(A/N): So I just finished reading all of the Hunger Games books and saw the movie three times. It's basically like my new obsession and I couldn't help but come up with thousands of ideas for FanFiction. So here's one of the first ideas that popped into my head one night while I was trying to fall asleep.

Summary: The Capitol has fallen. District 12 has been rebuilt. Peeta is back, Gale is gone, and Katniss is sinking deeper into depression. Can Peeta pull Katniss back before she's lost for good? And will Gale's return end in catastrophe or be just what Katniss needs?

I hope you all like it :)

Chapter 1: Silence Cuts Deeper Than Knives

Katniss's POV

President Snow is dead. The Capitol has returned to the beautiful city it was before war. All thirteen districts have been cleaned up, restored, and given a substantial amount of food and new housing. Everything should be better. But it's not.

My sister is dead. My mother refuses to speak to me. My best friend has left, and the one person who I desperately wanted more than anything in this world, wants to kill me. I, Katniss Everdeen, am dead too.

It's been three weeks since I have said a word to anyone. Haymitch comes by occasionally to bring me food, but he leaves as quickly as he comes. Gale's mother, Hazelle, attempts to bathe and feed me as best as she can, but I know how hard it must be for her, considering I hardly move. I no longer take the time to braid my hair, so it just lays down my back, tangled and knotted. I have lost so much weight that I can't even imagine how my legs would be able to hold my body up by themselves. My mouth is dry, I feel so weak, my stomach growls excessively, and I'm so tired from how little I have slept that I can't even remember what day it is. I just sit here in this rocking chair by the window and stare at absolutely nothing, all day and every day.

"Katniss, dinners ready." Hazelle sets a small bowl of stew on the window seal in front of me and motions for me to eat. I resist. If I can't get up to kill myself, I might as well starve to death. It's slower, but at least I have time to feel the misery I deserve for letting Prim die. Hazelle sighs. She's losing hope too, just like everyone else. I'm a lost cause now. Nothing good can come from me.

There's a light knock at the door and Hazelle walks over to answer it. I keep my eyes on the scenery outside. I stare off towards the woods, my only favorite place in the world.

"Katniss?" I hear someone speak my name softly but I'm so out of touch with reality that I can't really make out who it is. I refuse to turn my head to look at them. I could care less what they have to say, or who it even is. If it isn't Prim, then they don't matter.

"Katniss, can you at least look at me?" The voice speaks again. If I could speak, I'd tell you to go away. I think to myself. Why couldn't anyone just realize that I want to be left alone. I want to feel this horrible sadness and the guilt that drowns me and tunes out my voice. I deserve every ounce of this pain for what happened to Prim. Innocent, sweet Prim. Ironic that the girl, who had wanted nothing more out of life than to help people, was killed by those she loved the most. Mainly, me.

"She's been like this for weeks. I can't get her to eat, she doesn't bathe, and she doesn't talk. She doesn't do anything. I wouldn't be surprised if there's no color in her eyes anymore." Hazelle tells the mystery visitor. A gentle hand touches my shoulder but quickly pulls away, most likely repulsed by the boniness of it. I am now just skin and bones. I hear faint footsteps as they make their way towards the front of me. The person slowly kneels down to meet my gaze. Suddenly, I realize that this person is no mystery, and he certainly does matter.

It's Peeta.

Peeta's POV

I stare at Katniss's pale face. Hazelle was right; it was like there was no color in her eyes anymore. She shows no emotion, but I can tell that she wasn't expecting me. Suddenly, I feel guilty for abandoning her like I did. I tried to kill her, I told her I hated her, I told her she was a mutt. I didn't come back when I should have, but if I had, Katniss would certainly be dead right now.

But I was better, and I had to keep myself that way to save Katniss. She was so skinny. She must have lost a good thirty pounds since the last time I had seen her. Her hair was messy, her skin was dirty, and the pain was perfectly displayed across her face. She was suffering, more than I had ever imagined she would.

I lightly cupped my hand on her cheek. She was so cold too. The fire she once held had burned out and was replaced by ice. I gently rubbed my thumb across her cheek, hoping that she'd say something, anything. But nothing came out, and that's what hurt the most. Her eyes dropped to the floor and I realized how glossy and glazed they were. A tear rolled down her face and landed on my hand. For a second, relief came over me. It wasn't the exact reaction I was hoping for, but at least she showed some. Tears, in this case, were a good thing.

"Katniss, look at me." I lifted her chin so that her eyes met mine. I knew the girl that I had fallen in love with so many years ago was still there, but she was deeply buried.

"Listen to me, okay? I know why you're like this. I know you feel guilty about Prim, but none of this was your fault. You didn't make that bomb. You didn't drop it. This wasn't your idea. You didn't know Prim was going to be there. You didn't even know that was their plan. No one blames you. If anything, all of this was Coin's fault. It was President Snow's. You may have been the center of this rebellion, but I know you didn't want to do this. I know you didn't mean for things to end this way. Everyone knows the pain you're suffering Katniss, and everyone wants to help you. They just want you to get better. I promise you, you're not the one they hate, and I would never lie to you." My words may have been a lot for Katniss to process at the moment in her state, but I could only hope that they had made some kind of impact, even the smallest. Katniss let her eyes fall again. This time, more tears fell.

"Please, say something." I practically begged. No words came out.

I wiped away her tears as they continued to fall. I just wanted to hear her voice again. Her sweet, sweet voice. Sadly, I knew that wasn't about to happen. Then I realized, silence really does cut deeper than knives.

I know it's kind of slow and not very interesting, but it's only the start. I promise it's going to get a whole lot more exciting as the story grows. I only wanted to give my reader's a feel on how bad Katniss is right now, but also give a little into the relationship between Katniss and Peeta.

I'm really aiming high for this story, so please review. The more reviews I get, the faster I update ;)