I wake up the only way I ever want to – wrapped up in the love of my life's arms. My head is laying on his chest, in its usual spot. I prop it up with my chin and look up at my slumbering husband. He has a small, content smile on his face. I can't bring myself to wake him, not yet. I let him sleep.
I move my injured arm around a bit. It's sore, but it doesn't hurt nearly as much as it did before. Now, Peeta and I have matching bullet wounds, both gained by trying to save one another. I know it scared Peeta and our family, but I also know I'd make the same decision a hundred times over. He's my husband, my best friend, the father of my children, and my better half. I'd do anything to protect him, to make sure he's safe.
"How's the arm?" I hadn't even noticed Peeta's eyes open.
"Better," I whisper, kissing his bare chest lightly.
"Maybe we should unlock the door," he suggests with a smirk. "I'm sure someone needs to get in here."
"Do we have to?" I whine like a petulant child, pout and all. He just smiles.
"Not just yet," he relents. To reward him, I lean up and give him a long kiss on the lips.
"If we're going to unlock the door, you need to put some clothes on," I admonish him. "I'm not willing to share that view with anyone. It's mine."
"I could say the same to you honey," he grins before he runs his fingers down my bare back, altering me to my own nudity.
We both laugh and it's the perfect way to start our day. Well, almost perfect.
"I miss the kids," I sigh. Peeta nods his agreement.
"I'll spring you out of here soon," he promises, "and we can go spend the day with them."
"Don't we have class to teach?" I ask. His face falls.
"Yeah, after lunch," he explains. "We can always bring them with us?"
"I don't know. We've been doing some pretty intense, involved training lately."
"Well we'll spend as much time with them as we can, okay? Actually, you know what? You're injured, Kat. You sit with them while I teach class, how does that sound?"
"Spend time with my kids while we watch their incredibly sexy daddy be all authoritative? Sounds amazing."
He chuckles and kisses the top of my head. I sigh happily and snuggle closer into him.
I realize it's still really early, considering we're underground, we can't see any windows. We drift off back to sleep, Peeta tightening his hold on me.
We're woken a couple hours later by incessant knocking on the door.
"Peeta?" I groan. "Baby get the door."
"That's the same thing you said the first time we slept in the same bed," he observes.
I lift my head off his chest and look up at him.
"And, again, the door is the more pressing issue," I smile.
"Right away, Mrs. Mellark," he dutifully replies. Sadly, I unwrap myself from him and he gets up off the bed, finding his pants and slipping them on. He waits until I've also dressed before he goes to the door.
It's our nurse. She takes vital signs, checks my range of motion, and administers my last dose of medicine.
"Can I get her out of here yet?" Peeta asks when she's finished.
"I just have to consult the doctor," she answers. "Give me a few minutes."
Peeta nods his thanks and she shuts the door on her way out. He moves to the side of the bed and plops down in a chair.
"What are you doing?" I ask harshly.
"Relaxing," he replies nervously, unsure of where my anger is stemming from.
I roll my eyes dramatically.
"Peeta Mellark, get back in this bed and cuddle with your wife. Now."
"Yes, Mrs. Mellark," he says in mock-sadness. It makes me smile.
He crawls back into bed and I immediately curl into him, throwing a leg and an arm over him and resting my head back in its proper spot on his chest.
"We really need to stop getting shot," I declare after a few minutes.
I feel and hear him laugh, his chest reverberating.
"I'm sorry that happened at the reception," he apologizes, "I wanted it to be perfect."
"It was perfect," I protest. "Really, Peeta, it was. So what if it ended with me in the hospital? I still loved every minute of it. You really surprised me with the entire thing, and it was spectacular."
"Really? You liked it?"
"Of course," I scoff. "I got to stand up in front of everyone, the whole country, and show them how much I love you, and have you show them how much you love me. Not only was the renewing of our vows important for the two of us, I feel like we're showing the country that good things still happen, that love can survive."
"I never thought of it that way," he muses. "But you're absolutely right. I suddenly don't mind that Plutarch filmed it."
I nod and rest my head back down.
The nurse returns after a few minutes, informing us that I've been released from the hospital's care. She gives me some instructions and a few stretches to help my shoulder. I sign some forms and she cuts off my hospital bracelet. Finally, she rolls a wheelchair in. I remember from when Peeta was here that it's policy, so I huff as I sit down.
"Thanks," I say to the nurse. She nods and leaves us.
"Ready?" Peeta comes around to face me, crouching down so we're at the same level.
"Take me to our children," I plead. He gives me a quick peck on the lips and resumes his position behind me, pushing me out of the room.
We make it back fairly quickly, as it's still early and the halls are fairly deserted. Before I realize, we're at the door to our place.
Peeta puts the brakes on, knowing that I'm going to want to walk through the door, not be pushed. He didn't even have to ask.
He helps me stand, gently grasping my arm, and I surprise both of us by not resisting him. I reach for the doorknob and push the door open.
I smile at the sight before us.
Prim and Annie are sleeping on the couch in opposite directions, their sock-clad feet near one another's head. A blanket is haphazardly thrown over them. Finnick is sprawled out on the floor, a pillow from the couch under his head.
"Shh," I turn to Peeta with my finger on my lips, motioning to our houseguests.
Peeta smiles as we tiptoe through the living room towards the twins' bedroom. Peeta darts into the kitchen, grabbing two bottles out of the fridge.
"Good thinking," I praise him.
We gently open the door, their room still bathed in darkness. They're both still asleep, so we give them each a kiss and let them be. Not wanting to be far from them, Peeta sits in the rocking chair, and I plop down right on his lap. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me close.
"I missed them so much," I whisper, "and it was only one night."
"You're their mother," he points out. "Besides, I'm sure I missed them just as much."
"I love you," I turn to him, giving him a sweet kiss. "I love our family."
"I love you," he smiles wide. "I love our family."
"Good, because you're stuck with us."
He softly chuckles and I join him.
"Well I guess I'll just have to figure out new ways of showing you just how much I cherish you," he announces.
"Please do," I grin. "As your wife, I give you permission to do whatever you deem necessary to seduce me."
"Oh, come on, that's the easy part," he smirks. "I could get you in bed in ten seconds flat no matter where we are." I hit him playfully and we both laugh quietly.
"Are you calling me easy, Mr. Mellark?" I tease.
"Never," he says innocently. "I'm just acutely aware of the effect I have on you."
"And what about all the times I've lured you into having sex?" I ask.
"Maybe I'm the easy one," he grins. "But I'm certainly not complaining."
"Me either."
We kiss again, and before we can deepen it Josh lets us know he's awake.
I hop up and dart to his crib, scooping him up into my arms. I ignore the soreness, needing to hold my son.
"Shhh, baby boy, mommy's here," I coo as I gently rock him. He doesn't need a change, so I'm fairly sure he's hungry. Peeta hands me a bottle. "Here, Joshy, have some breakfast. Shhh, be a good boy for mama."
He happily latches on and sucks down his breakfast quickly. Peeta claims he's inherited my appetite, but I think it's the other way around.
When he's almost finished, Eve wakes up. Peeta picks her up, giving her a multitude of kisses to her utter delight. I smile at the sight of my husband and our daughter.
"Good morning my beautiful girl," Peeta quietly whispers. "Let's get you something to eat, you'd like that, wouldn't you? You look more like your mother every day, baby girl. You're so beautiful."
I can't help but blush at his soft words. Peeta tells me I'm beautiful almost every day, but it never ceases to make me blush.
Suddenly, the door bursts open, revealing the three babysitters, all of them breathing heavy with wide eyes.
"Oh!" Prim gasps. "It's you two. We heard the kids and, well, we didn't know who was in here."
"It's just us, little duck," I smile, giving Josh a raspberry on his tummy. He giggles.
"Are you feeling better Katniss?" Annie asks, concerned. She comes over to inspect me more thoroughly.
"Much better," I assure her. "Thank you. Thank you all for staying here last night. We really do appreciate it."
All three wave us off like it was no big deal.
"They were angels," Finnick reports. "Well, once we got them changed that is."
We all laugh, knowing how our twins can be when their diapers are dirty.
Eventually we all move to the living room and just relax, talking about nothing too important. I do tell them about my experience interrogating Francis, and they're all shocked, as I knew they'd be.
Annie and Finnick leave to go teach a class, and Prim has to report to work, leaving the four of us alone for the first time in a while.
"Bed?" Peeta and I turn and ask at the same time. We burst out laughing.
We walk into our bedroom, the twins cradled in our arms. Peeta shifts Eve to one arm and pulls the comforter back. He sets her down gently and helps me by relieving me of our son, placing him next to his sister. I go to lay down, but before I can, Peeta scoops me up in his arms and lays me down carefully. He scoots around to his side and collapses onto the bed, the twins between us.
We both lay on our sides, gazing down at our marvelous children. It feels so good to be back here with them, with my family.
"Sleep," Peeta coaxes, "I'll set an alarm. Sleep, Kat."
I nod and he takes my hand in his, kissing it and intertwining our fingers. The four of us doze off together.
Peeta gently wakes me up to go to lunch. I realize I'm hungry, seeing as Peeta and I skipped breakfast.
We get dressed and make sure the twins are wearing appropriate clothing before we put them in their stroller. We head out to lunch, knowing we have a class directly afterwards.
At the cafeteria, we sit with all of our friends, who are more than happy to see me on my feet again. Eventually, Peeta and I have to just tell them to shut up so we can actually eat. There are laughs all around and I'm glad to be back with people I love.
Before I'd like to be, we're on our way to class. Peeta keeps assuring me he can handle it and I should just stay with the kids. I give in, more because I want to spend some time with them, not because I don't think I'm up to teaching.
We enter the training room and the class assembles on the bleachers as always. We stand in front of them, the stroller in front of us. I notice a lot of the cadets smiling at the sight of our kids.
"Good afternoon, cadets," Peeta greets sternly.
"Good afternoon sir!" They respond sharply.
"I'm sure you've all heard by now that my wife was involved in a shooting a couple days ago. As you can see, she's recovered fine, and will be resuming her teaching duties soon."
"Colonel?" A younger female cadet raises her hand. Peeta nods for her to continue. "Is it true she dove in front of a bullet that was aimed at you?"
"You want to field that one honey?" He asks me. I nod.
"Yes, it's true," I reveal. I see their eyes widen. "I could tell you it was some heroic moment, but that's just not the truth. The truth is it was pure instinct. I saw my husband in danger and I did what was necessary. We aim to get all of you to the point where your movements are instinctual rather than reactionary."
"Was it really Cadet Burton who shot you?" Another male cadet asks.
I look to Peeta, not sure how much we're allowed to reveal. He nods that I can answer.
"Yes, it was Cadet Burton," I answer, my voice void of any emotion. "He was delusional, and he was very sick, but that's all I can tell you."
"Enough questions," Peeta announces. "First, warm up run. Five miles. Dismissed!"
They scramble off the bleachers and begin their run around the track. Madge jogs by me and I wave her over quickly.
"I'm glad you're okay Katniss," she says honestly.
"Thanks, Madge," I smile. "I'm glad too." She chuckles. "How much does everyone know about what happened?"
"Not much," she shrugs. "The ceremony and reception were televised in 13 as well as across the country, but they had it on a delay, so they cut off before you got shot."
"Oh," I process what she's told me. "So it's basically just rumors?"
"Yeah," she nods. "There's a rumor that Francis wanted to kill Peeta because he was in love with you. There's another rumor that he was sent by Snow, and another one that he was sent by Coin. What everyone agrees on, though, is that you dove in front of that bullet because you love your husband more than anything."
"Well at least they got that right," I roll my eyes.
"Anything else?" She asks, and I can see she wants to get running.
"No, go ahead. Dismissed." She salutes and joins the rest of the class.
"Did you hear all that?" I ask Peeta. He's following the students' progress, but I know he was listening.
"Yeah," he replies. "We'll have to talk to Haymitch, see how to deal with everything."
"Good idea. I'm going to go sit over there with the kids, okay?" I point to the bleachers.
"Sure," he smiles, leaning in for a chaste kiss. We always keep them short when we're here. "Let me know if you need anything."
"I got shot, I'm not disabled," I say defensively.
He just rolls his eyes and laughs softly.
"I know that. Doesn't mean I'm ever going to stop taking care of you."
I know he's right, so I give him a smile and let him kiss me once more before I move over to the bleachers with the stroller.
I take a seat and turn the twins around so they can see their daddy. We watch as he takes the class through stretches and other exercises. He breaks them up into small groups, floating from group to group as they practice hand-to-hand combat. I still get awestruck watching him fight in close proximity. His years of wrestling make him a formidable fighter, and the training we undertook together has made him almost unstoppable.
He runs over to us a few times, usually only long enough to give us each a kiss. I don't mind though. Just the fact that he made the effort is enough for me.
Peeta now has the class lined up over at the shooting range as they take turns showing him their proficiency with pistols. Most of them are mediocre shots, but a few of them show real promise.
I cringe as I watch Scarlet slowly make her way to the front of the line, eventually standing right in front of my husband. I watch their interaction closely.
She steps up closely to Peeta, and he instantly backs up a few feet and angrily asks her why she didn't salute him. She sheepishly steps back and gives him a weak salute. He shakes his head at what he calls a 'pathetic attempt at a military salute' and informs her she's going to take a remedial course in saluting, taught by me. I grin at the thought, already planning it out in my head. Scarlet searches the room until her eyes fall on me, and I can see the hatred easily. I refuse to look away, unwilling to back down. Suddenly, she smirks, and turns back to Peeta.
He's not facing her, and she sees it. She goes up on her toes and is about to try to kiss him when her arm is forcefully wrenched behind her. She yells out in pain as she's forced easily to the ground, on her stomach, her arm folded painfully behind her. That's when I can make out the person now kneeling on her back.
It's Madge.
A/N: Aww, Madge to the rescue. I thought it was time she got more involved in the plotline, so I started there. This was really just a filler chapter of Katniss getting out of the hospital and back into the swing of things. The search for the remaining moles will become the focus as we move forward with the next few chapters.
If you haven't already, and I don't know why you wouldn't, please go check out my new story titled 'Top Of The World'. It's got sex, romance, fighting, and climbing. It's pretty sweet if I may say so myself.
Thanks as always for reading and reviewing. You guys are the best.