If Fire Caught

Chapter 26: Katniss

I wake up screaming from a nightmare. I hear a baby crying and suddenly Peeta walks through the door with a baby in his arms.

"Katniss are you okay?" he asks.

"Yeah," I say. "It was just a bad dream. A really terrible dream." Peeta lays our baby in my arms and I smile at our son, whose eyes are the same color as his father's, "Mommy thought she lost you River. She thought she lost you."

"It's okay that you get nightmares," Peeta says. "Get them too." I lay River in the cradle beside our bed. I lay my head on Peeta's chest.

"Stay with me?" I ask him.

"Always Kitten," he says. "Always." I feel him leave a kiss on my forehead and he gently strokes my hair as I fall asleep.

I wake up and realize its all a dream. River is still dead. Peeta's still a prisoner in the Capitol. I feel tears in my eyes as I get out of my bed and riffle through my drawer until I feel my fingers close over the things I must desire.

Peeta's locket and my pearl.

I carefully clip the locket around my neck. The pendant rests over my heart. I replaced the photo of Gale with one of River. I know it seems rash, but if I didn't, I would have no where to put the only picture of my son I have.

I run the pearl across my lips. It gives me comfort for some reason. Almost like a cool kiss from the giver himself. I feel another tear run down my cheek. I can't help but wonder what he's doing now. Is he alone? Is he being brave? Showing no fear? I wish I could be there with him. Or at least let him know he's not alone. I know I need to get him back.

They're calling him a traitor. He did an interview telling everyone to lay down their weapons. It was extremely persuasive. Haymitch and Finnick think he's made some deal to protect me. Gale's not as believing of it. But I don't care. Peeta is the love of my life. I will not do anything without knowing he's safe. But I'm not even sure he's going to be safe here.

He found out about River. I don't know where or how, but he knows that I lost our child. When he talked about it, it broke my heart all over again and reopened the wounds made when I first lost River. He was devastated, as I knew he would be. But it hurt so much to see him cry like that and not be able to comfort him like he would me. I hope that that happens as soon as he gets home. That we can help each other heal.

"Katniss?" I hear Prim say. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Little Duck," I say. "It was just a nightmare. Go back to sleep." I feel her move onto my bed and start rubbing my back.

"How are you feeling?" she asks.

"Numb," I say. "Empty. Like the only thing keeping me alive is hope."

"What about your stitches?" she asks.

"They don't hurt near as much as my heart right now," I tell her. She nods but makes me lay down and pushes up my shirt. I feel her unravel the bandages. She runs her cold fingers over the incision and smiles.

"It's not swollen and I think you'll be able to get rid of them in a few days," she says.

"You seem to know a lot about this kind of stuff," I say.

"They're gonna train me to be a doctor," she says smiling.

"They'd be stupid not to," I say as she gently rewraps my wound.

"You'll be an amazing mother one day Katniss," she says.

"That's not funny," I say.

"I'm not trying to be," she says. "Mother told me you can still have children."

"The only one I would ever want to have children with is a prisoner of the Capitol and even if I do get him back, he'll most likely be executed for the things Snow is forcing him to do," I say. "Not that I ever plan on having another. I will never be able to replace my son."

"I'm not saying you should," Prim says. "I'm saying that one day, you and Peeta will be together again. You two will get the life you dreamed of. The one I heard you two talk about by the fire all those nights he stayed with you."

"But that can never be," I tell her. "Twelve is gone and Peeta is as good as dead. The only question is wether it's by Snow's hand or Coin's."

"Katniss, they need you to lead the rebellion," she says. "If you want to protect Peeta and the others, ask for their immunity. Make it a condition of you being the Mockingjay. That they will be rescued as soon as possible and granted immunity for their forced crimes of the Capitol. You have power here. They have to what you say because without you, the rebellion dies."

"I can save him," I say. "I can really do it."

"Of course you can," Prim says.

"Give me a piece of paper," I say. She hands me the parchment and a pen. I carefully print, in my best handwriting:

I,Katniss Everdeen, Victor of the Seventy-Fourth Hunger Games and survivor of the Third Quarter Quell, agree to be the Mockingjay on the conditions that my husband, Peeta Mellark, as well as Annie Cresta, Johanna Mason, and Enobaria Barasa, be granted immunity upon their rescue that will take place at the soonest opportunity.

I also demand the right to execute President Cornelius Snow upon our victory, as justice for my son, River Mellark, and the countless other innocents who have died at his cruel hands.

Respectfully yours,

Katniss Everdeen, the girl who was on fire

"How's that sound?" I ask Prim.

"I think it's missing one thing she says gesturing to the creature glaring at me from her pillow. I laugh softly before adding:

P. S. My sister gets to keep her cat.