Chapter Text
The following morning, Katniss met Madge on the outskirts of the Merchant Quarters with the photo album, still tucked in Katniss's messenger bag. Madge said the book was called The Tribute File, and it contained sketches and descriptions of each of person from District 12 who was reaped for The Hunger Games.
According to Madge, her mother had worked tirelessly on an idea she called 'The Tribute Project,' and the book was a central component. First, Maryenne had sought out each tribute's family – Merchant or Seam – and gathered photos and information to share that tribute's story. Then, she convinced the local commerce association to hold a fundraiser to commission a noted artist from District 3 to complete all the sketches. With the book completed, she went to her husband for space within the Justice Building so the book could be displayed. It would be something like a memorial room, a place where family and guests could pay their respects to the fallen during Justice Building operating hours.
"What my mom had in mind was space on the first floor where people could gain easy access to the room. But, my dad wouldn't allow it. He said he didn't want all kinds of people frequenting the Justice Building. Instead, he gave her a room on the third floor that was virtually inaccessible to the public – the same room we were in last night. He thought she would drop the idea. But my mom and I went in and cleaned and dusted and prepared the room. Then, when it was finally ready, my father refused to help publicize it."
"I was just about to say that I've never heard of The Tribute Project," Katniss admitted. "So your father wouldn't help get the word out?"
"No." Madge drew a frustrated breath. "And all the hard work and disappointment took its toll on her. I was ten-years-old at the time, so there wasn't much I could do on my own." Madge shrugged. "No one visited. Most people didn't know the project was finished. Then one day, about six months later, my mother and I returned to the room to find it half-filled with discarded furniture."
"She must have been heartbroken," Katniss said quietly.
"It devastated her."
They took a few more steps in silence. "So why do you think your father treats your mother that way?"
Madge exhaled in exasperation. "I don't know… On one hand, he doesn't understand why my mother is still mourning her sister. Which is ludicrous. They were twins, for crying out loud. My mom had to watch the person closest to her on this earth be gouged in the neck and bleed to death on live television."
Katniss's heart ached as imagined what that must have been like for Maryenne. Madge brushed an angry tear from her face. "And he wanted sons. Lots of them, like Daniel Mellark has. And all he got was me. My mother said she knew it wouldn't be fair to have more children given her condition."
Katniss was reminded of what her father told her the morning before, about not trading her for all boys in the world. She felt a surge of gratitude.
"You're worth more than all the sons he could ask for, Madge."
"Well I know that," Madge smiled flauntingly through her watery gaze, "but he doesn't."
"Well he should. And none of your father's reasons are valid. You can't help being born a girl, and your mother is clearly doing the best that she can."
Madge stared at the ground for a long moment. "There is one more reason… Haymitch."
"The victor?" Katniss said.
Madge nodded. "She and I would visit him regularly when I was a child, just to check on him and see how he was doing. He had no one other than us. My dad resented this, but my mom didn't care. Finally, he accused her of cheating on him with Haymitch."
"What?!"
"It was his lowest blow. Haymitch is the only other living person who understands my mother's pain firsthand. Haymitch was there and he held my Aunt Maysilee's hand while she died. The whole nation saw it. He took her loss hard, and he and my mother never had anything going on. But my dad was angry because he didn't want his wife – the mayor's wife – visiting 'that Seam alcoholic" in Victor's Village.'"
Katniss bristled. Haymitch was from the Seam, but he was also a Hunger Games victor, a leader of the revolution that toppled President Snow's regime and freed Panem, and the wealthiest person in District 12. And yet, all Claude Undersee cared about was that he was from the Seam? It was her experience with Charlie and his mother all over again, and Katniss felt her indignation rising.
"Sorry, Katniss. I hope I'm not offending you. You know I don't care about any of that stuff. I'm just repeating the bullshit my father said."
"You don't have to apologize, Madge. I know."
"And now that summer is underway, I'm going to be working as a receptionist at the Justice Building, so I'll have the joy of seeing him more often. I'm not looking forward that part. But I am looking forward to my job. I hope I can keep it once school starts."
Katniss sighed wistfully. "I wish my dad would let me work. But that'll never happen."
Madge frowned sympathetically. "He still hasn't changed his mind, huh?"
Katniss shook her head. "I stand a better chance of changing the order of the seasons than I do of changing his mind." She shrugged. "I guess I also live with the consequence of being born a girl."
The entrance to Victor's Village was in the distance. Katniss silently marveled at the size of the homes. They were more like mansions, and Katniss was sure that her house could fit inside one of them ten times or more. She could only see two houses, but she knew from Mrs. Minson's class that there were 12 homes built. And Haymitch Abernathy was the only resident in the whole neighborhood.
"Since my mother can't come on her own anymore, I visit Haymitch – I call him Uncle Haymitch – at least twice a month to be sure he's okay." Madge stopped walking and looked squarely at Katniss. "I warn you. He does have a drinking problem, and he is a total slob. I offer to help him around the house when I visit, but he never lets me. He just wants to listen to me talk, so we sit on his porch where the smell isn't so bad." She smiled sheepishly. "I worry about him. A lot. He chooses to be a recluse, but he's lonely. That's why it was so good to see him last night."
Katniss nodded and smiled warmly.
"So when he asked about the tribute book, I knew he was finally ready to see it. All these years and he doesn't even know that my mom dedicated the book to him. But, I warn you, Katniss. His home is disgusting, and if he's been drinking, he might be disgusting. I totally understand if you want to wait outside."
"No," Katniss shook her head. "Don't worry about me. This is about you giving him a very special gift that'll mean a lot to him. I'll be fine."
"Thank you so much, Katniss." Then Madge wiped remnant dew from her eyes and squared her shoulders. "Enough of all that sad stuff," she smiled slyly. "You need to give me some insight on being Peeta's girlfriend."
Victor's Village looked better from a distance than it did up close. There were two rows of gargantuan homes facing one another, but the entire area was gloomy and forgotten and overgrown in parts. Even in the verve of summer, the flowers planted around an inactive fountain at the entrance were dried and withered. And if it wasn't for the stench coming from the first house on the left, Katniss wouldn't know which house Haymitch Abernathy lived in.
Madge banged on the front door. "Uncle Haymitch? Uncle Haymitch. It's me."
After a brief silence, there was the sound of unsteady footsteps and the abrupt twisting of the lock. Then the door ripped open and out stumbled a barefoot, bleary-eyed Haymitch. Except for his clean-shaven face, he looked nothing like he did the night before. He wore a sleeveless shirt that had multiple stains on the front, and a pair of ill-fitting pajama pants that rested underneath his pot belly and sagged in the crotch area. And from his house came a smell of urine and vomit and moldy food that almost made Katniss gag.
Somehow, Madge didn't flinch. "Hey," she said softly. "I brought you the tribute book you asked about. Is that okay?"
He squinted and sniffed and stared blankly, like he was trying to get his mind to function. Then he mumbled something containing the words 'Madgy' and 'porch' and walked back into the house. Madge gave Katniss an apologetic smile, and they entered the home.
It was an utter, deplorable mess. The stack of dust was offensive enough, but then there were the empty liquor bottles of all shapes and sizes littering the floor, the knocked over furniture – a lamp in the living room and a chair in the kitchen, the old vomit on the carpet, and the food in the sink that was so molded that it was layered green and covered with black scabs and white fuzz. She and Madge held their breaths until they reached his back porch, where another collection of bottles waited.
Haymitch dragged his hands down his face. "You brought the book?"
Katniss pulled it from her messenger bag and handed it to Madge.
"Yes, so it won't be buried underneath furniture or completely tossed away," Madge said, fresh frustration flashing in her eyes. "It'll be safer here."
I don't think anything will be safer here, Katniss thought to herself.
Haymitch took the book and stared at the cover. Then he set it gingerly on the floor, and reached for his bottle of… something. Madge sighed.
"Uncle Haymitch, there are far more bottles here now than there was last month. Before last night's banquet dinner, when was the last time you had a decent meal?"
He mumbled something incoherent as he took a swig from his bottle.
"Do you have food in the house?"
"I'm fine, Madgy," he mumbled. "Who's the broad?" He nudged his head at Katniss, and she immediately bristled.
"You met her last night, remember? She's my best friend, Katniss Everdeen. She sung at the banquet."
He looked completely unimpressed. "Good job sweetheart. You're Seam, so one will even remember that you were there."
Katniss's eyes flared, and she felt a fury that only Lilla had been able to draw to her surface.
"Uncle Haymitch!" Madge scolded. "That's rude."
"It's the truth, Madgy. And why is she here anyway? You, I don't mind. But she's an outsider who doesn't know a damn thing about me."
The retort shot like bullets from Katniss's mouth.
"I know that you're a victor who lives in the most expensive home in District 12, but I need my father's mining gear to help me breathe in this place. I know you must have a severe back problem because you can't bend over to pick up behind yourself. And I know that Madge cares about you, and instead of making things easier for her by letting her at least think you're alright, you give her something else to worry about when she comes to see you. And Madge doesn't need another thing to worry about."
Haymitch stared at Katniss, completely stunned. Madge swallowed hard, her eyes trained on the floor.
Haymitch leaned forward in his chair. "If you don't like my house, then leave," Haymitch gritted.
Katniss also leaned forward, gray fire in her eyes. "I will stay as long as Madge is here because unlike you, I don't think this visit is all about me."
Haymitch pulled back, his eyes shooting to Madge. He stared at her through narrowed but softened eyes for several silent moments. "It's Maryenne, isn't it?" He asked quietly.
Madge nodded, her hand covering her mouth, tears spilling down her cheeks. Katniss suddenly regretted everything she said. Haymitch reached over and patted Madge's hand.
"Don't cry, Madgy. It's okay."
"It's not okay," she whimpered. "She keeps having these bouts, and she's not getting better."
"I'll go get some tissue," Katniss said.
"Tell me everything," Haymitch said.
"She's just not well," Madge sobbed. "She's constantly in pain, she hardly ever gets out of bed, and when she does open her eyes, all I see is despair."
Haymitch's lips balled in anger. "And what is your father doing to help her?"
Madge laughed bitterly. "Nothing," she sniffed. "He's busy having his affair."
"Damn it, Claude," he gritted.
Katniss rushed back to the porch with an unused dish rag that she'd found buried in a kitchen drawer. "Here you go. I'm sorry, Madge. I didn't mean to upset you."
"It's not your fault, Katniss. My entire home life upsets me."
"I have water," Haymitch said as if to himself. Then, he motioned to Katniss. "Go get her some water."
Katniss went to the kitchen. Then she froze. I wouldn't let Prim's goat eat or drink anything from this house, and that goat will eat or drink anything.
But Madge was so upset; a glass of water would help calm her.
Katniss tore open the kitchen cabinets. There were dusty stacks of plates, but all the glasses were in the sink. Underneath the molded food and a few maggots. Fortunately, Haymitch had soap underneath the cabinet. And to help her friend, Katniss endured the foul smell, tossed the old food, scrubbed two glasses clean, and filled both with water. She returned to the porch and handed the first glass to Madge. Then, she held out her hand for Haymitch's liquor bottle and stared him down until he handed it to her. She placed the second glass in his hand.
"I'll leave you two so you can talk." Katniss went back into the kitchen to wash more dishes.
He shook his head in disbelief. "That girl is wildly unlikeable," he grumbled.
"She's the best, Uncle Haymitch," Madge smiled through her tears. And in under ten minutes she got a liquor bottle out of your hand. That's something I haven't been able to accomplish like, ever.
They talked for another 45 minutes, with Haymitch doing more listening than talking. During that time, Katniss scrubbed clean all the dishes in the sink. Then, she opened the refrigerator to see if Haymitch actually had food. There wasn't much, and most of what was there had expired. Katniss added those items to the mold and maggots in the trash can, and tied a knot in the bag.
Madge turned to Katniss with a grateful smile when she returned to the back porch. "Thanks for the water. I didn't mean to put you to work."
Suddenly, Katniss had an idea. She sat there with parted lips, staring at nothing in particular. Madge was wrapping up her conversation with Haymitch, preparing to leave.
"Hire me," Katniss blurted. Both sets of eyes were on her.
"What?" Madge chuckled.
"Hire me, Haymitch. Uncle… Haymitch."
"What?" Haymitch said, completely dumbfounded.
"Look at your glass," Katniss said. "I had to scrub it clean, but look at it. You can actually drink from it." She leaned forward in her chair. "If you hire me, I will clean your whole house and keep it clean. And I'll make sure you have a good meal at least once a week. That'll make your home livable, and it'll take a huge burden of your wellbeing from Madge's shoulders."
Madge and Haymitch exchanged glances.
"Are you sure, Katniss?" Madge asked with furrowed brows.
Katniss was sure. Absolutely sure. Her father wouldn't let her have a job, but just like her relationship with Peeta, her parents didn't have to know about her employment. After her conversation with President Coin, Katniss was convinced that she could go to college, and if she had a job, she could save some money. And if the worst happened again and her father was injured at work, they wouldn't have to starve. She could use whatever monies she stockpiled to keep her family fed.
Haymitch eyed her warily.
"I won't bother you. I'll just do my work and go home. Please. I could really use the money."
"And you could really use the company and the clean home and the decent meal," Madge said to Haymitch. "Uncle Haymitch, this is a fantastic idea!"
He narrowed his eyes. "What would you charge, sweetheart?"
Katniss took a few moments to consider her response. Given the current state of his house and what it would take for the upkeep of a house his size, Katniss wanted at least 15 paper coins per week. Her father made 22 paper coins for a weeks' work in the mines, and that meager salary was supposed to feed a family of four. Her negotiation skills – what she'd learned from trading at The Hob with Gale and from the commerce books at school – kicked in.
"Twenty paper coins per week. I can be here every day for the rest of this week until I get your house in order and then every Saturday thereafter."
Madge bit her bottom lip to keep her jaw from dropping.
"15, sweetheart," Haymitch rebutted. "And you can't ever call me Uncle Haymitch again."
"18. And I'll do your laundry. And let you call me sweetheart."
The corner of Haymitch's mouth quirked into a smile. "We have a deal." He stood and shook hands with Katniss; she had to fight to keep the smile from spreading across her face.
Madge popped from her chair and wrapped Haymitch in a bear hug. "This is so great! You won't regret this."
"I'm doing this for you, Madgy. Not for sweetheart here."
"And you can't tell anyone about this, Uncle Haymitch. Okay?"
"Trust me," Haymitch said flatly. "I don't want anyone to know."
He nudged his head in Katniss's direction. "I'm taking a chance that you're a half-decent cook?"
Katniss snapped her fingers, her eyes wide with yet another realization. "Do you want fresh meat in your meals?"
Haymitch shrugged. "As opposed to spoiled meat?"
"No. Like fresh meat that I hunt for and bring to your house."
"You hunt too?" He smirked. "Well I'm sure that'll drive up your salary."
"No it won't. But I need a bow and arrow. Buy me one, and I'll hunt and bring you fresh meat at least once a week, with no increase to my salary."
Katniss's entire body buzzed with excitement at the possibility of getting her own bow and arrow and being in the woods again. Katniss and Madge watched with cautious optimism as Haymitch silently deliberated.
Finally, he nodded. Madge squealed and this time, Katniss beamed.
"Just start this weekend, not tomorrow. I'll need a few days to get liquored up."
"Thank you Uncle Haymitch," Madge squealed. "I'll be back to visit you soon. And order more groceries and supplies for your kitchen so Katniss has something to work with. Come on, Katniss. Let's go before he changes his mind."
Katniss thanked him as she and Madge rushed excitedly out the front door. Haymitch slowly shook his head.
What the hell have I gotten myself into?