Ah so here is the second part of Chapter One. If you have seen the show you see that I'm trying to follow the Pilot episode in these two chapters. After this, I'll be adding in elements that existed during the "Chilton" years, but I'm not sure if I'll keep the exact timeline. There are some quotes in here direct from the show, and I also changed up some things as well. There are more notes at the end concerning where the story is going!
By the time Wednesday night rolled around, Kit was literally thrumming with excitement, and Katniss couldn't contain the grin it caused her to wear around the house. She watched and tried – tried being the operative word – to not laugh when Kit twirled around in her blue plaid skirt, showing off for both Annie and Katniss. When she skipped back to her room to change, Annie turned to look at Katniss.
"So, I take it you went and talked to them?"
"Adolf and Ava you mean? Yeah I did." Katniss tipped back her wine glass at even have to think about her Monday morning adventure.
"Well obviously it worked out, I mean unless you robbed a bank and aren't telling me." Annie quipped and Katniss let out a single chuckle.
"No, but I wish that's what I had done. They agreed, but as always there are many strings attached. My mother. Ugh, you should have seen the fucking look on her face. She knew she had me and she loved every moment of it." Katniss spit out the word mother like it was a bad taste in her mouth, leaning over to refill hers and Annie's wine glasses.
"Well that does sound like Margery." Annie answered, taking the wine glass offered to her.
When Kit reappeared after a moment, neither one said anything else about Katniss' parents. Annie knew that it would kill Katniss for Kit to know she had to grovel at her parent's feel to send her to school, and Katniss was thankful her best friend knew her so well.
"Pizza?" Kit asked hopefully, and Katniss couldn't help but smile.
"Sure kid, but I do have a request first."
"Okay, what is it?" Kit asked as she cocked her head sideways.
"Reenact the Hit Me Baby One More Time music video? I mean you have the skirt and I have a video recorder. We could be YouTube famous in like, thirty minutes." Katniss grinned wickedly as her daughter rolled her eyes.
"Sure Mom, I'll do that if you snatch Peeta's hat off his head the next time we're at the diner. Before you have your coffee." She answered, and Katniss scoffed.
"Not happening. He would kill me and then what would become of you?"
"True. I would probably have to go live on a farm somewhere or something." Kit replied, throwing herself down on the couch between Annie and Katniss.
"Yeah, or something." Katniss replied, thinking of her parents. They would probably love it if something happened to her and they got to take Kit and raise her the rest of the way in their suffocating world. She shivered involuntarily at the thought.
"So what kind of pizza?" Annie trilled, bringing Katniss out of her thoughts.
"Extra Cheese!" Kit shouted.
"Oh and Cheesy bread!" Katniss added, while Annie shook her head.
"You two are very lucky you aren't lactose intolerant." She admonished.
"Don't we know it." Katniss agreed while Kit laughed next to her, laying her head on Katniss's shoulder and burrowing into her side.
The next day the phone was ringing incessantly at the Inn as Katniss approached the front desk, mail in hand. She gave a very bored looking Johanna a once over before dropping the pile on the desk next to her.
"Johanna, the phone?" She said as she began to separate the mail into piles.
"Yeah, it's ringing." Johanna replied nonchalantly, not moving an inch.
Katniss found a letter opener and wedged it under the flap of the letter in her hand before turning back to Johanna.
"You know where else the phone rings like that? The unemployment office." She remarked, slicing the letter open as she did so.
"Fine. But everyone is fucking retarded today so my mood after I answer it is all on you." Johanna replied, finally picking up the phone.
"Hello, The Hob, Johanna speaking….. No, I'm sorry we're completely booked."
The brunette shot Katniss a "fuck you" look before walking away from the desk, probably because they were booked all the way up until March of next year and she didn't really need to look at the reservations. Katniss just rolled her eyes and continued on opening the mail, when she heard a large clatter come from the kitchen.
She reached the kitchen in minutes, only to find Annie and their produce guy, Finnick, loudly arguing. More accurately, she found Finnick ducking behind areas of the kitchen while Annie threw what looked to be some kind of fruit at his head.
"Annie what is your problem! There is nothing wrong with those peaches!" Finnick yelled at Annie, who lobbed another peach at his head. To his credit, he had quick reflexes as was able to duck before the peach landed.
"Oh they're wonderful Finnick! I'm thrilled! Especially since I didn't order peaches!" Annie screamed at him, lobbing another in his direction.
Before she had the chance to pick another up, Katniss grabbed her by the arm, trying to diffuse the situation as quickly as she could.
"Annie, sweetie, not that it isn't entirely enjoyable to watch, but why are you throwing peaches at Finnick's head?" Katniss asked a wild looking Annie.
"Because, he seems to think it's perfectly fine to show up with the damn peaches even though I ordered apples!" Annie retorted, watching Finnick with a mean side-eye.
"I told you! The apples weren't good enough, so I brought you peaches!" Finnick offered up as an excuse to Katniss, still not moving from his hiding spot.
"How am I supposed to make Apple Cider with fucking peaches?" Annie screamed and it took every ounce of willpower Katniss had to not burst out laughing.
"Make peach cider?" Finnich suggested half headedly, and Katniss groaned.
"Not helping Finn." She told him before turning her attention back to Annie. "Is it absolutely necessary there be apple cider? Why not make a nice peach cobbler or something?" She asked Annie, knowing that the only thing that would help remedy the situation was the idea of making something else.
"I could, but I really had my heart set on offering the guests apple cider for fall!" Annie bellowed, her shoulders sagging.
"I know sweetie, but the guests would probably really love some of your famous peach cobbler too." Katniss provided and Annie lit up, just as she knew she would.
"That's true. I could make that crumble crust they always love so much!" Annie exclaimed, already distracted by the idea and moving towards the pantry to gather the ingredients.
Katniss let out a loud sigh of relief, reaching for the coffee pot and a mug, while Finnick came to join her.
"Thanks." He offered and she shot him a look.
"You know, sometimes I think you bring the wrong thing on purpose just to get her riled up." Katniss told him and she saw the corners of his mouth quirk up.
"I mean, it's enjoyable but I don't really do it on purpose. I would rather her be mad at the wrong thing than mad about something not being good enough." He told her as he scratched the back of his head.
"Smart man." Katniss told him and he nodded in agreement.
With that they both leaned back against the counter, watching as Annie zoomed around the kitchen completely distracted by the new dessert idea.
Kit was a bundle of nerves as she sat in her last period class that afternoon. It was only Thursday, but her mom was letting her skip the last day of school in order to have a three day weekend before she started Capitol on Monday. Normally she wouldn't skip school for anything in the world, but as she sat listening to her classmates argue over who was more talented – Katy Perry or Lady Gaga – should was actually glad today was her last day.
She had already cleared out her locker, and all that was left was the last thirty seconds of this class and then she could say goodbye to Panem High School forever. When the bell finally did ring, she basically bolted out of the class, in such a hurry that when she ran into a solid form it knocked her straight down, her books flying everywhere.
"Sorry, I didn't see you standing there." She muttered to whoever it was, bending over immediately to gather her books. She saw a hand reach and grab her copy of Rosemary's Baby, and readied herself to have to interact with the stranger.
Standing up she found herself awestruck as she looked up at a boy she had never seen in school before, and he was gorgeous so she would have noticed him eventually.
"Rosemary's baby. You've got good taste." He told her, smiling as he handed her the book.
"You've read it?" She asked, wincing internally at how she stumbled over the words.
"No, but it's a great movie." He answered, smiling even larger. "I'm Marvel by the way."
"Marvel. Nice to meet you. I'm Katniss."
"Katniss." He repeated and she shook her head. Did she really say that was her name?
"Uh yeah, or actually Kit. Katniss is my mom's name. She named me after her. Something about how men do it all the time and why couldn't she, but from what she's told me I'm guessing a lot of pain medication helped with that decision." She rambled, embarrassment prominent on her face.
"Kit. I like that too. It's nice to meet you." He didn't seem fazed at all by her display, his smile as wide as ever.
"You too. Um I already said that didn't I? Are you new?" She asked, trying to figure out a way to politely end this conversation so she could run home and burrow under her covers.
"Yeah, just moved here actually. Are you from here?" He asked, that damn smile not leaving his face once.
"Uh no. I mean yes, but I was born in Harford." She was stumbling over every single word. She needed to be committed.
"Well that's not far. Hey! This might be weird, but I've been looking for a job, and I don't really know where to look. If I carry your books will you help, since you're from here?" He asked, and she started. Did he really just ask to carry her books? What was this, 1958?
"Um, sure okay?" She answered questioningly, and he took her books from her quickly, apparently eager to follow her lead.
They walked in relative silence for a while, but he spoke up eventually.
"So how are you liking Moby Dick?" He asked and she smiled.
"It's great. I've read it before but I usually need to read a book again because I get so excited and read it too fast and I miss parts." She was about to launch into the new things she had noticed in the book when she stopped suddenly.
"Wait. How did you know I was reading Moby Dick?" She asked, aware that the book she had today was Rosemary's Baby, her copy of Moby Dick at the house.
"Oh shit. Well, not to sound creepy, but I've kind of noticed you, you know, around school." He looked really embarrassed, but she was sure she hadn't heard him correctly.
"Noticed me? Why?" Kit began to actively look for an escape route, relieved that she didn't really need any of the things that he was holding anymore.
"How creepy will it sound if I say you're nice to look at? Also, you have amazing concentration. Last week there was this fight between these two girls probably like 50 feet away from you, but you didn't look up from your book, not once." He admitted, trying to avoid looking at her.
"Oh. Well what if I noticed but I'm just really self involved?" She asked, not sure how what he had told her made her feel.
"Maybe, but I doubt it." He answered, finally looking at her, their eyes meeting briefly before she looked away, her cheeks flushed.
She wasn't used to male attention. Usually guys her age hit on her mom, ignoring her completely, which suited Kit just fine to be honest. Her mom didn't look like she was in her 30's at all, and it was hilarious to watch her crush the dreams of some asshole guy who thought he was God's gift to women.
This guy didn't seem like an asshole though. Not at all.
"Oh. Well, thanks." She told him, smiling a small smile that he returned before they headed on their way towards the dance studio that Delly, the town know it all, owned.
Kit suddenly felt very desperate to help him find a job, for a reason she couldn't entirely place.
Friday night came all too quickly for Katniss's liking. She had been vague in her reasons when she told Kit they were going to dinner, and knowing Kit, her daughter had probably sensed it wasn't something she particularly wanted to discuss and she had therefore left it alone.
Of course her mother had called last night and moved the time up to 6:30, so they could have drinks before dinner, and Katniss wasn't really in a place where she could refuse.
At 5:45 she was downstairs rummaging through her purse when Kit joined her in the entryway.
"Mom?" Kit asked gingerly.
"Yeah babe? What is it?" Katniss answered, still distracted as she looked for a magic way out of tonight's dinner in her brown bag.
"Not to sound, you know, bitchy, but isn't that what you wore to Great Aunt Linda's funeral?"
Katniss glanced down at Kit's words and noticed that it was indeed her funeral outfit she had put on.
"Huh. I guess so. Freud is flipping over in his grave right now." She muttered and Kit sighed next to her.
"You know Grandma is going to say something about that right?" Kit was speaking very carefully, fully aware that going to see her parents was not Katniss's favorite thing to do.
"Sweetie, I could show up in a handmade Anne Taylor skirt suit and Grandma would still say something about how I looked like I just woke up. I'm not too worried about it." Katniss replied, her hand coming to close around something foreign. Pulling it out she realized it was nothing more than an old pack of Mentos.
"Mom what are you looking for exactly?" Kit wondered and Katniss shrugged.
"I don't know. My sanity? I feel like I lost that. Probably around your sixth birthday party. Remember the cops?" Katniss asked her daughter, smiling a tad at the memory.
"Yes trust me, I'll never forget it." Kit replied looking at her watch. "It's time to go, you know we can't be late." She began pushing on Katniss's shoulders in an attempt to get her out of the door.
"Fine but I don't see how we are going to get anywhere without my keys on the table." Katniss gestured towards the end table and Kit sighed, taking a moment to grab the keys and toss them to Katniss.
"And off we go." Katniss muttered to herself. Her outfit was appropriate for her level of excitement. She felt like she was going to her own funeral.
The car ride had been relatively quiet, Katniss stewing in her own thoughts, until Kit cleared her throat to speak up.
"Mom I know I haven't asked but is there a reason we are going to Grandma's for dinner tonight? It's not a holiday is it?" Kit asked and Katniss shrugged.
"You know your Grandma babe. Sometimes it's easier to just give in to what she wants." She hoped that would qualm her daughters curiosity but she knew better the moment the words left her mouth.
"Mom, you're lying." Kit stated, not angry, but rather confused, causing Katniss to deflate a little.
"Not really. Look her and Grandpa are excited that you got into Capitol. They just choose to show it through familial obligations that no one enjoys." Katniss didn't take her eyes off the road, hoping Kit would drop the subject. She could feel her mood souring every mile closer they got to her parent's house and she knew if Kit kept pressing her it wasn't likely to end well.
"Mom." Kit admonished her and Katniss felt her hackles rise slightly.
"Look Kit, I don't do this often but if you aren't going to drop it I'm going to have to pull the mom card okay? I'm the mom and you are the kid and sometimes you've just got to do what I say and not question it, especially when it comes to my parents. My mom and I are not like you and me and there's a lot of shit there that I would prefer just remain buried. You've made it alive and in one piece so far, so just trust me and leave it alone okay?" Katniss snapped, immediately feeling bad about the outburst but she knew the only way she would make it through tonight is if Kit asked little questions as possible.
"Ok Mom. I'm sorry." Kit's voice was quiet and Katniss reached between the two of them to grab a hold of her hand, not saying anything and hoping the gesture was enough.
" I know kid, me too." Katniss didn't specify what she was particularly sorry about but she knew Kit would probably know before she did.
They stood outside the door to Katniss's parents house for a good ten minutes before either of them moved to ring the doorbell. Kit waited patiently, the same way she had been doing since she was three years old and seemed to sense that Katniss would rather be drowning in a pool of her own vomit rather than seeing her parents.
When the door flew open a maid was there to greet them, taking their coats. Margery appeared a moment later, and Katniss steeled herself.
"Girls! I'm so happy to see you. Kit, you look lovely. What's this I hear about Capitol?" Margery took Kit by the arm and led her into the sitting room, not bothering to look over at Katniss and leaving her to follow behind.
Her father was already seated on the couch, a paper in hand, and Margery indicated to Kit that she should join him.
"Drinks everyone?" She offered and Katniss nodded vehemently.
"Gin." She answered and Margery's eyebrows shot up.
"Gin? What kind of drink?" She questioned and Katniss pretended to think about it for a moment.
"A Martini I guess." What she really wanted was just the gin, but she figured it was a little early in the evening.
Her mother handed her the drink, handing Kit a ginger ale, before taking her place next to Katniss on the love seat.
They sat in awkward silence, the kind that made Katniss feel like she was suffocating. She drained her drink quickly, wondering how much trouble she would get in if she refilled it herself. She had only been at her parent's house for ten minutes and she felt 12 instead of 32.
It was going to be a long night.
"So Katniss, how is the motel?" Her mother asked her after a long few minutes of silence, and Katniss cringed.
"The Inn? The Inn is great." She answered, deciding to throw caution to the wind and serve herself another drink. Her mother said nothing, but Katniss noticed the eye roll.
"How's work dad?" She asked her father who had yet to speak other than to welcome Kit and hand her a piece of the paper.
"Oh you know, same as always." He responded shrugging, not looking up once.
"Well good to know nothing's changed." Katniss said, throwing herself down on the seat next to her mother again.
"Oh a lot has changed, you just wouldn't know." Her mother snipped and Katniss sighed audibly.
"Speaking of which, Gale called today." Her father offered up, and Katniss felt her stomach drop into her toes.
"He's a fine man, your father." Robert told Kit, nodding towards her, all but ignoring the obvious enraged expression Katniss was currently wearing.
"She's aware." Katniss snapped and Kit nodded.
"He's smart too. You must take after him." Robert added in and Katniss felt her nails dig into her arm.
"Yeah, I talk to him, he's great." Kit offered up and looked over nervously at Katniss. This was a game they had played many times, but it still made Kit uncomfortable that her grandparents seemed to use her to get a rise out of Katniss.
"A child should do more than just talk to her father. She should know him." Margery stated, and Katniss turned on her.
"Mom, leave Kit alone. Right now. I mean it, back off." Katniss growled, and Kit sent her an apologetic smile, but eyed her grandmother cautiously, knowing this was only the beginning.
"Oh that's right, the only family member your daughter is allowed to know is you, how silly of me to forget." Margery said sarcastically, draining her own drink.
This was something Katniss hated more than anything. The fights about Kit that weren't really about Kit at all, but affected her daughter more than anything. Her parent's were either too vengeful against her to notice, or just didn't care.
"Mom, not here." Katniss stood up and stalked towards the kitchen, knowing that if her mother wanted a fight she would follow the only person she enjoyed fights with.
When she heard the double doors behind her open, she knew she was right.
"What the hell was that Katniss? You do not just get up in the middle of a conversation and storm out." Her mother screeched and Katniss bristled.
"That was not a conversation and you know it mother, and I won't sit there and let you berate me in front of my daughter about things that are not her fault or mine." Katniss picked up mug and filled it with coffee, desperately wishing she hadn't left her gin in the other room.
"Not your fault? Not your fault? Please, explain to me how the absence of her father in her life is not your fault, I'm interested in knowing, really." Margery yelled and Katniss slammed the mug down.
"That's it, just get it all out." Katniss yelled and Margery's eyes widened with anger.
"It is your fault she doesn't know her father. You took her and you ran as soon as you could and you never looked back. If you hadn't been so stubborn you could be married to Gale and living a nice life at the moment." Katniss listened to her mother scream, silently praying Kit wouldn't hear.
"Mom, I have a nice life right now, and marrying Gale would have been a mistake." She volleyed back at her mother, knowing it would be like trying to kick down a brick wall.
"When you get pregnant you get married, Katniss. A child needs a mother and a father. You were still a child when you left for God's sake!"
"Yeah, I stopped being a child the minute the strip turned pink Mom. And she has both a mother and a father. She told you, she talks to him. If she could she would talk to him everyday but he is the one who regulated it to once a week. Don't fucking put that on me." She was tired of having this fight, but it was apparently the one tradition her mother was hell bent on keeping with her.
"He would be there every day if you hadn't said no to marriage, but no, Katniss is too proud to let anyone take care of her!" Margery screamed and Katniss felt the anger bubbling inside of her reach its highest point.
"God damn it mom, I wasn't too proud to come here and ask for help with my kids school was I?" She screamed and watched her Mother's lips turn up in a smirk.
"No I guess you weren't were you? Well, you got what you want and I got what I want. We both win don't we?" Her mother was laying it on thickly, knowing she had backed Katniss into a corner and frustrated her. It was a game they played every time they saw each other, and it left Katniss exhausted.
"Oh look, it's time for dinner." Margery noted looking at the clock and smiled at Katniss before exiting the kitchen. Taking a deep breath Katniss did the same.
Dinner had been long and stiff and awkward, so fairly normal for the Everdeen's by all means. By the time Katniss and Kit were leaving all Katniss could think about was her bed and the bottle of wine sitting on top of the fridge.
Kit had been quiet until they got in the car, and Katniss could feel her eyes on her, a silent question hanging in the air.
"So I take it you heard." Katniss said flatly and Kit sighed next to her.
"Why didn't you tell me you had to ask them for money? I wouldn't have switched-"
"That. That right there is exactly why. Babe, I know you wouldn't have wanted to go anymore, and you would have felt guilty about it, but it's not for you to feel guilty about okay? I did what I had to do for you. That's what my job is. Please don't let this dampen your excitement. If anything this will just make for a great addition for your therapist seesions later on in life." Katniss said, trying to lighten the mood.
"So, we have to do this every Friday night don't we?" Kit asked after a moment and Katniss sighed.
"Until we die love."
"Mom?" Kit asked quietly.
"Yeah babe?" Katniss responded, watching the road in front of her.
"I love you. And thank you."
"I love you too. And you're welcome." Katniss smiled at her daughter and knew she had done the right thing. If only Friday Night dinners hadn't been a part of it.
Okay so Marvel is going to start popping at some random intervals. For those of you waiting for Peeta/Katniss let me break it to you the only way I can: it's gonna be a slowwwwww burn. Like, real slow. Next up: Kit goes to Capitol!