A/N: Hello to all of my loyal readers! Wow! We are now over 70 reviews and the favorites and follows continue to increase as well! I am so happy, I can't even express it properly here in the A/N, which is why I send the PMs to personally thank you all. To all my guest reviewers like Kim, Peetagrl3, and Rachel, I would thank you in PMs if you had accounts, so I have to address you here :). Glad you guys are taking the time to enjoy my story. Sorry about the slightly longer than usual delay, but I believe that you will all be happy with this chapter. Also, to those curious, the lines I used from another movie in the last chapter were: "I love you," "I know," used by both Katniss and Peeta... Where was this taken from you ask? Star Wars Episode V between Han Solo and Princess Leia. I am a Star Wars nerd at heart lol. NOW! On to business. This chapter will be the first of a multi-chapter story arc, the first of this fic, and yes you better believe it has to do with the Careers. I hope you're ready...

Change of Fate

Chapter Twelve: Rescue

President Snow

I am sitting in the living room of my Presidential Palace waiting anxiously to give a national address that will be broadcast everywhere, even on the televisions of the pesky rebels. And boy, this one ought to really grind their gears, so to speak. I am with my beautiful granddaughter, Cheyenne, and she certainly looks beautiful. With her beautiful dark blonde hair up in a bun and hazel eyes... She looks an awful lot like her mother.

She catches me eyeing her and smiles widely at me, "What's the matter grandpa?"

I return the smile, "Oh nothing. Just a little anxious to get this speech done, so I can make you a wonderful dinner tonight."

"Oh? What are you making?"

"That my dear, is a secret," I reply coyly.

She is about to pipe up in response before my Head Gamemaker, Iago Saváge enters. "Mr. President, may I have a word before you go on stage?"

I nod. "Of course," before turning back to Cheyenne, "Don't worry my darling, you will enjoy dinner, and you will enjoy my announcement. Turn on the television and watch."

She smiles and nods before I exit the room and meet Saváge in the hallway. "Is everything ready?" I ask.

"Yes, Mr. President. Everything is set up in the northern deserts of District 4 near a large mountain... We have countless surprises lurking about for our guest."

"Excellent. You have done well my friend. What is it you wanted to talk about?"

I see a shifty look pass through his face before it vanishes in an instant. "Are you sure this will work? Are you sure that Ms. Everdeen will take the bait?"

"Katniss Everdeen has a love of theatrics, whether she realizes it or not. Her mentors have convinced her that she is a terrible actress, but I believe quite the opposite. She may state that she hates the cameras, she may despise that the cameras have gotten a glimpse of the intimate side of her that she does not share with many, but I believe she will come. The Mellark boy inspires her to do the right thing, and coming to the rescue of our esteemed guest will certainly be the 'right thing,' in her mind..." I trail off as I study the face of my Gamemaker. "This will be your first time running the show, are you ready?"

I see a confident smile spread across his pointed face. "I was born ready."

"That was just the answer I was looking for. Shall we go greet the cameras?"

"Of course. After you Mr. President," he says waving his hand forward and I stride past him.

We walk to the front doors of the Presidential Palace and from behind them, I can hear the familiar voice of Caesar Flickerman, "Ladies and gentlemen, today we have a very special announcement coming from President Snow himself. Now since the Second Rebellion began, we've had many special announcements come from the President, but I've been told that today's will blow all the rest out of the water! Isn't that great folks?" I can hear the crowd erupt in thunderous applause. "Now, it is my distinct pleasure to welcome President Coriolanus Snow!"

The doors open and the lights flash on me as they have so many times over the years and I smile brightly for the cameras as I wave my hand and make my way to the stage. Caesar is beaming at me and gives me a warm hug as I meet him on stage. "It is great to see you Caesar!"

"And you as well Mr. President! You look fabulous, have you had some work done?"

I chuckle, unsure of whether to be insulted or not. "Oh no, but I've just been spending time with my granddaughter, which always makes me feel better."

"And evidently look better too! Isn't that right everybody?" Caesar quips, which prompts the crowd to laugh.

Caesar certainly has a way with words and making people feel comfortable. Not that I need to feel comfortable. I feel in charge and in command, because I am in charge and command. Although I'm sure that Caesar is helping me appear more human to the rest of the country. "Thank you my friend, you are too kind."

We continue with the pleasantries for a few more minutes before I give him a pointed glare, indicating to move it along. As always, he picks up the cue instantly. "Now, President Snow, what is the huge announcement that you have for us today?"

I smile greedily. I have waited for this moment for several weeks now. "Well, as the citizens of the Capitol are astutely aware, we are in the midst of a war. A war that threatens our very way of life. For quite some time it looked as though the Rebels would be successful. Yet with the excellent work of my Generals in the military and the behind the scenes work of my Gamesmakers, we have turned the tide. With the recent entry and support of our great victors from previous Hunger Games, now our people have symbols to rally behind too!" I pause as the roars of the crowd threaten to drown out my voice. They will want to hear this.

"Please people, let the man finish!" Caesar says.

After they quiet down, I continue, "Yes, as I was saying, the war has reached a critical impasse. As you know, during the 75th Hunger Games, the rebels in the ranks of the victors were broken out by their allies. We were not able to capture any of them, yet we were able to arrest one remaining victor, one loyal to the rebels who was unable to escape behind enemy lines before we caught her." Caesar is practically drooling with excitement, as is the crowd and people watching at home, of that I'm sure. "Annie Cresta. The lone traitor in Capitol custody, will serve as an example for what is to come of the Rebels if they do not end this needless war."

"However do you mean, Mr. President?"

I let the devilish grin I've shown oh so often over the years spread across my face and infect my body language. "Annie Cresta will be the first tribute in what future Hunger Games will look like if the Rebels do not surrender immediately. We have built a new arena, and she will enter it. Alone. She will be hunted by all of the dangers the Games present to tributes as usual. However, the great courageous Career tributes that have fought valiantly for us in the war will also be present in this arena. They will be hunting her, and her alone. She will be the only tribute. I've never been a betting man, but I'd have to say that I don't think that the odds will be in her favor."

Caesar's mouth practically drops to the floor. I can't tell if he's in love with the idea or is so excited to be hosting another round of the Hunger Games so soon after the last one ended that he can't even speak. "Oh. My. God. Ladies and Gentlemen, we are truly led by a genius! If there is a way to end this pointless war swiftly, it is certainly a new version of our favorite form of entertainment!" The crowd in ecstasy. I'm not sure I have ever seen them more excited. "President Snow, when will this round begin?"

I smile. I want to say that it already has. But I won't say that. This is a must-watch television event, and the people will want to see Ms. Cresta one last time before I sentence her to death, for they must know there is no way she survives. "Well, she is here right now for her interview Caesar. The Games begin tomorrow." The sound of my laugh is drowned out by the volume of the crowd... I stand up, shake Caesar's hand, wave to the crowd, take a bow, and head back into my palace.

I greet Saváge inside who is absolutely ecstatic, "This is going to be so much fun!" he says gleefully. "I've been in the room as a Gamemaker under both Seneca Crane and Plutarch Heavensbee... And now finally, it is my turn to run the Games. I will not disappoint you, Mr. President.

This I know. Electing to make Iago Saváge my new Head Gamemaker has proven to be a very smart move indeed. While he's not perfect, and his miscalculation in District 8 was a set back, his value has been immense. He's done more for the war effort than any of my top generals, and his masterful use of the Career victors and tributes as symbols has been nothing short of marvelous. "You are more than up to the task at hand, my young friend."

He grins. "Thank you sir." He pauses as I see the cunning thoughts formulating in his mind, and I think I have an idea of what he's about to say. "Do you know what I'm thinking Mr. President?"

I smile and nod, "Moves and countermoves... Your move Katniss Everdeen."

Katniss

I am sitting in my room watching Snow's announcement with Peeta and Prim. I am positive that all of our faces share the same look of incredible disgust. I collapse my head into Peeta's chest and he holds it tight and kisses my forehead gently.

"Hey, it's gonna be ok. You're fine. We're all fine," he says quietly.

"I know..."

Then, it's like something psychic takes place in Peeta's mind. He lets go of me instantly and rushes out the door and I hurry after him. Only then do I realize what he's doing. Finnick has bolted out of their room from across the hall and looks like he is going to murder someone. Peeta uses a wrestling move and has Finnick pinned against the wall.

"LET ME GO PEETA!" Finnick shouts. Rage seething in each word. "THIS IS PLUTARCH'S FAULT! THIS IS COIN'S FAULT! I AM GOING TO SEE THEM RIGHT NOW AND RIP OFF BOTH OF THEIR HEADS!"

"OK! OK! Ok. That's fine Finnick, we can go. We can all go to see them and get to the bottom of this, alright? But calm down man. You know that Coin isn't gonna give you anything if you just threaten her and blame her for everything. She's the President and leader of a nationwide Rebellion, so if you want to rescue Annie, we've got to speak in terms that make sense to her. Do you get what I'm saying?" Peeta says all of this so calmly, it brings everything to a standstill.

The hate is still visible in Finnick's face, and I'm just glad that it's not directed at me. "Fine. But let's go."

I close the door to my compartment, giving Prim a reassuring smile as I do, and then the three of us leave. The walk to Coin's office is utterly silent. It's like I'm hunting in the woods, except that was intentional. Here I think that neither Peeta nor myself want to anger Finnick again. Best to let him vent on Plutarch and the President. I hold onto Peeta's hand tightly, for I know that this is not going to be a very pleasant encounter with the President. When we reach her office Peeta makes to knock, but Finnick literally kicks the door in.

Coin is standing with Plutarch. They don't look surprised to see us or our entrance. "Ah... Mr. Odair, I thought we'd be seeing you," Coin begins.

"Cut the crap. Two weeks ago you came to me and said you had a plan to get Annie out, you were just 'waiting on some intel,'" he says this very mockingly. "Now, because you two have sat on your hands waiting, she's getting sentenced to her death!" Finnick exclaims. None of the three respond. But Plutarch chuckles a little bit like he normally does. "You think this is funny, you fat ass?" The venom is dripping off of every syllable. Peeta shifts uncomfortably. Clearly this is not how he wanted Finnick to approach this conversation. Although my mind does wander... How would he react if it were me in Capital custody about to be hunted to my death tomorrow? I can only imagine he'd act the same if not even more hostile. Yet Peeta has always had a way with words...

"No. I don't." Plutarch replies flatly. "But I told you that our intel said she was being moved to a new location, this is it. She's being moved to their new arena which is in the northern parts of District 4, still under Capital control, and this is our one and only chance to rescue her. I had to do a lot of convincing in this room to get the President to OK the plan, so I'd appreciate it if you could watch the nasty comments about my weight, capiche?"

Finnick's jaw is clenched, but he relents and nods in acknowledgement. "I want to be on the team that goes to get her."

"Absolutely not." Coin says. Finnick opens his mouth in protest, but she stops him before he can say a word. "Mr. Odair, I was not thrilled with the idea of venturing past Rebel territory to where the new arena is located, but I conceded, because it would make you happy. I have done many things to aid in the comfort of you Victors, and add this to the litany of them. I will not be risking your safety for this!"

Before Finnick responds, I am surprised when Peeta speaks up. "What if we all went?"

Coin's eyes focus on Peeta. "I just made clear I don't want Finnick going, why would I want you two plus Ms. Mason going too?"

Peeta never surprises me with his quick wit and critically thinking mind. "If you send a camera team with us, just imagine the amazing propo you can make with the four of us rescuing one of our own from the clutches of death? You can have Beetee hack into the Capitol network and play it nationwide for everyone to see. What Snow thinks will be a crippling blow to us, will instead explode right in his face."

Coin's face shows no emotion for several minutes before I see a knowing smile appear. "You are very smart Mr. Mellark. Potentially too smart for your own good... If you all agree to this, and Johanna too, then I will accept this. BUT: you will have a fully armed platoon with you for your safety, led by Boggs, and you will ALL listen to him above all else. No more debacles like District 8..." She says looking off at me and our eyes meet in a fierce glare.

"Well, are you willing Katniss?" Peeta asks and Finnick is eyeing me closely as well.

"Of course," I say without hesitation even though I have plenty of it. "Finnick has helped both of us so much, I feel like we owe him this."

Finnick sighs in relief. "When do we go?" He asks Plutarch.

"The rescue team is assembling. Go back to your rooms and change into your propo gear and grab your weapons, meet at the Docking bays in about an hour. Remember to talk to Johanna too," Plutarch responds.

"That will be all, best of luck you three... And remember, you must listen to every command that Boggs gives you. If you fail to do so, this will be the last time you see combat for quite sometime," Coin adds.

We leave, and as we're walking back to our rooms I get the feeling that Finnick may do something rash on this mission... Like not following orders. This might be the most dangerous thing we've all done, and considering we've all been through two rounds of the Hunger Games, that's really saying something. "Finnick I know you're really emotional right now, but you need to stay focused... And you need to follow orders."

He scoffs at me. "Relax, jeez who are you the girl on fire or Coin's little puppet?"

Peeta makes to stand up for me but I speak first, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Are you kidding me? You're just repeating her orders to me like I wasn't even in that room with you. You sound more like a Jabber Jay than a Mockingjay. I got it, I'll listen to Boggs," he says as we reach our corridor. "I'll take care of talking to Johanna, she's friends with Annie and won't refuse me. Now just go get ready and leave me alone," he says as he opens and slams his door shut.

Peeta catches my eye and squeezes my hand. "Don't worry about him... He's just dealing with all of this stuff with Annie. It hasn't been easy for him."

I get it. All too well. "I know. All I need to do is remind myself of that day with Thread in 8... Or in the hospital. It's the most helpless feeling in the world."

Peeta frowns as I open the door to my compartment and he follows in. "What do you mean?"

I take a deep breath. Since the whole Gale debacle we've both been working on really opening up to each other, letting the other in more fully. "I mean the idea of looking on at the person you love and care about the most as they suffer and not being able to do anything to help them..."

He smiles sadly, "Wow, I knew you loved me but I didn't realize you cared about me the most..." He says sarcastically as he wraps his hands gently around my waist and rests his forehead against mine.

"Except Prim," I tease back.

He mocks like he's been shot and collapses to the bed. "Ooof, I'm hurt Katniss, I'm hurt! I'm not gonna make it!"

I slowly crawl onto his body and straddle my legs around his body and lean down to give him a deep kiss. I let my fingers trail slowly along his jawline as they dance their way down to his chest. I feel his great, powerful muscles wrap around my back and neck and pull me deeper into the kiss. It's so odd; I never thought I'd be in this place, in this position, with this boy in my life. I never wanted any of this. I never wanted to fall in love or be the symbol of a revolution, it's just funny how life doesn't go the way you think it will. Despite my best laid plans, things change. For the better. Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans. This is all I can think about as I feel a desperate hunger ache inside of me as Peeta's lips move away from mine and move gently down my neck as I tighten my straddle of his waist. I moan softly and I feel Peeta grin triumphantly through his kisses. That damn male ego. I don't bother to think about it, I'm too busy. Just as I feel like Peeta might make to take my shirt off - a first in our relationship, one that I think I'd be willing to permit at this point - Prim opens the door and walks in.

Her mouth is open so wide a hovercraft could fit in it. She is staring at us like she's never seen anything like it before. Then I remind myself that she probably hasn't. I don't think I've ever seen anything like this, so I know that she definitely hasn't. "What are you two doing?"

I feel blood rush to my cheeks and I'm sure that I've never bushed this hard before in my entire life. Peeta can't contain his laughter, so I playfully slap his arm before looking up and meeting Prim's gaze. "I'm sorry Prim, I didn't mean for you to see that..."

Peeta stands up, awkwardly shifting me out of my straddling position and says, "I've got to go get ready... Katniss, just knock on my door when you're all set. Bye Prim," he says smiling before leaving.

My hands mold around my face because I don't even want to face my sister right now. "Katniss, you do realize I'm not a 5 year old anymore, yeah?"

I look up and smile at her, "Obviously... I still just didn't plan on you walking in on us like that."

"I do live here too..."

"Haha. I know. We weren't really thinking..."

She smiles, "It's ok. I just hope that I can find someone that I love that much someday..."

I stand up and cup her face in my hands, "You will, and whoever that guy turns out to be, he will be the luckiest man in the entire world. Even luckier than Peeta."

She smiles at this, "Can we sit here at home tonight and just watch a movie or something? You, me, and Peeta?"

I want to tell her yes, I want to tell her that I'd love nothing more, but we can't and I sigh to indicate this. "Well, we actually just got assigned on a mission, our first since the District 8 fiasco, so this is a pretty big deal." I see disappointment fill her face and watch as her eyes drift to the floor. I pull her face back up to mine though and say, "But it's a rescue mission, so hopefully we'll just be in and out and we'll be back before you even know it. When we are, I promise the three of us will sit back and enjoy whatever lovely romantic film you want to watch."

"Ok... Just promise me you two will come back safe and sound. Promise?"

I smile. "Of course. Peeta will never let anything happen to me."

"You can't let anything happen to him either."

"I'd never..." Saying this knowing that it has been out of my power to prevent it the past few times. "Wanna help me get ready? I've got to put on the stupid Mockingjay outfit."

"Yeah! Let's do it."

*Later*

After spending some quality time with Prim, I've managed to leave her, despite many tears being shed, and cross the hall to Peeta's room and I knock so lightly at the door. He opens the door revealing himself in his battle gear, a black battle suit much like my Mockingjay uniform, although he has a unique touch to his. A deep hue of sunset orange glimmers along the sides of his muscled torso, this is certainly new. I smile and, "You look amazing."

He pulls me in for a warm kiss and says, "Maybe, but not as beautiful as you look," and I pull him back into the kiss.

Predictably, a vomiting sound is made from behind Peeta and I already know that Johanna must be present as well. "Yuck! Can we just go to the docking bay already?" She says with a wry smile on her face.

I meet it with a death glare, but our eyes are interrupted as Finnick steps in between our gaze. "No bickering you two, we've got a job to do. I want you to both be on your A-Games today."

I nod and Johanna sighs as we all file down the hallway making our way to the meeting point. "Jeez Fin, take a chill pill, will ya? Annie isn't gonna be thrilled to see you once she realizes what a tight wad you've become since moving here." Johanna says tactlessly.

Finnick whips around and his face is mere inches away from hers, his finger pointed in a scolding manner. "SHUT! THE! FUCK! UP! JOHANNA! You have no idea what its been like being here knowing she's over there being tortured! Because you have no one left that you care about! I've been dying a little bit on the inside every day we've been here, helplessly doing nothing while she's getting ready to go through another round of the Hunger Games! So please, forgive me for being on edge!"

Their eyes are locked in a deadly struggle. A level of communication that I don't quite understand, although I do know that Finnick went for a low blow in pointing out that Johanna has no one to care for. She felt that one. We all did. But when she pushes people's buttons the way she does, you're bound to get socked in the face once in a while. Yet Johanna is a trooper and despite seeing a flash of anguish spread across her face, she toughens up and says, "Fine. Let's just get moving."

The rest of our walk to the docking bays is in silence. Except for the civilians who rush up to greet us, clearly mesmerized by the sight of their victors in their battle armor, none of us says a word. Peeta is even uncharacteristically in his head. I don't know what he's thinking, but I reassure him with a squeeze of the hand. He catches my eye and flashes me a smile. Before long though, we have arrived at the Docking bay and we find a squadron of rebel soldiers all armed are ready to go. At the head is none other than me and Peeta's personal protector, Boggs. Off to the side is the familiar sight of our camera crew. Undoubtedly the cameras are already rolling.

"Greeting Victors. I trust you are more than ready for this mission." Boggs says. The four of us shift awkwardly, but obviously acknowledge what we're doing. Boggs continues, "Now, we are all set, but I must remind you of one thing. You may be doing this rescue for the cameras and the propos, but it is still a military mission, and I am the lead officer. You are under my orders. This is a daring raid to rescue Ms. Cresta, and we only get one shot at this. We've got to make it count. If any of you cannot follow my direct orders, please step back. No one here will think any less of you." He eyes me and Finnick in particular. I shake my head vehemently, understanding that I have no choice.

"Just don't get us killed," Peeta quips. "I almost died the last time I listened to your orders," he says this with such confident sarcasm that even Boggs cracks a smile.

"Alright then, lets go." And we file in along with the ten other soldiers. It's us four, Boggs, and all of them. Fifteen rebels daring to defy the Capitol once again, and the camera team assigned to film it all. This is going to be very interesting. I wonder if Snow even sees it coming... After we're all buckled in and we take off through the array of tunnels that lead us out of District 13 we pop out above ground and we zoom off. "Alright everybody, we've got about a four hour trip till we get to the location. So try and get some shut eye, you're gonna need to be on your toes once we get there."

Everyone shifts around, but there isn't much comfort to be had in the back of a hovercraft. I rest my head on Peeta's shoulder and try to dose off, to no avail. But I keep my eyes shut, hoping that sleep will come at some point. About ten to fifteen minutes pass by with the whole ship in silence before I hear Finnick's barely audible voice. "Psst, Peeta. You awake?"

"Yeah," he whispers in return. "What's the matter? How you holding up over there?"

"I'm fine... Just, you know, a little nervous," he replies indicating the obvious. They both speak in hushed tones, assuming I must be asleep.

I hear Peeta chuckle a little bit. "Yeah I know. Don't worry man, we're gonna save her. And then we're gonna have to figure out something for our rooming situation, because then all of a sudden we're gonna be having four people sleeping in there instead of just three." I smile at this. I've never met Annie, but Peeta's right. Once she returns, she'll undoubtedly be sleeping with in Peeta and Finnick's room too.

"Yeah, I might be moving out on you then, pal. No offense, you and Katniss are great roommates and all, but I'm not a huge fan of waking in the middle of the night to one of your nightmares. Dealing with my own are hard enough, if I even manage to fall asleep on a given night."

"Well, once we rescue Annie, I imagine those will sleepless nights will vanish in a heartbeat. They did for me," Peeta says.

"I don't know about that..." Finnick says. "I can only hope that after a while and once she's settled in there will be plenty of sleepless nights, if you know what I mean haha," Finnick's voice rings heavily in confidence and triumph. Male ego... I doubt I'll ever quite understand it. I hear Peeta let out a quiet, uncomfortable laugh. Finnick speaks again, but so quietly I have to really tune my ears to pick up what he's saying, "Have you two...?" I'm really glad they both think I'm asleep because my blush must be outrageous right now.

I feel Peeta shake his head, "Nah. I don't know if we're there yet, and to be honest I'm just so happy being with her, I'm not trying to rush things." I feel immensely relieved at Peeta's words. I'm glad he doesn't feel like I'm holding back or anything.

Finnick chuckles a bit, "Yeah, you two are young. I forget about that sometimes..." He trails off and him and Peeta continue talking for a while. I stop paying attention though as my thoughts drift off to a future after this war. My mind drifts off to sleep as I dream of a potential future with Peeta...

I don't know how long it's been, but I'm thrust awake by the blaring sound of an alarm. What's going on? The hovercraft shakes and jerks back and forth. I see Boggs running down the center isle and I grab him, "Boggs, what the hell is going on?"

A look of panic is flush across his face. "I don't know. I'm going to talk to the pilot."

"I'm coming with you," I stand and hurry after him. The alarm is now painfully ringing in my ears.

When we reach the cockpit, Boggs has to yell just to be heard. "PILOT! What the hell is going on?"

"I DON'T KNOW SIR! SOMETHING IS TAKING OUT OUR ENGINES BUT WE HAVENT BEEN FIRED UPON! OUR SIGNALS HAVE BEEN JAMMED THOUGH, I'M BRINGING THE SHIP CLOSER TO THE SURFACE!"

"DO YOU KNOW WHERE WE ARE?" Boggs asks, and I too am curious.

"YEAH WE'RE CLOSE. SOMEWHERE IN DISTRICT 4 BUT I COULDN'T TELL YOU WHERE EXACTLY! WE'RE PRETTY BLIND AT THE MOMENT!"

Then suddenly, the hovercraft throws Boggs and I up in the air and slams us against the side of the cockpit. My head aches. The alarm is off now, which can't be good. Soon everything is off, all the lights, all the screens, every bit of electronic power has been turned off. As panic floods my mind, only one thought permeates my consciousness. It was a trap.

Then I feel my head hit the floor as the cockpit erupts into darkness. The hovercraft has crashed...

After what I assume are minutes but maybe hours have gone by, I hear my name, "Katniss!" It shouts. "Katniss! Katniss where are you?"

I'd recognize the sound of concern in that voice anywhere. It's Peeta. "Peeta! I'm over here!" Although I don't know where here is, he is able to find me. "I've got something heavy on my back pining me down. I can't lift it myself."

Not to worry. Peeta finds me, and lifts a large metal something off of me just enough so that I can crawl out. As I stand up I realize it was the door to the cockpit. As my gray eyes search through the darkness, I find his beautiful blue eyes. Shining, acting as my glimmer of hope even in the bleakness of our situation. I pull him into a warm embrace and kiss him fiercely. But soon I remember where we are, "Wait -" I say pulling out of the kiss. "Boggs!" I shout.

I hear a grunt from under something else. "Down here!" Boggs is trapped under something too, it looks like part of the control panel that the pilot had been using. Peeta uses his great strength and lifts it off of our designated protector. "Thanks kid... Let's get out of here. Do you have any idea what happened?" He asks as he kneels down to check for a pulse on the pilot. He looks up at me and shakes his head.

Peeta's face is grimly haunted. "It must've been an EMP burst. Only thing that could've taken us out of the sky like that."

An EMP is an electro magnetic pulse. It destroys any and all electronic devices within it's blast area. Even something as high-tech as a hovercraft will fall victim to it. "Is everyone else alright?" I ask hopefully.

Again, I can read Peeta's face. It is deep with pain and despair. "No..." He says sadly. "Only Finnick, Johanna, Cressida from the camera crew and one other soldier, by the name of Titus Raiden, made it. Everyone else is dead."

Oh my god. We were just with these people. They were just here. And now they're not. We climb through the wreckage and find the other four survivors grouped together, clearly shaken by what has just transpired. I kneel down next to Johanna, "Hey, you ok?"

"I've been better, but I'll live." She replies.

Before I can say anything else, Boggs speaks up. "We gotta get out of here. Whoever shot us down clearly didn't want us dead if they used an EMP blast, so they're gonna be looking for us. We have to get to cover and get in contact with Coin and Plutarch. This is bad... Really bad." He says this with such a lack of faith, it is disheartening. "Raiden, on me. The rest of you follow suit. Cressida, you still have that camera?" She nods, clearly too disturbed by what's happened to speak. "Good, start filming." Boggs kicks open the back door and sunlight hits our faces. I see the skyline, and Peeta's favorite shade of sunset orange radiates across it. It must be almost dark, which bodes well for us taking cover.

We all stealthily sneak out of the crashed hovercraft and find that we are indeed near where we meant to be. The deserts of northern District 4. Bleak and never ending. But as we all file out and regather our strength and weapons, luckily of which none were destroyed, I notice something. A glimmer reflecting from a mountain not a hundred yards off. I indicate it, and we all agree that it's best to take shelter in or around the mountain. It'll be harder to find us there. We muster up the strength we have and hurry over to it.

Yet as we get closer and closer, a unique form of dread infiltrates my insides. I see something, something oddly familiar and out of place. A golden horn. As we continue to make our way to the mountain, realization hits me when we're not twenty feet off. That is the golden horn of the cornucopia. We are very close to the arena designed for Annie. "Wait! Wait! We can't go over there! That's the arena."

Then I hear a hovercraft from behind us and while it does not stop, it drops out at least fifty Peacekeepers who begin marching towards us. Boggs shouts, "No choice! Keep moving!"

I have a bad feeling about this... A very bad feeling. We make our way to the cornucopia, and as we round our way into the mouth of it, horror replaces the feeling of dread instantly. Standing before us, not ten feet away are the faces of people that have haunted my dreams for over a year now and those of people whom I got to know briefly a few months ago. All lined up, with their respective weapons of choice and smiles stapled across their faces.

Brutus. Cashmere. Gloss. Clove. Glimmer. Marvel. And Cato. Peeta instinctively steps in front of me. Panic sets in, and that happy future I dreamed of not thirty minutes ago seems so distant and one that I'll never reach. It was a trap. These games were never meant for Annie. They were meant for me... Cato steps forward revealing Annie standing behind him with her hands tied together. He shoves her forward and kicks her to the ground. Finnick scrambles to get her and untie her and brings us back over to our group. The silence from the fallen Careers frightens me more than if they were speaking.

The silence is broken by the familiar sound of Claudius Templesmith's voice, "Welcome former Victors to a new round of the Hunger Games. This will be very different form previous versions of the Games. There will be two teams. Loyalists and rebels," he says 'rebels' with as much disdain as possible. "The Rebels will receive a thirty minute head start to hide amidst the rest of the arena. While you may have the starting edge, the odds will not be in your favor. All of the normal threats tributes face in the arena will not apply to the Loyalists, just the Rebels..." He trails off. I see the evil grins on the faces of all the careers. This is my worst nightmare. Yet another round of the Hunger Games. Claudius' voice booms once more. "Ladies and gentlemen... Let the 76th Hunger Games begin."

Aaaaaaand scene! What did you think? Did you just love that? Hate it? Did you see it coming? Was it worth the wait? Please let me know!

Also, in other news, I'm reaching a point in the story where I'm facing difficult decisions, so if anyone would be willing to help me in PM conversations as I bounce some ideas off of you, that would be incredibly beneficial. Only downside is that you might hear some spoilers. If anyone is interested, say so in a review or send me a PM. Thanks to you all! Greatly looking forward to your feedback!