OK, guys. Before I start the story, I want to go over a few quick things. First of all, and possibly most importantly, how time functions. Like with my other stories, each year is based on the year of the corresponding Hunger Games. So beginning the January 1st preceding Katniss's Games, and ending ending the December 31st following it, it is considered the year HG74. For simplicity's sake, they kept that counting system after the rebellion. Months and weeks and such function the same way they do now, and leap years still occur as they do now as well. Secondly, for this story, I will have a new format for flashbacks. they will be represented by some combination of * and ~. Also, this story will have a quote to go with every chapter to correspond with its title, though the quotes do not follow a consistent theme.

Settle down, it'll all be clear.
Don't pay no mind to the demons, they fill you with fear
The trouble - it might drag you down.
If you get lost, you can always be found.
Just know you're not alone, 'cause I'm gonna make this place your home.

-"Home" by Phillip Phillips

Prim got lucky.

She got lucky that her squad commander was a mother.

Because her commander recognized that Prim was too young to go into combat. So she assigned Prim the job of field medic. If they went into combat, Prim was to find an injured victim and get them out of the area. Other victims would then be brought to her for treatment.

Prim obliged. When they attempted to help the children in the human shield, Prim found a little boy and ran him towards the barrier. As she leaped over the barrier, the bombs went off, and she and the child went flying. Prim twisted her body in order to shield the child, and as a result, her head felt the impact of the ground head-on, creating a substantial gash in her skull on top of a severe concussion.

But she survived.

Prim spent months in the Capitol hospitals, nursing back to health. And her mother was there by her bed every day as she recovered. One day, she heard that Katniss thought that she had died. She (naively) thought that surprising her sister in person, alive and well, would be a good idea.

It wasn't.

The first time Katniss saw her after she returned to District 12, she turned white and fainted. When Katniss came to, and found her head in Prim's lap, she slapped her little sister across the face. "Ow!" cried Prim. Katniss slowly sat up, then engulfed her little sister in a hug. Through the elder's tears, the younger could make out one phrase, repeated over and over: "I was sure I lost you."

The two sisters and Peeta settled into their house in Victor's Village. Peeta, Prim, and Katniss formed an unusual family structure. Even though the Star-Crossed Lovers were just four years older than Prim, she became like their daughter. Slowly the district began to fill and rebuild, just as Katniss and Peeta rebuilt themselves and their relationships.

One day, a group straggled out of the wood surrounding the district. According to their leader, they had attempted to escape with Gale, but they got lost, and they had lived in the woods ever since. The group had no idea about the status of their loved ones, District 12, or the rebellion.

All of the residents of District 12 were surprised to find their friends and loved ones alive and well. But nobody was more surprised than Peeta, who reconnected with his brother, Gram, who explained to his younger brother what happened in their house after Peeta left.

"As you know, before your first Games," Gram began, "Mom favored Riley and divided her abuse between the two of us. When you were reaped, it all fell on my shoulders. So I dealt with it for about another year. When Gale left the district, about 50 people followed. Some because they knew exactly what was going to happen. Some to hope for a better life for their children. And some because they needed to get away from something. I think he offered Mom, Dad, and Riley to leave with us, but they never would have listened, because Gale is a Seam kid. But I saw an opportunity, so I packed up and left.

"A few days after we left, we decided to split up to find food. Big mistake. My group got completely lost. Thankfully, some people who were in our group know how to hunt and identify edible plants. So we survived in the woods. I think it's just by chance that we found District 12 again. How long has it been? And what's happened?"

Katniss and Peeta carefully told Gram about the events of the rebellion, not without significant relapses on both of their parts. When they were finished, Gram asked to move in with Katniss and Peeta. After some discussion, the two accepted.

So Katniss, Peeta, Gram, and Prim became their own little family. And just as Gram helped Peeta to heal, so too did Prim help Katniss to heal. And slowly, slowly, life returned to normal in District 12.