Chapter 11

The next afternoon, the Mellark household sat around the dining table entertaining an important visitor, Mayor Undersee, the highest authority in Twelve.

Katniss' hand flew to her mouth to stifle a yawn. She hadn't slept much the previous evening, instead enjoying a toasting night filled with enthusiastic passion. Still Peeta looked fresh and alert. While she was pleased that the bruising on his face was already fading, it didn't seem fair. It was a good thing that it was Sunday and that the bakery was closed.

"So that's the culprit?" the mayor asked as he studied Buttercup.

"Yes," Henry said.

The cat was lying on his side on the tabletop in front of Henry. The creature's eyes were closed and he purred contentedly, as if he didn't have a care in the world.

"I got a call from the mayor of Two a couple of hours ago," Mayor Undersea explained. "Cato Ableman's father is furious about his son's injuries. He asked that Peeta here be thrown into jail and your cat destroyed."

"What?" Katniss threw a worried glance at Peeta, who gave her a nervous look in return.

Was she going to lose him just when they'd finally come together?

"They should blame me, not Buttercup," Prim exclaimed. "I'm the one who tossed the cat at Cato."

"Don't worry. I don't take orders from the Mayor of Two. I talked with Gale, um, Officer Hawthorne, about the incident at the train station. It's clear to me that Mr. Ableman's son sparked the initial fight."

The mayor looked to Peeta. "It's only right for a man to stand up for his wife."

He looked around the table addressing them all. "And if, after getting trounced by Peeta here, Cato Ableman chose to come to your place of business and further harass your family, then I believe he deserves exactly what happened to him."

"But what if his family wants to take the matter to court?" Henry asked, his hand rising to his temple. "Could he sue us?"

A judicial system that included courts trials and prison sentences had been implemented in Panem after the war. But going to trial meant a messy, expensive process that could bankrupt participants. And that was if both parties were residents of the same district. Things would be even more complicated and expensive if the two parties resided in different districts.

A sick feeling came over Katniss as she regretted ever having anything to do with Cato. Regretted that Peeta and even Henry might be affected because they stood up for her.

"Not likely," Mayor Undersea answered. "Gale Hawthorne is dating my daughter and I've already suggested he take all the police records regarding the fight and place them in the circular file.

"And if anyone in Two continues to press the matter I will personally make sure that Mr. Ableman is not paid for carving the memorial stone. The district has only given a small portion of the payment to him so far. I'd guess he'd like to receive the remainder of the balance. It's a considerable sum."

Katniss breathed a sigh of relief, appreciative that the mayor was making every effort to bury the incident. Still she was curious for his reason. "Why would you do all this?"

"My sister-in-law was in the final Hunger Games with Haymitch Abernathy," he explained. "She was killed by a tribute from Two. I've just never liked those people very much."

Katniss nodded, embarrassed because she and Prim had been born in that district. But maybe the mayor didn't realize that.

Mayor Undersee stood up. "I just wanted to keep you folks informed as to what's going on. Don't worry about it Henry. I've got it under control."

Henry thanked the man and saw him downstairs to the door.

"You're looking much better Peeta," Prim said. "My sister must be taking good care of you."

"She is." He ran his hand along the end of Katniss' messy braid. "I'm thinking it's time I go rest again though. I'm feeling kind of weak."

Prim grinned at Katniss. "You should join him. You look like you're falling asleep."

"I might," Katniss agreed, wishing she could stop her cheeks from heating up.

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Peeta watched his wife sleep focusing on the gentle rise and fall of her breasts. He knew he should probably get some rest too. But if he fell asleep their time together, shut away in their bedroom, would be over all the sooner. In the morning they'd have to rejoin the real world of baking and keeping account books.

He'd never imagined that attacking Katniss' former boyfriend would bring them closer; he'd done it because it was the right thing never because he expected it would lead to this - the consummation of their marriage. He guessed he had a lot to learn about women, a lot to learn about Katniss. But he was off to a fine start.

He reached out for her hand and rubbed his thumb across her soft palm in a circular fashion. He yawned. Maybe he could take a short nap. Might as well be rested when Katniss woke up.

Winter came early to Twelve. But Peeta paid it little attention. The bakery's oven kept the shop warm and cozy and the living quarters overhead was plenty warm in the evening as the heat drifted upwards.

Besides his nights with Katniss gave Peeta plenty to think about as he decorated cakes during the day. It was more than a physical relationship, though; they had long conversations, too. He learned about her childhood in Two, and in turn he told her stories of growing up in the bakery. Every day he learned something new that made Katniss all the more endearing to him.

She insisted that they continue to play cards in the evening with his father and Prim instead of retiring to their room immediately after their evening meal.

"I don't want Prim to get any ideas about us."

"That we might be newlyweds?"

She pursed her lips and pouted.

"You're too pure," he teased her.

When she scowled back at him in mock anger, he reached for her face to kiss the scowl away. "But you're perfect for me Katniss."

Change had fallen upon the entire Mellark clan it seemed. His father had taken to giving dinner parties. Every couple of weeks he'd host another one. He'd invited Rory Hawthorne's family to one party, along with Granny Sae and Crystal. Both Henry and Granny Sae had spent the meal grilling Rory about his intentions toward Prim. Even Rory's mother Hazelle had a few words to say to her son.

After the Hawthornes had left, Prim had gotten upset with Henry and her grandmother, complaining that they'd embarrassed her.

"I want to be sure he's treating you right, and to let him know that you have family that are watching him." Henry replied.

"That's right," Granny Sae added. "We don't want you to pick a bully like your sister did the first time around."

Katniss' glare was as dark as Prim's at that comment.

"Yes, everyone wants to make absolutely certain that you end up with someone as wonderful as me," he teased Prim, drawing dark looks from his wife and his sister-in-law.

Katniss complained to him about her grandmother's remark afterwards, wondering aloud how she had ever found out about Cato. But news about the fight Peeta had with Cato had spread throughout the district.

In fact, it was a source of pride for the residents of Twelve that someone missing part of his leg had bested a bigger man from Two. Without intending it, Peeta had earned the respect of every man in the district and the adoration of all the women who admired him for standing up for his wife. It was a kind of recognition he had never dreamed of receiving only months earlier when he thought of himself as a cripple who would spend his life sleeping on a cot in the bakery's office.

His brother's life, too, underwent a surprising transformation. Rye and Delly had persuaded Brendan to visit the shoe factory in Eight. Rye had traveled by train with his father-in-law and they'd returned with a contract to sell shoes in their shop.

Unfortunately a few days after returning, Brendan suffered a stroke. While he recovered a goodly portion of his faculties within a day or so, still Brendan found it difficult to traverse the stairs from the upstairs apartment to his shop below.

With Peeta's and Henry's help, Rye and Delly moved Brendan and Brigit to a small house in Town. Rye and Delly took over the running of the shoe shop. His brother built shelves along the walls to display the shoes that came from Eight.

And Henry added Brendan to his bakery delivery list, going to visit him every few days to cheer him up. Brendan's outlook improved considerably when the doctor slipped in some medicine meant to lift his spirits, along with the other remedies he was prescribed to aid his recovery from the stroke.

The dedication for the memorial stone had been scheduled to occur after the new year began, but the weather didn't cooperate. Heavy snowfalls brought the entire district to a halt. The train was unable to make it through. School was cancelled. Even the medicine factory shut down.

The only businesses in town that stayed open were those in which the owner lived above the shop. For about two weeks the bakery ran on part-time hours. When baking supplies got low, they had to ration bread to be sure that no customer was left without food.

Consequently Mayor Undersea postponed the dedication indefinitely, until the roads and pathways were clear to ensure a big turnout. February was muddy and March was rainy, but April brought blue skies and puffy white clouds and green shoots.

Finally the mayor declared April 20th , the four-year anniversary of the horrific event, as the day work would be halted in Twelve, and the entire district would gather together to remember the explosion and to pay honor to those who had perished in it.

"It's a fitting date," Henry said. "Too bad Haymitch won't be able to attend. I imagine being the Mockingjay they'd want him to say a few words."

"Why can't he come?" Peeta asked his father. He was mixing the dough for the morning's bread. His father was kneading the first batch.

"He'll be in the Capitol to attend Miss Trinket's wedding. It seems they've become such good friends that she asked him to participate in the Capitol's traditional wedding ceremony. He says he going to walk her down the aisle, whatever that means."

Peeta smiled to himself, wondering if he should tell his father Haymitch's secret. Katniss had shared it with him one evening as they lay in bed chatting. But she'd sworn him to secrecy, and he didn't want to betray her, even to his dad. He didn't want to do anything that would upset her, especially now.

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On the day of the dedication ceremony, Katniss sat in the bakery's office thumbing through the plant book that had saved her family after her father's death. Maybe she couldn't restart her old business because of the laws forbidding competition with the medicine factory, but there was no reason she couldn't gather plants and make some teas to give away to family and friends. She'd already been out to the woods a couple of times with Peeta this month to gather some early greens.

Henry had suggested she start a garden behind the shop to grow her own medicinal plants. "You might not feel up to going out to the woods in a few months."

Peeta carried a plate with some bread on it into the room. "Are you better today?"

Katniss nodded, glancing down at her expanding mid-section. The queasiness had ended a couple of weeks ago. She'd nibbled on a lot of bread. It was the only thing that settled her stomach. But that seemed about right since the child she was carrying descended from a long line of bakers.

"Do you want to lie down and take a nap before we go? The ceremony starts at noon?"

"No, I'll be fine. As soon as I finish eating, I'll help Prim in the front."

She was about four months along by her estimation. She certainly hadn't planned to get pregnant so soon – she hadn't wanted people to think a pregnancy had brought Peeta and her together. But she'd done nothing to prevent it either.

Still the speed of it surprised her, especially when Delly was still without child and had admitted to Katniss that she'd never made any effort to prevent a pregnancy.

"Peeta must be like his father," Delly said, when she returned the spoon to Katniss. "Their mother had three boys - boom, boom, boom - as soon as they wed."

Katniss promised herself she'd wait a longer than the original Mrs. Mellark to continue to grow her family. She wasn't ready to turn her attention away from Peeta onto small children. They were still getting to know each other and it was such an enjoyable process.

She joined Prim in the front of the shop. A line of customers waited patiently, eager to purchase baked goods for the large family meals that would be consumed after the ceremony was over.

As the morning rush slowed, Prim remarked to Katniss. "Everyone seems so solemn today."

"That's because the explosion at the train station touched everyone here."

Peeta had begun to speak of the incident to Katniss recently. While she had had a slight memory of its occurrence, the explosion had been minor news in Two when it happened because on that very same day a celebrity couple in the Capitol had broken up leaving their fans in despair.

With halting words Peeta had described the horror of the event. He and his brother had taken the cart to the station to pick up supplies. His mother had come along to deal with the paperwork.

"Phyl and I were standing close together when the blast when off. But he died and I didn't."

Katniss throat grew tight as she thought about Peeta dying at the station. The thought of never meeting him pained her.

His mother had been buried under the rubble. They hadn't found her body for a few days.

"My dad saw Buttercup staggering around the site right after the diggers found my mother. The cat was half dead so my dad took him home to nurse. I think that was the only thing that kept him going."

It was no wonder that Henry treated the ugly cat with such compassion, despite all the trouble he caused.

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The ceremony opened with a moment of silence at noon, the very time the explosion occurred. Most of the district's populace came out for it. Chairs were set up in front for family members of the dead. The rest of the crowd stood behind, so far back that some were in the square. Speakers were set up so that the crowd could hear.

A podium had been placed close to the memorial stone. The mayor addressed the crowd from behind it. "We're here today to honor those citizens who lost their life in the tragedy that occurred in this very spot, on this very day, four years ago.

"The demise of our loved ones has left a hole in our hearts that will never truly go away, but we have found hope again. We have prospered, and will continue to do so."

Katniss' eyes wandered as the mayor spoke. Beside her, Peeta wiped tears from his face. She reached for his hand and squeezed it. When she let go, he gave her a grateful smile and gently rubbed her swollen mid-section.

Prim sat on her other side. Her sister kept turning backwards in the direction of the standing crowd, likely trying to make eye contact with Rory. Katniss threw her a dark look. She'd have to talk to Prim later. A somber event like this one was not the place for flirting.

Henry sat on the other side of Prim. His expression was similar to Peeta's, teary and serious. In his hands he held a large bouquet of flowers.

Rye sat beyond him. He was pulling out a handkerchief for Delly who was openly weeping for the loss of her brother. Brigit and Brendan were also wiping their cheeks.

A grassy lawn dotted with yellow dandelions lay behind the mayor and the memorial stone.

Katniss remembered the puff-balls that lined the train tracks as they'd pulled into the station the previous August. These yellow flowers were likely descended from those puffy spheres, the wind having spread their seeds far and wide.

And by summer, these flowers, too, would turn to puff-balls again waiting for a strong wind to send their seeds aloft. A shiver went down Katniss' back as she meditated on the brevity of the dandelions' existence. How many generations of the yellow flowers had come and gone since she and Prim had arrived in Twelve last summer?

Her thoughts grew maudlin as she glanced at the stone in front of them. Surely none of those people whose names were carved into it planned for their life to end that day.

The memory of her own parent's grave marker flashed into her thoughts and despair fell over her. She pulled Peeta's hand off her belly where it rested to hold it fast, wanting to anchor herself to this place and this moment, to freeze it in time so that nothing bad would ever happen to either one of them again.

But she knew it wasn't possible.

She listened half-heartedly as the mayor spoke, when a strange sensation occurred. A tiny butterfly seemed to be trapped underneath her skin. It darted from one side of her stomach across to the other, tickling at her.

The baby. Katniss took in a sharp intake of air, causing the Peeta to turn to her.

"The baby," she mouthed.

A panicked look appeared in his eyes. He leaned his mouth to her ear. "Is something wrong? Are you all right?"

She twisted her head to whisper back. "The baby just moved."

His solemn face broke apart and a radiant smile appeared. Katniss put his hand back to rest on her stomach.

Her sharp intake of air and her placement of Peeta's hand caught the attention of those around them. "Is it the baby?" Prim whispered loudly.

Henry's tear-stained face turned toward them and his sad countenance disappeared.

"I don't feel anything," Peeta whispered.

"It stopped now."

It was probably too early for the others to feel the quickening of the life within her, but Katniss was grateful that the little one had picked that exact moment to make her presence known. She needed the reminder that life goes on. That it would be good again. It was the same message that Granny Sae and Haymitch had told her but it bore repeating on such a sad anniversary.

The ceremony was short. Afterwards, the families came forward to look at the stone and lay flowers in front of it. The Mellarks had already been to the memorial numerous times since it had been fixed upon the ground. But they came forward again at this official moment.

Henry laid the bouquet onto the grass. He kissed the tips of his fingers and rubbed them across the name of his wife, and then his oldest son.

The family stepped away to let the other families come forward.

"We should get back," Henry said. "I've got a lot of cooking to do." The Cartwrights were joining them later for a memorial dinner.

They pushed their way through the crowd, only to be stopped by a pretty, middle-aged woman with short, blonde hair who planted herself firmly in Henry's path. She looked slightly familiar to Katniss, likely a bakery customer.

"Mr. Mellark, we need to talk," she said catching Henry's attention. "It's about that cat of yours."

"Buttercup?" Henry raised his eyebrows.

The woman snorted. "If that's the name of that mangy, yellow mutt that lives in your shop."

"It is."

"Well it seems he's gotten my sweet little tabby pregnant."

"That's impossible; Buttercup lives indoors. He never leaves the bakery."

"That's what you think. But my kitty gave birth yesterday morning and the entire litter looks like your mutt."

Henry frowned. "I don't see how Buttercup could have done it. He never goes outside."

"Well if he's found a way out, it would certainly explain why he keeps getting fleas," Prim spoke up.

Prim and Henry had had to give Buttercup a few baths since that first one when the cat had scratched Henry's face and Prim's arm. Fortunately they'd managed to avoid further attacks.

Henry sighed. "Okay then. What do you want from me? Money?"

The woman looked aghast. "Why would I want money? I'd just like for you to post a sign in the bakery next month so I can find homes for the kittens. I don't need eight more. One cat is plenty for me. I don't want people thinking I'm crazy, living alone surrounded by cats."

"Eight?" Peeta eyes flew to Katniss' belly.

"Oh, no Peeta there's only one baby inside me," she blurt out.

Eight kittens. Was that even possible?

"Yes I can do that," Henry said, relief spreading across his face. He paused before running his fingers through his thinning hair, and giving the woman a warm smile. "Do you have any plans for the evening? I'm hosting a dinner party. Perhaps you'd like to join my family and we could discuss the kittens."

The woman was speechless for a moment, but then a shy smile appeared on her face revealing dimples on both sides of her cheeks. "Ah, well, I guess I could join you for dinner. I think the cats would be safe if I left them alone for a couple of hours. I'm Daisy, by the way."

Henry grinned. "And I'm Henry. Well, I'll see you at four, Daisy. Just knock loudly on the bakery door and I'll let you in."

Katniss' bit her lip to keep from smiling and turned to Prim. But her sister wasn't paying attention; she was whispering something to Rory who was by her side.

Katniss raised her eyebrows and turned to Peeta. They shared an amused glance. Henry had become a second father to Katniss. He'd taken such good care of her and Prim and had even dismissed her extremely late, embarrassed apology about her mother's deception to him with a simple wave of his hand. Surely the man deserved to find happiness in love again.

"Well, let's get going," Henry said after he watched Daisy walk away. "I have big plans for this meal."

THE END

Thanks to everyone who read this story and especially those who favorited it and/or left reviews. I appreciate all your support and your kind words. If you have any questions or comments about this story or any of my fanfiction, you can also find me on tumblr at MTK4FUN dot tumblr dot com.

I will not be posting an epilogue. I will leave the future of this universe up to your imagination. I will say, though, that they all lived happily ever after. And for you purists out there, I am fully aware that Maysilee Donner was not killed by a tribute from Two. That is my change to fit this story. In truth she was skewered through the neck by the beak of a pink bird.

I will now turn my attention to other writing endeavors. I'm working on a Rye Mellark/Delly Cartwright 1940s historical fic to contribute to stories2savelives. I'm also researching/writing an Everlark historical that takes place in Kentucky in the 1930s. And I'm editing a YA original fiction book with supernatural elements that I wrote immediately after reading The Hunger Games trilogy. (I wrote it in first person present tense and it's going to be a bear to edit, LOL!) I'm also planning to write a couple of THG one-shots. I have some ideas… Plus there are a lot of fanfics I want to read.

It's going to be a busy summer!