"Yeah, I've seen the footage out of Nine. This is what Mellark does, Ceaser. He comes in, talks like he's your best friend, gives you calm logic and persuasion… Hell, I fell for it. Between the two Games, I met Mellark; and he's exactly the way he seems on television. And then he leaves. He wishes you luck. And the killing starts when he's somewhere else."

"Finnick, are you saying it's deliberate?"

"I can't claim to know what goes on in a Rebel's mind, Ceaser; but I know when the death toll rises, he's not there. He puts the weapon in your hand, and tells you who your enemy is. Heck, even I fell for it. I helped him arrange Alliances and- wha?"

"Okay… we seem to be having some technical problems with the screens here… Is that Peeta?"

"Annie?!"

There was a hushed sense of victory in the control room. They'd gotten an image past the Jammers. It was static for five seconds, and clear for only two. But it was enough for Finnick to see the photograph.

It was a picture of Annie, in a radiant white dress, standing next to Peeta, surrounded by the woods of Thirteen. Both of them were giving Prim's salute to the camera. A pose that the Capitol would never fake; and never put on the air. A pairing that had never been together in any photoshoot.

It was the clearest message Peeta could get to Finnick in a two second window. Annie's with me. She's safe. They don't have her.

"Finnick, we seem to have that sorted. Finnick?"

"Hm?"

"You were saying that Peeta's a manipulator. That even you had fallen for it before."

"R-right. He puts the weapon in your hand, and tells you who your enemy is. In the Arena, we all know who the enemy is. It's obvious. It should be obvious to all Panem."

"...Let's move on to-"

"It's so obvious who the enemy is, and yet it takes something like this to get people to rise up and do something! Because the enemy trades on terror and abuse and despair. Cry Havoc, Panem! You know who your enemy is too! You've always known!"

"Finnick, if you don't stop they're going to-"

"Peeta, you don't stop until it's done, you hear me?! No matter what happens to me and Jo, this war can't be lost! It's Our Arena Now!"

The camera fell, and then the sound of fists striking flesh were clearly audible; the technicians in the Capitol paralysed between their certainty that they'd be shot if they stopped the Broadcast without orders, and their equal certainty that Snow would shoot them for letting the beating be heard on the air.

Peeta was still as a statue, but he had tears rolling on his face when he heard it. "Plutarch." He said quietly, eyes still on the screen. "Nobody tells Annie."

Plutarch nodded, not saying a word.

The awful broadcast suddenly cut out.

Peeta wasted no time, turning to Coin. "I believe you have a straight answer on where Finnick stands."

"We do." Coin conceded.

"So. Let's go get him back." Peeta pushed. "Let's get them all back."

"Just like that." Coin scoffed. "The Capitol is too secure, Soldier Mellark. There's a reason we started with the Districts. And even if it wasn't such a suicide mission, the deal was for after the war, giving them Amnesty. I'm not so sure this changes that deal at all. And… not to be indelicate, but if Johanna Mason was alive; they'd find some way to let you know about it."

"I know." Peeta blew past that. "But until we-"

"And Mason showed her colors too." Coin said over him.

"What the hell does that-"

"She defied her orders from us-"

"-from you-" Peeta put in.

"-when she kept you out of the Arena." Coin finished. "And unlike Finnick, we have no way to be sure why she did it."

"Are you seriously-" Peeta cut himself off before he could say it. "Yes, Ma'am."

"I don't get it! She has to know having the Victors onside is a good move for her." Peeta hissed. The Mess Hall was crowded enough that there was sufficient noise for them to talk without being overheard. Around Peeta's table with their trays sat Cinna, Plutarch, and Effie. The only adults in Thirteen that Peeta felt were on his side, if only to be kind. They had become something of an advisory council for him whenever Coin was out of the room.

"During the war. What about after?" Cinna challenged.

"What do you mean?"

Cinna lowered his voice. "You've been to the Capitol a few times. I've lived there my whole life. I recognize back-stabbing; no matter how patient it is. Coin doesn't want to play ball with you, because she gets it."

"Gets what?"

"That you're a player too." Plutarch said. "We all see it. That's why Coin wanted you in the Arena, and why Johanna wanted you out of it."

"To make the Capitol crazy, sure… But that's done now. The Districts are in open rebellion. What is she worried about?"

"Same thing Snow was worried about. The Alliance." Cinna told him. "It's what you said during the first Games, about how the Districts only interact with each other in the Arena, and that's by Snow's choice."

Peeta swiftly understood. "A romance between a District Twelve Victor and A District Seven Victor…"

"A unity, between two Districts that have had the stuffing beaten out of them. An alliance that doesn't end with betrayal and one killing the other. The Victors are the only ones from the Districts that know each other."

"That's why Snow has a problem, why does Coin…" Peeta trailed off. "Oh my god."

"And the penny drops." Cinna turned back to his food.

"What's a Penny?" Peeta asked, before shaking his head and getting back to the point. "No, I don't care. Coin doesn't want there to be connections between Twelve and Seven; or any of the other Districts. And for the same reason Snow didn't allow travel between them. Because Snow's plan for ruling Panem is the same playbook Coin is using for the revolution: Let the Districts beat the stuffing out of each other; and then take charge of the rubble."

"And it's working." Cinna nodded. "The Capitol is starving enough to be worried. They've never known anything but 'push a button and have it all delivered'. You said it yourself in the Games: They don't know how to be Hungry." He looked up from his work again. "But now there's a wildcard. Someone who people are looking to. Someone who doesn't see the Districts as Enemies. Someone who's suggesting tighter cooperation, and abolition of the District borders."

"Me." Peeta felt his stomach start to hurt.

"You. And Coin can't let that go unchecked." Cinna told him.

Peeta sank into himself, sick. "She put the faces from Nine on the air. Because the reprisal made the fight a lot more vicious, and got a lot more people involved. She really does plan to have the Districts get shot up until the Capitol runs out of bullets. My god, what have I done?!"

"You and Coin have one thing in common: You're looking past the end of the Capitol. Even Jo and Katniss don't care about anything that happens after; as long as Snow is dead. Coin is drawing up her plans to take charge. You? You're talking about how things will be better at street level. But if you can't both have your dream; Coin will declare you 'expendable' very quickly. Resource control is everything in Thirteen. They don't keep anything that isn't vitally useful."

Peeta's face sank into his hands. "The Game refuses to end."

"That's why you can't stop playing." Cinna pushed him. "Not until you win."

"I don't wanna win!" Peeta suddenly exploded, even keeping his voice down. "I was a baker! I wanted to make bread, and feed people, and work up the nerve to approach Katniss. And now I'm sittin' here, wondering how to win a war, and get my Johanna back from whatever torture chamber they've got her in; and I can't stop picturing the things they must be doing to her, and I can't stop…" He was gasping for air suddenly. "Ohno, not now! (Gasp) Not now!"

Cinna and Plutarch traded a look.

Effie scanned around. "Not here." She said quickly and pulled him out of the Mess Hall before anyone could notice.

Anyone but Katniss and Gale, two tables over.

Peeta was stumbling as he followed along behind Effie. Little dark spots were swimming in his vision. This one wasn't fading out. It was getting worse.

"Peeta, if you don't start breathing; I have to take you to the Medics." Effie worried over him.

Gale was suddenly right there. "Leave him with us." He told Effie.

On the other side of him, Katniss took his other arm. "We got this." She told Effie, and the two of them hustled Peeta to the nearest hiding place.

The two of them crowded Peeta into a dark supply closet.

"I won't (gasp) ask why you two (gasp) know where all the dark (gasp) quiet places for privacy are." Peeta got out, teeth chattering. Katniss pulled Peeta's face down to her shoulder. Gale actually stepped back and let her take care of it; knowing Peeta needed her more than him. Katniss had seen Prim through enough nightmares to know how to calm him down.

Neither of them said anything as Peeta's breathing slowed fitfully, in tiny fits and starts. Katniss and Gale had no trace of pity of helplessness on their faces; and Peeta was glad for their stoicism. Finally, Peeta lifted his head.

"Listen to us now." Gale said quietly. "Everyone in my little Cell Group knew there'd be reprisals on Twelve if we fought."

Katniss nodded. "I knew it when I sat in the co-pilot seat, heading for the Arena."

"And Haymitch knew the price when he picked up the spear." Gale added. "And I'll bet you a week's rations that they knew it in Nine when they lit the Granaries."

Peeta nodded. "In my head I know that." He tapped his chest. "But in here, I can't stop thinking that I'm killing people. And I'm doing it without ever touching a weapon. Just like Finnick said."

"Finnick did what he could to save Annie. And Annie, of all people, is telling you to keep going, regardless of reprisals to him." Katniss said softly. "We're past the point of heading this off, and trying to feed the hungry when the hammer comes down. It's a war now. And there's only one way this ends… Because if we lose, it never ends."

"Yeah, but what happens if we win?" Peeta asked quietly, getting back under control.

"I don't know yet, but I know that if this war had started two years sooner, my sister would be here right now." Katniss said without judgement. "You told me so many times that you'd trade your life to bring her back." She held him by the arms, making him face her. "So you know the price too. And if Johanna was here, she'd say to nuke the whole damn Capitol, if that's what it takes, no matter what happens to her."

"She would push the button herself." Peeta admitted thickly.

"Katniss and I made a deal with each other that we wouldn't quit, no matter what it took." Gale said softly. "Because it's already taken a lot. Before the war even started, it felt like there was little more they could take." He held out a hand to Peeta. "Whatever this war takes from us, we have to win."

Katniss put her hands around Gale's. "Whatever it takes."

Long, fragile silence.

Peeta felt like they'd passed sentence on him, and given permission at the same time. He put his hands in both of theirs. "Whatever it takes." He accepted it. "They don't want to go for Johanna and Finnick."

"Not worth the casualties." Gale agreed.

Katniss swatted him. "She is to Peeta."

Gale winced. "I mean, to Coin she's not… Sorry."

"There's gotta be a way." Peeta insisted, looking at Katniss. "How hard would it be?"

"To what? Do it ourselves?" Gale barked out a laugh. "Man, you really are in love, aren't you? Peeta, we don't know where the Facility is, even if Coin does. We don't know how well guarded she'll be; and you better believe they'll be watching for you. And most of all, we don't know how to get into the Capitol. If we could, the war would have been over by now. Thirteen has that kind of firepower."

"There's got to be a way!" Peeta insisted.

Some time later, Gale opened the door and led the way back out into the corridor. If anyone passing by thought it was odd that the three of them were coming out of a locked storage cupboard in the middle of the day, nobody mentioned it.

Effie came running to them. "There you are! I've been trying to find you for half an hour!" She exclaimed. "Beetee's awake!"

"They say you've avoided brain damage, though there will always be paralysis in the lower body." Peeta said gently to the patient. "It was the second zap that did it. You hit the forcefield directly once, and then Haymitch hit it a second time, and you were ground zero for both overloads. Plutarch told me that he made sure the bow was included, because he was hoping someone would know how to shoot it at the forcefield from a distance."

Beetee's face was still, twitching a bit. His eyes were still sharp. Peeta could see that brain working behind his eyes, but his body had no strength. His fingers moved slowly on a screen, held in place by Wiress. He tapped out the letters. "Situation."

Peeta winced. "Johanna and Finnick were captured, but I'm working on it. Districts Twelve and Seven were hit in the opening move. Seventy percent casualty rate."

Beetee shut his eyes hard for a moment.

"The war is on, but it's been slow to spread. Put simply, it's a near stalemate. The Districts willing to fight got their heads kicked in until the war widened out. It's all about seeing who breaks first now."

"Signal!" Wiress said to him. "Whispers. Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Peeta was slowly starting to learn 'Wiress-Speak'. "The Jammers around the Capitol drown everything out. They can't match the frequency to break through the constant white noise."

Beetee strained his neck enough to nod. "On it."

"You just focus on getting your strength back." Peeta warned him. "That amazing brain of yours is the only thing still working right. You strain it in this state, I don't know what happens, but Doctors say you need to rest; and I believe them." He squeezed Beetee's still hand. "You waking up is the only bit of good news I've heard in weeks. Don't ruin it for me."

Wiress beamed. "Awake!"

Peeta smiled a bit at her. "Your pal here has been driving the Engineering Corps nuts. She's gone climbing through every pipe and panel for six levels. Apparently she's increased efficiency more than thirty percent; and blacked out the elevators twice. They aren't sure whether to give her a team of her own or shoot her."

Wiress cackled. "Just like home!"

At the next shift change, Gale and Katniss had to report in. Peeta returned to his quarters, and found he had company waiting. "How do you keep getting away from your Doctors?"

"At my least stable, I can get away from Capitol doctors. These guys don't have a chance." Annie uncoiled from herself and stood up. "I haven't been real sure about… well, anyone. But I think I can trust you with this." She held out a datachip. "I know you'll do the right thing with it. He told me if he didn't make it out, I had to keep it safe. Swallow it, if I had to. That last night in the Arena, I almost threw it away. I felt like if I didn't have it, then he'd have to come back somehow."

"What is it?" Peeta asked quietly.

"Finnick knew they'd be gunning for him in the Arena." Annie explained. "So before he left, he gave me this. All the things 'his friends' told him." She shivered. "He said to get it to someone who would do right. Not just good. Right. When I came back from the Arena, I was sixteen. Every adult around me was... I can't trust anyone older than me." She put it into his hand forcibly. "I've been terrified that if I let go of it, I'd never see him again."

Finnick's blackmail file. Peeta nearly drooled on it. "Have you looked at it?"

Annie shook her head. "I read a few pages, to try and decide… Thousands of pages, but I couldn't get past the third one. It made me sick. I can't stand the thought of… Peeta, the sort of people he had to… The things they made him..."

"I know." Peeta put the chip back in her hand. "Annie, write down the bit you read. Everything you can remember. And then keep this hidden. Finnick was right: Swallow it if you have to."

Annie looked betrayed. "What?! Why?!"

"Write down everything you remember." Peeta told her. "You gotta trust me on this." He squeezed her hand. "Hold on a little longer, Annie. We do this right, we get them back!"

Peeta returned to the War Room and saw that District Four had been marked as 'In Rebellion'. Finnick's last word had spread the uprising to his hometown too.

"It's working." Coin said to him. "The Capitol's forces are starting to thin out in an effort to keep up with the ever-expanding Front."

"Yes, ma'am." Peeta said. "President Coin, I'd like to tell you a story, if I may."

Coin scoffed. "There are no cameras in here, Soldier Mellark."

"Good, because I wouldn't want this put on television." Peeta said. "I would like to tell you all the story of how I met Johanna Mason."

"Peeta, we've been over that!" Coin interrupted.

"This isn't that." Peeta insisted. "But you need to hear this."

The Commanders of Thirteen were assembled around the War Room, most of them focused on their own tasks, managing the war. But as Peeta started to tell his story, the room began falling silent, one by one.

Peeta wove it together, pouring his heart out. The Arena, Prim and Rue; his first meeting with Snow. A lot of it they already knew, from watching on television. Peeta kept going, telling them about his Victory Tour, about the hunger in Twelve; and his first meeting with Johanna Mason. Her appearance in his tub, the way she'd broken it to him gently that he was up for sale. That part made everyone murmur, as it wasn't common knowledge in Thirteen. Coin had known, and remained unreadable.

Peeta kept going with his story, telling them how he had met Tigris, and how she was recruited into the Resistance. Peeta noted one or two looks at Plutarch and Coin, who were carefully expressionless. Peeta noted the looks. Coin hadn't told her Commanders how they recruited Cell Leaders.

And finally, Peeta told the story of how the night in the Quarter Quell Arena had gone. How he'd gotten them access to the AA-Gun codes.

"The Capitol runs on sleaze. It's the currency, and the weapon of choice." Peeta summed up. "I never could have survived those bloody, shark-infested waters without the help of Johanna and Finnick… But they could survive because they'd been doing it so long."

"I don't mean to be cold-hearted here…" Coin put in. "But everyone present has a reason to raze the whole Capitol to the ground, and this doesn't change that."

"Not the point I was making." Peeta explained. "After one night at the Capitol, I was able to get the AA-Guns shut down. My taking advantage of one tiny drop of the sleaze was the deciding factor in a major battle for the Resistance. Imagine what another million secrets could do?"

Silence from the room.

"Continue." Coin said finally.

"The Capitol High Society is also their leadership hierarchy." Peeta pressed. "The Generals and the District Leaders all live for dirt on each other." He held up a sheet of paper. "Imagine what knowing all the secrets would be worth. If you think my story is shocking, just imagine what Finnick, passed around a parade of predators since he was fourteen, must surely have in his head?"

Coin's hand flashed faster than anyone had ever seen her move, snatching up the page. "This is Annie Cresta's handwriting."

"It is. This is everything she ever heard from Finnick."

"This is it?"

"The little he told her. Finnick would never put that on her. Not for anything. He loved her too much, and she was fragile enough that he wouldn't make her carry the…" He shut his eyes a moment. "...The repeated abuses he went through."

Dead silence in the room.

Peeta made his plea. "Finnick has been your inside man for most of his life, at this point; even if you didn't know it. All the secrets he has, all the dirt; all the leverage, all the scandal… Plutarch was right: Those people are all at the President's Dinner Table. Captains of Industry. High society. A lot of them in the media, the management, the Peacekeepers Command. President Coin… Imagine if all those people were exposed at once? Who would fight for them? And if they resigned, who would be left to fight you?!"

Silence. Coin was hesitating. She was getting there. She wanted to be convinced. She had already said no, and Peeta had sweetened the pot enough to make her want to say yes. But she couldn't without it looking like she was giving in to him.

"President Coin, this is what we discussed earlier, in private." Peeta offered, and her eyes flashed. She knew there had been no meeting. "I know you want to keep us all safe, and public figures most of all. But the Victors can do more than give you propaganda support. You know that I am only too happy to prepare more Propos for the war, and you'll have them. But we need to look forward to when the war is over. Your leadership needs to have a clear contrast to the way The Capitol does business; so why not tell the world just how gruesome their business is? Finnick Odair is the man to do that. Showing him supporting your Presidency, announcing that times have changed for the better? What could I offer compared to that? Don't get me wrong; you'll have my full support, but we have a chance to show Panem just how evil the Capitol is… and do so, just in time for it to be defeated at last."

Peeta saw Coin's face change. She wasn't fooled by his flattery, but he'd sent her a coded message in the middle of the war room: I'll pretend it was your idea to rescue them, and I will give you my full political support after the war ends.

Coin looked at him sideways. This was a pretty good offer. "The other Victors agree?" Translation: If I get them back, will they all support me?

"I can get them on-side, but I can't speak for Jo and Finnick until you get them back. Annie will be willing, I doubt Beetee will care either way, and Mags will do anything to help Finnick."

Peeta thought convincing Coin would be the end of the matter. Convincing her Generals was proving to be more difficult. For once, Peeta was sitting in on the planning sessions, and since he knew nothing about aircraft, military tactics, or advanced weapons, he was mostly there as a mascot. He caught glimpses of Cressida sneaking the camera out now and then, getting images of him consulting the maps of the Capitol, surrounded by uniforms. He doubted they'd be used until the Operation was over.

"There's no way around it, Ma'am." The Generals declared finally. "There's no way in."

Coin looked to Plutarch. "Beetee?"

"Nowhere near ready for duty. He can barely twitch his fingers. This kind of hack, overriding military signals and confusing secure comms? Not for weeks, at least."

Coin looked to Peeta. "That would appear to be the end of it, then."

What would Johanna do? Peeta wondered. The answer was obvious. "What if I can get you in?"

"How?" Plutarch asked.

"Same way I got you out." Peeta told him. "The Anti-Air defences."

"Those codes would surely have been changed by now."

"But the Commander in charge of the AA-Guidance? She was smart enough to play dumb. So she's probably got the new codes."

"You believe you can exploit that?" Coin asked critically. "Not that I underestimate your charm, soldier Mellark, but I doubt she'd give them to you again."

"Madame President, I thought you knew?" Peeta did his best 'Johanna' impression. "Never trade favors when you can count on blackmail." He looked to Plutarch. "Can you get me on the phone with Julle?"

The Principals were assembled in the War Room when the call went through. So were several of the Strike Team that would be going. Peeta was trying to exploit a highly-ranked Capitol soldier; and Coin wanted Boggs and the others to hear the call. If Peeta succeeded, and they were all convinced, it would be a 'go'. If so, they'd leave in less than an hour.

If not, Peeta would get the blame for the mission being scrubbed. Peeta wondered if that was why Coin had put so many people in the room. Having Katniss there to listen nearly made him cancel the whole thing himself.

"Station One." Julle's voice responded as the line connected.

"Don't hang up, lover." Peeta said quickly. Everyone else in the room was silent.

Her breath hitched on the line. "I could be shot just for taking this call."

"No, you can tell them you were tracing it." Peeta said quickly. "But if you hang up, our next Propo will involve you getting us out of the Arena that night."

"I knew it! I knew this would happen! Peeta, whatever you want-"

"I want to offer you immunity." Peeta said, with a glance to Coin. They'd agreed on this before placing the call, but it still felt like pushing the limits. "If the Rebels win this war, you get a walk."

"Was it that good?" Julle asked in surprise, and Peeta noticed Katniss twitch.

"Julle, all I want in return is what you've done already. Let me get someone out of danger."

"Who?"

"The less you know, the better."

"Like last time." She said with biting savagery. "Half my department have been executed because of that night. You don't want to know what I had to do to get them pointed away from me. If I help you, I'm dead."

"The Districts are in full rebellion, Julle. And unlike the last Rebellion, we know what happens if we lose. But if we win, what happens to you then?"

"...ohgod. Peeta, please?!" Her tone dropped to outright begging, and Peeta knew she'd already thought about it.

"We don't want an operative, Julle. We just want to pick someone up. Nobody will know it's you. We've already set up a cover for our entrance. There just has to be an entry point. It won't lead back to you… You can call Snow right now and tell him that I called… and he'll ask why I called you."

"He'd make me howl for death."

"Yes, he would. But I won't." Peeta put that to her. "Julle, you said yourself: Half your department is dead. That wasn't us. That was Snow. You were the only one involved, and he went on a killing spree, just 'because'. You've been a central part of the Capitol for your whole life. You know that your years of loyal service mean nothing. This is how it is in a fascist state. Sooner or later, no matter how loyal you are, no matter what you give up… They will come for you too. I'm offering you the only option."

Silence on the line.

Peeta kept pushing gently. "Do this, and if we lose, nobody knows you talked to me. The next Hunger Games will be the biggest ever, and you can bid on next years Victor too. Or we win, and you'll be the only member of the Capitol Defence Staff certain to live out the day."

Long pause. The entire war room held their breath.

"Peeta, promise me." She said finally, begging now. "I'm certainly dead if you can't be trusted. And almost certainly dead if you can."

"Hey, my odds were worse when I went in the Arena." He countered.

"I know." She sniffed. They could hear the sob in her voice. "Promise me."

"I promise." Peeta whispered. "No bombers. No commandos. We just have to come help someone who can't ask for help."

"...Okay. But just this time."

The Mission clock had started, with fifteen minutes until launch. Peeta was aware of the strike force giving him sideways looks, like they couldn't believe he was real. The Storyteller had just talked them past the Capitol's Defences. Again.

Effie appeared at his elbow. "I heard they're going after Johanna."

Peeta nodded.

"Gale and Katniss volunteered."

Peeta covered his eyes. "I know."

"They're leaving in a few minutes. Go see them, before…" Effie was wringing her hands. "Well, before." She hesitated. "Like I should have with Haymitch."

Peeta watched them outfit the hovercraft. It was painted in Capitol colors. So were the Escort craft. Then Peeta looked at the Escort-Craft; and his fists bunched.

Boggs appeared at his elbow. "Don't do it."

Peeta scowled. "We had a deal!"

"The deal was, you get us in, we get the Victors out."

"The deal was, no bombers, no commandos. Just the rescue!" Peeta waved at the escort craft. "You think I can't see them strapping bombs to your hovercraft?! What's Coin going to hit on your way in?"

"Way out, actually." Boggs said roughly. "Coin's doing right by your deal."

"I promised Julle."

"You burned your asset." Boggs sighed. "It's not a good thing. That's why Coin didn't tell you." The soldier looked to Peeta. "And here's the thing? She's not wrong. You talked a high-ranking Capitol soldier into opening the door for you. We take advantage of that; it could make a real difference. Could make the Capitol pull back troops from the front; could weaken defences for when the Front gets there, could prevent a bombing run from their side… There's a lot of ways this'll help the war effort and save some lives, Peeta."

"Not Julle's." Peeta ground out. "And she's the only one I promised."

"Julle… is not innocent. It was her AutoGuns that tagged our first attempt to get our commandos into Nine, hence the need to sleep with the cargo on our way in." Boggs told him. "It's war, kid."

Peeta said nothing for a while. "You launch in ten minutes. If I go to Coin and yell at her about a doublecross… She'll just pull the plug on the whole thing."

"Yes."

Peeta grit his teeth hard. "Just… Bring her back, Colonel." He saw Gale and Katniss, in camo-gear. "Bring them all back."

Boggs nodded; picking up his weapon. Peeta got a look at it. As a rifle, it was very lightweight; with no clear ammo-clip that he could see. "What's this?"

"Zap-Guns." Boggs said. "At least, that's what we call them. No solid ammo. Uses a battery. Non-lethal ordinance. Given that we're going to be sneaking in and getting friendlies out; it's a mission necessity."

"But you have other guns, right?" Peeta commented. "Those taser-rifles won't do much against Peacekeeper body-armor."

"Only if they know we're coming."

"I thought the operational idea was to assume Julle would cross us." Peeta suddenly felt like he was sucking air through a straw.

"I made the same comment. Logistics and Sys-Ops say that if it's a doublecross, they'll hit us once we're on our way out. They can eliminate your Victors, too. They're ready for that." Boggs gestured at the hovercraft. "All the more reason to have our escorts loaded for bear."

Peeta felt the room spin. "G-Good hunting." He tried to sound normal. "I need to talk to Gale…"

"Make it fast."

Katniss and Gale saw Peeta sprint away from Boggs, running for his life towards the elevators. "Wonder what that is."

"Maybe he's trying to volunteer." Gale offered. "This goes bad, he loses both of you."

Katniss checked to see Peeta was gone, and leaned in to kiss Gale square on the mouth. It lasted a good bit longer than was necessary. "Soldier Hawthorne," She teased against his lips. "Stop being jealous. It's unattractive."

"I know it is, but as long as you keep making your point by sticking your tongue down my throat, what do I care?" Gale teased back. "C'mon, they'll leave without us if we're late."

Five minutes later, they were gathering their gear, lining up with the rest of the team; ready to board the Hovercraft. Peeta came out of the elevators again at a run; and gestured for them to come over. He had a bundle under his arm; about the length and width of Katniss' arm, bound tightly in canvass.

Katniss steeled herself for whatever it was and stepped out of line to meet him… and Peeta walked straight past her, up to Gale. "Here." Peeta said quietly, just loud enough for the three of them. "Keep it close; just in case this goes bad. You'll know when to use it."

Gale opened the wrap, just enough to peek inside. His eyes immediately flicked to Katniss, then to the other soldiers, and then back to Peeta. Katniss had been hip-to-hip with Gale for longer than she could remember, and they had a near telepathic understanding of each other; but right now she had no idea what was going on.

Peeta stepped back, trying to make it look to anyone watching that he was just wishing his old friends well. "Good luck. Take care of her."

"I will." Gale and Katniss both said at the same moment; though they were both talking about a very different 'her'.

Katniss looked the question to Gale, who immediately slung the package into one of the gearbags; as casually as possible. As busy as the rest of the team was, nobody on the Hovercraft seemed to notice; or at least they didn't care.

Peeta sat with Annie again.

"It's almost over." Annie whispered, rocking back and forth, hugging her knees, chewing on her hair. She looked unhinged. "One way or another, it ends tonight."

Peeta wasn't much better. "Well, I'm going to need something to do."

"Mm." Annie responded, but didn't seem to be aware of him.

"Tell me a story." Peeta said finally.

"...you're the Storyteller."

"Yeah, but I know all my stories." Peeta sighed hard. He'd been doing that a lot. "Tell me how you met Finnick."

She lifted her head, suddenly alert. "Finnick?" Her eyes flicked around the room instantly, seeing everything.

Peeta knew what she was looking for. "No. No cameras. Cressida went with them. Apparently, the story of the day is going to be the Rescue. It's just us in here now."

Annie licked her lips. "Don't tell?"

"I promise."

"I… I got really bad, after the Arena." Annie whispered. "The Doctors, chemists, even a few therapists. They all said the same thing. I was too dangerous to be… y'know. 'On'. Capitol didn't care. Told them to dope me, electroshock me, design a fashionable straightjacket if they had to; but they wanted me on camera."

Peeta nodded. "The show must go on."

"Right. I got worse. So, one night; I snuck out. And I went to the water, middle of the night, nobody there. And I walked into the ocean." Annie sniffed. "I wanted to die."

Peeta uncoiled one hand, holding it out to her. She squeezed it, and then withdrew her hand back.

"I got out deep enough that the water was past my eyes; drifting along on my toes… Under the water, in the moonlight; it's a kind of blue-black. Like you're looking into infinity." She suddenly smiled. "And that's when I saw him. Finnick just swam up out of the darkness. He wasn't looking for me. He likes to swim at night. He could be out there for hours. And he just... found me. Middle of the night, darkness everywhere, no sound, no signal. He just found me. Said it was like the ocean was telling him where to swim."

She was calm again, distracted; lost in the story. Peeta let her talk.

"I thought he'd come to drag me back to shore, back to my handlers, ready to strap me down again. But he didn't. Instead, he swam around me in a circle, like a dolphin. And then he kissed me."

Peeta let out a bark of laughter. "Smoothie."

Annie giggled. "Yeah, but… he wasn't making a move. He was putting air into me. He went back to the surface, got himself a lungful of air; then came back and gave me another kiss. He never tried to drag me back to shore, didn't try to hold me back… He didn't so much as frown. He just kept feeding me air from his lungs. Just him, and me, and the ocean. It was like magic. Didn't even feel like real life."

"Like something out of a fairy tale."

Annie nodded. "I ask Finnick sometimes, if it really happened. He swears it's all true. I don't have the clearest memories of that time; and something that… ethereal and lovely…" She trailed off. "What if they forget us?"

"They won't."

"Peeta, not to make you feel worse; but when it was bad for me, I could barely remember my own name; and they weren't even trying with me." Annie shivered.

"Forgot your name. Have you ever forgotten his?" Peeta pressed.

"...no." She admitted with a small smile.

Peeta smiled for her. "I'm glad he found you, Annie. I'm glad to have met you."

She smiled back, and the smile changed her whole face, like something holy was shining from her.

Angel's Light. Peeta smiled back.

Annie came out of herself enough to give him a hug. "Thank you for looking after me." She said softly. "But you should be up there while they get our people out. Finnick would say that 'someone needs to keep the bastards honest'."

Peeta burst out laughing. "Okay."

Back in the War Room, there was little to do but wait. Peeta found himself with Plutarch, who was also surplus to the moment.

"I won't tell her." Peeta said quietly.

"Tell who?" Plutarch was surprised.

"Johanna. When she gets back, I won't tell her about you."

"She knows I was with the Rebellion." Plutarh protested. "She knew before you did."

"I mean, I won't tell her who's idea it was to send all the Victors back into the Arena." Peeta said plainly, not looking at him.

Plutarch is silent for a long moment. "You think it was me?"

"Oh, of course it was you. It was everything Snow could ask for, and it sent the Capitol into the same frenzy that the Districts were feeling. For Snow, it was a perfect solution. For Coin, it was the perfect spark. And you, both Head Gamemmaker and Rebel Agent. Who else could have planted that idea? I knew it the moment I saw you in the Mentor's Lounge. You set the whole thing up."

Plutarch was silent. "But you haven't told anyone?"

"If Katniss knew, she'd kill you. If Johanna knew, she'd make it slow and painful." Peeta shrugged. "I seem to have a type." He still didn't look at Plutarch. "While we're at it, I wonder how the Capitol suddenly noticed Annie was Finnick's weakness, when they'd been unaware the whole time?"

"That wasn't me." Plutarch said swiftly. "I happen to know that Finnick's goodbye to Annie before the Quarter Quell was recorded. Apparently he was a little too honest."

Peeta finally looked at him. "Not sure I believe you, though your answer makes total sense."

"You're a Victor. You are to be forgiven for assuming everyone over twenty-five is your enemy."

Peeta sniffed. "You see why I can't tell Jo?"

And then the screens flickered.

"The jamming just went offline!" One of the technicians shouted.

"Our people hit the jammers?" Coin queried, raising an eyebrow. It was the only look of shock Peeta had ever seen from her.

"No. This was deliberate. The Capitol is transmitting something, and they want the whole country to see it."

Peeta saw the screen. "No! Nonono!"

Coin sighed hard. "It was a trap."

The corridor was antiseptic white. It was narrow, with cage doors at all the intersections. This particular section of hallway was crowded. Gale and Katniss were centre stage, with two of the doors open. Finnick was visible, covered in bruises, being carried out of his cell. At the next door, a rail thin figure, covered in abrasions, was being dragged out into the corridor by Gale. It took Peeta a full five seconds to realize it was Johanna; and she was going crazy, thrashing around like a madwoman, even as Gale covered her mouth; trying to keep her silent.

Elsewhere in the corridor was a small collection of bodies. Some of the strike team were in orderly's uniforms. They'd improvised part of their route in.

The Raid would later become the most televised battle of the War. Cressida was recording the whole thing for the Rebels. The Capitol was recording the whole thing for themselves. The Jammers sent it out live; and the whole country saw it. Everyone in Panem saw the moment when the intersection behind them suddenly vanished; a large security door slamming down behind them. At the same moment, the intersection ahead of the strike team was suddenly boiling with armed Peacekeepers. Everyone in Panem saw it as the lights came on full, exposing the whole team; who froze.

Boggs brought up his zap-gun, and pulled the trigger. Nothing happened.

"Attention, Rebels!" A voice called over the PA. "Your escape route has been cut off, and your weapons have been shorted out by our electrical Jammers. You will get down on the ground, now. Your only hope of survival is surrender."

Peeta was frozen, watching as the shaved and beaten animal that used to be his Johanna pushed free of Gale's arms enough to hock off and spit hard in the direction of the Peacekeepers. She turned to Katniss and said one word in a blatant plea. "Nightlock?"

Cressida's angle was transmitting too, alongside the Capitol's cameras. She saw Boggs reaching for the patch on his arm, and the pill within. There would be no capture, and they all knew it.

And then it happened.

Gale moved, just as the voice over the PA was about to give the order to shoot. He unslung the wrapped parcel that Peeta had given him before he left, and held it out to Katniss. Katniss let the wrap drop, revealing a short, slightly curved staff, about three feet long. With a flick of her wrist, Katniss turned the staff into an archery bow. A slick, hi-tech version of her own; it looked alive in her grip.

Gale was still holding the rest of the bundle, which was, of course, a quiver of arrows. The whole unveiling had taken less than a second. Katniss had snap-drawn two arrows into her bow before the PA could yell 'Fire!' and two of the Peacekeepers dropped.

Cressida had the perfect angle to follow Katniss like she was a character in an action movie. Peeta could see the moment the Guards discarded their non-lethal guns and drew rifles. And if I can see it, so can all Panem.

Katniss turned sideways at the first shot; almost like a dance move; the bullet whistling past her; and the other soldiers behind her. Her arrow was loose before the guard could shift his aim.

Thwapp! Thwapp! The bow fired again and again. The guards were speared, their armor meant to protect against small, piercing bullets; doing nothing against the blunt trauma and weight of something the size of an arrow.

Gale reacted first, diving on one of the fallen guards, coming up with the dropped rifle. Katniss was at his back instantly. The image was iconic. Her standing, bow drawn; and he in a combat crouch beside her, firing steadily. The two of them spun in the intersection, covering each other, suppressing the enemy; driving them back with shots that never missed.

Boggs had the presence of mind to finish the mission. Johanna, who had thrown herself on one of the wounded guards like a rabid animal, was dragged kicking and shrieking off her prey and sedated from behind. Finnick was hoisted out of the torture device masquerading as a bed; already unconscious.

The rest of the squad snatched up the dropped rifles, but it was all Katniss and Gale, suppressing the enemy in every direction as the strike team retreated.

The Jammers came back online just as they reached the roof. A bullet caught Gale's vest, and folded him in half as he set foot in the Hovercraft. Katniss fired at his attacker without even looking; still nailing her target between the eyes. As the guard in question seemed to fall in slow motion, Katniss was the last to board; the escort craft from Thirteen firing a barrage of missiles at the door to keep them protected from the enemy still inside the building.

The last shot before the Capitol shut the transmission down was of the Mockingjay, with a fistful of arrows in one hand, and her bow in the other; framed by the sheets of flame that rose from behind her, drawing her dark silhouette; as though she had sprouted wings of fire that consumed everything in her wake.

Everyone in the Thirteen Control Room cheered and crowed; caught up in the moment.

Peeta let out a breath he had been holding for ten minutes. He sent a glance over to Plutarch, who looked happier than he'd ever seen. He had a hero moment, broadcast to the whole world. Something even Peeta couldn't offer was a War Hero.

"What did they hit on the way out?" Peeta asked finally.

"Muttation Central." Plutarch told him absently, already working on the next thing. "The Capitol makes their Mutts in all sorts of laboratories, but they only control them from one Control Room. The Capitol is very centralized in their deadlier forms of power. I hear they have Mutts patrolling the sewers, the pipes, the refuse centres… all the places too distasteful for their own people. Whatever happens next, the Capitol is limited to hardware for a while."

"Hard enough to beat; but I'll be glad to never see a TrackerJacker, or a Tribute-Mutt again." Peeta said with grim experience.

The Mockingjay had become a superhero to the Rebels before the Hovercraft even made it back to Thirteen. Cressida had done interviews with Katniss before, but only as a side-article to Peeta's story. Now Katniss was centre stage.

As a result, there was a larger crush of people to get through when the Team returned. There was a mad scramble from the Hangar to the Medbay. It was a victory, but there were injuries.

But finally, after what felt like a million years, Peeta got in. Gale was in a hospital bed, unconscious. Katniss was sitting next to him. She saw Peeta and jumped up to hug him tight. "Thanks for the Bow." She said in his ear.

"Other than what we saw, how did it go?" He released her, scanning around for familiar faces. "Where's-"

"FINNICK!" Annie shrieked, and threw herself at a hospital bed. Peeta had seen the mass of bloody bruises laying on it, but couldn't put Finnick Odair and the man they'd rescued together in his head. The Capitol's favorite heartthrob looked pulverised; but when he saw Annie, it all vanished. He levitated upright at a speed that left his medics stunned, and was holding his true love tightly like she was a life preserver.

"Johanna's in there. They sedated her for the escape. She was using up everything she had left just to spit on a few Peacekeepers." Katniss reported, gesturing to the curtain beside Gale's bed. "But it looks like she'll be okay. They're working on her."

Peeta lurched a step towards the curtain before he could stop himself. No. They're doing triage right here. If she's got the curtain, it's for her. Let them work. Peeta was suddenly more nervous than he'd been since his first Reaping. Trying to find something else to focus on, he scanned around. "The other Victors?"

"Dead when we got there. Including the Career Pack." She reported. "Finnick and Johanna... the only survivors were the ones that you might come to rescue. I found a few medical records before they turned all the lights on, and it looked like they weren't even asking questions after a while. They were just..."

"Bait." Peeta said plainly. "The only use Finnick and Jo had to Snow." He looked at her. "If I had gone, and not you, we'd all be dead right now. Or I'd be in one of those cells." His breathing hitched, but it wasn't an attack. "Thank you, Katniss. Thank you so much."

"It was a skeet shoot." Katniss grunted to Peeta, her own bruises aching a bit. "Don't bring live ammo. Brilliant idea." She scoffed sarcastically. "Peeta, I don't know how you knew, but you saved my life. And Gale's. And the mission, I guess."

Peeta just looked at her. Get there faster, Mockingjay.

Katniss blinked. "Actually, how did you know? I mean, no live ammo; to avoid friendly fire and avoid drawing attention with a stray shot? I get that. But that was part of the plan. That bow wasn't..."

"Allowing the Raid at all was what got me on the hook." Peeta said quietly. "That was the deal with Coin. She gives me Jo and Finnick, I give her loyalty. But she plays a longer game than that. Seventy years, just waiting for the right moment to start a war? She thinks long term. And what's better than gratitude? Revenge."

"You're saying she didn't want us to succeed." Katniss said in quiet disbelief. "You think she meant for the mission to fail?"

Peeta nodded. "I promised Julle we were just sending in an Extraction Team. Coin broke my promise. If you, Gale and Jo had all died in there; all of you… Coin could play that into a revenge trip for me. Point me full tilt at the Capitol; howling for blood in the streets."

"Then she doesn't know you at all. Not if she thinks there's anything that could do that." Katniss returned. "Look, Peeta… I can't say you're wrong, but I'm… I've tied myself to this uniform. They offered me a chance to fight back. For Prim." She looked worried. "Unless… I mean, what you're suggesting… Can you prove it?"

"No. And right now I don't care." Peeta wandered over to Gale's chart. "Looks like he'll be okay."

"He's been drifting in and out. They clipped him as we got aboard the rescue craft. The vest caught the bullet, but the knock to the skull when he fell..." Katniss nodded. "He'll be okay. But he'll hate being on bedrest."

"Show up in a nurses uniform, just one time." Peeta commented. "He'll get used to the idea in a hurry."

As the medics retreated from Johanna's bed and went looking for more wounded, Katniss gave him a look. "You've spent too much time with Johanna." She gestured over to the next bed, on the far side of a single thin curtain. "And on that note: Good luck."

She was asleep when he reached her. He didn't wake her. She looked… small. Rail thin, bloodied. Peeta looked at her chart and teared up from the description of her injuries alone.

Then she woke up, blinking owlishly, until she saw him, and drew herself upright against the bedframe. Her eyes were shining with unshed tears. "T-they cut my hair." She whispered.

The meaning was clear. Johanna was a proud woman. She hated to show weakness, and her attractiveness had always been part of her battle armor. My armor has given me no protection this time.

"It'll grow back." He said in the same gentle, barely there tone. She got his meaning too. Your armor will be there again.

She was shaking. It wasn't emotion. She was emotionless, but physically unable to stop her body from trembling. "Let… Just let me look at you for a few minutes?"

Peeta nodded, and stayed still, holding her hands in his, letting her look, letting her convince herself that this was really happening.

"I didn't tell them." Johanna whispered, and the look on her face was suddenly so serene. She'd faced all her monsters and won. "My greatest secret, and they didn't know. I kept it safe. If they'd known, they'd know exactly how to break you; but I kept it hidden. I told them everything else, until they thought there was nothing left to tell. I played them just right, teasing out the fake information, giving up the real stuff, one secret at a time. But they never learned my weakness; Storyteller. I kept my most important secret."

"Which one?" Peeta couldn't help but ask.

"Love." Johanna said, soft as a sigh. "I love you, Peeta. I love you so much." She smiled. Her teeth were broken and caked with dried blood. "We swore we'd save those words for when we were free. Everything they tried, and I never admitted those words to them. I kept that safe." She was starting to weave, rocking back and forth. She pulled his hands to her face, rubbing her cheekbones against his fingers. "Safe and sound; far from the monsters."

She passed out cold again. Peeta checked her vitals on the machines, still beeping steadily. She was okay.

She was okay, and Peeta finally broke down into sobs; going to pieces with relief.

Gale and Katniss pretended they weren't listening, less than two feet away, with just the curtain giving Peeta privacy as he broke apart.

Katniss shivered hard, like she'd never feel warm. "I thought losing Prim was the worst thing…" She said softly to Gale. "If they'd have taken you prisoner during that raid… if they ever had Prim prisoner…"

"I know." Gale nodded. "She's right, y'know. If Snow's people ever figured out she was in love with Peeta…"

"Let alone that it was mutual." Katniss agreed. "I don't know what they'd have done, but they'd have found a way to kill him with that." She bit her lip, and leaned in closer to Gale. "Peeta thinks they meant us to fail."

"He may be right." Gale admitted.

"We've got a new Alliance now, Gale." Katniss said quietly. "We gotta keep the team alive. And I think the Capitol is only half that problem."

AN: The reasoning for this chapter: Peeta's only agenda is to protect his loved ones. In the Canon, the Rescue Mission was a little over halfway through the book. In this version, it's a lot sooner; because Peeta is able to play on what Thirteen doesn't have: Finnick's Secrets. In the Canon, Finnick's Odiar's One Man Show was instrumental in the rescue mission.

Speaking of that, Johanna wasn't Jacked because she kept her real feelings for Peeta a secret. In the Canon, Peeta was Jacked because he was their Anti-Katniss weapon. In the Canon, even if Katniss' side of the romance was a con at first, Peeta's feelings were obvious, and the Capitol exploited it. In this fic, Johanna's love for Peeta was known to everyone *except* the Capitol, because they didn't believe it was true; thanks to Effie telling her masters that Johanna moved her things into the guest room. (See Chapter 11)

So in this version, the Rescue Mission was a trap in a very different way. A way that Peeta overcame by sending Katniss her signature weapon.

I told you the Mockingjay was far from done. We've established Katniss as the Mockingjay again, as in Canon. The point of this AU: Some people survive, who would have died and vice versus. Some things happens sooner and easier, and somethings don't.

Hope you're all still enjoying this fic. If you are, read and review!