Ivy ran along the river and scoured it carefully in search of the blonde. She remembered he was good with camouflage and made sure to scan trees and edges. She found blood on the rocks and knew she was getting closer. She followed the trail until she got to a muddy bank where there were piles of rocks and moss.

A hand shot out and grabbed her ankle and she looked down to see the boy. "Peeta! Oh my God! Peeta! Peeta!" She quickly cleared the stuff off him and helped him up. She wiped his face of mud off and gave him a hug.

She noticed him wince and asked, "What's wrong?"

"I'm hurt," Peeta explained.

"It's gonna be fine." She assured him.

"Ivy-"

"No!" She cut him off.

"You can't-"

"Stop it! I'm not gonna leave you! I'm not gonna do that." She refused.

"Says who?" His voice was ragged.

"Says me." The girl muttered, pulling his jacket off. "Did Cato cut you?"

"Left leg. Up high." He answered with a groan.

"Let's get you in the stream, wash you off so I can see what kind of wounds you've got," Ivy instructed him.

"Lean down first. Need to tell you something."

Ivy leaned over to get close to his lips as he said, "Remember, we're madly in love, so it's all right to kiss me anytime you feel like it."

Ivy jerked her head back, a crimson blush coating her cheeks, she laughed and said, "Thanks, I'll keep it in mind."

She helped him down to the river and cleaned him up. She stripped him of his shirt and he waggled his eyebrows at her. She rolled her eyes before taking them and washing them. She set them out to dry in the burning heat and went over to Peeta to check on him.

She felt his head and realized the layer of mud and the coolness of the water had disguised the fact that he was burning with fever.

Ivy ran to the two bags and dug through Marvels and grabbed the first-aid kit hoping to find some pills to help him. She found some labeled Tylenol and grabbed two. "Swallow these," she told him, and he took the medicine without question. "You must be hungry."

"No no, I'm good." He waved her off.

"Peeta, we need to get some food in you." Ivy insisted.

"It'll just come right back up," he said.

Ivy ignored him and grabbed his clothes stuffing them in her bags. She slung them on and helped Peeta up. She found a cave near by almost entirely covered by bushes. "Nobody's gonna find us in here."

"I'm already doomed."

She looked at his leg with a worried look. "We'll figure something out."

"Like what?"

"Something." She kissed his cheek before giving him some more pills.

••

Ivy grabbed the parachute and opened it to see a note from Haymitch saying, 'You call that a kiss?' And under it was a bowl of warm soup. She brought it inside and Peeta noticed it immediately.

"Is that medicine?"

"No it's soup," she said with a smile. "Haymitch got us some of the good stuff.

She undid the canister and grabbed the spoon from the parachute. "Here." She offered the first bites. "You need to eat."

"I can't."

"You have to Peeta. Just a little." She scooted closer and fed him some.

"It actually tastes good." He smiled at her.

She took a bite as well and felt the hunger leave her stomach that she didn't know she had.

"I feel a bit better. Can I sleep now, Ivy?"

"Soon," She promised, "I need to look at your leg first."

Trying to be as gentle as she could, she removed his boots, his socks, and then very carefully inched his pants off of him.
He had undershorts on like the rest of them in the case of needing to take off the pants. She looked over his thigh, it was bleeding still and without intervention, he'd get an infection and die.

She had nothing for him though. She panicked and frowned praying she wouldn't lose someone else.

"Ivy?" Peeta sashed noticing her whole body tense. "How about that kiss?"

Ivy laughed, "You are something else Peeta Mellark."

"What can I say? Man's last wish?"
Peeta joked.

"Don't say that Peeta. You're not going anywhere."

"Well, that look on your face said otherwise."

"No. I'll figure something out."

Peeta stared at her for a long moment before saying, "I remember the first time I saw you. Your hair was in a pigtail your brother did." He smiled. "You sang in the talent show. I never was able to talk to you though. Not until some of the other kids brought up asking you to join a game."

"I remember that. That was the first time I had fun in a while. My dad loved you. Thought you saved his daughter."

She looked at Peeta and remembered Haymitch had suggested in his note. She leaned down and kissed the boy softly. It was only for a moment but the warmth it spread throughout her lasted a lot longer.

She pulled away and tucked herself into his side. The boy smiled hoping to never forget the feel of her lips.

••

"Attention Tributes. Attention." Ivy shot up from her nap. "Commencing at sunrise, there will be a feast tomorrow at the Cornucopia." Ivy looked back at Peeta, hope in her eyes. "This will be no ordinary occasion, each of you needs something desperately. And we plan to be generous hosts."

"Your medicine. They have it."

"You're not going alone." Peeta insisted.

"Yeah, you need it and you can't walk. The capitol has stuff that can literally take the whole wound away. I'm going to get it."

"Ivy Aurora, you're not gonna risk your life for me. I'm not gonna let you."

"You would do it for me, wouldn't you? In fact, that's what you did volunteering, wasn't it? To protect me. Well, now I'm returning the favor."

"Iv-"

Before he could finish she kissed him for the second time. She hoped it would help him let her save him but it did the opposite.

"You're not going Ivy."

"Peeta!" She groaned exasperated.

"Please." He pleaded with her giving her puppy dog eyes. "Stay."

She was silent for a moment, staring him in the eyes. He wasn't backing down though and she could tell he wouldn't change his mind. "Okay." She nodded. "Fine. I'll stay." She laid back down with him and he wrapped his arm around her.

••

Ivy woke up early in the morning to hear Peeta's teeth chattering. She felt him and he was cold now, sweat still dripping from his body. She reached into her pack and pulled out the sleeping bag and wrapped it over Peeta.

She stayed up as his shivering went down some. She'd have to leave soon so that Peeta wouldn't stop her but she couldn't tear herself away from him.

As she stared at him she realized that as he had volunteered to protect her, she'd do anything to keep him alive. Whether he'd say so or not Ivy could tell he meant what he said in the interviews. She knew him a little too well.

And being in love with her was not going to be the death of Peeta Mellark. She was not going to let someone she was in love with go after losing almost everyone else she loved.