This is my first Hunger Games Fanfic so be gentle with me. - with all my love, ArieShades 3

"Run, Daddy!" I scream. But he doesn't seem to acknowledge my terror and pleading. He looks at me as if I'm simply saying good-bye and returns it with a wave. He walks straight into the mouth of the mine which is engulfed in thick blue and white flames with smoke so dark and potent that it's ashy trendils seem to catch in my throat and choke me. I watch in terror as the flames melt his flesh, and muscle.

"Aundrea!" I hear him screaming in a horrible choked shriek

"Aundrea!" but now it's Peeta's voice. Peeta? I think, what's he doing here?

This question pulls me from my horrific nightmare and my eyes snap open to see Peeta looking down at me with his penetrating blue eyes, which now, seem filled with absolute panic. The moonlight from the window reflects off of his blonde lashes, and they seem to go on for miles and miles. His grip on my shoulders is tight and clammy.

I swallow hard. "It was just a dream." And then I realize, no…not really. My father did die in that mine explosion that wiped out a lot of people's parents. I didn't see it, because there was nothing to see but the side of the mountain exploding and the same black smoke from my dreams, no…nightmares.

Tears well in my eyes, and I can't hold it back. I start choking on sobs, and Peeta wraps his arms around me. He's always silent after he wakes me from my nightmares. I've always wondered why, but never ask during the day because I don't want to bring up my weakness, and at night I'm too terrified to speak.

"I need to go." I mumbled through lips swollen from crying.

He gives a small nod and releases me from his grasp. I run to my small pile of clothes, and slip things on at random, desperate to get out, to run from my fears, to run from Peeta's kindness, to run from the weakness I hold.

I run. I run out of the house in town, I run past my old house, and I run even faster past the mines, I run to the fence and slide under it. I run into the woods and don't look back, and I run and run and run. Finally, I stop. I must be six miles deep, and I don't care. The isolation comforts me.

I think about my life, and how it's never just been easy for me:

I was a seam kid, but I always looked like a person from town. My mother had blonde hair, and green eyes, which she passed on to me. My father was from the seam though, and he had the trade mark gray eyes, olive tone skin, and straight black hair. My mother died when I was five, leaving my father to fend for him and me. I missed my mother but life wasn't bad for us. Sure, sometimes we went to bed hungry but we got by better than most in the seam. Many families had at least seven children, and even with two working parents, they couldn't pull off enough money to feed them. But when my father died in the mine explosion a few months back, my life was shot right to hell. So many had been orphaned by that explosion that the orphanage was full, so they began taking kids door to door, offering people extra money if they took one of us in. That's how I wound up in the baker's care.

Cray, the Peacemaker, had taken us on to the doorstep. When he made the baker the bargain, I was waiting for another rejection when he just said. "Give me that one."

It took me a second to register that he was pointing at me. Cray, smiled and said "Ahh, a smart pick my good man."

I was ushered into the bakery, and sat on a stool. The baker paced about and I was very confused. Why me?

Then as if he was reading my thoughts, he answered my question. "I knew your mother. You're Addie and Devlin's daughter."

I nodded, not really sure how else to respond.

"Your mother was one of my best friends growing up. Her family owned the fabric shop, and mine owned this bakery. Everyone thought we'd get married one day, because we were so close. But when she met your father, I knew she was in love and I wasn't the least bit shocked when she gave up town life to follow him to the seam."

I just stared at him. I didn't know what else to do or say. I never pictured my mother with anyone else than my father, and it was strange to think that I might have ended up being the bakers' daughter.

He shakes his head. "I have no clue why I'm telling you any of this." He straightens up from leaning over the counter. "But I guess I should tell you about your new home, which is-"and he points up. I knew this, most shop keepers lived over their businesses. "I have 3 sons, Kardin, Jordy, and Peeta. My wife, Rocky, may be a little…harder to get a long with than the rest of us but if she gives you any trouble just inform me. Also, she won't be happy that you're my ex-girlfriend's daughter so you have it twice as bad." Then he turns around and yells "BOYS! Come meet our newest member of the house!" Jordy and Kardin introduced themselves, and they were both tall and skinny, with big noses and strawberry blonde hair, with serious cases of acne. Peeta, well he didn't have to introduce himself. Peeta was the boy that, Along side Gale Hawthorne, all the girls drooled over. Peeta was muscular, quiet, and was the just the picture of absolute beauty. I heard he had had a thing for Katniss Everdeen, a girl I'm friends with…or well, used to be.

Katniss Everdeen was a tribute in the 74th annual Hunger Games, she volunteered to take the place of her twelve year old sister, Primrose. Peeta's name got called right after hers but a strong burly fellow that's parents had died, and lived in the orphanage volunteered for him. Katniss was a friend of mine and I got to say goodbye to her, and that happened to be how I met Gale Hawthorne, but I'll get to that later. The boy wasn't much of a fighter and he didn't try, we all know he didn't volunteer to spare Peeta. He Volunteered to end his own life. So no one was really shocked when he died in the battle at the cornucopia in the first half an hour of the Games. But Katniss was a fighter, like most from the seam, she knew how to survive. But when she fell 40 stories out of a tree, there was nothing any amount of fighting could do. You could even hear her neck snap.

Back to Peeta, he just gave me an acknowledging nod. I could practically hear his thoughts "oh great, the weakling from gym class. Terrific."

I snap out of my reverie when I hear the sharp snap of a branch under someones foot. I stand, in a crouched position, the hunting knife of Katniss's that was given to me by her sister, poised in hand, ready to attack at a moments notice.

Who is it? read the next chapter and find out! :D