Epilogue: Part 4

"Oh Haymitch, look at you...you're all grown up"

Without another word, Haymitch runs up and pulls her into a hug. Peeta and I look at each other with tears in our eyes. We walk up to them just as they break off. Haymitch wipes the tears from his face " And who might you be" Odette says looking at us.

"Oh! My name is Peeta Mellark" He says and shakes her hand, " and this is my wife". I reach my hand out and say " Katniss Everdeen".

This is a very strange feeling. Here is this woman who was cut off from the rest of the world for fifty years, who knows nothing about the revolution, or me. She doesn't see me as the Mockingjay, just Katniss.

Before she can say anything else Haymitch comes up from behind us and wraps his arms around both of us " Also known as the victors of the seventy fourth hunger games" he says with a smile.

" Victors.. both of you..?" She says puzzled. We all nod and she says " Well, that sounds like an interesting story, you'll have to tell me about it sometime" she says and smiles".

" Well we came to hear about you!" Peeta says. " Me?" she asks " Yes, we've heard a lot about you, and..." Peeta holds out the locket " I found this in my mothers jewelry box".

She takes it and inspects it " This...this was my locket!" she says surprised. She looks up and studies Peeta " Mellark...I had a cousin with that last name" she says. Realization washes over and she smiles " What a nice surprise, Haymitch and my great nephew all in one day!" ( Im really bad with the family tree thing im not sure what exactly he is to her just go along with it). She turns to her cabin and says " Well, its getting dark, lets go inside!".

The inside of the cabin is much like the first one, but with more stuff. Furs and skins hang from the wall and cover the floor, jars of food sit on various shelves. The fire in the fire-place heats up the room very well. As I inspect the room I notice something hanging above the fireplace and without thinking I walk towards it.

I remember in Odettes house in the victors village it seemed like something was missing above the fireplace. Looking back there was the same outline in the first cabin! Suddenly i'm standing right in front of it. Its a picture, a very old picture. A young girl sits on a throne, who I assume is Odette, and a man stands to her left. Odette has a dazzling smile, but the man...He has a frighteningly cold scowl and menacing black eyes...

Odette must have noticed me and came over, because when she starts talking I jump " Do you know who that is?" She asks. Now Peeta and Haymitch Gather around. " Is that girl you?" I ask. She nods " And what about the man?".

I inspect him closer, and suddenly the hair on the back of my neck stands up "...President Snow...". How I didn't recognize the snake-like eyes sooner beats me, but now Its all too clear. "Wait, that's you and...President Snow?!" Peeta says with disbelief.

" I know, its so hard to image me so young and pretty!" she says. " Oh, no! thats not what I meant i-" Odette cuts him off " I know what you meant, I'm just kidding around!" she says. " So, how is President Snow these days?" she asks. " Dead" I say flatly. With a smile she says" Just how I like him". Still looking at the picture Peeta says " So...why didn't we get our picture with snow?" he asks.

" Well, that's my fault" She says. " It was a tradition for the victor to get his or her picture taken with the President. I guess he was so embarrassed that I actually lived that he decided to trash the whole thing, and of course no one objected against it".

" Wait, what do you mean " embarrassed that I actually lived"?" I ask. " Well dear, all wasn't as it seemed. Have a seat, and Ill start from the very beginning".

We had heard her story before, but hearing it come from Odette was different, considering Haymitch left out a major secret.

" So you were never really voted in, it was all Snow?" Peeta says. " Mmhm. He saw me refusing to vote as a threat, and decided to teach me a lesson. Of course I didnt learn anything from it " she says with a smile. " Did that make you feel any better? At least knowing your peers didnt hate you enough to vote you in?" I ask.

She sighs and says " Yes, i supposed it made me feel better, but it was also what was fueling my fire up until then. You know, wanting to get home to rub it in their faces. But hearing that news made me wanna rub it in the Presidents face too".

She closes her eyes and softly says " Dont just prove him wrong, make a fool out of him...". She wipes away a tear and says " Well, enough about me, I want to hear about you two".

We spend the next couple hours going though the details of our games, and everything after that up to the end of the rebellion. Odette patiently listens and doesn't interrupt until we are done. " Amazing...That old bastard really fought until the very end".

Then she changes the subject and asks " How is Plutarch doing?". This takes all three of us back, we haven't heard from him in years " Oh, uh, I don't know...why?" Peeta asks. " He was my mentors son, I knew him when he was just ten years old" she says. I smile and sip my tea, the thought of Plutarch as a young kid is kind of bizarre.

Odette leans her head to the side, as if shes thinking "...How about Cinna? Did any of you know him?"

Before I know it tea flies from my mouth and down my trachea. After about thirty seconds of violent coughing, i pull myself together " I'm sorry, did you say Cinna?" I ask in disbelief.

" Yes, he was my stylists son. She was part of the rebel group as well, but right after she had him she was found out and killed. The only way Snow would let him live is if he worked for the Capitol, and took over his mothers job".

This is major news to me. I can feel the tears begin to emerge as I shake my head " No...I... I mean yes I knew him, he was my stylist but...The last time I saw him was before I went into the arena of the seventy fifth games...". I decide to leave out the part that I saw him get beaten.

Odette slowly and sadly nod " He was probably killed, but who knows?".

Before we know it, the sun starts to rise, and we realize we talked all though the night.

" Would you look at that, the suns coming up" Haymitch says as he stands up and stretches. " We better get back soon, wouldn't wanna worry Sae".

All of stand up and Peeta goes over to Odettes side " Odette...please...come back with us. You can live in your old house in the Victors Village, or in our house! We'd be more than happy to have you live with us!". It was obvious Peeta was doing everything in his power to get her to come back with us, even if that meant having her live with us.

Odette sighs and looks around the cabin " I dont know...The forest...Its the only place I feel truly..happy" she says and wipes another tear.

" Odette, please... I didn't come all this way to leave you here. You dont have to worry, its safe now...please..." Haymitch pleads.

Odette looks around the cabin one more time and says " Alright, Ill go back!". We all breath a sigh of relief. " Is there anything you wanna take with you?" Peeta asks.

Odette shakes her head " No, leave everything here...except..." she turns her head to the fire place " The picture comes with us" " Fair enough" Peeta says and gently takes it down.

" Alright folks, lets roll".

Since we actually knew where we were going, it took only half the time to get home as it did to get there. For an old lady, Odette can really keep up through the rugged terrain.

We arrive at the gates of the village and I ask " Odette, before you go back home, there someone at our house that I think would like to meet you".

The reunion between Odette and Sae was tearful, but happy. Turns out they were in the same grade, and although they didn't talk to each other much, they would always be the last two without partners in class, so they got to know each other a bit.

For a while they sat and talked about " The old days" and other old lady talk, but soon we got into the conversation and talked until dusk.

" Odette before you go, there's two other people i'd like you to meet" Peeta says. He yells up the steps for Willow and Arley and they come running down the steps. " Willow, Arely, meet Odette". " Its a pleasue to meet you both! " Odette says. They talk for a bit more and before we know it they start dozing off.

" Alright you two, up to bed" Peeta says and takes them upstairs. When he comes back down Odette yawns and stretches " Boy, its past my bed time too, I better get going". " You know, you could stay here for the night if you dont wanna walk back" Peeta says. " Nonsense! I may be old but a walking thirty feet to my house is nothing!" she says.

" Alright, well goodnight" we all say good byes and just as Odette is about to walk out the door she turns around and says " Oh, before I go...".

She walks up to me and takes both of my hands in hers and says " Katniss, about your sister...I know it seemed tragic and sudden, but it was no accident". Startled I say " Wha...what do you mean?".

She sighs and says " I mean, there never are " accidental deaths" everybody goes at the exact time they are supposed to, even if it doesnt seem like it".

Tears begin to fill my eyes and I say " I...I still dont understand".

" Katniss, you need to understand that time is an illusion, and so is death. Our loved ones never really go away. They are always around us, in the wind and the rain and earth beneath our feet. Their energy constantly surrounds us, and it constantly gives us strength".

Now tears are rushing down my face and I hang my head. Odette lifts my head and says " Katniss, everything happens for a reason. People come into our lives, and there is always a reason for it. Sometimes people stay, sometimes people go, but people only go when they are no longer needed. I know that sounds bad, but in reality, its the truth. Your sister finally found who she was, and you found yourself as well. She didnt need you to protect her anymore, and that goes for anybody you knew that died. Of course their death is sad, and often times hard, but just know, that It was meant to be, and that even though you dont see them, they are always with you".

I wipe away the tears and say " thank you". "Of course, I just wanted to tell you that before I forgot. You know how us old people are!" she says and smiles, and I smile too.

I walk into my old house, and the memories hit me like a brick wall, along with the dust. Everything comes back all at once. Many tears are shed, some happy, some sad, and some of relief.

I hang the picture back up above the fire place where it last hung fifty years ago.

I wipe one last tear, and head on up to bed.

I wake up in the middle of the night, 4:26 A.M. to be exact. Im only awake for about thirty seconds when I notice something alarming. Sitting at the edge of my bed is a human figure. The person turns to me, and although its been seventy five years since I've seen his face, I recognized it immediately.

"...Deimos?"

WHAT?! WHATS GOING ON?!

you'll find out in the next and possibly the last chapter :,,,(((

I know, it's sad. I had a lot of fun writing this story and it has come so far.

Theres one thing I want to ask all of you, if I were to say, write another story with Odette in it, would you guys read it?

by that I mean write a side story about her victory tour and her first year being a mentor.

like does that sound interesting, or no? I wanna know!

Until next time!

~Maddy