Chapter Text
Rory Hawthorne was a new sophomore at Victor’s Arena High, a transfer student–fortunately, he’d been able to transfer at the beginning of the school year rather than in the middle. Things were looking up for his family (about time), and they’d just moved to the higher-end area of Panem from the Seam, where he'd attended the far more modest District 12 High, which his older brother Gale had graduated from a couple of years ago.
Rory was excited about the move. It wasn’t so much that District 12 was a crap pile‒he’d actually liked going to school there‒but it was more about escaping the place where he’d lost his father, where he and his three siblings had lost their father, and where his mother had lost her husband, in a terrible mining accident.
Despite his desire for this change in scenery, attending a new school was always a little scary. And this place was downright intimidating. For one, it was huge. And Rory didn’t know a single soul there.
As luck would have it, though, he ran into (literally) a guy who instantly wanted to be his best friend. What a rarity! Particularly at a fancy school like this. Thom was a cool guy, though some might consider him to be a nerd. Not that Rory was the most popular guy in the world. He’d had a decent number of friends at District 12, but he didn’t really fit into any neat category. He was smart, but not enough to be labeled a “nerd;” he wasn’t a jock, not nearly as strong and athletic as his older brother, and he wasn’t musical or artistic. He was just plain old Rory Hawthorne, a normal guy.
Thus, it was nice to make a friend right away on the first day. And Rory was glad to have Thom showing him around and filling him in on the inner workings of VAHS.
Around 11:30 that morning, Rory and Thom met up outside his lit class and headed to the cafeteria (more commonly known as the Hob) for lunch. They chatted amiably and people-watched while waiting in line. When it was their turn, the school food service person Ms. Sae offered them a choice of chicken salad, some sort of vegetarian wrap, or a hamburger. Rory chose the hamburger and Thom, the chicken salad. Sae handed them their trays; they paid, and then the boys went off in search of a table.
Well, it wasn’t really a search, for Thom already had a usual table.
“Follow me,” said Thom, leading Rory over to a table where two others were already seated: a girl with dark hair and ash gray eyes wearing black cargo pants, a tank, and an open flannel, long-sleeved shirt (even though it was a warm day) and a gangly, redheaded boy with freckles in a rock band t-shirt.
They sat down, and Thom introduced Rory to the girl, a sophomore, like him, named Bristel, and to the guy, their reigning ‘old man’ as Thom put it, a senior named Darius. Falling in easily with the group, Rory ate his lunch amidst chatting with the other three. Bristel was largely quiet, but Darius was friendly and funny, and Rory thought that perhaps he might be well on his way to making a second friend on his first day.
And then, he saw her.
The most beautiful girl he’d ever seen in his entire life...
“Who’s that?” asked Rory, his slack jaw practically on the table.
Thom followed Rory’s gaze. “Oh, her? You mean little Miss Perfect? That,” said Thom, “is Primrose Everdeen.”
“Primrose. Wow. Even her name is beautiful.” In fact, her name tasted as sweet as honey on Rory’s lips.
“I guess.” Thom shrugged.
Primrose was walking with a friend, a sophomore named Rue, according to Thom. But Rory barely noticed Rue, for he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the lithe, blonde goddess. He was mesmerized by the way she tread so lightly, moved so fluidly, by her beautiful blue eyes, and by her long, golden hair tied into a fishtail braid that rested lightly against her back.
“I burn, I pine, I perish,” praised Rory aloud (a little too aloud), and to no one in particular.
Of course, Thom heard and snorted. “Dude, Shakespeare is rolling over in his grave right now.”
“Why? I quoted it right, didn’t I? And she’s amazing.”
“She’s, uh, well… I guess.”
“What do you mean you ‘guess’? Look at her!” Rory gave his new friend a couple of hard shakes.
“I’m lookin,’ I’m lookin,’ geez.”
“Wow, she’s just so…”
“Vapid?” Thom filled in. “Conceited?”
“Wha-? No! How can you say that?” argued Rory. “Just look at her; she’s totally pure.”
“Pure. Prudish. Tom-ay-to, tom-ah-to,” said Thom. Rory scoffed.
Regardless of what Thom had said, Rory couldn’t take his eyes off Prim the entire time she was having lunch, though he tried not to look like a creepy stalker. Consequently, when Prim and Rue left the cafeteria, Rory followed, dragging Thom along with him. They were hot on Prim’s trail when Rory full-on collided with someone, causing her to drop her books. His mouth dropped open in poised apology, his eyes softening and shooting apologetically to the girl he’d bumped into.
Before he could say anything, she snarled, “Watch it, asshole!”
“Sorry!” Rory immediately dropped to a squat, preparing to pick up her books for her, only to be met with a pair of cold, steely grays. The girl, who had likewise squatted down, stared him in the face, and from her expression, he thought she might bite his hand off if he so much as touched her books. Shaken, he pulled back and let her scoop them up on her own. Then the olive-skinned, dark-haired hellion, who, no surprise, had come like a bat out of hell, took off just as quickly as they’d run into each other.
Rory stood up. “I think my life just flashed before my eyes,” he said dramatically, releasing a puff of breath. Thom snickered.
“Who was that?” asked Rory.
“That would be your girlfriend’s sister. Ohh, she is in rare form today.”
“No. That can’t possibly be Primrose’s sister,” protested Rory.
“Oh, but I’m afraid it is, my friend.” Thom patted him on the back and started leading him off toward their lockers, which weren’t far from each other.
“But…they look nothing alike. Not to mention, act nothing alike.” He’d seen Prim’s smiles back there in the Hob and overheard some of her conversations in the hall‒she was completely sweet. And this girl was...well, the opposite of sweet.
“Yeah, I guess she must’ve taken after their mom in the looks department and Katniss, after their dad. But she most certainly is Primrose’s older sister. Katniss Everdeen. Senior. Loner. Shrew. The heinous she-beast, herself.”
“She can’t be that bad.”
“You think so?” Thom leaned against a locker. “Did you know she kicked Marvel Jones in the balls so hard he had to have a testicle retrieval surgery?”
“Uh, no. Oh my god.”
“Yep,” Thom replied, popping the p. “She is the Number One Badass Bitch around VAHS, and not in a good way.”
Rory blinked several times, then followed after Thom when the bell rang signifying the end of the lunch period.
Naturally, Rory had questions about Katniss, just because she was so…he didn’t know what, something, but the person he truly wanted to know everything about was Primrose.
“So, how do I get her to notice me?” persisted Rory along the way.
“More than that,” put in Thom, “how do you keep Katniss the She-Beast from beheading you for going near her little sister?”
“I’m sure I could find some time to talk to Primrose alone. I mean, we’re both sophomores, so maybe we’ll have a class together, or I could sometime between classes. And Katniss is a senior, so she’ll have senior classes and won’t always be around, right?”
“Okay, let’s say you work that out,” said Thom patiently. “Even if she did notice you, which she won’t, and even if you could get past the she-demon, which you won’t, it’s a well-known fact that the Everdeen sisters aren’t allowed to date.”
“What?”
“Yeah,” Thom scratched the back of his neck, “they have this seriously overprotective father. And Katniss might be even worse when it comes to protecting Prim on his behalf.”
Rory’s jaw hinged. Who wasn’t allowed to date in high school in this day and age?
Thom turned to face a stunned Rory. “Just forget about her, man.” Thom gripped him by the shoulders. “Move on.”
“I can’t just move on. She’s...ethereal. She’s an angel.”
“Yeah, well, maybe you better start slumming it with some earthbound girls because that ain’t never happening.”
Rory released a despondent sigh. There had to be some way for him to approach Prim and talk to her and get her to like him without interference from Katniss...
After Precalculus, Rory went sniffing around for Prim again, just casually, as he headed to AP Biology. He happened to catch sight of her talking with a hulking blond guy. He was resting his hand atop the lockers and leaning into her a little.
White-hot anger bubbled up inside of Rory, then dejection.
Where was this overprotective sister now? He wondered spitefully.
“Just great,” sighed Rory. What chance did he stand against tall, blond, and beefy over there? The guy looked like he could be a freaking model, and a professional wrestler, too.
“That’s Cato,” said Thom, coming up behind Rory.
“What?” Startled, he snapped his head toward Thom.
“The guy hitting on your girl.”
Rory gave a heavy exhale.
“Alright, man." Thom sighed. "If you’re really set on pursuing this, I heard Prim is looking for a French tutor.”
“That’s perfect!” exclaimed Rory.
“Oh, you speak French?”
“Well, uh, no. But for her, I’ll learn!
“Fantastic,” said Thom sarcastically. “You really got it bad, don’t you?”
Rory said nothing, merely looked at him like the hopeless puppy he was.
Since they were going to be late at this rate, Thom proceeded to direct Rory to AP Biology, a class they shared, although Thom was a junior. They found seats in the middle of the class on the right where Thom normally sat.
While waiting for their teacher, Thom told Rory what he knew about the Everdeens.
The Everdeens were well-to-do now, but they weren’t always. Word was Mr. Everdeen came from modest beginnings. He started out really poor, didn’t graduate high school, and ended up working one of the most dangerous jobs a person can have, a miner. For very minimal pay. He met Mrs. Everdeen, who was from the wealthier merchant district part of town. Her father owned a high-end pharmacy there. She was engaged to a baker, but after falling madly in love with Mr. Everdeen, that was off. The story definitely had a fairy tale quality to it: Poor boy meets rich girl, and they fall in love. That sort of thing.
Only with an unhappy ending.
Well, eventually Mr. Everdeen, although un-college-educated, had worked his way out of the mines and into a safer and much higher-paying Site Manager position. Meanwhile, Mrs. Everdeen had become a successful obstetrician, and they were doing quite well for themselves. But then, Mrs. E got sick.
“Oh no," remarked Rory.
“Yeah... She died about two years ago. Of Ovarian cancer. She was Stage IV before anyone saw any sign of it, even with her being a doctor. How she missed it, I have no idea. Or, maybe she knew. But why she’d keep it from her family if she did, I can’t understand. She only lasted about six months after the diagnosis. It rocked the entire family.”
Rory gave a sullen sigh. “Oh man, how do you know all this?”
Thom shrugged. “I pay attention. It’s easy when no one in the school knows you’re alive. They’ll talk around you without bothering to conceal anything private. Then again, when does the gossip mill ever care about anyone’s privacy, whether the most popular kid or the least?”
Rory nodded.“Poor Prim,” he mused. “She must have been devastated to lose her mother so young.”
“Yeah, I imagine it isn’t easy losing your mom, especially as a teenage girl. But Mr. Everdeen seems like a loving father, albeit an overprotective one. Well, except, I heard he kinda got into a funk after their mom died. Practically stopped taking care of them. I hear it was Katniss who stepped up and took care of the family for a while.”
“Wow.” Rory pondered this a moment, recalling how hard it was on his family after his father died. It’s never easy losing a parent. And funny how his father was a miner like Katniss's and Prim’s. “Katniss doesn’t sound so bad. Sounds like she’s only looking out for her family. And I guess it makes sense that she’d be angry and bitter after experiencing something like that.”
“You have sympathy for her now, but wait until she rips you a new one in front of the whole school for parking in her spot.”
“I thought there were no assigned parking spots here, aside from maybe the principal.”
“There aren’t, but Katniss Everdeen is a creature of habit. And apparently, everyone else knows that’s her spot.”
“Sorry, man.”
“Well, on the bright side, more people know I exist now. Or maybe not. Maybe I was simply known as one of the stupid guys who pissed off the She-Beast of Victor’s Arena High and I've long since been forgotten.” Thom one-arm shrugged. “Oh, but I’m sure Katniss Everdeen still knows I exist. She’s like an elephant. Never forgets, you know. Probably why she was so harsh on you. By association. I’m just guessing. Then again, she probably knows all about you by now.”
“Really?” balked Rory.
“Oh yeah, chances are. Not for any special reason, of course; she just kinda sees all. She’s like an eagle or a fox or some other solitary predatory animal lurking around, never showing herself until it’s time to pounce.”
“Well, is she an elephant, an eagle, or a fox?” joked Rory, giving a little laugh. “Make up your mind.”
“Ha-ha.” Thom gave him the finger. “My point being, like the wild beast she is, if you don’t get in her path, she’ll most likely completely ignore you. But if you do, guard your balls, so to speak.”
Rory cringed, his hands inadvertently moving to cover his junk as he thought back on the story about Marvel Jones. He wondered if the story was indeed true.
“Oh, and you know Darius?” Thom went on. “He had a run-in with Katniss one time, too. D had a huge crush on Katniss since his freshman year. He finally got up the nerve to ask her to the Harvest Festival Dance last year…”
“What happened?” Rory was imagining all manner of physical punishments right now.
“Well, not much, actually,” said Thom. “Darius got off easy. Katniss looked him over as if she was sizing him up,” Thom acted this out while he explained, “and with absolutely no emotion on her face, whatsoever, she turned and walked away.”
“Wow. She didn’t say anything?”
“Nope, not a word. I mean, at least she didn’t eviscerate him or laugh in his face, but she totally humiliated him. Broke his heart. He was devastated. He had it bad for her, too. Probably still does. And he actually thought he stood a chance with her because one time she was nice to him.”
“She was?” Rory gaped.
“Yeah, their freshman year. No one wanted to be his partner in history class, but Katniss offered. They worked together on one school project, spent some time together, not a lot, but it was enough to send Darius head-over-heels for Katniss. Apparently, she used to be shy but sweet, at least according to D. I wasn’t around for it, though. I never witnessed that side of Katniss Everdeen.”
“Hm,” mused Rory, pursing his lips.
“And after what happened with her mom, Katniss Everdeen soured and spoiled. Now she’s rotten to the core.”
Rory thought on this. There had to be some good in Katniss, considering what he'd been told, and having such a pure creature as Prim for a sister...
After school, Katniss settled into her favorite armchair with her worn copy of Island of the Blue Dolphins and proceeded to re-read it. It might be a young adult book, but she enjoyed the elements of lone survival, resiliency, and feminism within the story and considered it a classic. She’d only gotten a half-dozen pages in when her father walked into the living room.
“Hello, Catkin,” he greeted. “Make anyone cry today?” It was a running joke with them.
“Sadly, no,” Katniss smirked up at her father, "but it’s only four-thirty.”
“Atta girl,” laughed her dad. “That’s the spirit!” He slapped his knee in enthusiastic amusement.
They both turned at the sound of the front door opening and closing. Seconds later, Prim bounced in with the biggest smile on her face.
“You’re home a bit late, Precious,” their father greeted Prim. “And you look…happy?” Prim tried to temper her expression. “Where were you?”
“Yes, where have you been?” questioned Katniss, glowering accusatorily.
“Um,” Prim’s blue eyes flitted to the side. “There was a meeting for the Photography Club, so I thought I’d check it out.”
Katniss rolled her eyes.
“Oh, you’re interested in taking up photography, huh?” said their dad.
“Yeah, maybe!” chirped Prim.
Katniss scowled over at her. “Photography, huh?” She sat up straighter, placing her open book cover-up on her knee. “Nice try. I saw you get in the car with him…”
“Him? Him who?” grilled Mr. Everdeen, rotating his neck to look between his two daughters.
“Cato,” stated Katniss plainly.
“Traitor,” hissed Prim.
“Who’s Cato?” Their father made a face, then looked to Prim, awaiting an explanation.
“Scum of the earth,” responded Katniss for Prim. Their father turned toward her then.
Prim rolled her eyes and flipped her braid over her shoulder. “He’s not that bad.”
“Not that bad,” repeated Mr. Everdeen.
“He is, Dad,” interjected Katniss. “He’s vile. I hope a pack of mutts eats his face.”
“Ugh,” scoffed Prim. “You’re just jealous.”
“Jealous?" Katniss sneered. “Oh yeah, I’m soo jealous of you dating that douchebag.”
“Excuse me, dating?” It looked like steam was about to come shooting out of their dad’s ears. “What have I told you about that?”
“But‒” began Prim.
“And why are you lying to me?”
“I didn’t lie, Daddy!” shrieked Prim, her lip poking out and her eyes beginning to moisten. Katniss rolled her eyes at Prim’s theatrics. She was good at manipulating their father. All it took was a pout and the threat of tears. “I went to the meeting, and then this guy from school offered me a ride home, that’s all.”
Their father brought his hands up to rub his temples. “You should have had your sister take you, or called me.”
“I figured you’d be busy and‒”
“Doesn’t matter. You should have found another ride. Why did you let her out of your sight?” Their father turned his accusations on Katniss. Katniss threw up her hands.
Then Mr. Everdeen was right back to focusing on Prim. “What have I told you about boys?” he scolded.
“That they’re evil and only put on this earth to impregnate us women,” answered Prim.
“And?”
“And…?” Prim’s nose wrinkled in confusion.
“And that you’re not allowed to date until you graduate.”
“That’s so unfair, Dad!”
Mr. Everdeen sighed. He paced across the room before speaking again.
“Do you know that one time your mother helped deliver a baby to a fifteen-year-old girl? Fifteen, Primrose. Same age as you.” Prim rolled her eyes. “No, don’t roll your eyes. This is serious. Actually, your mother treated pregnant teens all the time. And do you know what that teenage mother said to your mother?”
“That she should have made her sleazy boyfriend wear a condom?” said Prim.
Katniss silently snickered while their father looked on in shock as if he couldn’t believe Prim even knew what a condom was.
“Close,” said Mr. Everdeen, recovering. “But no. She said, ‘I should have listened to my father.’”
“She did not,” argued Prim.
“Well, that’s what she would have said if she wasn’t so doped up!”
Prim heaved a sigh. “But everyone else at school dates!”
“Not true. Your sister doesn’t date.”
“And I don’t plan to,” chimed Katniss.
Mr. Everdeen grinned from ear to ear. “And why is that, Kat?” he asked amusedly.
“Because.” Katniss sniffed. “Have you seen the single-celled organisms at our school?” She directed her comment at Prim.
Mr. Everdeen smiled proudly at his eldest daughter. “Hey, that gives me an idea! I think a rule change is in order regarding my dating policy.”
“What?” said Katniss and Prim simultaneously.
“Yes.” Mr. Everdeen grinned like the cat that ate the canary. “New rule is, Prim can date.” Prim smiled widely, and Katniss began to protest. But before she could say anything, their father added, “When she does.” And he pointed to Katniss.
Prim’s mouth dropped open. “B-but what if she never does?”
“Then you never will,” proclaimed Mr. Everdeen. “Oh, I like that,” he muttered under his breath. And then he was off in his head imagining how nice and sound he’d sleep at night knowing his daughters weren’t out being impregnated by losers.
Prim gaped like a fish. She looked as though she'd just been informed that the world was coming to an end. And she turned on Katniss viciously. “Why can’t you just be normal?” she screeched.
Katniss scoffed. “Normal? So I’m not normal just because I don’t think shelling out twenty or thirty bucks gives some jackass the right to feel me up in a darkened theater, then take me to the slag heap and stick his dick in me.”
“Language, Katniss!” chided her father. “Wait. What’s the slag heap?”
“Never mind, Dad.” Katniss sighed, then propped up her elbow on the arm of the chair and leaned her cheek against her fist.
Mr. Everdeen contemplated a moment before raising a finger. “Your sister makes a good point, you know... I’m getting The Belly!”
“What?! Nooo, Dad!" whined Prim. "Not The Belly!"
But before Prim could escape to her room, Mr. Everdeen had returned with a vest made of silicone and canvas meant to simulate a pregnant belly. Their mother had used it when she taught about pregnancy.
“Why do you still have that?!” shrieked Prim.
Their father shrugged, then moved to put it on her. Prim groaned loudly and went pathetically limp like dogs do when their owners put ridiculous costumes on them.
Mr. Everdeen stood back, looking at his youngest and shaking his head. “Now, imagine walking around school like that.”
Prim glared from beneath her golden eyelashes. “How long do I have to wear this, Dad?”
“Until you come to your senses and get the message.”
In the meantime, Katniss was trying hard not to laugh. She did have some sympathy for Prim; however, the image was just too much, and a small laugh escaped. Both Prim's and her father’s heads snapped toward her.
“Thank goodness I don’t have to worry about this with you."
“What’s that supposed to mean, Dad?”
“Well, you’re not interested in any of this, right? Dating, marriage, children.”
Katniss pressed her lips together, pondering a moment. She thought to make some outrageous statement like that she actually wanted to get married as soon as possible and give him lots of grandbabies, but instead, she simply nodded.
“Oh, by the way, something came for you," Mr. Everdeen inserted. He stepped into the foyer and returned with an envelope. Katniss snatched it from him as soon as he was in range and excitedly opened it.
“Oh my god! I got in!” She squealed in a very un-Katniss-like fashion.
“Got in? What? Where?”
Katniss held up the envelope so that her dad could see the name of the university of her dreams that she’d just been accepted to. This was the greatest day of her life!
Not for Mr. Everdeen, though. His shoulders slumped. “But that’s all the way across the country, Kat," he pouted.
“Hence its appeal,” snarked Katniss. She didn't like hurting her dad, and she shouldn't have put it like that, but she just needed to get away from here.
“I thought we decided you were going to go to a local college."
Katniss took a deep breath and answered as patiently as she could. “No, you decided, Dad.”
“But–” Her dad’s next words were cut off by the ringing of his cell. Katniss and Prim shot each other a look as the 'old man' music emanated from the device. He dug his phone out of his pocket and looked at the screen. “Oh, I need to take this. To be continued,” he said, holding up a finger.