Author's Note: Thank you to Solas Violetta for stepping in to provide beta support!

All feedback or reviews are appreciated. Thank you to beaches and guest for their comments on chapter 5.

2 Days before the Victory Tour

Katniss continues to go through the motions of her daily routine, even though she doesn't really take any pleasure in it right now. She heads out to the woods again. Based on yesterday's small yield, normal for this time of year, it may not be worth the trouble, but she needs to do something to avoid just sitting at home, and she doesn't have any other ideas to keep her busy this morning. She's back well before lunchtime, having already distributed her meager haul.

ooo

Peeta sees Katniss return and carefully packs his peace offering, bringing it by in time to be part of her family's lunch. He hopes that she'll give it a chance. He hopes she'll give him a chance.

He knocks on her door, and Prim answers. At least she is happy to see him. "Hi, Prim. I've got something for Katniss here, can you get her for me?".

Cheerful as always, she says "Sure, Peeta, it's nice to see you!".

As she starts to turn away, he beckons her closer and whispers "There's something I made special for you in here as well, I think you'll like it."

As he thought it might, this puts a little zip in her step as she flies up the stairs to get Katniss. When Katniss comes down, her hair is wet, she is clearly just out of the shower. Peeta thinks about her in the shower, and looks down at his basket before his stare creeps her out.

Prim is literally bouncing up and down, begging Katniss to see what he brought. Peeta feels a little guilty for pulling Prim in to help him out, but it seems to be making the young girl happy, so he doesn't feel too bad about it.

Peeta looks at Katniss as he hands her the basket. "Katniss, I'm sorry for how things have been between us."

She glares at him, giving a quick nod towards Prim. She then gives her sister an indulgent smile. "Prim, why don't you take this in the kitchen and unpack it. You can see what kind of treats Peeta brought us."

Prim proves herself a worthy ally. "Katniss, he brought it for you, not us. You should be the one to see what's in it." Prim grabs Katniss in one hand, Peeta in the other.

Katniss sighs. "Come on Peeta. It looks like we're doing this together."

The delicately frosted cookies are on top. They are beautiful, each with a different flower painted in soft colors. Prim is absolutely delighted, and Peeta says that he had her in mind when he made them.

Prim asks "Can I eat just one of them now?"

Peeta and Katniss both tell her "No." Peeta adds a kinder "Not until later."

She shrugs. "I'll just look at them until after lunch. They're too pretty to eat, anyway. What else is in the basket?" Her eyes flit back to the cookies, like nothing could rival them for her attention.

Katniss pulls out the cheese buns, with a question on her face.

"These are cheese buns, my personal recipe, a variant on a family recipe. I thought you might like them with your lunch. Try one now?"

Katniss shrugs and splits one in half, giving the other piece to Prim. He watches as Katniss's face lights up briefly as she tastes it. The neutral mask quickly slips back in place, and she is stiff as she says "Thank you. That was very good."

His surge of hope is as brief as her expression of joy for the bun, but it was there. He's disappointed when she resumes her distance, but he clings to the hope he felt.

There's one last bundle for her to unwrap. It contains two loaves of raisin walnut bread. They each have a very small burned spot. Not enough to really affect the taste, but maybe enough to trigger a memory?

Katniss gasps to a confused Prim, telling her to keep Peeta company for a minute, and she darts out of the room.

Peeta discusses the different flowers on the cookies with Prim, who doesn't seem to realize the meaning this particular bread has to the star-crossed lovers. He's nervous, he's not sure how Katniss will react.

In the formal living room, Katniss takes some deep breaths. She once again pulls her mask into place and goes back into the kitchen. "Little Duck, will you finish putting together our lunch? I need to talk to Peeta for a few minutes." With that, she turns and walks out of the room, leaving him to follow.

Once they are alone, the mask comes off again, and fire burns in her eyes.

"Look, I don't know what kind of game you are playing, but it needs to stop now. I hope Haymitch has told you how important it is we maintain our image on the upcoming trip. If he hasn't, ask him. I'll play my part. I need you to take care of your side of this, there's too much riding on it for us to screw it up, and I don't need to deal with you messing with me like this."

Peeta protests "I'm not playing a game. I know I've behaved badly, towards you more than anyone else. I want you to know how sorry I am, that I recognize how much you've always meant to me, and that I want to repair our relationship".

Katniss barks out a laugh. "There isn't anything to repair. You've made that extremely clear. On the tour, we'll each play our role, but there is no need to pretend now. We'll survive the tour. When we get back, we'll worry about what is next."

Prim knocks on the door. "Lunch is ready now. Peeta, would you like to join us? It's just leftover stew, and the buns you gave us will go with it nicely."

One glance at Katniss tells Peeta that would not be a good idea. He sighs as he gives Prim his apologies for not staying. His shoulders sag as he returns home. He doesn't look back to see Katniss staring at him as he leaves.

ooo

Haymitch wants to see where things stand, and invites himself to lunch with the Everdeens. He's given himself a standing invitation, and no one objects. He walks up to the door, and sees the girl glaring out the window next to it with fire in her eyes, staring towards the boy's house. He's absolutely thrilled to see it, but doesn't show it when he walks in. He calls over to Katniss. "Hey, sweetheart. What's the boy's done now?"

The way she spits out "nothing" leaves him wondering idly what the boy did do. His gut feeling is that to make her this annoyed now, it was something different than what had been going on between them.

Haymitch smiles. His kids are back. They still have to find their way through all this garbage, but he's hopeful they can pull it off.

One day before the Victory Tour

Peeta hears a knock at his door while he's upstairs, painting. He's in the middle of something, and he's actually content for the moment. For a split second, he considers ignoring the summons, but visitors aren't that frequent, and he doesn't want to discourage them.

He is startled to see a man in a Capitol style suit, conservatively cut. There's a car behind him. The person at the door tells him he has an important visitor. That statement doesn't even begin to prepare Peeta to see President Snow walking toward him. Peeta feels a rush of anger (anger mixed with fear, really), but he manages to hold his friendly smile on his face. It's a good thing he's been practicing.

Once they are both settled around the desk in Peeta's study, the President starts the conversation. "I have to say, I was not expecting you to be the Star Crossed Lover that would give me trouble upon the return home. I had a little bit of this conversation with Miss Everdeen before the two of you left the Capitol. I'm here now to be absolutely certain you both understand the seriousness of the situation in which we find ourselves.

He picks up a pen from the desk, looks at it for a moment, and then continues. "I suspect you don't realize this, but your trick with the berries wasn't seen by everyone as a desperate plea by star crossed lovers. Some of the Districts saw this as an act of rebellion, as a challenge to the government. As a challenge to me. Some of them are actually building on this."

At this point, he puts down the pen, and his eyes focus on a generic Capitol painting on the wall. Peeta's never really looked at it, he hasn't really spent any time in this room at all. The picture is actually four panels, each showing a different District, each in a different season.

The President looks back at Peeta. "Do you understand what will happen if this continues? The damage that will be done? The lives that will be lost in any attempt at an uprising?"

Peeta has never found himself at a total loss for words before. The silence stretches out, and he realizes he needs to make some attempt at an answer. "Sir, I had no idea. But what I can do about this?"

"You can make absolutely certain the image of the Star-Crossed Lovers of District 12 stands firm through the Victory Tour. Make certain that every person in every district believes that you and Miss Everdeen are so totally in love that no notion of rebellion would ever cross your mind. That means no hints of rumors of you spending time with other young women, particularly with clothing in disarray. If you must indulge in such activities, be very, very discrete."

Peeta's face turns pale as he realizes that the word of his experience had spread far beyond the three of them he'd known were there at the time. He knows that the reputation of a young man isn't really hurt by such stories. He also knows how much the town's gossip mill would love to hold this over Katniss, and hates himself a little more for the pain he has caused her. He shakes his head slightly. It sounds like far more than personal reputations are at stake here.

President Snow's eyes look over to the same painting as earlier, then back at Peeta as he continues. "I want to make sure you understand how wide the impact of an uprising would be. All those that participate will be crushed, of course. Many innocent bystanders will be caught in the crossfire. And wherever it starts, the impact will be felt immediately here in District 12. It could be something direct. Or it could be the supply of grain to a bakery. It could be any number of different risks to young men your age, and a little older. And who knows what the Quarter Quell might bring for young women like Delly Cartwright and Primrose Everdeen. Longer term, everyone living here would be affected in some way."

Peeta gasps out an agreement, he isn't even quite sure what words he says.

"Do we understand one another, Mr. Mellark?"

"Yes, sir. I understand, and will behave accordingly."

The President stands, and Peeta jumps up as well.

"I've always liked you, Peeta. I think we could be friends as well as allies."

Somehow, Peeta can't return the feeling. But Peeta reaches through the panic to the friendly smile he's always been able to turn on, and the words that are usually so easy for him, and shakes the President's hand. "I'm already doing everything I can to repair things between Katniss and me. But whatever happens with that, I know she also understands the importance of keeping up the image. We'll both do everything we can to convince Panem of our love."

As the Capitol guard, who had been posted just outside the door to the room, joins Peeta to escort the President to the front door, Peeta has to reminds himself to keep breathing.

Once the president is gone, Peeta collapses in the nearest chair, his skin crawling. As he thinks about the task facing him (and Katniss as well), he now has much more sympathy for Katniss and her emotions on the train ride home. At the moment, all he feels when he thinks about his relationship with Katniss is confusion and panic. There is no room for love or affection when thinking about her, not with this kind of pressure on him.

He thinks about those that Snow threatened. His father. His brothers. Delly. Prim. Innocent bystanders. Everyone in the District.

The guilt over the fallout from his behavior brings out the nasty voices in his mind, blaming Katniss, blaming Haymitch, anyone but himself, but he shuts them up. They won't help the situation at all. He's going to face whatever happens head on, as the man he's trying to be.

ooo

Katniss arrives home from her morning out hunting to see her mother in a state of anxiety. She follows her mother's lead in talking about her morning walk, and doesn't show signs of noticing the man from the Capitol until Prim points him out. (She knew someone else was there as soon as the door opened, but he didn't need to know that. The car outside was a clue something big was happening.)

Still, the identity of the visitor in her study surprises her. Although when she thinks about it, maybe it shouldn't. She is not happy to see him again, she doesn't welcome him, but simply eyes him warily.

"Miss Everdeen, shall we agree not to lie to each other? It will make for much more efficient conversation."

She really isn't expecting this. At this point she just gives up on being surprised, and lets the conversation go where it will. She's worried and afraid, but answers him calmly, treating him as a respected peer rather than a feared leader. "That sounds like a good idea."

"The situation has continued to develop as we last discussed. I expect your full cooperation in settling down those led astray by your actions in the arena."

She struggles with the panic surging through her, but remains outwardly calm as she tells him "I'm doing my best."

"That may be true. You faced unexpected challenges. But none of that matters now. Once you get out on the Tour you and Mr. Mellark are going to need to do much better.

"Simply put, there is unrest in the districts. You need to ensure it doesn't continue. People have seen that you challenged the government and faced no punishment. What's to keep them from doing the same? People are breaking the rules that keep them safe. They are refusing to do the work that makes this country successful. They are fighting for no reason except to resist authority

Katniss keeps her face still, but her mind is racing. A part of her is elated at the idea that people are fighting back against the Capitol, against the man sitting across from her.

He continues speaking. "When I have to respond with force, people get hurt. Not just hurt, but killed. Believe me when I say I don't want that to happen in any district. You must leave absolutely no doubt in anyone's minds that love was and is your only motivation. There must be no doubt from the Capitol. No doubt from the districts. And more to the point, no doubt from me."

At this point, her mother offers tea, through the man at the door. The president acts like a gracious guest as he accepts, but when her mother brings it in, all Katniss can feel is anger at Prim having to share the beautiful cookies Peeta made for her.

Over tea, the President asks polite questions that show that he really does know what is going on in District 12 (in her life) in much more detail than she'd thought possible, much more than she finds comfortable, since she sees every question as a veiled threat. Madge (How are her mother's headaches, can she get the medicine she needs?). All of her "cousins"- Gale in the mines (What a dangerous job that can be.), Rory and Vick (Boys that age can get up to such mischief.), even sweet little Posy (how is her health these days?). And always coming back to her mother and Prim.

President Snow stands up to leave and looks directly at Katniss. "I want to be very clear here. The Districts will see the two of you as so in love you have no room in your lives to consider anything else but each other. You will not just convince them. You will convince me. The stakes are high for our nation, and if our nation suffers, so will Prim, your mother, Madge Undersee, and of course, your "cousins". It's entirely up to you and your lover."

Katniss wonders what it is about her that sets up these unreasonable expectations around her romantic situation, when she never wanted a love life at all.

ooo

Haymitch looks out of his house and sees the identity of the visitor. He considers gathering the kids and taking a long walk, stretching their legs before they are all stuck on the train.

He decides instead to take this opportunity to get very drunk. He thinks he's not going to be able allow himself that luxury on the Tour.