A/N: Hey guys! I'm actually not dead! I apologize for the longer wait on this one, I had a little bit of writer's block and a really large moNster named "Life" got in my way.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games. If you recognize it, it's not mine.

The very next day, I get a knock on my door and the prep team enters, all three of them beaming brightly. "Katniss!" Flavius says, "We're here to remake you!"

"Here?" I ask, stunned.

Octavia laughs. "No, no, no. Downstairs in the Remake Center!" She and Venia grab my arms and propel me down the hall, where Posy is waiting. "Hi, Posy," I say, as I walk past.

"Hi, Katniss!" she says, skipping along after us. "Can I come along?"

"Sure, Stylist-in-Training!" Octavia says to the little girl, linking arms with her.

I'm surprised. Wow. Those four really have bonded. And the funny thing is, I can see it happening, too. It's just, well, I guess they were kind of made to be best friends. Even if one of them is about twenty years younger. And three of them look weird.

When we get there, Plutarch and Fulvia are waiting already. "Katniss," he says, consulting a clipboard, "Today we're having you go to Eight. There was some serious bombing overnight and we want you to go visit the injured.

"Oh," I say.

Posy is practically skipping with anticipation. "Can we go now?" she begs.

Plutarch waves us on, and the four beauticians steer me into a room filled with….well…beauty stuff, I guess. I wouldn't have any idea what to do.

Apparently Posy has really been working with my former prep team, because she easily applies the blush and lipstick. Flavius works his usual hair charms, Octavia paints my nails black, and Venia and Posy, but mostly Venia, apply barrages of products to my face.

Octavia brings my Mockingjay dress out and I slip into it. "It's got a few extra reinforcements," explains Plutarch. I didn't even hear him come in. "Since you're going to a place where it's likely you'll be bombed"

"Oh," I say again.

They escort me to the hangar, where my camera crew and my 'bodyguards' wait. We all climb into the hovercraft and find spots.

"Excited, Fire Girl?" asks Rye, plopping himself into the seat across from me.

"No," I confess. I don't elaborate.

Truth is, I hate injured people. I've seen too many in my house already. I don't do well with the smells…or the sights.

"Oh." Rye says, looking surprised. I guess maybe he thought I would say yes. Not in a million years, Rye.

I turn and look out the window, wishing I could be a bird and fly away from all this mess.

"Please prepare to disembark the aircraft," a cool female voice says, jolting me out of my reverie.

First Rye, then me, then my camera crew, then Gale, then Chris. I make sure the earpiece is secure, but jump when Haymitch says, "What are you doing? You'll make it fall out."

I jump. "Seriously, Haymitch. That's every time I've had this darn thing in, you freak me out. Stop it."

He snorts. "Not a chance, sweetheart."

"Shut up."

We walk down the ash-filled streets of Eight. Dead bodies are everywhere. Ew.

We enter the hospital. "Do not leave me," I tell Rye under my breath. The smells are threatening to overwhelm me already, and I'm not three feet into the hospital.

"Commander Paylor," Chris says, pausing to speak to a younger woman. "Katniss Everdeen…" He gestures to me, and I step a little closer. Up close, she seems younger, but there's something about her that suggests her appointment wasn't arbitrary.

"Good to see you," she says briefly, shaking my hand. I try to smile, but it probably looks a lot more like a grimace.

I continue to walk. "Katniss! Katniss Everdeen!" a young woman shouts off my left. "Is that you?"

"Yeah, it' me," I reply.

"It's—good to see you," she says eagerly. "Someone said—well, you're here!"

"Yeah, I'm here."

All around me, this one woman has sparked a cacophony. "Katniss!" "Katniss Everdeen!" Shouts are all around me.

I walk around, talking to people as brightly as I can. They're all in awe. It's like I'm a celebrity. Oh, wait, I am. Har, har, har.

"Oh, crap," says a voice in my ear.

"Haymitch? Is that you?" I ask.

"Yeah, it's me," he says. "Listen, there are bombers headed your way. Can you get up and go? We can't land, but you can't be spotted. There's a blue bunker three down from you. Go."

Apparently Haymitch's voice is in everyone's ears, because I see everyone starting and my three 'bodyguards' moving to flank me.

We bid a hasty farewell to Commander Paylor, who's heading out of the makeshift hospital as well, but to a different place.

Partially on the way there, a bunch of sirens start to wail and I am the first to see a V of hovercraft. Someone shoves me into a wall, I think it's Rye but I don't know.

I jump back up, pulling my hood over me. The fabric's supple and soft, but is really hard on the outside. "We can't just stand here!" I shout, running over to the closest ladder and beginning to climb.

I hear someone following me. Glancing back, I see it's Gale. Chris and Rye watch almost anxiously from the ground.

The insects, Cressida, and Messalla are following me as well. I grab my bow and load an arrow. "Geese!" I cry to Gale, who has his bow out as well.

Ages ago, before all this happened, Gale and I hunted geese in the fall, while they were migrating. Gale takes the closer side and I take the far side like always. Then we alternate shots at the lead.

My arrow seems close, but misses a hoverplane emblazoned with the Capitol's crest. I keep shooting fire arrows until I realize they're no good about three shots later.

"Explosive arrows, Catnip," Gale calls and I nod, loading a blue-tipped arrow. I go into my own world, one that includes only me and the hovercraft, and sometimes Gale.

Finally, I hit a hovercraft. The thing blows up in midair. Gale misses his and a warehouse away from us explodes. I hear him mutter something under his breath, but I'm guessing it wasn't anything like, "I love glittering fairy princesses."

I just keep shooting, hitting two more and annihilating them completely, and blowing the wing off one. That one spirals down to the ground and crashes.

Gale hits a fair number as well. But the planes keep coming, and they keep dropping the bombs.

Until finally, the last wave is gone. It's only then when I realize that there were a bunch of people up there as well. They all have guns and are kind of staring at me. Even Commander Paylor is there.

I hook my bow back over my shoulder and climb down the ladder. Gale and my camera crew follow me.

I stand there, watching the smoldering remains of the hospital where I was not fifteen minutes ago. Chris puts his arm around me. I know it must be horrible for him. Prim told me he nearly died of smoke inhalation back when 12 was bombed, because he has a special lung disorder.

"Katniss?" Cressida asks, "would you like to say anything?"

Suddenly, I would.

"Yeah." I say, "Yeah, I would."

"Look here, everyone," I say, gesturing to the hospital. "Here I am, in District Eight. President Snow has just bombed it. He bombed a hospital full of injured people and children, to give the rebels a message. There will be no survivors."

I pause and continue, "Well, this is what he does! And now you've seen it for yourself!

I advance towards one of the cameras. "Well, you know what, President Snow? I have a message for you, too.

"Fire is catching! And if we burn, then you burn with us!"

My words hang, unmoving, in the air. All I hear is fire crackling and my heavy breathing.

Messalla cuts the silence. "Cut," he says approvingly. "That's a wrap."

Slowly, my little party makes its way to where the hovercraft landed, on top of a building about a mile away. I know it's good exercise, but I'm still exhausted when we troop in. We all plop into the chairs in the hovercraft, and nobody says anything much.

Every once in a while, I spot the other hovercraft that Haymitch, Plutarch and the rest of the "higher ups" are riding in. But I won't see them until we get back.

When we finally reach 13, I just want to go take a nap in my compartment.

But the look on Haymitch's face says otherwise, when he stops me.

I am in so much trouble.

A/N: And this chapter is a wrap! It was a bit of a longer chapter, and would have been a bit longer but I decided to end it here, for now. Hopefully this one had enough action to tide ya over. And for Peeta lovers, don't despair. He'll make his grand entrance either next chapter or in two chapters.

Alright: I have a question, and I want you to answer it. Would you like me to keep updating regularly (at least once a week) with 1k-2k words-long chapters? Or would you like me to update more sporadically (whenever I finish) with longer chapters, (like 4k+ words)? I want to know guys, this story is FOR YOU!

Also, I've created a forum for this story, for you guys! I think I'll be posting news, challenges, and QUITE POSSIBLY SPOILERS(Or will they be red herrings? I'm not telling!) You guys can view it if you type in:

.net(/)forum(/)The-Alone-Forum(/)130391(/)

If you type that in without the parentheses, you should be able to access it. I'm also putting the link in my bio, too, just to be sure.

Okay, this was a really long A/N, and I apologize. But do let me know what you think of the forum, and be sure to vote on my updating "poll"!

Until next time! (which will hopefully be much sooner than this time),

~~FuzzySocksAndWriting