Between the time the books Catching Fire and Mockingjay were released, it was a pretty common topic of discussion wondering what one word Peeta said to Katniss after she asked him to stay with her. "Always" was a very popular answer people gave, though I remember at the time just revolting at the idea because "always" had been tainted by Severus Snape and his creepy obsession with Lily Potter.
But the thing was...none of the other suggestions seemed to work (I even wrote this scene from Peeta's POV and used "course" as in "of course" but even that...didn't land quite right). Yet it honestly took me years to accept "always" as Peeta's response to this question because Harry Potter fans consistently linked it to Snape and even got tattoos of it. At the time it felt like THG and Peeta would never be able to compete with HP's popularity. But I've come around and seen that "always" is the only response Peeta could have given and to separate it from Snape.
How can Peeta say it to Katniss, even while she'd just before claimed to have chosen Gale, and have it come off sweet and caring but it's creepy for Severus Snape to say about Lily, who had chosen James?
There's the obvious fact that Snape called Lily a slur and joined an organization set on killing people like her while Peeta's never did anything like that toward Katniss while he was in his right mind, but it's not just that. And it's not that Snape's descriptions are less than flattering while Peeta comes across as handsome and charming. And it's not even that Lily didn't choose Snape while Katniss did choose Peeta.
It's that Peeta's devotion to Katniss is unconditional, while Snape's were conditional up until Lily's death when at that point she became Snape's memory rather than someone who could act and speak for herself. Really, Severus, where was "always" when you called her a slur, when you were serving Voldemort, when you were groveling to Dumbledore to save Lily but let James and Harry die, when you were abusing children as a teacher? Is that really "always"?
Whereas Peeta, well, first when he was hurt about Katniss not being sure of her feelings toward him and acted wounded, he properly apologized for it and then never did it again. He knew Katniss would want to bring Gale if they ran away and never guilted her about it. He came in to defend Gale when he was whipped. He saved Katniss when Peacekeepers came to question her. He got them ready for the Quell and protected her with the baby bomb. He was willing to give up his life so she could have the life he assumed she wanted (or would eventually want) with Gale, Prim, and her mother. And in the Capitol as a prisoner, he made what deals he could to protect her and fought through his hijacking to warn her about the plans to bomb 13 and endured more torture because of what he did.
Of course, then the hijacking happens. He tries to kill her. He insults her. We can see how Peeta was hurt and confused and resentful of Katniss's treatment of him, even what she admitted to and not just what the Capitol put in his head. It seems like "always" could actually have an end.
But that's the thing. It doesn't. In the middle of war during a battle when his fight response was compelling him to act and kill on his conditioning, not only did he resist his hijacking, he came back to Katniss when she reached out and asked him to stay with her. He reaffirmed his promise. Always.
And he follows that up by continuing to protect her during the rest of the war, when she almost took her nightlock pill, and as soon as he was released from his treatment went to comfort her and help her heal from her sister's death. And as we see from the epilogue, he did stay with her, from the nightmares and bad days to the difficult pregnancies and the days in between. He stayed with her: the real Katniss, not a ghost or fantasized ideal.
And that's why Peeta could only respond with always. And that's why always belongs to Peeta Mellark. Because he actually meant it.
