A/N: Just a little side note! If you haven't read Haunting Souls for a while now and don't remember Katniss's dream in the beginning, it would be good to go skim through it really fast ;) Sorry for the hint! But I don't want readers to be confused.
-smyle94
P.S: I updated two chapters together today for your own treat :)
Peeta
The sobbing and screaming of a newborn relieves my tense body. Katniss, who had been squeezing my hand insanely tight, lets go as soon as she hears the baby.
The blonde girl raises the baby, handing it over to me quickly so she could clean up. My eyes cannot move away from the baby's angelic face.
"Boy or girl?" Katniss whispers, her eyes on the child.
"Girl," I reply under my breath as I gently rock the crying newborn back and forth. A baby in my hands seems so foreign. I don't think I've ever carried one before.
The baby girl stares up at me, and the first thing I could notice were her large eyes, a startling blue that inevitabely reminds me of mine.
Katniss slowly raises herself and silently studies the baby, sobbing quietly as a large smile brightens her once damp face.
"She has your eyes, Peeta," Katniss praises in awe.
Of course I was the father…Snow had to make this as real as possible. At least it was me and no one else…
I imagine everyone in the Capitol squealing and gushing over the beautiful child in my arms.
Katniss places her hand gently on my shoulder, causing me to look at her. Without warning me, she leans forward and kisses me.
It's hard to explain how much I can savor a simple touch, nevertheless a kiss, from Katniss.
Soon after, the Avox girl is tapping at my shoulder. I turn around just as she signals for me to give her the baby. I imagine she needs to clean the newborn up or something important, so I gingerly pass the girl over.
The blonde Avox nods for us to stay here as she trots away, carefully holding the baby in her thin arms.
I take a deep breath and glance at Katniss, who is staring behind at the Avox.
"So…" I begin.
She doesn't reply. She continues to study the Avox with an intent, concentrating face…as if she is trying to remember something.
"Katniss?" I begin, wondering why she still doesn't dare to look away from the slowly disappearing Avox.
I open my mouth to say something else when Katniss whips her head around to stare at me.
"Oh my God, Peeta. My dream! She's from MY DREAM," Katniss declares.
I stay quiet, considering I'm not so sure what this means.
"PEETA! Go get the girl," she orders me in a suddenly protective tone.
"Wh-what?"
"GO GET THE AVOX!" Katniss begins to scream as she drags herself extremely slowly off the floor. I jump to my feet so she wouldn't have to get up.
"Why, Katniss? Tell me why!" For some reason, a small sense of fright spreads throughout my nerves. The safety of the baby is the only thing flashing through my head.
Katniss whips her head around, studying the buildings with eyes flooding with tears.
"No," she sobs, "Please no."
I can't help but think she had a premonition, and something bad is just about to happen…
Just as I turn to follow the Avox's tracks, a steady, yet noticeable, rumbling begins…the ground, is shaking ever so slightly.
Adrenaline pounds through my veins. I take off in a sprint after where the Avox went and I can still hear Katniss sobbing and screaming behind me.
"My DAMN DREAM. WHY COULDN'T I REMEMBER IT?" she screams to no one in particular.
A few steps later, the rumbling turns into something I have only read about in books: An earthquake.
Losing my balance, I fall instantly to the floor, barely catching myself with my hands.
The only thought in my mind is the baby.
I glance around in despair as buildings fall around me as if they were only made of paper barely glued together.
I need to find my child.
I steady myself as I try so desperately to stand up. Just as I raise my upper body, I turn just in time to hear Katniss scream my name…
And just in time for the rubble of a once-upon-a-home to knock me down and bury me in what I could only think is my destined grave.