PEETA POV

It was now late September, still a little warm from the final rays of summer, but the cool breeze of autumn was in the air. I was doing a little bit of work at the bakery again, after a long talk convinced my mother that my help may actually be useful to her. People were willing to spend more on a cake made by a Hunger Games victor, and there were people in the Capitol who wanted to order a cake decorated by me, and my mother of course couldn't pass up on the opportunity. Ever since I came back, she's been less abusive towards me, likely because of my actions in the Hunger Games, but she also didn't speak to me nearly as much. I suppose more silence was a better alternative than being slapped around or beaten with a rolling pin. I knew she disapproved of my relationship with Katniss, too.

"Refugees don't have a place with merchants," she said out of the blue one day.

"Mothers shouldn't hit their children, either," I replied, my newfound boldness coming from spending so much time with Katniss. My mother didn't respond to me after that, but instead, went upstairs to the apartment above the bakery. My family didn't come with me to my house because they wanted to stay close to the bakery, which made sense. My oldest brother, Christos, would be moving out soon, anyway, as he was engaged to his childhood friend, Aaricia Lennon, the blacksmith's daughter, and would be apprenticing as a blacksmith. My older brother, Donnel, who we called Rye, just recently graduated school and would be working full time at the bakery, so with Christos leaving, they needed my help.

The one thing about Katniss that my mother respected was the fact that she was a district midwife, which was a very honourable job to have in District Twelve. The district midwives would answer any call at any hour and in any weather to bring a baby into the world, whether it was Seam or merchant, and it didn't matter where that midwife came from. "At least she's a midwife," my mother said another time. "I can't imagine my son marrying a coal miner." Katniss and I hadn't even talked about marriage, but it was inevitable, wasn't it?

Katniss was very busy this time of year, as a lot of babies were conceived in the winter and born in the fall. On the day she had a later shift, I made sure to steal some time with her, luring her into my home with cheese buns and stealing as many kisses as I possibly could. I guess the passion became too much for her because she demanded then that I take her upstairs, and of course, I had to oblige my beautiful woman. We still hadn't made love the same way we had in the arena - we mostly just touched each other and all that - but that didn't mean that we couldn't heat the bed. After I'd made her come three times, once with my mouth and twice with my hand, we lay on the bed with the sheets and comforter kicked off to cool us down just a bit. Katniss was on her back and I was on my left side, kissing her bare shoulder and running my hand up and down her stomach when my hand passed over a somewhat rigid bump over her lower stomach. I ran my hand over it again, and then again, pressing down on it the third time.

"Everything all right?" she asked me, looking at me curiously as I examined this mysterious lump.

"I hope so... I don't remember feeling this little bump here the last time we were together," I replied, meeting her eyes. "Maybe you should ask your mom to look at you."

"She's not my mother," Katniss reminded me sharply, her hand pushing mine out of the way to feel that rigid little bump. I watched her hand first, and then her eyes, and saw a momentary flash of panic in them before she buried it away.

"Katniss, are you sure you're okay?" I asked her.

"Fine... never better..." she said somewhat quickly, and she sat up and started to dress in her uniform again.

"Katniss," I said, disappointed that our morning together was coming to an end.

"I've got to go, Peeta, or I'll be late," she replied, not meeting my eyes.

"If the lump freaked you out, I'm sure it's nothing!" I said, sitting up and pulling her to me. She was facing me, her hands on my shoulders and her eyes not meeting mine.

"I'm not worried about the lump," she replied, and then she looked up at me, giving me a forced smile. "I'll be fine. It's probably breakfast or something, or even a touch of gas. Who knows?" She leaned forward to catch my lips in a chaste kiss. "I'll come by later if I can, all right?" I nodded as she pushed a hand through my hair and I pulled her to my chest to kiss her again.

"I love you," I told her.

"I love you, too, Peeta," she replied, trying to reassure me that there was nothing wrong, but she was not good at hiding that hint of panic in her eyes. Before I knew it, she was out of my arms and out the door, and I just sighed, dressed and made my way down to the bakery.

KATNISS POV

I was very worried about the lump. For a couple of weeks, I'd suspected that something was amiss, especially when I woke up nauseous every day for five days straight and threw up bile into my toilet. You can't ignore your symptoms when you're trained to recognise them. Peeta and I hadn't been together since the tenth of July, and we hadn't used protection, either. Why would we have? We both thought we were going to die, so it didn't really matter, did it? Neither of us thought we'd even make it as far as we did, let alone survive. It was the twenty-fourth of September, which would mark two and a half months since the night Peeta and I made love to each other - ten weeks.

I tried not to let my worry show, though, as I had work to do and mothers to tend to. The only merchant midwife, Sidney Silversmith, smiled warmly at me when I walked into the little hovel we called our clinic. "Hi, Katniss," she said with a smile, and I gave her a gentle smile in return. Sidney Silversmith was the wife of a district official and was in her mid-30s. She was a mother herself, but she was a very skilled midwife and we needed her. Most mothers in District Twelve stay home to raise their children or work in their husbands' businesses, but with Mr. Silversmith being a district official and their children being almost fourteen, sixteen and ten, we were glad to have Sidney.

"Morning, Sidney," I said in response, trying to hide any discomfort from my thoughts from earlier. "Are Astrella and Cascade here yet?"

"They've both gone out. Mrs. Keely's gone into labour and it's twins," said Sidney in response. Astrella Clover and Cascade Hawthorne were the other midwives that were from the Seam. Astrella Clover was a coal miner's wife and she was, unfortunately, sterile, so she couldn't have children, and Cascade Hawthorne was indeed related to Gale - she was his father's sister, so his aunt, and she never married. Both of them were in their forties. I was the only midwife between us four who was Hebridean, so I was often the one sent out to Hebridean mothers.

Later in the day, when I had a moment, I snuck out to the bathroom to pee into a cup. My job at that time was to test the urine samples we were given for the week, which added up to four, and I fudged the paperwork just a little to make it look like there were supposed to be five, using the name of Peeta's brother's fiancée. I dropped the chemicals into each of the cups and let them sit and develop for an hour. If they turned purple, they were positive, and if they remained the same colour, they were negative. When they were finally done, I looked at all five of the little cups that were there - three were positive, two were negative. My stomach clenched and I carefully and slowly made my way over to the table, reading the names of each little cup.

Hazel Walters - negative

Cady Hansey - positive

Blue Wintergreen - positive

Ivy Lewis - negative

My heart dropped into my stomach.

Aaricia Lennon - positive

I went blind. I lost my vision for I don't even know how long and I felt sick to my stomach. I started panicking and breathing heavily, trying so hard to calm myself down, but I just couldn't. I grabbed the cup and the paperwork associated with it and ran out of the clinic, my eyes blinded by panic. I needed to get away from everything. I needed to get to the woods. I needed Gale's familiar friendship, I needed Peeta's strong arms and his whispered words. I needed my mother - not Agnessa, my real mother, Eilidh - but she was dead, and I'd never have the chance to see her again. I didn't even know where I was running to, but I suddenly found myself in somebody's arms and my vision finally came to; I was on the ground, looking down towards it, and there were small hands on my back.

"For god's sake, girl, calm down!" I heard a familiar voice, and I picked up my head to meet the grey eyes of Mellie Mellark, Peeta's mother. I gasped and backed away from her, finding myself behind the bakery as I backed into the same apple tree Peeta had given me the bread under. "What on earth has gotten into you?"

"I... I..." I stuttered, unable to get a single word out of my throat. I was shaking furiously and I must have looked like quite the sight. "Wh... P... wh..." There were tears falling freely from my eyes as I pulled my knees to my chest and rocked myself back and forth. The English words of what I wanted to say wouldn't come to me, so I said the words in Gàidhlig. "Where is Peeta? Where is Peeta?"

"He isn't here," she said in English, which caused my eyes to widen, and for a moment, I was distracted from my panic. This was a woman who hated refugees and people from the Seam, and she could understand what I said? She must have read the expression on my face because hers turned angry. "Get out of here, girl, you aren't welcome here! Get!" I quickly got up and ran off, still gripping the positive pregnancy test in my hand, and I made my way back to the Village. Could I tell Prim? No, she's too young! She'll never understand! I couldn't tell Agnessa, she'd have way too much satisfaction from telling me 'I told you so'. Could I tell Peeta? I should tell Peeta, but in the moment, I was so afraid to see him and to admit that I was carrying a child inside of me, the one thing in this world that I would never, ever want. I didn't even know where he was, anyway!

So I ran to Haymitch. I burst in through his door, startling him from his sleep. "The hell are you whinin' about, girl?" he snapped at me when I threw myself at his feet, hyperventilating and shoving the cup with the purple liquid into his hands. He took it from me and examined it. "The hell is this? Some girl's piss in a cup? Aaricia Lennon... Don't know her. She a friend?" He handed it back to me.

"It's... it's not... it's not hers... I... put a... fake name... on... it..." I puffed, and Haymitch let out a sigh and handed me the bottle of white liquor in his hands.

"Drink this, sweetheart, you need it," he said, but I shook my head.

"I can't..." I said, my eyes falling to the cup in his hands. Haymitch followed my gaze, then looked back up at me as the realisation dawned on him.

"Oh, kid... You're kiddin', aren't you?" I shook my head and buried my face in my hands to hide my sobs, and I felt Haymitch's arms wrap themselves around me. He awkwardly patted my back as he tried to comfort me. "I didn't even know y'all were at that point yet. How can ya even know?"

"It happened... before the Games..." I said, sniffling. "The night before the Games... we got together, and... and we didn't use any kind of protection. Why would we? We both thought we were going to die..."

"Have you told the boy?"

"I've only just found out now! Or ten minutes ago, I don't know... I don't know where he is..." Haymitch's eyes glanced up over my shoulder and I heard a footstep, and when I turned, I saw Peeta standing in the doorframe looking both concerned and confused.

"What's going on?" he asked, and suddenly, I couldn't find the ability to speak anymore. I stared at him with my eyes wide as he looked between myself and Haymitch. "Katniss, what's going on? Haymitch?" Haymitch raised a finger to his lips and pointed to the ceiling, then motioned for Peeta to come over, which he did, and he knelt down on the floor beside me. I was shaking like a leaf, and he just put one hand on my upper back and rubbed it soothingly while taking one of my hands in his other. Haymitch then handed Peeta the cup with the purple liquid inside of it and Peeta examined it curiously. "Aaricia Lennon? Katniss, what is this?"

"It ain't whoever the hell that is," Haymitch told him.

"What even is it?" Peeta asked our mentor.

"Boy, you are thick. Let's go outside," Haymitch replied, standing up. Peeta helped me to stand and walked me out to Haymitch's backyard. "Sweetheart, do you wanna tell him?" Haymitch asked me, and I slowly glanced up at the two of them. I swallowed my fear and took both of Peeta's hands in mine, closing my eyes for a moment to fend off the tears before opening them again to meet Peeta's patient blue ones.

"Peeta..." I began. "That's a test that we give to all women in the district who are married... They have to get them once a month, to check and see if they're..." I paused for a moment. "...you know what the Capitol asks of married couples..."

"That they have kids?" Peeta asked, and I nodded. "So what is this? It has my brother's fiancée's name on it. I don't understand your reaction. Are you saying she's..." He trailed off, clearly very confused about the situation. He hadn't made the connection yet. I shook my head, and then I took his hand and placed it over that little lump he'd found on my stomach earlier that morning, and that was when it dawned on him. His free hand covered his mouth as he realised what I was saying. "It... it's yours ?" he whispered quietly, and I nodded, closing my eyes again to fight off more tears. "My god... Wh-what do we do? Haymitch?"

"Ain't my thing. I can't do nothin' but keep quiet," Haymitch replied.

"We... we can get rid of it... if you... if you'd like..." Peeta told me, and my eyes shot open and I must have looked shocked. "Katniss, you don't want this... I can't live with myself if I've forced something on you that you didn't ask for. So if you want to get rid of it... then we will."

"That's illegal," I said back quietly.

"I know... I'm willing to do anything to make you happy, Katniss. I love you," Peeta replied. God, how dare he be so kind? He was the most selfless person I'd ever met! I shook my head and then wrapped my arms around his neck, resting my chin on his shoulder.

"I can't kill another child..." I whispered into his ear. "I don't know what to do... but I couldn't go through with that even if I wanted to."

"I guess we can hope it... deals with itself on its own..." Peeta replied. I could feel more tears coming on and I buried my face into his shoulder. In response, Peeta gently rubbed my back and held me tightly.

"Snow's gonna find eventually, if you intend on keepin' it. The victory tour's in a few months. Kid ain't gonna come before it, either," Haymitch told us. It was harsh, but it was his job to be realistic. "Y'all know the drill with children of victors..."

"We'll find a way," Peeta said, burying his lips in my hair. "We always manage to find a way, don't we?"

"There's no way I can hide it, Peeta. Not forever," I told him. I then pulled back somewhat from Peeta's embrace and looked at Haymitch. "Do we have to tell him?"

"There ain't no protocol for this kinda stuff. Then again, most victors don't run into this kinda situation right away," Haymitch replied. "Just do what you're doin'... if Snow wants somethin' done, he'll come to you, but you can't hide it. Don't act suspicious. That's what's gonna draw attention to you. You're already on thin ice with him, sweetheart."

"I know," I replied, laying my head on Peeta's shoulder.

"I'm gonna leave y'all alone now, since I got rudely awoken from my nap. Take whatever time ya need," Haymitch told us, and he stalked off back inside his house. Peeta and I were silent for a moment as he held me tightly and every so often, I felt his lips in my hair.

"We'll have to tell your mother," he whispered to me.

"She's not my mother," I said firmly.

"Fine, we'll have to tell your aunt . You heard Haymitch... we shouldn't hide this. We should act like we're happy about this."

"Easy for you to say. You are happy about this. You wanted this."

"Not this way," he said firmly, and I picked up my head to look at him. "I wanted children, yes, but I didn't want them to be forced on you. I was willing to wait until you were ready, and if you never were then I could accept that, too. We both knew we were going to be expected to have kids someday whether we liked it or not..."

"I don't know how I could possibly be happy about this..." I pulled back from the embrace and my hand rested on my small little bump. "This child is being raised for slaughter... This child will see the arena, and we're going to have to find a way to keep them alive. We don't know how old they'll be when that happens, we just know that it will, and we'll lose this child." I felt another tear fall from my eye and roll down my cheek. "I'm afraid to love it because I know I'm going to lose it..."

"Honey," Peeta said, pulling me back into his arms. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there... If this baby even makes it, we should make sure it knows how loved it is. Not every child of a victor has been reaped. Maybe we'll get lucky..."

"But we won't. Snow is angry with us. The Capitol is angry with us. Snow's going to punish us by taking any children we have and throwing them into the arena to die. The odds will never be in their favour!"

"I know..." He buried his hand in my hair and let out a deep sigh. "I'm so sorry... This is all my fault."

"How is it your fault? We did this together. It takes two to make a baby, Peeta."

"I shouldn't have let us go that far... I shouldn't have let that night happen." I pulled back from the embrace, now furious with him.

"How dare you say that? Peeta, I don't regret a second of time that we've spent together, even if it led me to facing one of my greatest fears! Who knows what would have happened if you'd stopped us... What if we didn't survive in the arena? Or worse, what if we did and I thought you didn't love me? What if that night was what gave me the courage to beg you to understand me and what I was feeling? Peeta, I regret nothing about that night and I wouldn't have it any other way."

"I'm sorry... I just... I can't imagine how scared you are right now. I didn't want you to get hurt or have to ever face this but now you are and there's nothing I can do."

"I'm not facing it alone, Peeta. I have you. I don't know what I'd be doing now if I didn't have you by my side. You're the reason I've been able to cope with what happened in the Games. You're the reason I haven't turned into my own version of Haymitch. Peeta, I wouldn't change a single thing if it meant that I wouldn't be standing here with you by my side. I need you, more than anything or anyone in the world." To solidify my point, I took his face in my hands and gave him a deep, passionate kiss, and then I held him against me again with my hand in his hair. "We'll deal with this... We'll face this together. We already knew that we'd never leave the arena... it's just on a whole different scale now."

"I love you so much, Katniss... I promise we'll get through this together. I'm not leaving you."

"You'd better not," I said, and he chuckled gently. "I love you, too..." We held each other in silence. I won't lie, I was terrified of what was to come. I knew what having a child meant. I knew the procedure and I knew what could happen. But one thing I could always do - that I always had to do - was set aside my fear when someone I loved was fearful, too. I had to be strong for Peeta, or perhaps we wouldn't get through this. I knew he wanted to be the one who was strong for me, but in truth, I had to be strong for him. He would never stop blaming himself for what happened to me after the Games, always saying that he should have eaten those damn berries so I could be the sole victor, just like they wanted. As much trouble as those damn berries have brought me, I wouldn't trade that decision for anything.

PEETA POV

I was going to be a dad. Katniss was going to be the mother of my child. Holy shit, I was going to be a dad . I was sixteen years old, I had just survived the Hunger Games, and I was going to be a dad. When I realised that Katniss had told me she was pregnant, I felt my throat close up and my eyes tear up, but I couldn't allow myself to be weak or scared. Katniss needed me to be strong for her - she was the one who was having the baby, and she was the one who was vehemently opposed to having children, and I can't blame her. I wanted children so badly, but she was right, the children of victors were more likely to be reaped, and the children of the Star-Crossed Lovers of District Twelve? The Capitol was probably already taking money for those Games, however far in the future they might be. This child won't live past reaping age because they will be guaranteed to be reaped, and it made me sick to think that my child was going to die still a child at the hands of the Capitol.

I needed to see my dad. I needed someone who knew what it felt like to have a child in a world where children were killed for sport. I know my dad loved myself, Christos and Rye more than anything in the world and he really did have to watch one of his children get reaped. He was the only person I trusted to go to for advice, and so when the bakery was closed, I asked him to meet me in the meadow, in a place where we could safely have a quiet conversation. When he met me, I was seated on a rock staring out at the mountains beyond the fence and he startled me by putting a hand on my back. "Relax, Peet. It's just your dad," he told me, bending down to kiss my head before sitting down beside me. "What's the matter, son? You seem jumpy."

"So many things," I said, looking away from him and back out at the mountains. My hands were in my lap and were fiddling with my shirt. Dad and I were very similar physically. We had the same blue eyes, the same square jaw and the same honey golden colour of blonde hair. I was a little shorter than him, but then again, I was still growing, and we both had broad shoulders and stocky builds. Rye looked more like Mom, with sandy blonde hair with a tint of red in the sun and her stormy grey blue eyes - the same shade, actually, as Katniss's eyes. Christos was a bit of a mix between the two. He had Mom's eyes and Dad's hair.

"Well, I've only got about an hour before your mother will come looking for me... but I suppose she can start dinner without me," said Dad, rubbing my upper back affectionately. "Talk to me, Peet. What's on your mind?"

"What did it feel like when Chris was born?" I asked, unsure how else to start the conversation.

"What do you mean?" asked my Dad.

"You knew there was a chance he could get reaped and get sent to the Hunger Games... What did it feel like when Mom told you she was having him?"

"I guess I didn't think about that at the time... I was excited, really. I'd always wanted children, and when I held him for the first time, I was happier than anyone else in the world. Why are you asking this?"

"What did it feel like when I got reaped?" He was silent for a moment, and then he let out a sigh.

"Peet, is there something you need to tell me?"

"Dad, please answer the question." He was silent again, and he then wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer to him, resting his cheek on the top of my head.

"It felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest and stomped on right in front of me. One of my babies was being sent to be killed for the entertainment of garishly dressed people who have no care in the world for our suffering, and they didn't care. I was so scared for you, Peeta." He buried his lips in my hair again as his voice cracked a little. "I wanted to beg Katniss to protect and save you, but I knew it wouldn't be right to do that. I'd basically be asking her to die to keep you alive. I was prepared to never see you again." He was quiet again. "I know I haven't been the best father to you, Peeta, but I love you more than anything in the world. You're my son. You're my boy and you're part of me and I want to keep you safe. I felt helpless that I couldn't protect you from the Capitol. The day you and Katniss won the Games, I was so happy that you'd be coming back home. You can ask your brothers if you want but I cried tears of joy for hours after that. I love your brothers too, but you and I have always been the closest. You're the most like me." He squeezed my shoulder affectionately. "Now it's your turn to talk. What's bringing on all these questions?" It was my turn to be silent as I tried to figure out how best to word it, and then I decided to just come out and say it.

"Katniss is pregnant," I told him. "It's mine..."

"Peeta..." I didn't want to look up and see his shocked expression, so I didn't. I just laid my head on my father's protective shoulder while he processed what I had just said. "Victors' children..."

"Are more likely to be reaped, yes..."

"How's she doing?"

"Scared out of her mind. She didn't want kids for that exact reason."

"How far along is she?"

"I don't know... it happened the night before the Games."

"That was almost three months ago."

"Yup." Another moment of silence passed between us.

"You're going to be a good dad." I picked my head up then to look at him, having expected some lecture about how I was stupid to get a girl pregnant at sixteen, so that was not at all what I had expected. "I mean it, Peet. If you love that kid anything like you love it's mother, you're going to be an incredible father."

"You don't think I'm too young?"

"I think you're too young for a lot of things, such as fighting in a death game for the entertainment of rich and garish strangers." I couldn't help the gentle chuckle that fell from my lips. "Those Games forced you to grow up a hell of a lot faster than you should have... same as your mother. You've got more money than you know what to do with now so you can support Katniss. That child will never go hungry, nor will he or she ever want for love. And I know Katniss will be an incredible mother. Don't let her doubt herself. The way she took care of her family... and they weren't even her blood family."

"You know about that?"

"Son, everyone knows that Katniss isn't actually Agnessa's daughter. Eight-year-old children don't just appear out of nowhere." I nodded, then looked back out at the mountains. "There's no guarantee that your child will be reaped, but there is definitely a higher chance. Just hope against hope that you get lucky. You're already the luckiest man in all of Panem."

"Thanks, Dad... I'm really glad I could talk to you about this. I think I'm more scared about what's going to happen to my kid in the future than I am about it coming."

"That's a perfectly valid fear to have." He stood up and pulled me to stand, then pulled me into a tight embrace. "Live in the moment, son. Life's too short to focus on what hasn't happened yet."

"I will, Dad. Thank you," I told him as I embraced him.

"And marry that girl, too, won't you? I know you're both victors, but Peet, you still have to do the right thing."

"I will. I swear I will."

"That's my boy." He kissed the top of my head again before breaking from the embrace. "Go on back to her, then, and take good care of her. If either of you need anything, call me and I'll do what I can." I nodded, and he ruffled my hair before we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. My father was incredibly supportive and that was enough to calm any fears I had - at least, for a little while. The Capitol still knew nothing about Katniss's pregnancy, although we were following Haymitch's advice and not really trying to hide it. I wasn't afraid to hold my child in my arms and raise that beautiful little baby, but I was terrified of what was to happen when President Snow found out.

When I returned home, Katniss was sitting on my stoop, still in her midwifery uniform as I approached. I smiled at her gently and sat down on the steps beside her. "Hey," I said, nudging her with my shoulder. "Did you tell your family?"

"Not yet," she replied. "Peeta, I was thinking... I don't want to be without you anymore, not in any sense. I can't sleep without you, I rely on you to keep me sane and just don't want to live under a roof that you don't also live under, even if that roof is just across the street."

"So what you're saying is..."

"I want to marry you, Peeta. I want to be yours in every sense, same as I want you to be mine. I don't know if it's... this situation... that's making me think like this, but I know that it's what I want. I know we're so young and we've just survived the Hunger Games, but..." I didn't let her finish. Instead, I got up and knelt down on one knee in front of her, taking her hands in mine, and she looked at me with a rather perplexed expression. "Peeta, what are you-"

"Shh, I'm proposing to you," I told her, and she shut her mouth. "Katniss, I have loved you every day since the day I heard you sing and the birds stopped to listen, and every single day, that love has gotten stronger and stronger. I know we were brought together by something so horrible that it only makes sense for us to be together, but I want you to know that no matter what happens, I always have and I always will love you so much. So Katniss... Will you marry me?"

"Peeta..." said Katniss with an endearing look in her eye. "Of course I'll marry you... I love you so much." With a smile on my face, I stood back up and pulled her into my arms, kissing her face all over until I finally landed on her lips as her arms wrapped around my neck. We were pulled from our moment of love by the sound of someone clearing their throat and when we both turned, we were surprised to see both Agnessa and Prim standing not very far away.

"What's going on here?" Agnessa asked suspiciously.

KATNISS POV

I was startled by Agnessa's sudden appearance that disrupted mine and Peeta's moment and I was not at all prepared to tell her that I was expecting a baby. She'd scold me, yell at me and I'd absolutely never hear the end of it about how 'immature and irresponsible' I am, even though she's only living a better life now because I survived the Hunger Games. I gripped onto Peeta's shoulders tightly as Agnessa impatiently tapped her foot. "I'm waiting," she said.

"Uh..." I said, unsure of where to even begin, and then Peeta took over.

"I've just proposed to Katniss and she said yes," he said, letting go of me and stepping to my side. I wasn't ready to let him go yet, so I grasped his arm and held on tightly. "I, uh... I'm really sorry that I didn't ask for your blessing first, Mrs. Everdeen. I just sort of, er... got caught up in the moment." He looked at me and smiled. "She's just so perfect... I can't help myself when she's around."

"Primrose, go inside," Agnessa told Prim in an agitated tone. Prim didn't even try to argue - she just quickly ran inside, and Agnessa turned on us. "You've proposed to her? Might I ask why?"

"Because he loves me, Agnessa. Why else do you ask someone to marry you?" I said to her somewhat rudely.

"You know as well as I do, Katniss Everdeen, that that is not the only reason people propose marriage, especially in the districts," Agnessa spat back. "I knew I should have had you tested. You're pregnant, aren't you? How could you both be so foolish? Katniss, you of all people should know better, being a midwife! How far along are you?" There was no point in lying to her. I just let out a sigh.

"Ten weeks," I replied quietly.

" Ten weeks? And you're just telling me now ?"

"I've only known since this morning! Agnessa, I swear I had no reason to suspect before-"

"Nausea, vomiting, a lack of your period-" She'd started in English before she swapped over to scold me in Gàidhlig, which was easier for both of us. "Katniss, you knew ! There is no way you couldn't have known!"

"I didn't want to believe it was possible, Agnessa! You know I didn't want children!" I spat back.

"So what made you think having sex was a good idea? Unprotected sex, no less!"

"It happened the night before the Games! We both thought we were going to die and we seized the moment! I don't care how stupid or foolish you think I am because I don't regret it one bit!"

"And what would you have done if he didn't come out of the Games with you?"

"Then I still would be carrying his baby! Agnessa, I've got more money now than I know what to do with. This baby will never want for anything. I don't go to school, I'll never work in the mines. I don't even have to hunt, but I still do that. What do you think I would have done?" She then turned on Peeta, speaking to him in English.

"You should be so ashamed of yourself. How dare you take advantage of her like that?" she demanded from him.

"He didn't take advantage of me, I asked him to! He would have been perfectly fine with us not doing anything so don't you dare turn on him!" I spat back, not giving Peeta, who looked terrified, a chance to respond.

"Your father will be furious, Peeta Mellark. You'd better marry her or I swear I'll-"

"Do what?" I demanded, shutting her up, and then I spoke to her in Gàidhlig. "This baby is the child of two victors of the Games. This child is guaranteed to be reaped. After what we've been through, we deserve to be treated and respected like adults. I know we're still both just sixteen, but we've both been forced to grow up way beyond our years. Your anger is unjust." She was silent as she listened to me speak. "I'm not going to put up with you trying to control me anymore. I'm going to marry Peeta, I'm going to have this baby and I'm going to live my life the way that I want to live it because Agnessa, my life fucking sucks and you know what? That's okay, because I'm going to make the best of it, and you are not taking that away from me. Accept the fact that you are not my mother and hope that I have enough heart in me to even let you be a part of my child's life." She was stunned into silence now, her eyes wide and her face reading an expression of hurt. I then switched gears and spoke again in English. "Keep the house, and my victor's winnings. Peeta and I can live more than comfortably on his alone. I'm moving in with Peeta and I'll let you know when we decide to do the toasting."

With that said, I turned on my heel and stalked into Peeta's house, not wanting to be around her for another moment. After a few more minutes, Peeta joined me inside and pulled me into his arms from behind. "Are you okay?" he asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, somewhat sadly, and then I lifted my head to look at him. "Are you up for dinner? I'm quite hungry."

And that was that. Haymitch knew and so did Agnessa, and I believe Peeta had gone to tell his father, too. Inside of me was a tiny human, half Peeta and half me, that was going to grow up and be sent for slaughter, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. As Peeta made dinner, I took a moment to go into the bathroom to look at my reflection. The girl looking back at me was going to be a mother. She had the chocolate brown hair of Clan Fòlais, and the stormy grey eyes of Hebridia. And inside of her was a child that may have the same Hebridean storm grey eyes and chocolate brown Fòlais hair as it's mother, or a child that may have the same merchant blue eyes and honey golden blonde hair as its father. Or maybe both. Perhaps it would have chocolate brown Fòlais hair and merchant blue eyes, or perhaps it would have honey golden blonde hair and Hebridean storm grey eyes. The girl in the mirror met my eyes and her hand roamed her abdomen until it came to rest on the little bump that was already forming there, and her lips stretched into a gentle smile.

Despite how scared I truly was, I knew that there was nothing I could do to stop myself from loving this child, and I will do whatever it takes to protect it.

PEETA POV

I couldn't rest easy knowing that Katniss and Agnessa were on such bad terms, so I found myself knocking on the door of Katniss's old house a couple of days after we discovered her pregnancy. I didn't expect Agnessa to answer the door, but she did, so I had to prepare myself to speak to her. "Good morning, Mrs. Everdeen," I began awkwardly, wringing my hands in front of me. "Um... I... I just wanted to say that... I meant no disrespect whatsoever by proposing to Katniss without getting your blessing first. And as for the baby..." I let out a sigh. "It was not at all my intention for that to happen. I made a mistake and I want to apologise for my actions. I love Katniss more than anything and I will support and protect her no matter what happens or what decisions she makes."

"She's been saying for years she doesn't even want children," Agnessa told me firmly, and I nodded.

"Yes, I know..."

"You can assure me this wasn't against her will?"

"Not at all, Mrs. Everdeen! It was only the one time, I swear! We haven't been... that way... since."

"But you have been together in other ways."

"...yes..." Her expression turned into one of exasperation. "Mrs. Everdeen, please, I want you to know that I respect your daughter in every way and have not touched her unless she asked me to-"

"She's not my daughter, as she loves to remind me every day, and I'm sure she's told you the same."

"...yes, she has..."

"Peeta, I know you love and respect Katniss very much. I'm more disappointed in her for defying everything I've asked of her-"

"Mrs. Everdeen, forgive me, but Katniss has told me that you shut down after the death of your husband and left both her and Prim to fend for themselves. Katniss feels that you gave up your right to be a parent at least to her when you abandoned her and left her and Prim to starve." I shocked even myself. Something in me must have cracked, but I couldn't allow myself to stand back and let Agnessa assume things about Katniss. "She doesn't defy you just to do it, she doesn't listen to anything you have to say because you won't listen to her. When Katniss needed a mother, you weren't there for her. Maybe instead of being a mother to her... be her friend. Or her aunt, like you really are. I think you might find that Katniss will respond better to being asked to do something rather than told." Agnessa stood there in silence, stunned at my words. "I really hope that you'll be able to be in the life of our child and I really hope that you will be there for our toasting... We've decided to have it as soon as possible, while Katniss is still small enough for her pregnancy to go unnoticed. I'll let you know the date soon. Have a good day, Mrs. Everdeen."

I turned and left, wondering why the hell I felt drawn to speaking to Katniss's mother - aunt. I really hoped that I didn't make things worse between them...

A/N: What do you think will happen when President Snow finds out? Will Katniss be punished?

Please review!