Summary:

What if Coin convinced Haymitch, Plutarch and the tributes to save Peeta instead of Katniss during the Quarter Quell? What would happen?

" But Katniss… This is Peeta! You know him… He wouldn't do that! "

" Oh yeah, I know him. I do. He totally would. "

She laughed and turned away from Haymitch.

Chapter 25: Make it back

Peeta fell asleep on the bench, and realized that he got up in time for lunch. He got up, stretched and made his way towards the cafeteria. As he walked away from the elevator, a hand settled on his shoulder, making him stop and turn.

" Hey Peeta. Were you with Coin all this time? " Finnick asked. " I thought you'd come see me in the library. "

" No, I didn't, I guess I needed a little time alone. " Peeta said, kinda embarrassed. " It's nothing personal. "

" Don't worry it's okay. I was just worried. "

They entered the canteen and parted, Peeta joining his table where Gale, Prim and her mother were already eating. He put down his tray and stared down at the things in his plate. Carrots and wheat. His stomach still felt sore from his morning, but he pushed himself and ate his carrots, chewing on them without envy. Gale's mother and sister sat down and Peeta threw his wheat in the small girl's plate, without the guards noticing. Gale nodded at him and smiled.

" So… You two leave tomorrow right? " Prim asked. " Are you prepared? "

" Yes, we are. " Gale answered, helping his sister to eat. " I think everything will go as planned. "

" Alright. " Prim said smiling. " Just be careful okay? "

" We will, I promise. " Peeta said, nodding.

Once he was finished with his plate, Peeta exited the cafeteria, and looked down at his wrist, they had a 3 hours long training in the afternoon. He growled, really not feeling like exercising before the Nuts operation. He stopped by his bedroom, took Prim's notebook, the two pen he had, an eraser the stand assistant gave him, and headed towards the classroom number 10. He was glad to see that it was empty, and he settled on a desk, opening the first page of the book. He decided to draw a mockingjay, just like the one on Katniss' pin, and make him hold an arrow in his claws, not in his beak. He spent a lot of time on it, trying to put as many details as he could, and when he looked at his bracelet to check the time, he was late for training.

" Fuck! "

He closed the notebook, took the pen, the eraser and ran towards his room. He put Prim's book on his desk and left as fast as he arrived. He took the elevator and came in the hangar running, out of breath, apologizing to Paylor. A look in the massive room made him understand that only the members of the squad were present for the day.

" I hope you won't be late tomorrow morning too, soldier Mellark. " She threatened him. " Now get in the rank. "

He nodded and joined Finnick. They started an individual training for half an hour, and Peeta already felt exhausted by the end of it. He was crouching, his palms on the floor as he tried to catch up his breath. The taller blond patted him when Paylor yelled that they had to form pairs and cross an installation she made up herself. Naturally, Peeta and Finnick teamed up, and they were the first group to do the exercise, carefully watched by Paylor. They had to walk back to back, then able to oversee more than if they were side by side. The black haired woman congratulated them, and they kept training as the other pairs did the same exercise.

" They shouldn't make us work out too much… " Peeta said, breathless. " Our mission is tomorrow morning. "

" Yeah… " Finnick sighed. " Aches can't be good. But we don't have our word to say in that. " He added. " We're just soldiers. "

Paylor made them work by more important groups, and after forty five minutes, Peeta was worn out, completely exhausted. That was when Paylor directed them towards the shooting stands. And in bonus, they would have to throw knives and do some first aid training too. Peeta was still excelling in crossbow, and got better at shooting gun, not even knowing how. He wasn't really good at knife throwing, but was doing great at first aid, as Prim taught him about the basics.

After two hours of training, Peeta couldn't see how he could make it through the last one. His available leg was shaking, his muscles were all contracted and he felt as if he couldn't catch up his breath. Paylor told them they had to train their special skill, making the blond sigh of relief.

" Soldier Mellark, no camouflage today. Go to the sword stand. " Paylor said, noticing the boy heading towards the smallest stand.

He nodded and changed his direction, growling. He trained alone, and with the assistant, then Paylor ordered some fights, making the blond roll his eyes. He could barely stand, and she wanted them to have one on one fights, perfect.

After losing one fight and winning another, Peeta was on the edge of passing out. His vision was blurry, and he felt dizzy. His swords slipped out of his hand, and he fell down on his knees.

" Good job! Thanks everyone, see you tomorrow! " Paylor shouted, clapping her hands.

Finnick joined Peeta, helping him to stand up.

" Thanks buddy. " Peeta moaned, all tensed up. " I'm glad it's over. "

" Let's shower, okay? " Finnick suggested, smiling.

They left the hangar and took their showers simultaneously. Peeta then stayed in his room, trying to draw more things in Prim's notebook. He was at the page where Katniss told Prim about the time she met Peeta. His throat ached, and his eyes hurt as he drew a loaf of bread, half burned on the next page. He added a portrait of Katniss, and had to make a pause.

He stared down at those grey eyes in front of him, shook his head and finished her face. When he was about to start his own portrait, he took a look at his bracelet. It was already diner time, so he left, taking the heavy book in his arms. When he sat down next to Gale, he gave the notebook to Katniss' sister and she giggled. She opened it, and her mouth was wide open when she saw the first page.

" Wow… Thank you. " She said, her voice trembling. " This is… amazing. " She added, caressing the page, looking at the details.

" Oh, it's nothing. " Peeta said, smiling.

" What is that? " Gale asked, trying to take a peak at the notebook.

" Look at what Peeta drew for me! " Prim said, giggling. " Isn't it amazing?! "

" You sure know how to draw… " The boy answered in awe. " Are you doing this for the whole book or something? "

" Yes, Prim asked me to. " Peeta said, nodding.

Katniss' sister kept staring at the drawing, and Peeta started eating his noodles, that were completely tasteless. He groaned but knew he had to go with a full stomach for the operation the next day. Prim flipped a page, the noise making Peeta look at her. Her slender fingers were touching the page where the boy drew the bread, and Katniss' face.

" It's unbelievable… " She whispered. " I'm glad I asked you to do it. "

" Really, it's nothing ." Peeta answered, putting down his fork, embarrassed.

Prim's mother was looking over her daughter's shoulder, and suddenly put her hands over her mouth, a whimper escaping her throat.

" Peeta… This is… ! " She put her hand on the page. " Thank you for doing it… Thank you so much! "

Peeta was sure he was blushing and embarrassed to death, but he managed to blurt a 'it's nothing, really' and take his fork again, finishing his noodles. Katniss' mom kept saying some thank you and Peeta felt uncomfortable. He didn't deserve any thanks when Katniss was still locked in the Capitol, probably enduring horrible torture and treatments. Peeta was done with his slimy noodles, and wasn't willing to eat anything else, so he slid his pear to Prim, whom rewarded him with a questioning look.

" Are you leaving? " She asked, closing her notebook.

Peeta nodded, gritting his teeth. " Yeah. We have to be gone early… " He stated, looking down at his tray. " Better head to my room and try to get some sleep. "

Prim smiled, nodding. " Sure. That's the best thing to do I guess. " She said. " I'll see you tomorrow, okay? "

The blond boy looked up at her, she was definitely scared of losing other people that were close to her, Gale, Finnick or himself. He cracked a sad smile and got up. He threw his tray and came back to the table. He hugged Prim from behind, arms closed around her little waist.

" Of course I'll see you tomorrow. " He sighed. " You'll just have to wait for us. "

Gale nodded. " Don't worry about us Prim. We'll be alright. " He stated.

Peeta let go of the little girl, but she turned around and hugged him again. The blond slid a hand in her hair, patting gently as he hugged her back. He heard sobbing, and knelt down so he would be able to see the girl's face. She wasn't looking at him, but he could see tears rolling down her pink cheeks.

" Hey-hey! … Prim, it's okay. " he said, his thumbs pushing tears away from her face" Everything will be okay… "

She wailed, looking at at Peeta. " Be careful, all of you. Make it back. "

" We will. I promise. " Peeta said, smiling. " Now, just try to calm down. "

She nodded, inhaling deeply. " Okay… sorry. "

" No need to apologize. " Peeta said, smiling. " There… " He took her notebook from the table and handed it to her. " Just hold on to this… I'm sure we'll be just fine. "

Prim nodded again, wiped tears away from her face . She smiled at him and told him to be careful again. He promised he would be. The girl turned around and started eating again while Peeta exited the cafeteria. He sighed and ran a hand over his tired face. Halfway to the elevator he crouched down. Seeing Prim like this was unbearable, and he didn't want to make her worry that much. But he wanted to be part of the interventions, he didn't want to back up and willed to succeed, making it back in one piece. He was having an internal fight when someone crouched next to him.

" Peeta. You alright? "

The blond looked up, and was surprised to see Haymitch. " Yeah, yeah… "

" Really? You don't look like you are. " His ex mentor got up, a bottle in his right hand. " What's bothering you? "

" My conscience I guess. " Peeta sighed, getting up too.

The man in front of him browed him " Oh yeah? What is it about? "

Peeta started walking and got in the elevator, Haymitch following him. He didn't give the man an answer, and he didn't insist, which was enjoyable. They got out at the level where both of their rooms were, Haymitch walking in Peeta's steps.

" I don't mean to annoy you, but can you tell? " he asked, smiling.

Peeta stopped walking and turned around to face him, " It's Prim. " He admitted, walking again.

" Oh. What did you do? " The older man said, still at his tail.

Peeta sighed, he didn't even know. " I don't like to make her worry. "

" That doesn't answer my question boy. " Haymitch stated.

" I'm just part of the squads. That's what I did. " He said, opening his room.

Haymitch's eyes opened up, and he stopped on the doorway. Peeta looked at him, smiling. It was awkward, he couldn't really imagine his ex-mentor comforting him about that kind of insecurities at all.

" If you didn't choose to be part of those interventions, you'd have issues about your conscience too. " Haymitch said, his head tilting to his right. " You told us that you had to go. " He added before taking a few sips from his bottle.

Peeta stared down at his feet. " I know. But it's still bothering me. " He sighed, taking a step back in his room. " Are you coming in or are we having a conversation out in the open? "

Haymitch laughed and entered Peeta's room. The blond boy sat on his bed while the older one tottered towards his desk, where he fell on the chair. He turned the chair around and offered Peeta some of his beverage.

" No thanks. Still have a mission tomorrow. " He said, shaking his head. " I can't exactly afford a hangover. "

Haymitch laughed again. " Right… You're a good kid uh? Really serious and all. " He said, almost giggling. " I'd like to be like that… I just can't, you know. "

Peeta directed his eyes towards the man in front of him. He remembered how Katniss and him blamed Haymitch for drinking instead of giving them advises, but with some retreat, they couldn't put it on him. The man had to mentor a bunch of kids, and none of them made it out of the arena. He had to do this every year, sending those children to die without being able to change anything about it.

" I know you can't… And I understand that. " Peeta sighed. " I just don't want to cause trouble to people around me. "

" Sure you don't. " Haymitch stated, smiling. " You're so… " he stopped, apparently searching for a word, " Honest. And I don't mean it in a bad way. That means we can actually trust you. "

The boy had no idea how to answer to that, but he nodded and thanked Haymitch. He pulled up his pants and took a look at his fake leg. It wasn't as heavy as it seemed, but it was still not very practical to walk with it. The man in front of him smiled sadly.

" I'm really sorry about that Peeta. " He said, levering his bottle.

The boy looked up at him, clueless, " It's not your fault. You even got to send us medicine, " he said, smiling. " We just had to use Katniss' tourniquet to kill Cato. "

He swallowed and put down his grey pants, covering his leg. Haymitch then drank silently, mumbling things to himself. Peeta was tired, his muscles were sore from his training. A look at his alarm clock told him it was past 9 PM, so he didn't kick out Haymitch.

" You sure you don't wanna drink? " He asked, shaking the half empty bottle in front of Peeta's eyes. " Just a sip won't kill ya! "

" No, really. " He laughed. " But thanks. "

Peeta knew it was his ex-mentor's way of being gentle and kind, so he didn't chase him out of his room. Instead, he talked with the man until his bottle was totally empty, making him growl. Haymitch staggered on the chair, Peeta wondering how he managed to do that, and made his bottle fall.

" Erm I-I'm sorry Peeta. I'm leaving now, " Haymitch stuttered, getting up on unsteady feet. " Try to get some rest here. "

" Sure. " Peeta said, helping the man out of his room. " Take care and see you tomorrow Haymitch. "

The man giggled and waved before turning away, closing Peeta's door and headed to God knew where. He settled his alarm clock on 7:15, scared to be late. The blond boy sighed, and laid down on his bed, stretching his back in the process. Before he got a chance to fall asleep, he changed into his night clothes and got under his covers. He closed his heavy eyelids, but couldn't help but noticing how fast his heart was beating in his chest. He inhaled deeply and tried to find a comfortable position. All he could think about was the operation coming the next morning, and how things could go wrong. After minutes of worrying, his tiredness got over his doubts.

His alarm clock rang, making him whimper and hit it with a close fist. Peeta yawned and sat up, pushed his covers and got up. His muscles were hurting him with almost every move, and he blamed Coin for pushing a training on them the day before. He took a towel, his washing grey bag and exited his bedroom, heading for the bathrooms. He took a warm shower, massaging his shoulders and arms in an attempt to lessen his pain. Once he was done, he dried himself and got in a new uniform, knowing that he would have to get rid of it soon, as they were all going to be dressed as peacemakers. He closed his belt, noticing how much weight he lost since he got in 13, and stopped by his room to get rid of his bag. It was only 7:40, but he headed towards the canteen anyway.

" Prim? " He asked, with a cracking noise in his voice. " You're up already? "

The girl turned to face him, " Peeta! " She got up and ran towards him. " Peeta… "

" Do you have an early lesson today? " He asked, hugging her.

" Yes. But I also wanted to try to see you. " She admitted, clutching him in her arms. " And Gale too… But he didn't show up. "

Peeta smiled and excused himself. He took his tray and joined her at their table, where they were the only ones present. Basically, it was almost just the two of them in the whole cafeteria. Today was toasts, a yogurt and a glass of apple juice. Peeta's stomach growled and Prim laughed as she licked her spoon clean.

" Can you stay here until you leave? " She asked.

Peeta nodded. " I can do that. " He said, noticing the notebook on Prim's tray. " Were you able to catch up? "

" Yes. " She said, smiling. " Your drawings are really fantastic. "

" But there's only two of them. " Peeta stated. " But if you give it to me tonight, I promise I'll fill it up faster. "

" You know… I don't think you'll have the time to really finish it. " She said, her voice low and quiet as she caressed the leather cover of her book.

The boy froze. He didn't understand what she meant by that. Did she think he was going to be killed? Just the thought of it made a shiver run down his spine, of pure terror. He shook his head slightly and bit one of his toasts.

" Why do you say that? " he asked, his voice shakier that he wanted it to be.

Prim looked up at him, " The Capitol operation will be launched soon after the one today. " she said, taking a sip of her apple juice. " It's only logic. You won't have the time to draw a lot with your trainings and all. "

Peeta couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief at the girl's words. His whole body relaxed instantly while he opened his yogurt. He took a spoonful of it and smiled, patting Prim's head with his other hand. The girl jotted at the gesture, but calmed down and leaned in the boy's touch.

" But I'll be pretty happy with what you'll be able to do since then. " She said. " And when Katniss will be back, I'll show it to her, " she smiled, opening her book on its first page. " Then maybe she will remember who you really are. "

Tears were on the edge of falling out as emotion came in waves in Peeta. She was right, Katniss had doubts about him and might never trust him again. He almost forgot that detail, focusing on rescuing her and pulling up a plan that could work. He shook his head vividly, this was not the point. It was the last of his problem, and obviously the last of his teammates' too. He couldn't break down for this reason, because there was no way he could change it anyway.

" You're right. That's a good idea. " He told her, pulling a toast to his mouth. " I didn't even think about it, you're clever. "

" This was the reason I wanted you to draw illustrations in my journal. " She added, smiling. " But it was also because I heard from Katniss that you had a real talent. "

Words were stuck in Peeta's throat, and he had no idea how to answer it. He remembered when he was in the Capitol, getting ready for the Games, painting some tree motif on his arms and hands. Katniss looked kinda amazed by what he could do with a few brushes and some paint. It was one of those few times where he felt precious under her stare, and he knew he couldn't forget about it. Nobody could shake those memories away.

They stayed in the cafeteria until Peeta needed to leave and get to the Commandment Center to leave for the Nuts. Coin had obviously already been there for a while, running in circles and waiting for the members to arrive bit by bit.

He gave two strong knocks on the door, and she was there, along with Gale, Paylor, Boggs, Finnick and the blond girl named Cressida. So Gale didn't have any breakfast? Oy maybe did he eat very early?

" Good morning soldier Mellark. " She said, bowing her head. " You can take a seat while we wait for the others to arrive. "

And that was exactly what he did, he sat between Finnick and Cressida and waited. Coin wanted silence, so he couldn't really discuss his plans about this operation with his friend.

NDA :

Here I am with the 25th chapter.

Things are going to escalate quickly from then, I can assure you.

Since I'm on a break from college, I'll try to give you two or three chapters next week. Not saying I will succeed tho.

Hope you enjoyed it,

See you in the next chapter,

Bisous. :)