DISCLAIMER: HG characters do not belong to me.

A/N: to refresh, the story last left off at the end of December

Chapter 134-Past, Present, Future

6 months later (June 25)

Katniss stared down at the sleeping baby girl in her arms. She was feeling strange sitting in her old now new living room, decorated completely differently than when she was last here. She was in District 12 for work related reasons, and had come to visit Peeta and Delly to see their new baby girl, Lily, who had been born ironically on May 8, her birthday.

Due to the medication she had been taking for now over a year, and going back to work last fall, working full time as a teacher and raising four children proved to be too much for her physically. Wanting to finish out the school year, she had finally taken up Gale's offer to hire someone to come into the home to help. In January, the two of them had interviewed a few locals and both agreed on hiring a middle aged woman named Paulina. She had four children, all grown and out of the house. Her husband was a former bricklayer in Silver Lake. He died before the rebellion, and she had struggled to make due ever since for she didn't have any other family in town and would take odd jobs here and there. Paulina had helped Katniss with taking care of Juniper in the evenings three times a week, and would also come over every other weekend to help clean the house. Katniss still wanting to be a hands on Mom, she found having Paulina around helped her be attentive to her other children as well. However, by the time May rolled around, Katniss had informed PES that this was her last year of teaching, letting PES know that she was resigning due to wanting to spend more time with her family. PES accepted her resignation from Silver Lake Elementary, but had given her proposition she could not refuse. Due to PES still needing skilled teachers in Districts 12, 11, 10 and 9, PES asked Katniss to continue working for the organization as a designated recruiter of sorts. PES would pay for her lodging and travel, and she would be required several times a year to travel to the four districts to speak to the residents at town meetings to try to recruit future teachers to participate in the program like she did. She immediately took them up on the offer.

After the war all those years ago, she walked away from the public eye, not wanting to have anything to do with public speaking ever again. She recovered from the war with Peeta, and had re-entered society again when the two of them started making medicine in the District and working in the bakery. However, she still only conversed with a small number of people on a daily basis. Being in Silver Lake she was forced to talk to strangers and start fresh with Gale's help. And being a teacher for the past 13 years, she had seen how much of a difference she could make, for year's later some of her former students would approach her in town, still remembering her years later. Just as she knew it was her duty to be the Mockingjay, she knew if she had the opportunity to influence others to join PES's program, it was something she had to do. And the nice thing about the job was that it was an opportunity for her to work and be independent and still be home on an almost full time basis for her children. And she could travel with Juniper while she was still little.

PES wasted no time putting her to work, because the greatest need area at the moment was District 12, she was sent back to her former home for four days, and was given a hotel room at District 12's only hotel, built five years ago by the Capitol. Paylor had the hotel built as a way to boost 12's economy. While the District still made medicine, and residents had returned, the population had stabilized a few years after Katniss had left. The District still wasn't even close to the population it had hoped it would be. Concerned for the District's future, PES had given the District top priority in teacher recruitment. Katniss had been told during her initial training at the beginning of June that Paylor had hoped in the future to finally appointment a government official to 12, if their population had increased enough to warrant one for the District. Ever since the rebellion the government official of 11 had covered both Districts. While the hotel had helped bring some much needed tourism to 12 in the beginning, very few new residents were moving to the District.

Her first information meeting for the District was tomorrow, she was giving two presentations, one at 10 am and one at 2 pm. The next day she was to be at the District's town hall till noon for official "office hours" in case anyone wanted to sign up for PES's prep exam class in the Capitol, the next class offered July 10. After her office hours ended she was back on the train to head home to Silver Lake.

Her thoughts are interrupted by the sound of Juniper's loud footsteps coming toward her. The baby stirs and Katniss stares down in the now opened eyes of Peeta's baby. She notices the baby having the same exact shade of blue as his. The baby stares up at Katniss as she says, "Hi Lily, did my Juniper wake you up? I'm sorry."

Juniper comes over to Katniss and makes loud babbling noises, trying to talk. Katniss holds her finger to her lips, signaling for Juniper to be quiet. Now 16 months, Juniper was running around the house, going as fast her little chubby legs would take her.

"Where did that curly hair come from?" Delly asks as she takes a seat next to Katniss.

"Gale's sister Posy. She has the exact same hair."

"She takes after both Aunts then" Peeta says smiling, walking into the room with Hunter at his heels.

While Juniper still had Prim's blue eyes, when her hair had finally come in, both she and Gale were shocked to see that while her hair was as dark as theirs, it wasn't straight, but curly, the same as Posy's.

"She's so precious, congratulations to all of you" Katniss says smiling to Peeta, Delly, and Hunter.

"Thank you" Delly says appreciatively.

"Are you nervous about tomorrow?" Peeta asks.

"Yes and no. PES pretty much has my speech prepared, but I'm not very good at following script."

"Unfortunately I don't remember but I've been told" Peeta says with a sad smile.

"I'm just afraid no one will show up."

"People will show, you still mean a lot to the people here Katniss. The four of us will be there so you will at least have a small showing."

"Thanks" Katniss says sincerely.

"I'm sorry Greasy Sae can't be there" Peeta says.

Katniss gets a pained look on her face. At the end of January, Gale had made the trip out to District 12 to see Greasy Sae, for she had been unable due to Avery being sick with strep throat and Paulina just beginning to work for them. Gale had told her when he got back their visit was good, but that Sae looked bad and that he knew it was only a matter of time before she was gone. She died two weeks later, devastated she wasn't able to say goodbye, Sae's grave was the first place she visited once she got off the train. She took comfort in the fact that the final thing she said to Gale before he left was that while she was sad she no longer saw the two of them anymore, it brought her so much happiness to know that they were happy. That she was okay, and that Gale continued to take care of her as he always did, and that they now had a family that they took care of together.

"I'm sorry too" Katniss says in response.


"So how did it go?" Gale asks as he and kids give Katniss and Juniper a big hug at the train station.

"Uh-ok. The turn out was pretty good, I think a lot of people who came just wanted to see me again though. And wanted to see, well you know" Katniss says not elaborating further since the kids were around.

Knowing that she meant the residents of 12 wanted to see if drama broke out between Katniss, Delly, and Peeta. Gale asks, "And?"

"Some were disappointed I think. No dramatics to be seen."

"So how many people signed up for the prep exam class?"

"Three. I'm really happy with that, I didn't think any would show."

"Great! We knew you'd do well, in fact, we all planned something special for you."

"Oh?" Katniss says intrigued.

"We made lunch for you! Dad said we could go down to the lake to eat it after we came to get you and Juniper" Jackson says eagerly.

"You made lunch for me?" Katniss says sweetly to him.

"Dad helped" Avery says.

"That's if you are not too tired" Gale says.

"No, Juniper slept pretty good on the train this morning. I'm fine with heading to the lake. And I'm starving, shall we go now?"

The six of them head from the train station towards the main part of the village and to the lake. Having everything packed in a brown picnic basket, Gale lays a large blanket out as they sit down to eat.

"I missed you Mommy" Jackson says to Katniss as they begin taking the food out to eat.

"I missed you too Jack" Katniss says reaching out and giving her son a big hug, holding him tight.

"When do you go away again" Avery asks when they begin eating their lunch.

"Not until August. I go to District 11, and then in September and October I will be gone more often to visit all the other Districts I'm assigned to. PES will be starting a new teaching class next January."

"Will you miss me and Dad's birthday in October?" Sienna asks.

"No sweetie. PES knows there's certain days I cannot travel. I would never miss your birthday, not ever."

Katniss sees a look of relief on Sienna's face as she turns her attention back to her sandwich.

"Were all of you good for Miss Pauline while I was gone?"

All three of them mumble yes while they continued to eat. Katniss looks at Gale who says, "They were pretty good yeah, Jack wasn't quite as cooperative on the first day, but Miss Pauline understood because he missed his Mom."

Katniss nods and says to them, "I missed all of you-so much. Just remember even when we are apart, I'm always with you."

"What do you mean?" Jackson says.

"You are always in my thoughts, and I'll always be with you, no matter how far away I am."

Jackson nods and says, "Can I go play down by the lake now?"

"Once your sisters are finished eating you can all go down" Gale says.

A few minutes later Katniss and Gale watch as the three of them play by the water, Juniper running back and forth to both she and Gale on the blanket.

"How bad was it really?" Katniss asks.

"Sienna and Avery were fine. Jack was really the only one who had a hard time. He is only five."

"Yeah, maybe in August he can come with me before he starts school."

"I think that be good, maybe Juniper can stay with my Mom."

"Or with my Mom" Katniss says in an annoyed tone.

"Sure" Gale says, not sure what caused the sudden change in her demeanor.

Sensing his confusion, Katniss responds by saying, "Being in 12, brought back some memories of the past, I took a walk down by what was once the Seam, I hadn't been there in forever. Even when I was living there after the war I never visited that area. I walked over to the place that was once my house, it's nothing but grass now of course. But I knew the place, I'll always know it."

Gale places a hand on her knee, and says, "Did you go into the woods?"

She smiles and says, "Yes, I'm trying to find our tree, but I couldn't find it."

"Well, it's not like we haven't marked any of the trees in the woods behind our house."

"I know, but it's not the same."

"True."

"Though the trees behind our house don't just have our names, but all these names as well" Katniss says pointing to their children.

Gale leans forward and gives her a fierce kiss, letting her know just how much he missed her while she was gone.

A/N: You will see a time jump in the next chapter.