CHAPTER 1

I wake up with Peeta's arms around me. Being careful not to wake him I lift my head to look at the clock, it seven am, we have to get up to take Rue to school. Rue is our only child she is six and has just started school. We named her after 'Rue' the young girl who was my ally for a short time in my first hunger games, but I don't have to worry about my daughter going into the hunger games like Peeta and I did, there are no more hunger games.

"Peeta," I say softly shaking his arm "Peeta."

His blue eye's flit open and look straight into mine "Yeah?"

"We have to take Rue to school now," he looks confused "Remember you promised you would come today."

"Oh right, ok" He puts his hand on my cheek and pulls me down for a kiss.

I flick the blanket off the both of us and quickly get changed into my usual trousers; t-shirt and my hunting jacket, which I now were out in the open. I turn to make the bed and find Peeta still in it I grab the face washer that stays in our bathroom and slap his bare chest with it.

"HEY!" he exclaims.

"I told you to get up" I smirk.

Before he can answer I walk down the hall of my home, which still resides in the victor's village, to Rue's bedroom. Once I reach her bed I shake her shoulder to wake her, she looks so peaceful when she sleeps.

"Rue, wake up sweetie, you have school"

Unlike Peeta she wakes as soon as I speak.

"Ok mum, what should I wear to school today?"

I simply tell her to wear the soft blue dress with the red ribbon on it, she loves the idea.

When I reach the kitchen Peeta is already there making us all breakfast, cheese rolls, bacon and eggs. I grab one of the steaming rolls and have a flash back of one of my nights in the capitol before the revolution that made us a united country; it was a night when I ate lamb stew, my favourite capitol dish.

"What do you want miss?" Peeta's voice brings me back to reality as it always does.

"No eggs today please, please, please." Rue begs

Peeta looks at me as if say no eggs for Rue today?

"Ok, no eggs" I say

"YAY" She giggles wildly.

We eat our breakfast quickly because Rue wants to show us around the school, I suppose she forgot, again, that Peeta and I went to the very same school.

"Ok let's go, Peeta, hurry up we're leaving" I shout to him from the other room.

"Comi-"His voice cuts off; he is having a trackerjacker attack.

"Stay here Rue dad's having one of his 'moment's'"

I run round the corner and up the hall to Peeta. I put my hands on Peeta's face, trying to drag him out of his attack, his knuckles are white and his teeth clenched.

"Peeta" I plead, ready to try and hold in my tears, I close my eyes to concentrate, when I open them he is out of it.

"I'm ok" he tells me "I'm ok"

We walk back to Rue hand in hand, like nothing has happened, we don't want her to know how much it hurts him to go through this, not yet anyway. We also don't want her knowing why I will wake up in the middle of the night screaming and thrashing about.

"Let's get out of here, shall we?" Peeta asks Rue, picking her up in one arm while still holding firmly to my hand.

Once we reach the school, Rue takes us to her favourite place to play. Peeta and I look at each other with astonishment, it's that same place where I picked the first dandelion of the season, the one that gave me hope for my family, my mother; Prim…. Peeta must remember it too.

"Mum, Dad what's wrong?" Rue asks us in her small soft voice

" We just; remember something special about this place that's all, now hurry up, I want to meet your teacher" Then Peeta turns to me " Have you met her Katniss?"

"No Peeta, I was going to speak to her but bunches of other mum's were crowding around her I was going to the next day but, I never got around to it."

"Oh well, what's her name then?"

"Not sure, Rue?"

"It's Ms Cartwright."

Cartwright, were have I heard that? I look over to Peeta, who like me seems to know this name, then just as I reach the same conclusion he say's "Delly"

We step into the class room and the smell of fresh paint and paper hits me like a brick wall. Rue skips over to a woman bent enthusiastically over her work "Ms Cartwright"

"Yes" she say's vaguely "Oh, Rue how are you?"

"I'm good, my mum and dad want to meet you" she walks over to us and grabs my hand leading us over to her teacher "this is my mum, Katniss, and this is my dad Peeta."

"Katniss? Peeta?"

"Hey, Delly." Peeta says with a huge smile.

"This is your daughter" she gestures to Rue.
"Yes" says Peeta

Then she pieces it together "Her name is Rue, like the girl who was in… who was your ally?"

"Yes, and Rue knows about her name sake and how we knew her it's ok to say it around her" I tell her.

"I can't believe it Peeta, you have a daughter!"

"Yeah, but, no offence or anything, you didn't figure she was ours, being called Rue Mellark?"

"I never really thought it through." She admits

"So you're married then, for real this time?" Delly questions

Peeta begins to answer when I butt in "Yes, for real this time and I'm very happy about that. Now stop asking questions, it's our turn" I then continue "So heard anything from any of our old friends?"

She bubbles up a lot at that question "Gale is coming to 12 today, in fact," she checks her watch "he should be here any minute"

No, Gale does not know that I married Peeta and does not know I had a child with him, let alone a six year old child. This is going to be awkward.

Peeta has a day off work today and we just want to stay home. I've been curious about something, I feel different to how I normally feel, and I feel like I did when I was pregnant with Rue. I'm going to tell Peeta when he is about to go shopping so he can by a pregnancy tester for me. We have very unique ones that are from the capitol they can tell what gender the baby will be, none have ever been wrong. Peeta sits down at the table.

"Peeta" I say "Are you going to the market?"

"If you need me too sure"

" Well it's just I don't feel like myself" His face turns a slight shade lighter, probably thinking something's wrong with me " I feel like I did when I was pregnant with Rue; Peeta I think I'm pregnant."

"What?" Is all he can manage

"I think we might be having another child." I smile happily

"Well it would make sense; you've been eating a lot of cheese buns of recent"

"I hadn't even considered that, but now you mention it, it's yet another good indication that I'm pregnant"

"So you want me to by a tester? Right." He asks, brushing his blonde hair out of his eyes.

"Yes" I reply

"Why don't you come with me? The whole idea of my taking a day off was so we could spend the day together."

"Ok, we'll leave now; I want to find out as soon as possible"

"I really hope we're having another baby!" He says trying; I think to hide his excitement.

Just as Peeta opens the door Gales hand swipes past his face, he was just about to knock on the door.

"Peeta?"

"Gale."

"Why are you here, with Katniss?"

Peeta gives me a murderous look.

"Gale" I say "I never got around to telling you, the good news, I feel bad it has taken so long. Peeta and I are married."

"Married?" He seems unconvinced, I don't know why

"Yes, Gale we're married and have been for six and a half years" Peeta says coldly

"We have a daughter" I add "Her name is Rue"

"Why didn't you tell me?" He asks

"I never got around to it, I'm sorry"

"FINE" Gale retorts arrogantly

"Don't you dare talk to my wife like that Gale" Peeta demands harshly, though I must admit it makes me feel wonderful, that he stands up for me even against my best friend.

"Look we were going out, you can join us if you like" I say walking past him and pulling Peeta with me.

"Really? I just acted like a pig and you're inviting me along with you?"

"Yes, Gale that's what friends are for." I say with a hint of sarcasm.

"Ok" is all he say's and after closing the door follows us into the town square.

"Should we tell him what we are getting?" Peeta whispers to me.

"It's probably a good idea." I whisper back.

"Gale, I thought you may want to know what we're getting"

"What" he hesitates" Catnip?"

"Well Katniss thinks she might be pregnant again, so we're getting a pregnancy tester" Peeta announces to Gale.

"Oh"

We continue to walk in silence; all you can hear is other people going about their day, the wind howling through the trees and our feet crunching along the gravel footpath. Once we get to the market and walk up to the women's health desk Peeta wraps his arm around my waist and we ask for a pregnancy test. The fresh looking young woman asks me if I know how to use one.

"Yes, I've had a child and, well using that is how I found out about her" I reply.

"Arighty, then." She asks us to pay and of course we do.

I feel like running home to find out and I probably would if Gale wasn't with us. The walk home is as silent as the walk to town and seems to take ten times longer. When we are two houses away I can't wait anymore I drop Peeta's hand a run for the door with the test in hand. I open the door and as I do Peeta and Gale have both caught up with me.

"I'm going to go test it now" I tell Peeta and give him a quick kiss.

I walk as fast as I dare down the hallway and up the stairs. I push open the bathroom door and take the test. I wait the whole half minute necessary and when it beeps I look down. The stick reads:

Yes-boy

I'm having a baby boy! I race down the stairs and run smack into Gale, my smile fades at the awkward moment and I squeeze past him and take the one step needed to get to Peeta. My smile returns and I show him. He smiles wider than I do and his eyes are filled with joy.

"We're having a baby boy!" He exclaims.

When Rue gets home from school I'm surprised. I was about to go pick her up.

"How did you get home?" I ask her

"Carrie's mum took me, she's over there, and Carrie is my best friend" She points out the tall bony woman holding the hand of a little girl who I assume is Carrie.

"Oh, alright" I say.

I look to Peeta questioningly. "Should we tell her now?"

"Yeah" He's still smiling.

I take Rue's hand and sit down on the couch with her, Peeta joins us and Gale watches from the other room.

"What's going on?" she asks accusingly.

"Well your mum and I have some very special and exiting news."

I continue what Peeta started "You're going to have a baby brother."

"How?" she asks

Oh I hope she doesn't mean how he got in me.

"He's in my tummy." I tell her

"You're growing him, like a sunflower?"

I laugh and so does Peeta "Yes mums growing him."

"YAY, YAY, YAY" She screams "I CAN'T WAIT, WHEN WILL HE BE READY?"

"Uh, about nine months" I tell her, suppressing a smile "when will he be ready?" Like as though he's a meal being cooked.

"Rue, why don't you go and draw out how his room will look?" Peeta suggests holding in his excitement.
"Ok" she runs of to her room with her school bag.

I just sit there hugging Peeta locked in this seemingly infinite moment. When Gale coughs loudly both Peeta and I jump. We walk over to him and take seats opposite him.

"Look" he begins "I came here because the Capitol has sent word that they want to see how the 'Mockingjay' is going, and I'm guessing you too Peeta since you're her h-husband, so you'll have an interview with Caesar Flickerman."

"What?" Peeta asks speaking the words that I cannot.

"They want to see how the face of the rebellion is going, that would be you Katniss"

"Why?" Peeta asks

"Because some people are starting to think it is just another set up, the original Capitol residence, they think it might be a set up because they never saw through your fake romance, they believe they have been tricked again."

"What if they think I don't love Peeta like when it was first fabricated?" I ask suddenly very worried.

"They won't this time even I don't question it, and I question everything." He looks down at his hands.

It's true he does question everything.

"Ok, so it's just to show that it's real?" I ask

"Yes" Gale assures me "That's it"

"When do we leave?" Peeta asks Gale.

"Tomorrow"

"Well that's kind of last minute, what do we do with Rue?" I say a little too loudly.

"Take her, it's not like you have to pay for the ride there."

"Fine. Where are you staying tonight since Hazelle and the kids are in district 2?"I ask

"Don't know." He tells me.

I look at Peeta as if to say can he stay here?

"You can spend the night here Gale" Peeta tells him.

"Thanks" Is all he says.

When we all go to bed, I can't help but think about what it will be like in the Capitol? Where I killed Coin, where my sister, Prim, was burnt to death, where I tried to kill myself and Peeta stopped me. I have so many bad memories there the red haired avox girl and Darius where murdered because of me.