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I do not own the Hunger Games nor its characters.

Chapter Twenty-Four

I haven't seen Dinium for so long and, yet, here he is, walking through the poisonous arena with a knife in his hand. He's not alone, though. He's being followed by my latest tributes; two scrawny kids from the Seam who I can barely remember. I didn't get to know them, they had no hope and died in the bloodbath within seconds. I hated myself for feeling nothing when they died but it made it easier to cope, somehow.

Dinium is leading them through the arena, telling them how to survive and what to do if they attacked. He should have been their mentor, he would have saved one of them.

Suddenly they've turned in to wild dogs with sharp teeth and they're pouncing on each other, ripping flesh off each other's bones as they do. They have no mercy and their growls get louder as the pools of blood grow. This is my fault, I know it is.

"Haymitch!" A voice shrieks, "Wake up! Come on!"

My eyes open and I find myself hyperventilating and sweat dripping down my body. I'm sitting up in bed with Vieve next to me, she's resting her hand on my arm but she looks scared.

"I'm so sorry," I pant, "Did I hurt you?"

"Of course not," she says, soothingly, and strokes the side of my face. "You just worried me; that looked like a bad one."

"It was." I wrap my arms around her and pull her close, to make sure she's real. This is Vieve Budson, my girlfriend, and she's real and I love her more than anything. She's practically living with me now and there's nothing as amazing as seeing the woman you love every day, even when she wakes up in the morning she looks incredible. I should hate myself for how soppy I sound but I don't, I've learnt that I have to keep everything that I love close to me.

The only problem is that Vieve has been dropping hints about getting married and I keep avoiding them. I'd love nothing more than to make her my wife but I'm still worried about what Snow would do if he found out. Part of me feels guilty every day for being in a relationship with her; she doesn't deserve the drama that comes with my life. And if there is a rebellion one day I have no doubt that Snow would use her against me.

"As lovely as this is, Haymitch, I can't breathe," she says so I untangle myself from her and settle for a kiss, instead.

"I have to tell you something," I say and I reveal everything about the rebellion and my latest meeting with Plutarch in the Capitol. Apparently, his father was a Gamemaker but after his first year he realised how horrific his job was and couldn't bear to carry on but, of course, if he stopped then Snow would kill his whole family for being disobedient. Instead, he raised Plutarch to sympathise with the districts as much as he could for a Capitolite and he's spent his whole life trying to find ways to become involved in a rebellion. He had to be very careful about approaching the victors for help but he thought his best bet was Mags because she was one of the eldest, she's lived through all of the Hunger Games and may even know something about the time before. He took a risk in talking to her about such things but he had no idea that the rebellion needed someone like him so badly.

"This is why I can't marry you," I say, "I really want to Vieve, but, I feel selfish just being with you and if Snow found out that we were official, well…I don't even want to think about what would happen to you if there was another war."

She doesn't say anything for a moment but simply stares at me. "How could you be part of a rebellion and not tell me?! I'd do anything to see a bullet go through Snow's head!"

"I didn't want to get you hurt!"

"I'm a big girl, Haymitch! I want in."

A huge grin spreads across my face, I knew I loved this woman for a reason! She returns my smile and instead of chastising me further for keeping secrets from her she falls on top of me and places her lips on mine.

The next day Vieve sends me out with a shopping list while she cleans the house, apparently she wants to have a celebratory meal tonight now that she's a member of the rebellion. I'm not sure what it is she can do to help but just having her by my side will be enough for me.

I buy the meat and the vegetables and then head to the bakery as Vieve made it very clear that if I didn't come back with the bread I would spend the rest of my life wishing I had. I don't really understand why bread could be so important, to be honest.

I open the door to find the shop empty apart from the baker and his two eldest children standing behind the counter. He's teaching them how to wrap loaves of bread for the customers and they're listening intently.

He's always seemed like a decent man and it still baffles me that Clara chose Cliff instead of him. I suppose us Seam boys have got that rugged look thing going on; Vieve always says that I'm her bit of rough.

"Hi, Haymitch," he says. "What can I do for you?" Before I can answer a loud crying erupts from the back room and he has to disappear for a moment. When he returns he's holding a baby in his arms, shushing his cries. "Sorry, their mother has gone out so I have to run the shop and look after them."

"It's fine," I say, "I'll just have a loaf of bread, please."

"Here you go, Mr. Abernathy," one of the boys says and hands me a badly wrapped loaf. I thank him and place the money on the counter.

"So what's this one called, then?" I ask.

"Poo poo Peeta," the youngest boy says and they both burst in to laughter. Peeta doesn't seem to mind, though, he's stopped crying and has now fallen asleep in his father's arms.

"Well, I'd best get going or Vieve is going to kill me." They all chuckle and I head for home.

When I get to my front door, however, Vieve has attached a note to it that tells me to leave the food in the kitchen and go upstairs to change. I do as instructed and find another note lying on top of my best suit telling me to go in to the garden once I'm done.

I have no clue what she's up to but I play along, anyway. She's the only person that I would ever willingly let make a fool out of me.

I open the door to my fairly large garden and can see that a small fire has been lit with Vieve and her parents standing next to it. They all look like they're going to dinner in the Capitol with Vieve wearing a creamy lace dress and her curled hair has been pinned on top of her head with cream flowers to match her dress. She looks more beautiful than ever.

"What's going on?" I ask.

Vieve walks up to me, holds my hand and pecks me on the lips. "I know we can't officially get married and that's okay. Maybe one day we can but right now all I want is for us to know that we're husband and wife."

Vieve's mother walks over to us and hands Vieve two skewers with pieces of bread resting on the tips and I finally realise why she was so desperate for me to buy the bread earlier.

"What do you think?" Asks Vieve. "Will you marry me?"

I take one of the skewers and give her another kiss. "As if I'd say no."

We hold hands as we walk over to the fire. There's no official ceremony for the toasting so it's pretty much up to the couple what they want to do. Vieve's parents each say a few words about how much they love Vieve and, to my surprise, how glad they are that she found me.

"Well, I'm glad I found you, too," she says, "And the thought of ever being without you is just unbearable. I know things are hard but, as long as we're together, we'll be able to cope. I love you, Haymitch Abernathy." She squeezes my hand and suddenly I realise that it's my turn to speak. I didn't even know I was getting married this morning and now I'm expected to pour my heart out!

"Umm…" I begin and immediately tell myself off for starting so awfully. "Look, I'm often told how clever I am so I should be good with words but, quite frankly, I don't know what to say. I guess I can spend the rest of my life thinking about that but, for now, all I have to say is that I love you."

She smiles at me and I know that she doesn't need to hear anymore. We place the skewers over the flames until the bread is lightly toasted and then we feed it to each other before placing another kiss on the other's lips. I don't care about a piece of paper from the Justice Building, this feels far more official. I have a wife who I adore and I'm never letting her go.