DISCLAIMER: HG characters do not belong to me.

Chapter 95-The Interview

Katniss quickly threw some clothes on and heads downstairs to turn on the TV. Gale remains upstairs and begins making phone calls. Once the TV is on she sits down the couch and sees that indeed there was an attack in the Capitol and recorded footage begins being shown.

She sees a very large group of protestor's right outside Paylor's mansion, many of them again holding signs. Suddenly, a large explosion is seen right in front of the mansion with fire and smoke quickly spreading. Someone set a bomb off.

Chaos ensues after, she sees people frantically running away, some of them on fire. Panem's guards are seen trying to help get people away from the flames as well as contain the crowd, not allowing people to get too far away from the main square.

The man reporting the news states that the attack happened right after 3 pm, and that it is unknown at this point who in the crowd set the bomb off. It was reported that Paylor was inside the mansion when the attack happened, but that she was unharmed and has been taken to a secure location. Katniss sees a bunch of hovercrafts overhead leaving the mansion.

She hears the rain continuing to pound against the windows. She gets up and heads over to the Kitchen sink and looks out of her favorite spot in the house. She sees it is continuing to rain like crazy with the wind picking up and she sees lightening in the distance. Soon after, she begins to hear thunder, Harper whimpering at the sound of it.

She bends down and pets the dog, helping him relax. Gale had told her during the first thunderstorm they had experienced since moving here that Harper was scared of thunder.

"It's okay" she says softly, the dog moving in closer to her. She stands back up and continues to look outside, mesmerized at the beauty of the lightening in the distance.

She knows what Gale is going to say when he comes back down. That she has to do the interview with Caesar. That she has to get back into Panem's spotlight.

She doesn't want to, she wants to be left alone and the last thing she wants is to be sitting down with Caesar again. She also doesn't want to have an argument with Gale, they hadn't had an argument since last fall when she came home drunk after seeing Peeta. She knows Gale is going to tell her it is her duty to continue to help and protect the citizens of Panem, even if she is not the mockingjay anymore. He also knows though, that she doesn't want to be interviewed, hence why the interview has not occurred even though it is now almost mid-July.

She heads back to the couch and cuddles up with Harper trying to help him stay calm while the storms continued. Gale comes down about a half hour later and takes a seat on the other side of Harper, his eyes glued to the TV. The news coverage is continuing, though no new developments have been reported. Or, no new developments were allowed to be shown by Heavenesbee, for he controls what is communicated to the citizens of Panem.

Once he has seen enough he looks over at Katniss and says, "They still don't know how many people were killed, a lot were taken to the hospital."

She looks straight ahead as she says, "I know what you are going to say."

"Katniss" he says wearily.

"I don't need a lecture about doing what is right."

"I wasn't going to lecture you. We make decisions as a team right?"

"Yeah" she says finally looking over him.

"I know you want to be left alone."

"But?" knowing he has more to say.

"But people still look up to you, you can still make a difference."

"We are not at war anymore Gale."

"This is a different kind of war Katniss."

She knows he is right. This was a different kind of war. This was a war that for the first time, she wanted the Capitol to win.

"Caesar will never agree to my demands."

"Yeah he will, he needs this interview for his career, he's known as a gossip columnist now instead of a legit interviewer."

"We'll see" she says, her tone indicating she is skeptical.


AUGUST 5

Gale is sitting on his Mother's couch, with Posy sitting beside him. Hazelle is in the kitchen, about to join them. It is Friday night and Katniss's interview with Caesar is about to begin. It was decided that the interview would be live in order to get more viewers. While Caesar primarily works for Panem Daily, he occasionally got TV interviews. Tonight he would be conducting the interview for Panem News Network, everything arranged by Heavensbee of course.

"Mom hurry up, it's about to start" Gale yells, his eyes not leaving the TV.

Hazelle hurries in and takes a seat on the smaller couch. Not even a minute later, Panem's anthem comes on and Caesar appears on the screen. They notice that his hair is dyed electric blue.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen! I am your host for tonight's exclusive interview with a very special guest. Panem's very own former victor turned mockingjay of the rebellion, Katniss Everdeen is here!"

A few moments later Katniss appears, taking a seat across from Caesar after shaking his hand. She is wearing a yellow dress, her long dark hair in curls. Gale notices immediately that she is wearing her wedding rings.

"Aww, she looks so pretty" Posy gushes, loving the dress Katniss is wearing.

Gale looks over and smiles at his baby sister, for he still looked at her that way even though she was almost 15. Gale had told Katniss to wear something pretty. He hadn't said those words to her since the day she volunteered for Prim.

"Katniss! So wonderful to see you again. I don't believe we have seen in each other in over ten years" Caesar says cheerfully.

"It's good to see you too Caesar, it has been too long" Katniss says smiling. Gale is impressed that she actually looks convincing. For a brief moment, he wonders if she was prepped by Peeta instead of Heavensbee.

"How is life treating you? Well I hope" Caesar says.

"Life is good."

"I hear you are a first grade teacher now?"

"I am. I teach in a small town in District 2. I really enjoy it."

"How exciting! It's so great to see former victors do something they feel passionate about."

He then asks her what made her decide to become a teacher, only telling him that a dear friend told her that she had a natural skill teaching others.

"Well it looks like your friend was on to something. I have heard that PES is very happy with you!" Caesar beams.

"I'm just trying to do a good job" Katniss replies with a forced smile. To those who don't know her, they would think the smile is genuine, but Gale knows all of Katniss's smiles and he knows which ones are real and which ones are fake.

Caesar then gets a more serious look on his face as he says, "So, I'm sure you know, there has been talk over the last year and a half about your love life. And by the looks of your left hand, you have something to share."

Katniss instinctively covers her left hand with her right and says, "Yes, I do. I have a new husband." She surprises herself how easily she was able to say those last five words.

"Fabulous! Let me see that ring!" Caesar booms, remnants of his old personality emerging.

Katniss extends her hand and shows Caesar her rings. He does not swoon as much as he did when Katniss announced her fake engagement with Peeta, but it was pretty close.

"Those are quite some rings you have there. Congratulations! I'm sure all of Panem is happy for you."

"Thank you" Katniss says sincerely.

"I know this is a….touchy subject for you, but, in case some people are not up to date, you are no longer with Peeta Mellark" Caesar says gently.

"No, Peeta is still living in District 12."

"And your new husband is Gale Hawthorne correct?"

"Yes."

Caesar turns to the camera and says, "For those of you watching at home who may not be aware, Panem was introduced to Mr. Hawthorne shortly after Katniss won the Hunger Games with Peeta Mellark. The former Capitol introduced him as Katniss's cousin, however, that is not true is it?" Caesar asks turning back to Katniss.

"No. Gale and I are not cousins. He was my best friend."

"Was" Caesar says curiously.

"Back then he was yes. We were never romantically involved. We went our separate ways after the war."

"And you both reconnected?"

"Yes. We became friends again and eventually….became more than that."

"And now you are married to your best friend?"

"Yes." Katniss says, making it all sound so simple. Of course her break up with Peeta and developing relationship with Gale was anything but simple.

"While I'm ecstatic for you, I'm sure others in Panem along with myself are sorry to hear about you and Mr. Mellark. I think I speak for all of us when I say I hope he finds the same kind of happiness."

"I hope so too" Katniss says sadly. The pain and emotion on her face anything but fake.

Caesar continues to look solemn as he says, "Since we are on a somber note, I thought we could now talk about what transpired at the Capitol a few weeks ago. I know you want to talk about the group that could be responsible."

"The group that is responsible" Katniss clarifies.

"And what do you know of this group?"

"That they say they are peaceful and just question if new leadership is needed, but I am here to let all of Panem know, this group is anything but peaceful. They are dangerous, they are responsible for the bombing; the bomb was not set off by the Capitol as they would like people to believe. They did it to send a message to the Capitol."

"And what message would that be?"

"That they are not to be underestimated."

"Why would they use violence to send this message?"

"Because they are a violent, dangerous group. They are threatened by the progress the President has done and continues to do."

"Some feel that President Paylor has not done enough to make Panem better." Caesar says.

"Change takes time. And she needs the support of the people. I urge everyone in Panem to remember where we were ten years ago, twelve years ago. Ten years ago we were rebuilding Panem after the war ended. Twelve years ago the Quarter Quell took place. Panem still has scars from its horrid past, but we need to continue to move forward, not back. Don't be fooled by this group trying to pose as individuals just looking for stronger leadership. What they want-is to return to the oppression of the disadvantaged Districts. Most of the members are from either the Capitol, District 1, or District 2. They want superiority back. They may not want the Hunger Games to come back, but they don't want to see all the Districts becoming equal. I work for PES. PES's goal is to provide the same education to all of the Districts. To promote equality to help the less advantaged Districts achieve success for their residents. This is the direction we need to keep going in. I am no longer the mockingjay, my role in the rebellion was to help the people of Panem have hope. I am asking everyone to remember that hope, and to remember that our nation is going in the direction it needs to be, we are just not there yet."

"Your words still resonate with a lot of people. I'm sure people are listening."

"I also urge anyone who knows anything about the attack in the Capitol or has any information regarding this dangerous group, to call the Capitol's tip line at 555-1212."

"We are showing that number on your TV screens, and we will be repeating that number daily on the Panem News Network station. Katniss, I thank you for taking time to come here today and for letting us know a bit of what is going on in your life. I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors."

"Thank you Caesar, it was great to see you again."

After Katniss finishes shaking Caesar's hand the program changes. Gale leans back on the couch and says, "I think that went well."

"It did. She still has that passion she had during the rebellion. I'm sure people are listening" Hazelle says.

Gale felt a huge sense of relief that everything was now out in the open. Caesar would no longer be publishing articles without Katniss's consent, for that was part of the deal when she agreed to speak with him. In return she agreed to occasionally be interviewed by the former master of ceremonies.


August 30

A man watches Panem News Network and sees that four more people have been arrested in connection with the attack on the Capitol seven weeks ago. The total arrested now reaching ten.

The man slams his hand on the table and says, "Damn her! Since her stupid interview more and more people are coming forward. People I thought we could trust!"

Another man also in the room calmly says, "Patience Steel, we must have patience. Her words are still fresh in people's minds, but we will show them the real Katniss Everdeen. The Katniss Everdeen who is nothing more than a pawn for other people's agendas. She is no symbol of hope. She's mentally unstable and is a loose cannon when the ones she loves are in danger. When that happens, it is all about her. And we will show people that when we take away the person she holds most dear."


7 months later (March)

Katniss is frantically pacing back and forth in the President's mansion. She bites her nails as she waits for Paylor to arrive. She's been here for twenty minutes, but it feels like twenty hours. She is trying to hold herself together and not panic.

Gale had been reinstated back into his position with the military in November, he was in charge of a squad in District 10. The military was given a lead on the Jay Killers and Paylor had given him the assignment. It was to be his last assignment taking him out of District 2.

The Capitol had not had contact with him or his squad for the last three hours. A hovercraft left to bring Katniss to the mansion an hour ago.

The door opens and Katniss sees Haymitch walk in.

"Haymitch" she cries running into his arms.

"Shhh, I'm here. I know you are scared. The President should be here any minute. We still haven't heard anything from him or his squad."

"They took them, I know they did" Katniss says tears forming in her eyes.

"We don't know that. It could just be that their hovercraft lost communication with the base."

"They took Gale and his squad to get to me" she says sobbing, no longer able to hold back her emotions.

"If they did, we will get them back. You know we will. Gale is one of the best soldiers in all of Panem, he'll find a way to stay alive."

She continues to cry as he holds her, her emotions in high gear. It takes almost an hour to calm her down.

She does not tell Haymitch that she is scared not just because she fears for Gale's safety but for another reason as well, she's scared for the safety of her unborn child for she was eight weeks pregnant.

A/N: So a major time jump occurred, as you know I like to have flashback scenes so you will see what happened between August-March I promise.