Thank you so much for reading and for all the amazing reviews I've had, it means a lot that people are enjoying this!

I do not own the Hunger Games nor its characters.

Chapter Fifty-Eight

The rolls are divided and Peeta and Katniss volunteer to take the first watch while the others sleep. The small amount of the alliance that remains only unnerves me, especially as Chaff is wandering through the jungle by himself, gaining injuries that I can't help him with and I doubt he has any sponsors.

"Katniss," says Peeta, "It's no use pretending we don't know what the other one is trying to do. I don't know what kind of deal you think you've made with Haymitch, but you should know he made me promises as well. So I think we can assume he was lying to one of us."

I'm lying to both of you, I think and order another bottle of liquor from a nearby avox.

"Why are you saying this now?" Asks Katniss, confused.

"Because I don't want you forgetting how different our circumstances are. If you die, and I live, there's no life for me at all back in District Twelve. You're my whole life. I would never be happy again. It's different for you. I'm not saying it wouldn't be hard. But there are other people who'd make your life worth living."

He takes the locket he's wearing from around his neck and clicks it open, revealing pictures of Prim, Clara and Gale. "Your family needs you, Katniss," he says. "No one really needs me."

"I do," says Katniss, "I need you." And, for once, her words seem genuine, as if she really will be heartbroken if anything were to happen to him. She reinforces her words by placing her lips on his and kissing him so passionately that I start to feel uncomfortable, like a dirty old man. This isn't like the other kisses they've shared and, although I can't give them complete privacy from Panem I can pretend that by closing my eyes everyone is else is doing the same.

I don't sleep for long and when I wake up Finnick and Johanna are keeping watch, staring at the waves of the lake.

"How are you feeling?" Johanna asks Finnick.

"Not, now," he says. "I'm sorry…I just can't."

"It's okay," she says and rests her head on his shoulder.

When Beetee wakes up an hour later he joins them near the water but none of them speak, they're probably worried that anything they say is going to give hints to the Capitol about our plan.

Just as Katniss and Peeta awake I send in another batch of rolls from District Three just to reinforce the message; tonight is the night that they all leave the arena. One way or another.

After they've eaten Katniss drags Peeta over to the water to teach him how to swim and, in the process, discovers that the water can heal their remaining scabs.

"They're plotting," says Johanna to Finnick on the beach, "I can tell. She's desperate to bump us off."

Finnick eyes Katniss and Peeta before turning away, "You don't know that, Johanna."

Johanna clearly isn't convinced but she turns back and takes a nap nonetheless while Katniss does indeed try to plot her escape with Peeta.

"Tell you what," says Peeta, "Let's stick around until Brutus and Enobaria are dead. I think Beetee's trying to put together some kind of trap for them now. Then, I promise, we'll go."

"All right, we'll stay until the Careers are dead. But that's the end of it." She turns around and her face changes from that infamous scowl to a happy, smiley one. "Hey, Finnick, come on in! We figured out how to make you pretty again!"

Finnick dives in to the water and the three of them emerge with shiny, clean bodies as they join the others on the beach. Beetee gathers them around and finally reveals his plan, under the guise of killing the Careers.

He tells them that he wants to tie the wire around the lightning tree and lead it down to the lake, hopefully the Careers will be on the beach once they've left and the wire will electrocute them. No one is entirely sure how it will work, myself included, but they all agree to the plan.

I'm distracted from the screen by an avox approaching me with a note and, even though they have to remain expressionless, I can tell that my odour is having an impact on her. It only then occurs to me that I haven't left this chair since the beginning of the Games. I thank her and open the note.

Roof of The Velvet Hotel at 11pm.

I hate the idea of leaving my screen at such an important time but if I don't I know that Snow will send in Peacekeepers to arrest me as soon as the force field of the arena is broken. I can't even allow myself to think about the things he would do to me if I was captured so I just down half a bottle and shake the thoughts from my mind.

Finnick has prepared plenty of seafood for the group so I take this as an opportunity to send in yet another message about the break out, sending a pot of spicy red sauce in, too. I bet it already looks suspicious that I'm sending the same gift, I may as well look like it's just an addition to the meal they have.

They gorge themselves on food and I do the same, ordering as much as I can before I have to leave as I'm not sure when I'll next get the chance to eat. I can see the rest of the mentors looking over at me in disgust but I don't care, I've got bigger things to worry about, now.

Just before nine the group leaves the beach and heads towards the lightning tree to secure the wire. I see no point in me hanging around until the last minute in case Snow has people watching me so I get up from my chair and leave the Control Room, hoping that I'll never have to see that horrid place again.

I ponder going back to my room for a wash and to grab some clothes but I don't want to waste time and, to be honest, I have no material possessions that I care that greatly about. As long as I'm alive long enough to see Snow killed I can die in peace.

I jump in to a taxi and within half an hour I'm at The Velvet Hotel, which, as the name suggests, has an interior covered in varying shades of velvet. It's only ten o'clock so I go to the bar for a quick drink and find that the Games are on a huge television with a large crowd of Capitolites gathered around it.

The alliance are working on securing the wire whilst Brutus and Enobaria are scouring the jungle for them with Chaff on their tail.

"I thought Chaff was meant to be up for a fight," one woman remarks, "But he's been completely boring! I don't understand how he's still alive!"

I keep my groans to myself but I can't help but think of Effie's words on the train and how Chaff could never stay out of a fight, which was only because the other victors used to antagonise him.

Effie. I haven't thought about her for days, nor Cinna and Portia for that matter. I don't know if Plutarch was planning to get them out, too, but after Cinna's stunt at the interviews I'm doubtful I'll ever see him again.

Just as I'm leaving the bar I hear Peeta saying that he wants to go with them as a guard and my head whips around to see that Johanna and Katniss are preparing to leave by themselves.

"You're too slow," says Beetee, "Besides, I'll need you on this end. Katniss will guard. There's no time to debate this. I'm sorry. If the girls are to get out of there alive, they need to move now."

What is he doing?! He can't split them up, who knows what will happen!

"It's okay," says Katniss to Peeta, "We'll just drop the coil and come straight back up."

I'm not sure if my nerves can take any more so I leave the bar and get in to the lift, hitting the button for the roof. When I arrive a cool breeze hits my face but I welcome it as the sensation makes me feel more alert.

There's a garden up here similar to the one on the roof of the Training Centre but I'm the only person here, I guess the entire populace of the Capitol are glued to their television screens right now.

At what I predict to be exactly eleven o'clock I hear the buzzing sound of a hovercraft and look up to see a ladder folding down towards me. I climb on and I'm instantly frozen before it begins to retract.

I find myself in a room filled with screens, keyboards and people in grey clothes milling around. Plutarch stands in front of me with a Capitol woman by his side who I have never seen before. She has silver flowers tattooed on to her cheeks which, by Capitol standards, isn't that crazy.

"Haymitch, this is Fulvia Cardew, my assistant," says Plutarch.

"It's nice to meet you," says Fulvia, shaking my hand.

"Yeah," I say, not really bothered, "So how are we hiding this hovercraft from the Capitol exactly?"

Plutarch grins, "These are some of the best technological minds from Thirteen, they're intercepting all the Capitol computers that monitor air traffic and seeing as most of the city are watching the Games, they're not watching us."

I don't think it's a fool proof solution to the problem but it's the best we've got, I suppose.

Plutarch leads me over to a screen where Johanna and Katniss are walking through the jungle, laying down the wire as they go whereas the other three are still near the tree. I look to another screen to see Brutus and Enobaria getting scarily close to the wire.

"This is bad," I mutter.

"No plan was ever going to be without its problems, Haymitch," says Plutarch but his words provide little comfort.

Fifteen minutes later and Enobaria has reached the wire, slashing it with her knife.

"Did Volts really think that was going to work?" She says to Brutus, who smirks in response.

Katniss and Johanna see the wire recoiling and the former quickly goes to grab an arrow but Johanna smashes the side of her head with the coil and jumps on top of her, pushing Katniss to the ground. She pushes a knife in to Katniss' arm and removes her tracker.

"Stay down," she says and stands up, leaving Katniss to go in search of the Careers.

Enobaria and Brutus pass by Katniss but move on in the same direction as Johanna, declaring that she's as good as dead, anyway.

Johanna is now stalking through the jungle as Katniss gets back up and Finnick manically runs through the jungle. Peeta shoots off after him but he's too slow and can't keep the same pace that Finnick can.

"Johanna!" Shouts Finnick, "Katniss!" But no one answers so he continues to move on.

And then my heart stops. Brutus and Enobaria stumble across Chaff and their faces quickly form sadistic smiles. Chaff doesn't run, he looks Brutus dead in the eye as he approaches, his knife ready. Brutus throws his spear but Chaff dodges it, which only enrages the Career. He takes one of Enobaria's knives and runs at Chaff, forcing him to the ground. They wrestle for a while before Brutus finally overpowers Chaff and stabs him in the chest. The cannon booms and I have to stop myself from smashing the screen.

"I'm so sorry," says Plutarch. "He was-"

"Don't, Plutarch," I snap, "I don't want to hear it."

Brutus orders Enobaria to go in search of Finnick and Johanna while he hunts down Peeta, convinced that he'll be looking for Katniss by now.

Katniss, however, has now reached an almost unconscious Beetee. It looks like Finnick has removed his tracker and the blood loss is affecting him.

"How close are we to the arena?" I bark.

"We're almost there but unless someone blows the force field there's nothing we can do," says Plutarch.

Peeta is running through the jungle, shouting for Katniss but he's too far away. Brutus follows his voice and it isn't long before the two of them are face to face, weapons at the ready.

"I'm so glad that I get to be the one that put a knife in little Peeta Mellark's heart," taunts Brutus. "I'm not sure whose death will most upset Haymitch, yours or Chaff's."

"You killed Chaff?" Asks Peeta.

"Oh, yes," says Brutus and runs at Peeta but the latter is quicker and plunges his knife deep in to the Career's stomach as soon as he's close enough. He removes the knife and begins to run back through the jungle, calling out for Katniss.

"Peeta! I'm here!" Shouts Katniss but they're still too far apart.

Finnick and Enobaria both reach the tree but they can't see Katniss as she's hidden away. She reaches for Beetee's knife, which has some of the golden wire wrapped around it, and secures it to one of her arrows.

"We're just coming over the arena now," shouts one of the workers from Thirteen. "Get ready for the explosion!"

Katniss shoots the arrow in to the sky and huge blasts of light appear as the force field is shattered. I can see three claws reach down and collect Katniss, Beetee and Finnick and seconds later they're all lying on the floor of the hovercraft in front of me, barely conscious.

We did it, I think. We got her out. The revolution lives.

Plutarch approaches them and shuts Katniss' eyes before ordering a member of staff to take them all to the medical room.

"We need to get out of here now!" Shouts someone near a screen, "The Capitol have just ordered five hovercrafts to attack!"

"No!" I roar, "We need to get Peeta! And Johanna!"

"We can't, Haymitch!" Says Plutarch, "If we don't leave now everything we've worked for will be lost, they'll understand."

He's right, of course he is, but I don't like it. I hate it. If only Katniss hadn't left Peeta behind, we might have been able to save them both. Now she's going to hate me even more when we tell her the truth.

"Right, we're back on course for Thirteen," someone shouts.

"Haymitch," says Plutarch, "Why don't you go and get cleaned up, have a rest and I'll call you when they're awake?"

I want to say no, I want to be by Katniss' side until she wakes up. I want to see that Finnick is okay but, in truth, I'm exhausted and I know there's nothing I can do so I allow Fulvia to show me to a very clinical looking room with a small bathroom and a bed. There are grey clothes in a wardrobe for me to put on and once I've showered and changed I'm asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.

"Mr. Abernathy!" A voice shouts and jolts me awake, "Finnick Odair is awake if you'd like to see him!"

It takes me seconds to jump out of the bed and open the door to find a very startled looking woman from Thirteen. She leads down various corridors until we reach a room where Plutarch and Finnick are sitting around a table eating broth.

"How are you feeling?" I ask Finnick as I too sit down and help myself to a bread roll.

"I've been better. Plutarch's just told me that Johanna and Peeta have been picked up by the Capitol with Enobaria."

"But we can get them back," says Plutarch. "I'm sure we can, we have quite a few on our side in the city."

"And how are the districts doing?" I ask.

"Communications are down in Seven, Ten, and Twelve. But Eleven has control of transportation now, so there's at least a hope of them getting some food out."

"What about Annie? Have you heard anything about her?" Asks Finnick.

"Not yet, Finnick, no but-"

"Then take me to Four! I'm not leaving her by herself, she has no one!"

"No, I'm sorry. There's no way I can get you to Four. But I've given special orders for her retrieval if possible. It's the best I can do, Finnick."

"I want to kill myself, maybe they'll leave her alone, then," Finnick mumbles.

"Don't be stupid. That's the worst thing you could do. Get her killed for sure." I say, "As long as you're alive, they'll keep her alive for bait."
Finnick opens his mouth to respond but he's interrupted by the door flying open to reveal Katniss with a syringe in her hand, looking completely frantic. She stumbles in to the room, almost falling over several times.

"Done knocking yourself out, sweetheart?" I say. She takes a few steps forward but looks as if she's about to fall so I grab her wrists to steady herself. "So it's you and a syringe against the Capitol? See, this is why no one lets you make the plans. Drop it." She doesn't immediately let go so I squeeze tight on her wrist until the needle falls to the floor. I place her in a chair next to Finnick and Plutarch instructs her to eat.

"Katniss, I'm going to explain what happened. I don't want you to ask any questions until I'm through. Do you understand?" I say, sitting down opposite her and she nods.

I take in a deep breath and finally reveal everything I've been hiding from her, feeling a mixture of annoyance at her behaviour and relief that she finally knows. Will I ever come to terms with this strange relationship we have?

"You didn't tell me," she croaks.

"Neither you nor Peeta were told. We couldn't risk it," says Plutarch. "I was even worried you might mention my indiscretion with the watch during the Games." He takes a pocket watch out and runs his finger over it to reveal the image of a mockingjay. "Of course, when I showed you this, I was merely tipping you off about the arena. As a mentor. I thought it might be a first step toward gaining your trust. I never dreamed you'd be a tribute again."

"I still don't understand why Peeta and I weren't let in on the plan," says Katniss.

"Because once the force field blew, you'd be the first ones they'd try to capture, and the less you knew, the better," says Haymitch.

"The first ones? Why?"

"For the same reason the rest of us agreed to die to keep you alive," says Finnick.

"No, Johanna tried to kill me," says Katniss.

"Johanna knocked you out to cut the tracker from your arm and lead Brutus and Enobaria away from you," says Haymitch.

"What?" My head aches so and I want them to stop talking in circles. "I don't know what you're—"

"We had to save you because you're the mockingjay, Katniss," says Plutarch. "While you live, the revolution lives."

"Peeta," she whispers.

"The others kept Peeta alive because if he died, we knew there'd be no keeping you in an alliance," I say, "And we couldn't risk leaving you unprotected.".

"Where is Peeta?" She snaps.

"He was picked up by the Capitol along with Johanna and Enobaria," I say, dropping my gaze.

I don't even realise what she's doing until her nails are digging in to my face and Plutarch and Finnick have to drag her away from me. I'm shouting horrible, awful things at her that I instantly regret but she has no idea how long I've waited for this. How many children I've seen die before there's even been a hint of rebellion amongst the districts.

She may be hurting but so am I and it's feeling I've never gotten used to.

I just want to say sorry if the events of this chapter don't quite follow the book, I found the whole section to be a bit confusing so I've just done the best I can. Hopefully you get the same gist as what happens in the book!