A/N: Hello! Thanks for supporting this story! I promised frequent updates, and you'll be getting it. This is the deal. Do you want weekly, short updates, or monthly, twice as long updates? Tell me via reviews. Thanks. Now to the story. I've seen other stories like this, but I assure you I came up with the idea on my own, inspired by the movie. And, no, Peeta isn't becoming the Mockingjay. I mean, can you imagine sweet, caring Peeta taking the place that was meant for Katniss? Well, I can't, so it's not happening. And he'll be semi-functioning during recovery, but he'll make speeches, mostly based on his pain. Yes. Now that's settled, let's get to the story!
Peeta's Perspective
Days past by slowly while he recovered, stretched even more with the ever-lasting silence between the two occupants of the private hospital ward. Finnick constantly did knots, and untied them, so often that his fingers started having rope marks on them, and swelling, so the doctors took his piece of rope away, and made sure to never leave one in the room again. Finnick didn't seem to mind, because they gave him a small lightweight metal ball that resembled a pearl, and he turned it over and over in his hands, instead of the rope. But Peeta's heart clenched every time he saw that ball, it resembled the pearl he gave to Katniss in The Quell too much. But it seemed to be Finnick's way of occupying himself, so he never mentioned it to anyone. His way of occupying himself was staring blankly at the wall, which really wasn't of any use. The doctors had resorted to hooking Finnick up on a limited supple of morphine each day, he was too hysterical otherwise. They offered him the same option, but he declined, intending for his mental health to stay intact enough to think of ways to help Katniss. Finnick was almost delirious, muttering about poor Annie, how they were probably torturing her, and he seemed to be the only one that understood. The President of District 13 came to visit them once, to see if they'll contribute to the rebellion. Finnick refused, until he has Annie safe, and close to him, he said he won't join the rebellion. The President had nodded then, tight-lipped, and turned to Peeta.
'Think about your way with words." She had said. "Think about how Katniss would want you to do this, for her. Be our Mockingjay, Peeta, you can be Katniss' replacement."
Peeta knew, Katniss doesn't want anything to do with leading the rebellion. She hates people looking at her for what to do. And he almost punched President Coin because of her words. How dare she ask him to be a replacement for Katniss.?
"No." Peeta had replied. "I will contribute to the rebellion when you agree to rescue Katniss."
'We will have to rally the districts for that." President Coin had said through gritted teeth. "And we can't do the rallying without you."
"Give me sometime to think it over." He had said, and the President had turned and walked away, her heels making loud clacking noises against the floor.
Peeta had thought about it for a long time, and is still puzzling over his decision, but it was sealed the day Katniss appeared on Capitol TV.
He was sitting with Finnick, as usual, not talking, just drowning in his own misery and thoughts. The TV had flickered on, with the Capitol seal lighting up the screen, the anthem playing.
'Finnick." Peeta had said. "Barricade the doors. They might have news about Katniss and Annie, people in 13 doesn't want us to know."
For a grief stricken guy, Finnick can move pretty fast, and is also strong. He pushed the huge hospital desk onto the metal doors, and activated the lock from inside, then coming to sit with Peeta on the bed.
Turns out there was no news of Annie, but of Katniss. She was strapped to a chair in the middle of a white room, with white tiled flooring, and she looked terrible. All her wounds and scars weren't healed, and were on full display, with the sports bra and spandex no doubt the Capitol forced her to wear. She had a deep gash on her left arm, that made Finnick flinch.
'That was from Johanna digging out the tracker." He informed Peeta.
It was painfully obvious that she'd been tortured constantly. She seemed to have bruises everywhere, on her thighs, her abdomen, her cheek, her eye. Several shallow cuts were on both of her arms, and she looked starved. Sunken cheeks, hollow eyes that still burned with her fire, and a thin, malnourished body. The dark shadows under her eyes were pronounced,.
Peeta had watched in horror as they doused Katniss with water, and shocked her. She didn't scream, just bit her lip until blood started to stream down, and they took the shocker away. She took in air in short gasps, and was back to staring defiantly at the camera.
"Katniss dear. What do you have to say to the rebels?" President's Snow voice came over TV.
She spat her mouthful of blood on the white tiled floor.
"I want the fucking Capitol burned to the ground." She snarled murderously. "Every fucking square inch of it in ashes, at my feet."
The screen went blank after that, but not before Peeta saw a Peacekeeper punch Katniss in the face with brass knuckles.
The anthem started to play, and the Capitol seal appeared.
Peeta felt nauseous. They were torturing Katniss, his Katniss, on live TV. The door opened at last, and a team of doctors poured into the room.
"Did you see the foo- Oh. You saw them." The male doctor said, sadly.
"Yes. We saw Katniss. Tortured live. Don't say Oh, ever again." Finnick growled. Perhaps, Peeta thought, he had learned to love Katniss like a little sister.
'We're terribly sorry." Another female doctor apologized, flustered.
'As you should be." Finnick nodded.
Then, President Coin pushed her way through the crowd of doctors.
"Peeta Mellark." She demanded. "Have you made up your mind?"
Seeing Katniss tortured live was his final straw.
"Alright." He spat, angry at the whole world for being so unfair to him. "I'll do it. Though I have conditions."
"Go on." Coin said, her eyes glinting. It was obvious she wanted the power to rule Panem for herself.
"One." Peeta said, looking straight into Coin's power hungry eyes. 'I am not the Mockingjay. I'm merely her substitute, until she gets back. I have no intention of replacing her. Two. You will rescue the victors from the Capitol at the first chance you get, or our deal's off. Victors will automatically be granted immunity, regardless of their offense to the rebels."
Coin's face twisted into a frown, but she waved Peeta on.
"When Katniss gets back, which she will, you will give her anything, and I mean, anything, she wants, at any time."
Coin gave him an obviously fake, tight-lipped smile. "I'm afraid that's not possible, Soldier Mellark."
Peeta went on as if he haven't heard Coin.
"I and Katniss, we won't be under anyone's control. We will listen to you, of course, but we only act upon the things that make sense to us."
"I'm afraid that's not possible, Soldier Mellark." Coin repeated.
"Do you want the rebellion to succeed, or not?" He spat, tired of her games. Katniss was probably, no, most definitely being tortured brutally as they argue on Peeta's conditions. "Your real precious Mockingjay is out there, in the Capitol, strapped to a chair, getting tortured, and here you are, arguing over pointless things that you could definitely grant to the substitute-Mockingjay."
In a moment of rage, Coin's careful word filter seemed to have disappeared.
'We do not need Katniss Everdeen as much as we do you!" She cried. "She is just like the first spark, useless after the fire is ignited. You, Soldier Mellark, are like the gasoline we need to keep that fire going!"
"What did you say?" Peeta asked, deadly calm.
The doctors prepared a sedating needle.
"I'm sorry for my unwise choice of words, Soldier Mellark." Coin said, pronouncing each syllable carefully, like he was a wounded animal, which he probably was, in her eyes.
Peeta still looked murderous, and bordering on hysteria. The trauma of seeing his first, and only, love tortured live wasn't ideal at all.
'Do you accept?" Peeta asked, his voice trembling from despair, poor Katniss is out there, tortured.
It took Coin a long time to reply.
'Yes." She said finally. "But one disobeying, Soldier Mellark, and the terms are revoked. And you and the victors out of Thirteen."
He nodded, he was now one step closer to saving his poor Katniss from the Capitol.
Aww. Ain't Peeta the cutest thing ever? Review, my fellow tributes, suggestions, non-rude criticism, anything. You can also PM me if you like. It's okay, I'm not a Career. I end this with a quote! Guess who? (It's painfully obvious.)
"You could live a hundred life times and never deserve that boy."
Was it a hundred? Or thousand? Sorry, too lazy to check. It's from the movie, not the book, thought it's similar enough. I love both movies and books equally, and to those who haven't watched Catching Fire, it closely follows the books. In my opinion, THG and CF is one of the bests after the Harry Potter movies.
Love,
Kaitlyn xoxo