I finish braiding the mane of my black stallion, carefully grooming his hair so it is neat for the ride. I hate to admit that I have been neglecting him as of late, preferring the quicker, smaller Kelpie and letting the large framed horse carry Peeta around. The horse glances at me and I brush my cold hand down his neck, smiling at him.

"I've missed you too, friend," I say and he nudges me, knickering softly and leaning forward to groom Kelipe as she grazes on the grain scattered on the ground in front of them. 

"I don't think he minds you not twisting up his hair constantly," Peeta says as he walks up. I look over at him and shake my head. "Nor the company you leave him with in return." Kelpie glances at us and lifts her head, chewing on the grass in her muzzle calmly. She turns and nips at Duke's cheek, clearly teasing him. 

"I think I might let them produce a colt in a little over a year," I say, "They are both such fine horses." Peeta glances at me and runs his hand down the vicious mare's nose, smiling at her.

"New life is a grand idea," He says, glancing at me. I feel my cheeks grow red as I realize he might not just be talking about a spring foal from my horses.

"I'm in no rush for that," I say and Peeta just chuckles. 

"When are we leaving?" He asks and I look over at the orange stained sky, slowly starting to darken into a night sky.

"As soon as the others join us," I say. "Haymitch will stay and hold the night. The others should be getting their horses ready and coming here soon." Peeta glances at Kelpie and then to the readily tacked Duke.

"Are you not coming?" He ask and I shake my head.

"We'll both ride Duke," I say. "He'll carry us easy enough and a dark colored horse is less conspicuous." Peeta walks around me and rests his hand on my middle. 

"Do you want me to help you up?" He asks and I look over my shoulder at him and sigh.

"Is this an excuse to touch my ass?" I ask and he chuckles.

"Of course not," He says. "I just think that this horse is a little tall to swing onto like you do with Kelpie." I roll my eyes and jump up onto the horse's back. I sit up and look down at Peeta listening as Boggs, Gale, Finnick, and Johanna walk their horses up.  Gale tilts his head a little and I look straight through him.

"Are you all ready?" I aska nd Johanna shrugs. 

"I'd rather be in bed with a fifth to be honest, but I suppose so," Johanna says and Finnick just chuckles. 

"Is the snowflake staying behind? Gale taunts but Peeta just grips onto my leg and pulls himself up onto the horse behind me. 

"No," He says. "I go where the Lady goes." I can feel Gale glaring at me but I just look at Boggs. 

"Let's get going then, so we can get there by night fall and scout out supplies," I say and he nods, turning his horse towards the entrance. The others follow, Peeta and I bringing up the back. Tigris stands outside her tent and waves to us as we pass.

"Be not afraid of the scars that remain, Lord and Lady!" She calls after us and Peeta and I glance at one another as Duke steps forward, following the other horses out of camp. 

We are silent for a while, just walking through the faintly lit trees. The snow crunches beneath the horses' feet and I can feel Peeta gripping onto my waist as we ride. I look up at the sky seeing the bright colors painted across it. He follows my gaze, resting his chin on my shoulder. 

"WHat is your favorite color?" He asks and I look at him, chuckling.

"What?" I ask and he looks at me, pulling my hair from my cheek. 

"Your favorite color," He says.

"I don't have one," I say and he shakes his head. 

"Of course you do," He says. "Everyone has one." 

"You have a favorite color," I say and he nods.

"Yeah," He says. "It's orange." I just look at him and shake my head. "You don't believe me?"

"It seems a little," I stop trying to think. "A little too bold for your taste."

"Well I'm not talking about bright bold, fire orange," he says, nodding to the sky. "I mean like that soft color left in the sky when the sun sets."

"Why?" I ask and he smiles, gripping onto my waist.

"I guess it just always reminded me as a child that I had survived another day," he says softly and I reach down, squeezing his hand.

"Mine's green," I say softly. "That pure, strong, evergreen color that's on pine trees." He nods and looks over at the blue spruces around us.

"It suits you, I think," he whispers, "Always so strong in your ways, pure in your beliefs." He leans against me and  kisses my cheek, making me laugh, the spirit light between us despite the dread I know we both feel going back to the home we knew growing up.

"You were both born in 12?" Finnick calls back and I straighten up, feeling Peeta tense behind me.

"We were," he says.

"To different classes by the looks of ya," Johanna says and I sigh.

"Starved most my life and he at least had food on the table every night if that's what you mean," I say and Peeta grips me tighter.

"But you say you were friends growing up?" She asks and I glance at Peeta.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He asks and she looks back at me.

"I find it hard to believe someone well off having anything to do with people below them," she says and I glare at her.

"Well, you are mistaken to assume such things about my bride, Miss Mason," Peeta says and I glance back at him. "We were schoolmates and our fathers traded with one another. We were pretty close."

"Peeta helped me escape the night my mother died," I say. "I owe him my life many times over." He squeezes my middle and I grip tight to the reins of the horse.

"Let's just get there and stop jabbering about your damned life story!" Gale calls back and I sigh, rolling my eyes.

The caravan continues on as the sky darkens above us. I can feel my stomach drop, thinking about all the bad memories that are held just outside these woods. As Duke steps on the fence and it rattles, I glance back at Peeta.

"You gonna be okay?" I ask and he just looks at me.

"Asks the girl who had a nightmare about this place last night," he says and I sigh looking back at the ashen ground. Peeta brushes my hair from my face and we turn forward, going the others outside the woods.

Even in the dark, I can see how the buildings around us are leveled, piles of rubble on every side of us. Everything is deadly silent and I can feel my heart drop as I see the fog crossing  across the chimnys that remain.

All around us smells like death.

"Holy shit, you guys really did a number on this place," Finnick says and I look down. Peeta glances at him and sighs, his arm still laying around me.

"It doesn't look that different honestly," he says and I glance at him. "Gale and Johanna, you can go to the West. Boggs, you and Finnick can go to the East. Scout for the supplies we might need." Gale glares at us and I look at him.

"Do as he says," I say. "This is his patrol. We will remain here and keep lookout " Gale huffs and trots his horse past Johanna. She sticks her tongue out at him and follows. Finnick and Boggs nod to us and turn their horses to trot in the other direction.

"I never thought to come here again," Peeta says after they leave and I sigh.

"I didn't exactly want to come here the first time," I say, carefully turning the horse and heading up the trail. "But I suppose we wouldn't be together if I hadn't."

"Where are we going?" He asks.

"I guess I'm just curious about how the Seam faired," I whisper and he reaches for the reins.

"Let me show you something then," Peeta says softly. I look at him and he kisses my cheek. He holds tight to my hand and I watch ahead as Duke walks the familiar trail towards my childhood home.

As we stop, I look at the remains of the shack I was born in. The foundation is cracked and crumbled from the burning.  The chimney rises above us, an unstable tower of dread looming over us. Other than that, no more of my home remains. I take a deep breath and Peeta stops the horse.

"Why did you bring me here?" I ask and he slides off the back of the horse. Peeta carefully walks up the the chimney and I watch in horror as he kneels down and starts digging in the ashes. "What are you doing?"

"It should still be here," He says and I watch as he wiggles a brick at the base and the whole structure shakes.

"Peeta, be careful," I say, leaning on the horse's neck and sliding off. He pulls up the brick and reaches in the ashes beneath it, clearly looking for something. "What could be so important left in this rotten place?" He grabs onto a small, stained red bag and pulls it out. 

"Thank the gods it survived," He says softly and I slowly walk closer.

"What is it?" I ask and he glances at me, carefully moving off of the crumbled stones.He looks at the little red bag, running his fingers over the lines of the flannel.

"After I woke up, and found out that you were missing," Peeta says softly. "I came here a lot. Snuck away because it was where I could draw and paint with no one bothering me." His hand closes over  the bag and he shakes his head. 

"Why here though, where there was so much misery?" I ask and he glances at me.

"I wasn't conscious for her funeral Katniss," He says."I never saw those scenes you have nightmares about. To me, this place represented you and the care I had back then." He carefully holds out the bag and I take it, carefully from his hand. It is dirty and grubby from the burial, bit I still recognise it.

"This is from that old tartan dress I had," I say and he nods, looking away from me.

"Just, look inside," He says I open the little pouch and turn it over, letting the small metal object fall into my hand. A silver band, shaped like a wolf, snaking around in a ring. The fur is finely etched in, every claw on her tiny paws noticeable. Upon her back, in a just as carefully formed setting, is a silvery round pearl. It shines in the moonlight, making me look up, as though searching for her watching me from the sky.

"You made this?" I ask and he nods, watching as I turn it over in my fingers. "You weren't lying to Thresh from the start when you said you knew your way around metals, huh?"

"After I started dreaming about," Peeta looks at me and sighs. "About you and I know who, I started thinking about you a lot. About how I had felt about you, how much I missed you. So, after a while, I sat in that broken kitchen and made that. The ring I could never propose to you with. So when it was done, I buried it here, where no one could ever find it but it could be close to the memory I had of you." I look at him and then back at the ring.

"This is an engagement ring?" I ask "You know I can't accept this." He sighs, looking at me. 

"I know," He says. "I guess I just wanted you to see it." I glance at the moon wolf and carefully place it back in the pouch, tying it back shut. I reach for his hand, closing it over the ring.

"Keep this safe," I whisper, running my finger down his cheek, "And when the time comes, I will accept this token as it should have been." He looks at me and leans his head against mine.

"We should go back to our post," He says. I glance at him, looking at his eyes for the sorrow I heard in his voice but I find none.

"Do you want to go to the bakery?" I ask and he shakes his head.

"There's nothing left for me there," He says. "Curiosity would only be disrespectful to the dead that lay under that rubble. That isn't who I am anymore." He walks past me and grips onto the horse's lead rope, starting to walk towards the down fence. 

Glancing one last time back at the rubble, I turn to follow Peeta, leaving the misery of my former life behind.