Disclaimer: All the genius for the characters and The Hunger Games universe goes to Suzanne Collins.

Chapter 6

Peeta climbed down the ladder, then Katniss rolled it up, into the tree house, and climbed back down the tree. When she got to the bottom, Peeta had a cheese bun and glass of orange juice from both of them.

As he handed her hers, she said, "How did you get the thermos? I have the backpack."

"A good magician never reveals his secrets."

Katniss rolled her eyes. "Come on, Bread Boy, we've gotta get moving. We're going to be late."

Peeta started hopping, taking a bite between each hop, and sang the song from Alice in Wonderland. "We're late!" Bite, hop. Then, muffled through cheese bun, "We're late!" Bite, hop, muffled. "For a very important date!" With one last hop, he smiled proudly when he landed, turning to look at Katniss, only to see that she was behind him, standing still with a look on her face he could only guess was some fort of terror. "What?" he asked, his mouth still full of cheese buns.

She shook her head and started walking again. As she walked past him, she said, "Sometimes I question your sanity."

Swallowing his mouthful, he fell into step behind her and muttered under his breath, "Right back at ya, Kat."

"Heard that. No more OJ for you."

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

When they got back to the meadow, all their friends were sitting at the picnic table waiting for them.

"Hey, Losers!" Johanna shouted as soon as they came into view, "What took you so long? Where were you? I want a cheese bun, too!"

"Hey, Bread Boy!" Gale hollered at Peeta, "Why are you rubbing your butt?"

"Dude!" Finnick was next, "I want a cheese bun, too!"

"Hi, Katniss, Peeta!" Annie smiled.

Shaking her head, Katniss turned to Peeta with a smile. "They are annoying."

As soon as they were within range to talk to each other normally, Katniss started to list off her answers. First to Johanna, "We lost track of time, none of your business, and they are all gone." Then to Gale, "Really? You are weird." Turning to Finnick, "Like I said, they are gone." And lastly to Annie, and finally with a smile, "Hello, Annie!"

Johanna huffed in annoyance, Gale looked unsatisfied with her answer, Finnick pouted, and Annie beamed.

"Gale," Peeta said, turning to him, "I am rubbing my butt because I fell trying to keep up with Miss Huntress Swiftfoot here," he said, gesturing to Katniss beside him with his thumb.

Gale nodded with an understanding smile, and Katniss pulled a cheese bun out of the backpack.

Finnick and Johanna looked outraged. Both rising to their feet they talked over each other. "But-" "You said-" "That's not fair-" "Come on!" "Brainless!"

Holding up her hand to silence them, Katniss simply chewed on her bite of cheese bun until Johanna stopped and crossed her arms over her chest, one hip jutted out to the side and a glare on her face, and Finnick was pouting, but trying to look angry.

"Are you finished?" Katniss asked.

They both just glared at her in return.

"I said 'they are gone'. Your supply is gone. I ate them all. These are mine."

Gale and Annie started to chuckle and snicker, and Gale said, "Come on, Catnip. Let them have one, at least to shut them up."

Finnick and Johanna turned their glares onto Gale and he simply shrugged. They quickly looked back to Katniss.

"No. My meadow, my rules," she said.

Johanna rolled her eyes, and sat down with a huff, arms still crossed.

Finnick just plopped down, his frown winning over finally.

"Now, down to business. My dad didn't tell me anymore last night, and I haven't seen him yet today-"

"Wait," Gale said. "How have you not seen him today? I know you always get up early, and he doesn't leave for work until ten in the morning."

Katniss looked at the ground, and dug her toe into the dirt while Peeta's cheeks and the tips of his ears started to flush pink.

After a moment, Katniss went on, "As I was saying," looking up at the group again, "I haven't seen him yet today and he didn't tell me anymore last night, so I really don't know what to do yet."

"Well, this was just a waste of time, then!" Johanna threw her hands up in the air.

"Yeah! No cheese buns, no meeting…." Finnick added.

Peeta pulled Katniss aside. "Kat, I think we should show them your tree house."

"What? No!"

"Wait! Hear me out. They are upset that they came here for nothing, so tell them that this was the meet up spot for you to lead them to… The headquarters of our mission."

"That is basically the same thing as Mission Control, you dork."

"I know, but they can have their headquarters, and we can still have our mission control."

He smiled at her sweetly, and she couldn't help but return it.

"Fine."

Peeta turned to the group, and relayed what he had just told Katniss, leaving out the parts about mission control, and that it was a last minute change. "We just came from there. We were getting it ready."

"Wait, you have a tree house?" Gale asked Katniss.

She could only nod.

Sensing tension, Finnick jumped in and said, "I'm not going without cheese buns."

Right then, Quinn and Jeffery came walking up to the table.

"So you started the meeting without us," Quinn said, with mock disappointment in his voice.

Jeffery shook his head from side to side and made "tisk, tisk" sounds.

"Please tell me you brought cheese buns?" Finnick asked looking up to them.

"What are you doing here?" Peeta asked.

"We overheard your little powwow huddle last night and-"

"We want in," Jeffery cut Quinn off, earning him a glare.

"But please tell me that you brought cheese buns?" Finnick reiterated.

Quinn pulled a bag out from behind his back, grinning. "Let us come, and we will share."

Peeta had slyly opened the backpack, and pulled out the bag of lumpy cookies they had brought incase of trespassers at the tree house. He handed a few to Katniss, and she looked at them, and back to him, a devilish grin on her face.

Gale had noticed Peeta pulling out the bag, and Peeta had tilted his head ever so slightly to motion him over to them while Finnick and his brothers talked about the buns. The same devilish smile on his face, he walked over to them casually, and took a few from the bag.

When he had turned back to face the older Mellark brothers, they were looking at them in curiosity. "What're you doing?" Quinn asked.

Katniss, Peeta, and Gale all raised an arm, ready to throw, cookie in hand.

"Drop the bag, and no one gets hurt," Katniss said, biting back a giggle.

Finnick, Annie, and Johanna looked at them as if they were crazy, but Quinn and Jeffery looked scared.

They knew what those cookies were. Katniss had thrown some at them that first day in the bakery when they had come just before closing time. Peeta had introduced Gale and Katniss to his brothers, and when their backs were turned, she nudged Peeta and Gale, and whispered, "Watch this." And with that, she threw one at the back of each of the older boy's heads. "Ow!" they yelled, turning to find the three new friends rolling on the floor with laughter, and their father trying very hard not to chuckle.

"You wouldn't dare," Quinn said to Katniss, bringing her back from the memory.

"Oh wouldn't I? And you know I have perfect aim."

Quinn and Jeffery looked at each other, and took off running, dropping the bag before they got too far.

Katniss, Peeta, and Gale all looked at each other, shrugged, and threw the cookies anyway. Peeta's fell just a little short, but Katniss and Gale each pegged a brother, high fiving as they heard them yelp.

Turning back toward the bag of cheese buns, and the retreating forms of Peeta's brothers, Katniss saw Finnick holding the bag of cheese buns, two in his hand, one with a bite missing, and a deer in the headlights look on his face when she made eye contact.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

After taking everyone to the tree house, and making a plan to meet up there again when Katniss got more info, they all headed out back to the meadow at sunset.

She had made them all cross their heart not to come to the tree house without her permission.

As they all got to the meadow, Katniss saw her father sitting at the picnic table, a smile on his face clearly visible even in the dusk.

"Hey, kiddos! I hope you guys had fun today!"

They all smiled and nodded, saying that they played in the woods, not mentioning the tree house, or their secret meeting.

As everyone dispersed down the street towards their own homes after goodbyes, Katniss sat down beside her father. Stars now starting to pop out, they both got on top of the table, and laid side by side, looking up.

"So, did you have a good day today?" her father asked her.

Smiling she said, "Yep! I had a really good day. What about you?"

Now he smiled and said, "Can't complain!"

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, just staring up at the stars. Eventually he was pointing out different constellations to her, and telling her how to guide herself based on the stars.

"I showed Peeta the adventure book today," she said, somewhat abruptly after they had stopped talking about a constellation.

Her father turned his head to look at her. "And?"

She continued to stare straight up at the stars. "He loved it. We even added a page together while we were there."

Her father smiled.

"He took it with him. He said he wants to show his dad the pictures he took."

"Well, that was nice of him," her father said, nodding in approval, and looking back up at the stars.

After several minutes he turned back to look at Katniss, and saw the stars reflecting in her eyes, but even more glistening as her eyes brimmed with unshed tears.

"Bullseye, honey, what's wrong?" He knit his eyebrows together in concern.

"I just…." She took a quivering breath, "I know I'm growing up."

Her father was silent.

"In the book you said you would always be here for me to come home to, and tell you all about my adventures."

He stayed silent.

"What do I do if something happens? Who will I tell?"

"Oh, Katniss," her father sighed, wrapping his arms around her as she crawled over and laid her head on his chest, tucking her face into the crook of his neck. He felt her tears finally fall as they soaked his shirt, and a few trickled down the side of his neck. "You were always so much more mature than your age. So much wiser."

He just held her as she cried, gently rocking from side to side, until she finally calmed down, the only evidence a few sniffles and tear tracks on her cheeks that shined in the moonlight.

She went back to lying beside him, and they both looked straight up again.

"You know what you are going to do?" he asked his daughter.

He felt her shake her head beside him.

"You are going to look up to the stars. If anything happens, I will be up there, watching over you, and smiling every time you kill the dragon or save the world."

She chuckled, sadly, and heavy from crying. "Okay," she whispered.

Suddenly a star shot across the sky, and both of them gasped and pointed, turned their head toward each other, and asked in unison, "Did you see that?!"

They both laughed.

"Hurry, make a wish!" her father said excitedly.

He looked over at her, and smiled at the sight of her scrunching her eyes closed, scrunching her nose, and scowling her brow, all with a smile on her face.

"What did you wish for?" he asked when she opened her eyes.

Looking at him with a big grin on her face, she said, "You know I can't tell you, or it won't come true."

"Fine, fine…"

They sat in silence for a moment before he continued.

"But just so you know, I wished for cupcakes. I love those things."

Katniss gripped her belly she was laughing so hard. She would have to write about this in her book the moment she got it back from Peeta.

Finally calming down, she turned to her father with a smile, seeing a similar smile on his face, and grabbed his hand. "I love you, dad."

He squeezed her hand. "I love you too, Bullseye. I love you, too."

A/N: Thank you for reading! The next chapter is where it all picks up. If you have any ideas or requests, please PM me, or leave a comment/review! (Comment/review/follow anyway. You know you want to. :P)

Also, you can find me on tumblr: Konzelwoman

In the hopes that you have read this far, thank you. May the odds be ever in your favor, the force always be with you, and may you live long and prosper.

And once again, Disclaimer: All the genius for the characters and The Hunger Games universe goes to Suzanne Collins.