I have gotten a whole bunch of reviews, so don't forget to read my note at the end of this chapter!
I was lying in bed, taking a nap after I had lunch, when there was knocking on my bedroom door. I got up stiffly, minding my overlarge stomach and dragged my body to the door.
Peeta was standing looking excited and winded in my doorway when I opened the door. "There is something I want you to see. I have been working really hard on it all day."
"Sure." I stifled a yawn and followed Peeta out of my room and away from my precious bed.
After a little bit of walking, he glanced over at me and frowned. "Are you sure it is okay? You look really tired."
"What do you expect, Peeta?" I said tiredly. "I am almost nine months pregnant."
He smiled a little bit. "I can show it to you tomorrow."
I slowed my pace and squinted down at the floor. It was so very tempting to go back to my room and sleep for forty days and forty nights, but Peeta said he had been working really hard on it, just to let me see it.
"Really, Katniss. I won't be offended if you want to see it tomorrow instead." Peeta seemed to have read my mind.
I still hesitated. "But you said you worked hard on it."
"I did, but more time just means it will get better until tomorrow." Peeta's arm went around me and we turned back to my room.
"Thanks…" I leaned heavily into Peeta's shoulder dramatically.
We got back to my room and plopped down onto my bed. I could feel my stomach shift when I did that, and I made a loud mental note not to do that anymore.
Peeta sat down next to me. "So, are you going to tell me what you did today?"
I propped my head up on my elbow and said simply, "I went shopping."
"Shopping?" Like I expected, Peeta looked very surprised. "I didn't think there was any place you could go shopping here."
"Well there is more of District 13 than all of us here thought." I tucked my legs to my chest as well as I could (my stomach got in the way a lot), wrapping my arms around them, and told Peeta all Judge Hinnant told me about District 13.
When I finished, Peeta said, "And where did you learn all of this? You couldn't have possibly taken a first-class tour of District 13 in nine hours. Well, I suppose you could, but you wouldn't have time after to take a luxury shopping spree."
I paused for a second before I answered the question because it hadn't taken me nine hours to shop. It only took three, but I had spent the last six having lunch, soaking in my bathtub, and trying to take a nap. I said, "Judge Hinnant told me."
"Oh." Peeta frowned slightly, but the frown disappeared as soon as it had come. "So what did you get?"
I guess I was pretty excited when he asked that because I had gotten very good deals on stuff that the wealthier people at District 12 normally owned. Everyone seemed inclined to give me the stuff I wanted at half-price because apparently I was District 13's idol. Everyone wants to be nice to the girl on fire.
"I'll show you." I hopped (actually it was more like rolled) off the bed and went over to my wardrobe. There were a few large drawers and shelves on the bottom which I didn't normally use, but this time I had put the things I had bought in there.
Peeta crouched down next to me as I opened one of the big drawers very carefully and extracted a good-sized something that was carefully wrapped in cloth. I set it down in between us and we both held our breath as I took off the fabric wrapping.
Sitting in between us was a beautiful, hand-made cradle crafted so very carefully out of shiny brown wood. There were ribbons of twigs carefully twirled into perfect symmetry on either side of the crib. The whole thing sat on delicately on polished rockers, that didn't make any noise when pushed backwards or forwards.
Peeta sat motionless, staring at the crib as if he couldn't believe his eyes. "And you got this…how?"
I was so proud of my find, I willingly settled myself on the floor and told him. "In one of the stalls I was in, an old lady was the person running it. As I shopped, she told me that she use to have five children that all shared the same cradle, crafted by her grandfather, who disappeared mysteriously one day. I could tell she really missed her children, and I could see the sadness in her wrinkled old eyes when I said I was due in a few days. I was just about to go, when she asked me if I could come around the back so she could show me something. It was the crib, that all of her children had used, and she wanted me to have it. I offered her the rest of my money, but all she would take was half." I trailed off, thinking of how depressed the old lady looked when she was telling me all that, and how happy she was when I took it, promising I would take care of it.
"What was her name?"Peeta asked quietly, touching the worn wood of the cradle with his index finger.
"Willow. Just Willow." The old lady hadn't told me her last name.
Peeta nodded slowly, still staring at the cradle.
"I'm depressing myself. Let me show you the other things I got." I wrapped the crib back in the fabric and showed Peeta all of the other things I got; the baby clothes, a little stuffed lion, and a bag of homemade cloth baby diapers.
"What about a blanket?" Peeta asked. "Babies need a blanket."
I smiled. "I sort of have a special idea for that."
He raised his eyebrows but said nothing.
I'm sorry that chapter wasn't as long as the last, but that's okay. I really have no idea where I am going with Willow, either. At first I thought she could be related to Rue or something like that, but that would be too much work, explaining all of that stuff. I know, I know. I am really lazy. Some people wanted the baby to be a boy, and here are some of the names they thought of:
Xavier
Blade
Oliver (I really like this name :3)
Cinna
Here are some girl names people thought of:
Hope
Faith
Tara
Rue
Primrose
Some people want it to be a girl so badly…. I don't know…maybe Katniss could have twins or something. Like night and day. One could be a girl who had freaky nightmares and her eyes turn black when she is angry, and the other could be a boy who is silent and maybe a tiny part of Gale is in them after all… I don't know that was just an idea. People seem to really like the idea of naming them after people Katniss loved. Like Prim, or Rue, or Cinna. Nice ideas! I had a pretty good idea for a full name for a girl. How about "Alexis Rue Mellark"? I really like that one. Or the name Cobalt in a boys' name. As a middle name or something. Remember, these are just ideas, but please tell me which ones you like!
