ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴇʟᴏᴅʏ ᴏꜰ ꜱᴡᴇᴇᴛʜᴇᴀʀᴛꜱ ᴀɴᴅ ꜱɴᴏᴡꜰᴀʟʟ

𝚏𝚒𝚟𝚎

Coriolanus gaped at the sight of his lodgings; a dark, dreary house covered with vines and situated next to a pile of drunkards who were stumbling around foolishly.

He winced at the scent of flames and alcohol in the air, and quickly opened the door to his room, only to find that it was half destroyed, the back of the house and a portion of the roof were nonexistent, giving homage to the greenery of the forest behind. Raccoons rushed between the bedposts, as if trying to get warm, birds fluttering overhead. A row of vines covered one wall, a branch of brambles shrouding another.

"Great." he murmured, throwing his belongings on the worn mattress, eliciting a cloud of dust that exploded like a volcano.

He sighed, sinking down into a rocking chair planted at the opposite corner of the bed, only for it to collapse the moment he touched it.

"Shit. What in the hell-" he cursed.

There was a loud burst of laughter from the outside, and he threw open the door to find it out, seeing that the group of drunk men had been listening in from the outside.

One of them lazily pointed his finger at him, drawing an imaginary circle as he laughed, a gold tooth showing.

"Mr. Top District found his lodgings ain't he?" he hiccuped. The others laughed in unison, but didn't speak another word.

"You all shoo off."

There was a glass bottle thrown at their feet, and the group of men scattered, eyes struck with fear. A young man, who could possibly have been his age, if not younger, took a swig from another bottle of beer. He had bags under his eyes, as if the stress of being an alcoholic had gotten to him, and be wore a newspaper boy's cap, his curly hair flattening out beneath.

He eyed Coryo, who gulped and backed away, but the boy scoffed and walked away, taking another sip as he walked off.

Well that was... nice?

"Hey, wait," he protested, walking a few steps, but the boy had disappeared between the trees and dashed off into the woods.

"Don't you bother with those Morphlings." a man said behind him, holding a basket of bread,  "they ain't exactly the most socializing type."

Coriolanus looked back.

"You're the newcomer, ain't ya? Come on in, the bakery just opened," a jingle occurred from behind the bell, and an older man stepped out, hands fisted in anger. His forehead was creased, face almost as red as a beet.

"Yarrow!" he roared, "my daughter asked for a purple cake! Not whatever horrendous shade of blue that confectionary is!"

"Mayor Lipp," Yarrow started exasperatedly, "that cake IS purple. My wife spent the whole afternoon yeaterday decorating it the way Ms. Mayfair described."

"Your wife is incompetent," he snarled.

"My wife is pregnant, Mayor Lipp. Don't chastise my wife for a mistake no one can see but you."

As if noticing where he was, Lipp finally saw Coriolanus, who stood beside him as if he was guarding the basket of bread.

"You there, boy. Who are you, and what are you doing in my District?" the mayor demanded, looking over Stevee's shoulder, "i don't remember granting you access."

"I'm here on delivery duty." he lied, smiling with charm as he had learned to do so in the Capitol, "from District 2."

At that, the mayor straightened, eyes forming into crescent moons to hide his prior... engagement with the baker.

The sound of shouting seemed to attract the residents of the bakery, and a woman stepped out from the bakery, piping bag in hand, with soft golden locks cascading down her shoulders. She reminded Coryo of a fairytale his Grandma'am had read him; one he wished he still had before they had to burn all the books in the house for warmth.

"Yarrow? Mayor Lipp- oh." she whispered softly, seeing the seething mayor just a few steps in front of her, "he's here."

The issue regarding the cake came crawling back to Mayor Lipp's mind, and he turned back, pointing another accusing finger at the young woman.

"Redo that cake by the time I come back later this evening with Mayfair." he demanded, stalking off towards the direction of the train station.

The woman burst into tears, clutching her stomach.

"It's the hormones- i'm so sorry." she murmured to her husband, who had come closer to pull her into an embrace.

"Sess. The mayor is a jerk and so is his daughter. I am so sorry." he whispered, pressing a kiss to her head. She nodded, clutching the noticeably purple icing tighter in hand.

"Sorry 'bout that, newbie," he chuckled, "sort of a tyrannical rule going on in this here District, but hey, where isn't it?"

"I can tell," Coriolanus muttered, ticked off by the mayor, "i apologize, I shouldn't have intruded."

"Nah, you ain't intrudin'. I invited you." he waved off the concerns, opening the bakery for the him, "it'd be our pleasure to meet you."

Coriolanus stepped in.

It had been a long time since he'd had ACTUAL baked goods that weren't a failed attempt on Tigris' part. Since they couldn't afford ingredients, she often tried to use substitutes that sometimes ended up making things explode. The nostalgia of life before the First Revolution smacked him in the face as a whiff of fresh bread entered his nostrils.

Yarrow appeared behind the casing, filled with pastries and loaves alike, his face somewhat blocked ny a massive lavender cake with intricate icing and small daisies scattered about. Yarrow's wife stepped out from the back area, this time with a smidge of purple icing slathered across her cheek.

Her husband chuckled, reaching across to wipe it from her cheek, then popped the finger in his mouth for a taste.

"Maybe a little bit more powdered sugar inside that piping bag, Sess. Feeling a little too thin on my part." he suggested, and she nodded, pouring a small amount of sugar inside the bag and continuing her job.

Yarrow turned to him, a large smile on his face.

"Welcome! We don't get a lotta newcomers here in District 12, but we're blessed to have ya. This is my wife, Sessile Damairs." he offered, taking his wife's hand softly and spinning her.

She giggled, but corrected him, "Sessile Mallark now, honey. Or did you forget I took your last name a year ago?" she teased.

"I didn't forget!" Yarrow protested, "I just like hearin' ya say it."

"Hey, no flirting when we have customers, Mr. Mallark." she scolded playfully, turning away as she continued to decorate the cake.

"Congratulations on your baby," Coryo said jovially, one of the few sentences he had ever met during his time in Panem, "I wish you a safe birth."

"Us too, newbie," Yarrow sighed, "Sessile's health has been deteriorating since the doctor confirmed the pregnancy. Not exactly the best news for us newlyweds."

He sighed, but wiped away the saddening mood as he turned to Coriolanus again.

"What're you here for then, Mr. District 2?"

"Checking in on supplies that we shipped here; it's a little strange being so far from home," he admitted.

"I'd imagine it'd be hard on us all," Yarrow nodded, "have you met any of the locals yet?"

"You're my first. Except for a portion of folks - Ardere and some of her great-grandkids." he replied

"Oh... Ardere is one of the best women in our town... always offering for her grandkids and whatnot. They're some of our best customers. Speak of devil, here's our little gem,"

The bell rang again, ans Coriolanus turned around from his stance on the shelf.

"Miss Lucy Gray Baird! Ain't it been a while!" Yarrow cheered, as Sessile moved the cake just a fraction to get a wave in, "Lucy Gray!"

"Why if it isn't the Mallarks!" she smiled slyly, a soft laugh emitting from her lips as she turned the small basket in her hand, unfolding a white cloth napkin presumably for holding bread, "some of your finest, why don't ya?"

"Coming right up!" Yarrow tipped the hap he was wearing, "Lucy Gray, meet our newcomer, Mr... sorry I didn't quite catch your name?"

"Coriolanus. Snow."