Hello to all the new followers and thank you to EVERYONE who has been reading so far! I'm really sorry for the long wait but things are a bit manic with me at the moment. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter and please do let me know if it's pants or not!

I do not own the Hunger Games nor its characters.

Chapter Fifty-Seven

I don't sleep much, images of all the times I've spent with Mags flood my dreams and, although I'm grateful for being relieved of my usual nightmares, it's still painful to go through.

When I wake up I see that Peeta and Katniss are still asleep while Finnick is fishing for seafood and piling it up in a woven basket. I look around the arena to find that Chaff is dozing under a tree, the Careers are the other side of the arena, also sleeping, and Johanna keeps watch while Blight, Beetee and Wiress sleep. However, Johanna has a look of malice on her face as she glares at her allies. I told her that Katniss wouldn't trust her if she didn't get the District 3 tributes but I know that she's not enjoying her task. After all, she's called them Nuts and Volts for years, hardly terms of endearment.

Eventually Katniss wakes up, her body covered in blood from where she has been scratching.

"You know, if you scratch you'll bring on infection," says Finnick, mocking Katniss' words from last night.

"That's what I've heard," she replies before washing herself in the lake. "Hey, Haymitch," she yells, "If you're not too drunk, we could use a little something for our skin."

I groan as I look through the catalogue and select the appropriate cream, did she really think I was going to let her skin get any worse? I was just waiting until her and Peeta were awake!

The parachute flies in and Katniss and Finnick quickly apply the ugly green cream to their faces, which the latter finds almost repulsive.

"Poor Finnick," mocks Katniss, "Is this the first time in your life you haven't looked pretty?"

"It must be," he says, "The sensation's completely new. How have you managed it all these years?"

"Just avoid mirrors. You'll forget about it."

"Not if I keep looking at you."

Finally, I think. It looks like she's ever so slowly starting to trust him, which is further highlighted when Finnick suggests they play a trick on Peeta. They both bend down next to him and when he wakes up he screams as he sees their blotchy faces, causing them to laugh hysterically and, I have to admit, so do I.

This is the perfect time to send Katniss a message so I send in some bread from District 4 and I can see the thought going through her head that she must trust her ally if she wants to be fed, although Finnick seems to have taken care of that.

Finnick checks the bread, no doubt seeing if it's about the rebellion, and then prepares the shellfish for them to eat.

A cannon fires and it's only then that I notice that Johanna, Beetee and Wiress are in a section of the arena that has rain that looks like blood pouring down on them, although it's slowly tailing off now as the tidal wave hits. It's so hard to keep track of everyone when they're so spread out and I silently chastise myself for not paying more attention.

I look at the hovercraft to see that Blight, Johanna's former mentor, is being lifted from the arena. I guess he was just too old to keep up.

It isn't long before the three of them have landed on the beach, with Finnick, Katniss and Peeta hiding in the trees to assess what red monstrosities have appeared before them. Finnick quickly notices Johanna and runs out of the jungle to greet her, followed by his two remaining allies.

"It was awful, Finnick!" Says Johanna, "We thought it was rain, you know, because of the lightning, and we were all so thirsty. But when it started coming down, it turned out to be blood. Thick, hot blood. You couldn't see, you couldn't speak without getting a mouthful. We just staggered around, trying to get out of it. That's when Blight hit the force field."

"I'm sorry, Johanna," says Finnick.

"Yeah, well, he wasn't much, but he was from home," she says. "And he left me alone with these two. He got a knife in the back at the Cornucopia. And her—"

"Tick, tock. Tick, tock." Says Wiress, who has clearly figured out the arena, I just hope the others can understand what she's getting at as soon as possible.

"Yeah, we know. Tick, tock. Nuts is in shock," says Johanna before shoving Wiress. "Just stay down, will you?"

"Lay off her," says Katniss.

"Lay off her? Who do you think got them out of that bleeding jungle for you? You—" Before she can begin to shout obscenities at Katniss, Finnick puts up Johanna and takes her over to the water.

"Did Beetee get everything he needed?" Says Finnick as he splashes Johanna with water and I know that he's referring to the wire.

"Yes," says Johanna, "He's all set."

I breathe a sigh of relief at her words but I know there's still a long way to go. Before Plutarch and Coin can send in a hovercraft Katniss is going to have to put up with Johanna for another two days and, at the moment, I'm not sure that either of them are going to survive that long.

Johanna and Finnick return to the beach where Wiress and Beetee have been cleaned up by Katniss and Peeta. Everyone is happy to take the first watch while the others sleep but it ends up with Johanna and Katniss staying awake, forcing me to down half a bottle of liquor.

"How'd you lose Mags?" Asks Johanna and my heart sinks a little.

"In the fog," says Katniss, "Finnick had Peeta. I had Mags for a while. Then I couldn't lift her. Finnick said he couldn't take them both. She kissed him and walked right into the posion."

"She was Finnick's mentor, you know."

And mine, I think. She never gave up on me.

"No, I didn't," says Katniss.

"She was half his family."

"So what were you doing with Nuts and Volts?"

"I told you—I got them for you. Haymitch said if we were to be allies I had to bring them to you," says Johanna. "That's what you told him, right?"

Katniss nods, knowing that she didn't tell me this and is probably desperate to know what I'm up to. "Thanks. I appreciate it."

"I hope so."

"Tick, tock," says Wiress softly, peering at the jungle

"Oh, goody, she's back. Okay, I'm going to sleep. You and Nuts can guard together," Johanna says.

"Tick, tock," repeats Wiress and Katniss, almost lovingly, rests her ally's head so that she can sleep. "Tick, tock."

"Tick, tock. It's time for bed. Tick, tock. Go to sleep."

When I see Katniss like this it's easy to forget the scowling and stubborn teenager than drives me crazy. She may be calculating but she does have a softer side and I know it's only because of our horrid government that she has to hide it so much. I wonder what she'd be like if Snow wasn't around. I wonder what we'd all be like.

Wiress continues to repeat "Tick, tock," in her sleep as Katniss keeps watch and I, too, can feel myself drifting off.

"Oh," says Katniss. "Tick, tock. Tick, tock. This is a clock."

Yes! Finally! My eyes are now wide open, waiting for Katniss to jump in to action, which she does straight away and rouses the rest of her group. She explains her theory and soon realises that they need to move over to another section otherwise the fog will come back for them.

"Wire," says Beetee as they begin to leave.

"She's right here," says Peeta. "Wiress is fine. She's coming, too."

"Wire," he repeats.

"Oh, I know what he wants," says Johanna and picks up the coil that is lying on the beach. "This worthless thing. It's some kind of wire or something. That's how he got cut. Running up to the Cornucopia to get this. I don't know what kind of weapon it's supposed to be. I guess you could pull off a piece and use it as a garrote or something. But really, can you imagine Beetee garroting somebody?"

"He won his Games with wire. Setting up that electrical trap," says Peeta. "It's the best weapon he could have."

"Seems like you'd have figured that out," says Katniss. "Since you nicknamed him Volts and all."

"Yeah, that was really stupid of me, wasn't it?" Says Johanna, "I guess I must have been distracted by keeping your little friends alive. While you were… what, again? Getting Mags killed off?"

Katniss' hand tightens on her knife as mine tightens around my bottle. If she kills Johanna she's going to spend the rest of her life regretting it if we can get her out of there alive.

"Go ahead. Try it. I don't care if you are knocked up, I'll rip your throat out," says Johanna.

"Maybe we all had better be careful where we step," says Finnick, glaring at Katniss. He takes the coil and places it on Beetee's chest. "There's your wire, Volts. Watch where you plug it."

Beetee suggests that they head back to the Cornucopia to see if they are correct about the clock and spend some time pointing out what they know happens in which sections. Peeta scratches what they do know on to a leaf but while they are all preoccupied with the arena the Careers have crept up behind them and Gloss has slit Wiress' throat.

Thankfully, Katniss' senses are second to none and she spins around, shooting her arrow in to Gloss' head while Johanna throws an axe into his sister's chest. Finnick blocks one of Brutus' spears but as he does so one of Enobaria's knives lands in his thigh.

The cannons fire and the remaining Careers are heading for the jungle, followed by the others but within seconds the land that the Cornucopia stands on begins to spin and by the time it's stopped Beetee has been flung off in to the water. Finnick dives in to rescue him and, for some unknown reason Katniss is diving in after a dead Wiress. It isn't until I see her struggling to take Beetee's wire out of her dead ally's hands that I realise what she's doing.

I doubt she's figured out what Beetee is up to but she's clever enough to know that if it's important to him she'd better make sure she has it, after all, they're in the same alliance for now.

They begin to head off the island but, as the Cornucopia has now been spun, none of them know which direction is twelve o'clock until the tidal wave at ten o'clock. When they decide where they're going Finnick and Katniss go to tap a tree but there's a look on Katniss' face that I know means she's thinking something over and I just wish I knew what.

Actually, what I really wish is that I could swoop in there right now in a hovercraft and take them all out before anyone else has to die. I was never close to Wiress but she had a brilliant mind; a mind that the Games slowly destroyed over the years until she became pitied by all the other victors for being crazy. I'm even finding myself feeling sorry for Cashmere and Gloss, they may have been Careers but I know that Snow had them in his little prostitution game as soon as they were crowned victors. They were just a product of their district and it didn't matter that they were from 1; Snow still saw them as pawns in his game that he could manipulate and that's exactly what he did.

I'm broken from my thoughts by Katniss' screams and my head quickly jerks back to the screen in front of me.

"Prim!" She's yelling, "Prim!" She's running through the jungle and it's only then that I can see a jabberjay with Prim's voice crying out, sounding as if she's being tortured. It's even unnerving me so it's no surprise when Katniss lets an arrow fly through it.

Finnick soon catches up with her but seconds later another bird begins to cry out in pain and this time it has Annie's voice, which turns Finnick in to a worried mess. If this is one of Plutarch's ideas I'm going to strangle him once we're in Thirteen. I can only imagine how horrific it would be to hear someone I loved crying out like that. I can't help but think of Vieve, despite my better judgement.

As more and more birds pile in to the section Peeta runs towards Katniss but he's prevented from reaching her by a see through wall. When the hour is finally over he embraces her tightly and all I want to do is scream at her for not loving him the way he loves her. He could have any girl he wanted and he chooses the one who can only think about herself. No, that's not fair. She'd die before anything happened to Prim.

Peeta tries to calm her down and suggests that the Gamemakers have just distorted Prim's voice just to freak her out.

"Could they do that, Beetee?" Asks Finnick, clearly still worried about Annie. "Take someone's regular voice and make it…"

"Oh, yes," says Beetee. "It's not even that difficult, Finnick. Our children learn a similar technique in school."

"Of course Peeta's right," says Johanna. "The whole country adores Katniss's little sister. If they really killed her like this, they'd probably have an uprising on their hands. Don't want that, do they? Whole country in rebellion? Wouldn't want anything like that!"

WHAT IS SHE DOING?! Everyone in the Control Room have looks of shock on their faces as they hear Johanna's words. I can see on the screen that Chaff is nearby with a smirk on his face, I guess that Johanna must have screamed the words at the top of her lungs.

After she's satisfied that she's shocked everyone she walks in to the jungle to get water but Katniss tries to stop her, warning her about the jabberjays.

"They can't hurt me," says Johanna, "There's no one left I love." She walks in to the jungle and I have to take a huge swig from my bottle to calm my nerves, I can't help it when I know her fate was so similar to mine. Hopefully when the impending war is over she'll have a chance to love someone, to have a family, even. I wish I could picture myself in the same way.

"Who did they use against Finnick?" Peeta asks Katniss.

"Somebody named Annie," she says.

"Must be Annie Cresta."

"Who?"

"Annie Cresta. She was the girl Mags volunteered for. She won about five years ago."

"I don't remember those Games much," says Katniss and, in some far away corner of my mind I think I know the reason why as I'm sure that is the year her father died in the mine accident. "Was that the earthquake year?"

"Yeah. Annie's the one who went mad when her district partner got beheaded. Ran off by herself and hid. But an earthquake broke a dam and most of the arena got flooded. She won because she was the best swimmer," says Peeta.

"Did she get better after? I mean, her mind?"

"I don't know. I don't remember ever seeing her at the Games again. But she didn't look too stable during the reaping this year."

So now the whole country knows, as well as Katniss. Finnick may have many lovers but he's only ever loved one woman, if that doesn't cause uproar in the Capitol I don't know what will. But all I can hope is that Katniss starts to see him a new light and that her trust in him increases.

A cannon booms and I can see the male tribute from ten, Gus, being lifted from the arena with parts of his skin shredded to pieces. I zoom in on that area of the arena to see a large group of rodents with sharp claws and teeth retreating in the ground. No one should have to die like that.

The faces of the dead eventually appear in the sky and Johanna says, "They're really burning through us."

"Who's left? Besides us five and District Two?" Asks Finnick.

"Chaff," says Peeta, none the wiser that Chaff isn't that far away.

Now that everything is a lot calmer and there seems to be minimal threat to their lives I send in twenty-four rolls of the District Three bread and Finnick instantly pounces on them to count them.

"An even two dozen, then?" Says Beetee, asking for confirmation of the time, I'm sure.

"Twenty-four on the nose," says Finnick.

Just over twenty-four hours and our plan comes in to action. In just over twenty-four hours Panem is going to see something it's never seen before and I'm sure none of us will ever be the same again.