hey, I know its been ages since my last update. I've just been busy but I sat down and got this out, so hope you enjoy it even if its a little short. Here you go.
Chapter 3
In order to appease Haymitch, I do keep a low profile for the next few days. I don't sneak out, I don't create any trouble, I just lie in bed all day. Occasionally I visit Finnick down the hall, or my mother and Prim visit me but mostly I am alone. My night terrors do not fade though, but Haymitch stays with me most nights, sitting in the corner, half sleeping, half watching over me. He is the one to wake me up when I start to make too much noise or thrash too much. Though things between us are still tense, Haymitch defending me with Coin has helped dissolve the strain on our relationship. I appreciate him staying with me, because he knows that if the doctors find out about my attacks, they might not let me leave. So he keeps them under wraps and we simply don't talk about anything else.
Coin hasn't said a word to me since my demands, and I must admit that during all this time I've had to think, I've come up with more. I want to kill Snow. I want to be able to hunt. I hate being cooped up. The woods are where I can be myself, and not the version that anyone else wants me to be.
Four days later, my mother enters my room with a large smile and I know what this means – I am going home.
Prim welcomes me with open arms, helping me settle into my new room. There is a whole wardrobe of unfamiliar clothes but they don't seem too bad. My hunting jacket and my favourite pair of comfortable black slacks are still there. My mother makes sure I take my medications. Just as the three of us head to the dining hall for my first night back, Haymitch knocks on the door.
"Sorry to interrupt ladies," he says. "Just wanted to borrow Katniss for a moment."
Prim gives me a brief hug before dragging my mother from the apartment. I sigh, sitting down at the table. "What's going on?" I ask.
Haymitch sits opposite me, automatically pulling a flask from his pocket. "What makes you think something's going on?"
"We're too much alike. Peeta told me that once," I say wistfully. "So tell me what happened while I was in the hospital."
"Peeta and Gale were on TV again." I straighten at these words. I assumed Finnick would tell me if he saw something on television but maybe he hadn't seen it. Or maybe he had, and he was trying to protect me.
"What happened? Were they okay?"
Haymitch swirls his flask. "Peeta called for a ceasefire. He wanted to the war to stop."
"Ceasefire?" I run a hand through my damaged locks. They have grown out since we came here, filling out to a fuller length. I have a feeling that they've been giving me something for it. "He doesn't know what he's saying Haymitch."
"That's exactly what I told Coin."
"Is she sending a ship out?" I ask eagerly.
"There's a meeting today at four down in the conference room." He gets up to leave and gestures towards the door. I follow him out and down the stairs. Just as we reach the dining hall, he leans in, and in a hushed tone tells me, "You didn't hear that from me okay?"
I find the words confusing before it dawns on me. I'm not supposed to know about the meeting. Coin is discussing Peeta and Gale's rescue without me. Bet she'll hate it if I show up.
Haymitch leaves and I spot Prim and my mother at a nearby table. There is even someone else sitting with them. Finnick.
"They let you out Finnick?" I ask, slipping in beside Prim. She is watching Finnick with wide eyes and red cheeks and I recognise that look straight away. She must have a crush on him. I nudge her and she shushes me instantly.
"Only temporarily," he answers, sipping slowly at his bowl of soup. "Congratulations on getting to go hunting again."
I drop my spoon into my bowl. "What are you talking about?"
"I overheard Plutarch talking with someone. They're letting you out this afternoon."
I pick my spoon back up and take a hesitant sip. I didn't think Coin would give in so easily, especially with all the security measures around here. But after what Haymitch told me earlier, I don't doubt she has an ulterior motive. She wants me to be out when they have their special meeting.
"Wanna come with me Prim?"
"I've got reflection in the afternoon. Besides, the woods freak me out," she says with a giggle.
So I turn to Finnick because I know he doesn't have a schedule what with being in and out of the hospital. "What about you fish boy?"
Finnick pretends to think about it, scratching his chin. "Hmm, the only other thing I have on the agenda today is lying on the bed with a drip full of morphling. I think I can make the time."
Sure enough, Plutarch comes to see me later informing me that I will be given an hour for hunting. He gives me a communicuff and an ankle tracker. I am to stay within a two mile radius of District 13 and not stray. When I tell him that Finnick is coming with me, he does not seem too surprised. He gives Finnick the same spiel but before too long, we are rising to the surface. Haymitch hands me a bow and pouch of arrows just as we step out. He offers to get a weapon for Finnick but Finnick refuses. He probably knows how useless his trident would be out here.
Being in the woods makes me feel whole again. I keep low, my tread quiet in the soft grass. Finnick does no such thing, walking uncoordinatedly behind me. When he gets too loud, I motion for him to stop. He does and together we listen to the sounds of the woods. Then a loud squawk causes Finnick to fall over his own legs and go face first into the ground. A bird emerges from a tree and into the air but I'm laughing so hard that I can't manage to get a straight arrow off.
"What are you doing?" I wheeze, doubling over in laughter. My sling of arrows falls off my shoulder and it takes me a while until I can compose myself enough to pick them back up.
Finnick fixes me with a grimace. "We don't really have woods in District 4," he says, brushing a streak of dirt off his cheek. But I know he's had trouble with anything physical since the electric shock from the arena. "I could kick your butt in the ocean though," he adds, a hint of his old bravado returning to his voice.
"We're not in the ocean," I point out, gesturing around. "So I guess you're a fish out of water."
He groans at my lame joke and I manage a smile too. It is nice to spend time with someone, and not worry about what they are thinking or feeling. If I was with Gale or Peeta right now, I would be constantly scrutinising every word, every touch, every stare. With Finnick, I know that I have to worry about none of that because he is completely and hopelessly in love with Annie Cresta.
Thinking about the two of them causes a pang in my stomach that quickly stops our joking.
I manage to hit a few squirrels and birds. It is not like my usual haul but hunting does wonders for my mental health. Already, I feel like I can breathe easier out here. My eyes are sharper, my body agilely moving through the trees. I know my muscles will ache later but I don't even care.
"What's the time?" I ask him after a while.
He checks his communicuff. "Nearly four. We've still got half an hour left."
I shake my head, already moving back to the electrified fence. Finnick easily keeps pace with me, despite my head start. "We have to go back now. They're having a meeting about the rescue mission."
"But why would they send us out here if…." He trails off as we slip under the fence and head back to the District 13 entrance. "We weren't invited where we?"
I throw my head back to give him a quick smile. "Of course not Finnick."
His eyebrows rise into his thick bronze hair. "I'm offended."
"You should be."
We head to the conference room downstairs and I'm surprised to see that there are no guards at the door. Finnick opens it for me and I storm in, stamping my feet loud enough to make a proper entrance.
Everyone stops their conversation to stare at me, surprise evident on their faces. Except Coin. She doesn't look she's surprised at all.
"We weren't expecting to see you here Katniss." Her eyes go to Haymitch, who is looking away pointedly.
"I'll bet," I answer. My hands are still tight around my bow. I probably should have left it back upstairs because they might view me as a threat with it. But I feel safer with it in my hands.
"This doesn't concern you Katniss. No matter what you say, we will not allow you to go."
"I'm going," I say automatically. All of a sudden there are protests, coming at me from every angle. Haymitch is surprisingly silent. Coin silences them all with a wave of her hand. I am amazed by the power she wields over them all.
Her answer is crisp, concise. "No."
No one dares to speak again. Coin and I stare each other down, as if we are the only two people in the room. I wonder who will blink first, who will break. I am determined not to let it be me.
"Stop me," I dare.
The two guards flanking her descend on me. My bow goes up automatically, arrow primed and ready. They both stop, probably because they've seen what I can do in the arena. Finnick tenses beside me. I can see his hand reaching out and then I feel it on my arm.
"Come on Katniss," he whispers. "You don't need to do this."
But I do. There is no way they're going anywhere without me. Peeta and Gale are both in this mess because of me. I have to be the one to save them from Snow's clutches. I won't be able to forgive myself if they don't let me go and they don't get them back.
"Think carefully about what you do next Katniss. Mockingjay or not, there might be no going back if you do something stupid now."
My hands start to shake around my bow. Slowly I lower it. I chuck it at the feet of one of the guards and spin on my heels to leave the room. I make sure no one sees my tears as I fly up the staircase and back up to our apartment. I slam the door shut and sink to the floor, my head buried in my lap. I sit there for a long time, choking back sobs. Ten minutes later, when I have regained some of my composure, there is a knock at the door. I'm expecting it to be Haymitch or even Prim coming to see how I am. But when I open the door, it is not at all who I expect it to be.
"Hi," I say, wiping away the evidence of my tears with the back of my hand. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again."