Author's note: This was my first entry into the very first Everlark Games put on by fyeah-everlark on Tumblr. I didn't make it past the first round, but there were a ton of great stories, so I'm not upset. This takes place just a short time after the main action in Mockingjay and several years before the decision to have children is fully made.

Trigger warning: Violence

The Talk

Katniss curled into Peeta's side and let out a long breath. It had been a trying day. Both had woken up from the worst nightmares they'd had in a long time and then spent the rest of the day trying to recover. She'd had a better time of it than him.

Peeta kissed the top of Katniss's head and trailed his fingers over her arm. A much gentler touch than he'd given her earlier. The silence they currently shared was comfortable as they watched the flames in their fireplace.

He said softly, "You're still my girl on fire."

"Am I?" She looked up. "Real? Or not real?"

He smiled. "Real. I'm still your boy with the bread? Real or not real?"

She kissed him softly. "Real. You're happy you married me. Real or not real?"

"Real." He stroked her braid and asked in a voice that trembled with emotion, "You love me. Real or not real?"

"Very real." She pressed another kiss to his lips, this one harder and definitely more confident than the last. She returned her head to his shoulder.

They lapsed into another silence. Katniss loved their quiet moments together, especially after a day like the one they'd experienced. They were fewer and farther between, but they still happened so frequently. And the next words out of Peeta's mouth brought the events of the day crashing back on her.

"I want a baby, Katniss." He said softly.

She said nothing as everything washed over her.

"Say something." He demanded.

"No." She said bluntly, moving to the opposite side of the couch.

"Why not?" He asked. His tone was harsher than she was sure he intended, but she understood. This wasn't the first time he'd mentioned it.

"Was today a dream?" Katniss said, standing and pacing like a wild animal.

Peeta's eyes followed her, calculating. "What do you mean?"

She stopped and leaned over the back of the couch. "You put your hands on me, Peeta. You hurt me. I did nothing to you but walk in the room and you attacked me." She stepped back when she saw the hurt forming in his eyes. "You want to bring a kid into that?"

He watched her a moment and then looked away. "I think it will make it better."

"Make what better?" She demanded. "The fact that you still want to kill me?"

"That's uncalled for." He finally stood and squared off against her. "You're just scared if we have a baby that it won't love you."

"Talk about uncalled for." She stormed out of the room.

"We're still talking." He followed. "Tell me why you don't want a baby with me."

She turned and grabbed his shoulders and slammed him hard against the nearest wall. His head cracked back against it. "Ring any bells?"

He swallowed past the lump in his throat. "That was the first time in months." He mumbled.

"And what if it happens when I'm pregnant?" She challenged, still holding him in place. "Or I have a baby in my arms? Or there's a toddler watching your every move?" She finally let him go and stepped back. "I don't want to bring a baby into that. I don't want to raise a child in that." She walked away without another word.

Peeta called after her, "I'm not giving this up."

Katniss looked over her shoulder just before she walked up the stairs. "Just don't bring it up for a while." She continued on to their bedroom.