Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games. It belongs to the talented Suzanne characters and plot are used for the sole purpose of entertainment. No profit is made from this
I didn't think that Cinna could outdo himself from last year's parade but he has. I'm dressed in a solid black leotard and on my head is half of a crown, designed to look like my victors crown. Cinna explains what the costume does but I barely pay any attention. I'm too focused on how I'm going to make these people like me. I thought I looked stupid dressed up in a costume but seeing it on the older victors, it's just ridiculous. I climb into the chariot and vaguely hear Cinna tell us not to hold hands and just to look straight ahead of us, showing that we don't like the way the games are being played this year. That shouldn't be hard. Pretending to be a young happy girl in love was the challenge for me. At least this year I don't have to pretend that so much. This year it's all about keeping Peeta alive. The anthem begins to play and the chariots are pulled forward by the ebony stallions and the crowd goes insane. I can barely hear the music over the crowd. People are angry. Peeta presses a button on the inside of my wrist and my leotard is transformed into a burning piece of coal. It's magnificent. We look like an ember that had been left to cool in the bottom of a raging fire. As we come into view of the crowd I hear more shouts of protest and anger. Out of the corner of my eye, I actually see a few people faint with desperation. People are crying, heartbroken to see their beloved star crossed lovers being forced into the games once again. I do as Cinna instructed and refuse to acknowledge the crowd. Finally our chariots come to a stop below the raised stage and Snow takes his spot at the microphone. If only I had an arrow. His voice booms through the speakers.
"Happy 75th Hunger Games and as always, May the Odds Be Ever in You Favor!" The chariots are once again pulled forward. Peeta helps me down from the chariot and Chaff, from district 11 meets me before I can take a step and kisses me. I don't know whether to stand there shocked or punch him. But punching him would be against the rules. I feel Peeta's hand squeeze mine. Chaff steps away from me and winks. I scoff as he walks away and I bring my hand to my mouth and wipe away the kiss. I wish I had some water to rinse out the taste of alcohol he left behind. Haymitch is next to us in a flash, laughing. I punch him in the shoulder and Effie mentions something about manners. I roll my eyes and the four of us walk to the elevator that will take us to the penthouse. Johanna Mason enters the elevator ahead of us and gushes over our costumes which have died out.
"Oh I just wish I had your stylists! I'm a tree. We're always trees!" she says, stripping the said costume off her body leaving her naked. I blush almost immediately. I turn and face Peeta whose grinning like a fool. How can he think this is funny? Or he is just looking at her body, which really ticks me off. I'm his wife! The elevator dings and opens on the 7th floor and Johanna exits. As the doors close, Peeta is nearly on the floor with laughter. I smack him across the shoulders.
"This is not funny, Peeta!" I yell and he laughs even harder. I turn around so my back is facing him, arms folded across my chest. I feel his arms go around me and I shrug him off.
"Oh come on Katniss. It's funny if you think about it. They are acting this way because you are well, you're so pure and innocent." He says. I turn around and look at him as if he's grown a second head.
"Innocent? Did I not kill to survive those games? How am I innocent?" I ask.
"Katniss, they see the little teenage girl who found out her district partner had a crush on her. They watched you give me your first kiss. You in their eyes are still pure." He explains and I get it. I step into his arms, hiding the blush that has completely taken over.
"But I'm not pure." I whisper in his ear and he goes rigid. I stepped away from him and he turned around and tried to hide his blush. I grinned, proud of myself. Effie and Haymitch didn't' see the exchange or if they did they pretended not to notice. The door opens to the penthouse and all four of us step out. I still don't have an appetite and skip dinner for a shower and end up with a blast of pink foam covering me from head to toe. The smell alone makes me sick and I promptly vomit on the shower floor. I finally find a button for just water and rinse the shower clean. I step out of and I'm dry in seconds. I climb into the bed and pull the blankets over my head and just try to forget the world right now. I hear the door open to my room and groan.
"Effie, I'm not hungry and I don't want to watch the recap." I say.
"Okay, but I don't have the parts to be Effie. Nor can I pull off the wigs." Peeta says and I smile. The bed shifts and he climbs in. I scoot next to him and let him pull me into his arms. He kisses my temple and I drift to sleep in his arms.
Effie squeal in the morning wakes me up and I don't want to get up. It's a training day and I'm not feeling it. I get up and notice Peeta has gotten up and has left me to sleep.
"What time is it?" I ask.
"It's nine. We've got to get you going. Peeta made me promise not to wake you up too early. He said you still aren't feeling well." She says. I get up and put on the tribute uniform and meet Peeta and Haymitch in the living room. We take hands and we go down to the training area. We decide to split up and get to know the other tributes and choose who want at allies. By the end of the day I want Mags Beetee and Wiress. Great, Haymitch is going to think I'm insane. Maybe I am but they are the only people besides Peeta I trust. When I meet back up with Peeta he has chosen Finnick and Johanna. I roll my eyes. I should have known. Peeta can find the good n even the evilest of people. Even when Cato was trying to kill him, Peeta still had the sympathy enough to ask me to kill him to end his suffering as the mutts ripped him apart.
The rest of the week goes on and we both are surprised to receive a 12 in our private sessions. Both of us pulled a stunt to just tick them off. Peeta painted Rue's private funeral on the floor while I hung a dummy depicting Seneca Crane. Because of this we are given the next day off of training. We enjoy a rooftop picnic and end the evening in each other's arms watching the celebrations in the capitol.
I am awakened by my prep team the next morning and they go to work with my hair and makeup. All three of them are trying their best not to drown me in their tears but it doesn't seem to work, because I catch each of them wiping away their tears to hide them from me. Cinna ushers them out before he has to rescue me with a lifejacket. He holds in his arms a white garment bag.
"My dress for the evening? What have you come up with to make me set the stage ablaze?" I ask. He shrugs.
"No fire tonight. President Snow ordered that you wear this." He says and unzips the bag. My eyes widen and my hands go to the fabric of the dress. It's the wedding dress. My wedding dress. It's the one that I instantly fell in love with. I pick up the lace sleeves and run them through my fingers.
"Oh!" I gasp and I pull the dress from the bag and hold it in my hands. It's heavier than I remember.
"I've done some altering. Let's put it on." He says and I slip the dress on. It's definitely heavier but I don't care. He comes behind me and tries to zip it but it is snug.
"We trained,Sorry. We wanted to be prepared." I say but he kisses my cheek and manages to get it zipped. He gives me one more hug and I go to the elevator and step in. Peeta is waiting in a magnificent tuxedo to match my gown. Now I'm dizzy. I feel as if the elevator is closing around me. My head is spinning and it's all I can do to keep standing. Peeta notices me falter and pulls me into his arms.
"It's okay. We're going to be okay." He whispers and I have to believe him. I need to pull myself together. I just wish whatever this stupid bug is would just leave me alone. I'm starving and I've not been able to even eat anything. I bet this illness would be all the rage in the capitol if they knew it kept your appetite at bay. I stand up and kiss him once and let him hold me for the length of the ride. It's our time.
"You look amazing." He whispers. I smile up at him.
"I can't believe they chose my dress." I reply, emphasizing my. This dress was the one from the moment I put it on. I can't help but run my hands over the lace again. It's just so we ride down I finally take in the entire dress. The sleeves are fitted to my arms just before my wrists then flare to flow around my hands. Cinna has place a simple pearl necklace around my neck showing off the neckline of the dress. The top is separated just below my breast by an ivory sash made of gathered chiffon. The lace detail on the dress begins heavy on the top and spreads out to the bottom. The entire dress is fitted to my torso and flares just slightly at my hips but just enough to make it move when I walk. I feel glorious in this dress. I look at Peeta and he is in awe of me. I can't help but blush under his gaze.
"They got it right. If they see half of what I see, you will have them eating out of the palm of your hand." He says and kisses me softly just as the elevator comes to a stop. We pull apart and join hands as the doors open. The other tributes are waiting for the interviews to stop and we pull all of the focus. Some people gasp at our appearance other scowl Only one voices their opinion.
"I can't believe Cinna put you in that thing. It's ridiculous." Says Johanna Mason. She walks by and gives us both a look of disdain.
"It's what the sponsors want." I politely say. Peeta and I take our spot at the end of the row and the interviews begin. Everyone of the tributes express their anger and disdain about the use of the beloved victors and some beg President Snow to stop the games but I know he won't. This is his chance to get rid of me for good. Finally it's my turn. I take my seat next to Caesar and we begin the interview. He asks about my family and how I feel about Peeta and I being back in the arena together.
"I hate it. Almost losing him last year nearly killed me. I don't want to lose him." I says honestly. This is not for the cameras. This is real. Caesar nods in agreement then begins to relish in my dress. I stand and I can see Cinna. He is circling his finger and I nod. I begin to twirl and the crowd goes insane. Suddenly my dress flames and I'm caught in smoke. I'm desperately trying to put myself out but the flames never touch my skin. I stop spinning and the smoke clears. The audience gasps and someone faints. I look at the dress and it's been transformed. I'm no longer the bride to be but a mockingjay. I don't know how he's done it but I'm breathtaking. I then shudder at what Cinna's design has done. He's put himself right at the front of a rebellion. I catch his gaze and plead with him. But his jaw is set in his beautiful smile and he nods. The buzzer indicating my time is over sounds and I step from the stage. Peeta and I pass on the stairs and our hands brush and it send chills to my spine. I take my seat and watch on the screen as Peeta once again charms the audience. This is the face that needs to be saved. He is a true leader. He has them eating out of his hand.
"I'm sorry you can't come to the wedding." Peeta says.
"Oh yes, that's very unfortunate."
"It is. Do you think these guys can keep a secret?" he asks. Curiosity peaks everyone in the room and they all lean forward in their seats.
"I'm sure they can." Caesar replies.
"We're already married." He whispers right into his microphone. The audience cheers and I turn beet red. I can't believe he told them. I push down the embarrassment and look straight up at the camera and smile brightly, nodding my head in confirmation.
"Well then congratulations, Peeta. It's too bad that you don't get to spend more time together as a married couple. But at least you got to have a few weeks of happiness."
"Yes I would like the think that." He begins then looks to me and then back to Caesar. What is he up to? "If it weren't for the baby." He says. I can't even pretend to hide my shock at this. My face is instantly covered in my dress and I vaguely hear the audience protest my being in the games this year. Peeta takes his seat next to me and he leans over asking if he should apologize. I shake my head and feel Chaff grab my hand next to me. I lift my head and see that all 24 tributes are joined by the hand, forming a chain of unity. People are screaming and cameramen are racing to get shots of the chain. As we hold hands I let Peeta's last statement fill my head. My eyes widen in realization. Why didn't I notice it? My mother is a healer and I watched her when she was carrying Prim. The nausea, fatigue, my need to cry at the drop of a hat are all there. My mind races as I try to remember when I actually had a period. I can't really think of a specific date. I guess I just thought it was my body trying to recover from the games. But I do remember. I had a period on the victors tour. We were in district one and my team had to change my dress selection for the night. That was the last one. Then I went to 12 and Peeta and I were married. My hands fly to my mouth and I know I'm going to be sick. I run from the stage and find the nearest trash can and promptly throw up. Peeta is not far behind me and I feel his hand rubbing my back.
"You're still sick? I'm going to find a doctor." He say but I catch his wrist. I can't stop the tears now that have begun to flow. I'm shaking and I don't know what to do.
"Peeta." I say and he just stares at me.
"I know I shouldn't have told them about the toasting. I'm sorry. I just wanted them to see that they didn't own us." He says in a ramble and I put my finger to his lips.
"Peeta, I'm pregnant." I say barely above a whisper. He shakes his head then stop, eyes widening in fear. I nod and my world fades to darkness.