9FATHER'S DAY
"Katniss."
The girl unconsciously snuggles further under the thin blankets, shivering slightly as the chill air washes over her face. The girl is not alone in her bed. Her younger sister moves closer to her, seeking the scant comfort of her older sibling's body heat.
"Katniss." A large hand grips the girl's shoulder and gently, but firmly, gives a shake.
Reluctantly, Katniss opens her eyes and rolls away from the warmth of her younger sister. In the dim, pre-dawn light, her silver eyes focus on the craggy features of a man staring down at her fondly with eyes that mirror the girl's own. His hand leaves her shoulder and gently brushes Katniss's dark hair off of her forehead.
"Time to get up if you wanna come with me," the man says in a low voice as he continues to brush the girl's hair back from her eyes with one large, callused hand.
"What time is it?" Katniss asks, her voice rusty from her sleep.
"Early," the man replies.
"Early enough so the Peacekeepers are still sleeping?" The girl asks in a small, anxious voice.
"No," the man replies, "But early enough that they won't be able to see us in the dark." The man smiles reassuringly at Katniss, who stares back at him solemnly.
"No more questions now," the man says urgently. "We're racing the sun. We gotta get the lead. Oh, and Katniss?"
"Hmm?" The girl is wide awake now.
"Dress warm," the man says, passing his hand one last time over her forehead. "It snowed last night."
The man and the girl slip out of the small house, white clouds forming around their faces with each breath they take. Inside the house, Katniss's sister and mother slumber on.
The man glances around quickly, eyes alert for movement - any movement. A fresh coating of snow glistens whitely on the ground and clings to the rooftops of other nearby houses. All of the homes here are little more than shacks: small, shabby, and in various stages of disrepair. Katniss knows this slum by only one name - the Seam.
Satisfied that his quick scan revealed no tell-tale white uniforms, the man takes the girl's hand in his own and together they quickly jog through the Seam, past row upon row of ramshackle homes, and through a cleared area that the girl knows as the Meadow. Katniss can now see their destination - a tall fence marked at regular intervals with warning signs.
The man and the girl stop at the fence. Katniss took the man's advice and was dressed in the warmest clothing she owned - a woolen knit cap, long jacket, and finger-less gloves. Her black hair was done up in a pair of braids, hanging down over each shoulder.
The man holds up his hand as they stand at the fence. He wears finger-less gloves as well. He listens intently as Katniss stands quietly by, a puzzled look on her face.
"What'dya hear?" The man asks.
Katniss glances at the man, then back at the fence, then at the man again. "Nothing," she admits.
"Exactly," the man says with a small smile. "The Peacekeepers like to pretend that the fence is electrified." The man reaches out and, while the girl looks on in alarm, firmly grasps one exposed wire.
Nothing happens.
"But it's not," the man says, giving Katniss a small grin. "At least not all the time."
The man releases the wire and nods at the fence. Katniss steps up and tentatively touches the wire with her fingertips, then, her silver-gray eyes narrowing in comprehension, grabs the wire firmly. Suddenly she releases the wire and turns towards the man with a look of concern.
"But, aren't they afraid of things getting in with the fence off?" She asks anxiously.
"They aren't afraid of things getting in, Katniss," the man says gently, gesturing towards the forest. "There's nothing in these woods that a Peacekeeper's gun couldn't take care of. They're afraid of us - getting out."
"But why?" Katniss asks, confusion on her face.
"Because the most dangerous things across the fence don't live in these woods," the man replies, glancing towards the forest. The girl stares solemnly at the man.
"Freedom," the man says firmly. "Freedom is what the Capitol's afraid of. And what that freedom does to people."
"What does it do?" Katniss asks, as understanding begins to creep into her young mind.
The man reaches out and tenderly touches the girl's face. "Come on," he says, "I'll show you." The man bends down and deftly slips between the wires, and grins as Katniss does the same. Straightening up, the man takes the girl by the hand again and leads her into the forest.
The man kneels at the base of a large tree. He digs at small branches and leaves covering a hollow in the trunk. Katniss stands behind him quietly, watching intently.
The man reaches into the hollow and pulls out an object, then turns and hands the item to the girl. The girl examines the item intently. It's a quiver full of arrows.
The man pulls another object out and stands up, holding an unstrung bow in his gloved hands. He turns toward Katniss and begins to string the bow.
"You know what this is?" He asks. The girl nods slightly, staring at the bow with wide eyes.
"Then you know what would happen if anyone found out I had one," the man says.
Katniss nods. "They'd arrest you," she says quietly.
"They'd kill me, Katniss," the man says seriously as he completes stringing the bow. "It's treason for a citizen to own a weapon. The penalty - death. Understand?" The girl nods, her eyes wider now than before.
"I'm not saying this to...scare you," the man says, looking down at the bow.
"I'm not afraid!" Katniss says firmly, with a determined set to her face. The man looks at the girl's face, seeing something he's seen there before - quiet courage. He smiles.
"No," he says, still smiling. "Of course you're not. Come on." He touches Katniss on the arm and leads her away from the tree as a light snow begins to fall.
The man stalks silently through the forest, an arrow nocked to the bowstring. Katniss follows closely behind, trying to imitate the man's silent stride. She watches intently at how he walks - an easy, deliberate, heel-then-toe gait that makes no sound. The girl winces every time she hears a twig snap under her feet. The man never even turns around.
Suddenly the man stops and holds up one hand. Katniss freezes behind him, straining to see what made the man stop - then she catches sight of the rabbit, its fur a mottled black and white, rooting through the crusted snow, looking for a stray blade of grass.
The man smoothly draws his arrow back, hesitates for an instant, then lets fly. The rabbit never knew what hit it. The man and the girl trot over to the body of the rabbit. The man picks up the still-warm body and drops it into the game bag that Katniss holds open for him.
"What are we going to cook it with?" The girl asks.
"We're not keeping it," the man replies matter-of-factly. The girl looks at him in confusion.
"What'dya mean, we're not keeping it?" Katniss asks in confusion.
"What'dya see in there, Kat?" The man asks, pointing at the game bag.
The girl peers into the bag. "Two rabbits, two squirrels, and a grouse."
"Ah, but I see a new pair of laces for my boots," the man says with a smile, "A quart of fresh goat's milk, two loaves of honey oat bread, and a tin of salt to preserve the grouse we'll have left over."
Katniss glances back into the bag. "All that for this?" she asks skeptically.
"Meat is food," the man says. "And food is life. We live in a place where parents gamble their children's lives for a little extra grain. A piece of string, a sprinkle of salt, is a small price to pay for the promise of a hot meal.
Katniss glances back at the game bag, then up at the man. "I want to learn," she says with a determined look in her eye.
An arrow whizzes by the rotten apple sitting on top of a tree stump. Two other arrows protrude from the stump below the apple.
The girl sighs in frustration and nocks another arrow. Slowly she brings the bow up, drawing the arrow back, trying to mimic the same smooth motion that the man exhibited whenever he uses the bow.
Katniss releases the arrow. The bow string snaps forward, sending the arrow towards its target. The arrow glances off the side of the tree stump just below the apple, ricocheting off into the forest.
Another sigh of frustration. The man, standing behind her, reaches out and taps her shoulder with another arrow. Wordlessly she grasps it.
"It takes time, Katniss," the man says, a hint of amusement in his voice. "The Capitol wasn't built in a day, ya know."
"I can do it." the girl says determinedly. "One more time."
The man pulls another arrow out of the quiver. "Okay," he says. "Show me what ya know. How do you stand?"
"Body centered, left foot forward," Katniss says, as she sets herself.
"Now what?" The man asks.
"I nock...the arrow," the girl says as she nocks the arrow.
"Watch your fingers," the man says with a small smile. "You want me to help you -"
"No!" Katniss says firmly. "I can do this." The girl slowly draws the bowstring back.
"Both eyes open," the man says. Katniss sighs in irritation but says nothing. Both eyes remain open.
The girl sights down the arrow, taking several slow, deliberate breaths. The arrow springs from the bow - and strikes the rotten apple dead center.
Katniss looks astonished for a half-second, then allows herself a satisfied grin.
"Nice shot, Katniss!" The man says to the smiling girl. Affectionately he puts his hand on her shoulder. Still grinning, she turns to him and holds out the bow.
"Why don't you hold on to it for the walk home?" The man says, pulling the girl close to him in a brief hug.
The man and Katniss move quietly through the forest - but this time, it's the girl in the lead - arrow nocked and bow ready - while the man follows, carrying the quiver of arrows and the game bag. Suddenly Katniss stops, staring up into a tree. Slowly she brings up the bow, drawing the bowstring back, then glances back at the man.
The man looks at her and solemnly shakes his head. The girl lowers the bow.
"There's hardly any meat on them," the man says. "They're songbirds."
"I don't hear any singing," Katniss says, a confused look on her face.
The man glances up at the bird sitting high in the tree, then carefully sets down the game bag and quiver. He looks at the girl intently for a moment.
"Sing me the first line of the Valley Song, Katniss," he says suddenly.
Katniss looks at him in confusion, but takes a deep breath and starts to sing.
"Down in the valley, the valley so low,
Hang your head over, hear the wind blow."
As Katniss sings, the man glances up into the trees. By the time the girl has sung the last note, the birds are singing the melody back to them.
Katniss looks up at the man, and astonished smile on her face. "How'd they do that?" She asks.
"During the Dark Days," the man begins, "The Capitol used creatures called Jabberjays - birds - to spy on and repeat Rebel secrets. But it didn't work. See, the Rebels caught on, and used the birds to send their own false messages to the Capitol - to confuse them."
"But the Jabberjays all died out," Katniss says in confusion. "Our teacher said they're extinct."
"The Jabberjays are, yes," the man says with a nod. "The Capitol abandoned them to the wild, figured they'd - die out. But instead, they mated with the wild mockingbirds."
The man gestures towards the birds in the trees. "That's what these are," he continues. "Things the Capitol never meant to create. Mockingjays."
Katniss looks up at the birds sitting quietly in the tree, then back to the man. "And they'll repeat anything?"
"No, just songs," the man replies. "Melodies, really."
"Sing something else!" Katniss says excitedly. "I wanna hear!"
The man looks thoughtful and swallows heavily, then takes a deep breath and begins to sing.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree
Where they strung a man they say murdered three
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree
Katniss stares at the man intently. "I've never heard that song before." She says, eyes wide.
"No, you wouldn't have," the man says, shaking his head as if coming out of a trance. "It's illegal to sing it."
"That's stupid!" The girl says. "It's just a song!"
"No, Katniss," the man says, his voice quivering slightly with emotion. "Songs can be just as dangerous as that bow in your hand."
Katniss glances down at the bow, then back up at the man.
The man takes a step towards the girl. "What'd I tell you about the fence?" He asks. "Why is it there?"
"To keep us in." Katniss replies, her eyes widening in understanding.
"Because what's - in the woods?" The man asks, gesturing at the trees all around them.
"Weapons, and food, and Mockingjays, and -" The man's fingers lightly brush across the girl's chin, lifting her face up to his.
"All of it exists - without the Capitol," the man says. Comprehension lights up Katniss's face as his words sink in.
"Freedom!" she says in awe. The man nods in agreement.
"Freedom," he agrees. Katniss stands silently, her mind processing everything that she's learned on this day. Suddenly she looks up at the man in excitement.
"Can I come again with you next week?" She asks anxiously. The man gives a small laugh and nods.
"Next week and every week," he says with a smile. "From now until forever!"
Katniss smiles up at him. "And you'll teach me how to hunt?" She asks.
"Hunt, fish, which berries are good - which are poison." The man replies, his voice thick with emotion. "I'll even teach you to fashion a bow of your own."
"Really?" The girl asks excitedly, glancing down at the bow in her hand.
"Yes," the man replies. "But most importantly, I'll teach you all the words - to all the songs - we can't sing inside the fence."
Katniss stares up at her father, her love for him shining in her eyes, as he pulls her into his embrace, and he kisses her tenderly on the top of her head.
"Come on," her father says, as they walk back to the fence together.
A/N - This one-shot was inspired by the YouTube video, "The Hanging Tree," posted by MainstayPro. I just hope that I will be able to do the video justice. Please let me know what you think. Thanks for reading and reviewing!