#but not even suzanne collins ignores the fact that he’s a man and the capitols favorite for a reason

[quillkiller]

anyway. even katniss accuses peeta of sexism when he spins the story of his crush on her for his own advantage (even if he’s telling the truth) which in turn will make her look weak

[zutaralesbian]

So i've seen from a few viral posts on here that it's becoming a new thing to hate on the Peeta/Katniss relationship in The Hunger Games. (I've also seen some criticism towards the Gale/Katniss relationship that isn't entirely fair, but since that wasn't something I shipped, I won't be going into that). But here's me defending one of my oldest het ships from some of the points people bring up that I don't believe are true.

"Peeta feels entitled to Katniss"

The only time I can think of where this could appear to be true is the ending of the first book and the very beginning of Catching Fire. Katniss spent the last few chapters or so of the first book pretending to be in love with Peeta in order to sell their fake romance to the Capitol and recieve sponsors to help them survive. And when she reveals to Peeta that she doesn't truly feel anything romantic for him, he's hurt and ends up lashing out at her by giving her the cold shoulder.

Now, Peeta was completely wrong in this scenario. He's human and humans don't always react or handle things in the right way, especially in highly emotional situations. Still, it doesn't excuse him for lashing out at Katniss when she was just doing what she had to do in order to get them both out of the arena alive. I agree with that.

But the thing that people leave out or forget is that Peeta eventually realizes and acknowledges that he was wrong. And he apologizes to Katniss.

He takes a deep breath. "Look, Katniss, I've been wanting to talk to you about the way I acted on the train. I mean, the last train. The one that brought us home. I knew you had something with Gale. I was jealous of him before I even officially met you. And it wasn't fair to hold you to anything that happened in the Games. I'm sorry."

His apology takes me by surprise. It's true that Peeta froze me out after I confessed that my love for him during the Games was something of an act. But I don't hold that against him. In the arena, I'd played that romance angle for all it was worth. There had been times when I didn't honestly know how I felt about him. I still don't, really.

"I'm sorry, too," I say. I'm not sure for what exactly. Maybe because there's a real chance I'm about to destroy him.

"There's nothing for you to be sorry about. You were just keeping us alive. But I don't want us to go on like this, ignoring each other in real life and falling into the snow every time there's a camera around. So I thought if I stopped being so, you know, wounded, we could take a shot at just being friends," he says.

- Catching Fire, Chapter 4

After this, there's no resentment on Peeta's part towards Katniss for not returning his feelings. Sure it's pretty clear that what he feels for her isn't platonic and he comes off as sad about it at times, but he's completely willing to be her friend and support her anyway. And when Snow makes plans to force them to get married in order to keep up the farce, Peeta is just as upset about it as Katniss is, because he doesn't want her to be forced into something she doesn't want.

"Katniss never wanted Peeta that way and/or has no interest in romance"

It always astounds me that people look at a teenager living in an apocalyptic universe that involves her family possibly starving to death and children being reaped into an event to fight to the death each year and not realize that probably plays a big part in why romance isn't at the top of her priority list lol.

Before the Games, Katniss was the main breadwinner of her family that was living in severe poverty. She was too focused on making sure her little sister and mother didn't starve to death to focus on much else. After she's reaped, her main priority is keeping both herself and Peeta alive. Again, it completely makes sense why romance isn't at the top of her mind.

But there is more than one scene in the books that point out that Katniss DOES grow to desire Peeta romantically.

"No one really need me", he says, and there's no self-pity in his voice. It's true his family doesen't need him. They will mourn him, as will a handful of friends. But they will get on. Even Haymitch, with the help of a lot of white liquor, will get on. I realize only one person will be damaged beyond repair if Peeta dies. Me.

"I do", I say. "I need you." He looks upset, takes a deep breath as if to begin a long argument, and that's no good, no good at all, because he'll start going on about Prim and my mother and everything and I'll just get confused. So before he can talk, I stop his lips with a kiss.

I feel that thing again. The thing I only felt once before. In the cave last year, when I was trying to get Haymitch to send us food. I kissed Peeta about a thousand times during those Games and after. But there was only one kiss that made me feel something stir deep inside. Only one that made me want more. But my head wound started bleeding and he made me lie down.

This time, there is nothing but us to interrupt us. And after a few attempts, Peeta gives up on talking. The sensation inside me grows warmer and spreads out from my chest, down through my body, out along my arms and legs, to the tips of my being. Instead of satisfying me, the kisses have the opposite effect, of making my need greater. I thought I was something of an expert on hunger, but this is an entirely new kind.

- Catching Fire, Chapter 24

This might be the first time Peeta and Katniss kiss without any intention of trying to make a show for the Capitol. And KATNISS initiates it. She kisses Peeta because she wants to. And, on quote, desires more. But sure, she has no interest or attraction to him.

Peeta.

Alive and well - maybe not well but alive and here. Away from Snow. Safe. Here. With me. In a minute I can touch him. See his smile. Hear his laugh.

Haymitch's grinning at me. "Come on, then," he says.

I'm light-headed with giddiness. What will I say? Oh, who cares what I say? Peeta will be ecstatic no matter what I do. He'll probably be kissing me anyway. I wonder if it will feel like those last kisses on the beach in the arena, the ones I haven't dared let myself consider until this moment.

- Mockingjay, Chapter 12

Now other than the fact that this quote absolutely breaks my heart because it happens right before Katniss finds out Peeta was hijacked, it's such a cute one. And a very typical 'teenage girl thinks about the boy she likes' kind of quote. Katniss is literally fantasizing about a romantic reunion between her and Peeta that involves touching him, seeing his smile, hearing his laugh, and kissing him. And after she finds out about his hijacking, the possibility that he might not love her anymore devastates her.

I've always been of the opinion that Katniss fell in love with Peeta during Catching Fire. She cared about him a lot by the end of the first book, but Catching Fire is when the lines between fake love and real love began to really blur for her. And the fandom darling Finnick seems to think that too.

"It's just that I didn't understand when I met you. After your first Games, I thought the whole romance was an act on your part. We all expected you'd continue that strategy. But it wasn't until Peeta hit the force field and nearly died that I - " Finnick hesitates.

I think back to the arena. How I sobbed when Finnick revived Peeta. The quizzical look on Finnick's face. The way he excused my behavior, blaming it on my pretend pregnancy. "That you what?"

"That I knew I'd misjudged you. That you do love him. I'm not saying in what way. Maybe you don't know yourself. But anyone paying attention could see how much you care about him," he says gently.

- Mockingjay, Chapter 11

It's canon that Katniss fell in love with Peeta. However well done it was is up to a person's own opinion but they've been set up as the main romantic subplot since the moment Peeta was revealed as "the boy with the bread". Suzanne Collins had probably been planning on making them endgame since the first book. (I will never understand how people read these books and were shocked that they ended up together).

"Peeta forced Katniss to have children"

Now, i'll be the first to admit that this quote is by far not the best to come out of Katniss and Peeta's relationship.

They play in the Meadow. The dancing girl with the dark hair and blue eyes. The boy with blond curls and gray eyes, struggling to keep up with her on his chubby toddler legs. It took five, ten, fifteen years for me to agree. But Peeta wanted them so badly.

- Mockingjay, Epilogue

I understand why people take issue with this. I really do. But I think immediately jumping to the conclusion that Peeta forced her to have kids is pretty extreme, with how vague the entire epilogue is. Katniss doesn't say that. She only says that it took her a long time to agree. This could mean that he brought up the idea of having children a few times in the beginning only to be rejected, and Katniss changed her mind years later. Or it could also mean that he never said anything about it but Katniss could just tell from other ways how badly he wanted them. With how vague it is, it's up to interpretation. And considering how much Peeta hated the whole thing with Katniss having to pretend to be in love with him, I can't see him trying to force her to have kids that she didn't want. And there IS evidence to point to Katniss getting some joy out of their children as well.

When I first felt her stirring inside of me, I was consumed with a terror that felt as old as life itself. Only the joy of holding her in my arms could tame it.

- Mockingjay, Epilogue

No one has to ship Peeta/Katniss. I was a hardcore shipper back in the day and I still love them, but even I can admit that there are unhealthy aspects in their relationship. The extreme co-dependency and the fact that they both constantly put the other on a pedestal. But man, I wish people would quit bringing up arguments that hold no weight just for the sake of hating on them.