Life... It became easier in some ways and harder in others.
"Hey, what do you want, brat?!" The group laughed as Percy smirked, holding the kid off the ground several feet. "What? You accidentally bumped into me? You think a sorry will cut it?!"
She threw the girl town, towering over her.
The girl looked at her with fear as she grabbed the front of her shirt, lifting her, reeling a fist back and!-- A-and? Something? anything? Hello? Percy home?
She looked at the trembling girl, dropping her fist and letting go, stepping back, smile falling.
"Scram." The girl looked up in shocked confusion. "I SAID SCRAM!!" She scrambled to her feet and ran off.
"What was that Percy?" One of her friends asked bored.
"Just drop it, it is not worth it."
"Man, you've gotten boring since you came back."
"Yeah live a little, you are a victor."
"It is like you've gone soft."
A vein could have popped out on her forehead as she made fists and her shoulders pulled up.
"LEAVE!!" She screamed in the face of the closest person who fell back in fear. "LEAVE ALL OF YOU!! YOU DAMNED LEACHES!! SCRAM BEFORE I PUT THE FEAR OF LIFE INTO YOU!!"
"So lame."
"Jeez lets go guys."
She took a few deep breaths, she had been find with their leach-y relationship before but it seems that it has truly ended now. Before she could do this, she liked this but things have changed, so much had changed. Setting off in the opposite way they went.
Having gotten used to walking on the leg but it didn't stop the phantom pain sometimes getting so bad she couldn't walk and there was nothing to do against it but wait it out.
She tried to be herself but the arena had washed her personality away and just brought back trouble with it.
Maybe she should buy groceries? Yeah, that will change her thought right?
She wished she wasn't expected to be herself anymore, the large scratched X on the Capitol's logo should be hint enough but no.
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Smack.
"You made us look weak you ungrateful child."
"It is not like I was not dying, oh wait, I was, for like a whole week maybe."
"Do not talk like that to you mother!"
"As if you were ever parents to us!!"
"Don't you dare bring u--""I bring up who I want! I am a damned victor, what will you do about it? Now leave me alone, you can't have anything over me! Now enjoy your fame by name because I have nothing else to give you!"
"Per--" "No! I have had enough! Nothing was ever good enough! You thought I wanted to be the best?! NO! You wanted to live vicariously through me to wash the shame off your faces!! Well now live with my victory and leave me the fuck alone!!"
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Sigh...
She had never flipped out at her parents but damn did it feel good to get it off her chest.
No prodigy had an easy life and Percy had had it hard then most, but of course, who'd know? No one, she kept her mouth shut. She couldn't do nothing but swallow it back down.
But a child that's hurt will hurt others in consequence... Tho it seems like this child has had her eyes open and lowered her fists.
Child? Percy scoffed. She celebrated her birthday in the arena and she had been home for one day, that one day felt worse then being back there, at least Hades hadn't been run into yet but she knew she'll need to deal with him.
She had took nothing of her old home when moving into her victor's home in the victors' village, not even her parents, having basically disowned herself in the screaming match after they got off the train and away from the crowd.
But she didn't really have life skills so she life... Bought vegetables, cheese, a slab of beef she thinks and fruits.
Oh yeah the bread, going to the bakery as she forgot to buy that at the market.
The little chime of the entrance sounded.
"Welco-- Oh hi Percy."
She blinked... Wha?
"Hello Peeta?" She said, the boy manning the counter and shop it seemed, smiling at her so bright she was almost blind. "How do you know my name? Katniss didn't."
"I remember things and we were forced to watched the games like always."
"Right... I came for bread." She clearly said.
"Sure, of course, look around and select what you want."
Silence.
"Are... You not mad at me?"
"Why would I be?"
"I kind of kissed your girlfriend."
"I believe you know it is a bit complicated between us because of Gale." This was the only time he sounded a bit jealous. "But it was to survive. I am not stupid enough to not realize it, you kicked our asses to be secretly in love with her. I understand don't worry."
"Well the problem might be that the love triangle might have been a love corner."
"Oh... Ooooh."
"Yeah... Well I am not sure but you know... Why am I even telling you this?" She pointed a loaf at him accusingly.
"I don't know." He shrugged. "But as long as Katniss is happy I am too, even if it is with someone else."
"Please, she doesn't like me." She scoffed with a wave, putting the loaf in front of him. "All part of the game, I was the stupid one to maybe feel something little."
"It is still something, even if just a little." He weighed it to get the price. "Love works in weird ways."
"You are the weird one. Giving advise to a potential rival." Peeta just shrugged with a smile as he wrapped the loaf and handed it to her, putting it in the paper bag she held out. "You are too nice."
"The world is too cruel for me to be cruel too. Oh I forgot, here you go." He quickly added a rectangular carton box the same size as the loaf in her bag.
"What's that?"
"Just a little thing, it is fragile for don't shake it."
"Price?"
"It's on the house."
"You are a weird guys... But thanks."
"Until next time."
She waved as she left... Really weird.
She walked home.
The victors homes were filled one after the other so Haymitch was house one, Katniss house two and she was in three.
Sighing, opening the door to the lonely home, turning on the light and closing the door.
She put the bag on the kitchen table and put the stuff in the fridge, in the fruit bowl or left it on the table.
She grabbed the meat and a pan... Time to learn how to cook.
But well... It ended up with the pan thrown out the open window in anger as she burnt the meat away with a black char remaining in the middle of the pan, having turned it up waaaaaay to high and with no oil or butter to make it none-stick.
She sat in the chair, grumbling as she pealed an orange and ate it, eyeing the carton box.
Percy ended up putting the rest of the fruit down and grabbing the box, opening it.
Her eyes went wide, mouth hanging open.
It looked like cylindrical chocolate cake that was smaller then the box, the size of her hand and a bit more.
the ends were not covered by the chocolate powder, seeing that it was some spongy cake rolled around pinkish-white filling with fruit. The words 'Happy you came home to us' on top of it, a bit smeared because the carton top stuck to these white icing letters.
She bit her lips, tears springing free and dripping down from her face to the hard wood surface of the table.
A boy she hurt, a boy she dragged through the dirt and tormented, a boy that should hate her guts for what she did to him, his on and off girlfriend and everyone in her life, a boy that barely knew her, a boy that had nothing to lose in her being gone, a boy like Peeta who had nothing to do with Her.
A boy like that was the only one happy she came back alive.
And here she was, arms crossed and head on them, crying into them because of a little cake he made for her.
A boy that should have never missed her, had, and he was the only one that had.