Johanna's POV

I refused to have surgery but I did make sure to see Finnick before he was whisked away. All I let them do was take out the shrapnel and bandage it, a little morphling for the pain. Other than that I'm fine; I don't need anything else. On my way out I see Katniss half running to where Gale is, clearly relieved that he's alright. I can certainly relate on that one but I have other things to take care of.

As soon as we got back in the middle of me being stitched up Plutarch came to me, told me what Katniss and some soldier guy in District 4 found in Finnick and Annie's house. He described it to me as a black journal with a coded lock and when they peeked inside he told me he didn't know what the language was; no one could figure it out. Smirking, I told him I'd come down and help them read it once I was done here.

He looked at me incredulously but I really don't know why. He did come to me to ask because he knows besides Annie I'm the best person to ask. And really, I doubt Annie could tell them anything anyway. Finnick always did keep her mostly clueless about his doings in the Capitol. I don't know if that's to protect her because he loves her or because she would be safer not knowing, but either way for the most part she's too lost in her own head and horrid memories to be aware of what was going on anyway. Which made me the best person to ask and I had to laugh when he described it to me. Of course I knew what it was; I had a matching journal in my most likely destroyed home in District 7 from my years under Snow's grasp of appointments and being a sex slave.

I don't know what Finnick's has for secrets in that journal but it has to be a hell of a lot more than I ever had; after all, he did it a lot longer and a lot more than I ever did. I'm just happy he's probably written them all down for our sake because who the hell knows how well his mind is. If that's what his body looked like somehow I don't want to know what else they did.

On my way to Command I run into a few people but none I know or care to know. After all, what do I need them for? Even the few I see from District 7 give me harsh glares because of the Capitol's retaliation on our district after my obvious involvement in Kennie's breakout. It's not like I knew about it; no one even expected that to happen to District 7. District 12 we anticipated because really, Snow's had it out for them for…well if I'm being honest, probably since Haymitch won his Games by using their own arena against them. But my home…it's a little harsh but really I'm not entirely surprised. Snow's just a fucking bastard.

Once there Plutarch looks up to me with a relieved look though I can tell he half doesn't believe that I really know what I'm doing here. Coin's expression is well…mostly expressionless but I can tell she's perplexed as well. Oh I'm going to enjoy this one. Knowing something they don't and on top of it making them feel like they're pretty fucking stupid will be the cherry on top of this day. A rescue, Finnick's safe, and making these idiots feel idiodic in the span of about twelve hours? Yeah, best day in a long time.

"Soldier Mason, I've been told you know the language of this journal as well as the code?" Coin asks me and I give her my most smug smile which I'm sure looks more like a smirk at this point but really I don't care.

"The code I'll have to guess on but I have a pretty good idea. As for the language that's easy. It's English." I inform them and they all look at me like I'm part crazy, part stupid. They'll see.

"Miss Mason, you have not seen the writing. I assure you it's not English." Plutach insists but I just roll my eyes and hold out my hand for him to give me the journal. With a shrug he places it in my palm and I look down to the five letter coded lock. Hmm…well I can only think of two things. And they would most likely be in the 'coded english' too. The first I try is his boat name, the Tides. I pull on the lock but it's a no go. Second is the one other most likely thing and it happens to be five letters. Annie. Not surprising but it annoys me a little that this is probably the code. I quickly put in the five letter blocks E-I-N-N-A and the lock is unlatched. Of course.

"You did know the code." Plutarch whispers in awe. Hmm, well I guess he didn't believe me quite as much as he let on. Well whatever. "What's einna?"

"The most important thing to Finnick." I mumble rolling my eyes internally. I glance through the journal a little smugly, seeing that it's all in the English I taught him to write it in. An easy but long ago forgotten way to write. It's not brain science to figure it out but it could fool most people at first glance. Especially if it's in cursive writing like it is in Finnick's scrawl handwriting.

"English. Just like I thought." I think out loud and I get more strange looks. I roll my eyes at them and give them a bit of insight. "Do you have a mirror?"

"A mirror? What do ya need that for?" Haymitch's voice asks me from behind and I turn to him. "I assure ya Mason that your scowl is just the same as always." He smirks. Back to his sarcastic smart ass self I see. He seems a little more pissed than usual but that's not something to be so alarmed about. Not that I would be anyway.

"So's your assish face." I counter and he surprisingly just lets out one guffaw, clearly letting it go for now. Well that's definitely new.

"Very well. Here's your mirror Soldier Mason." Coin speaks and I look back to see Plutarch's assistant (whatever her name is) handing me a compact mirror. It's very Capitolish and I'm a little surprised that she even brings it around with her here since there's really not much need to impress anyone with looks, but I guess for now it's helpful so I'll let that slide for now.

"Fine. Hold this in front of me." I order, pushing the little mirror into Plutarch's hands. Curiosity takes over him and he does what I say as I hold the book up in front of it, moving it slightly. "Just as I thought. English."

"But…how?" Plutarch questions me, clearly still confused. Sighing I ask for a bigger mirror and someone goes off to get it as I put the book down. I point to the first like and they look down at it too.

TnempoleveD lacirtcelE menaP fo eciffo eht ot yek a sah yrlamoN aivatsuG

Gnidliub eht fo rotinaj eht htiw gnipeels yb ti deviecer ehS

"Easy. It's English really, just not in the way you're used to reading." I insist and the strange looks stay on me until I reveal the perfect English to them with the bigger mirror.

Gustavia Nomalry has a key to the office of Panem Electrical Development

She received it by sleeping with the janitor of the building.

Shocked faces are what I'm met with and Plutarch's assistant gasps when she sees this. "Gustavia? I went to school with her! How scandalous of her to sleep with a janitor!"

"This is ingenious. Mirror writing. Who knew Finnick was so smart as to hide all his secrets this way." Plutarch muses and I roll my eyes.

"Oh please Finnick didn't come up with this. I taught him this. My father used to entertain us by writing things backwards and we would hold them up to the mirror to see the clue to where he hid something of ours." I explain to them. I don't know where that talk of my family came from…it just sort of came out I guess. I hate talking about them because it makes me sad and angry. Vulnerable. And Johanna Mason is anything but vulnerable.

"Well that's lovely dear." The assistant replies but I can see her eyes drift to the journal, clearly eager for more gossip. Of course. You can take the Capitolite out of the Capitol but you can't take the Capitol out of the Capitolite.

We spend most of the next few hours translating the thing and as we do I'm impressed with all the secrets Finn has. I hate his means of getting all this but some of this could be vital to taking that bastard Snow down. One secret at a time…

Katniss's POV

Daughter-in-law? Is that voice talking to me? I look around the room but don't find any other women other than on of the nurses fiddling with something in the corner but she's not paying attention at all. Eventually my eyes come to rest on the man in the bed next to Gale's who is sitting up and looking at me. He was talking to me?

"…huh?" is all I can get out. I don't understand at all. Did they give him something other than sleep gas or me? Am I dreaming this? No I can't be, Gale's hand is too warm and solid that I entwined with my own. The man with slightly greying black hair grins at me before chuckling once. Well he definitely has a Seam look though his olive skin seems a little pale. But his eyes match Gale's…

"Sean Hawthorne. It's great to finally meet you." The man states while holding out his hand to shake. All I can do is shake my head in disbelief. But Gale's father…my father…they died. Years ago. So long ago that I had never met Gale's father, wouldn't have probably ever met Gale had both our fathers not died.

"But you…and…" I stutter utterly confused still. But…as I look at him he does seem to really be someone from the Seam. And he has Gale's eyes and they do sort of look similar just about twenty or so years difference in age I'd guess.

"I'm supposed to be dead?" he smiles at me, clearly aware of how confused I am. Almost like he expected it.

"Well…yeah. The mine explosion…" I whisper and he lets out a light laugh. Exactly like Gale's. Maybe he isn't lying and I don't think this is a dream. It better not be anyway.

"A planned one I assure you. They were going to kill us rebels off but me and one other fellow got away in a hidden tunnel. We were harmed certainly but we got away alive." The man explains and I just shake my head…well if he got away…

I gulp visibly and can feel myself being hopeful even if this is all just ridiculous. "Did…my father…did he…"

With a regretful smile and a sigh he shakes his head. "I'm truly sorry but Everdeen wasn't the man that escaped with me." All I can do is nod in response. I mean I knew that already; my father's body was found about a week later after the explosion, I had the physical proof I needed. But I do remember Gale telling me once that they never found his father's body. They told his family that his father was most likely the closest to the explosives and his body was exploded into indiscernible pieces. But…how did he know that was who my father was?

"Wait…how did you know who I was talking about?" I question him, feeling that this is too perfect. I mean practically everyone in Panem (much to my annoyance sometimes) knows who I am but…and then I realize I have no clue what has happened to this man to be missing for all this time. Fifteen and a half years to be missing…

He smiles at me before explaining, "Well for one you're the spitting image of him. We were in the same crew for years and we both hunted outside the district so I knew him well. Talked about you and your sister all the time. And for two, my son here told me all about you and your daughter in the Capitol."

Well I guess that makes a little sense. But for Gale to have told him in the Capitol I'd bet that he was in the same place. So…I bet he was the one that Gale was looking frantically to in that first interview I saw with him! The one that he clearly didn't want them to do something to him so he said something against the rebels, no matter how convincing it was. "Oh…but how…" I come out with. Wow apparently I can't even complete a sentence. Is this what shock is?

"You're wondering where I've been all this time?" he asks and I nod. Well they told me Gale shouldn't be waking up for a while anyway. I absentmindedly stroke his knuckles as his father tells me his incredible and horrible story.

"As soon as the mines started going off we knew it wasn't a mistake. They had just changed around crews and of the twenty of us fourteen were involved in the rebellion. It was too coincidental. I happened to be in a place where I knew there was a hidden tunnel to the forrest so I grabbed the arm of the man nearest to me, man named Coogler. With one nod he followed me out into the tunnel just as the explosion started. We got hit with some debris but not much and we made it out alive. I didn't have anything to work with and neither did Coogler but I knew those woods, knew what I could do. Hunt. Live in the woods.

We knew we couldn't go back to our families no matter how much we wanted to; the explosion was probably planned and going back meant certain death for both of us. So for months we lived in those woods through the hard winter, me providing food for us and Coogler building shelters in caves or such as we moved along trying to get here. Around early fall a hovercraft found us; we ran and tried to hide but they got us. I don't remember much more because they stuck something in my arm after that and the next thing I remember I was in that god awful prison room in the Capitol. Never saw Coogler again but for his sake I hope he died quickly if he's dead.

I didn't really know why they didn't kill me until they started shoving plans and papers in my face, telling me to design. They somehow knew about my hunting and snares and wanted me to put that to good use. Wouldn't feed me unless I came up with a good design though I didn't really know what they were for…until they placed a television in front of me and it was the Games. They made me watch them year after year and eventually about five days into that first game I realized what I had been designing; traps for the arena. Gamemaker traps.

After that I protested hard on designing and they started the physical torture. I didn't let that affect my protesting too much. Actually it wasn't until they started threatening my family that I finally complied. I felt horrible knowing that I was designing for those damn Games, that my snare ideas that once fed my family were now killing children. Children I saw killed with them every year…but even from afar, even if they thought I was dead I wouldn't be the reason my family died.

It wasn't until Gale here was a tribute that I absolutely refused to eat. How could they do this to me? I designed their stupid traps and they reward me by watching me son almost get killed by one? I thought it was rigged. A rebel doctor assured me that it wasn't, just a coincidence but I struggled to believe even him. And then you Katniss…I'm so sorry for that fire design by the way. In no way did I know how or what that would be used for. I actually designed it long before you were even the Girl on Fire." He apologizes and I just nod in my forgiveness, completely raptured by his story. I mean really it was just so long ago and I know he wouldn't have done it on purpose; the Gamemakers used him, abused his ideas and made them horrid. They were the ones to pull that ironic joke on me, not him. Seeing I'm ready for him to continue he takes a long exhale before continuing.

"The end of your Games gave me a little hope, knowing that at least my son would be happy. They may have put him in the Games and you had to volunteer for your little sister but at least you were both safe and you would be together. My pride was a little up at that too, knowing that two rebels had children to win. It could only be for the best. And it was…right up until the most previous Games. They told me to design the arena like it was for a Quarter Quell. I wasn't entirely sure what for but I had a bad feeling that they were getting repayment for having no Victor. It was my best trapping, a snare that narrowed the escape so that in the end there was no escape. I tore up the design as soon as I drew it on the paper but they must have put it back together somehow.

And then Gale here was back in again. I didn't know about Makenna until that reaping you see. I was shellshocked at first but then I started attacking the people who came to 'take care of me' claiming that I didn't deserve this. They hadn't even told me that I had a grandchild and she was already six. Really, couldn't they have bothered to let that slip? And I don't find out until my son and she is reaped?" he goes on, clearly just as angry and knowing as we were. But there's pain there too as well as a little guilt. He shakes his head before continuing. "After the breakout and Gale came here they took me to his room. I had to explain everything and he was pretty shocked as well as angry with me for making all of them think I was dead all that time but he got over it. I tried and encouraged him to rebel, fight against everything they did to him. He did for the most part but not all. At that first interview a few days after they brought him there they had me behind the camera with a gun to my head to make him say the stuff they wanted. I shook my head at him because I didn't care about myself, I wanted him to rebel. He had such an opportunity! But he didn't take it. And after that they moved me to another floor and I hadn't seen him since."

Wow that's just…wow. "I…don't even know what to say." I whisper and he gives me a sighing smile.

"Don't worry, I don't expect you to. There's just one thing I should warn-" he begins but he's cut off by a groan. I look down to Gale and I'm relieved and happy at the same time. He's finally waking up! Slowly he opens his eyes and his grey orbs look a little confused and hazy at first before focusing on me.

"Oh Gale thank god you're alright." I sigh and lean in to kiss him.

But his contorted face stops me midway and he croaks out. "Who are you?"