DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the hunger games characters and everything to do with the hunger games will always be Suzanne Collins'. I'm merely borrowing her characters and running away with my imagination.

AN: Hello reader, this is my first attempt at writing a Hunger Games Fanfiction so your feedback would be greatly appreciated. Hope you guys enjoy. :) Please excuse my shifting in tense. Im sorry it took so long to edit but here you go. I will really try to update more often

Peeta hadn't seen her in a few days. He's checked with Greasy Sae a couple of times and she says that Katniss mostly stays upstairs in her room and when she does go out, it's only to hunt. She's been eating though so that's a good thing. He'd been asking Greasy Sae to give her some of the bread he's been baking and he wonders if she's noticed. He's in a constant battle with himself, wanting to help her, but also needing to keep his distance. He did promise he would keep an eye out for her. He He was only keeping his word and he decided there really was nothing wrong with just being her friend. Katniss still needed someone, no matter how fervently she believed otherwise.

Peeta made his way down to what used to be the main square of District 12. He hardly recognized it now. The bleak monotonous buildings of his childhood no longer stood, not surviving the bombings during the war. He felt a sort of longing for those monotonous buildings. A memory of his father flashed through his mind, his father in their bakery, giving him a small smile while he decorated the cakes fresh from the oven. Their bakery hadn't survived the bombings either, but he wanted to rebuild the bakery. He wanted to help rebuild district 12. He wanted to rebuild what was lost and make it better than it ever was, for his father, for his brothers, for himself. Peeta wished they could see what the new District 12 would be like. He heard rumors that the town was going to be like nothing it was before. He heard talk of brightly colored buildings and sprawling gardens and a memorial for all those they have lost. Peeta sighed and shifted the bread he was carrying to his other shoulder. Since none of the buildings stood anymore and reconstruction of the buildings were going to take a year at the very least, he had to bake bread at home and haul each batch to the makeshift market at the center of town. White tents stood side by side in two neat lines where they used to hold the Reaping, at least Peeta thinks this is where they used to hold the Reaping. It's quite hard to tell now that the Justice Building was nothing but a distant memory. Peeta made his way to a tent he shared with Greasy Sae and began to set his bread on the table.

It was beautiful day out. He hadn't noticed what days were like in a long time. There were always more important things to worry about, survival being the most imminent.

Peeta was jolted from his thoughts with a tentative smile and kind eyes staring right at him. Had she asked him something?

"Sorry, I didn't catch that."

Her smile widened, "I asked if you had any Cinnamon rolls, actually."

"I'm sorry, my mind doesn't seem to want to stay in one place today," he said, returning her smile. "I don't actually have any right now but I usually have some in the afternoon."

"You don't remember me, do you Peeta?"

"Umm I d—"

"That's okay, I was always really quiet in school," with that same tentative smile and a twinkle in her eye. "I'm Madge. I guess you could say I'm a bit late to come back. I had been at 13 all this time and well it's a long story." She seemed to want to say more but didn't. "How's Katniss? Is she back too? I wanted to go see her but I wasn't sure if…"

Peeta waited for her to say something more but she trailed off.

"She's here. She was actually one of the first few people to come back. I'm a bit late to come back as well," Peeta explained. "I could take you to her house if you'd like but I can't promise she's up to seeing anyone at the moment."

Katniss heard scurrying in the distance. She heard the rustle of leaves, of the wind gently blowing. She didn't know how long she's been out lying in the dirt. She couldn't stand being in that empty house a minute longer so before the sun even broke the horizon, she ran to the woods, the only place where everything had its place, its purpose. Being in the forest always made her think of her father. He had kind eyes. She remembered them warm with specks of gold in the firelight on cold bitter winters, just like Prim's. She remembered his rough sure hands. The precise way in which he'd tighten knots, the most mundane and trivial things, but she found these were the things she missed the most.

She squinted up at the sky as the sunlight filtered through the canopy of leaves above. Unbidden and unwanted memories of the arena of The Quarter Quell invaded her mind. She remembered Peeta's warm embrace and reassuring smiles. Just like her father's kind eyes and strong hands, these were some things she missed the most, but would probably never have again.

She recalled the conversation they had a few days ago. Was he leaving 12? Was that what he was trying to say? She had never been fair to him, she knew that he deserved a fresh start. She had been so immersed in her own guilt and grief to even think about him since she'd been back at 12. But to imagine a life without seeing him again, made her pause in anxiety. She'd come to rely on him during the games, and even during the war when he was barely himself, she'd found comfort in him. She had been willing to die for him. She had been willing to save him instead of herself. And to think today, they seemed even more distant than any two human beings could be. She had no idea, what he thought of her, let alone how he felt towards her now. How strange this new world seemed to be. No father. No mother. No Prim. No Gale. No Peeta. The only person she was sure of right now was Haymitch. At least she knew where she stood with Haymitch.

Peeta wasn't used to walking at a leisurely pace. He couldn't remember the last time he actually walked without a purpose. But here he was, strolling at a leisurely pace, making polite conversation with this surprisingly pleasant girl beside him. Her blonde hair had glinted in the sunlight and swayed slightly with her light steps. She had a quiet way about her that Peeta found soothing. He had led Madge to Katniss' House close to noon after closing up the stall, but found that Katniss wasn't there so he had invited her to have lunch in his house while waiting for her. She had been the one to suggest a walk as she said she hadn't seen the seam so conducive to a walk before.

"I missed this place, believe it or not" she says with a small smile. "I never thought I would, but I just couldn't settle in 13 and I had no idea what I could do in another district. I grew up here you know? and I'd like to help out rebuilding it. I know my father would have stayed to help out no matter what and I'd really like to continue what legacy he's had. I wanna make him proud" she says glancing at him.

Peeta was surprised by her openness and the optimism that light up her face. It's refreshing and infectious and he can't help but nod and give her a little smile of his own. "I know what you mean. I couldn't see myself anywhere else either. No matter what's happened here, I couldn't leave it. This is my home, and I want to be part of making it better than before. I think it's the best way we can honor those we lost."

They walked in comfortable silence after that, but he found that he didn't feel the need to fill the silence with idle chatter. They found themselves back in front of his house and sat down by the front steps. He asked her about her family and her life before everything happed. He found out that she planned to be nurse once the hospital was back up and running. She told him about the training she had received at 13. He was so immersed in her lilting voice that he hadn't noticed Katniss gazing curiously at them from her own front steps.