Let's talk about a little girl who saw bombs being dropped onto her home and once again had to run away from danger and let others deal with the aftermath, knowing that if her sister hadn't of volunteered and tried to save her she would be dead, but her district would be alive.
She's only 14 and she isn't a doctor yet and can only do so much for the wounded. Let's talk about a girl who had to listen to her sister's screams and whimpers night after night once they get to District 13 and know that the scars Katniss bears are ones that Prim will never be able heal, not the ones that matter. Some she's even the cause of (she knows it's not her fault, she didn't create the Hunger Games, but she is responsible).
Let's talk about a girl who refuses to be ignorant any longer and she may love Katniss to the moon and back but she is not a politician, so in this one field she makes Peeta her mentor. She looks at what he says to make people follow him and tries to do the same. When Plutarch try to separate her from Katniss she knows exactly what to say to make them back off, has the same ways with words Peeta has to make people listen. She is able to cut through lies, knows who to ask to get the truth and how to appeal to their nature to get the answers she wants. This is her Slytherin side at work. For her family she will do anything. By now Peeta's just as much family as Gale. She is the only one to come up with a possible solution on how to heal Peeta's memories, the others barely even try. She's not just smart, she's cleverand bright and intelligent. The ability to memorize different ailments and their cures are great, but she's the one who is discovering new ways to heal, or at least she's trying.
Katniss is heartbroken and despondent, so for once Prim takes care of Katniss and in the game of politics her eyes and ears are wide open. She's the one that points out to Katniss her worth to the rebellion, points out that if Katniss wants immunity for Peeta, wants anything at all and it is hers, they need her too much to say no (although she's not a fool, it's not getting their word that's hard it's making sure they keep it that's the challenge). She is able to see underneath the underneath, notices that Peeta is worth more alive than dead, knows that the way to break her sister is through her loved ones (it's how this all started). She's just relieved that there is some way she can take off some of the world on her sister's shoulders and lighten the load.
She's the one to take care of her sister now, makes sure she eats and sleeps and is aware of what is going on around her. This she can do.
She pays attention to everything she can, committing everything possible to memory in this new world, whether it be information about medicine or the different types of missiles that were taught in orientation for the new citizens of 13. You never know when a piece of knowledge might come in handy. Knowledge is power. This is why she could be a Raven. She never shies away from the truth, and when she hears what they did to Peeta's memories she sees her sister unable to ask what happened so she asks for her.
Let's talk about a little girl who loved animals, so much so she risked her life for a mangy old cat that she loved with all her heart. The alarm sounds and bombs are about to go off but she can't help but go back for the stupid old cat because this is one living being depending on her to keep it alive and she will not fail. She's like her sister in that way.
Let's talk about a girl who isn't always strong but tries so hard to be the person her sister needs. Let's talk about a girl who wanted to put people back together and make them better than they were before. Let's talk about a little girl who has an older sister who would give her the world if she asked for it but never wanted it. A girl who could have been one of the greatest medical experts of her time, could have written her own name in history but had to let someone else do it before she had the chance. A girl who died because of the political machinations of people who refused to let go of power and wanted more and more, because of Gale's inability to let go of his Gryffindor blinders and see the destruction he is causing. Let's talk about a girl who wasn't even 14 years old yet died with her sister's name on her lips.
Let's talk about Primrose Everdeen, a girl who died before she could fully bloom.
