The night passes fitfully, as my sleep is peppered with a series of dreams that slowly turns into a horrifying nightmare.

It took me by surprise. After my eyes had finally came to a point of complete exhaustion, and they shut for the night, my vision was clouded by images of Katniss. She sits in front of me in the quiet of the cave with her long braid trailing down her back. Ayanna sits curled up in the corner, sleeping away. Her eyelids are fluttering, but her sprawled curls and low breathing clue me in.

I turn my eyes back to Katniss and suddenly she is wearing the exact same uniform that all the tributes in the 74th annual games are wearing. The short sleeve shirt and long pants are fitted to her small, but fit frame. My throat suddenly goes dry, and my hands itch to move toward her, to pull her into a hug.

But I can't. My arms are pinned securely to my sides and any attempt to move them is futile. While I struggle, Katniss begins to lean forward and I catch my breath. She gently places her hands behind my head, entwining them in my blond sweaty curls. Her presence has caused me too sweat far more than is acceptable in this cool cave in the middle of the night.

I try to calm my nerves as much as possible. It doesn't work. My heart thuds in my chest and I can hardly stand how close her lips are to mine.

She closes the gap between us and suddenly red light splashes behind my closed eyes. Swirls of colors. Fireworks.

She keeps kissing me, tracing her tongue over my bottom lip. In that moment I forget where I am and I only know that she is mine.

When she finally takes her lips away from me, she turns my head to the side, placing soft kisses from my mouth over my jaw and to my ear.

Her warm breath brushes over my ear, but I'm too dizzy to hear what she says.

"What?" I inquire.

"You have to kill her." she whispers.

My heart stops it's erratic pounding in a second. I gaze into Katniss' eyes and staring back at me is a frightening mix of darkness and desire. Delicate dark gray, demanding for me to bring death to my only friend in the games.

I swallow.

"You have to Peeta. Come home to me," she begs. "Come home."

She is right. The thought terrifies me, but it is true. What else is there to do?

My body, completely out of my control, gets to its feet. I look down at my hand and I vicious jagged looking thing stares back at me, glimmering in the pale moonlight that makes its way into our cave. My body makes its way toward the crumpled little pile that is Ayanna. I keep moving until I stand directly over her, one boot on either side. Her chest rises and falls quickly in the cold of the dark night, and goosebumps rise over her pale white, weak arms.

I feel hot tears start to run down my face as I raise the knife gripped in my fists over my head. Sobs wrack my body, shivering their way down my spine.

My lips move with words I do not command.

"This is how it must end."

And with that I plunge the weapon into the dead center of Ayanna's back, and her screams pierce the thick, cold midnight air.

With a start I wake up and see that the sun is just beginning to poke through the leaves that block our cave. My breath catches violently in my chest and Ayanna wakes beside me. Worry is stricken across her face and with that guilt crashes upon mine. She reaches up to grasp my face between her delicate, little hands.

"Are you okay?" she whispers to me.

"Fine. Just a nightmare." I mumble back.

"Don't worry," she coos "everything is going to turn out just fine." She places a soft kiss on my dry lips and brushes the hair out of my eyes. "I'll make sure of it."

I sit up and she scoots over to settle down on my lap, an act that feels entirely too close after the dream that only ended a few minutes ago. Regardless, I let her keep comforting me until my heart rate slows down to a manageable pace, because even though she must die, it does not have to be at my hands.

I refuse to let it come by me.

Had some inspiration to start this story back up. I can't even begin to deliver enough apologies for the unreal amount of time that has passed between chapters 12 and 13. Let me know if you still like it!

-CA