We're still eating in silence when the television screen suddenly lights up again. It shows us and everyone else in Panem the pictures of the most important 'fallen'.
"That's a really nice picture," Finnick comments when my face appears on the screen.
I smack his arm playfully. "Girl," I laugh.
"I know," he says while spinning one of his golden locks around his finger in a terribly girly way.
President Snow himself interrupts our friendly banter with a congratulatory speech directed at the peacekeepers.
"Oh please," I scoff. "As if the peacekeepers had any hand in our deaths. He should be congratulating his pods."
"Now that Katniss Everdeen, the menace who started it all but did nothing more, is dead, Panem can go back to its former glory. Our country will arise stronger than ever. That I will promise you," Snow says with a disgusting smile on his lips.
Then suddenly Snow's face is replaced with Coin's, telling us to keep fighting even though Katniss is probably dead. "Dead or alive, Katniss Everdeen will remain the face of this rebellion. If ever you waver in your resolve, think of the Mockingjay, and in her you will find the strength you need to rid Panem of its oppressors."
We stay silent for a second before Finnick and I burst out in laughter.
"I had no idea how much I meant to her," Katniss says, causing Gale to laugh as well.
And then a picture of her appears on the screen and everyone is silent again, either because they're too much in shock or because they're trying to be polite before roaring with laughter again.
"You almost look like you could live in the Capitol, Katniss. Maybe you should change your name to something even more memorable than Mockingjay," I snigger.
"Shut up," Katniss says, laughing as well.
After Snow's speech we all realize that this moment of peacefulness has to come to an end. They will be looking for us in the morning and when they don't find us, there'll be a raid no one has ever seen.
"I don't want to spoil the fun," I start. "But I think we might need to move if we want to stay ahead of them."
"Any ideas?" Katniss asks.
Finnick is the first one to answer. "Why don't we start by ruling out possibilities. The street is not a possibility."
"The rooftops are just as bad as the street," Leeg 1 adds.
"We still might have a chance to withdraw, go back the way we came," Homes suggests. "But that would mean a failed mission."
I look Katniss directly in the eye to gauge her reaction but she doesn't even flinch. She's really made this her mission, hasn't she? But then she says something that makes me thinks she really feels guilty for bringing everyone into this mess.
"It was never intended for all of us to go forward. You just had the misfortune to be with me," she says.
"Yeah right, as if we weren't going after you. You're the dearest Mockingjay, Katniss. I bet they're flipping coins back at our camp to see who's going to look for you and bring you back to safety," I say, rolling my eyes at her so-called apology.
"Well, that's a moot point," Jackson replies to Katniss' excuse as well. "We're with you now. So, we can't stay put. We can't move up. We can't move laterally. I think that just leaves one option."
"Underground," Gale says immediately.
As soon as Gale says the word, everyone falls silent. It seems like no one is really keen on going underground, especially Katniss. Wait, didn't her father die in a mine explosion? I thought I heard her say that once, or maybe it was Finnick who told me, I don't really remember.
"Okay then we go underground. We might even go so deep we can avoid all the pods, right? So it might even be safer," I say. "Check the holo, Katniss."
She does as I tell her to and we see I was right, the number of pods is much smaller around the tunnels than closer to the street.
"We can get to the tunnels via this shaft, and then through that apartment," Finnick says, his fingers following the path on the holo.
Gale nods. "Yes, I think it's our best shot."
"Okay, then. Let's make it look like we've never been here," Katniss says immediately. We clean up as much as possible but if the peacekeepers decide to check this apartment, they'll know for sure we've been here. There's too much food missing, the lock on the door is broken and there's blood on the sofa. But cleaning up gives us at least a bit of security.
"Okay, let's go," Jackson says. Everyone moves except for Peeta, who is lying stubbornly on the couch.
"I'm not going. I'll either disclose your position or hurt someone else," he says.
"Snow's people will find you," Finnick says.
"Then leave me a pill. I'll only take it if I have to," Peeta suggests.
"No," I snap. "We're not giving you anything, we're not leaving you and we're not killing you. You're coming with us, understood?"
Jackson agrees with me and orders Peeta to come along.
"Or you'll what? Shoot me?" Peeta asks.
In a few big steps I'm right by Peeta's side, grabbing a handful of his hair and dragging him off the couch.
"How many times do we have to tell you?" I hiss. "We. Are. Not. Leaving. You. Behind. Got that? So don't even dare to ask us one more time or I swear I won't be able to control myself. And for your information, I'm Johanna Mason. That means it could hurt when I lose control."
Homes backs me up. "We'll knock you out and drag you with us. Which will both slow us down and endanger us."
"Stop being noble! I don't care if I die!" he yells and then turns to Katniss. "Katniss, please. Don't you see, I want to be out of this?"
I shoot Katniss a glance that says 'don't even think about it' and maybe that's what made her change her mind because eventually she says, "We're wasting time. Are you coming voluntarily or do we knock you out?"
A sigh of relief escapes my lips. One look at Finnick is all it takes to see he too was worrying Katniss might make the wrong decision regarding Peeta.
"Should we free his hands?" Leeg 1 suddenly asks.
I say yes at the same time Peeta yells no.
Even Katniss says no.
I turn to her angrily. "You do realize that if we are under attack, Peeta will be of no use and he won't be able to defend himself, right? So just so you know, if anyone of us dies because Peeta couldn't help us, or if he dies, it's on you."
"Johanna," Finnick says in a soft but warning voice, but I'm already quiet. I said what I needed to say.
But then Gale jumps to Katniss' defense. "Yeah but if we remove his cuffs like you want, and he kills someone because of the venom in his brain, it will be on you."
I smirk. "I already have a pretty long list. One or two killings more won't make a difference. I'm the heartless bitch here, remember? You said it yourself. But Katniss here, I'm not sure if she could handle more blood on her hands. So if you want to threaten me, be sure to do it with a real threat or don't do it at all."
Everyone's staring is getting on my nerves to I just open the small metal door that leads to the shaft and enter. The rest will follow soon enough.
After I've made a few steps, Finnick tells me to stop.
I sigh in exasperation. "Now what?"
"Pollux and Castor don't fit in this with their cameras and clothing."
"Tell them to get naked and hurry up."
A chuckle escapes Finnick's mouth but a second later he's serious again.
"You know, it wouldn't hurt to be nice to your teammates," he hints.
I roll my eyes. "Classic Finnick-advice: get people to like you."
"It's effective," he torts back.
"You may have won your games by getting people to like you but I won mine on my own. That's effective too. Besides, look where your being nice got you."
"I have a bunch of good friends, a gorgeous wife and a great best friend. Look where it got you. You have exactly two friends and that's me and Haymitch."
"And that's all I need," I say harshly.
"Hey, start moving," Gale says from the entrance of the shaft.
Finnick and I put our conversation at a hold while we move through the shaft until we're in the apartment that leads to the tunnels.
"This is why no one ever wants the center unit. Workmen coming and going whenever and no second bath. But the rent's considerably cheaper," Messalla muses but then he sees Finnick's amused expression and stops.
Pollux looks down the tunnel and looks like he might faint.
"My brother worked down here after he became an Avox. Took five years before we were able to buy his way up to ground level. Didn't see the sun once," Castor explains.
"Well, then you just became our most valuable asset," Peeta says in a remarkably normal voice.
As soon as everyone except for Peeta, Finnick and I are in the tunnel, I continue my rant to Finnick.
"Besides, I don't want people chasing me, asking me to marry them. I don't need to be popular to survive, Finnick!"
"Oh you don't?" he says. "Then I guess you could find your own way down there, right?"
I stare at his completely blank face for a minute. Then he continues. "I'll see you around, Johanna," he says and gets in the tunnel, leaving me and Peeta behind.
Peeta and I look at each other for a second before Peeta starts to reassure me that Finnick will wait for me downstairs.
"Well then he can wait for a long time, I'm taking another way to the tunnels," I reply angrily.
Peeta shakes his head in amusement. "You're so stubborn. But okay, which way should we go?"
"We?"
Peeta looks at me like he doesn't know why I question him. "Of course. You think I'm leaving you too?"
"Why would you want to follow me? You don't even know where I'm going…"
"You've been defending me since I got here even though you didn't know how dangerous I really am."
"That's different."
"It's not. Now which way are we going?"
I scoff but eventually give in. "Fine. Apartment next door, same floor. There's another ladder that leads to the tunnel."
Peeta nods. "Okay. How do you know?"
"Photographic memory," I simply explain while I'm opening the door to the next apartment.
We open another door and try to stay as quiet as possible. But there's no one here.
"Maybe we should take the other ladder anyway. Finnick is waiting for you so maybe…"
"No. Finnick is with the others. He's one of the most adored Victors, even people from 13 swoon when they see him. They won't let him die. He's safe."
"If you say so," Peeta mutters.
"Oh shut up. We'll catch up with him soon enough, I just want to give him a little scare. That's all."