So, this one is long but it was fun writing it. And I'm thinking about doing something new for the next chapter. I'm thinking about doing a chapter from Peeta's POV, and make it kinda angsty. Thinking about throwing in some details from his hijacking.

Leave me some thoughts, okay? :)

"Are you nervous about tonight?" Octavia asked me, and I looked at her with wide eyes. It was the only question really being directed toward me in the last two hours.

My old prep team had arrived yesterday, insisting that they'd get me ready for today. Said something about how I couldn't just braid my hair back, and wear no make-up at all. It was my wedding, as Flavius had told me with a stern look when they appeared on my doorsteps yesterday.

The last two hours had felt a lot like it had when they used to work on me. As they fixed my twenty nails, my skin, my eyebrows and my make-up, they had talked like they used to. It could be questions, or statements, about me, but they were never directed toward me. Just floating above my head, and they answered each other with grins and big hand movements. There had been several complaints about the way I looked already, but at the same time, they knew what they had to work with.

I never listened to any of them.

"Tonight?" I wondered, the question clearly written in my eyes. What did she mean about tonight? I was getting married in an hour. We weren't even close to sunset. The only thing that would be changed tonight was that I would be Katniss Mellark instead of Katniss Everdeen.

Okay, I was slightly nervous.

But probably not for the reason Octavia thought I was.

"It's your wedding night."

"Oh," I understood, pressing my lips together not to laugh. Did she really think that Peeta and I had never...? From the look on her face, and the faces of Flavius and Venia, yes, they all thought so. We had been together for almost five years. Sure, maybe it didn't happen at the same night we shared that kiss, but it did happen. Frequently.

I decided to play along, just for the sake of it. I didn't know how it worked in the Capitol. Maybe it was sinful to be intimate like that before marriage. Here, it was considered sinful to carry a baby outside of a marriage, but you could have sex all you wanted to.

"Uhm, yes," I nodded, looking at my prep team. They were all smiling, and I didn't like it. At the moment I didn't know if they were smiling because I was getting married, or because they thought I would loose my virginity tonight.

"Leave the girl alone; don't you have a groom to take care of?"

Flavius, Venia and Octavia all hurried out of the room, chatting about what they would do to Peeta. We had overheard them yesterday, discussing how they would have the time to finish both of us before the wedding, and Peeta came with the idea that they could work with me first, and then an hour on him. It was clear that he didn't like it – I didn't either – but they would argue.

Both of us also remembered Haymitch's warning words; there's was no reason to fight with the stylists. We figured that those words of advice still applied. Thankfully, our prep team had been told to make us look natural.

I looked at Cinna as he walked into the room, walking by my prep team on his way in. He held a big bag in his hands, and I knew that my dress was in there. He wouldn't let me see it. Actually, no one was allowed to see it. But I trusted him.

When Cinna had walked off the train two and a half weeks ago, I had barely recognized him. He was so thin, so fragile. Skin and bones. When he found out that we were getting married, he had insisted on making the wedding dress. I couldn't find it in me to argue. It was Cinna, and he could do miracles.

As Peeta and I kept feeding him, we agreed to postpone the wedding. I wanted one of Cinna's dresses, but two weeks were so little time. And he definitely didn't need any stress in his life.

But Cinna had refused, and he had been hiding in my Victory House for two weeks. Five hours each day. The rest of the time he was with us, and he didn't argue when we kept feeding him. Bread, and cookies, and cakes, and whatever I had been able to hunt. He always seemed to have something in his mouth.

And now he looked so much better. He looked almost healthy. He was almost glowing. He looked happy. I couldn't understand how, but Cinna was Cinna. He channeled his emotions into his designs. Maybe that's why he could look so happy today.

He had refused to tell me anything about his time as a prisoner in the Capitol. Said I didn't need to hear any of it. At times, I got the feeling that he had told Peeta something. Just certain looks. But I wasn't sure. There was no way of being sure, because Peeta assured me that he didn't know anything either.

Both of them were probably just protecting me.

"Let's take a look at you," he said, placing the dress carefully on a couch before he walked over to me. I had no idea how I looked like actually. Cinna had removed all of the mirrors. He really didn't want me to know how I looked like.

Inspecting my nails and my make-up, he nodded to himself as he looked at my hair. There was nothing done with it. I had no idea what he had planned.

"Close your eyes."

"Why?"

"Don't you trust me?" he asked and I looked at him. I trusted him with my life.

"You know I do."

"Then close your eyes," he said gently and I did as I was told as I felt him turn me around. Then there was a soft fabric over my eyes. "But I don't trust you not to peek."

I laughed with him as he led me to a chair, and then I could feel his fingers through my hair. It almost felt like he was braiding it back, but I couldn't tell for sure. It took too long to be a braid.

Then he took my hands, leading me up to my feet, telling me to remove my robe. I did as I was told, and I felt soft, silky fabric against my skin after just a few seconds as he placed me in my dress. It felt tight to my skin, as if it was embracing my upper body, but it still managed to be comfortable. Light as feathers.

"Cinna?"

"Yes?"

"Is it seen as sinful in the Capitol to complete a marriage before the actual marriage?"

"What is this coming from?" he asked, and I could almost hear his raised eyebrows.

"Something Octavia said; she seems to think that Peeta and I haven't, you know."

I could hear a chuckle, and suddenly I wasn't so nervous about the whole thing anymore.

"What did you tell her?"

"I played along," I said and he laughed again.

"That's probably the best idea," he answered me, and I laughed with him.

"Can I look?"

"Not yet," he informed me, lifting each of my feet up as he placed a shoe on them. Effie had put me in training again, weeks ago. I definitely felt steadier this time around, but the heels weren't too high.

"Now?" I asked impatiently. I wanted to know.

He took my hands, leading me away from where we were standing. He stopped me when I assumed that we were in another room of the house, and his fingers removed the blind fold.

"Now you can look."

The first thing I could see was my face in a mirror. The make-up was barely noticeable, and I was glad. It almost looked perfect. My hair was braided back, but in it was also primroses. Flowers everywhere, braided into my hair. I hadn't noticed the smell because my bouquet was full of them, along with rueflowers and dandelions. It was beautiful.

And then there was the actual dress.

It was nothing like his other dresses. They were all beautiful, but this one was beyond that. Embracing my chest, it fell from my waist down, almost flowing. Touching the ground as I moved. An a-line silhouette, a strapless neckline, silk of the color ivory. It was a very simple design. Besides the draped fabric on the chest area, there was only really one detail that didn't fully belong. But yet it did. On my right hip, Cinna had embroided a flower. It was barely noticeable, just a tint darker than the rest of the dress. And it wasn't just any flower. It was a primrose. A very detailed one.

It was perfect, and I loved it.

"Do you like it?"

I felt like crying, so instead of talking and risking it, I turned around and hugged him. This man that had risked his life for me, for the rebellion. This man that I had thought to be dead for so long. This man that I still could not fully believe that he was really here.

"I love it," I finally choked out as I let go of him. "Thank you."

Taking a step away from me, he raised his finger into the air and made small circular movements. I knew what he wanted.

"No fire this time?"

"You have enough fire in here," he pointed at my heart, and I smiled as I twirled for him. He gave himself a small applause and I joined him. He deserved it.

Taking his hand, he led me down the stairs of my old Victory House. It was almost time. By the time we would reach the Justice Building, it would be time.

"Don't you look ravishing, sweetheart?"

"Thank you," I said, giving Haymitch a hug. There was no smell of alcohol on him. He hadn't been drinking. I figured that he didn't want to trip while leading me down the aisle, but still. I had never seen Haymitch completely sober before. No one ever had. This was a first.

When I had asked him to lead me down the aisle, he had mumbled something about not deserving it. But he did. I wouldn't even be alive if it wasn't for him. Peeta wouldn't either. Sure, we had our disagreements, but it was Haymitch. And I wanted him there. And in a way, I did love the old drunk.

"Where's Effie?" I had expected her to be running around, screaming that there was not enough time for small talk. We had a tight schedule to follow, and all of that.

"She'll meet us at the Justice Building," Haymitch told me, taking my arm in his. I took Cinna's arm in my other arm, letting them lead me out from the Victory Village and to the Justice Building. I wasn't sure how the shoes would be on ground, and I didn't want to trip and ruin the dress. Effie was there to meet us at the back door, close to tears as she saw me.

"My pearl, you look beautiful," she smiled, her voice almost breaking.

"Radiating, I would say myself," I heard Cinna's voice and I felt myself smiling. It was so easy to smile today.

Placing a kiss on my cheek, Cinna left with Effie and I took a deep breath as the music started. The Valley Song. It was tradition to have it play when the bride walked down the aisle. Just the notes, no song, but every word went through my head as Haymitch led me through the aisle and toward Peeta.

He looked so handsome. Stunnig. Cinna had designed a black suit for him, fitting perfectly, and I could see no bigger alternations on him. The prep team had kept it natural, as Cinna had told them to.

As Haymitch let go of my arm, he looked at me before he leaned down to place a kiss on my cheek.

"You could do a lot worse, you know," he whispered before he patted my hand and turned around. His hand was quickly replaced by Peeta's, and I could feel the nerves I had disappearing as I felt his hand in mine.

"Hi," I whispered, standing opposite to him, and he laughed. I hadn't seen him since last night. An 'hello' seemed appropriate.

"Hey."

The Mayor started to talk then. He said all the things that was always said at a wedding in District 12. Something about two people becoming one, two souls becoming one. Two rings putting two people together as one.

The words seemed almost mumbled, but when it was Peeta's turn to speak, I could hear every word loud and clear.

"I've never had any problems with words. I've always felt like words is always enough, on the side of actions. I've always felt like I can always count on my words. Today, I feel like I can't. For the first time in my life, I feel like no matter what words I might say, they just wouldn't be enough. They wouldn't be enough to tell you how beautiful you look, or how much I love you. How much I will always love you. Today, words fail me. For the first time in my life, I'm speechless. But you are beautiful, and I do love you. And I need you. I always will. Trust that. Believe in that."

I fought my tears back as it was my turn to vow my love to him.

"I promised myself that I would never fall in love. Never get married, never have kids. I had lost too much, and I didn't want to risk loosing even more. But here we are. Despite how much I tried not to, I couldn't help falling in love. I couldn't help feeling how I feel whenever I see you, whenever you hold me. Whenever I feel your steady heart beat. Because no matter how much I tried to keep that promise to myself, I couldn't fight with the way you make me feel. When you look at me, I feel special. When you hold me, you make me feel loved. You always make me feel hope. And those are things that I just can't deny. But I don't deserve you. Everyone knows it. What they don't know is that I need you. That you keep me alive. Warm. Safe. They don't know that you make me feel something I haven't felt since my father was alive; whenever I'm around you, I feel like I'm home," my voice broke as the tears rolled down my face, and I tried to blink them away as best as I could. It wasn't working.

I didn't want to cry, but I couldn't help it. I could see Peeta's smile, and when he raised his hand to wipe away my tears his face leaned down toward mine.

"Not yet," the Mayor said, knowing just as well as I did what Peeta was about to do. Peeta let out a sigh as he leaned out again, and a round of laughter was heard. I hadn't even noticed our guests before now.

The Mayor said some more things before it was time for the rings. Peeta and I had both engraved something on the other's ring, and I wanted to know what was written in mine.

"Here is the place where I love you," I whispered as I placed the ring on Peeta's finger and I felt his smile. I looked impatiently at him as he took out my ring, placing it with my engagement ring. I knew that it was tradition to only wear one ring, but I would never take it off. It was my pearl, and I wanted it on me forever.

"Always," he whispered, his eyes never leaving mine, and I felt more tears falling down my face. Such a small word, but so meaningful to us.

A few more words from the Mayor, before he finally told us that it was time for the kiss. He barely had half of the words out before Peeta's lips was on mine, and I didn't care about the laughter that went through the room. All I cared about was my Peeta, and his lips on mine. His arms holding me against his body. But he let go all too soon.

According to Effie's tight schedule, there was a party to attend. Cake to eat, songs to dance to, jokes to laugh at. But before the cake was supposed to be rolled out, there was another District 12 tradition to tend to. The bride was supposed to dance with her father, and the groom to his mother. There was no fathers and mothers, but Haymitch offered his hand and I took it with a smile. I could see Peeta offering his hand to Effie, and I laughed as he pulled her onto the dance floor. She kept complaining that she had things to do, but he ignored her with an amused smile.

"I was wrong," Haymitch pulled my attention to him. "You do deserve him."

"No, I don't," I argued, glancing at Peeta where he was dancing with Effie. He was too good for me. But I did need him, and as long as he wanted me, then I would be happy.

"You two make the perfect match; you balance out each other. And I'm strangely happy that you were picked as tributes. I know I shouldn't be, but I wouldn't know you otherwise and..." his words cut short, and he looked away from me. Looked into thin air.

"Are you crying?"

The music faded as I asked the question, and Haymitch let go of me and blinked a few times. I almost thought he would say that he had gotten something in his eyes, but he shrugged and mumbled something about needing a drink before he walked away.

"Have you seen my wife?" I heard a voice say then and I turned around. "She's about this high and goes by the name of Mrs. Mellark?"

"Doesn't ring a bell," I smiled, taking Peeta's hand as he led me into a dance. "She's a lucky lady."

"I'm the lucky one," he stated as his lips curved into a beautiful smile, his blue eyes glistening as they looked into mine. He led me around the room in a dance, and we both ignored Effie's words about how we were supposed to cut the cake. I couldn't wait to see it, knowing that Peeta was the mastermind behind it, but all I really wanted right now was to dance with my husband.

"Speechless. You, really?"

"I had a whole speech written out; I've known it word by word for weeks. And then you walked down the aisle, and my mind went blank."

"Cinna works miracles," I murmured, smiling up at him.

"It wasn't just Cinna," he answered before his lips brushed against mine, and at some point I realized that we had stopped moving. Eventually we were pulled away from each other by Effie, arguing about how we were already behind on the schedule and she couldn't have that. We would probably have to skip something. I stayed close to Peeta as the cake was rolled out, and until it was time for more dancing.

Though not many people were here, apparently all of them wanted to dance with the couple. Flavius was first to ask me for a dance, but there was more after him. I wanted to dance with Cinna, but others found me before he could. Rory and Vick was two of them. The dance with Pullox was nice but quiet. He knew how to lead a girl around the dancefloor. I knew that my mother was working on a way to get the Avoxes to talk again, and Pollux would be one of the first ones once she succeeded. She wasn't here. Said she couldn't find it in her to put a foot in District 12 after everything.

Both Cressida and Pullox were here. Once the word of Peeta's and my wedding was out over Panem, Ceasar wanted an interview. I said no. I knew it wasn't his fault, but I didn't want him in the same room as Peeta. Not again. Not after the last time. But the people would want a recap, and Cressida had offered a small sequence about it. Nothing from the actual wedding, that was personal, but small things from the party. Dancing, interviews with the guests. Something nice. And she was invited anyway, so Peeta and I agreed as long as we could have a copy. And if she also filmed the wedding, for us to keep.

Finally, I found myself dancing with my designer.

"Everyone is commenting on this dress; says it's your most fabulous work to date."

"You're the bride," he answered with a smile, and I knew what he meant.

"You know I agree with them. But I don't know how you managed to design it in so little time."

"The actual making doesn't take too long, and I've been designing it for years. In here," he pointed at his head. "Just in case."

"Cinna..."

"I never did stop betting on you, girl on fire."

He didn't even know if I had been alive or not, and yet he never gave up on me. He was the best friend anyone could ever imagine.

"Thank you."

"You're very welcome."

As the dance ended, I smiled as I saw Annie dancing with her son. He was laughing, and she looked happy. I laughed myself when I saw Peeta asking Johanna for a dance.

"Go find someone who actually likes you."

He mocked a hurt expression, and I took his hand before pulling him to me.

"Don't worry, I like you."

"I thought everyone liked me," he stated, a pout on his lips. He couldn't keep it there for long though, and it soon grew into a chuckle. When I didn't laugh with him, he leaned his forehead against mine and let out a sigh while he moved me around the room in a dance.

"What's on your mind?"

Was it that obvious? Yeah, maybe it was.

"Our parents, your brothers, Prim... Everyone who should be here."

"Aren't they?" he asked, his tone indicating on the fact that they indeed were.

But they weren't.

But his eyes, the small smile playing on his lips, made me think about it.

"Aren't they always here?"

They weren't here in their psychical forms, but they were here. In our hearts, in our minds. They would always be right there. And if they were in our hearts and minds, then weren't they here as well?

I looked at Noah, the small, spitting image of Finnick, and felt myself smiling. I looked at Rory, and saw his older brother in his features. I looked at Haymitch and Effie, seeing all of the brave men and women who had lost their lives. I could feel Prim in my heart, where she would always be. And in Peeta's face, I saw his father's.

"Would your family approve of me?"

"You are my family," he said, and let out a sigh when I gave him a small glare. He knew what I wanted to know. "My brothers, they used to tease me about you. They knew I had a crush on you, but they never knew that it was a lot more than a crush. If I hadn't threatened to stop doing their shifts at the bakery, they would have found a way to "bump" me into you. I don't know about my Mother, but my Father, he liked you. Maybe it was because of your Mother, but he always talked really sweetly of you. Even after I told him it was all just for the Games, he told me he was proud of me. For admitting my feelings for a girl from the Seam. He liked you, he really did."

"Maybe it was my squirrels," I joked and he laughed with me.

"It was a lot more than that."

"He was a good man."

I had not met him many times, I had not shared many conversations with him. But the times I had met him, the times we had traded squirrels for bread, I always got the impression that he was a good man. I never could understand what he was doing with his wife. Why he was with her. She didn't seem like someone who deserved him.

"I can't believe we're married," I changed the subject before he could say anything. "I can't believe I'm married."

What I had told him in my vows, it was nothing but the truth. The promise I made to myself; to never fall in love, never get married, never have kids. I still couldn't see the last part come true – I still didn't want kids – but I was happy to be married. And I felt guilty for being happy. For living my life. A life with a man that I loved, and kept falling in love with.

"Not yet," he corrected me with a smirk, and a longing in his eyes. He meant the toasting, of course. Effie had placed it last on the schedule, and I knew it wouldn't happen for at least another hour. But I wanted to be married to Peeta, and I couldn't be married to him completely without the toasting. It was a part of District 12, a part of who we were. It was something our parents had done to promise their love for each other. I wanted to toast that bread with him, and I wanted it now. No matter when Effie had placed it on the schedule.

He recognized the look in my eyes, and he squeezed my hand as his eyes wandered across the room with mine. Effie stood close to the only entrance, and we would have to go through her in some way to get out of here. We just had to figure out a good enough lie.

"Can't you see the kids wants some time alone?" Haymitch barked seconds later at Effie when she tried to stop us from leaving, and she started to argue with him. We could not leave, we were the special guests and the whole party was about us, of course we couldn't leave. Thankfully, Peeta was smooth with words, and Effie believed him when he said that Cinna had designed less formal clothes for us to wear at the toasting. After a few looks of speculation between the two of us, Haymitch, and Cinna dancing with Octavia, she eventually let us go with the promise to be right back.

"We promise," we lied in unison, and Peeta grabbed my hand tighter as he led me out of the Justice Building. We both knew that we had no intentions on coming back. We just wanted to be alone for the rest of the night. For the rest of our lives.

Peeta pulled off his jacket as he saw the rain outside, placing it on my shoulders before he lifted me up and carried me through town and home. It didn't matter how much I objected; he refused to let me down. Kept saying that he didn't want my pretty dress to the ruined in the mud on the ground. Frankly, I didn't want it either, and I liked his arms around me, so I let him carry me home. Grabbing the bread he had baked for the occasion, he led us into our living room and sat us down next to the open fire after lighting it. Peeta pulled me closer then, his hand removing the hair from my face, before his lips moved closer to my skin. I could feel myself shudder as his mouth left traces on the side of my neck, on my jaw, and finally on my lips. But he let go all too soon, long before I even had the chance to tangle my fingers in his blonde hair. From the look in his eyes, it was easy to read his thoughts. We had time for kisses and embraces eventually leading to more. We had a toasting to take care of. The last part of our wedding.

Breaking the bread, Peeta fed me a piece before I fed him one. Before I even had the time to chew, I could feel his lips on mine and I gladly kissed him back. My husband. Because now, truly, we were married. And we would always be.

As our kisses grew deeper, we leaned back and Peeta shifted his weight on me so that it wouldn't be too heavy. But he knew I didn't really care. He knew I liked feeling him close to me. I shuddered again as his lips moved from my lips to my throat, and I could feel them going down when he suddenly froze. I barely had the time to react before his blue eyes were gazing into mine.

"What?"

"We forgot to sing," he murmured. "We lit the fire, we did the toasting, but we forgot to sing."

I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, my fingers grabbing his thick, blonde hair before I pulled his face to mine.

"There's nothing traditional about us, is there?" I asked, knowing what the answer was. We both knew that. Nothing was traditional about us, but if things had been, we wouldn't be here.

I could feel Peeta's smile against my mouth before his lips captured mine again, and this time none of us broke the kiss for a long, long time.