For a while I was truly happy with Peeta and the kids, but with the night terrors and the loss of my sister, life seemed almost unbearable. My mom left again. I was disappointed with her now, more than ever. She chose to be a nurse and help people. Which was great, but it was in a whole other district and it meant she wouldn't be with me. I understand that she wouldn't want to stay in the house we were currently living in, because it was a constant reminder of Prims death. But not being with me in District 12 cost her me. By choosing not to face her fear of living without Prim, she lost me. But I can't imagine being without Peeta. I chose the man that I could not live without, but it doesn't mean that I still don't miss Gale. He was my best and only friend for a long time. I have learned to live without him but, my heart still longs to be with him. I don't regret my decision about choosing Peeta but I hate that, by choosing him I’ll probably never see Gale again. I need my best friend now. Now, I am constantly reminded of the events that occurred during the Hunger Games, they haunt me in my dreams and in my memories. The Hunger Games haunt Peeta too, and the only way he knows how to cope, is by painting them. I can never bring myself to look at them, because they are too painful to bear. I wake up screaming most nights because of the nightmares. But not only because of the nightmares, but because I leave Peeta in the basement almost every night.

I hear a knock on the door, so I got up and go get it.

“Hello, I’m the nurse the Mayor sent. To help your husband, Peeta Mellark.” She said quietly and cheerfully.

“Alright, come on in.” I told her, gesturing my hand for her to come in. She had bright ginger hair that almost looked brown, and beautiful green eyes that looked like clovers. Her face was an oval shape, and her eyebrows naturally arched.

“Thank you.”

So after that, I led her down the wooden steps, where Peeta was.

Peeta’s Point of View

I heard several footsteps coming down the stairs. I thought it was my daughter, Emery, but they were too heavy to be only hers.

“Peeta,” A gentle voice said, “What are you doing?”

“I’m not entirely sure why I claw at the ground” I said randomly, “but I’ve been at for so long that my fingers have started to leave behind bloody streaks, maybe the throbbing pain helps me remember who I really am, reminds me how I can’t give up to what the Capital tried to make of me. Or perhaps I’m just trying to find a stronghold to grasp, something to keep me in the ordinary world, while the other tries to pull me away.” I told her.

“Alright, well the nurse is here.” She said dryly

“…”I didn’t respond. Why, why does the mayor keep sending this nurse for me? I can get by on my own.  I thought.

Katniss left and went back up the steps, while leaving the nurse by herself. She just stood there for at least five minutes having no clue what to do. I could tell she wanted me to speak to her, but I sat there sitting on my feet not saying a word. Then I broke.

“I don’t know how I got in the basement.” I bellow.

She didn’t respond but I could tell that she was scared. She was wide-eyed but she didn’t want to say anything.

“Um….what’s the last thing you remember from last night?” she asked

“Why do you ask?”

“The mayor said I should ask some questions.” She said looking down as if she were ashamed to say it.

“Well, the last thing I recall is walking by my beautiful mockingjay,-”

“I guess that’s nice to remember,” she said cutting me off.

“I wasn’t finished; I was walking by my lovely, beautiful mockingjay, with an overwhelming desire to kill her.” Now I started to clench my fists, “wring her throat, stab her with the knife, I know she keeps hidden under her pillow each night.” I stood up now “Clamp down on her nose and mouth until her body goes slack. The thoughts alone rock more tremors through my torso, tearing sobs of confusion and anger from my throat. But I can only hope it won’t wake up Finnick or Emery.” I told her, her face looked so terrified, so I slumped back down to the ground. I calmed down just a little to let her talk, as she was bandaging my hands. The least I could do.

“Well I sort of think I understand, but I really hope you know that the tracker jacker venom won’t demolish immediately, but I think you’ll get through.” She said taking out a needle and putting it in my arm taking out the blood along with the venom.

“I know.” I said solemnly

“Um, so what would you do if your children saw you right now?” she asked probably jotting down some of my answers in her head.   

“I don’t know what I’d do if I saw Emery’s precious face, just now starting to become devoid of the childish roundness she nears of what used to be the reaping age. That dark wavy hair that wraps perfectly around her face, like it has come from the girl on fire herself, or her bright blue eyes. Or Finnick’s face small and bright, with storm cloud eyes that are so like my wife’s, that it’s both wonderful and unbearable. The soft blond hair that he’s had a full head of since he was born. They have so much of her in them, in spirit and body. So similar to her, that did all of those horrible things, killed my family, she made so many people suffer. But… all I can do is not kill them all.” I had no idea why I was telling her this, but whenever she comes around me, it all just pours out

“Done.” She said successfully

“Thanks.” I replied, still knowing that she wasn’t listening. But I guess I felt a little better.

“No problem.” She said cheerfully knowing that she was finally done.

I wonder if I ever felt cheer? She gleefully hopped up the stairs as I sat there thinking to myself I will try hard not to think of the things I know to be true and go from there. Work on turning my focus away from my finger tips, skinned and bloody.

“My name is Peeta Mellark. I survived The Hungers Games twice. I was hijacked by the Capital. The Capital killed my family. District twelve was destroyed. I was rescued and now the Capital has fallen. Katniss saved me, she is not my enemy.” I told myself, and now I feel the tenseness that has built up throughout my body release slowly, eventually allowing me to fall back against the wall. I felt the chaos from the tracker jacker venom that will always be there, and start to drain, leaving stunned silence behind. We have two children. I love my children and my wife more than anything. Now there is a district twelve. I am home.

I’ve just caught my breath, when I hear soft footsteps descending down the wooden stairs. They’re much too silent to belong to my son or daughter. No, these are the footfalls of a skilled huntress. I watch as she comes down toward me, quickly, yet cautiously. I still believe she has far too much confidence in my will power.

“You won’t kill me Peeta, I know you won’t.” she told me after approaching me before I could let the moment pass. I can see in her eyes that she knows I am back, a little, to sanity now. Then drop my gruesome hands, and then lift to my face again.

“Are you alright?” she asks, lending me a hand although she didn’t seem to mind the drying blood that painted my hands scarlet, then, we take our time getting up the stairs.

Now we enter the room we sleep in. I calmly sit in the chair as Katniss slowly makes her way to the bed, wrapping herself in the blanket Emery had made her a few years back.

The blanket was gray with patches of bold, yellow, green, blue, pink, and red. It was tattered and torn but she still uses it now and then.

I still sat there staring at her as she sleeps. I wanted to get up and just kill her. But I stood my ground an after a while I got up and went to get a glass of water.

Katniss’ Point of View

I heard some heavy footsteps on the ground outside my door. So I crept out of my bed to go check on Finnick, well he was still in his bedroom, sleeping. So after that I went to make sure that Emery was in bed and sure enough, she was. All of the sudden, I heard a sound in the kitchen. So I went to go check what it was, it was just Peeta trying to get a glass from the cupboard.  As he reached for the glass it fell and shattered on the hard wood floor.

I could see that Peeta was very frustrated with himself when he dropped the glass. I could also see he let out his anger by tussling through his hair and whispering words that I couldn’t make out. He then knelt to the floor, picking up the shattered pieces that were left on the ground.  He winced in pain, as he accidentally cut himself with a shard of glass. He continued picking up the shards with the cut in his hand. I guessed he didn’t want water anymore, because he was going back to the hallway.

“Peeta,” I managed to spit out.

He saw me and turned away to the basement, opening the door so slowly so we all wouldn’t hear the loud creak it does when you open it fast. Then he went stumbling down the steps. I felt my heart get weighed down with guilt. My heart told me to go to Peeta, but my brain said no. I had listened to my brain. I went back to my bedroom and sat on the edge of my bed thinking of what would happen if the capitol hadn’t done that to him. He’d be a much happier person I thought, happier than he is now, at least. I let all of the thoughts escape my head, about what would happen if he would never recover. I lay down in my bed and covered myself with my sheets and quietly fell asleep.

*the next morning*

“Why are you here?! You have no right to be!” Peeta yelled.

“Mom, wake up. Dad is yelling at Uncle Gale.” Emery told me.

“What?!” I shouted.

“Mom, just get up and help, he’s already hurt Finnick.”

“What!” I yelled even louder

I shot out of bed and ran to Finnick. I saw his right arm was stained with blood. He sat there crying his eyes out. I quickly picked him up. Even though in my arms, he was still crying. I bounced him up and down slowly. I never thought that I would have to scream like this, but I had to.

“PEETA, GALE. Stop your bickering!” I yelled while covering Finnick’s ears.

They both stopped to look at me. I went and sat Finnick on the counter, and tended to his wound.

“Look what you have done, the both of you.” I scolded them

“It wasn’t my fault-” Gale had started to say

“No it is because if you wouldn’t have came none of this would have happened.” I yelled. I could see that Peeta was going to give a smirk, “You too Peeta, look at what you have done to your own son.” I showed him what he had done to Finnick. His face was in astonishment, as if he didn’t know what he had done. “Gale you need to leave.” I said, and so he did.

“I am so sorry, I-I didn’t know.” Peeta stammered out, and I believed him.

All of the sudden the mayor burst through our front door. “You guys need want to see this.” He said. So Peeta and I ran out the door, along with the kids.

There was a crowd of people standing in what we now call the ‘town square’ gathering around to hear some important news. Some news, which we had to hear.

“People of District 12, I have come to bring you great, amazing, news. We are now starting something that we used to do. The reason it stopped is because of-of a certain mishap… so now we shall start it again.”

“Excuse me what’s happening?” I asked the kid in front of me.

“They’re going on with something called the hunger games.”

“No” I whispered to myself.

“Huh?”

“Never mind” I told him.

“Now today I am telling you about The Hunger Games. In each District, there are now 16 Districts; there is one name for each child, now since I am in District 12; every child name will be entered once in the drawing. Most of you parents out there know what I am talking about, so you should tell your child now. For this, there will be no substitutions. All of the children over the age 11 are entered in this bowl,” she said holding up a clear blue container with the name district 12 on it. “Now when I pull out this name, they will never be put in the games again, of course if they live, ever. So whose ever name this is, I would consider themselves lucky. Since I know the food is still scarce in this district, The Capital has…..”

The Capital? But they capital can’t be rebuilt. I made that happen. No capital means no chaos, no chaos means peace, and peace means harmony.

“We don’t need The Capital.” I shout

“Yes, but we do,” she responds, “We need them much more now. And now as I was saying The Capital will provide much food for this district. But this only happens if the person choose from this District wins.”

“Just pull out the card!” a woman yells.

“Patience is a virtue Miss. But I will agree with you, that I probably do need to pull out the card don’t I?” she said “Bring in the real box.” She demanded.

Out from nowhere two guards in black suits came out with a small, carved wooden box that had gold rims and a large gold lock on it. Then the mysterious woman pulled out a silver key opening the small box.

“Now remember what I said.” She says pulling out a cream colored paper that looked worn out.

“Emery Mellark. Age: 16 Parents: Peeta and Katniss Mellark.” She says into the microphone.

I stumbled down onto Peeta, him catching me in his arms, we both looked at Emery. She was standing there clueless. So she just walked up onto the stage. I could she in her stone blue eyes that she was frightened. Probably more than I was.

My poor Emery is now in the Hunger Games. The only thing I didn’t want her to be in. I never wanted her to experience in her lifetime. The Capital has now risen, faster than I ever thought it would.  Emery  was up on that stage, scared more than ever.

“Well say something dear” the woman up on the stage says, as she unfolds her arm to the microphone.

“Mom”  Emery  said, her dark hair cornering and gathering her tears as her bright blue eyes were as scared as can be. Her on the stage, frozen.

“Well my darling, is that all?” the woman said, her lips pursed like she had eaten a sour candy and long, pink eyelashes fluttering.

“…”

“Now, I shall welcome you to the 76th Hunger Games! And as we used to say ‘May the odds be ever in your favor!’” smiling, she takes  Emery  away to the new parting