"Citizens of Panem, this is Ceaser Flickerman. Stop working. Stop running errands. If you're having dinner, stop eating and give this screen your full attention. If you're spending time with loved ones, ignore them. I've been part of your lives for thirty years, but tonight we have to have a serious conversation about the future.

"Those of you watching the Hunger Games three days ago know that there was an attempt to commit high treason against the rightful Capitol rule. We can now confirm that even some of our beloved Victors colluded with the terrorists responsible. We can also confirm that their plan was to rescue their collaborators right out of the Arena, and take the others hostage. We're now pleased to report that the attempt has failed. It is believed that the only people to escape the Arena were killed in the attempt to bring down the Forcefield.

"Their associates, including Peeta Mellark, Effie Trinket, and Capitol Stylist Cinna; were all aboard the hovercraft that blasted their way past Capitol Defences. Districts Twelve and Seven are confirmed as the source of many of the ringleaders of this plot, and those Districts were quickly punished with retaliatory action.

"Other Districts have attempted uprisings; and we can now confirm that the strike on the Arena was a signal to them. Most of Panem remains devoted to the cause of unity, strength, and peace in our time. The march to stamp out rebellion is on; and you can be sure that we're all marching with them!"

"We failed." Peeta said darkly to Madge, Effie; and Katniss. The three of them had come to his room when Ceaser's broadcast had gone out.

"We did." Effie agreed. "I'm sorry about Johanna."

Everyone keeps saying that. Peeta thought miserably.

"You should know…" Madge said softly. "Ceaser Flickerman is reporting that Johanna was never pregnant. That it was a ruse made up by you and her to try and stop the Games…"

"It's true." Peeta said simply. "She wasn't pregnant."

And Katniss looked relieved. "Well, I'm… 'glad' doesn't seem like the right word. But Ceaser says she never was, and the Districts are screamin' that the Capitol is lying about how she 'lost' your child because of the Capitol scum. Apparently it's got them hopping mad…" She trailed off.

"I believed it." Madge said finally, choking up. "I thought we'd come in here to tell you that you'd lost..." She trailed off too.

Katniss spoke again. "If you're willing to keep that con going-"

"No." Peeta said shortly. "It was an attempt; it didn't work. If they want to rile people up; the truth should be enough."

The PA chimed the hour, and they heard the huge underground complex come alive as everyone went about their assigned tasks. Everyone in Thirteen had a schedule tattooed fresh on their wrist every day. Effie gave him another 'encouraging' look and went on to her next stop.

Peeta glanced over at Katniss and Madge, the only other people in the room. "You don't need to go, too?"

"We're good." She said shortly.

Peeta didn't chase it. He'd withdrawn a bit after their arrival at Thirteen. He'd begged, asked, screamed for information about Johanna, Finnick, the rest of the Mellark family… At first, there was no information coming in. Peeta had finally run out of energy after meeting Alma Coin, who told him in no uncertain terms what a huge let down the opening salvo against the Capitol had been.

Peeta had to agree; but he'd been running on no food or sleep for two days, and finally dropped. Effie had taken her position as his Escort to a whole other level, barking everyone out of the room. Peeta had revived enough to demand that he be informed as soon as any information came in.

That had been two days before, and Peeta had finally been released from Medical, assigned quarters of his own. Katniss and Effie had returned to debrief him on what had happened while he was at the Capitol. Madge was there, to more or less offer proof of the story regarding Twelve, as the three of them had not been present. Peeta didn't trust anything anymore.

"Gale's Cell Group was more extensive than we knew." Katniss told Peeta quietly. "The second the Games started going haywire, he was ready. He had almost a hundred people waiting for it. Ten of them took down a huge section of the border fence in less than five minutes; and the rest of them were knocking on doors, evacuating the Seam."

"The Seam. Not town." Peeta said softly.

Katniss steeled herself. "The Peacekeepers were focused mainly on the Mines, the Justice Building, and Victor's Village. The places they… well, the places they cared about. They were expecting trouble to come for them from a roused rabble, not the other way around. By the time they realized they weren't defending against people in the Seam, it was too late to catch our people." She caught herself. "...my people."

Peeta shut his eyes for a moment. The 'wealthy' side of town, including his family; had not been saved.

"Gale did try." Madge offered. "I was pretty much the only Cell member not involved with the Mines. I tried to get to your brothers and warn them. They arrested me just for being close enough to talk to them. Gale had a team try to get your family out by force…" She started getting choked up herself.

Katniss took up the story. "Mayor Undersee showed up at the Justice Building and got Madge out of holding just as the fence came down. She ran, and the Mayor was 'held for questioning'. Gale tried to get your family out by force, and lost almost a third of their people… And then the bombers came and wiped out everything..."

Peeta said nothing. He just held a hand out to Madge. She'd lost her father. She squeezed his hand silently, grateful.

Katniss wore a helpless look. She'd lost people. Madge had lost family. Peeta had lost everyone. Even Haymitch and Johanna were gone. "Peeta… They do need you." Katniss said awkwardly.

"Did Coin ask you to work on me?" Peeta guessed, not looking at them.

Madge bit her lip. "No-"

"Yes, but they're not wrong." Katniss said quickly. Peeta wouldn't be fooled. "The Game isn't over. One last Game; and we can all go back to… to whatever's left to go back to."

Peeta's mouth became a thin line.

"I know you have less than most, and I'm very sorry for that." Katniss said quietly. "But for what it's worth; you're the kind of person that can find good things anywhere. And if you can't find it, you make it. It's a rare talent, but you're good at it."

Peeta shook his head. "It's harder than it looks." He said darkly. "And it's harder still when you start with nothing. I couldn't even keep the clothes on my back."

Katniss stared at him for a long moment… Before she reached into her tunic and pulled out a chain… and the Mockingjay pin hanging from it. "You have one thing."

Peeta stared at it hard, like it was the holy grail, as she pinned it to his shirt. "Alright. Back to work."

He left the room, and Madge shook her head slowly. "I had no idea what she was starting when I gave Prim that Pin." She said darkly.

There was a round of applause for Peeta when he came to the Commons. The refugees from Twelve were there. Gale hurried over to greet him. "Wasn't sure you were ever going to come down here." He said. "I would have come to you, but there's no getting through that Elevator without a barcode on your wrist. I've just started basic training…"

"I should have come sooner." Peeta winced. "Didn't like the idea that all that was left of the District could fit into one room. No offense."

"None taken. I would have liked to save all of them too." Gale admitted. "But I never would have expected rescue flights from District Thirteen. I hear the refugees from Seven never made it this far. Twelve was on the border of the wilds; so..."

Peeta agreed, and lowered his voice. "The Mine?"

"They had it under guard from the moment the Games began. We had it rigged to blow since before the Reaping. We trashed it good." Gale reported with a grin. "We figure they left the Seam intact because most of the workers came from there, or because they figured we couldn't do anything but starve. Either way, when they send their Peacekeepers, they won't be able to find anyone to keep the coal coming. They'll have to send workers of their own." Gale steeled himself with a deep breath. "Also, you should know-"

"Peeta!" A voice called.

"-about that." Gale finished, as Peeta went pale and spun around.

"Dad!" Peeta yelled, pushing his way through the refugees to his father's side. The man hugged his boy tightly.

"We weren't sure you'd made it out." His father said into his hair. "I knew if they'd save anyone, it'd be you, but there were so many rumors, and when-"

"I had no idea you were down here! I heard the entire Town got blown off the map!"

"It was." His father said heavily. "We're all that's left of…"

"Dad." Peeta said seriously. "Why are you alive?"

His father said nothing.

"I'm told Victor's Village, as well as town? They were surrounded." Peeta's eyes never wavered. "How'd you get out when nobody else did? If it was Gale's people, I would have known right away..."

"I… wasn't at the house, Peeta." His father finally confessed. "And I wasn't at the Village. In fact, I haven't left the Seam in weeks. While you were gone, I…" He looked across the room for someone.

Peeta followed his gaze, and found Katniss' mother, tending to some of the wounded. "Oh." Peeta said softly. "Um…"

Father and son regarded each other for a long time. What do you say? Peeta asked himself helplessly. Your whole family is dead, but your father survived because he was with his girlfriend? What do you say to that, Storyteller?

His father didn't know either. "I should have told you sooner; that your mother and I had split up…"

"Johanna told me." Peeta admitted quietly. "I didn't know about you and…"

"I didn't tell you, because by then the next Reaping was announced; and…"

Peeta stared, helplessly. "One of us has to finish a sentence at some point." He shook his head. "I'm glad you're alive. And I'm glad you've finally found something good." He shivered. "On our escape from the Arena, we could only take relatives that might be used against Cell Members. Every time that cannon went off, we had fewer refugees to save. The Capitol is not so particular. You may be the last living person related to a Victor."

"God." His father hugged him tightly. "You made it, Peeta. You made it out."

And Peeta wanted to shatter into millions of pieces. Because his father knew Johanna was captured; and he assumed Peeta was relieved. Because his father knew the war was on, and assumed Peeta wasn't in it. Four brothers, and Peeta was the only family he had left.

His father thought The Storyteller's War was over.

Peeta came back to his room and found Katniss was waiting for him; perched on the edge of his bed, about as tense as he'd ever seen her. "Katniss?"

She was a bundle of nerves. "I heard your dad was alive after all."

"Did you happen to hear why?"

"Let's not bring that up just now." She said archly. "I have a 'suggestion' to pass along to you from the Powers That Be. They want to know if you're still interested in dating me."

Peeta stared at her for several moments. "I'm not sure where you're going with this, but out of respect for our history, I'm going to invite you to walk away from this room very fast."

Katniss nodded, but spoke anyway. "The idea is that The Capitol is the reason you and I didn't live happily ever after, so if there were a few shots of you and I bein' young-and-in-love, then that might portray Thirteen as the place where dreams come true for lovesick dopes like you. With the Capitol's announcement about Johanna's 'baby', now would be the time."

"Well, you really swept me off my feet there, Mockingjay." Peeta deadpanned.

Katniss winced sickly. "I'm sorry. I can't believe I just came in here and even told you about this."

"Are they really that… cold?"

"They don't know how to motivate you." Katniss admitted. "Getting me on-side was easy. They promised me a chance to blow the Capitol off the map, a slice at a time. But you? Revenge was never what you were after. They don't know what to offer you. They can't threaten you with much either." She almost smiled. "I can relate. I never knew what was happening in your brain."

"So they offered me you." Peeta scowled. "Just out of curiosity, if I had said yes, would you have been willing?"

"Gale asked the same question." Katniss admitted. "I went along because… frankly, I don't know what else to do. Peeta, you'd starve yourself to death before asking someone else to give you their food. You'd freeze to death before you asked someone for their jacket… There's still a war going on, and not everyone is going to see the end of it. Even if you-"

"If I make any kind of move, what will The Capitol do to Johanna?" Peeta asked suddenly.

Katniss froze. "Oh. There it is."

"There it is." Peeta agreed.

Katniss said nothing for a long time. "What does Annie think?" She said finally. "I know you spend your off-duty time with her and Mags."

Peeta shivered. "Annie says to keep going, no matter what."

Katniss didn't say anything to that. She didn't have to. "Johanna told me something, when she told me about this place. Coin wanted you in the Arena. She felt you'd be the one most likely to set off a grenade in the Capitol. And if she got you out…"

"I know. I'm not an idiot. They didn't send you in here because they wanted me to be a soldier." Peeta shivered, and his voice dropped to a whisper. "What if I can't do it?" He chewed his lip so hard it bled. "What if I can't do it? What if we lose this war because I just wasn't good enough?"

Katniss stared at him. "He doubts. Now, he feels doubt. Amazing. The man who, at sixteen years of age, vowed that the Arena would not change his soul..."

Peeta didn't react. "I've done things, but I was only risking my life; and had nothing to lose. Now I have a war to lose. To say nothing of what could happen to Johanna and Finnick."

"Is that the problem?" Katniss asked, out of nowhere. "You don't want the responsibility? Because I remember you were willing to let Cato kill you. The people outside this room think it was a protest of the Games. Now I'm wondering if Snow was right and you just didn't have it in you to kill him first."

"Would that be so terrible?" Peeta asked finally; and she knew she'd hit closer to the mark than she'd expected. She wondered if even Peeta knew for sure.

Katniss took a deep breath. She realized it, suddenly: She knew what her biggest contribution to the war effort was likely going to be; and it was going to be the very next words she spoke. "When Prim died, Gale told me that you would 'carve out your heart and serve it to me raw' to make it right. What I didn't realize at the time? That's your only move. You made Johanna see someone like herself; and gave her permission to feel loved. You made a whole District see someone as abused and neglected as they were; and gave them permission to feel proud. You had the Capitol weeping over their victims because you were weeping first; and you had Victors screaming for someone to do something, because you were one of them."

Peeta said nothing, but a single tear rolled down his face.

"I don't know how you do it, but you make everyone see themselves in you." Katniss said gently. "Coin wants you to play the biggest role of your life. She doesn't get that you've never played any role. Not once. This is just you. It's always been just you. If you change that now, that's when you fail."

Peeta was silent so long she wasn't sure he'd heard a word. "What if… what if Snow's right and I just don't have it in me to start an Uprising?"

"You didn't start it, Peeta. The Uprising is already underway, and it was the Capitol that pushed things to the breaking point." Katniss rose to go. "Maybe you can't bring yourself to start a war. But right now, all you have to do is finish it."

Peeta rose too. "And with Finnick's life at stake, even Annie won't speak of surrender." He scoffed a bit. "Johanna would have my head if she knew I was hedging, let alone over her."

"If Johanna was here, she'd have hijacked a ship, loaded it with weapons, and flown straight to the Capitol by now." Katniss quipped. "But that's her move." Katniss gestured at herself. "Coin's willing to offer you anything the Captiol would. That's her move. What's yours?"

Cinna looked up as Peeta came in. "Hey. We were just talking about you." He actually came to attention; but he relaxed a bit as he scanned Peeta's outfit.

Plutarch noticed too. "Still haven't decided, huh? I was just telling Cinna to get something together on the assumption that-"

"I'm going to help." Peeta only mouthed the words, as they did in the Capitol when they didn't want to be observed.

Cinna reached into the desk drawer and pulled out his socks. He unrolled them, to show a small electronic device, before wrapping it tightly again, and putting it away. "I think they bugged us because we're double-agents."

"Though in fairness, we're long used to it." Plutarch said aloud. "What's on your mind, Storyteller?"

"We're past the point of ending the War." Peeta said. "They wiped out half my District, and most of Johanna's. The only reason they didn't wipe out Four too is because they've got Finnick. There's no hope of survival unless we win."

"And if they get me or Plutarch, execution would be better than we can hope for." Cinna nodded.

"If there's something I can do to end it faster, or with less casualties…" Peeta shook his head. "I have to." He chewed his lip. "That's why I have to ask: Why do I have to? Why me? How am I so important?"

"Consider the optics." Plutarch put to him. "You had Twelve on your side. Rue and Thresh gave you Eleven. Johanna had District Seven, and you had Johanna. Her history with Finnick gave her District Four, and with Johanna and Finnick in custody, you're the nearest thing the Rebels there have left. Plus, you made Cato and Glimmer and Marvel look like idiots; which gives you points with every District who ever lost a friend to Districts One and Two in the Arena…"

"Which is all of them." Cinna put in.

Plutarch started counting on his fingers. "Twelve. Eleven. Seven. Four. The Rebellion has weak knees right now, Peeta. Working in secret means the rest of the population is scrambling to figure out what side they're on."

"And they don't know Thirteen at all." Peeta thought aloud. "Why fight for someone who's been keeping themselves a Secret for more than seven decades of abuse and atrocity?"

"That's actually the current problem." Plutarch agreed. "And a conversation to have with President Coin."

Coin scowled when Peeta put the question to her. "If we had stepped forward sooner-"

"No, you don't have to convince me, Ma'am. I haven't been an underground Resistance Member for very long, but even I've worked out the problem." Peeta backpedalled quickly. "But there's a line between hungry people in the same foxhole and people who are… not. I'm a Victor. It was hard enough for people to take me seriously when I had food. You guys have an army, and there's going to be some… hesitation to overcome."

"Which is rather what brings us to you, Storyteller." Coin pointed out. "Not to be unkind, but I didn't expect you to fight this so hard. I would have thought you'd be glad to raise an army against the Capitol."

"And I will. It's just a task for someone more bloodthirsty than I." Peeta said carefully. "Given the… likely cost."

Coin's eyes flashed. He was leading her somewhere, and she knew it. "If you're worried about Mason, our intel says she's alive."

"Does your Intel say where?"

"In a very well guarded place, in the Heart of the Capitol."

"So you know where it is." Peeta pressed.

"I can see where you're going with this." Coin cut him off. "But there's a reason why we haven't hit the Capitol directly. We need the Districts behind us. The Capitol is impregnable."

"To attack." Peeta said. "I'm not asking for a full invasion."

"No, you're just asking that we send as many people as it takes on a suicide mission to save two or three people you happen to care about, on the off chance they haven't been shot already." Coin said cuttingly.

Her voice was cold, logical, immovable… and Peeta deflated. "I know. I'm sorry." He said finally. "I don't mean to appear ungrateful, as you've saved my life once already. But the warriors among the Victors on your team? You left them all behind."

"Warriors are made." Coin said firmly. "The Arena proves that. If Beetee wakes up, he'll be worth more to the war effort than any commando." Her grey eyes looked through Peeta. "What are you worth, to the war effort?"

Peeta realized they were negotiating. "Would I be worth the other Victors, safe and sound? If not today, then as soon as the war makes it feasible?"

"Colonel Boggs, educate the Storyteller." Coin said immediately.

"Yes, Ma'am." Boggs said crisply, and pulled up a map of Panem on the screens. "Districts Twelve and Seven are so badly hit that there's no fighting left to do there. Districts One and Two have declared for the Capitol, as expected. Districts Ten, Eleven, and Three are in full rebellion. Everyone else is under Martial Law; but so far the fighting has not spread there."

"Our plan was to have all the Districts rallied into this fight. But Ceaser Flickerman is telling the country that the war is mopping up; and District Two and the Capitol are sending everything they've got at a battlefield that's too small and too localised. Everywhere else is still Capitol territory." Coin finished. "We need someone who can rally a District into an Uprising."

"Me." Peeta said without surprise.

"You." Coin agreed. "You have a talent for turning Rivals into Allies. The Capitol is moderately shaky right now. It's Wealthy and Powerful are suddenly being told 'no' for the first time; and they don't like it. The longer we can keep the Districts from supplying them, the more discontent that we stir up in the Capitol."

"The Capitol's high society are more than just their fashion labels." Plutarch put in. "They're the leadership too. Julle was Civil Defense. Ceaser Flickerman is Propaganda. The Districts have always been a diversion to the Society Ranks. Scandals and bad haircuts can make people fall out of favor, and that 'favor' can decide the appointment of District Civic Leaders, local Mayors within the Capitol, District Police and Head Peacekeepers. Turning them on each other can make the difference; and you very nearly got the Capitol to riot over Rue."

"You want me to do that again." Peeta summed up.

"No. Sending you to the Capitol is a waste of you as an Asset, as they'll just shoot you. And we can't break through the Capitol Jamming from here. But it also doesn't matter." Coin told him. "We believe the war will be over in eight weeks. The Districts in Rebellion can't hold out much longer than that. And in the meantime, the war is a fun diversion for the Capitol socialites to place bets on."

"A Hunger Games the size of Panem." Peeta agreed, staring at the map. "So we need to expand the war."

"The Capitol gets its food, equipment, and even its soldiers by exploiting the Districts. We spread the war, we also spread out the Capitol forces; and deprive the Capitol population, until it's too thin to hold us back." Plutarch walked him through the strategy. "Can you do it?"

Peeta looked to Coin. "If I can… would that be worth going after Johanna and the others?"

Coin looked to Boggs.

"If the Capitol defences are thinned out across Panem, it might even be doable." Boggs admitted.

"Alright, but one more thing." Peeta said carefully. "When the war is over… I'm going home. No more Games. No more Victory Tours. I want all of this out of my life."

"Somehow, I doubt that you were ever meant for a quiet life as a Baker, Soldier Mellark." Coin snorted. "I have no problem with you retiring before you turn twenty." She gave him a warning look. "But if you want a life of any kind, the Capitol has to be gone. So you'd better perform."

"Day Shift, report for Midday Meal."

Those in 'Special Operations' ignored the PA. District Thirteen was tightly regimented, to the point of mindless; but they had a different assignment. Outside the War Room, Plutarch talked him through it. "Now, the most important thing is to get the idea across that the Rebellion is a viable option. Flickerman's job is to make it seem like a band of drunken malcontents waving torches and pitchforks. None of them know about Thirteen still being here."

"I thought the Jammers meant that we couldn't get a broadcast going in the Capitol."

"We can't, but they have a secondary system for each District. Different codes, to keep them from picking up each other's signals. Those aren't as powerful, or as distant. Those we can get through. It's just a question of what to put on the air before they can get control back."

Peeta nodded as Cinna fussed with his outfit. It was Cinna's biggest project since the Arena, trying to make a soldier suit that didn't appear to belong to a warrior. Peeta's whole appeal was that he welcomed armies, not conquer them. "First job, convince them Thirteen should be taken seriously."

"This is Cressida, and her team." Plutarch made introductions. "They're setting up a studio on Sub-Level 12. They'll put you in front of a green screen and-"

"Nah, I'm just going to go down to the Mess Hall and say some stuff." Peeta said, and turned on his heel; heading for the elevators. "Bring a camera!"

Cressida didn't hesitate; already running after him.

"Excuse me, everyone!" Peeta shouted over the din of conversation. After a moment, everyone assembled for their meal paused and turned to look at Peeta. "I'm sorry to interrupt your meal; but I figured it was time we spoke. Most of you know who I am. I'd like to ask you some questions, and if you know the answer, I'd like to hear it." He said, loud enough for all to hear. "Has anyone in this room ever faced a Reaping?"

Pause.

"No." The answer came slowly, most of the people unused to public announcements in the Mess Hall, let alone having to answer.

Peeta kept going. "Has anyone here ever been told to hand over their children?"

The answer came faster this time. "No."

"Has anyone here ever lost a loved one to a Hunger Games?"

"No!" The answers were getting clearer, stronger, more confident.

"Has anyone here ever sent tithes or quotas of goods to the Capitol?"

"No!"

"Has anyone here ever starved to death, because Peacekeepers stole their rations?"

"NO!"

"Has anyone here ever seen the wealthy grow fat, while the hungry get sick from starvation?"

"NO!" The crowd was roaring. Thirteen was so tightly rationed in its resources, even Coin got no special treatment.

"Has anyone here ever been Rented Out, sold into slavery while underage? Been turned into an Avox, or a Mutt?!"

"NO!" The crowd roared back.

"And does anyone here think the Capitol should be allowed to continue inflicting these things on the rest of the country?!"

"NO!"

Peeta turned to face Cressida, recording the whole thing avidly. "Panem, meet District Thirteen. You have allies that you never knew."

Somewhere behind him, Peeta heard Gale and Katniss burst into cheers. Nobody had ever heard cheering in the Mess Hall, but they knew Peeta was doing something for the war effort, and assumed they should follow the example of the District Twelve Team. Within a few minutes, there was a roar from everyone.

"Cut!" Cressida declared once it died down. "Very nice!"

But it wasn't enough. Peeta knew it before he made it back to the War Room.

"What did you expect? Thrilling Heroics? Cinematic explosions? The war is in the Districts. He's not a warrior." Effie demanded. "People were talking about Peeta as an inspiration; but not about how deadly he is. Zero Kills. Even in the Arena."

Coin looked frustrated. "I wanted him to rally people."

"What people? There are no people here!" Effie shouted. "That greenscreen studio? No people. The surface of Thirteen? No people. The Mess Hall? Nobody that isn't rallied already." She was waving her hands around in frustration. "What did you plan to do with him?!"

"She planned to send me into the Arena, and have my dying words be something profound enough to start a revolution." Peeta said without hesitation as he came in behind Effie.

Dead silence. Coin looked displeased with his announcement. Effie looked stunned.

"Was it meant to be a secret?" Peeta asked Coin. "Haymitch made sure he went instead; and he died for it. One martyr to the cause isn't enough?"

"He'd hardly be the first." Coin returned. "For the record, I had hoped we'd get you out safely. I wanted you to go in, because there's nothing that could match that kind of platform. Mandatory viewing, across all Panem? You could have done so much more from there."

"I don't have a time machine." Peeta said simply. " But Effie's right. I can't add fire to a rebellion I never see."

"Effie's also right when she says you're not a warrior." Boggs put in. "If you're not; then you're just another civilian that my soldiers are responsible for."

"I know. So don't send me to the war." Peeta said. "Isn't the whole problem that the Rebellion isn't widespread enough? I seem to spread it wherever I go."

Silence.

"What are you proposing?" Coin asked.

"A third of Districts haven't declared. Send me there." Peeta checked the map. "Nine. Send me to District Nine."

"You'd have no support." Boggs said seriously, and turned to Coin. "We have no word from any of our cell groups; the crackdown has captured or cost us everyone we could spare; and our own forces are too thin on the ground to mount any kind of offensive into a District that isn't even trying to support our cause-"

"I'll have all the allies I need. The Capitol provides that in huge numbers." Peeta promised, never taking his eyes off Coin. "I just need someone to get me through that fence, and record the aftermath."

Cressida stepped closer to the table. "I volunteer as Tribute!" She said brightly.

Coin glowered a bit. "Nine hasn't started fighting. We send you, and you have to take your chances. The Capitol is keeping peace by putting the place under Martial Law. Not the best time to sneak in and start an uprising."

"Making speeches here isn't going to do it." Peeta insisted. "Nobody knows Thirteen. And if they don't trust you, they're not going to risk their lives for you."

"But they will for you?" Coin challenged.

Peeta bit his lip. "They will for themselves. All I have to do is make them see themselves when they look at me, and at each other."

Pause.

"I don't know what that means." Coin said finally.

"I know." Peeta nodded. "But I do. That's why you can't do this without me."

Katniss ran through the halls of Thirteen; until she reached the Barracks. She scanned the assignment board and threw herself at Boggs. "Sir!"

"You're not going, Everdeen." Boggs didn't even look at her. "Neither is Hawthorne."

"Due respect, sir-"

"You'll just distract him; and given where we're going, that's not advisable." Boggs told her. "We both know Mellark's weakness is his heart. Surround him with friends and he's bulletproof. Surround those friends with enemies and-"

"Who says we're friends?" Katniss shot back.

"If he's not, then why are you here?"

"I'm not asking for anything but a spot on the team." Katniss insisted.

"There is no team." Boggs said in a low growl, and she could tell he was raw about it.

Katniss blinked. "What does that mean?"

"Well, I guess the first thing you need to know is that it's none of your damn business, because you're not on the mission." Boggs snapped. "Secondly, you're dangerously close to insubordinate, which is, I grant you, pretty much your only setting. So I'll invite you to dismiss yourself before I put you on KP Duty; peeling potatoes and washing dishes for the rest of the war. You're not involved."

Katniss felt sick. "Sir, Yessir." She said finally, forcing herself to attention. "Permission to speak freely, Sir?"

"Better." Boggs agreed. "Go ahead."

"I don't like the idea of him going back into the fight." Katniss said softly. "There's a lot of history involving him going into an Arena and me and Gale having to watch on TV. When I came to Thirteen, there was a shining glorious moment where I got to actually do something. And it was something that made a big difference."

"It was." Boggs admitted. "This is what being a soldier is, Everdeen. Some days you're on the front, most days you have to sit back while other people go instead."

Katnis swallowed. "Yessir." She said quietly. "But Peeta's not a soldier."

Boggs nodded. "He's not a civilian either." He glanced around. "Look, I can't be telling you this, but if you promise to keep your mouth shut?"

Katniss nodded.

"I'm going with him. Personally."

Katniss let out a breath she hadn't noticed she was holding. "Well… That might actually be better than going myself."

"I do not like this plan at all." Effie fussed over his clothing. Cinna's latest work was 'undercover', but still war-ready. By adjusting the straps and turning the jacket inside out, Peeta could go from television-hero to unremarkable. "You're the most wanted man in Panem, and you're going out into the Districts with one of these Cave Dwellers and a Camera."

"I have a name." Cressida drawled. "Boggs is right. Just the three of us will draw less attention. Remember, they're watching for an army."

"They're watching for Peeta." Effie told her. "None of the Peacekeepers know who you are. Neither do I. I've been responsible for this young man for over a year now; and I'm letting him go to war with strangers."

"Effie." Peeta shushed her. "This is how it's gotta be."

Effie squared her shoulders. "I don't like it."

Peeta leaned in closer. "It's my only shot to get Jo back." He said seriously. "Also, there's a war on; and the life and freedom of everyone in Panem is at stake. Y'know. Little things like that."

Effie settled. "Fine. But if you die, I'll never speak to you again."

The hovercraft dropped them in District Eleven. They took a train from there, hiding in the cargo cars.

"Could be worse." Cressida commented. "We could be in with livestock."

Peeta chuckled. "District Eleven, Agriculture. District Nine, Grain and Foodstuffs. There's more cargo back and forth between them than anywhere else. With Eleven a warzone, I'm betting the demand here is only growing."

The train pulled into a well guarded station, but the three Rebels were already off the train.

On the surface, Nine was peaceful. There was no sign of riot or violence. The streets were clear of demonstrations, and people in general. There were guards; but they were on a fixed pattern; which Boggs knew how to avoid.

"One thing I'll say for terrified underlings, they never show initiative." Boggs commented. "If any of them have a different idea of how to patrol streets better, they'll never suggest them. To suggest improvement is to imply the Capitol isn't flawless already." He turned to Peeta. "Alright, Storyteller. Impress me. Where are we going?"

"The Justice Building." Peeta said seriously.

"Of course we are." Boggs sighed. "It's only the worst possible idea."

The Justice Building was the symbol of Capitol Power in the District. It was also the head office for the Peacekeeper Leadership; and the Barracks.

The storeroom was far less defended.

Cressida was making every effort not to make a sound as she filmed the mission. Boggs was on the door, coiled and ready to strike anyone who came in. Peeta was working his way through a dozen locked storage boxes. Cressida was at the window, recording the courtyard, where over a dozen people were getting the lash.

Peeta let out a quiet gasp and pulled down a large box, big enough that he needed both hands. Boggs came over and started working the lock. "They'll know we've taken something."

"What we're taking won't be missed for a while." Peeta promised. "Cressida, we need you to record this. We need proof of Authenticity."

The lock sprang open under Boggs' fingers. "Is that it?" The Soldier demanded.

"That's it." Peeta grinned like a shark. "We got it." He held his trophy high enough for the camera to see. "Our ultimate weapon."

In the box were two large glass bowls; full of little paper slips.

There had been a directory of the District in the records room. Cressida had snapped a picture, and they replaced everything, taking nothing but a handful of paper slips. Nobody would even know they were there. Cressida kept pace with Peeta as they moved silently through the streets of District Nine; getting background shots. There was a permanent mist, made of flour. Peeta breathed deep. It was almost like being back in the bakery.

I guess this is where the Flour came from. Peeta thought.

"First house." Boggs pointed to the house.

Peeta went to the door, and knocked. A woman answered; and nearly fell over when she saw who it was.

"You know who I am, Mrs Flint." Peeta said quietly. "And I apologize for bringing this to your door." He gave her the same, easy grin that had made the Capitol applaud. "You wanna get us off your front lawn before someone sees, and wonders why we picked your door to knock on?"

Mrs Flint quickly pulled him inside, gesturing for the others to follow.

"Why did you pick my door?" Flint asked. "How do you know my name?"

Peeta pulled out a little slip of paper. "Reyla Flint. Your daughter?"

The woman's eyes flicked to the hallway, where her husband was standing, looking shell-shocked at a renegade celebrity walking in the door. "S-she's asleep. How do you know my fourteen year old daughter?"

"I don't." Peeta promised them. "Earlier this evening, I and a small group of Rebels snuck into the Justice Building, and borrowed The Tribute Bowls. They keep the slips in it all year round. I pulled a random slip out. It happened to be you daughter." Peeta held the slip out. "It's just that simple." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of slips. "I drew seven more names, at random. Yours was the first. If I was the Escort, your daughter would be on her way to the Arena."

Mrs Flint let out a low, sick sob. Her husband quickly hurried to her, putting his arms around her tightly.

Cressida was a Field Correspondent. She was used to being invisible on battlefields. This was something else altogether. She quietly took some notes, her concealed body-cam recording the conversation. And as their small team moved from house to house; the speech wasn't that different, from the Flint Home onward.

House One: Mr and Mrs Flint

"1,726." Peeta said. "Twenty three tributes killed each year, for seventy four years. Plus another 24, because the 50th Quell had double the contestants. All under eighteen. Then they rounded up the survivors too."

The Flint's couldn't meet his gaze.

"It's the great fear, isn't it?" Peeta said to them softly. "Not that lightning could strike you. That's true of a lot of things. You take a chance with your life every time you walk outside. The fear is that you know the lightning is going to hit someone. You can mark it on the calendar, and count down the seconds; but you can't stop it; or avoid it. So you cross your fingers that the lightning will hit someone else. Hopefully someone you don't know really well. And that torments you, because you know that everyone you know; your entire social circle, is hoping the same thing about you."

House Two: The Kenners

"Well, I wasn't that lucky. Everyone saw when Primrose Everdeen and I got Reaped. Prim's name was only in the bowl once. The odds couldn't have been more in her favor. But the lightning struck. I'm a Baker's son. I don't have much need for Tesserae. I put my name in once for each year, like everyone. But the lightning struck."

Mister Kenner was clutching the small slip of paper with his son's name on it, full of impotent rage; as Peeta wove his tale.

House Three: The Kondos.

"Most everyone was watching when Prim told the world that my mom hit me as a child. What Prim didn't know was when it started. My older brothers can remember the exact date. It was the moment they put their names in the Bowl for the first time. Before that, she was quite nice and loving. But the moment she saw that lightning could strike her house too; things changed."

Pat Kondo had three younger siblings; all of them clinging to her, as she stared down at the slip of paper with her name on it.

Peeta nodded. "Pat… three siblings, all of them have their names in the Bowl too. The lightning struck your house tonight; but not by the Captiol. If it was Reaping day, would you want their names pulled instead?"

"Of course not!" Pat scorned. "And if I thought it would happen… I think I should volunteer."

"Don't say that!" Her mother hissed.

House Four: The Rothchilds.

Peeta nodded, sympathetic. "So here we are, telling ourselves it'll happen to someone we don't know. But then it happens to us. If only because all the people you don't know are taken already. I've always said, the point of the Hunger Games was to keep you hating the other Districts. But it goes deeper than that, because every time your kids go to school; you find yourself hoping they don't make friends. Because the Lightning is going to strike one day; and everyone knows it."

Granny Rothschild shivered. "When I started going out to parties with my friends… My mother warned me not to leave my drink alone, not to flirt with any boys I don't know, always take a friend when I go to the bathroom… Because that lightning could strike too. A girl could get hurt very easily when out and around town."

Peeta nodded. "And then you gave your daughter the same advice, and that's when it hit you, right?"

The old woman nodded. "I was telling my daughter how to avoid predators… and the only way I could think of was to make sure the Predators went for someone else."

"Someone else." Peeta agreed profoundly. "Always someone else."

House Five: The Carters

"The Games make sure you never get close to anyone but yourself." Peeta sighed. "And I know I have no right to say this; but 'Someone Else' is you too. Because when someone loses their child to the Games, they still have to be back at work the next day. In Twelve, they're powering the Capitol's heat, and freezing to death. Here in Nine, they're sending millions of tonnes of grain to the Capitol; feeding the whole country... and losing fingers for taking a cup of grain for their kids."

Mister Carter snorted at that. He was holding the slip with his son's name on it… and his hand was missing two fingers.

"Something Johanna told me: Civilians belong to Snow." Peeta continued. "And she's right. Bullies want everyone else to turn around and look the other way. Because if you don't do something about it; then you're doing exactly what he wants. You're keeping your heads down, going back to work, making grain for the Capitol. And that's exactly what they want you to do." Peeta said. "And here's the best part: Snow agrees with her."

House Six: The Antas.

"What do you mean?" Mrs Antas asked, looking pointedly away from the two boys hovering in the doorway.

"I know the Sit-Downs happened here. Snow showed me the pictures; just before my Victory Tour. He came to my house."

Everyone in earshot gasped, at the very notion of Snow coming to their home. Worse than Peeta.

"Snow was worried. He knew that Passive Resistance was only the start. I was in the Capitol a month later, and the rich folk there were outraged because there was a waiting list for the most pointless of diversions. A new music player; because they had a silver one, and a white one, but they wanted the black one too; to match their new outfit; and the backorder was a three day wait. They had their Avox beaten for not finding the right color on an empty shelf."

Mrs Antas snorted.

"At the Presidential Balls, they had vials of medicine that would make you throw up so you had room to keep eating. There were attendants in gold-weave silks to hold your hair and clothes out of the way until you were done." Peeta added incredulously. "I said to Johanna, 'even pigs know to stop when they're full'."

House Seven: The Sargans

"That's obscene. We've got people starving to death, surrounded by grain…" Paul Sargan raged quitely, clutching at the slip with his name on it.

"I know it." Peeta agreed. "Snow knew it. He knew that all Panem is set up for nothing but feeding the beast, and if we ever stopped; just for an instant, it'll feed on itself. You're worried about your family? Snow's not. Snow's worried about his own backyard. You saw Effie Trinket? My Escort from Twelve? She was all smiles when I escaped my first Games, but when they put my name back in that Bowl, she suddenly saw it: The Dark Days never ended."

Paul sent a look to his parents.

Peeta nodded, and pointed to the slip in his hand. "Lightning struck you, Paul. I picked this house out of the same Reaping bowl that they would use. The most wanted man in Panem showed up at your door, because the lightning struck; and it has to stop. This has to stop. The Capitol is Hungry now. And they've never been Hungry before. For the first time ever, they're in the Arena with us. It's Our Arena Now!"

Cressida scribbled that down very quickly.

Peeta gestured at the bowl. "The Ultimate Flaw of the Fascist state: No matter how quiet you are, no matter how obedient you are, no matter how hard you look the other way... Sooner or later it stops happening to 'someone else'."

"It happened already." Paul held up the slip. "If it had been Reaping Day, and not…" He looked to his parents. "It happened. My name came out of the Bowl."

His mother let out a choked sob.

"Paul, one thing I learned from the Games. Maybe you survive, maybe you don't; but the odds are in your favor when you have allies." Peeta said seriously. "I came here because I believe the District is ready to make an Alliance. Maybe with other Districts too."

House Eight: The Smarts.

"How do you know that?" Mister Smart piped up seriously. "You're asking us to join your revolution, and we tried that once. The Hunger Games were the direct result of the last Rebellion. Why should we believe it'll be any different this time?"

"Do nothing, and it'll never change. In seventy five years, there's never been a real chance at changing things." Peeta countered. "But finally, there's a chance. I came here to tell you: The time to act is now."

"No offense, Peeta… But the choice you're offering is to have The Capitol aim directly for my kids, or have them pick… Gwad, 'someone else'. But it still seems like the odds for my family are better if I say no."

"It may be, but that's not going to stop anyone for much longer." Peeta said.

"How do you know that?"

Peeta actually smiled. "Because all night, I've been talking to families, chosen randomly out of the Bowl. Do you hear any sirens? Any shouts? Any marching? The most wanted Man in Panem has visited a dozen families tonight… and not one person told us to go away, or raised the alarm as we left."

scene break

The dawn was breaking by the time Peeta's Tour was done. They evaded the patrols as best they could and were back at the Train Station as the sun came up.

"I still can't believe we made it as far as the second house." Boggs said quietly. "The second someone saw your face, the alert should have gone out."

"I half expected you to knock me out and drag me back to the train station in a sack." Peeta smiled.

Silence.

"You realize we're not trying to build a cell group here, right?" Boggs said to Peeta finally. "I mean, that's not what you were doing; because you didn't tell any of those families about each other. We're trying to start an Uprising here. What is tonight going to accomplish?"

"Cressida knows." Peeta said gamely.

Cressida nodded. "When you tell a story on screen; you need to have the image carry the weight, because there's nobody there to 'spell it out'. Symbolism is everything to the Capitol. The Games, the Reaping, the Names in the Bowl; all of it is a symbol of Capitol power. Peeta took their names out of the Bowl and gave them back to the Tributes. He was 'rescuing them' by showing their greatest fear."

"Fear is the only thing holding people back." Peeta said. "Their greatest fear was their name coming outta that bowl. I know, because it happened to me. You put their fear in their hand; and tell them that they're safe… And then you tell them that they're not alone; and the war is actually, truly happening..."

"But they're still… I mean, the sun comes up, and the Peacekeepers are going to know we took the Bowl." Boggs said. "If you show them their fear, doesn't that… Drive them deeper underground?"

Cressida suddenly pointed. "Look!"

They both looked through the gaps in the cargo container walls; and saw huge clouds of smoke billowing up from behind the fields; out of sight. The smoke was thick, and black; and lit from within by the rising flames beneath.

"What's over there?" Peeta asked, knowing the answer.

"The Granaries." Boggs told him, reverent.

"Their Resource. What the Capitol demands most from these people. A fortune in food that they had to deliver; even as their kids go hungry." Peeta smirked. "I grew up in a Bakery, Boggs. All those tiny grains of flour? They burn instantly, and spread to each other just as fast. A bag of flour is downright explosive if you set a match to it."

"All it takes is a spark." Boggs said, soft as a prayer.

Peeta nodded. "And the best part is? Even we don't know who did it. I'm betting the Peacekeepers won't either. And the Capitol goes hungry tonight."

"The high ground in every Arena: Wherever the food is." Cressida nodded, smiling. "And Peeta said it himself: It's Our Arena Now."

Peeta felt a chill. The way Cressida said it, Peeta knew it wouldn't be the last time he heard his words said back to him.

Cressida transmitted as soon as they were out of the District. Plutarch's people had almost immediately worked Peeta's 'stump speech' into a dozen Propos. Peeta had only seen bits and pieces, but the clips all ended the same way. Peeta's words, drawn in fire: It's Our Arena Now!

It took a few days for them to make their roundabout route back to Thirteen. By the time they got there, District Nine was in contention.

"You did well." Coin told them when they returned. "Shipments of grain have stopped flowing to the Capitol. Troops are being deployed to restore the shipments, but the longer it lasts; the better for us. The more troops it takes to get the Granaries rebuilt, the less soldiers there are shooting at our forces."

"How bad is their crackdown?" Peeta asked.

"Seriously?" Boggs commented, just looking at him. "We went there to start a war."

"I spent a whole night sitting in their homes talking to these people. I want to know how much danger I put them in." Peeta returned. "Why do you think I told Plutarch to keep them off screen for the Propos."

"They aren't off screen." Coin said evenly.

Peeta froze. "What?"

"Stopping the shipments is good. Open rebellion is better." Coin said clinically. "The reprisals against your chosen households has invoked a full-scale uprising from the general population."

"What kind of reprisals!?" Peeta demanded.

"Peeta, I didn't do it lightly." Coin promised him. "But the work stoppages weren't enough. The Sit-Downs have helped, but they haven't made a difference. Provoking ten households into fighting back only moved the needle a bit. What the Capitol did in response made it fifty households. We're trying to start an avalanche. The pebbles weren't enough."

"They were enough to burn the Granaries." Peeta countered.

"Not enough to pull troops away from other front lines. You said it yourself: The only way this works is if the Capitol is surrounded."

"You didn't see their children." Peeta grated. "I killed them all."

"The Capitol killed them all, Peeta. Remember that. Burn those words into your brain." Coin told him fiercely. "All you did was sit and talk to them. Snow decided that was a lethal offense. That's not on you."

"You knew what they'd do." Peeta moaned out like a wounded animal.

"I did. I knew how quickly the Capitol would get those Granaries rebuilt and how quick the lash would get their workers back to it. The Captiol's quotas never would have changed. They would have demanded the same amount of food; and it wouldn't be there, and District Nine would pay the price. I knew that playing it safe wouldn't save anyone, so I played it hard." Coin said quietly. "I knew what the Capitol would do. And I knew what the District would do in response. It worked, Peeta. District Nine is in rebellion."

Peeta could feel sweat gathering on the back of his neck. The panic was growing. If I have a panic attack in front of Coin, I'm finished.

"Yes, Ma'am." Peeta croaked, trying madly to keep his voice level.

Effie appeared at his elbow like magic. "Madame President, our Storyteller hasn't had a solid meal, or night's sleep, in three days. I'm still his Escort."

Coin dismissed them with a wave. "Mellark, I know you don't care for the ugly side of warfare. Which is fine. The duration is a lot longer than the fighting. Save your compassion and cooperation for when the war is over; because we'll need compassionate people then. I promise, as ugly as it is, it'll look better once we've won this thing and torn the Arena down to the foundations."

It was a kind sentiment, but Coin's eyes were dead as she offered it.

Effie pulled him from the room forcibly, and bullied everyone else out of the elevator. The second they were alone, she gave Peeta a tight hug. "It's not on you."

Peeta was gasping. "It… It…"

"You told them not to put those faces on television, she overruled you. She's in charge here. She can do that."

"I (gasp) picked (gasp) picked their names."

"At random." Effie soothed. "Remember, that's the whole reason you did it. It's what The Capital does."

And now what I do. The thought kept bouncing around his head, over and over.

"What I (gasp) do to fight a war (gasp) is the same (gasp) thing they do… (gasp) when I have a conversation with someone." Peeta broke down again. "What does that mean for Jo? What are they doing to her, Effie?"

"Oh, sweetheart." Peeta was losing it, and she hugged him tightly, realizing at last where he was at. "I've never met anyone who cared as much as you. If I could bring her back and put her here in this elevator with you, I would."

The elevator started to buzz. An alarm was sounding somewhere at the stopped elevator.

Effie pushed the button and broke the hug. "Sorry, soldier Mellark." She said, choking up. "Your scheduled panic attack is running overtime. You know how tightly we regulate unscheduled emotions in Thirteen."

And Peeta chuckled a bit, despite himself. "What about you, Effie? Are you okay?"

"Me?"

"You knew Haymitch longer than I've been alive. I should have asked sooner."

Effie teared up a bit, even as she tried to smile for him. "We had grown used to each other. I admit, I'm taking it harder than I thought."

"He liked you more than he let on." Peeta offered.

"Having met some other Victors, I think that's true of everyone he knew." Effie admitted. "But he would only trade his life for you and Johanna."

Peeta had duties, same as any other soldier in Thirteen. They had savvy enough to put him in the kitchens, but the menu and the foodstuffs were so tightly controlled that it was less like cooking, and more like assembly. Even the seasoning was weighed precisely. Nobody in Thirteen seemed to mind.

Peeta found he didn't mind at first. The one thing he'd been lacking since getting Reaped was a Routine. For the first few days after his return, it helped. Once he got used to doing things by rote, it left his mind free to dwell on things. Bad things.

Peeta's only other job responsibility was to check on the other Victors. Mags hadn't left Annie's side since their arrival. Haymitch had been cremated, and the ashes given to Effie; as the one in Thirteen who knew him longest. She had no idea what to do with them, so the jar sat in a cabinet until they could figure out a proper memorial.

Beetee hadn't woken up, still comatose. Thirteen's Doctors could do little more than wait for him to find his way out of the dark.

Wiress was another matter.

"She's been taking apart the weapons like she's trying to climb inside them." Gale reported to Peeta. "They don't know if they should give her a job or put her in a straightjacket."

"Why not?" Peeta couldn't help but ask. Wiress was having the time of her life, covered in small electrical burns she didn't seem to notice, and outright juggling components of small munitions. Peeta, Katniss and Gale were at the other end of the lab, close to the door. Wiress was in the middle of the room, taking apart a rocket launcher with her bare hands. The only other people in the room were two guards, as far from Wiress as they could get.

"Well, it's what's called risk/reward." Katniss drawled. "See this taser?" She held up what looked like a flat rifle. "It was the size of a remote control yesterday. Now, it could put down a Peacekeeper in full body armor."

"Got a full auto clip, too." Gale added. "I've seen those zappers the Peacekeepers had in Twelve. One shot, then you wind the cables up." He gestured at Katniss. "She made Katniss a new toy. It can morph from a fighting pike into a bow, complete with sights and bowstring."

"The problem is that she's also unhinged." Katniss put in. "Every time she builds something new, she has to test it on the spot. She's blown up two storage closets, and test-fired three new weapons at the lab-techs. Two of them are in Medbay. When they isolated her, she started testing things on herself. She also took apart the lights in her quarters. They still work, but the tech's don't know how, since she apparently yanked twenty feet of cabling right out of the walls." She shook her head. "I hear she broke into the chemistry lab, and brewed herself something called 'root beer', whatever that is."

"If she's dangerous, why do they keep giving her munitions and ammo?"

"They don't. They strip the ammo and munitions out, and she finds some way to make it work anyway."

"PEETA!" Wiress suddenly noticed him there and came running over, pushing a small pillbox at him.

Peeta noticed several guards running over, apparently to 'rescue'; him, and he waved them down. The small pillbox was actually a fob-watch. He opened it, and music started to play. Rue's whistle.

Gale stared at it. "How can it do that? It's nothing but the watch clockworks. They've searched her for concealed bits and pieces three times."

Peeta closed the watch, opened it again, and Rue's whistle played again. Wiress had turned Plutarch's watch into a music box for him.

"Zap." Wiress said profoundly.

Peeta sighed and nodded. "She's not putting people in Medbay because she's crazy. She's doing it because the Medbay is where Beetee is. She wants to see him, and if it means doing herself an injury, that's fine with her."

Wiress pointed at her nose with one hand, and at Peeta with the other, nearly dancing in place. "B! I! N! G! O!" She spelled out. "And Bingo was his name-o!"

One week to the day after Peeta went to Nine, the door to the kitchen burst open, and Gale came running in. "Peeta! You gotta see this!"

Peeta followed him out into the cafeteria, and found everyone staring at the screen. There on television, live to the whole country, was Finnick Odair.

"...has to stop immediately, Ceaser. What do these people think is going to happen next? Even if they win; the infrastructure of Panem will be in ruins. The whole point of the Hunger Games is to remind us how thin the line between us and starvation is. The Granaries are burning! So are the orchards! So is the fishing fleet I was raised on. This can't go on!"

"Finnick, what would you do?"

"The Capitol isn't unreasonable. They believe in order above all else. So any kind of change has to be done in an orderly way. The minute someone picks up a weapon, they're committed. Those people who pulled sit-downs in the Districts? That was smart. It was a way of showing that they did not agree; but nobody got hurt, and nothing was trashed beyond repair. A war is only going to get us all killed."

"Strong words. You know that some of the people who joined the rebels are friends of yours, Finnick."

"Burning the Districts? They're no friends of mine. And to be honest, I wonder how much Peeta can really do. So far he's been all talk. I understand why the Victors might rebel. They're used to facing opposition by killing it first. Peeta Mellark doesn't have it in him. He says some honeyed words, and everyone else goes marching into the war; while his hands stay clean of the blood. Just like he did with Thresh."

Katniss looked immediately. Finnick had hit Peeta's weakness on the head. "Peeta-"

Peeta turned to face her, but his eyes saw straight through her. "Annie and Mags." He said softly, and took off. Peeta was immediately running for all he was worth towards the elevators. He didn't know why he bothered. The damage was already done.

By the time he got to the medbay, Annie had lost it. She was hiding in the closet of her room, hugging her knees, rocking back and forth, with huge eyes, staring at nothing. Mags was standing guard outside the closet, crying her eyes out. She saw Peeta come in and relaxed, then she saw Gale and Katniss behind him and scowled. The old woman drove them out with furious squabbles, slamming the door in their face, once Peeta was inside. This moment was for Victors only.

"Annie…" Peeta said gently, extending one hand out to her.

She looked up at him. "He's alive."

"He is." Peeta confirmed.

"W-w-w-what about Jo?"

Peeta felt sick. "I don't know."

Annie coiled in on herself tighter. "The things he said…"

"He didn't mean any of them, Annie. He knows at least half of it was a lie."

"Then why?" Annie wept. "Why? What are they doing to him to make him say that stuff?"

"I don't know." Peeta admitted.

"Then go find out!" She yelled at him.

"The Deal no longer stands." Coin said implacably. "We cannot rescue Odair. Not after that."

"We had a deal. I perform; you rescue them." Peeta insisted, still catching his breath. He'd sprinted all the way from Annie to the War Room.

"A deal that no longer stands. Finnick has made sure that our end of the bargain can't be met. Finnick and the other Tributes will face charges for their-"

"NO!"

"Soldier Mellark, I can't give a pass to people actively fighting against us." She barked over him.

"Finnick's been your operative in the Capitol for how long?!" Peeta demanded.

"And now he's changed sides." Coin countered swiftly. "I take no pleasure in it, but his work for us was secret, and his work for the Capitol was just broadcast across Panem. He's picked his side."

"Now he's fighting for Annie's life." Peeta countered. "He doesn't know we picked her up. The Capitol has been saying that the attack on the Arena failed. Getting Annie out was a last minute change, after he was in the Arena. All he knows is what he hears in there. Getting Annie out-"

"Was your call." Coin cut him off. "And by the way, that little side trip is why the Hovercraft were onto you so fast. If you'd left her, we'd have Finnick Odair and Johanna Mason right here. Maybe all of them."

Peeta blew right past that. She was right, but he'd feel the guilt later. "Finnick is trying to save the only thing he cares about. Isn't that what we're all trying to do? What do you care about, President Coin?"

"Right now, Winning This War. And Odair just made that harder."

Peeta chewed his lip. "What if we could turn it around on them?"

"How?"

"You wanted me in the Quarter Quell Games because of the huge platform I'd have. If I'm right, and Finnick is only trying to protect Annie; then we can still use that platform. If you're right, and he's out to save his own skin… or even disrupt the Rebellion; you can find out for sure."

"You're a smooth dealer, Mellark." Coin conceded. "But unless someone has a valid plan on how-"

"We just have to get a message to Finnick."

"He's too well guarded." Boggs put in. "You can bet they know we'd come for him and Mason before anyone else in the Capitol."

"They have him in front of big bright screens every time he's seen in public." Peeta countered. "I've done those interviews. The people on camera see the broadcast too."

"We can't break the encryption." Plutarch insisted. "The Capitol, the Districts… They have a different encryption cycle for each system. We can't hack more than a few of the Districts."

"Forget the transmitter. What about the control room?" Peeta countered. "The Capitol is very… centralized, with its media. You were Head Gamemaker. You had the keys to their entire broadcast system. You didn't leave a way in for yourself?"

"Access isn't the problem. Bandwidth is. The Jammers run thick and heavy. Uploading a video of any kind, past that kind of signal block? I'd be lucky to get half a second of footage on screen."

Peeta bit his lip. "What if it's just a still image? One picture?"

"Fine. Two seconds." Plutarch shook his head. "Gawd, I wish we could get Beetee to wake up."

"Two seconds are all we need." Peeta insisted.

That got Coin to take notice. "'All we need' to do what?"

"Neutralize Finnick."

AN: Okay, reasoning for this chapter:

1) The retaliatory strike on 12 in the Canon was part because Katniss was a Resistance Leader, and part because they were building her 'nemesis' storyline with Snow. Peeta's faced Snow, and Snow declared him 'mostly harmless'. So in this version, the retaliatory strike was against Johanna and Peeta alike. Half of each District, rather than all of one.

2) I'd made an effort to have the Capitol decide Jo and Finnick were the key Resistance members in the Victor's Circle. So why was Four left alone? Because Finnick had been captured alive. Four is a way to control Finnick's behavior.

3) In the Canon, Peeta was broadcast to counter the Mockingjay. In this fic, I've sought to make Peeta less of a figurehead, and less of a 'symbol of hope'. He's a famous face for the Rebels, but he's not their 'champion'. Here's the result: The Rebels are losing the war, because with a smaller, more subtle symbol to fight for, the Rebellion isn't as widespread. In the canon, Katniss was filmed to 'add fire' to the rebellion. Peeta is being sent to start the fight. Peeta and Katniss have very different ways of rallying people. Katniss froze at the hospital, not knowing what to do for a while; and letting her rage speak for her after the fight. Peeta is more comfotable with an audience, but not a fighter.

4) The Capitol still needs a way to counter the Rebel Propos, and Finnick is the best option, as a more visible, more popular figure in the Capitol.

Read and review!