I could already hear Uncle Haymitch and Pane arguing from a block away.
"What do you mean you forgot?" Haymitch yelled.
"I don't know, I was scared!" Panes voice retorts back. They could both be such children sometimes, getting mad over silly things. I love Uncle Haymitch, but at least Pane was a child.
I flung open the door to his house and stomped in. I found them shouting in the living room, both on their feet. While Pane is just as good with words as me and Dad are, he has moments when he can get as short tempered as mom. I don't like arguing by yelling, I think it's pointless. I decided to intervene.
"Haymitch!" I shouted over them. When he didn't stop, I yelled again. "HAYMITCH!" They both stopped now, just noticing I was I the room.
"What?" he yells back.
"Pane is just a kid! You can't yell at him like that! And Pane! It's your Uncle, not your friend! Respect, please?" Pane sits down in a huff, obviously still angry. Haymitch looks at me like I'm crazy.
"We'll I'm starting to realize why they named him Pane, if you know what I mean." He retorts.
I roll my eyes at his humor. "Do you want to know what happened or not?" I ask.
"Go ahead, sweetheart." He answers, plopping down on the couch. I explain to him the whole story, right up to where Dad ran into the woods in search of Mom.
"So, who was it?" I ask after I'm done, hoping for an answer. Pane has been quiet the whole time, but now, he sits up straight and leans forward in anticipation.
"Somebody who caused a whole lot of trouble in the past. You wouldn't even believe." Haymitch says nonchalantly, as if the whole thing will blow over in a day.
"I want names. I want facts. Dad said you would tell me" I say.
"It won't make a difference to you, but the name is Gale Hawthorne. Your parents will probably want to explain. Not that big a deal." Dad almost had a meltdown, Mom looked really angry, and he's saying it doesn't matter? I'll never understand Haymitch's logic.
"Not that big a deal? It seemed like a pretty big deal to Mom, and Dad too. So is that it? Your not going to tell me anything else?"
"Yep. Was bound to happen sooner or later. I'm surprised they didn't expect it." Haymitch says, standing up. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to resume my nap." He says as he leaves the room.
I sit on the couch now, and I'm silent for a long time, taking in the gravity of the situation. Gale Hawthorne? What had my parents not told me? They told me everything as far as I knew, from Mom breaking Dad's heart in the first game, to mending it in the end. What was missing? I almost forgot Pane was in the room, until he speaks up.
"What did he mean... From the past? What happened? I'm confused Ivy." He says sadly. Even though Pane can be obnoxious sometimes and act older than he is, he's still just an seven year old who has no idea of the world before us. I stand up and walk over to him, rustling his blonde curls.
"You'll learn about it later. I only just found out." He looks at me with his grey eyes, still not understanding completely.
"Promise?" He asks hopefully.
I give him a faint smile. "Promise." I say.