A/N: You guys are so amazing, I can't even explain it. Over 175 reviews?! Over 80 favorites and 160 follows? I am beyond stoked. The loyal following I've received for this story touches my heart, all of you guys know who you are, and I cannot thank you all enough. A huge shout out to all my loyal reviewers as well, I love getting feedback from all of you. I know it's been a while and I know that I'm leaving you all soon when I go to Brazil, but finals are what they are :( But I just finished up, and I got all A's and one B so it wasn't for nothing! I am super sorry it's taken so long, but I really want to make these chapters well written. I don't want to update just for updating's sake, you know? If I'm leaving you guys for a month, I want to leave you all with a few good chapters you can reread a few times while I'm gone ;). On to the story though: this is a fun chapter, but also a somber one. Suspense is building, deaths are coming, love is in the air, people from the past will reappear, and trips down memory lane are on their way; repercussions for actions are coming to all, if you want to find out you better read on! Quick note, Snow's POV in this chapter is happening concurrently with the events of Chapters 17 & 18 which is why he may seem ignorant of what has transpired. Remember that as you're reading.

Change of Fate

Chapter Nineteen: The Price You Pay

President Snow

Once more I find myself in the depths of the Capitol. Miles below the surface of the cool mountain air, I am calmly moving through the various hallways that lead to the Research and Development Department. Headed up by none other than Professor Egan Cuthburt, the man who designed my genetically modified clones of the fallen career tributes. Their abilities have been as good as advertised, and they have more than helped balance the scales of the war. As we speak they are hunting down Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Mellark, and the other victors whom I tricked into their deaths. Yes... A stroke of pure genius on my part, no doubt, managing to force them all back into another round of the Hunger Games. I cannot express the joy I feel knowing this... With their deaths, the Rebellion will lose steam. People will lose hope. And when people lose hope, fear conquers what's left of their souls. With the threat looming of more Hunger Games in the mold of the current ones, the people in the districts will fall back in line. My hold on power will once more be secure, order will be restored, and peace will be kept.

Beside me walks my Head Gamemaker Iago Saváge and my new Head Peacekeeper, General Gaius Battenrock, who had recently proved his worth to me and the Capitol during a heavily fought battle in District 3. On the west coast of the continent, and where we get all of our electronics from for everything, the General led our troops to a critical victory in the war, and District 3 was a major hold for the Capitol. Together the three of us, I'd say the three most powerful men in the Capitol, are on our way to meet Mr. Cuthburt. With the death of Katniss Everdeen imminent, I must make plans to swiftly end the war once she is dead. I do not need the mad Professor for strategy, but rather weaponry. New weaponry to be more specific. I want something so intimidatingly surreal, that Rebel soldiers will flee for their lives just at the sight of it. I want it to scare people back into their homes and beg the Capitol for forgiveness.

Finally reaching the end of the trail of dark hallways and different elevators I reach the laboratory of one Professor Egan Cuthburt. The maddest and most insane man in the Capitol... But a genius. Without question, he is one of the finest scientists in the history of Panem, but he is insane. He must be kept down here beneath the streets where people can see him. He's so unstable he can barely tolerate being around himself, can you imagine how he'd react be surrounded by the outside world? As we stroll towards him sitting at his desk he does not notice us because he is fiddling around with one of his concoctions. It appears to be a clear liquid he has in some kind of vile that he is using to drop into his eyes.

He silently allows one drop to fall into each of his eyes. I cannot assume anything, but judging by his screams of pain, I can only conclude that they did not accomplish what he had hoped for. He begins crying with tears gently falling down his face as he struggles to find his glasses. Eventually he does and adjusts them so that he can see properly, assuming no permanent damage was done with whatever he put into his eyes. Yet the moment his glasses sit perfectly across the ridge of his nose, the screams from just a moment ago do not compare to the volume that comes out of him this time.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Is all that rings through the room and probably the entire complex. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" He shouts.

I have grown tired with his charade without even spending more than thirty seconds in the same room with him "CUTHBURT! CALM DOWN!" I boom.

He shrivels up behind his desk and whimpers miserably. I see his hands yanking at his wild, lion's mane for a head of hair with his teeth clattering. "M-M-Mr-Mr-Mr. P-P-President?! I-I-Is that y-yo-you?" He stumbles upon every syllable.

I roll my eyes, "Yes. It is I, President Snow, come to see you, Professor Cuthburt. I sent for you yesterday morning telling you when I'd be arriving. I can see that, as usual, you did not get my message?" I ask very sarcastically.

The mad man seems to have calmed down ever so slightly. "I-I am v-very s-sorry sir... I do not sleep well. I don't sleep at all really... So days do not mean anything to me..."

I have heard this from him before. He must truly be mad if his mind does not even allow him the comfort and joy of a good night's sleep. "I am sorry to hear that my old... friend," I say unsure of what to call him that won't make him lose it again. "But you do recall why I'm coming, yes?"

He has composed himself by now and stands up to meet my gaze, "Yes Mr. President. You wanted to see progress on the latest weapons projects I've been working on, correct?"

"That is correct..." I say with my words seething of impatience.

To my astonishment, he keeps his composure completely. He does not freak out. "Good... Very good. Then if you would do me the honor, please follow me Mr. President," he says this turning his back to me and proceeding to walk down the hall. I obey and follow the mad man, with my two advisors close in tow. It is dark and cold down here beneath the Capitol, and it reaches straight to your bones.

First we come across a large open area where I see a few large, metal racks holding up several columns of big missiles. "These are a new bunker buster missiles I've developed in coordination with the military," the professor explains. "Its outer shell can rip through the earth like slicing through butter, before the inner shell then explodes."

"When would we really need to use something like this?" General Battenrock asks.

"Well, if you ever plan on bombing District 13, these would go a long ways in doing that," Cuthburt replies curtly.

I privately think to myself that once I have the head of Katniss Everdeen, there will never be a need to bomb District 13. Once their mascot is dead, the spirit of the rebels will be crushed and they will beg for forgiveness. This war was a cute little exercise, a nice chance to flex the Capitol's muscles a little bit. They may have been pushing our forces back a little bit of late, but when Katniss Everdeen is dead the war is over. I will have won... And I will make all of those who attempted to defy me suffer beyond imagination. Then I bring myself back to the moment and say, "This is well and good Cuthburt, but even you don't sound impressed, so please tell me you have something more interesting to show me..."

Again, I expect the Professor to snap into a delusional, mad state of mind where he is overtaken by anxiety and insecurity. But that does not come. He is calm. He is... almost serene. "Of course sir. Let us continue down the halls..."

And so I follow on. With great interest as a matter of fact. For as insane as Cuthburt is, I am deeply perplexed by him. He is one of the most brilliant men to have ever lived, and yet he simply does not know how to act like a normal person. He has done great things for Panem and continues to do so, but his social ineptitude prevents him from receiving any of the glory that comes with it.

My thoughts are interrupted however when the Professor speaks again. "This Mr. President," he says indicating a small see-through cylinder that sits a few feet away behind several layers of reinforced glass, inside of it there appears to be a spec of blue dust; "could be my greatest invention yet! Tell me sir, what is our world composed of?"

I am confused by his question, and I ruffle my brow. What is the world made of? Many things. I think back to my school days when I took a few science classes. The world is made up of elements; such as earth, wind, water, and air, but that's not the answer because none of those things resemble the small amount of blue dust that is being held in suspension within that cylinder. Life is made possible through the process of photosynthesis, where plants convert solar energy from the sun into energy animals can consume and use, which is arguably the most important chemical reaction in the world. But that's not it either. What is the world made of? Then it hits me like a ton of bricks.

"Matter. The world is composed of matter," I reply.

Cuthburt practically squeals in excitement that I was able to deduce the correct answer. "Yes! Exactly Mr. President! So, our world is made up of matter, yes? So then the opposite of that would be?..." He looks to me, then Iago, and then the General, expecting one of us to know. "Maybe it was a bit much to hope any of you would know the answer to that one," he says while chuckling. "The opposite of matter is known in physics as antimatter. Matter is composed of particles, as is antimatter, but antimatter's particles have the direct opposite charges of regular matter. Now, I realize that may be hard to understand, but the crux of what I'm getting at is this... When matter and antimatter come in contact with each other, the results are... Combustible." He says this last part with a devilish grin on his face.

"Combustible? What do you mean Cuthburt?" I ask.

It's his turn to be perplexed with me. "Explosive. Destructive."

"So... You're telling us that that blue pixie dust over there is a bomb?" General Battenrock asks with his raspy voice.

Finally the madness of the Professor escapes from him once again. He is tugging at the roots of his hair, unable to handle our ignorance in the ways of science. His eyes immediately become red and I believe they are about to shoot out of his skull. He is huffing while he attempts to calm himself down. After a few moments he manages to say, "Not just a bomb. The most deadly bomb to ever have been created..." When none of us says anything, he continues, "When matter particles meet with antimatter particles, due to the fact they have opposite charges, they will annihilate each other. That is why you see it suspended within that small cylindrical chamber. If it were to fall out of suspension... It would be catastrophic. What I've described to you all is the equivalent of many nuclear bombs going off simultaneously. I have developed this weapon, but I understand its capabilities. If this weapon were to fall into the wrong hands, or be used for the wrong reasons... It could very easily mean the end of humanity..."

The serenity that has returned to Cuthburt's voice tells me that he is speaking the truth. This is a very dangerous weapon, one I'm not sure the world is quite ready to see. If there is one outcome I do not want from this war, apart from losing power, would be the entire human race dying off. I still need subjects to rule over, no? But this chain of thought has reminded me of something. Something that the Professor showed me the last time I visited him.

"Professor, not to change the subject... But there is another project of yours I'm curious about. Whatever came of that virus you were working on? The one that shut down the body's red blood cells?"

A devilish, wily grin escapes the lips of the mad Professor. "Oh yes... Well on that front, there has been some significant progress. Please follow me..." And so I do. And so I do.

Katniss

We just returned to District 13, and already we've been called to speak before the President and her council of advisors. I just want to go to sleep and forget that the past 24 hours ever happened. But that's not likely to happen. When we landed, Peeta was taken up to the hospital wing, and I'm secretly envious of him right now. Not because of his wounds, but because he doesn't have to face the wrath of President Coin. I'm currently waiting outside her office with Finnick and Johanna, Annie is also in the hospital being given an evaluation, but the three of us all sit in silence. Haymitch is currently inside, and I'm quite sure he is being punished... Punished for coming to save us when no one else would. Sometimes I wonder if the rebels knew who their leader really was if they would even bother fighting the Capitol. Snow and Coin really are quite similar, almost exactly the same in fact. Especially when it comes to doing whatever it takes to get and hold onto power. One of them just happened to put me in the Hunger Games while the other took me out.

I'm sitting and the silence is deafening. Even with the others around me, I'm so uncomfortable that I can't help but tap my foot repeatedly and non stop. I'm sure that if Peeta were here, his mere presence would calm me down. As it is, no such luck.

Suddenly, the President's office door swings open and a distraught looking Haymitch pokes his head out. "Hey guys, would you all come in here and join us?"

I share a look with the other two, silently agreeing that we don't actually have a choice. So we all rise and follow Haymitch into the office that is full of dread. Full of people who don't know me, and I don't know them, but they are going to tell me how great I am before lighting into me about how reckless I've been. I'm prepared for it. As I reach the center of the room where President Coin sits at a round table with her staff, I notice that both Haymitch and Plutarch are absent. Of course, Haymitch is standing behind me, but where is Plutarch? He is Coin's most trusted advisor, why wouldn't he be here right now?

I don't get my answer as the President begins to speak. "Ahhh yes. The victors. Returning home victoriously once again. Welcome back!"

My eyes want to flutter to Haymitch to see she is being genuine. Obviously, I can't, so instead I meet Coin's gaze head on. "Thank you..."

I can tell that Finnick and Johanna are also very tense. Why shouldn't they be though? Haymitch explained to us that we essentially were left to fend for ourselves in the arena by Coin, which tells me that she is running out of reasons to keep us alive. Just as I predicted long ago, Coin is merely using all of us to get what she really wants. Power.

"You all fought valiantly in this latest Capitol plot, and I commend you all for your strength and perseverance during your latest adventures in the Hunger Games." She's got to have more to say. This meeting wouldn't be so important if she didn't have more to say. "Public support for the Capitol continues to drop, and seeing the faces of the rebellion fighting to save another former Victor has made brilliant propo footage, just as Mr. Mellark said it would... But -" this is what I've been waiting for "- we need to solidify this support we're getting. At this rate, we could take District 2 and the Nut by month's end and begin our siege of the siege of the Capitol itself not long after. The end of the war is in our sight!" The triumph and pride in her voice is drenched in every word she is says.

"I suppose that's good news," Finnick begins, "but what does that have to do with us? If the war is almost won, we've done our jobs right... Right?" He asks with perhaps a hair too much optimism.

The glint in Coin's eyes flashes briefly of wickedness, but in an instant it's gone. "Yes you have. All of you. But there is more I need from you, and it's a very small thing..."

"And what's that, oh ultimate supreme ruler?" Johanna quips sarcastically. While the sarcasm may be obvious, Johanna does not like being told what to do. By anyone.

"Don't get too upset Johanna, it has nothing to do with you." My heart drops. That usually means it has something to do with me. To my horror, Coin says, "It has everything to do with Ms. Katniss Everdeen."

I refuse to let it look like she's affecting me in anyway possible. I won't give her the satisfaction of seeing that look on my face. "Oh really? And what more do you want from me exactly?"

Coin's smile turns to something I wish to never see again. It is almost like she is taking joy in watching my mind do cartwheels under her fierce gaze. She is going to relish telling me whatever it is she's got in store for me. "It is time for you and Peeta to finally give the people of Panem the wedding they've all been craving for almost a year now."

Anger boils inside of me just beneath my skin. The infamous fire that has taken over me on more than one occasion threatens to overcome me. I can feel my face flush bright red. My mind is frozen. All the anger I had directed towards Snow for what he did to me and Peeta during the victory tour is now aimed directly towards President Alma Coin. If she is going to try and force me to marry Peeta the same way Snow did, she'll feel the wrath that I never had the pleasure of unleashing on Snow. "And on what moral authority do you think you have the right to tell me to do that?" I snap.

She smiles. "No moral authority here, Katniss. Just the authority of being the President."

Wow. She really is just like Snow. If there was ever a shroud of doubt in my mind, it's gone now. "I can't say yes unless Peeta asks me. And knowing him, seeing as how this is something he's dreamed about his entire life, I really doubt he's gonna accept an order from someone else telling him when to purpose." It's a solid argument, but one that Coin can easily trump. "He already had to do that once, I know for a fact he won't be forced to do so again," I declare, desperately searching for a way to win this battle with Coin.

"Come Katniss, we both know that boy you love enjoys being the great savior. All I'll have to do is remind him of the countless lives he can save by doing it, and he'll come around to my way of thinking..." She really is enjoying this.

I appear defeated. My mind searches for a way out, but finds none. "Why are you doing this to us?" I ask pleadingly.

"Doing what to you, Katniss?" She replies innocently. "I'm simply insisting that two star crossed lovers get to finally have their love recognized by the whole country. I'd say that me offering to host and pay for your wedding is something nice, don't you think?" I want to slap her. It is taking every ounce of my willpower not to. "Or is it that you have reverted your old way of feeling towards Peeta? It was all an act right? Well, not for Peeta I suppose. But anyone outside of the Capitol could tell you had no true feelings for the boy. I guess if that's the case -"

I snap. I can tell that what is about to come out of my mouth is going to get me in a world of trouble. "SHUT THE HELL UP! You don't know a goddamn thing about Peeta and me. No one does! And YOU of all people certainly don't! You know what you and Snow never got through your thick skulls? If you two hadn't tried to control me and use my relationship with Peeta for entertainment on the cameras, maybe I wouldn't have resisted it as much! Maybe if everyone didn't try to force me to love him, I would've fallen for him on my own!"

I am fuming. I can feel the heat radiating off of my body. The combination of everything that took place in the past twenty four hours, along with Coin making this demand of me has stirred up so many old feelings. I remember my moments of intimacy with Peeta in the caves during our first games. I remember deeply wondering whether or not the feelings I had were real or not; wondering if Peeta making his declaration of love for me in front of the entire country was just for the cameras. I was so emotionally confused in the aftermath of our first games, and everyone was just pushing Peeta on me, so I decided I wanted none of it. Now in this moment, as I stare down the President, I ponder my own idea. If Snow and the Capitol hadn't been so harsh and forced me to pretend to love Peeta, would I have fallen for him on my own?

My thoughts are cut short when Coin speaks again. "Well Katniss, I'm glad that you do truly care for Peeta. It will make spending the rest of your life with him that much more enjoyable. We will be discussing the plans of your wedding in great detail in the coming days, of that I'm sure. Till then, you are all excused," she says this abruptly and quickly shuns us as she turns her back to us. She really is a bitch.

I follow Haymitch, Finnick, and Johanna back out and into the hallway. "What the fuck Haymitch? How did that just happen?" I hear Johanna ask.

"Plutarch and I disobeyed a direct order when we came to get you guys this time. Coin wanted to wait and she is not happy that two of her advisors blatantly and openly defied her. She is flexing her muscles, and somewhere in that deluded mind of hers, she's convinced herself that forcing our favorite couple to get married is the most efficient way of doing so..." Haymitch explains.

"Wow. That's fucked up," Johanna replies quietly. "With allies like her, who needs enemies like Snow?"

"Seriously," I quip.

"You're pretty quiet over there Fin, you ok?" Johanna asks.

Finnick looks up and his sea green eyes meet my seam gray eyes. I can tell he's been deep in thought. "I don't know... It just doesn't make sense."

"None of this really makes sense," Haymitch says. "No point in beating yourself up over something you got no control over."

"No... I have an idea. You guys go on ahead, I'm gonna go talk to Coin again." I am touched that Finnick is willing to try and help, but I also feel like nothing is going to change Coin's mind.

As Finnick makes to reopen the door, Haymitch says, "You're just wasting your time Finnick..." But it's too late. Finnick is already in the office.

"It's fine Haymitch, let him do his thing. I gotta go up to the hospital wing and check on Peeta, you guys wanna come with?" I ask.

Haymitch and Johanna share a look with each other for a moment. It's not one I've seen between the two of them before. Yet I'm unable to analyze it at all because they turn back to me and Haymitch says, "You know sweetheart, I think this conversation you're about to have with Peeta might be best done with just the two of you."

Instantly I realize he's right. I nod and wave goodbye to them as I turn to walk up to the hospital. This conversation is one that I'm going to dread. I want to run off into the woods and never look back. I want to leave this war and everything about it behind and never look back. But I can't do that. My friends and family are here and they need me. Prim is here and she needs me. Peeta is here, and we need each other. I know that he will not be any happier about the recent turn of events than I am. Peeta loves me dearly and I'm sure that he really does want to marry me. But he wants it to be on our terms. He doesn't want us to be forced into it.

As I walk into the hospital, I spot my mother working with a patient, but I walk past her. I have something more important to do right now. I turn into Peeta's room and sitting with him as they share laughs is the man I know as Arturo Clementine. I slowly creep into the room and as I appear behind AC's shoulders I see a bright light shine through Peeta's eyes.

"Well hello there, beautiful," he says lovingly. That sound in his voice is just enough to give me comfort in this very sad moment. I try to smile, but Peeta must have seen my ever-so-slight hesitance as the light in his eyes fades.

But Haymitch was right, this is a conversation for me and Peeta lone, so I'll have to wait till AC leaves. I do my best to reassure Peeta that everything is fine. "Hey yourself," I say as I lay down next to him on his bed and snuggle up close to him, careful not to touch any of his broken bones or bruises. "I've missed you," I whisper in his ear before I give him a quick peck on the lips. I hear a kind of half snort, half giggle come from AC's direction and I shoot him my best death glare.

"What!?" He asks incredulously. "Look Katniss, I'm sorry, but if you'd known Peeta here as long as I have, and known how long he's been subtlety chasing after you, it'd make you laugh a little bit too," AC says defending himself.

"Well he doesn't have to chase anymore, does he?" I reply sharply. "He's already got me," I say this trying to match the affectionate tone in Peeta's voice. As I say this I gently lean over Peeta and give him a passionate kiss just to prove my point.

"Alright, alright, I get it I need to give you guys sometime alone," he says as he stands up. "Peeta, I'll be seeing you tomorrow. Katniss, a pleasure as always." And without another sound, AC turns and leaves the room.

I look up to meet Peeta's never ending pools of blue eyes and I relax. He has such a calming affect on me, I doubt he even realizes it. "So how are you doing?" He asks me gently.

"Not too bad, after everything we've been through in the past day or so, I'm actually doing just fine." It feels awful as I lie to him right through my teeth.

And he knows it too. A look forms on Peeta's face that is a cross of hurt and worry. Hurt that I would lie to him, and worry about what's actually bothering me. "Come on Katniss, I can tell where you're avoiding something. Whatever it is, you can tell me," he adds, prodding me into telling him. It's not necessarily that act of telling him what Coin is ordering us to do that I'm fearing; rather it's his reaction that I fear. Peeta and I love each other, it has taken quite a while for me to accept that and I'm really just getting used to these feelings. I'm not ready to get married, but what if he is? He won't like that we're being forced to do so, no... But what if he is ready to get married? That would completely change our dynamic.

"Well, I've got some kinda big news..." I say.

"Oh yeah? What's going on?"

I open my mouth to let the words start flowing, but I am interrupted by the sound of the door to the room swinging open. I glance back and see that Finnick and Annie have burst into the room. "Peeta!" Finnick exclaims. "Please tell me that Katniss hasn't already ruined the surprise!"

Peeta glances at me as if to check if this was the news I was about to relay to him. I play along for the moment and nod my head. "No, but she was just about to. What's going on?"

I eye Finnick very cautiously, a little irritated he would try and tell Peeta this news instead of letting me handle it. But as the words leave his mouth, I understand. "Annie and I are going to get married!" I sigh, Finnick just saved our asses. I don't know how or what he did, but he totally saved our asses.

The look of excitement completely fills Peeta's face. "Oh my god! That's huge! Congratulations you two."

"Thank you Peeta!" Annie says cheerfully.

"Thanks man," Finnick replies coolly. "But I actually have a few favors to ask..."

"Anything! I love weddings."

"That's great, because from what Katniss tells me, apart from being a great baker, you also used to make and decorate cakes. What do you think about making the cake for our wedding?"

The look of pure joy on Peeta's face is more than enough of an answer. "I would absolutely love too! Once I get out of this dammed hospital room, we can go over the design and stuff like that."

"Great news! Thanks a bunch Peeta... But I do have one other favor I need to ask you."

Peeta glances at me quickly before glancing back to Finnick. "Yeah...? What's up?

Finnick flushes red just for a moment, and it makes me giggle. I know what he's about to ask. "Peeta, will you be my best man?"

Well what'd you guys think? again I'm sorry about the delay, but things come up in real life, you know? I promise I'll get one more update in before I sign off while I'm in Brazil, so please, please, PLEASE give me some feedback via review. Love you all so much, and be ready for some more crazy to come!