*Disclaimer; I do not own the Hunger Games nor the characters.*

**Heads up RATED M FOR A REASON.**
*YOU'VE BEEN WARNED MY DEARIES.*

Return of the Mocking Jay
Chapter Two
A Chat with a Pale Horse .

"And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. "-Revelulations 6:8

Three Days Later, Hospital District Two;

They watch her in shifts has she lies in her bed. Wondering why her. Why this under norshied small petite girl who is barely 23 years old. Why is she suffering so. From everything that Doctor Hadley & Aries have heard about her one word is always said when describing the Girl on Fire, brave. Now they know the path she has been put on maybe out of their relam. That she maybe beyond their reach.

"Aries any changes?"

Aries just shakes his head no to his father. What ever Katniss Everdeen is going through, she is doing this alone.

The patient in question is doing something but not on a level that mortal man can understand. Its her path of redemption in what little time she has left. For she is in the 74th arena again with most of the Tributes of her games. Few have crossed over. Rue, Peeta, Foxface & the younger ones from the blood bath. Yet there are still quite a few that are there sitting there when she sees that light again. The same light that she seen her mother & sister go through. She sees Thresh get up followed by Clove & they go in.

"It was their turn Fire Girl. They were talking. Thresh said he felt like he was revisiting a scene of a crime. Told Clove he was so angry about Rue he couldn't see straight and when Clove mentioned Rue well... It was only after I got him for Clove, he was shown that it was Marvel who actually killed his cousin, Rue. That what he overheard Clove was her taunting you on how you failed to protect her. He didn't want to kill anybody unless it was to defend himself. It was why he hid in the tall grassy fields that reminded him of home. Then out of the blue, Clove forgave him. She even joked about the 'killer' headache. Each of us get a shot at redemption Fire Girl."

"And you?"

"I don't know. Depends."

"On what?"

"On you. My training taught me to kill. No compassion, no mercy, period. You however taught me more in a months time in this hell hole than my trainers did in nearly nine years. You now need to find how live beyond this & redeem yourself. You need to do it, now. Its up to you."

"How? I have not..."

"You have more than you think Fire Girl. Do it now or, you'll be here like me waiting. Always waiting like us."

Has Cato fades there is a mist & light that surrounds her. She in darkness again. Her eyes too heavy to open. Her terrors begin again as she relives the final battle of the Capitol, the two arenas & that damn meeting where she made the biggest mistake in her life. When she voted for a 'last' arena.

Cato on the other hand is at the Cornucopia sitting there waiting with who else remains. Glimmer, Marvel, Seth from three, the kid from seven, the girl from four & the two from nine. Marvel looks at Cato;
"Do you think she'll can do it?"

"She's our only hope. If not we're here until they decide."

"Does she know what she'll have to do?"

"Not yet."

"Too bad we can't help her."

"Help her! Help her what Marvel, to die. To know that for us to cross she has to die. That is how great our mistakes are. She has to find something redeeming, good in us Marvel. Even then we don't know what's over there. We killed Marvel & we enjoyed it because we were trained to. The worse part is that they (pointing outward) praised us for becoming their killing machines. To entertain them. I didn't know that then but I do know now. WE are the weak ones for we gave in. You still don't get it do you?"

"Get what?"

"That she is the strong one. She doesn't think she is but we know she is. Like Thresh she didn't kill unless she had to with the exception of you & even then it was for justice. She didn't know that little girl but protected her like she was her own. She even took her into her arms & sang to her to ease her fears. No one from another district ever has done that, EVER. I was right to tell her she has more worth than she knows.
And YOU (pointing to Glimmer), you WILL forgive her for the Tracker Jackers nest thing."

"Why should I forgive her?"

"You were on watch at the time. You fell asleep on watch lil' Miss Career. You caused her (pointing to the girl from four) death when YOU failed to do your duty. If you were doing your job like you were suppose to, the two of you would have lasted longer in the games. Fire Girl shouldn't have to ask for your forgiveness, YOU should be asking for hers!"

"And if I don't?"

"Then you'll be here, alone for a very long time Glimmer. In this you will have to trust me. Even I don't know all the answers."

Katniss sees the parachutes go off & she relives her little duck being blown to bits. She screams in terror to find herself in the dark again. Only this time she feels a comforting hand on hers to see Prim glowing.

"He's right. That boy in the arena. You have more worth than you know. Start believing it Catnip."

In her room Aries sits there during his shift has he hears a groan then a scream in terror. He hold onto her hand to give her some form of comfort. He is deep in thought thinking of his twin, Cato. Trying to figure out why he hasn't moved on. Why he is stuck at the arena of his games. Aries does know one thing, The Girl on Fire holds the key to it.

At the Capitol;

President Paylor waits for any news on Katniss Everdeen. All reports from the Victors show no progress at this time. Paylor wants her in her government hoping a new start will give her a reason to live on. Hopefully be happy for once in her young life. She's not the only one who is hoping for this as she looks out her office window. For she has never known someone who is so young who is still so brave. To go be able to live through everything that Katniss has & still wants to do the right thing. Yet she sees that bright light fading fast if the Mocking Jay continues to keep going down this path. Paylor wants her to see that there is a life for her here. Paylor wants her to live.

Back in the Hospital;

It is day four & the Mocking Jay is facing more than any arena can ever prepare her for. She is surrounded by an inky black darkness, talking to a rider on a pale horse.

"You have a strong brave heart Girl on Fire. Yet you carry a lot of guilt for things you had no control over except one. You know what that is?"

"The vote."

The rider nodded.

"Then why show me all this before about the arenas & the rebellion."

"To show you the arenas were never in your control Girl on Fire. Primrose was suppose to go in. She was suppose to come out of it too, as the Victor with the Tribute from Two.
When you took her place, things shifted for the better. In some ways. You thought you lost yourself when Peeta died. Peeta was living on borrowed time after the first arena. You were suppose to paired with the tribute from two not Peeta. Primrose was suppose to the Mocking Jay for the rebellion this whole time, not you. You lost yourself when you lost Primrose at the Capitol, Girl on Fire. Because Coin used Gale's design on the capitol's children. I have dealt with that Girl on Fire. Because of all this you burden yourself with guilt & an early death. The early death was from Cinna & that is also being dealt with by me, personally.
You begged for forgiveness when they should be asking you for it. The only guilt you should have is for the 48 children in the two capitol arenas from Coin. And you even righted that wrong. You made sure no more Hunger Games. You have done all you went sent to do."

"So I am to die, sir."

"No. It's not your time. You still have a lot of light on you. You still can do great things with the time that you have. Now its up to you. Free yourself Girl on Fire. Start again."

"What of the others in the arenas."

"They are there for different reasons. Its up to you to free them."

"How? They don't understand."

"You have to help them with that Girl on Fire. They are beholden onto you not the other way around. Now go, live on. "

With that the rider turns his horse around & rides away back into the darkness where Katniss is again surrounded by light has she awakens for the first time in over fives days.

Her eyes open to see that she is in a hospital room. Katniss looks to see Haymitch & a raven haired version of the tribute from two looking back at her in awe. Haymitch looks down at her;

"Welcome back to the living Sweetheart. Don't ever scare us like that again."