Hello everyone,
Thank you so much for the reviews and feedback! To show my gratitude, I have made another chapter! This chapter is in Seam!Peeta's point of view.
Quick Notes:
-POV change will be kind of random. There won't be any specific pattern
-There MIGHT be some time inconsistencies between POV changes. I'm trying hard to avoid them.
-I apologize for any grammar mistakes! I'm posting this from my phone so I can't really look at Grammarly.
-I have found a way to incorporate the bread part, and I hope it makes sense and meets your expectations.
Happy reading! :)
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~Chapter 2: 11~
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It was two months after the mine explosion that had left his father crippled. A serious angry burn on his left arm, a few smaller ones in other places, a concussion, and a broken leg. Looking at his father's wounds, the signs that his father was unable to provide for them, made Peat sick to his stomach. His sweet 7-year-old sister, Prim, was even able to handle the horrendous sight better than he was. They were lucky that his mother knew had to heal this stuff, but never had he ever seen her almost break down when the news of the explosion had come to them.
The pain and fear that the young boy had felt when his father didn't come out of the mine with the survivors were too gruesome sum up with words. Their mother seemed to shut down in front of them while Prim had cried. Mother was unresponsive, while Prim cried more. However, his family was lucky. A few able-bodied men had gone down to the mine to rescue any survivors that had a chance to be saved and his father was among the ones that were brought to the surface by them. His mother was practically revived as she hugged their father with pure joy and happiness.
His father, however, was not as ecstatic as the rest of his family about his survival. Peat suspected that one reason was because of his heavy injuries and the pain he was in, but he was wrong. Peat wouldn't find out the real reason until the baker's funeral which his father insisted on attending.
Even though his father did survive and his family had not broken up, that did not mean that they were exempt from any further troubles. His father was too badly injured to work in the mines, nor was he able to hunt. His mother had used up almost all the supplies in treating his father and other injured miners who couldn't pay for her help. This left them with barely anything to eat or trade. And Peat and Prim felt the full effects of it. He could sense his parents' guilt of being unable to stop their suffering and both of them tried their best to make sure that any meager portions they had gotten were given to the two hungry children. But meager rations could only last so long.
And if his parents were unable to do anything to improve the situation, then only he had a chance.
Even if he failed, then he refused to go down without a fighting chance.
The young boy was out in the ice cold rain and wind. Empty handed again. He glanced at Prim's old baby clothes in his hands which no one wanted to buy. They weren't in prime condition, but he speculated that the main reason was that no one wanted to buy from HIM in particular.
The townies he had approached were at first enticed by his blond hair, but one look at his grey eyes and coal-dust covered face and clothes convinced him otherwise.
The Seam people in the hob turned him down for what he was selling and because they thought he was a townie. The most scathing remark, from the last person he tried to trade with, was fresh in his mind.
"Why is a townie like you here? How DARE you stereotype us!"
So cold. So tired…
Need money… Food… Anything…
A large gust of wind blew, almost knocking over his emaciated 11-year-old body. He kept his feet planted to the ground, trying to withstand the biting coldness. He had to keep going, for his mother who already had too much to worry about, his father who was too injured to do basic tasks, and sweet little Prim who didn't deserve to suffer the horrible thing called hunger.
He thought about how Prim would reassure him "It's okay. I'm not even hungry anyway." with the brightest smile she could muster, only to hear her whimper from the painful hollowness in her stomach when she thought he was asleep.
Yes. Prim was the reason why he was still out there, fighting the weather and trying to get, even if it was just one tiny scrap, food. He didn't want to hear those pained whimpers anymore.
During his fight against the wind, he hadn't realized he had stumbled in the town sector. The smell of delicious fresh baking bread told him he was in front of the bakery. That's it! He could dig through the trash and see what was in there! There had to be something good.
He made his way around the bakery to the trash bins in the back. Once he was there, he used all his strength to lift the cover, dropping Prim's clothes in the process. Empty. He felt his heart drop.
Light came from above him, followed by screeching. The baker's wife. He couldn't figure out what she was yelling about. Something about stealing and getting coal dust in her yard. He didn't have enough energy to call her out and say that she was also from the Seam. In the back of his mind, he knew this was out of character. From what he remembered, the Mellarks were the only merchant family that was decent to everyone in the district.
Something shattered next to him. Then pain exploded on the left side of his forehead and he fell to the ground, right into a dirty puddle, getting his pants completely wet. A can. He tried to see if there was anything edible, only to be disappointed.
"SCRAM! Get out of my property!"
I wonder if yelling is her hobby
Peat didn't need to be told twice. He quickly dragged himself away from the back door, making sure to avoid the glass shards from the bottle that the woman had thrown at him. Red liquid dropped onto his hand. He lifted it up to his throbbing forehead and found more blood coming from the spot the can had hit him.
He dragged himself a few more feet and found himself underneath a bare apple tree. That's when his strength gave out and he slumped down in defeat.
This isn't so bad here. It provides decent cover from the rain.
He had failed. He couldn't bring anything back to his family. He was going to die, Prim will definitely die. He tried not to imagine his family's faces of grief at the news of his death. He wondered who will come to his funeral.
His negative train of thought was interrupted by more screeching. Briefly, he wondered if the baker's wife was going to chase him out again until he realized it was coming from within. He lifted his head to look into one of the windows and he saw the baker's wife angrily hit something, or rather someone, with a rolling pin. Peat cringed. His mother never hit him or Prim.
The back door opened once more and a black-haired girl was shoved out with so much force that it knocked her to the ground. Two loaves of bread were thrown after her which she picked up as if they were precious gems. Peat's mouth watered.
"FEED IT TO THE PIG, YOU INCOMPETENT LITTLE CREATURE! NO ONE IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WILL BUY BURNED BREAD!"
The door slammed shut again. After a few seconds, the girl picked herself up and brought a hand over to her left cheek, probably where she was hit. After deeming it nonserious, she walked with the bread to the pig pen and began tearing off burned chunks to throw into the pig trough.
He was so busy watching her throw the bread pieces to the pigs that he didn't notice the door open again, startling him.
"IF YOU DARE TO COME BACK BEFORE DAWN, YOU WON'T GET ANY MEALS FOR A WEEK!", yelled the baker's wife before she slammed the door shut, locking it tight.
Peat saw the girl's shoulders shake, but he couldn't tell if it was from fear or the cold rain. She went to the broken glass and the partially crumpled can and threw them in the trash bins.
Peat was too busy watching her that he didn't notice her right in front of him. He looked up and cowered at her height. He tried to back away but the tree blocked him.
"I'm not going to hurt you, y'know." She was speaking to him in a kind soft voice, a big contrast from her witch of a mother. That's when he recognized her. The baker's daughter. Also the object of affection for most of the boys in school. He couldn't remember her name.
"H-huh?", was all he could manage.
"I'm here to help," she held the two bread loaves in front of him.
Peat stared at them, not believing that this was real. It was bread! Real bread! Even though they were burnt on some parts, it was still food! Food!
With shaky hands, he took them and put them underneath his jacket. The rejuvenating effect was instantaneous. The warmth from the bread instantly warmed up his freezing body and he felt his strength return. He was able to stand up with help from the girl.
He couldn't find words to convey his gratitude to her, so he just stared at her with an open mouth.
"Well, you should go back home. And buy yourself a decent supper as soon as possible," she took his hand and slipped some coins and closed it around them. Her hand instantly warmed up his and made him feel less numb. Peat opened his mouth to object but she silenced him with a hard look.
That's when he noticed her eyes. Shivers that were not from the rain ran down his spine. They were cerulean blue and so hollow and lifeless that he was sure she had joined her father in her mind. He could see a welt forming on her left cheek.
She let go of his hand. "I gotta get out of here." She looked at him and pointed a finger. "You should too. Feed your family." There was a sense of urgency in her voice.
"Hey, wai-", she took off without a backward look before he could finish his sentence. He continued to stare at her after she disappeared, looking at the footprints she had left. His hand with the coins still felt warm from her touch.
That's when he remembered why he ventured out. He made his way back home through the muddy streets back to the Seam.
The smiles of Prim and his mother were enough to light up the entire district. He told his family that he had helped the baker's daughter clean the kitchen and her mother had given him the burned bread. The lie wasn't too bad, right?
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It wasn't good enough to fool his father…
He never felt so low in his life.
The next day, the two of them went to school as if nothing had happened between them. Peat hung around with his friends (who didn't really help him at all) while the girl went around mostly in solitude.
You would think that it would be easy for him to just go up to her and thank her or to ask where she went the night before, but it wasn't for him. He continued to watch her when no one was looking.
She didn't even seem to pass him a second glance. She just answered all the questions the teachers asked her flawlessly and continued to help fellow classmates with their schoolwork.
He couldn't help but feel a little bit disappointed.
After dismissal, he waited in front of the main entrance for Prim when he saw her again out in the field. She seemed to be scribbling something in a notebook.
As if noticing his stare, she looked up at him.
They held each other's gazes for a few seconds. Then the edges of her lips curled up into a small smile.
Peat smiled back.
Prim came from behind him and he turned around to greet her. When he looked at where the girl with the bread had been standing, she was nowhere to be seen.
As he and Prim walked through the field, he noticed a small patch of dandelions and then he knew. It wasn't the end of the world.
Thank you for taking the time to read this story!
PS, I will respond to reviews if I get less than 10 between each update.
Sparky She-Demon: I'm glad you like it! I would be making more if I don't get bombarded by schoolwork!
Guest: I'll take that as a compliment! And btw, the method of her mother obtaining the cage will be revealed in a later chapter. It will be featured in later chapters.
WWHPmockingjayLILI: I'm glad you liked it! Hope this chapter fulfilled your desires!
hgfanaticeverlark: This is my first time writing an angst story (LOL) so I'm glad you liked it!
sandy6677: Thank you for the compliment! Hope you continue to read this!
Momma Duck: Thank you! I'm glad you liked it! I will be writing more!
