Chapter 2
In the morning Peeta brings Katniss to the station. It is hard for him to see her leave. Thankfully they both had a very peaceful night's sleep with no dreams and woke up this morning feeling refreshed. Peeta has to be at the bakery by 9am. He planned a later start so that he could see Katniss off and he is glad he will be busy for the rest of the day so that he can take his mind off her departure.
Katniss gives Peeta a big hug and kisses him deeply on the lips. This is the first time she will be away from him since his return and she is having second thoughts about leaving him now. Even though he is so much better and her nightmares seem to be more regular than his, she still worries about him having too much time to himself. She knows those are the times when all the old demons from the Games, and especially Peeta's hijacking, come creeping back to disturb his thinking, not just his dreams. To be on the safe side, she has organized for Haymitch to check on him everyday and she will call him as well. If there is any sign of trouble she will come straight back home.
The train begins to pull out of the station and Katniss starts to feel sick. This is not like her. She knows some people get sick when they are in motion, like on a train or in a vehicle, but she is not one of them. Maybe it is just because she is anxious about leaving Peeta. She found it hard to get down any breakfast this morning as well. The train begins to speed out of District 12 and Katniss closes her eyes. The last time she left on the train from this station was when she was headed to the Quarter Quell with Peeta. It seems like a lifetime ago, so much has happened since then. This was the place where she had suggested, quite pragmatically, that she and Peeta should get married. Haymitch had not taken her seriously and her suggestion had just made Peeta mad. "Let's do it!" he had said without an ounce of feeling. It was just like making a business deal and Katniss still does not know why she suggested it. Was it her heart being ruled by her head or the other way around? No one else had suggested marriage as a way of keeping them alive or their Districts safe, why had she? Snow had threatened her, but he was not demanding they get married, at least not then.
Neither Katniss nor Peeta had mentioned marriage again since becoming close and sharing a bed. Somehow Snow had ruined that for her as well. He had used it as a tactic in his game and now it just felt dirty and useless to her. She was glad that Peeta had not brought the subject up and maybe she and Annie could talk about some of these things while they were together. Katniss remembered Annie and Finnick's beautiful wedding in District 13 and how enraged she felt at the time knowing that Snow had robbed her and Peeta of the special relationship they had. Not just robbed them of their relationship, but robbed Peeta of his mind. That was when she told Johanna she was going to kill him. Peeta was the reason why. Would she ever be able to have a wedding like Annie and Finnick, minus the stain of Snow and his wickedness? Katniss didn't know.
Suddenly Katniss knows she is going to be sick. Jumping up she makes her way to the end of the carriage and finds a bathroom that is not nearly as fancy as the one she had used on her way to the Capitol the last time. Everything has been downgraded to make the Districts more equal with the Capitol. Of course they didn't have the money to do things the other way around! In some ways she missed the exuberance and richness she had experienced at that time. Katniss knew it was criminal to spend that amount of money on luxuries, but it did leave a mark in her memory that was hard to let go. Effie would understand.
Leaning over the bowl Katniss brings up what little she has eaten for breakfast. She has to steady herself and sit down for a moment while she catches her breath. This is not like her at all.
The trip to District 4 takes about 8 hours and Katniss has eaten very little during the journey. She's afraid she will not be able to keep it down, so she just drinks water and has a dry cracker or two. Peeta had packed some food for her to bring down to Annie and to eat on the way, but Katniss, for some reason, cannot face his famous cheese rolls right now. Just the thought of them is making her feel sick.
At nearly 6.30pm the train begins to pull into District 4. Katniss smells the sea breeze long before they have reached the station and it tantalises her nostrils. It also reminds her of the last Games and how close she came to drowning in seawater then. Her nausea actually reminds her of the spinning Cornucopia and how sick she felt while it spun around , how she failed to hold on and just managed to pull herself back up when it stopped. There were so many memories flooding into her mind right now they were assaulting her senses. This trip was not going to be as easy as she thought. She wondered how Peeta was doing back at home. The first thing she would do when she got to Annie's house was call him. They had been too long apart already.
Katniss sees Annie on the platform with Finn in her arms. He has grown quite a bit and looks healthy and strong. Blond curls cover his head and he snuggles into Annie's shoulder as Katniss alights from the train. Katniss takes Annie in a big hug. She looks well, too, and asks Katniss how her trip from District 12 has been.
"To be honest, I have been feeling a little queasy all day, so I haven't eaten much, but that means there will be more for us to enjoy together tonight. Peeta's been baking in preparation and sent me down with some of his finest, and my favourite, treats". Katniss gives Annie a big smile and Annie knows this is because Katniss is proud of Peeta, his skill and his thoughtfulness. She has always known that Katniss loved Peeta. At the same time she remembers wondering how long it would take Katniss to work it out. Peeta's hijacking had taken a terrible toll on their relationship and the difference for her and Finnick had been that she had not been in love with the Mockingjay, the instigator of the Revolution. The Capitol had gone much easier on her.