|AN|: Hi folks! I'm half asleep as I'm posting it, but I wanted so badly for you to have the next chapter. I'm sorry for all the mistakes. I hope there's not a lot of them. I love you all and I hope you'll like the chapter.

Thanks for all the reviews, favs and follows. I won't lie... I'm greedy for more ;P

Enjoy!

WHO LAUGHS LAST

Chapter X:
The Winter

"Katniss…" she heard her name spoken in barely above a whisper. "She's waking up." Added the voice a little louder and as she gained a bit more of awareness, she realized with amazement that the last thing she heard before she lost her consciousness and the first thing she heard after she regained it was the sound of her name spoken by exactly the same man but in entirely different manner. She tried to open her eyes, but as soon as she managed to lift her unnaturally heavy eyelids, she shut them tightly again, blinded by the bright hospital light and the piercing pain in her confused head.

"Catnip, can you hear me?" This time it was her brother's voice and she tried again to open her eyes for his sake. She did that, forcing through the pain and blinked a couple of times to adjust to the brightness.

"Oh my God, you scared us to death." Whispered Peeta and Katniss noticed that he indeed looked like death itself. He was paler than normally, which due to his light complexion gave a greenish shade to his creamy skin and his hair was ruffled and sticking in all possible directions, what Katniss would actually find kind of sexy if it weren't for the tortured look in his ocean blue eyes. She would laugh at the fact that both men held to her hands like if afraid, she would disappear if they let go, if only the circumstances were different. She focused on their touch instead, as the pain in her head caused her to close her eyes again, even if for just a moment. She noticed the difference in the way the two boys were holding her hands. Gale was squeezing the hell out of her right one, holding for dear life. She would tell him she can't feel her fingers if she weren't so touched by his concern. Peeta on the other hand… Peeta held her hand so gently, that she would be probably barely able to feel it if it weren't for the warmth that radiated from his huge palm. His thumb was gently stroking her fingers and she realized with a start that she enjoyed the sensation more than she would care to admit.

"What happened?" She whispered, her voice hoarse from the lack of usage as she cracked her eyes open once more. Both Gale and Peeta looked even more concerned as she asked the question.

"You don't remember?" Asked Peeta quietly, and the pounding pain in her head, made her grateful for his lowered voice. She furrowed her brows for a moment, trying to remind herself of what happened, but for some reason, the only thing she could remember was Peeta frantically calling her name.

"You screamed for me." She said in a whisper looking straight into Peeta's eyes. She could still hear it in her head. "I remember you calling my name and… I was in a car, wasn't I?" She asked looking at him as if her held the answers to every questions in the world. He looked at her with a softness and gentleness in his eyes she'd never seen in them before, even towards Prim.

"I followed you," he admitted sheepishly, "after you didn't agree to let me drive you home. I just wanted to make sure you made your way back safely." He added, rubbing the thin scar on his chin with the fingers of his other hand. He looked like he was in pain himself and she wondered if that accident really looked so badly that it caused him to look so concerned. That's when she remembered the dark road, the doe and...

She jerked up so suddenly that she startled both of them greatly, only to groan loudly and jerk her hands out of theirs to hold onto her head and chest tightly as the pain shot through her at the sudden movement. They both called her name loudly in panic.

"Hey, hey, calm down." Said Peeta at the same time as Gale exclaimed "what are you doing, crazy?!"

She fell back against her pillows and tried to catch her breath.

"I'll go find the doctor." Stated Peeta and she jerked again and grabbed his hand to stop him.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." She chanted between frantic breaths and they both looked at her doubtfully. "Just didn't realize it would hurt so fucking much." She added with a wince and they susspected that the admission that she was in pain hurt her even more than the injuries themselves.

"You sure?" Asked Gale and she nodded opening her eyes again.

"You have a concussion and three cracked ribs, Kitty." Commented Peeta and she noticed that he started to stroke her fingers again. "Sudden movements are definitely nor recommended right now." He added, for some reason making her smile faintly, but only for a moment, until she realized what caused her to jerk up in the first place. The smile fell from her face as she sucked on a breath.

"I didn't hit the tree because of the doe," she stated suddenly, immediately gaining their attention. She was certain that the accident looked like she didn't hit the breaks in time, all the while the truth was entirely different. "I wouldn't hit her in the first place, if the breaks worked all right." She added looking first at one of them, then at the other. Peeta's eyes winded twice their size when the realization of what she was trying to say, slowly registered in his mind.

"Wait… what are you saying Katniss?" Asked Gale, making her close her eyes and take a deep breath.

"Either the breaks in my car were a complete junk or… someone wanted me dead."

The next day the police confirmed that the car was sabotaged and Finnick informed her that they want to talk with her about the accident. When he mentioned it earlier that day all three- Gale, Peeta and Katniss' doctor protested immediately, saying that she needed more time to recover, before Finn even managed to add the "when she feels better" part of the sentence. He laughed a bit when he told her the story when he visited her some time later, amazed of the protectiveness that her brother and Peeta showed towards her on every possible occasion. She realized, slightly surprised herself, that she didn't mind it as much as she did barely a couple of days ago. Maybe it was because this time, she really felt vulnerable what made her more uncomfortable than anything ever could. Katniss Everdeen was always considered a strong woman. One that could take care not only of herself but of a lot of things as well. She felt like she failed now, because she wasn't even at the ranch. Her ranch. She fought so hard with her sisters when her father's will was read, convinced that she deserved this place much more than they did, but it turned out that now, it was Annie and Jo who were there, helping Gale and Haymitch with all the work she left them with. She couldn't feel more useless than she did now, laying in the hospital bed and thinking of all the things that she should be doing right now, if she could.

She felt better already. The pain in her head lessened a bit, what could either mean that she was healing, or that the doctors gave her more morphine in her drip than before. She still had problems with breathing though, and she was pissed off at her cracked ribs and the way they caused her to be completely immobile. She grabbed her phone from the night stand table and was ready to call Haymitch to at least bring her some paper work she could work on, while being grounded in the hospital bed, but she didn't get the chance to make the call, because a gentle knock against the doorframe made her look that way with a start. For some reason she couldn't help the little smile that crept on her face when she saw Peeta standing in the door. Usually his presence made her annoyed, but this time he came particularly to see her, not to supervise the ranch. She was so bored anyway, that she would be glad even if she were visited by the devil himself.

"Can I come in?" He asked hesitantly and she rolled her eyes at him and beckoned him with her hand.

"Of course you can." She answered and he smiled as he approached her and presented her with a handful of flowers, that he drew out from behind his back. She felt her chest tighten a bit at the sight of the composition of wild flowers and seeds and she smiled warmly.

"For you." He stated gently and she took that bouquet and burrowed her nose in it. It smelt like the meadow in spring and when she looked out of the window and saw the snow falling slowly from the sky she frowned a bit and then laughed lightly.

"Thank you, they are beautiful. You had me fooled here for a moment. I thought it was already spring." She said and he chuckled as he took a seat at the side of her bed. She stroked the delicate chamomile petals as she frowned in deep thought. "I'm so worried Peeta." She said out of the blue, completely changing the mood. He looked at her with concern and automatically, as if his body had a mind of its own, he reached out to take her hand.

"I promise you Katniss I won't let anything bad happen to you again. Even if it meant I'll have to follow you everywhere." He said and she looked at him startled from her deep thoughts.

"I'm not worried about me…" she stated and he chuckled a bit at her admission.

"Of course you aren't," he replied with a shake of his head knowing that Katniss always worried about herself as the very last.

"I'm worried about the ranch, what will happen to it. I'm not there and there's so much to do. My father's been right all along, Peeta. He's been fucking right. I don't deserve an inch of this soil." She stated quietly, and to her utter horror, she released that her voice broke and a couple of tears slid down her cheeks. The tears made her way only as far as the middle of her cheeks though and then, Peeta's hands were suddenly there, cradling her face, his thumbs wiping the salty drops away.

"Oh, Kitty." He said so gently and quietly that something incredibly warm fluttered in her chest. "When will you stop underestimating yourself?" He asked with a little shake of his head. She sniffled a bit and looked down, embarrassed by her tears. He noticed that she didn't even protest when he used that nickname anymore and he had a hard time deciding if he should be glad or concerned about her well being. He'd never seen her quite so vulnerable before and it made him want to cry himself that someone could do that to his strong, fierce Katniss.

"Katniss, look at me." He said and gently lifted her head, making his heart go crazy when her eyes locked with his. "You are the strongest, most hard-working and probably the best person that I've ever known. You've done on Snow Rocks so much more than anyone ever did, even Haymitch who works there since I can remember. You know why is that, Katniss? It's because you gave this ranch your time, you gave it all the hard work you could muster, but most importantly, you gave it your heart." He stated and she sniffled again, comforted more than anything not only by his words, but also, or maybe most importantly, by his warm, gentle hands that sill cradled her cheeks. "You have more problems now, than your father ever did in his life and the ranch is still working. It even wouldn't be an overstatement if I said that it's working now better than it used to when he was running it." He said and she shook her head.

"Even if it were true, that's not thanks to me." She stated stubbornly and he opened his mouth to protest but she didn't give him the chance. "No, it really isn't." She said again. "It's thanks to Haymitch and Gale and all the men, even my sisters… and you." She added shamefully. "My father knew that I won't be able to do it, that's why he named you the supervisor. Maybe he was right all along and I'm simply too weak to do all of this."

"Katniss you are in a hospital bed and if even this is not stopping you from calling your men every half an hour and giving them instructions and advices than nothing is. If that's not how a ranch is supposed to be run I don't know what is." Replied Peeta, starting to get frustrated. "You have no idea, no idea at all how much I hate your father for making you think badly about yourself and for making you constantly underestimate yourself." He added and she looked at him questioningly. "I just wish with all my heart that you could, if only just once in your life, see yourself the way that the rest of the world sees you." He stated and she realized she can't stop looking into his eyes, that suddenly gained a new quality about them, one that she quite couldn't place."I wish you could see yourself the way Gale sees you, having a hard time deciding if he should feel exceptionally proud of his little sister or miserable, because you are so much better at those things than he is." She chuckled at that but shook her head in denial. He didn't stop talking. "Or the way your sisters see you, when they look at you with respect and admiration. Yes, even Jo." He added when she looked at him skeptically and opened her mouth to say something. "The way Haymitch and Sea see you, when they look at you with pride, because deep down they know that they were really the ones that raised you, not your father. The way your men see you, wondering how is it possible that you are such a good boss, because I'm sure most of them would never, ever think that a woman could run a ranch as successfully as you do. The way my sister sees you," he added with a smirk, "the way she's all 'Katniss this and Katniss that', because she's absolutely crazy about you and she wants to be mini Katniss. Well, maybe more blonde." She laughed through her tears at that, thinking of cute, pure Prim Mellark, who had no reason at all to want to be anyone but herself. "And the way I see you..." He finally stated, pausing for a moment to swallow the hard the lump that rose in his throat. "and wonder every damn day of my life, how is it possible that someone as wonderful as you came from such an asshole of a father. Someone so strong, form such a coward who couldn't have enough of balls to take care of his own children, someone so good and considerate from someone who treated people like garbage, someone so beautiful and full of light from someone who was filled with only ugliness and darkness. Someone…"

"Peeta…" She stopped him in a gentle voice and covered one of his hands, still cradling her cheeks, with her own. "…stop. I know you mean well, but… this is whole lot of bullshit." She said and he chuckled a bit and shook his head at her. Then, he did something that made her hold her breath while her heart beat furiously. His face moved dangerously close to hers and she was almost sure he was going to kiss her, so she closed her eyes, not knowing what to think about it when instead of on her lips, she felt his soft ones pressed to her forehead. He didn't let go for quite a while, but when he did she released the breath she was holding, noticing that it came out in a form of a contented sigh.

"I've never said so much truth in one monologue," he admitted with a laugh.

"That was very beautiful," she stated quietly. "Everything that you said." She added looking at him with wonder. She always knew he had a way with words, but she'd never in her life heard him say anything quite so beautiful . She felt strangely special that she was the one who the words were spoken to, even if she still didn't believe they were true.

"It's because I was talking about an extremely beautiful woman." He replied and she blushed, not knowing what to really think of all of it. She looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"Why did you so suddenly decide that I'm beautiful?" She asked, truthfully curious and he laughed as if she just said the most hilarious joke of all.

"Oh Katniss, there's absolutely nothing sudden about it." He answered making her even more confused. "I thought you were beautiful the moment I laid my eyes on you, when you were just a baby, but you kept growing and getting older and every time I looked at you I found you even more beautiful than the last time. It happens every day, every fucking time I see your gorgeous face." He confessed and once again reached his hand to her face and cradled her cheek, brushing his thumb against her soft skin. "I didn't even realize when it happened, but one day I just noticed that I'm a total goner." He added and she looked at him like she never looked at him before. If she understood correctly what he was saying, he had feelings for her ever since they were kids. It was like someone switched on something inside of her and she started to see so many things differently. The way he acted towards her, the way he tried to impress her when they were kids, the way he teased her when they were older and tried to get any reaction from her, even if it was anger. She saw the way he always made sure to take care of her and treat her like a lady, not only because she was a girl, but because she was the girl he cared for. She remembered all the dirty looks he'd thrown the boys at school when they wanted to approach her. She was always mad at him because she was sure he teamed up with Gale and wanted to act all brotherly. Now she finally saw that he was simply jealous. She felt suddenly very warm inside at the thought, that maybe it was not only her that always secretly wanted him, even if she never fully admitted it even to herself. She closed her eyes at the revelation and leaned more into his touch. He moved his thumb a bit and instead of caressing her cheek, he run it against her soft lips. She shuddered at the sensation and opened her eyes only to find him closer to her that he'd ever been. She realized that right now, she wanted him to kiss her, to finally feel how it is kiss Peeta Mellar.

"Katniss…" he spoke in a whisper and his minty breath fanned across her face. She locked her eyes with his. "After all of those silly thing that I've done in my life to gain you attention, I really don't understand how on earth didn't you ever notice that I've loved you since I can remember."

She didn't answer, because she didn't understand it either. She could see it in his eyes so clearly right now. She let herself forget about everything that she'd ever thought of relationships and love and she did what she waited for him to do since he'd told her she was beautiful. She closed the barely existing gap between them by pressing her lips against his. She kind of caught him off guard, but he recovered pretty quickly and immediately wanted to respond to her kiss, only to realize that her lips were already away from his and a little smirk was gracing her features. He knew her well enough to know that she had a tease on the tip of her tongue.

"You see?" She asked in a whisper as their noses brushed against each other. "Bringing flowers for a girl and telling her how you feel, when played the right way, should be enough to gain her attention." She said making him chuckle a little as she brought back the conversation they all shared at Prim's birthday party.

"Does it mean you'll let me take you out on a date?" He asked with a hopeful smile and she chuckled a bit at his puppy dog expression.

"I think the only way for you to find out, is to ask."

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard ginger. " Stated Johanna as she toughly pulled the grey backpack from her sister's hands and threw it forcefully to the corner of the room.

"No, Johanna. I have to do this, don't you understand?!" Yelled Annie through her tears as she struggled to put together all of her things that her elder sister made sure were all over the room's floor.

"What the hell is happening in here?!" Yelled Katniss as she stumbled into the room, catching her breath and holding onto her still sore ribs. Only the day before she came back from the hospital after five days of recovery and she still wasn't in her top shape.

"You should be in bed, Katniss." Commented Annie, tears still streaming down her cheeks, but her voice was much calmer, gentler. Sounding much more like her.

"Well, I won't let you two kill each other, I'm sure they can hear your yelling in Idaho. What the hell is happening in here?" She asked noticing Annie's expression. "What did you do?" She turned to Johanna accusingly, making her lift her hands innocently.

"I didn't do anything, she put herself in that stat. She fucking wants to leave now, can you believe that?" Explained Johanna, and Katniss looked at the middle sister questioningly.

"What?" She asked in barely above a whisper, not understanding at all Annie's sudden change of heart.

"I have too!" She sobbed pathetically. "I can't stay hear anymore," she added making Katniss even more confused than she was before.

"Just tell us what the hell happened Annie. Did you have a fight with Finnick?" She asked, now convinced that it had to be the case, but at the sound of Finn's name, Annie started to sob even more loudly.

"She fucking thinks it's her fault that you ended all banged up in the hospital." Explained Johanna throwing her arms in the air with exasperation, letting the same know, that she had no idea why her sister would came up with an idea like that.

"You're crazy." Katniss stated simply towards the redheaded woman, looking at her as if she really lost her mind.

"…and now you fucking made me agree with brainless!" Added Jo with a huff making Katniss scowl at her.

"Why on earth would you think that this is your fault, Annie?" Asked Katniss in a slightly calmer manner.

"It was him! I'm sure it was him!" Whined Annie as she sat at the feet on her bed and curled into a ball. "He did that once before. He almost killed my mother then," she added. Katniss sucked on a breath so intensively, that she winced at the short paint that went through her ribs.

"I used your car Katniss! I went to Finnick so many times by it! By your car, Haymitch's, Gale's… Finnick's. I could have killed half of the ranch!" She exploded, still sobbing. "I was the target all the time, he just didn't know which car to sabotage to just teach me manners, to… to hurt me, torture me, make me pay for leaving him…" she sniffled loudly. "I have to leave! " She wined and rocked a bit, digging her fingernails into her skull.

"Oh Annie," sighed Katniss as she sunk down onto the bed, sitting beside her sister. Johanna deflated visibly, her expression changing from one of fury to one of worry as she awkwardly picked up a few of Annie's things and set them on her bed before sitting at Annie's other side. "Even if it was him… your ex, who did that. Even if it was, you don't have to leave." Stated gently Katniss. "It's not about the ranch anymore, about losing it. It's about… us." She added scratching her nose awkwardly. "Maybe we're not a… normal family, but we are a family and we won't let anybody hurt you Annie."

"It's not about me Katniss! I can manage him hurting me, but I can't live with the fact he hurt you! And he can do this to Jo, Gale, Peeta, Haymitch, Sae… Finn… He would do this only because he knows how much it pains me to see you hurt." Sniffled Annie again.

"We will be careful Annie, we won't let him touch any of us ever again." Stated Katniss. "I know you are scared, because he hurt you so many times but…"

"Okay, that's it!" Johanna cut in with a strange determination in her voice. "That's the end of this! That's the fucking end of this!" She said, now looking really pissed off and slightly crazied herself.

"Jo…"

"Don't interrupt me, brainless." She threw a glare Katniss's way. "You know what our fucking problem is? You know what's the biggest problem of Snow's daughters?" She looked her sisters in the eyes to find in them only mild confusion. "I'll tell you, what our bigger problem is," she added with determination. "We let men fuck us up." Her younger sisters looked at her as if she was crazy. "Yes. You've heard me right." She added. "Did I ever told you about my mother's ex boyfriend? No? Oh, he was sooo lovely." She got up and started to pace the room. "I was eleven when she met him. He was charming and handsome and rich. What else to ask for right?" She asked rhetorically. "He had only one damn flaw, though. Just one. He wanted to fuck me more than he wanted to fuck my mother." She added, making Annie gasp and Katniss open her mouth, close it and open again. "It took my mum a fucking month to realize that he was sneaking into my room and putting his dirty hands into my pants every time she had a night shift." She added. Katniss hid her face in her hands and Annie sobbed loudly again. "I'm not telling you all of this, to make you feel bad or some shit. I'm just saying it to prove a point." She added making Katniss look at her with raised eyebrows. "From the moment all three of us were born and our fucker of a father decided that he doesn't care we're his daughters, he put some fucking spell on us. We were screwed by men our whole lives and I don't mean it the good way." She added making Katniss grimace at the completely out of pace half-joke. "I can't have a normal relationship with a men since my dear step dad used me as his sex toy." She confessed, then looked at Annie. "Annie got herself in an abusing relationship and now is scared of her own shadow to the point that even Finnick can't make her feel safe enough that she won't feel like she has to flee the moment her ex appears in sigh." She added and then looked at Katniss. "And finally our miss Montana, who spend her whole life with that fuckard of a father, who never respected her, never rewarded her for her hard work and never even fucking noticed her, making her unable to notice that there are and always were men in her life who would willingly give everything for her if they were asked to." She finished, only now fully realizing that all three of them had more fucked up lives than she ever thought.

"We're pathetic." Stated Katniss as she also realized how much her father's actions affected her life, personality and the way she viewed the world.

"Yes we are," replied Johanna without missing a beat, "and that's exactly why we have to end this. Once and for all." She added with finality.

"But how? How do we do that?" Came Annie's little voice, but it wasn't Johanna who answered her question. It was Katniss.

"By finally starting to live."

They started the new chapter of their lives by doing the thing that Katniss always dreamed of doing, but newer had the guts to. They took their father's portrait from the wall above the fireplace and hid it deep in the basement, next to old wine bottles and their grand parents' furniture.

There was something so strangely cathartic in this process, that they all decided that they don't want to stop only at this.

The next was their father's office. The place now belonged to Katniss and while she was much better hunter than her father ever was, she absolutely hated hunting trophies. She was feeling sick every time she looked at the stuffed animal heads on the walls and she felt a strange flutter of sadness every time she saw the glass eyes of the beautiful stuffed lynx. While Katniss was hunting, she killed only things that she could eat or feed people with. She killed wild turkeys and geese, occasionally some squirrels or rabbits, anything that could be used in some productive way. Her father though killed for fun. He killed for trophies, that he could hang on his walls and brag about in front of other ranchers. Katniss herself sometimes thought a bit selfishly that one didn't need a lot of skill to kill a lynx with a Winchester. To shot a squirrel right through the eye with a bow and an arrow was a different story.

The lynx and the other animal heads thumped down the stairs with loud bangs startling Sae away from the kitchen and into the hallway, Haymich hot on her heels, still chewing on some meat.

"What on earth are you doing?" Asked Sae as Jo struggled to push the stag's head down the stairs without damaging it with the horns.

"Oh, we're just evicting a couple of our father's old friends." Replied Katniss with a little smirk, a bit saddened by the fact that she was in no physical condition to throw something down the stairs by herself. Haymich released a deep, loud laugh and winked Katniss' way.

"It's about damn time," he grumbled. "Come on woman, you don't want to get hit by some dead animal." He commented towards Sae and disappeared back into the kitchen pulling her along by her arm.

All three of the girls startled a bit when they heard a yelp as one of the trophies landed right in front of Finnick's feet.

"Ah, ladies? Isn't it a bit too early for Spring cleaning?" He asked with a bright smile making all three of them chuckle at his confused expression.

"Oh it's just the beginning, Mr. 'oh dear'. We're not planning on ending the cleaning soon." Replied Jo with a wink. Finnick chuckled at the modification of his second name and looked towards Annie with raised eyebrows.

"I guess you're not ready for our date night, then?" He asked gently and Annie's eyes winded comically.

"Oh my God. I totally forgot! I'm so sorry!" She exclaimed making Johanna laugh at her dismay. "I don't know if I can…"

"Just go, ginger," Johanna cut in unceremoniously.

"Yeah, have loads of fun you two." Added Katniss only a bit suggestively making Johanna chuckle and look at her with a new found respect.

"But I have to change, I look awful and…" Katniss rolled her eyes at Annie's rambling as she threw a smile Finnick's way.

"You look lovely," stated Finnick wearing one of his charming smiles. "You always do."

"If you wanted to avoid me, coming to my work place was probably not the best idea." Stated Gale as he fell against the entrance to one of the booths in the stables where Johanna stood and brushed the horses' smooth hair.

"Who said I was avoiding you?" She asked without turning her attention away from the horse and he approached her with a few long strides. He put his huge hand gently over hers successfully stilling her movements. She looked at him with her grey-blue eyes.

"I'm sorry if… I scared you or was just too forward, but…"

"Let's just not talk about it okay?" She cut in half-angrily only to instantly feel bad when she saw the hurt expression crossing his eyes. She sighed loudly and looked at him properly for the first time that evening. She reminded herself of the conversation she had with her sisters earlier that day and of the promise she forced them to make. They all had to start living, it referred also to her. "I'm sorry. I'm being a bitch." She admitted after a moment and he shook his head at that statement.

"No, I get it." He said with resignation. "I remember what you said the first time we hooked up. You've made it pretty clear that it was only about sex for you, but I had to go and make a fool of myself admitting how I feel and hoping that something changed for you too." He added shamefully. "Apparently I was wrong." He rubbed his eyes and chuckled darkly. "Maybe Katniss was right all along." He added making Johanna look at him strangely.

"Katniss… what Katniss has to do with it?" Asked Johanna surprised that he brought their sister into the conversation.

"Well, she did say you're going to break my heart." He stated with a forced smirk and to her credit, Jo did look a bit embarrassed.

"She was probably right," she admitted shamefully. "But I think that if you'd ask her today she might've got a different answer." She added making Gale look at her questioningly. "Gale I…"

"Don't…" He stopped her mid-sentence. "Don't say anything that you would regret."

"Just let me say something, okay?!" She interrupted angrily and he sighed and motioned for her to continue.

"I can't say back to you that I love you, Gale. It wouldn't be fair to either of us if I did that not knowing myself what I really feel." She stated with a shake of her head. "But it doesn't mean that nothing has changed for me." She added and he raised his eyebrows at the revelation. "I… I have some problems with… well feelings and I… I don't want to jump into any kind of a relationship besides the physical one." She explained.

"I won't push you, Jo and I'm sorry that I've even… It was just that… in that moment I really felt it, you know? And I just couldn't stand the thought of not telling you." He added and she shook her head at him.

"You were supposed to let me tell you something, horsemen but you keep interrupting me." She stated with a smirk. "What I've told you a minute ago doesn't really mean anything right now," she added and he looked at her curiously "because if you're willing to give me another chance, I think I could try that relationship shit." She confessed and he smiled a little at the news.

"Really?" He asked unbelievingly and she nodded shortly.

"I can't guarantee though, that I'll be any good at it, but I ju…" She didn't manage to finish the sentence. His slightly chapped lips attached to hers, chasing away all of her thoughts, leaving only those of him and his hot kisses.

Right then she felt like she could really try that relationship shit.

"What is that?" Asked curiously Cato, when he noticed the animal heads, horns and limbs piled in the front yard of Snow's Mansion. "Are those all of your father's hunting trophies?" He added with wonder as he circled the pile with interest.

"Yeah. All of his old shit." Answered Katniss trying and failing to understand the fascination in his tone.

"Holy shit!" Exclaimed Rory with excitement. "Do you want to throw it all out?" He asked unbelievingly. Chaff let out a loud snort at the young cowboy's question.

"She would have to be completely bonkers to throw away such treasures, boy." He answered with a grumble, making young Rory blush a bit.

"Thank you Chaff and yes, Rory. That is exactly what I wanted to do with that garbage," she replied politely, but she didn't forget to throw Chaff's way one of her scowls in response to his outraged huff.

"Can I take something Katniss?" Asked Marvel a little bit hesitantly. "It would be a shame to throw all of this out," he added for a good measure.

"Can I take something too?" Asked Rory hopefully bouncing on his heels like the excited boy he still was.

"I call dibs on the lynx!" Yelled enthusiastically Cato making Katniss roll her eyes at their stupidity.

"Damn you Cato." Whined Marvel, Cato's low chuckle accompanying his complains.

"Take whatever you want." Stated Katniss indifferently, shrugging her shoulders in the process, trying to make a point of how little did she care about all of those things .

"What's happening in here?" She heard Peeta's voice before she was able to see him from behind all the men that crowded near the rapidly decreasing pile. He appeared at Marvel's side after a short moment and eyed the dead animals with mild interest, only to lift his head and look straight at Katniss with wide eyes and a startled expression.

"Lions and tiger and bears, oh my!" He exclaimed loudly making everyone chuckle a bit. Katniss snorted at his silliness and smiled widely at his cheerful expression. She had a good day and it was only getting better and better.

Peeta approached her with a proud smile and she instantly knew that he was happy she decided to finally make that house her home.

"I see you've been making some changes." He commented and then eyed her with concern. "Aren't you forcing yourself too much?" He asked making her roll her eyes.

"I'm fine and it was mostly Jo and Annie who were doing all of the physical work." She added and Peeta nodded his approval.

"Your brother inside?" He asked changing the topic and making Katniss nod in answer.

"He went in with Johanna a couple of minutes ago." She replied making him smile.

"I need to have a quick word with him." He stated and squeezed her hand as he hurriedly passed her in the doorway.

She stayed outside a bit longer, trying to make sure her men didn't kill each other over some creepy dead animals, but she couldn't stand they bickering for long. She left pretty soon, leaving Cato and Marvel still fighting over a wild pig.

She startled when the first thing she saw after she entered the kitchen was Peeta Mellark's butt sticking out as he bend over to snoop around in her fridge. He emerged after a moment, a beer in his hand and one of Johanna's carrot sticks hanging limply from his mouth.

"Can I help you, Dorothy?" She asked with a smirk and he answered with one of his own, stretched around the half-consumed carrot.

"Nah, I'm good. Took one of your beers. I hope you don't mind." He stated and she huffed a bit at his cockiness.

"This is not a saloon, asshole." She replied but opened one of her drawers and gave him a bottle opener anyway. He smirked.

"Gale wasn't here so I had to find myself something to do when I waited for you." He answered getting dangerously close to her. She held her breath. "I couldn't just miss the pleasure of your company." He added looking from her eyes to her lips and back again. "Haven't kissed you properly yet, " he stated in a whisper. "What if I did it now?" He asked challengingly brushing his nose against hers.

"Well, do it then." She breathed against his lips, but when they were just about to press into hers, he yelped loudly as he felt the cold beer pouting into his hair and dripping down behind the collar of his shirt. Katniss laughed maniacally at his disgusted expression.

"Thanks for that." He grumbled. "I have beer in my ears and I smell like a hobo." He added, wiping at his ear with his sleeve. She chuckled but grabbed two fistfuls of his flannel shirt and brought his lips to hers for a quick peck. Like the first time, he immediately wanted to come back for more.

"Hold your horses, baby eyes." She said teasingly as she pushed at his chest lightly. He pouted making it impossible for her to hide her smile. "It will be no more kisses for now." She added and he raised his eyebrows what made him look even more ridiculous than he did before.

"Why?" He whined and she laughed out loud, burrowed her hand in his now slightly sticky hair and tugged on it gently.

"Well… you still owe me a date."

|AN2|: And? What do you think?