Disclaimer: The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, two of the best books I've ever read, are owned by Suzanne Collins and I don't have any rights to them except the right to read them and love them. Here's my attempt of trying to continue the story. I'm sure it will pale in comparison to Suzanne's wonderful work, but here goes chapter two.

Chapter Two

If the wind could whistle ominously through the hovercraft to play up the silence, now would be the perfect time. It would be almost comical if there wasn't so much hanging in the balance. I don't look at anyone except for Haymitch. My eyes are flat, with no emotion, as I wait for him to speak. His eyes are equally as flat as he stares back.

"Maybe we should talk about this in private," Plutarch says softly. As if waking from a deep sleep, I am once again reminded that my arms are around my mother and Prim, and Gale is still staring those angry gray holes into my back.

"I'm done with secrets," I say coldly. My eyes swing back to Haymitch. "My mother and Prim can handle it. They've been through more than most."

Plutarch looked away as he swallowed hard and the gulp could be heard across the room. We hear footsteps and I turn to see Finnick lean against the doorjamb. Whatever anger I had felt towards him as evaporated. I nod and I can see the look of relief has he nods back. My words about Annie haunt me and I look away before yet another emotion gives me away. "Well?" I ask Haymitch impatiently. The tension is so thick in the room that I swear a knife would get stuck if it tried to cut through it.

"As Plutarch said, you're the mockingjay. You're the symbol of the rebellion. As long as they see you and know that you are alive and well, they will fight." His words are delivered with a sharp and almost sarcastic edge.

"And what about those that were," and here my voice falters a little. "What about those that were captured?"

"They're bait," Haymitch says simply and turns to look out of a window.

I break away from my family and stalk over to Haymitch. My fingers dig into his arm as I make him turn to face me. "I know. How do we save them anyway?" I don't take any precautions to lower my voice. I let it carry. I hear Finnick straighten and come further into the room. Of course he does, he's just as interested in the answer as I am.

"Do you know what you're asking, Katniss? For a boy you never even loved?" Haymitch spit out. His eyes were angry and storm tossed gray. Just like Gale's when he was upset over something.

"You don't know what I feel," I said coldly. My fingers tightened on his arm and I know I had to be causing him pain. I didn't care. "You owe me," I told him fiercely.

He wrenched his arm away from me. "I don't owe you anything, girl. I kept you alive!" He turns and we see spittle fall from his mouth as he yells at me. "The girl on fire! HA! The girl who never does what she's told is more like it! You're alive. Someone should think that you would be thankful."

"I don't deserve to be!" I scream out. My shout has my sister sobbing. "I'm not good enough, remember?" I toss out as an backhanded afterthought.

Haymitch shakes his head. "None of us are," he says softly as he turns. "Just a bunch of killers." Everyone is crying or silent as we wait. Haymitch is puffing out breaths and he leans his head against the window. I don't know what he is seeing but I want to know what to do. I need direction. I can't take on the Capitol by myself. I don't know its inner workings. But Haymitch has had practice with them. With him and Plutarch, we should be able to figure something out. "You're asking for a miracle."

"Then I should get a miracle." My mentor turns to look at me. He obviously sees something because he nods.

"We'll think of something. Let's just get to District 13." I feel something unfurl in my chest and start creeping towards that empty hole inside me. It's warm, I think. It's hope.

***********************

Plutarch told us that we have about an hour until we reach District 13. I just block it out of my mind as my mother and sister lead me to the room they had been occupying. My mom looks at the holes that I caused and does what she can. "I'm proud of you, Katniss," she tells me.

Can't she tell that I can't take much more emotional battery? I look at her fair hair as she's bent over my arm applying some kind of salve from a jar in her medical bag. "Mother-" I start but she shakes her head as she looks up at me.

"I know I failed you and your sister when your father died. Nothing I can do or say will ever be able to make up for those years. But you have always looked out for us. For those you love," she says softly. My eyebrows rise up. She sees more than I ever gave her credit for. I don't say anything else because I have a lump the size of a coal in my throat. I just nod my head as she continues to look over me and apply bandages.

When she's finished, Prim comes to sit next to me and takes my hand. We sit in silence as the hovercraft moves closer and closer to a future that I don't want to think about. It's then that I notice Gale standing in the doorway. He's staring me down again, and it makes me uncomfortable. "Can I talk to her alone?" he asks. No one has to ask which one he wants alone.

My mother and Prim get up and leave the room leaving me alone, again, with Gale. I fidget with the sleeve of the jacket as he takes a seat directly across from me. We sit in silence for a bit longer before I hear Gale clear his throat. It's obvious to the both of us that he's tired of me not being able to meet his eyes. Oh, how I wish we could go back to those days before the 74th reaping to where we could joke, and hunt. Those days are long gone and there's not any of that innocent time left in us. I finally look up and look straight into his eyes. He swallows hard and I can tell he's trying to work up to something. "Katniss," he says and his voice is low and husky. I feel some kind of chill work up my spine in anticipation of his next words. My heart is beating fast in my chest and I feel like it's going to explode. His eyes are tortured as they stare into mine. "Katniss," he says again. "Do you love him?"

A/N: Please be kind and leave a review.