It Started With a Cake

Ch30. Home

It's early morning when I'm woken abruptly again by the shrill cries of a baby, Willow, I remind myself as I feel the familiar feeling of our own bedsheets around me.

I'm beginning to get use to the feeling of caring for and holding Willow in my arms, but still it occasionally surprises me that she is real and ours.

Sighing, I rise myself from the comfy bed, Peeta mumbles something that I can't quite make out but he appears to still be asleep, if not on the very edge of it.

With this in mind I gentle walk over to Willow and lift her from her tiny bassinet, she calms almost immediately at my contact with her, and if she could I'm sure she would have smiled.

I rock her gently, whispering a barely audible "morning baby" to her as I quietly exit our room and enter Willow's nursery in hopes of letting Peeta sleep a little bit longer.

Once we enter I carefully lower myself onto the rocking chair that sits in the corner of her room, pulling the strap of my tank top off of my shoulder as I prepare to nurse her.

She latches on with ease as I offer my breast to her, closing her eyes slightly as she suckles her heart away.

After watching her fondly for a moment, simultaneously making sure she has a good latch, I do the same, rocking us both gently as we get use to the morning.

She's only been with us earth side for three days now, today being the first time we've woken up in our own home with her, yet still this all feels completely natural, as if we've been doing it for years.

It's a little while later when I finally open my eyes again, the sound of Willow's latch being broken pulling me back into reality.

She has her eyes open too, a few happy gurgles escaping her lips, showing me she has no interest in falling back asleep after her morning feed.

I smile gently, lifting her up to my shoulder to quickly burp her. After releasing a small one I bring her back down to cradle in my arms.

She nestles herself back into my chest with a small coo that sends a warmth coursing through my entire body, I coo back at her in response.

Then after a few more hums between us I quietly sing a short little song to her.

She watches me intently the whole time but still shows no sign of wanting to go back to sleep, guess it's time to wake up then.

I think briefly of finding Peeta, maybe lying down with all three of us but I'm quick to brush the idea off, deciding If Peeta is still asleep than he deserves to get as much of it as he can, sleep being a rare commodity between us nowadays.

Instead I rise from the rocking chair with Willow still in my arms and lay her down on a soft blanket on the floor. She makes a grumble of disappointment at being put down, kicking her legs and arms as I sit down on the floor beside her.

I reach for one of the soft toys that sit in a nearby basket, most of the toys inside it being gifted to us by friends and family, mostly Effie who went berserk buying gifts for us once she found out about us expecting a baby.

My hands land on a small stuffed elephant, it's main material a light blue grey colour with a light pink material on its floppy ears, feet and the tip of it's trunk.

I bring it over to her holding it right in front of her face, it's a little while before she notices it but once she does she gurgles something up at it, reaching a flimsy hand up to grab it.

Her hands brush the object and in turn my hand holding it but it doesn't grasp it, instead it falls back down, the tight fist coming to her mouth. She's surprised by it's presence, not yet understanding that her hand is attached to her, she sucks it curiously a confused grunt escaping her.