Katniss POV

As I fasten my coat buttons out for hunting, I find Prim running down to me.

"Don't be rude to the prince, Katniss. And tell him I said him a hello" she chirps at me giddily.

"Do you even think that that the prince is going to come today, Prim?"

"Obviously or at least I think he might be coming"

"Don't get your hopes up, little duck'' I tell her, ruffle her hair and turn back to go to the forest with the strange behaviour of the prince weighing heavily in my mind. Is the Prince usually this kind or is it something more? This question has been constantly in my thoughts. It's obvious; everyone would laugh at me if I tell them about me suddenly meeting the prince in the woods and then he is feeding us. Maybe, he doesn't want his subjects to be malnourished considering how lean I am looking like a child compared to other 18 year olds but whole Seam looks alike.

Once I finally finish the internal debate in my head that the prince isn't going to be there and that I might hunt freely and hope that he doesn't suddenly appear from nowhere, all my hopes crash to the ground when I see a white horse flicking its tail munching on grass while a young man with a mop of blonde curls sitting down with a sketch pad in his lap though not drawing instead playing idly near it. Wow, it's going to be a long day.

I think of ways to escape him. Either I should sneak out or I should confront him and kindly ask him to get out of my life, if it was even considered an option for escape. But I rather think that confrontation would be quick and effective so I take a deep breath and hold onto my bow tighter as I approach him.

"Hi" I call out. He turns back from his sitting position and gets up brushing the dirt from his pants and gives a wide, broad grin that looks like it will split his face into two.

"Hey" he tells comes near me and when I think that this is the right time to tell him that we go on our ways apart, he interrupts my thoughts.

"I really need to talk to you''. His voice shows urgency and when I come up to tell what I was thinking because I will lose the courage stored if he starts talking, I go with listening to him because then chances are there that I will never come to know what he was to tell me.

"Okay"

"Can we have a uh, walk"

"Yeah, sure"

We walk silently and he coughs silently and he begins

"Well, so uh, Katniss, I attended one of my father's council a week ago and I found out that they are increasing security around Seam so they are going to electrify the fence and then hunting will be considered illegal''

I could feel my eyes widen as what he had told sinks in. Hunting is illegal, Prim, how will I feed her, how will I keep her and mom alive, I can't even work in the factory, its medicine, that's Prim's side, I can't even join as the…

"Katniss, hey, it's okay"

I must really have behaved weirdly for him to notice that.

"I had a talk with other councillors who told that a new medicine branch will be opened in the Seam, so maybe, you can work there"

Working in the medicine factory? That's not what I do, I do not heal, and I destroy. I don't have healer hands and the smell of medicines make me nauseous anyways.

I start retarding my footsteps back hitting the trunk of the tree away and opposite of Peeta slowly as if he is dangerous which is meaningless and something stupid and very, very cliché. Why am I dreading him anyways? He wanted to alert me and make sure I am employed to feed my family. Why is he doing this? Friend stuff maybe?

"But I spoke with one of the councillors who gave me an idea for you to still hunt in the forest"

"Really?" I feel a sense of hope flicker inside me

"Yeah'' he continues to explain further "You will be given special pass siting that you are on a royal duty to bring game to the kingdom kitchens so that it would be legal for you only"

Seems like a good idea. But Peeta doesn't seem really into this idea. He is constantly rubbing the back of his neck and running his palm over his pants.

"Are you alright, Peeta?'' The words tumble out of my mouth and for the moment, I forgot that he is the Prince but just a normal friend, a new friend.

"I don't know how to put this Katniss but I don't feel, uh, good about letting you hunt alone in the forest. I haven't spoken about this to my dad and he will pass this law for safety and I feel like letting uh, you hunt is like deliberately into trouble"

"I promise that I will stay away from danger, Peeta''

"Thank you Prince Peeta" I tell and curtsy in front of him when he doesn't reply to me. He eyes me intensively. He takes a step closer and slowly comes so near that there a just few inches gap between us. I am already standing my back resting on the tree and nowhere to move when he takes one more step closer.

The first thought I get is that he is coming for a hug but this is so slow and his eyes are showing a glimmer of fear and … concern and …

"I don't want you to be in trouble. I want you to be safe…" His voice fades into a whisper as his face tilts and his eyelids droop and his face so dangerously close to me. So close that I might think that he might …

I can't process information. It is as if my brain suddenly lost the ability to process the things happening around and delaying my actions. I stand there frozen staring at his eyelids, eyelashes, his freckles, his ashy blonde hair above his forehead fanned by the gentle breeze and as his lips were about to touch mine, he opens his eyelids suddenly, acting as if he had been woken from a spell which enchanted him, moving away from me twice the speed he came near me, running a hand in his hair making it messy.

He mumbles something incoherently and just mumbles that he will see me later.

My brain, which has been until the moment useless suddenly comes to its senses and I wish it hadn't because I feel tears welling up in my eyes because it is stupid but Peeta is already up near his horse mounting it, which I get a clear view from here and rides away, the galloping of the horse fading away as my knees buckle in and I sink into the ground.

This is the most boring chapter of which I had ever written. I know I write stories very boring even for me to read but I promise I'll include something in the next chapter. I do not write fanfic for favs or follows but just for bragging rights with my friends. So, what do you guys think? I promise of speedy updates cuz exams are over and my next update will be for One Drive To The Seam Hotel. So, stay tuned!