Warning: This chapter contains adult situations and concepts including sexual discussion and sex as a plot point. The chapter will be slightly edited on FFnet but will be featured in its entirety on Ao3. Choose your path wisely. This is the last sex scene for a long while so drink your fill or skip it - whatever rubs your rhubarb.

We Didn't Start The Fire
by FanficAllergy & RoseFyre

oOo

Chapter Seventeen: Bizarre Love Triangle

oOo

Last Time in We Didn't Start The Fire:

Regretfully, I move to pull away, but Gale stops me. Resting his forehead on mine, he stares into my eyes. "Hey."

There's an ocean of meaning in that one word. With that single 'Hey,' Gale's confirming that we're still good, that the three of us are still good, and that, as much as this kiss was to prove a point, it was still real.

"Can we do that again?" I ask, a light smile on my face.

Gale answers my question with another kiss.

oOo

Early the following morning, we head outside. In the ruins of what looks to be a millhouse, I call a halt.

Katniss looks over at me in confusion. "Is there something wrong?"

I shake my head. "Yes and no."

Gale and I haven't talked to Katniss about what happened in training yesterday, and I don't want it hanging over our heads like this. So I sketch out what took place yesterday, including Gale's and my searing kiss.

"And I missed it?" She looks at us playfully. "I think I need to see a slow motion replay."

"This is not the Hunger Games and Caesar Flickerman is not narrating our story!" Gale protests, then pauses, regarding me with a look I can't identify but which seems to be part surprise and part desire. "Not that I wouldn't mind kissing you again, Mellark."

I nod. "That's something I think we need to talk about." My voice is husky to my ears. "Because I really want you to kiss me like that again. A lot. And maybe more."

"Can we talk about that later?" Gale asks. He gives me a shy smile. "You've got a way of confusing the fuck out of me, Mellark."

"That's me," I say. "Confusing Seam brats since April, 70."

Katniss comes up and wraps her arms around me. "That's okay, we love you anyways. Even if you are confusing."

"I'm not the confusing one."

"Whatever. You confuse us. You know what I mean."

I pull her around and drop a quick kiss on her mouth. "Yeah. I do." I look up at Gale. "I would be down if you ever want to kiss me like that again. Or all the time. I'm just saying."

Gale laughs. "That's okay, Peeta. I liked kissing you too. Anyway. Back to the main point. I think we need to get married."

"But we already are married," Katniss protests.

"No, I get what Gale's saying," I say, shaking my head. "To the idiots here in Thirteen, because we haven't filled out the paperwork, it means that in their eyes, we aren't married."

"So let's fill out the paperwork and get this over with!"

I give her another kiss, just because I can. "I agree with you. But there's three of us."

"Coin wants to get on our good side, right?"

"Yeah."

"So make her change the marriage laws," Katniss says. "Or at least make an exception for the paperwork. Didn't she say she would do that, back when we got here?"

I replay some of our earlier conversations. "Yeah. She said she would. Did she actually do it? Probably not."

"So let's just make her do it and get Thirteen married," Gale says.

"Does this mean we have to write vows again?" Katniss asks plaintively.

Gale and I laugh.

"No," I tell her. "We're already married. This is just a technicality."

She lets out a little sigh. "Oh good. I love you both, but writing speeches… I have to do that enough with these damn propos and my radio show."

"So does no vows mean no wedding night?" Gale asks.

"I'd be up for it," I say quickly.

Gale and I both turn to Katniss.

"I think I'm ready." She smiles.

"Think?" Gale says, looking at her carefully. "We don't want to put any pressure on you, Katniss."

Katniss smiles again. "I've been missing that and you both too. Besides, I need to start getting my body back in shape. I plan on joining you boys in the military as soon as I'm given the go ahead, and I overheard a few nurses talking about how intimacy is a good exercise."

I can't help it. I start laughing again. "You were listening to the nurses gossip?"

"It's not like there's much else to do unless I feel like watching the latest Finnick Odair special! Or worse, that stupid brightly colored blob show with the creepy smiling sun some psychologist here thought was good for children."

"So are you saying, if we get married by Thirteen standards, we're gonna have ourselves a wedding night?" Gale asks, trying not to sound too eager.

Katniss smiles. "I think that can be arranged."

"Yes!" Gale and I chorus.

oOo

The day of our Thirteen wedding arrives.

For some reason, I'm more nervous today than I was at my actual wedding. Back then, I was more worried Katniss or Gale would back out at the last minute, would tell me I wasn't good enough or they didn't want me. I know now it's not true. Instead, I have new worries, specifically that Coin might try to pull something. The woman was too quick to agree to our request for a real Thirteen wedding, immediately typing the date and time into her schedule.

Unfortunately, she only gave us a couple days to prepare. Not that there's much to prepare, but we do need to find suitable witnesses. Katniss gets off easy, tapping Lavinia as her witness. Gale wants to use Rory, since it's traditional for someone from the groom's family to stand up with him at his wedding, but Rory is too young, even by Thirteen's standards, so Violet steps in to take his place.

Which leaves me out in the cold.

I would ask my brother if he'd be my witness, but his squad has specialized amphibious training scheduled for this week, so they won't be in Thirteen during the wedding itself. Madge is the next logical person, but something Gale said earlier makes me think.

In the eyes of Thirteen, we're not married. Lavinia, Violet, and even Rye have all accepted that Katniss, Gale, and I are married. In order to convince Thirteen, we need a witness from Thirteen.

The question is who.

Most of our allies are transients like us, which doesn't help. Members of Gale's and my squad might work, and I don't think anyone would doubt Commander Pierce. However, when I go to ask him, I spot the hand-to-hand training instructor, Michelle Harrison, whipping a new set of cadets into shape, and I change my mind. She'd make an excellent witness, and she can kick anyone's ass who doubts her word.

She readily agrees, much to my relief, and even seems honored to be asked.

Unfortunately, I was right to be concerned about Coin. The woman decides the only appropriate witness to our wedding is herself and she will take Harrison's place as my witness, meaning all the work I've done to find a Thirteen witness is for naught. This is definitely not as bad as I had feared, but it's still worrisome. I wonder if this is just a precursor to Coin asking us to do something for her politically. It feels like that would be something she'd do.

Our official Thirteen wedding commences in the early afternoon of July Fifteenth, exactly eleven months after our real wedding. At least I won't have to worry about remembering the anniversary date.

Like Castor and Lavinia's wedding, it's more about filling out paperwork than celebrating a new union. I note the paperwork has been adjusted to accommodate three people, and that the clerk seems a little confused, especially when we insist on keeping our own names, but with President Coin overseeing the proceedings, things go off relatively smoothly. I guess that's one benefit of having the president as a witness.

As we finish up, signing the last few forms with an ostentatious pen that seems out of place in Thirteen, Fulvia runs in, a camera held in one hand. "Sorry I'm late! Did I miss anything?" The woman is panting. "I knew you were getting married and I was on my way here when I was struck by a sudden bolt of inspiration! We should film this and broadcast it across Panem as an inspiring story for the masses!"

"Have you ever attended a wedding here in Thirteen?" Gale asks rhetorically.

"Only the one. And, well, it was inspiring! I'm sure you three will liven things up!"

"Actually, we're more interested in just being married," I say tactfully. "We don't really care about all the pomp and pageantry."

"But… propos!"

"No," Gale says flatly.

Katniss shakes her head, agreeing with him.

"But… propo!" she says, turning to Coin, hoping the President will side with her.

Coin's lips turn up slightly. "I think our Mockingjays have made their wishes clear."

The woman's lower lip quivers slightly and I struggle not to laugh.

Katniss steps forward. "It's okay," she says awkwardly, patting the older woman's shoulder. "I'm sure there'll be other things you can film that are much more inspiring than us."

"That's right," I say, picking up the thread. "I mean, my brother might finally get off his ass and ask Madge to marry him. That'd be a real wedding, not just a technicality to help alleviate any confusion," I say, keeping an eye on Coin out of the corner of my eye.

Fulvia brightens. "You're right, that would be a better wedding. How soon do you think he'll be ready?" She's holding her camera like she's itching to run off and film him getting married right at this very moment.

I feel a little guilty that I've basically thrown Rye to the wolves, but not too guilty. He could use the push.

"I don't know," I say, struggling not to laugh. "You'll have to ask them."

"Oh, I will. Thank you so much for your wonderful suggestion!"

"Anytime, my dear. Anytime."

oOo

"Just kill me now," I groan, flopping down onto our shared bed.

"This was your idea," my husband tells me in a voice filled with amusement.

"What was his idea?" Katniss asks.

"Signing up for Thirteen's military."

Katniss smirks down at me. "He's got you there."

"I know, I know. Doesn't mean you have to listen to me."

"It's not like it's a bad idea, Peet. You're just angry Harrison kicked your ass in training today."

I rub the aching part of my anatomy. "How was I supposed to know she'd be upset she wasn't able to be my witness? It's not like we could say no to Coin."

"If it makes you feel any better, she's probably not pissed at you."

"Tell that to my aching muscles."

"Do you still want to have our wedding night?" Katniss asks, sitting down on the bed next to me.

"Oh hell yes!" I exclaim, grabbing her hand. "Knowing tonight was our wedding night was the only thing that made it possible for us to get through the rest of today. Even in Twelve, you get your wedding day off," I groan. "Thirteen just schedules it between breakfast and training." I roll my eyes. "It's not like anything important's actually gonna happen."

I know I probably shouldn't be complaining this much; I'm just annoyed. As much trouble as Thirteen's given us over not being married, they really don't seem to care about it once it actually happens.

"Well, you guys aren't getting anything until you take a shower," Katniss says, wrinkling her nose.

"What? Don't you like our manly musk?" I ask, looking up at her.

"It was fine when we were living without running water," she replies. "But now that we have sweet, sweet indoor plumbing, you ain't getting into me until you get into the shower."

Gale laughs. "Fair enough. To be honest, I wouldn't want to do myself, and I'm hotter than either of you."

"Yes, yes you are," I say to my husband. Of the three of us, Gale is clearly the best-looking. It's not like it matters, I'd love him even if he were as ugly as, I don't know, Haymitch Abernathy. But I have to admit, having two attractive spouses doesn't hurt. I'm shallow enough to admit it.

"So do you want to take the first shower or should I?" he asks me, poking at my foot with one hand.

I wave him off. "I don't feel like moving right now."

Katniss laughs and I see Gale head into the bathroom.

Katniss motions for me to roll over. I do, and soon after I feel her strong fingers pushing at the knots in my back. "So Harrison went a little hard on you today?"

I let out an involuntary moan when she finds a spot under my shoulder blade. "Yeah. She's good. I think you'll like her."

Katniss makes a noncommittal noise. "I don't know. I'm still waiting for the doctors to clear me."

"I'm sorry about that."

"Me too. Although they seemed excited when I told them I was planning on having sex at my last checkup. Even gave me a large bottle of lube."

"Why would you need that?" I ask in confusion. We've never had problems getting Katniss wet. Even if she starts out a bit dry from a bath or a swim, part of the fun of making love is making our wife drip with arousal.

Katniss pushes at a particularly stubborn spot near the base of my spine. "Apparently breastfeeding tends to lead to vaginal dryness. I talked to Mom afterwards, she confirmed that a lot of the women she used to see back in Twelve complained sex was uncomfortable while they were breastfeeding." She pauses. "But I'm kind of hoping we don't have to use it."

I roll over and take Katniss's hand in mine. "I don't want to hurt you. So we'll do whatever we need to do to avoid that. Even if it means using what the doctors gave you."

"Thanks," she murmurs, her fingers lightly playing with the hairs on the back of my hand. "It's just… I never realized just how much our lives would change. I mean, we haven't even been married a year, and already we're parents and the symbols of a revolution! If you'd have told me everything that happened when we were still back in Twelve, I would've laughed in your face and suggested that you go to the Capitol to become a soap opera storyteller. It's a bit unreal."

A frisson of worry zips through me. "Are you happy with us? With me?"

"Oh, Peeta." She leans down and gives me a kiss. "Of course I'm happy with you. With both of you. You make me happy. Our family makes me happy. It's just hard to take in sometimes. I still wish we were back in the cave, just the seven of us." She kisses me again. "Heck, I'd even be okay with the cats!"

I laugh.

Gale comes out a few minutes later and, regretfully, I get up to take my shower. While I'm in there, I realize it's possible Katniss could get pregnant. And after all of the issues we've faced because Rain is biologically mine, I come to a conclusion.

The next child we have has to be Gale's.

And unless we can guarantee Katniss can't become pregnant, that means I won't be able to make love to my wife.

I finish off my shower and head out to see Gale seated behind Katniss on our bed, giving her a backrub. I can see he hasn't bothered getting dressed, and other than the towel I have wrapped around my waist, Katniss is the only one of us who's still fully dressed.

"What's wrong, Peet?" Gale asks, looking up.

"Nothing, just stubbed my toe stepping out of the shower." It's a lie. The first I've told to my spouses. I feel sick to my stomach.

Gale winces in sympathy. "Oh, I hate when that happens."

I look at them. "There's one thing I should ask. Considering Thirteen's stance on parenthood and pregnancy, did they give you anything to prevent it?"

Katniss shakes her head. "Honestly, I didn't even think of asking. I'm breastfeeding, I don't think I can get pregnant again so soon."

I'm not so sure. I was conceived when my mother was still breastfeeding Rye. There's less than a year's difference between my middle brother and me.

That helps me make up my mind. Even though it's technically my turn, Gale's got to be the one who actually has sex with Katniss. Not that keeping track of whose turn it is matters to me or Gale, but it matters to Katniss. She's so worried about us being jealous of each other that she keeps track in her head. And because she does, we do too.

"Katniss told me about the lube," Gale says. "I don't think we'll need it, we just need to take care of our girl first. I don't know about you, Peet, but I've been looking forward to eating Katniss out."

We haven't done that in a while, even before we stopped having sex entirely, since she hasn't wanted it. But I can't help smiling. "Hearing her make those little noises? Damn right I've been looking forward to it."

"Guys, I'm right here."

"Really?" I say, dropping my towel and moving to kneel in front of her. "I hadn't noticed."

She bends down to capture my lips with hers.

Damn, I love kissing my wife!

There's always a little thrill that I get to do this with Katniss, that Katniss loves me like I've loved her for years. And having Gale here makes it even better.

I feel my husband's hands move around to the front of Katniss's coverall and start to unbutton it. I'm looking forward to this, and I feel myself already becoming erect.

As he works, Gale's hands brush against my chest and I feel a jolt of desire go through me. I wish he and I had been able to have that talk about what's okay and what's not, because right now, I want nothing more than to make love to both of my spouses and be with them in every way possible.

When he finishes unbuttoning her front, I slip my hands underneath the coverall to caress and touch Katniss's bare skin. Tearing my lips from hers, I kiss my way down the column of her throat to her chest while my hands glide up her sides to help her free her arms.

I feel Katniss's body arch and I glance up to see that Gale's taken my place at Katniss's lips. Good. This gives me time to figure out my plan of attack. I'm going to have to be careful, otherwise they won't go along with me.

I feel a stab of guilt go through me. We should probably talk about this, but I don't want to ruin the mood. And Gale and I have already agreed that the next child we have should be his. I feel like we'd be rehashing old ground.

We can talk about it later.

Katniss moans.

Much later.

Right now I plan on making my wife come with my mouth. It's been so long since we've done this, I don't know how long we're going to last, and I want to make sure she enjoys herself.

We finish undressing Katniss and lay her back on the bed. She looks up at us. "Now kiss," she says, motioning at Gale and me.

Gale and I have a quick silent conversation. Is this okay?

The answer is yes.

Stretching forward, I run my fingers along Gale's jaw. I can feel the stubble underneath my fingertips. Then I bend down to capture his lips.

He tastes like the weird paste they use to clean teeth here in Thirteen and something else that I'm starting to associate with my husband.

Kissing Gale is nothing like kissing Katniss. There's an ongoing battle for dominance that doesn't happen when Katniss and I kiss. It's like we're unable to forget our earlier competition, and even though we've even managed to fall in love, it will always be there.

Eventually, I have to release his lips in order to catch my breath.

"That was hot," Katniss breathes.

"Sounds like our wife's a bit of a voyeur."

"If that means I like watching you guys be affectionate with each other, then yes, I am." She meets my eyes. "Kiss him again."

I do.

oOo

"What's up with you, Peeta?" Gale asks, rolling over to look at me once our heart rates have returned to normal and we've cleaned ourselves up a bit.

The lack of a nickname tells me, more than anything, how much trouble I'm in.

"Yeah," Katniss says, lifting herself up onto her elbows. "It was your turn. If you were too tired or didn't want to, you could've just said no. We would've waited."

I shake my head. "It's not that."

Gale sits up. "Then what is it, Peet? Use those words of yours."

I sigh, burying my head in the bed for a moment. This is the conversation I was hoping to avoid. I should've known I wouldn't be able to. "Remember what we talked about that day by the stream?" I say, looking at Gale.

He nods his head.

"We talked about how Thirteen would try to use Rain to separate us," I tell them, trying to make them understand why I did what I did. "And they have. Heck, Snow even tried. He failed, but he tried." I take a deep breath. "Tonight I realized, so long as the only children we have are mine, Thirteen's going to keep trying to separate us."

"But we're married now," Katniss protests.

"I don't think it's going to stop them," I tell her sadly. "For all we know, this might not be like back home, where people can't get divorced. Maybe people here can 'consciously uncouple' for whatever reason." I reach out to take my husband and wife's hands. "I think, if you got pregnant, Katniss, and the child were mine, that they'd try even harder to get Gale paired up with one of their own." I sigh. "Look at it this way. Coin hates me."

They don't bother to argue.

"She tolerates you," I nod at Katniss. "Of the three of us, she likes Gale the best."

"That's not saying much," Gale points out. "I don't think she likes me as much as she used to." He smirks at us. "I guess you two have been a bad influence on me."

I know he means it as a joke, but it's not funny. At least not to me. "That's probably exactly what she's thinking. That we're a bad influence on you," I tell him, my tone serious. "To her, you're the real Mockingjay and we're taking away from your spotlight. I'm just afraid, if we give them more ammunition, they could somehow turn you against us."

"Not gonna happen," Gale says firmly.

"But you don't know that!" I protest. "I've seen what jealousy can do." A picture of my parents' marriage swims up into my mind. "I've seen it tear once loving people apart. I can't have that happen again." I regard them. "I won't. Not when there's something I can do about it."

"What are you saying, Peeta?" Katniss asks. She rests her hand on my cheek.

"It's just…" I pause, trying to find the right words, "...unless they put you on some form of birth control or you get pregnant again, I can't come inside you. I can't take that chance. Our next child has to be Gale's."

"You know, there's a simple solution," she says. "We'll just ask for some condoms. It's not like I really want to get pregnant right now anyway." She shrugs. "If you're so concerned about it, I'll talk to the doctors here and have them give me something."

Dropping their hands, I pull her into my arms, pressing my face against her belly. "Thank you, Katniss."

She strokes her fingers through my hair. "You should've talked to us. I would've gone to the doctors. Or my mother. Because I want to have sex with you." She holds one hand out to Gale. "Both of you."

"Yeah, Peet," my husband says, punching me lightly in the shoulder. "Stop being a martyr. Haven't you learned by now? We're a team. All three of us."

"I know that now."

oOo

AN:
Written: 9/25/15
Revised: 10/18/15
Revised 2: 10/26/15

The title of this chapter comes from the New Order song "Bizarre Love Triangle." Which totally works for these three since this was a romance chapter.

Nothing in this chapter was randomized.

If you're interested in influencing what we work on next (Our Modern AU story, Floriography is coming to an end), there's a poll on my profile page. So Take a look!

Thanks for reading! Hope you're enjoying!