Author's note: Debrief time! In this corner the little Victor from district five Miss ariana Crane and in the other corner the evil witch from hades President Alma Coin!

Round 1! :D

Thanks go to my reviewers: JB, EWD and Arrow

Chapter 48

Debrief

Breakfast the next morning I am sitting with Mav. He's started getting his daily schedule on his arm and it's in this dark sickly purple ink. The only colour in this place and it has to be a temporary tattoo on your bare skin. I'm managing to eat my cereal, under my friend's direct gaze. I think Mav and Makenzie spoke after because when I mean to push my bowl away he glares at me. When he sees I'm managing he says he's heading to get ready for the debrief, I don't understand until just as I finish my communicator goes off.

'Debrief, cnfrnc rm 4-462, cmd' it reads.

I get up and go over to the refugee table and I grab Gale's hand.

"Good morning to you too" he smiles and I show him my communicator, "ah, time to start playing the game?" I nod and we head off together.

Being on the command floor with Gale is comforting. I don't feel out of place with him around.

"So will we meet Coin?" He asks

"No doubt, but apparently a lot has happened since I was last here" I remark more security on this floor, more staff in the hospital and it feel more militaristic then two years ago.

"You seem nervous" Gale rips me from my observant nature and introspective analysis, "having second thoughts of having me around?"

I look concerned, "no, I want you here. Just, something feels weird, like military exercises only it's twenty-four seven" we make it to the door and a guard looks at me and nods, but then he sees Gale and looks like he will refuse entrance.

"He's with me, and if you want me in there I ain't goin' without him" I reply

The guard begrudgingly steps aside.

We're the first ones there. Gives me time to calm myself and center. I have paced the table's length a couple times when I walk right into Gale. When I look up he has a completely disarming smile.

"You are nervous this is a first" he says, "I mean not the whole rival thing Buck and I had, or when he sprained your wrist and you were trying to cover it up, or the beginning of the quell, you are genuinely nervous!" he chuckles, "what's running in your head?"

I smile bashfully, "I just…its been a while since I've been here, I hope I can get back into this as easily as I did before but there are variables I don't know" I sigh

"Me for one" he says as he leans beside me on the conference desk, "I'll follow your lead okay? Speak if I am spoken to?" he waits for a nod I know but he has to nudge me, "knowing you as soon as we get started you'll fall into step, I just hope I don't step on anyone's toes"

"I would relish it if you did" I say and he chuckles

Boggs comes in with Ken, they both give me a nod but Boggs seems confused with Gale being there. They take a seat. Makenzie comes in a few moments later with Mrs. Everdeen following. Then Finnick, Haymitch Maverick and Ziggy.

They all take seats, Maverick and Ziggy leave a space for me but not for Gale. It takes me giving none to gentle glances for them to get him a seat with us.

"What is he doing here?" Maverick asks cautiously

"Tell you later" I say softly in return.

Finally two armed guards enter with Plutarch and finally Coin.

She hasn't changed.

Everyone gets up but me, Gale and Mav. Me because I have no love-lost on these two, Gale because he is follwing my lead and Mav for obvious reasons. Even if he could I don't think he would.

Coin's eyes meet mine, her washed out grey ones are boring into mine. But I don't care she stepped over that line.

"Everyone have a seat" she says and sees Gale, "who allowed him clearance?"

"I did, and you should allow him from now on since he pretty much has a battalion of angry district twelve residents ready and willing to step up if he leads them" I say matter-of-factly.

Coin's face calms a small bit, "he will have to register with Boggs and go thru training, if Boggs sees him fit to lead he will be put in a command position" she doesn't look up from her papers for a moment, "Abernathy was attacked on the transport? By Everdeen…and…Crane" she looks again at me and then Haymitch, "explain"

"Well" Haymitch looks at me, "we couldn't rescue Mellark"

"Yes that was the order, to disengage and report back" Plutarch explains, "Everdeen and Crane had other ideas" he looks at me, a glimmer of smugness.

I am so not helping him now.

"And you thought breaking his nose would help?" she asks

"Made me feel marginally better" I reply, "then I found out it was your order that caused this problem"

"If we stayed we'd jeopardize the ones we did rescue" she says

"And yet you fail to realize Mellark is important to Everdeen" I say calmly and clearly

"How is Everdeen?" Coin changes subject, tactic and target looking at Makenzie

"Weak, we have her sedated she's been in hysterics since she arrived and until she regains her faculties I won't be able to make a proper diagnosis. Her arm was torn up but we repaired it to the best of our ability" she looks at Mrs. Everdeen, "I am also taking Mrs. Everdeen as colleague in the hospital ward"

"Her credentials?" Coin looks at her papers, I wonder what is so fascinating

"None formally, but she is as good as any doctor I have worked with" Makenzie says as calmly as I did, "and since I'm head of your medical wing I don't think I have to have clearance President Coin I am mearly being polite in informing you of the dynamics there"

"Very well" Coin says, she looks to Boggs, "on the Paylor problem"

Paylor? Vivian?

"What Paylor problem?" I ask

"District Eight is under marshal law as we speak, from a Commander Paylor and her militia, very loyal and very stubourn" Boggs says, "when the first attempt at rebellion failed she pulled them from the brink, they took over the weapons, cut communication" he looks at me, "says she will only talk to a small bird" he smirks

I chuckle, 'I knew you would lead the mob' I think smugly, "do we have communications with them?"

"Spotty right now" Ziggy says, "I have a team working on that"

"And district four?" Coin says, this grabs the attention of both Finnick and me

"What happened?!" Finnick asks

"Communication is limited but they have shut down too, along with a lot of other districts, Five is on the verge of being taken by the residents, Six, Ten and Nine are practically there with our help" Boggs says, "Four has …presidential influence"

"What does that mean?" Finnick says

"Castiel is leading is he?" I look up and Finnick looks at me confused

"Er..yes Castiel Sinclair" Boggs smirks, "what have you been doing Crane?"

"What hasn't she been doing would be more exact question" Ziggy says, "last we heard from you was after the 74th reaping then we get the encrypted hardrive contents-"

"That have yet to be completely decrypted" Coin interrupts, "we require that information" she looks at me but I'm ignoring her, this has more importance.

"I haven't done anything just poured honey into certain ears" I smirk, "Peeta isn't the only one with a head on their shoulders"

"Crane I gave an order!" Coin snaps

I pause in my tale to look at her, "yes I heard you, but you never heard me when I said 'all tributes' what part of 'all' didn't register? You have compromised everything over one person"

"She's the Mokingjay" Plutarch says, "and we are also ordering you to help us reform her"

"Reform who?" Gale speaks up

"Katniss" I reply to him before Plutarch and Coin can do their propaganda speel, "they want me to mold her into some glorified Joan of Ark, they want me to rein her in"

Gale laughs at that remark and shakes his head.

"Well Ariana isn't all that housebroken" Haymitch says nasally since his nose has a plaster over it and his blackened eyes are telltale he was on the wrong end of someone's temper.

"And last I checked you know first hand what would happen if you mix us together" I look at him, I then look at Plutarch, "you got my answer on the hover plane, I ain't helping you put her in anyone's crosshair because trust me, that's what will happen"

Plutarch looks a bit crestfallena and he looks at Coin.

"Don't go looking to her Plutarch" I reply, "if you can't make me see sense since you were my recruiter imagine her luck being the one who threatened my crew if I didn't conform"

"What?" Maverick asks

"Yeah didn't want to alarm you guys" I get up and point at Coin, "before I left I was called before her-"

"Enough Crane" I hear and in the doorway is Charring, "damage done, stand down"

"You're late" Coin says