Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its respective owners and this is all just for fun!
Title: Mockingjays Make Melodies
Summary: Just a one shot (possibly 2) set post Mockinjay (before epilogue) when Katniss decides she wants to start a family with Peeta.
I couldn't honestly tell you what it was that made me say yes. After years of conviction on the subject it's hard to believe that out of the blue I could just decide that I wanted to have a child, but that is basically what happened. We were sitting in the living room. Peeta was drawing, no doubt yet another portrait of me and I was polishing my beloved bow. Nothing special about the evening at all in fact it was almost too common of an evening for something extraordinary as this to go down. I was just finishing up with my bow when it hit me, I looked at my bow, my greatest passion, and saw my reflection in the polished surface then I looked up at Peeta, seeing his brow furrowed with concentration and the tip of his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth, lost in his greatest passion. The window was open and I could hear a mockingjay singing a song outside. It was as I sat there watching him and listening to the mockingjay that I said it.
"Ok."
"Ok what darling?" Peeta said his full focus still on his latest creation.
"We can have a baby." Whatever Peeta thought I was oking this was the farthest thing from it. He dropped his pencil and drawing pad, an unfinished picture of me polishing my bow, and stared at me wide eyed and open mouthed.
"We can have a…" Peeta started but was unable to finish the thought still clearly in some sort of shock.
"A baby. I want us to have a baby. Isn't that something you want?" I asked? I assumed it was since he had been asking me every other day since we got married ten years ago.
"Oh Katniss more than anything! I want us to have a baby together! Do you really mean it? You want this too?" He asked coming over to me as fast as his bad leg would allow and wrapping his arms around me. I couldn't help but laugh a little at his enthusiasm.
"I do Peeta. I'm still apprehensive but I want it."
"What brought this on?" He asked kissing my jaw line and neck and driving me crazy. Apparently he wanted to get this baby making ball rolling right away.
"I'm not really sure. I was just looking at us…sitting here doing the two things we each love most in the world, but can't really share with each other and thought it might be nice to have someone to share them with. You know…you could teach the little thing to paint and I could teach it to hunt and we could be a…"
"A family," Peeta said taking me in his arms and kissing me passionately and we completely lost ourselves in one another.
I'm not exactly sure if it was that night or one of the many that followed that was responsible for large swell of my belly. I still have a million and a half doubts about doing this whole thing but there was no way I could go back now. In about five more months I am going to be completely responsible for this little life that is growing inside me and I am scared to death about it. Peeta is of course over the moon and he has every right to be. He's wanted this more than anything and I knew that despite everything he has been through, he would be an excellent father. I on the other hand, am not so confidant. I have had nightmares every night since I found out I was pregnant, that those horrible Hunger Games will be reinstated and I would have to watch as my child was sent away to the slaughter while I was incapable of doing anything to stop it. I would wake up screaming and Peeta would hold me and whisper in my ear until I calmed down. This was nothing new of course. Nightmares are a common occurrence for both of us. How could I be a good mother with all that I had been through? What parts of me aren't emotionally damaged are scarred beyond belief and repair. Peeta is confident that I can overcome this and be an excellent mother but I'm not as sure. Of course I always come back to thoughts of Rue and Prim, how I was unable to protect them and just find myself going around in circles with these fears until Peeta calms me down and then the cycle starts again.
We have told everyone about the news. My mother is over the moon and I told her that as soon as the baby is a little older I'll bring it out to District 4 to visit. She knows she welcome to come and stay with Peeta and I anytime she wants but I extend the offer to come to her and she vehemently jumps on it. She wants to come back to District 12 just about as much as I want to make her come out here and relive all those memories. Annie will want to meet the little thing anyway and I haven't seen little Finn in forever! She's already offered to give me all of Finn's newborn stuff, and if it's a boy she says I'm welcome to everything he grows out of. I haven't yet decided if I will go see Gale. We haven't seen each other since….it happened. My mother offered to send along the message but wanted to tell him myself. Regardless of the situation between us regarding the incident, it can't be denied that there was once something, romantic or not, between us and I owe that much to him to let him hear the news from me. He sent me a letter.
Catnip,
Congratulations are in order I guess. Just imagine, you, a mother. I know you will be counting the days until you can get that kid out in the woods with a bow and arrow. Teach it to shoot straight for me! Maybe if I'm ever in 12 I will show it how to set a good snare! I hope things are well with you and Peeta. Pass on my congrats to him as well. It was nice to hear from you Catnip. You'll make a great mom.
Always,
Gale
I've read that letter a hundred times since I received it. I miss my friend. I really and truly do but even in written words it's clear that things will never be the same between us which is probably why direct contact between us is so rare and he knows as well as I do that he has no intentions of returning to 12. Like my mother too many memories. I've long since accepted this and decided to just cherish the memories of my time in the woods with the boy with the snares. Still, if I'm in 4 I might bother myself with the trouble of seeing him one last time to say a proper goodbye, we owe each other that much. While I'm going that far I might as well stop by in 7 and see Johanna. She's excited to and actually offered me some nice sentiments when I told her. I'm not even going to speak about the horrid outfits I have received from Effie and my prep team. I know they meant well but I would never ever dress my child in that grotesque capital garb. The most surprising reaction of all was from Haymitch. He is actually excited about this! As much as he, Peeta, or I may try and deny it, he's fond of us and we are of him and I know it pleases him to see us at least attempting to live some semblance of a normal life. Peeta and I told him we want him to be the baby's godfather and he actually burst into tears. Albeit he had had several glasses of wine at that point but the old man was clearly touched.
I am stirred awake one night when I am five months pregnant. At first I thought it was because of the loud thunder storm outside only to discover I was awoken by a bizarre feeling within me I have never experienced before. At first I thought that perhaps my morning sickness had returned but when I see a small lump rise and fall across my already swollen stomach, I become aware of what it was. I was feeling my baby move for the first time. My first instinct is to wake Peeta because I want him to experience this with me but I decide to take a moment just for myself and take it in. My apprehensions have left me unable to fully cherish this pregnancy the way that many expectant mothers probably would but this is different. I have always known in my head that there is a baby inside me but this is the first time the little growing life has made itself known to me and for the first time, I am genuinely excited to meet my child. I can't help the huge smile that has taken up residence on my face. I place my hands on my stomach to feel it more but the movement had stopped. I tell myself not to be too upset about it. Pretty soon the little thing would be moving around non-stop and I would be wishing for it to stop but another part of me doesn't want the feeling to ever go away. Just then another crack of thunder booms outside and the baby begins moving around again and when this happens again a thought hits me.
"Are you afraid of the thunder baby?" I ask caressing my stomach gently. Almost as if to answer I feel a kick right under my hand. "Don't worry baby. It's ok, Mommy's here. Mommy won't let anything hurt you, ever." I say in a soothing voice caressing my stomach gently and almost immediately the baby stops kicking and settles down except for smalls gentle kicks against my hand.
"I never want to hear you say that you won't be a good mother." I hear Peeta whisper groggily next to me.
"Oh Peeta! I was going to wake you! Give me your hand!" I place Peeta's hand on my stomach and watch his face and when I feel that now familiar sensation in my stomach I see him smile so wide I know he feels it too!
"I feel it! I feel our baby!" He exclaimed. "Hi baby I'm your daddy!" Peeta says to my stomach caressing and kissing it lovingly. I am so overwhelmed with emotion I can't help but feel a tear come to my eye. This is the first time in a long time I remember feeling completely happy and content with the world. Peeta looks up at me and wipes the tear from my eye. "I love you so much! Thank you, thank you for giving this to me! You have no idea how happy this makes me!"
"No Peeta thank you! Thank you for convincing me to do this. You really think I could be a good mother?" I ask him taking his head in my hands.
"I know it!" He says as he leans in to give me a kiss. As he is kissing me we begin to feel the baby kick once more.
"Hey now there kiddo, we love you but you gotta give your mommy and daddy some privacy too!" Peeta says kissing and caressing my stomach and I can't help by laugh. I fall back to sleep that night with my hand resting on my stomach and Peeta's hand on top of that protectively. For the first time, while still apprehensive, I feel like I could actually do this.
I feel contractions one night when Haymitch is over for dinner. I had been feeling what the local doctor calls Braxton Hicks contractions for about a week now and just assume it's more of these. I'm not due for another week but according to the doctor I could deliver any day. Which is fine by me, I've gotten so big that I really just want to get this baby out of me. It's a nasty night. We were right in the middle of one of the worst storms of the year and we had offered to just let Haymitch spend the night so he wouldn't have to walk home in this. I clear the plates from the table and take them to the kitchen to clean up the kitchen. Peeta come in shortly after.
"Oh no honey don't worry about that I'll get it you need to rest."
"I'm pregnant Peeta not invalid." I tell him. Peeta has been getting increasingly over protective the farther into the pregnancy I get. I love him and I do understand his worries over something going wrong but I still don't like to be treated like this pregnancy makes me incapable of functioning on my own.
"Dear God man don't anger it!' Haymitch says to Peeta and I throw a spoon at him and miss.
"I don't even want to hear it from you." I say to him.
"Chill out Sweetheart, go put your feet up." Haymitch says.
"Why don't you put your feet up you drunken….OW!" I say as I am all of a sudden doubled over with pain.
"Katniss! Katniss what's wrong?" Peeta asks immediately placing his hands on my back.
"She's gone into labor that's what's wrong with her son." Haymitch says.
"That's not possible. I'm not done for another week!" I say, all of a sudden extremely frightened at the prospect of this baby actually coming.
"Well Sweetheart that's the thing about babies. They come when they want to."
"We gotta get the doctor!" Peeta says still with his arms around me.
"Have you seen outside? The roads are all washed out and flooded. Ain't no way a doctor's getting here tonight."
"AHHHH! OH GOD!" I say as another contraction hits.
"Which is unfortunate for us because I don't think she's going to make it until the morning," Haymitch says looking me over and placing a hand on my stomach.
"What are we going to do?" Peeta asks clearly trying to keep calm and failing.
"Well for starters get her upstairs and in bed and then we just go from there." Peeta nods in agreement and begins to help me up the stairs.
"It's all going to be ok Katniss don't worry! I'm going to take care of you. Both of you! And I'm not going to let anything happen to you." He says rubbing my back and reassuring me.
"Thank you Peeta. I know you're here" I say as he lays me down on the bed and I try to find a comfortable position. The hours pass and my contractions get closer together and more intense. Peeta is downstairs trying to get through to the doctor on the phone but with not much luck. We get a lot more hours of electricity in District 12 now but I suspect the storm has knocked out the power making a phone call pretty impossible. Haymitch stayed upstairs with me and evermore my mentor tries to coach me.
"How're you doing there Sweetheart?" he asked me.
"I think I might take being back in the arena right now. They never tell you that this hurts this much!" I say squeezing his hand and gritting my teeth through another contraction.
"UGH PEETA GET YOUR ASS UP HERE!" I yell in pain.
"Oh lay off him a bit Sweetheart, he's just worried about you."
"You really don't want to go there right now Haymitch. I'll smash your booze bottle against the wall and we don't have any in the house either." Haymitch backs off a little after that clearly he knows better by now than to push it. "What if he can't get a hold of the doctor Haymitch? I don't know how to do this on my own Haymitch! I'm so scared! I don't want anything to go wrong! I couldn't bear it if anything happened to this baby! I also don't think Peeta could bear it if anything happened to me either and I just don't know what to…."
"Hey, you are the strongest person I have ever known, and you are going to make it through this and you are going to bring this baby into the world and it's going to be perfectly healthy I promise. I'll be here the whole time to guide you through it."
"Thank you Haymitch." I say as he damps my sweaty forehead with a damp washcloth.
"It's my job Sweetheart! To get you through things." He says as Peeta comes up the stairs.
"I'm sorry Honey but I can't get a hold of the doctor and the road is completely washed out. It's going to be ok though. I'm here and I'm not going to leave your side and we are going to get through this together." He says taking my hand in his and taking over Haymitch's job of dabbing my forehead with the cloth.
"Alright then. Looks like I'm going to have to take one for the team here." Haymitch says as he begins to roll up his sleeves.
"What are you doin….OH GOD!" I begin to ask as another contraction hits.
"I'm going to have to deliver this baby and judging by this it won't be too long now. Ok Katniss I need you to bend your knees for me so I can see what's going on."
"Oh no you don't!" I exclaim in protest but Peeta hushes me.
"What other option do we have love?" I know he has a point but it doesn't make this less awkward. I grit my teeth and let Haymitch take over the job of doctor. He determines that I should probably start pushing on my next contraction and I do. I push for two hours and the storm outside rages on. Peeta true to his word never leaves my side and coaches me through the entire thing. I really couldn't have asked for a better partner in this. Soon though, I become too exhausted and don't feel like I can carry on.
" Katniss I can see the head, we are in the home stretch now and really gotta keep moving so not to put the baby at any kind of risk."
"I can't. I can't do this. I'm sorry Peeta I can't do this!"
"Hey hey hey yes you can Katniss! Look at me! You are the bravest and strongest girl I have ever met and I know that you can do this. I know you're tired but if you just give me two more good pushes we will have our baby! I know you can do this!" Peeta says holding my hand and pressing his forehead against mine. In this I find the strength and go in for another push.
"Ok Katniss that's great!" Haymitch says. "One more push and you'll have your baby! Come on Sweetheart one more! Give me one more!" I take a deep breath and with both Peeta and Haymitch coaching me I give it the rest of my strength and go in for one last push.
What happens next is kind of a blur. I vaguely hear Peeta and Haymitch coaching me through this as I hear my own heart beating in my ears and the next thing I am aware of is the sound of newborn crying as my baby takes its first breaths of life. I can no longer contain my emotions as Haymitch lays the baby on my chest and I am barely aware of his exclamation,
"It's a girl! You guys have a daughter!" I wrap my arms around my daughter and the tears begin to fall freely.
"Oh hello my little girl! Look at you! You are so beautiful!" I say as I kiss her head. "Look at her!" I say to Peeta who I notice is also crying and rubbing her tiny head with this hand.
"Oh my God, I can't believe she's here!" He exclaims. Haymitch disappears and comes back with a knife and allows Peeta to cut the umbilical cord and hands me a blanket to wrap the baby in. I offer her to Haymitch to hold and he takes the little girl and begins to cry.
"Well hello there little Sweatheart. You look just like your mommy. Yes you do!" He says to her as he holds her. He hands her back to me and says he'll be downstairs if we need him but wants to give us some time alone. Peeta joins me on the bed and I offer him our daughter. He takes her carefully and stares at her with awed wonder.
"Hello my little princess. I'm your daddy! I've been looking forward to meeting you for so long! I can't believe we made her Katniss! I can't believe we have a daughter!" He says unable to take his eyes off her. I can't seem to take my eyes off of her either. She is perfect, in every way. What Haymitch said is true. She does look like me. Her head is filled with a dark patch of hair and her face is a miniature version of mine. When she opens her eyes I notice that she has inherited Peeta's blue eyes and I see genuine proof that she is really a part of me and a part of Peeta and if possible I fall even more in love with her. She begins to squirm and we decide she must be hungry. I position her on my breast and help her latch on and begin her first feeding. It was such a bizarre feeling but for the first time in a long time I felt like I had a genuine purpose in my life. To nourish, protect, and love this little girl. We fell asleep that night, with our daughter in between us, our fingers entwined on her stomach. A family.
The next day, the weather has miraculously cleared and after assuring that we are fine and peeling himself from our daughter which is no easy feat, Peeta heads out to go and get the doctor so she can give us a final check-up. We both pass it with a clean bill of health and settle into another day of rest and recovery. Peeta and I spend a majority of the day trying to figure out the best name for our child. We go back and forth a lot but we just can't find the perfect name for our little girl. The window is open and I begin to hear the mockingjays sing their songs again, another sign the weather is clearing up. A couple is walking by outside our window and I hear them talking.
"Damn mockingjays! All they do is cause a path of destruction and trouble wherever they go!" Exclaims the man. I can't help but laugh a little at that one. I have caused more than enough trouble in destruction in my days as the mockinjay for a rebellion. I bounce my daughter gently in my arms as the woman speaks.
"You got to give it to those mockingjays though, they make beautiful melodies." The mockingjays begin to sing almost as if on cue, just like they did the moment I decided to have the beautiful little bundle in front of me, and she opens her eyes at the sound and it hits me. I start seeing glimpse into the future, her first steps, the first time she smiles at me, the first time she says "Mama" and then even farther down the road, me taking my little girl into the woods with me and showing her how to hunt, giving her her first bow and arrow and bringing her home in the evening and watching Peeta teach her how to paint. Most of all I just look forward to the simple little family moments that we can relish in together. It all looks so beautiful and it becomes so clear. Mockinjays do make beautiful melodies.
"Melody." I say out loud.
"What my love?" Peeta asks.
"Her name is Melody."
Peeta walks over and sits beside us. "Melody Primrose Rue Mellark. I love it and I love you my sweet Katniss Mellark and you my sweet Melody." He says bending down and kissing us both. For the first time in a long time, I finally feel happy.
A/N: Thank you so much for reading! Please review and let me know what you think. Right now it's just a one shot but I'm thinking of turning it into a two shot and showing Katniss taking her to meet everybody and possibly a small epilogue showing her teaching her how to hunt. Let me know!