A/N: I can't thank all of you enough for the reviews, faves and follows. Ask any author here-getting an email alert about a fave, follow or review is better than cupcakes. I'm still trying to get back to a twice-a-week update schedule, so far without any success.
Betalove: dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar are amazing betas.
Chapter 25—Panem Parental Lecture Series: Reproduction, Part 2
Madge sat on her back porch and watched as Katniss literally stomped up to their house, pulling a wagon of tesserae packages behind her. Madge knew what those packages represented, and struggled to keep her anger hidden. The back porch was absolutely not a safe place to express her hatred for the Capitol. Besides, Madge knew that Katniss viewed any expression of anger on her behalf as pointless.
Madge stood up to open the little gate and let Katniss in. Katniss' scowl was so deep, it looked like she was ready to stick a knife in somebody. "I do hope it isn't me that has you so angry," Madge said dryly.
"Mrs. Mellark!" Katniss spat out the name like it was a dead bug in her mouth. "You won't believe what she did to Peeta today."
"You mean, besides kicking him out and firing him?"
"Yes," Katniss seethed. "Besides that."
"Well, come on inside. You can tell me and Dad over dinner." Madge took the handle of the wagon and pulled it onto the porch. She led Katniss into the kitchen, where the Mayor sat at the table with a great deal of paperwork in front of him. When the girls entered, he cleared it all away.
"Katniss, good to see you again! Let me get my stuff out of the way and we can eat."
"Thank you for having me, Mayor," Katniss replied. Madge was glad to see that, even as angry was she was, Katniss at least remembered her manners. The girls dished up dinner—a thick, vegetable stew and sliced bread with butter—then all three sat down to eat.
For the first time since Madge had known her, Katniss simply accepted the food. She didn't argue over whether she ought to trade for it, or offer to pay them back. That, far more than the thunderous look on her friend's face, told Madge how upset Katniss really was.
As they ate, Madge updated her father on Peeta's situation. While John already knew about Peeta's injuries, he had not yet heard that Mrs. Mellark fired Peeta, banished him from the bakery, and forced him to find another place to live. Madge also explained about Peeta's new living situation with Bannock and Nikki Mellark.
"But now something else has happened?" Madge prompted, looking at Katniss.
Katniss told them about the destruction of several years of artwork. According to Katniss, Peeta was a very talented artist. Madge felt awful for Peeta. In many ways, what Mrs. Mellark did to that artwork was worse than physical abuse. Madge glanced at her father, who kept his face neutral as he listened to Katniss.
"Mr. Undersee, can't the Peacekeepers do anything about Mrs. Mellark?" Katniss pleaded.
Madge knew the answer to that was "no." People often asked her father about Peacekeeper involvement in local matters. He'd repeated the official line so frequently, Madge had it memorized.
"Well, Katniss," John gently explained, "the Peacekeepers aren't here for domestic issues. They work here to handle crimes against the Capitol. As long as Mrs. Mellark's disciplinary methods don't prevent Peeta from appearing on Reaping Day, the Capitol leaves those sorts of issues for families to handle on their own."
Technically, this was true. It was also true that, technically, every Peacekeeper in Twelve regularly committed crimes against the Capitol simply by trading at the Hob. For that matter, so did Mayor Undersee every time he traded with Katniss or Gale. Katniss just knew better than to point it out.
"I'm glad Peeta has moved in with his brother," Mr. Undersee commented. "I expect that will be a better situation for him."
"Well, it was either that or he was going to squat in the Seam," Katniss replied.
"Ah. Well, squatting is a crime against the Capitol, so Peeta best stay where is. Will he be able to walk you home this evening, Katniss?"
"He says he can. If not, Rye said he would because we're playing at a toasting this weekend."
"That's right!" Mr. Undersee said brightly. "Ander Bay's toasting. He had mentioned last week that he wanted to hire musicians. I told him how promising you all were. I'm glad he decided to hire you."
"Mr. Undersee, did you know he was my cousin?" Katniss bluntly asked.
"Of course, I did. Why, didn't you?" he teased. The smile on his face fell as he realized that Katniss had not known.
John looked helplessly at his daughter, who explained, "Katniss only knew that Mr. and Mrs. Bay had kicked her mother out of the house. Mrs. Everdeen never told Katniss about the rest of her family. She found out about them this morning from me and Rye."
"Oh. Well, that's unfortunate. Katniss, I apologize. I simply assumed you at least knew about all of your family connections in town."
"Yeah," Katniss scoffed. "So did I."
"Then this will be a good way for you to meet your cousin. Ander is a fine person, and his fiancé, Mona, is a lovely girl."
"What's my uncle like?" Katniss asked.
Here's how Haymitch Abernathy had once described Ash Bay to Mr. Undersee. "That man is so uptight, the only time he smiles is when somebody tickles the rod up his ass." John had laughed for weeks.
Madge raised an eyebrow at her father as he struggled to find a diplomatic way of describing Katniss' uncle. After a minute, all he could come up with was, "Well, Ash probably wasn't the easiest person in the world to have as a father. But nobody is going to give you a hard time, Katniss, I assure you."
"Does Ander know that his cousin is singing at his wedding?" Madge asked her father, while indicating Katniss with her spoon.
"I believe he does. When I told him about how wonderful it has been listening to you rehearse, I quite specifically mentioned that Katniss Everdeen was the lead singer and had an outstanding voice. Ander's response was, 'well, at least one person in the family has talent.'
"Now, if you ladies would be so kind as to clean up, I'm going to take some dinner to Mrs. Undersee."
Madge and Katniss did the dishes while the Mayor prepared a small tray of food and left to take it to his bedridden wife. As soon as he walked out of the kitchen, Madge turned to Katniss and said, "What are you wearing to the wedding on Saturday?"
Katniss looked so startled by the question that she hardly knew what to say. "Oh. Uh, I hadn't thought about it. A dress of some kind, I guess. I'll borrow one of my mother's."
"Oh, I don't think so," Madge admonished. "You are not showing up at your cousin's wedding wearing a dress that your grandparents last saw over twenty years ago on the daughter they kicked out. You will borrow one of mine. And shut up," Madge ordered at Katniss' habitual protest. "You won't 'owe' me for this. You're just borrowing it, not keeping it."
That was a lie. Madge fully intended to "forget" to have Katniss return the outfit. "Besides, I want to see their reaction to how amazing an Everdeen can look."
That was true. If a Seam girl like Katniss could impress a Merchant crowd with not just talent but also beauty, there was hope that the Merchant-Seam divide could end. And if that was too much to hope for, Madge just wanted to see the faces of Rosemary's estranged family when they met Katniss for the first time.
With that, Madge dragged Katniss down the hall and into her bedroom. She pulled out a box from the back of her closet. "These are a few years old," she informed Katniss, "so they're too small for me. Should fit you, though."
Most of the dresses were the ugly, baggy variety that Madge wore all the time. But two outfits looked like possibilities. The first was a short-sleeved, peach-colored dress that came to Katniss' knees. It was a pretty color but too big for Katniss.
The second outfit was much better. It was a long, slender, dark green skirt, with a cream-colored cotton top. "Ok, now take out your braid and put your boots back on." Katniss did as she was told.
Madge stepped back and examined her friend. She looked amazing. The skirt had come to mid-calf on Madge, but was nearly ankle length on Katniss. The material shimmered a bit. The top was a short-sleeved sweater, lightweight, with small flowers knit into the pattern. With her hair down and the hunting boots on, Katniss looked like a woodland nymph.
"Wow, Katniss. You look great," Madge said sincerely.
Katniss gave a shrug that all but said I could give a shit. Still, after she put her own clothing back on and re-braided her hair, she hugged Madge and thanked her.
Madge placed the clothing in a bag, and they headed down to the basement to get ready for rehearsal. "By the way," Madge told Katniss, "I bumped into Gale after school. He was whining that he still hadn't heard you sing, so I invited him over tonight." Also, Madge wanted her father to view Gale as something more than just the boy who sold them strawberries.
Rye arrived late, looking distracted and upset. He pulled Katniss aside and they spoke for a few moments. When they finished talking, he unpacked his guitar. "What was that about?" Madge whispered to Katniss while Rye tuned the strings.
"Peeta. Rye came home from school today and learned about the artwork. He's late because he stopped by the boarding house after work to check rental rates."
Rye began the rehearsal by launching into a discussion about the upcoming toasting. He gave unnecessarily explicit instructions about clothing, punctuality, personal hygiene and decorum. Although the band members initially tolerated Rye's mini-lecture and his overbearing tone of voice, after about 10 minutes or so they got restless. Finally, Mr. Undersee reminded Rye that Katniss was still only 15 years old, and needed to leave earlier than everybody else.
Rye looked irritated that he'd been interrupted but, wisely, didn't say anything. Instead, he started the rehearsal with "The Toasting Song." After only a few bars, he stopped them and demanded some changes.
It quickly became clear that Rye was on edge. He was much more critical than usual. He paused more often, made more changes and seemed unsure of what he wanted from them. After spending 15 minutes on the first half of "Take Me for Longing," where Rye changed the starting key several times in a row, Mandor said what the rest of the band was feeling. "We'll do whatever you want, Rye, but make up your fuckin' mind."
Rye called for a 10 minute break, then stalked out of the basement. Katniss followed him.
"The fuck is wrong with Rye?" Mandor asked.
Mr. Undersee offered up an answer. "I expect he's nervous about your first professional engagement. The Bay family is quite influential in town. A good performance will mean lots of work for all of you, while a poor performance means this is just a hobby. I'm sure all of you know that Rye has long-term plans for this band."
Madge suspected that Rye was far more upset over the fact that his mother was the Wicked Witch of Appalachia, than he was about playing a bunch of treacly love songs at a townie wedding.
Everybody kept glancing at the basement doorway, waiting for Rye and Katniss to come back. When Madge heard footsteps, though, it wasn't just Rye and Katniss. It was Gale and Peeta, as well.
Madge led Gale over to her father. "Dad, you remember Gale," she said. Obviously, Mr. Undersee remembered Gale, but Madge knew her father expected certain formal courtesies to be observed. If she was going to start seeing Gale—even if only in private—her father required an introduction.
As Gale and John made small talk, Madge glanced at Peeta. He looked terrible. He had dark circles under his eyes, a pale cast to his skin and he moved carefully, as if he was in pain. Katniss made sure Peeta was comfortable in an easy chair before she stepped back over to be with the band.
Gale, however, looked like perfection—tousled dark hair; sun-kissed olive skin; hands splayed on his hip bones. Madge had a hard time staying in "timid" mode when she made eye contact with him. His gray eyes smoldered at her. She hid behind her hair to hide the sudden flush of her cheeks.
"Katniss must be pretty good," Gale quietly remarked, "for Rye to tolerate what she was saying to him outside."
Mr. Undersee chuckled, then leaned against the wall in his usual spot. Madge and Gale sat on the floor near Peeta.
Rye picked his guitar back up. He didn't apologize to the band, or mention his behavior. He simply acted if nothing had happened, and started with "Take Me for Longing." Madge watched Gale out of the corner of her eye to see his reaction to his best friend's singing.
When Katniss began to sing, Gale spent one full, astounded minute with his jaw on the floor, then fell onto his back and laughed at himself. Katniss gave them a self-satisfied smile at Gale's reaction. When he sat back up a minute later, a bright smile wreathed his face. "I'm a moron," he said under his breath. "When you said she was really good, I honestly thought you were exaggerating."
"I never exaggerate, Gale Hawthorne," Madge said very primly. She tucked her feet underneath her, and folded her hands in her lap. Gale said nothing but he did scoot a little closer to her. He had confessed to her the day before that her prim and proper act turned him on, now that he knew what she was actually hiding.
The rest of the rehearsal went smoothly, with Rye back to normal. When they finished for the night, Gale stood up and made straight for Katniss. He gave her a big hug that pulled her off the ground by at least a foot. He put her back down and put his hands on her shoulders. "Catnip, I'm so sorry I ever doubted you."
Katniss looked pleased, but Madge noticed the small frown on Peeta's face. The frown deepened a minute or two later when Gale told Peeta he could walk Katniss home if he wasn't feeling up to it.
"No, thanks," Peeta glowered, "I'll be fine."
"Sounds good," Gale said, oblivious to Peeta's distress.
Peeta and Rye spoke quietly while Katniss thanked Madge and her father for dinner. They all worked their way upstairs. Katniss gathered up the wagon and the bag of clothes, hugged Madge, then headed to the Seam with Peeta. The rest of the band headed for town.
Soon, it was just Madge, her father and Gale. John cleared his throat and said, "Let's have a seat, kids. I want to talk to the both of you." He led them back into the basement. Madge could tell hear from the tone on his voice that her father was in Mayor Mode.
Gale looked a wee bit nervous.
"So, Gale. I understand you and Margaret are seeing each other."
Gale looked confused. "Who's Margaret?"
"'Madge' is short for 'Margaret,'" Madge explained.
"You're kidding," he said. Madge narrowed her eyes at him as she pulled a hair elastic out of her pocket and smoothed her hair back into a ponytail. Gale turned a shade or two darker, likely remembering where they were—and what they were doing—the last time she had her hair back like that.
"I wanted you both here," Mr. Undersee continued, ignoring the interruption, "to tell you my expectations, both as Margaret's father and as Mayor.
"Gale," Mr. Undersee turned in his chair so he was fully facing Gale, "I know that you are a very responsible young man. I had the unfortunate duty of handing you the medal of valor after your father died. I know how hard you have worked to feed your family. I also think very highly of your mother. She's an incredibly resourceful woman. I have a great deal of respect for you and your family."
"Thank you, sir," Gale said solemnly.
The Mayor acknowledged Gale's thanks with a small nod of his head. "However, the respect I have for you has no bearing on how I feel towards my daughter. If at any point, I catch wind that you are mistreating her, in any way, I will not hesitate to do everything in my power to protect her." Madge knew her father was being deliberately vague. A vague threat often carried more power than a specific one, precisely because it kept its target a little off-balance.
Gale looked Mr. Undersee in the eye and replied, "I'd expect nothing less, sir."
The Mayor's lips twitched for just a moment, hiding a smile. Good answer, Gale, thought Madge. It was clearly what Mr. Undersee had wanted to hear. He then turned back to include Madge in the conversation. He also dropped the political voice. Now he just sounded like the father of any teenager girl.
"I am not so old or foolish that I can't remember what it was like to be young. However, I am sure I don't have to remind either of you of the consequences you both face should Madge wind up pregnant before her last Reaping. And Gale, let's get something clear right off the bat." Mr. Undersee looked at Gale, but pointed at Madge. "If you knock her up before her last Reaping, no punishment the Capitol can cook up will compare to what I would do to you."
"You'll have to stand in line behind my mother," Gale responded placidly. "But I'm sure she'll be happy to turn my corpse over to you when she's done."
Mr. Undersee genuinely smiled. "Like I said, I always thought very highly of your mother. Now," he clapped his hands together, "are you two going public with this? I need to know what to expect, because people will ask me about it."
"Well," Madge looked at Gale as she spoke, "we kind of thought we needed to keep it quiet because of Mrs. Mellark."
Mr. Undersee made a disgusted noise in his throat. "I don't know if it much matters at this point, she's gone so far around the bend. Are those two dating now?"
"I think that's still an open question," Madge said carefully, "but it is moving in that direction."
"Then it's probably just as well that Peeta moved out. I doubt she'll directly harm Katniss as long as she understands that I view Katniss as surrogate family, but I wouldn't be surprised if she tries more indirect ways of causing trouble. In any event, you two still haven't answered my question. Are you going public with this?"
Madge and Gale looked at each other. "No matter how we approach this, it will be the topic of gossip for quite some time," she warned him.
"I don't care about that. Do whatever will make this easiest on you." Gale's response got a smile out of Mr. Undersee.
"Then let's be discreet and not make any announcement," Madge announced. "I like my privacy. People are much less likely to ask us questions if they think this is a sensitive topic." And they'll be more likely to think all Gale and I are hiding is a Merchant-Seam romance, not crimes against the Capitol. "Dad, if anybody asks you, tell them that Gale and I have started spending time together. Actually, that's probably an appropriate answer for all of us, if asked."
"How delightfully vague," John remarked. "Well, it's getting late. Let's call it a night."
John escorted them to the porch, informed them both that Madge's bedtime was in 10 minutes, then left.
As soon as the Mayor was out of earshot, Gale remarked, "Well, that wasn't how I was expecting my evening to go when you asked me over."
"I think it went pretty well. It's too soon to say he likes you, but he respects you. It's a start."
"I respect him. I always have, but even more so after tonight," Gale told her sincerely, but then his voice trailed off.
"But?" Madge prompted.
"But it made me miss my own father," Gale finally admitted. "Sometimes I'm so busy filling his shoes at home that I forget just how much I do miss him." Gale wasn't crying but Madge didn't miss that his eyes were a little misty.
"By the way," Madge changed topics, "I think Peeta is a little jealous of you. He didn't look too happy when you hugged Katniss and offered to walk her home."
Gale rolled his eyes. "He looked like shit. I was trying to do him a favor."
"Oh, I know that," Madge reassured him. "But I don't know if you can have the sort of week that Peeta's had and feel secure about very much. He and Katniss are brand new; you and Katniss are old friends. Did you hear about the artwork?"
Gale hadn't, so she filled him in. "That's fucked up," was Gale's pithy response.
"It is," Madge agreed.
"You know, it's weird," Gale mused. "Katniss and I lost our fathers in the mines. Mrs. Everdeen almost let Prim and Katniss starve to death. Your mother has been bedridden for years."
Gale wrapped his arms around Madge's waist, but looked out into the night, gathering his thoughts before he continued. "Mr. and Mrs. Mellark are both fully functioning adults. No diseases, no deaths, plenty to eat. But somehow they've managed to give their boys the worst childhood in the District."
"They certainly have," Madge said, quietly surprised by the depth of Gale's observations. "They certainly have."
They cuddled for a couple of minutes, before Madge announced, "It's time for me to kick you off my porch, Gale Hawthorne."
Gale gave her one last squeeze and a chaste kiss, then walked out into the night. Madge headed to bed, stopping to knock briefly on her parent's bedroom door to say goodnight. Her father opened the door at her knock.
"Did I scare him off?" John teased.
"No," she said, fixing her father with her best disapproving look.
"Good. If he can't handle that sort of discussion, he has no business dating my daughter. So, I guess I approve," he smiled at her. "For now. I was serious about what I said."
"I know, you were. Trust me, the last person who wants another kid to take care of is Gale Hawthorne. Do you know what he told me outside?"
"What's that?" John yawned.
"He said your talk tonight made him miss his own father."
"Oh," John looked surprised and a little pleased. "Well. If Gale ever needs to discuss anything with me, he's always welcome."
Madge kissed him on the cheek, went to her bedroom and got ready for bed. She thought about her father's warnings against getting pregnant. I need to visit Mrs. Everdeen, she decided. She climbed into bed and fell asleep picturing Gale's gray eyes.