I'm surprised I enjoy this perspective this much! Who could have thought?

Thanks to everyone for all the new reviews! I'm so happy about the detailed feedback and I'm hoping you like the direction where this is going.

Mine are not poverty or something like that, but they are real nonetheless

"No, help! Please help!"

My feet already hurt from running, but the voice is getting louder now. I'm getting closer. Without hesitation I break through the thick brushwood coming directly face to face with one of the black and white birds from the arena.

It's sitting on a branch like it has done nothing wrong as I stare at it. A jabberjay.

A moment later it opens its beak wide and it says just one word. The familiar voice that has been calling for help constantly, that has made me run through the woods, desperate to find her, to save her this time.

"Cyo..."

I swallow, still out of breath, my hands start shaking. "Stop..."

The bird starts talking again, ignoring me. "Why would you let me die? Why didn't you save me?"

I press my lips together and try to calm down as the bird starts pleading again. But I can't just listen; can't let it use her voice. "Stop!"

As if completely unbothered by my words, the bird chirps, "I love you..."

It hurts. It hurts to hear the last thing she ever said to me again. It hurt when I saw it on TV after I escaped the arena, but now that this damn bird is copying her like it's nothing at all... It makes me angry.

Suddenly, there's movement behind me and a moment later, the bird gets cut in half by one single blow. The ax gets stuck in the treebranch, however, it is retrieved by its wielder a moment later. I whirl around to find Ayla with a grin on her face.

She looks exactly like I remember her. Her auburn hair is up i a ponytail, her clothes are dirty from too much climbing, too many nights on the hard ground. With a grin and a sparkle in her playful dark eyes she says, "Funny that I run into you again..."

I swallow. This is not real. I'm making this up. "I'm... I need to get out of here."

That provokes a laugh from her. "Oh, Cypress... nobody ever gets out of the arena!"

In an attempt to make it stop I shut my eyes closed, but no success there. When I open them she's still there. A deep sigh escapes my mouth. "You're dead and I'm back home! Leave me alone."

"Don't you blame me for this! Better blame your little career-girl... oh, no - wait. She's dead, just like me!"

Without thinking I lunge out at her, but I find myself grabbing only air. Is she gone? Where did she go?

But no - her voice makes me turn again to find her sitting on a treebranch. Her feet are dangling in the air, like she's having a really good time. "Missed me?"

I feel the pressure on my chest again, breathing no longer natural, but a hard task. "Please, Ayla... please let me go!"

"I'm not the one keeping you here... It's the arena - it'll never release you."

I swallow and look up at her. I want all of this to be over. "Help me!"

For a moment, I think I saw something like pain reflecting in her eyes, but it's gone as fast as it has appeared. She sighs softly and raises her weapon again. "I'm sorry..."

The next thing I know is the ax flying through the air and pain in my chest - pain like when I fought Rex. I sit up, shock flooding my whole body.

I'm no longer in the arena, but in bed. Carefully I touch my chest, but of course, there's no wound from Ayla's attack. I hear my bedroom-door open and my eyes dart over to see who it is.

Mace hesitantly enters the room and I relax a bit. She closes the door behind her and walks over to the bed. "Cyo... are you okay?"

I don't really know how to answer that and swallow. "I... I guess."

She smiles softly. "Do you want me to make tea or something?"

I quickly shake my head and struggle with the covers. "No... no it's okay. I just - I'll get some fresh air."

She nods and we quietly make our ways down the stairs and outside. My legs are shaking, my breath still unsteady, so I just drop into the grass in the garden. I'm greeted by the stars, staring down on me.

She's dead but she's everywhere.

I hear Mace sit down next to me. It takes her a moment to speak up again, "You can talk to me about it... you know that, right?"

I hesitate, but then say, "I know... but I'm afraid, you wouldn't understand."

Kind of ironic for me to tell her that. Not too long ago I did judge Val for volunteering for the Games because her problems were not real. Now I live in a nice house myself and finally have money to support my family without illegally working in the mines - and I never felt more haunted in my life.

"What do you mean?"

Slowly, I force myself to look away from the stars and at my sister. "It's just... I know, I've been back here with you for almost a month now... but the arena won't let me go."

She shakes her head as she looks down on me. "There has to be some way I can help you... I won't let you suffer alone. I won't watch you lose sleep each and every night."

I swallow and look back up at the stars. "It's not just me, Mace... there is this one thing, this bad dream I have..."

She hesitates for a moment, but then I hear her soft voice again, "What is it?"

Staring at the sky, the stars move around in front of my eyes, dancing like the people in the ballroom of the stupid victory party. I carefully start explaining, "It's the reaping... but not mine. I stand on stage, next to the stupid screen. E... Effie is there. She's drawing a name from the bowl - and... and it's Lysander. They'll take them away from us, Mace."

There is a silence between us. She hasn't thought about it, clearly. The stars have stopped dancing. They're just watching again now, judging me for looking without asking them.

Then there's movement again and Mace is blocking the sky, forcing me to look at her instead. "I understand... but what are you going to do? It's not like you can stop the Hunger Games." She's speaking quietly, well aware that the Capitol has its ways to watch people.

"I... maybe I can." I'm looking directly at her and see her frown.

"Cyo... no. After everything you told me about the things that went down last year. About the things that happened in the other districts. What if it doesn't go as planned and we'll all die?"

I sigh and sit up to face her directly. Quietly I say, "Listen... I can't let anyone else go through that horror, I can't let Lys... let Milo go, can't let them die."

Mace looks down and says, "But... they won't have to take tesserae like you. Their names won't be in that bowl that often."

I press my lips together and pause. Then I say, "After everything I've told you, you can't possibly think that the reaping is fair, that it isn't manipulated."

She nods slowly and I see that she is thinking about it. "Well... no. But what are you going to do? How do make this work?"

She's right... how will I make this work? I'll need a system, something way more organized than the spontaneous protests after Katniss and Peeta have survived the Games.

"If we want this to work, we'll need an uprising that is planned, that will happen in all of the districts at the same time. I just need someone who can travel... someone who has influence in all of the district on our side. Someone who is not suspicious... I need..."

That's when I realize exactly whom I need. A peacekeeper. A peacekeeper of higher rank can travel Panem as much as he likes. The Capitol won't suspect a thing. Peacekeepers are there to disciplin the people in the districts, they are trusted.

Mace's voice brings me back to the here and now. "Cyo? What are you talking about?"

I look down on my hands for a moment before facing her again. "I need Valeria's dad..."

With a sigh Mace runs a hand through her hair. "How come you think a peacekeeper from District 2 is willing to help you take down the President?"

I start pulling on my fingers and look at the horizon. The stars are fading away fast and the sky is changing colors already. "I just know... I have this feeling about him."

"What if you are wrong? He'll report you and they'll make you suffer for it."

I start chewing on the inside of my cheeks again. "Mace... they'll make me suffer one way or another."

"No!" I look back at Mace and she quickly shuts up again. She takes a moment to calm down before she whispers, "No... please. I can't lose you again."

I sigh, then hug her. "I'm sorry... but this has to end. This can't ever happen again."

I feel her hug me back. Her voice is slightly shaking, "I thought I'd lost you before... and then you returned. And now I'm loosing you again."

"I... I know. I never meant for any of this to happen. I just want you to be save, that's why I'll need to do this - no matter what happens to me."

She shakes her head and looks at me. "No... you can't always save everyone. You need to stop thinking about this and you need to be what they want in a victor."

I grit my teeth for a moment. "I don't want to be a victor... I don't want them to own me. You know what I told you about... about everything."

"You'll at least be alive. You can live with us most of the time... we'll have each other."

I shake my head. "I won't watch children die each and every year... and what about the people in the districts? The people who are hungry and cold and afraid to have children..."

Mace pauses, then she says, "If you're really doing this, I'll help you."

A small smile reaches my lips. "That's great... I'll need plenty of allies in the districts for this to work."

She nods and slowly lets go of me again. "Come on... the sun will rise soon. Let's get the boys ready for school."

I quickly get up and so does she and we go back inside. We wake up the boys and all make breakfast together. When it's time Mace and I walk them to school and then I walk her to the shop where my mom is already waiting. We don't really talk a lot, but she has warmed up to the idea of the boys living with me.

I greet her briefly, then turn to Mace. "I'll talk to the others today... I'll tell you about it later."

She nods and slips inside the shop. I turn to my mum and say, "You can collect the boys from school today and just bring them sometime in the evening."

She nods and mumbles, "Yes... I'll do that."

I still feel a bit bad when I talk to her and look down. "I didn't ever mean to upset you. You know that right? I just want them to be happy..."

"Yes... but they need their parents to be happy."

I look up again and shake my head. "They need to be save to be happy. And you see them almost every day... please accept that I'm helping you."

She sighs, then hesitantly says, "Thank you... for giving them food and a bed. But I miss them terribly."

"I know... let's wait another month. And if your asshole of a husband manages to be good to you until then - then I'll consider it."

I see in her eyes that she's hurt, but she just nods and turns. She mumbles a 'Goodbye, Cyo...' and walks into the shop.

I keep standing there and look at the door for a few seconds. Then I turn with a sigh and walk back to Victor's Village. The whole way I play out my plan in my head. We'll need people who organize this in each district and a specific day where we'll all attack at the same time.

There will have to be leaders in every district, people to be trusted, probably other victors. We'll need District 2 and 3 for sure. 2 has a huge chunk of the weapons and 3 has tech that can be turned into weapons.

Before I know it, I'm in front of Haymitch's door. I hesitate but then I knock, loudly and often to make sure he hears it.

It doesn't take long until the door swings open and I'm face to face with Haymitch. He looks pissed beyond compare and has bags under his eyes, but not as bad as I expected him to look. "Why the fuck would you wake me up?"

"I'm sorry... It's just really important. We need to talk."

He looks me up and down and rolls his eyes. "Why?"

I hesitate. "Katniss and Peeta need to be part of this conversation too."

Now he just looks confused. "Kid... you wake me up at an ungodly hour and then won't even tell me what this is about. Instead you want me to go chat with Katniss and Peeta?"

I nod. "Pretty much, yes... It's kind of not the right place to talk about this here."

I can see that he clearly wants to know what's going on and is considerably less upset. Haymitch looks down, then nods and closes the door behind him. "Okay... go ahead."

We walk across the street and I press the doorbell at Katniss' and Peeta's house. Right away I hear steps inside and Peeta comes to the door. He looks surprised. "Hey... what's going on?"

I clear my throat before speaking, "Is Katniss home?"

He shakes his head. "No, she... she went to the woods."

I nod. "Do you know where she usually goes? We all need to talk about something important."

He hesitantly nods. "Yeah... but what exactly?"

I shake my head. "I'll tell you when we get there."

Peeta opens his mouth to ask another question, but doesn't. Instead he looks over at Haymitch and nods. "Okay... follow me."

We leave Victor's Village behind and Peeta leads us to a place where the fence is ripped away almost completely. It's easy to get through the hole.

Peeta leads us through the trees and up a small hill and there I see a silhouette against the clouded sky. She turns instantly as she hears the footsteps getting closer, but the fight leaves her eyes as she recognizes who it is.

Katniss' voice is calm, "What are you doing here?"

I stop next to her and say, "Sorry to bother you, but I need to talk to you - all of you."

Now she frowns and looks up a bit confused, "About what?"

I look around if any of those horrible birds are around and then sit down as I deem it safe. "About revolution."

Katniss just stares at me as Peeta and Haymitch sit down too. Peeta is the first to respond, "We told you... it's impossible."

I shake my head. "It's not... it just needs structure and planning. It needs allies and leaders in every district."

Katniss quickly shuts me down, "No... we cannot. If they find out, they'll kill Prim."

I look down, then face her. I see where she is coming from, but it seems like she hasn't realized that there are ways they could get to Primrose that aren't so obvious. "I know you care about your sister. I have siblings too... But how can you ever know she's safe? She's only 13, right? If they feel like your behavior is not good enough - she could be reaped and who's going to save her then?"

Katniss stares at me, wide-eyed, not sure what to say, so instead I turn to Peeta. "You have younger siblings too, right? Not too long and my brothers will be old enough to be killed on live TV as well."

In the end it's neither Katniss or Peeta who respond. It's Haymitch, "He's right, sweetheart... One wrong step and they give you hell. They don't care how beloved your sister is... Snow only needs one word and suddenly every name in that bowl is replaced with Prim's."

Katniss now looks up at Haymitch. "Then... then we'll just have to be careful, have to live by their rules."

Haymitch presses his lips together, then sighs and says, "You only just got a little taste of 'their rules'. Not all of those are easy to follow."

Peeta now speaks up again, "What do you mean?"

When Haymitch doesn't respond, I hesitantly address Katniss, "Do you remember what we talked about in that hospital? That some victors come back to the Capitol frequently?"

She looks at me, then slowly nods as an answer, so I continue. "They don't like it there... it's not any kind of vacation. They are forced to visit by Snow. He sees the victors as objects he owns and that he can rent to others who pay for it. And some people do pay for the... company of a young, good-looking celebrity."

Katniss looks down. She looks shocked, not at all prepared for what I just told her. In a low voice she says, "How do you know...? What did they...?"

I quickly shake my head. "No... nothing... yet. Valeria told me. Her mentors told her before she volunteered, to make sure she knows what awaits her."

Now she looks up again, but not at me, but at Haymitch. "Is... is it true?"

He hesitates, but then he nods. "Yes... I don't know specific people, but I can speculate. They wanted to force me into their game and... killed everyone I had left when I refused."

We all fall silent after that - and for a while, we just sit there. Suddenly, Peeta speaks up again, "You... you talked about planning this out. How would you do that?"

I shift slightly and try to sort out my thoughts before saying, "I... we would need people in all of the districts who can win people over. That way, the Capitol won't notice there even is a plan. Considering their situation, I thought that maybe other victors would be willing to do that.

"We also need one person who can travel through Panem without being suspicious. That person would recruit everyone. And then we would need one day where we all start riots at the same time. Districts 2 and 3 are important. They produce things that can be used as weapons."

Peeta nods. "And... would you think the Victory Tour is an opportunity for that. I mean, traveling is not suspicious then."

I shake my head. "No... it's still suspicious if we do it. But the Victory Tour could be a chance to attack at the same time. We would have a signal since it is shown live all over Panem."

Peeta wants to respond when Katniss beats him to it. "Wait... stop. You are talking about this like we are really doing it."

I look down again, then look at each of them briefly. "We are... at least I am. I just hoped you would help me."

Peeta sighs. "I think we should do this... Katniss, think about Prim, think about my brothers... We can't live in fear every day of our lives."

I see Katniss bite down on her bottom lip and chew on it until it's red and swollen. It reminds me of Val. Then she says, "Haymitch, what do you think?"

Haymitch raises an eyebrow and looks from her to me. "I mean, yes... I'm all for it. End the Hunger Games, and Snow... But you still didn't tell us who that magic person to recruit in the districts would be."

I take a deep breath. I know this is the one point where I might lose them, but I'll have to say it anyway. "So... this is going to sound crazy, but it can't be someone who Snow is already watching anyway. It should be someone who is trusted by the Capitol. I thought about Valeria's dad. He's a peacekeeper."

Haymitch smirks and shakes his head. "Wait... let me get this straight. You want to ask the Head-Peacekeeper to help you lead a revolution against the people he works for?"

I know he is making fun of me, but it makes sense to me. "Listen... it's not that farfetched. He might want to end the Hunger Games too. He has lost both his children to that and..."

Haymitch cuts me off, "Both his children that were careers and volunteered for that shit. It's not an option."

"It doesn't matter!" I instantly regret raising my voice and calm down a bit. "It's not important that they volunteered. They're still dead, he has still lost them... There are poor people in 1 and 2 as well, there are people who don't trust the Capitol. Please... let me at least try to talk him into this."

Now Katniss responds, and I'm really surprised she is warming up to the idea. "You got a point... The career districts are victims, just as much as us. They just don't see it as that so much."

Peeta nods and eyes Haymitch briefly. "That's right... and nobody would suspect a thing."

Haymitch shrugs. "But... wouldn't it be suspicious to talk to him in the first place?"

I shake my head. "Not for me... I made a promise to... I promised her to visit her parents if she dies."

That makes Haymitch pause and then he nods. "This is crazy... but it might as well work."