Author's Note: The Capitol begin preparations for the Ninetieth Games as the victors enter the third decade in this new era with a forced visit to the Capitol.

….

Interlude Two

The victors had gathered in the Capitol for a Games event in between the Victory Tour and the start of the Ninetieth Annual Hunger Games. The Capitol had forced them all, no exceptions allowed, to attend their pre-Games publicity spectacle. It was a pivotal year for the Capitol, marking nine full decades of the institution of the Hunger Games and everything that came with it. It was also the very start of the build-up to the centennial year.

"As if we're reaching one hundred years," Finnick scoffed to Halley as they arrived for the week's first drinks reception, marking their arrival into the Capitol.

"We won't give them the chance. All their plans for the Quell of all Quarter Quells will go to waste."

There was no doubt in the minds of Finnick, Halley or Poppy that this year marked the beginning of the end for the Capitol. They had been building slowly, increasing their capacities and numbers and now they would turn the screws. Mags had led them to the brink and Chloe held the fort and kept them together as plans changed drastically. Now it was time for them to lead the rebels over the finish line.

They could not risk being discovered, everyone involved knew that and was equally committed to maintaining secrecy, but it was events such as this which ought to make it obvious that the victors were beyond control. But President Elda had decided that they were an irrelevance and had allowed them to operate from the shadows.

They were all using the time they had whilst in the Capitol and not at official events to meet up with their contacts, making the most of the extra time. Finnick was especially busy, and Halley and Poppy oversaw their younger victors in making connections of their own.

Since Maria's passing, Charo and Adan had needed to increase their contact with their district's Capitol connections and Finnick saw them rushing off to various meetings with agricultural and industry leaders. He had also heard talk of a planned expansion of their restaurant business into the Capitol which he knew he would have to talk to them about.

He also had the privilege of playing poker at a table with Peeta Mellark. Finnick knew Twelve's victor was naturally talented, having always been an adept liar. But with years of practice, Peeta had become a master of the game. He had organised an anniversary special game, with him, Chaff, Finnick and those in the Capitol who had taken the most money from him in his earliest days. It was time for his revenge and Finnick had a front-row seat.

The casino was busy that night and from his perch, Finnick saw Haymitch making his way around the roulette tables before joining his own poker game, where to the surprise of none of the victors, he was joined by Effie Trinket. They had formed an alliance, exchanged information, and made useful contacts for each other. Finnick thought Haymitch had managed to bring Effie into the rebel fold. It had taken years, but Twelve's victors' combined efforts had opened her eyes.

They were not a couple, Finnick knew that, but the pair worked seamlessly. Effie was smart, although she never let on and the pair had a strategy for poker. Peeta and Chaff played their game too, something Finnick realised he was left outside of.

He watched as Peeta conceded the first couple of rounds as Chaff took on a leading role, and then they allowed some of the Capitol guests a way in before Peeta struck and relieved them of their money. Finnick knew Chaff would cheat but from what he had seen and heard of Peeta's game, it seemed that he rarely needed to resort to underhand tactics. He could read a room like nobody else.

To his surprise, Katniss also joined in on the act, playing the part of a concerned wife, worried that her husband was gambling away their fortune. It took attention away from the game and the heat off the table at appropriate moments. Finnick was sure the timing was planned between Eleven and Twelve's victors as Chaff suddenly found another streak of luck and Peeta by this point, could do no wrong.

By the end of the game, Peeta had won the lot and everyone else was cleaned out. He had taken his revenge and a serious sum of money with it. He cashed in before they left the casino and returned with Finnick and Chaff's stakes and a profit for them both for their time.

Peeta had joked about the amount of paint and flour he could buy, but Finnick knew that Twelve was planning on entering the arms game. Rogue dealers and peacekeepers would need to be bought for their silence and the guns that would be making their way east.

Finnick understood that there was also a media project in the planning stages, sparked by a conversation that Peeta had had with Effie. His former escort had told him that in a rather unfortunate way, District Twelve needed to be seen to be believed. Finnick agreed with her. Everyone knew Twelve was poor and it was the butt of so many jokes, but you had to see it properly to understand the depth of poverty and deprivation. It had shocked Finnick, and he knew that it had surprised Annie, Ossian and most recently, Aquaria on their Victory Tours.

Effie had explained that any revolution would need a strong media and propaganda plan and making people look District Twelve in the eye could be part of that. Peeta understood this implicitly and along with Katniss, they were due to purchase cameras and discrete video recording equipment so they could have ample footage ready.

It was a good night for District Twelve. Haymitch had won handsomely and Peeta had taken home winnings on a new scale. Katniss rarely placed bets anymore but had played her supporting role well and understood the scale of the evening's success. The night had gone exactly to plan.

….

The following morning the victors were all dressed in variations of their district's arena colour for a lengthy photoshoot for the promotional material leading up to the Ninetieth Annual Hunger Games. Nobody envied the photographers' roles, but at the same time, nobody planned on making it easy for them.

Positioning everybody for the opening group photo containing every surviving victor took a long time. Finnick wanted to talk to Halley, Aria and Gem wanted to console Charo and Adan whilst Haymitch and Chaff were planning their escape.

But the most successful in making an escape attempt was Coral, who much to everyone's delight, tried to leave the set claiming that if Chloe were taking the photos they would be finished by now and she was fed up. It was a sign that somewhere, part of the Coral they all knew was still there despite her fading memories. Beetee found himself close to tears, knowing that his friend was still holding onto her spirit.

After the photographers confirmed they had the photos they needed, the victors were lined up, in district order for individual photos. There was lots of grumbling, some louder than others about the memories this evoked. They were victors, not children and yet the Capitol herded them around as if they were tributes once more.

Brutus could be overheard complaining to Lyme about how demeaning the entire set-up was. They were victors and should be treated as such and if the Capitol were to force them around like children, they would have to accept them behaving like children.

Finnick took to walking up and down the line, passing comments on some of the outfit choices forced on them.

"Cashmere! Gloss! Delightful as always!" he joked.

"Completely tasteless," Cashmere replied.

"Speak for yourself, I look fabulous!"

"You're nearly naked," Lyme interrupted from near the front of the queue for Two's victors.

"I'm wearing District Four blue somewhere!"

"You don't need to show me."

"I'll leave it to your imagination!"

Finnick continued walking and turned his attention towards Ember who was practically surrounded by Brutus, who was keen to protect his victor from the gaze of others.

"Ember! Someone else almost as naked as me! An unconventional choice for District Two. Even Antigone has some clothes on!"

Brutus growled in response before Ember placed her hand over his to reassure him, "Apparently, they want almost all my fake parts and prosthetics on show. I swear if they give me that mace again."

"Oh, they will! Don't you doubt that. I'm sure my trident is waiting in the wings somewhere. But you said almost all your fake parts, what else are you hiding?"

Ember gestured to her chest before Brutus firmly told Finnick he had had enough of his joking. Exposing his victor in this way had made him deeply uncomfortable and he knew that Ember never needed the reminder of what the Games had done to her. She lived it every day and it was not something Capitol viewers could gawk at and speculate over.

Before Finnick could irritate Brutus further, Halley pulled Finnick over to her.

"I've never suited this awful yellow," she said, rolling her eyes.

"It's not your best look."

"You don't have to tell me twice. I'm ready to blow this whole thing up!"

"When the time is right, Halley."

Finnick walked past his fellow victors from Four, slapping both Noah and Ossian on their equally naked chests before finding Annie and holding his hands in hers. She was clinging onto Song. Her composure was slipping, and she wanted to go home.

"You're doing so well," Finnick whispered. "Just get through this and those damn interviews and you can go home with Chloe and Coral."

Realising it would be a long time before they reached his position in the queue, Finnick decided to go and rile up Johanna who was already picking at her outfit and threatening to destroy it before the photos could even be taken.

At the back of the queue, Katniss Everdeen looked equally furious and Finnick decided he could also pass the time by irritating her. Peeta was not so easily wound up and Haymitch would enjoy the show and pull out a hipflask he had hidden. They had a long time to wait.

The photoshoot lasted long into the afternoon and by the time they finally reached District Twelve's photographs, everybody was desperate to leave. They had suffered through individual photos, district group photos, shots with their mentors and other select groupings the photographers wanted, confined to their own district's victors to continue with the pretence of district rivalries even after the Games.

Just as they thought they would be able to leave, the photographers announced that they wanted to choose some other symbolic groups for photos. The Capitol, it seemed, was going to allow inter-district photographs but only on their terms. Nobody was to know just how deep the bonds between the victors ran and the promotional images were not going to be the way blind Capitol dwellers found out.

They started with images of Gem and Liev together as the oldest female and male victors before asking Chloe, Satin and Coral to join as the oldest five victors. Coral by now, was confused and agitated. It had been a very long day, in newly unfamiliar surroundings. Chloe had to work at keeping her partner calm. Beetee was also asked to join Chloe, Coral and Liev in photos as a sign of their apparently harmless friendship and tried to assist Chloe in keeping Coral calm until they were told they could leave.

Nobody objected to seeing Coral leave. It had been unfair to leave her waiting for so long and it was distressing to see her continued deterioration and how it was impacting the others from Four.

Finnick was playing his role, in his element and even he breathed a sigh of relief when his senior victor was able to leave, and Halley reached out to him in support.

"I'm sorry. We all are. This must be so tough. With Annie here too and trying to keep her together, this is all a bit of a nightmare for you."

"The Capitol know we're together. But we don't want them taking any photos of us unaware so we're keeping a distance."

"Finnick Odair being discrete! There's a first time for everything!"

Finnick laughed and promptly changed the subject, "Apparently, they see Chloe and Liev and Coral and Beetee as harmless old people in quaint old friendships. I wonder if they'll ask us to pose together!"

"You wish," Halley laughed. "It's obvious there's nothing harmless about us. I don't know why I'm still here. They don't normally like reminders of me."

Halley found out that she was being kept around for photos with Poppy and Cecelia. The Capitol liked their friendship. Eight's other victors had been dismissed. They had plenty of the mother-daughter images they wanted between Cecelia and Calista and nobody in the Capitol wanted anybody with the surname Paylor in any more publicity shots than was strictly necessary. Cotton looked close to a breakdown, so she was dismissed along with Annie.

Halley and Poppy had to wait whilst the photographers spent a long time photographing the youngest victors. They were fixated on the combined beauty of Antigone, Amethyst and Aquaria. It was tiresome watching the three be directed through frame after frame, covering everything from strong and businesslike to provocative and dangerous.

Then, the two other youngest victors, Orion and Cameron were brought back onto the set. Halley and Poppy could not help but laugh at the contrast between their victors and the three young women. Their boys looked confused and uncomfortable as the three women continued through the photoshoot with ease whilst their every move and gesture was corrected.

Cameron became angry and Poppy realised why she had been kept around. She moved into Cameron's eyeline and tried to be a familiar, comforting presence but it seemed Antigone had other ideas.

Poppy had seen from Cameron's Victory Tour that he and Antigone had a strange chemistry and Two's victor sought to wind Cameron up further. She pressed her sharp nails into his chest where the skin was exposed under the collar of his shirt and growled in his ear. Cameron's eyes flickered dangerously, and Poppy was about to throw herself in the group to try to avert disaster, but the photographers loved it and somehow, Cameron slowly started to calm down.

After they had returned to their Training Centre accommodations, it was no surprise to Poppy when Cameron told her he was going to see Antigone. Alone, she left Six's floor to see Seven's victors, but she was intercepted by Lyme on her way. Two's woman told her that there was an exodus from her floor as they all escaped the noise coming from Antigone's room. Lyme had decided that she needed to meet with Four's victors but wanted to let Poppy know that her victor had not completely escaped before meeting with their allies.

Poppy rolled her eyes, thanked Lyme and decided she would forget about whatever her victor was doing and drink with Seven's victors instead.

….

The victors' patience was tried again the following day as they were all lined up in district order once more, this time for group interviews with Lucretius Flickerman. They were dressed in updated versions of their former interview outfits, a move which did not earn the gratitude of anyone.

As they were waiting, Finnick once again turned to Halley and whispered, "Anybody else had the idea that they'll be throwing us back in an arena tomorrow?"

"The thought had crossed my mind. They've made sure to have lots of parallels, but we would know by now."

"Don't give them any ideas. But say they do, who are you killing first?"

Halley laughed, "I'd just blow everyone up at once."

"Even me?"

"You're too pretty to waste on some fireworks, Finnick."

Their conversation was interrupted by Song, the frustrations of the week's events affecting her, "Stop talking like that! Both of you. You know damn well everyone here has thought about it. Besides, you should listen to Gem, she's running rings around Flickerman."

Song was right about Gem. Onstage, during District One's collective interview, she was reminding Lucretius Flickerman how she had been around when his grandfather and father had been the Master of Ceremonies and that he would do well to listen to her experience. She knew the Games better than he did.

She had made her longevity the primary subject of conversation, trying to prevent the conversation from simply being an ode to Amethyst's beauty and charm. Her District One girls were beautiful, but by now, Gem found them boring. There had been one Hunger Games for every year of Gem's life, and she had inadvertently shaped so many of them. She was trying, subtly to make the point that her time would come to an inevitable end soon enough and so would the Games. But Flickerman would never pick up on that even if he had heard Gem's message.

District Two surprised nobody, but that worked for the Capitol, where everybody wanted the same thing. A bloodthirsty, dramatic Ninetieth Hunger Games and Two's tributes could be relied on more than any other to deliver that.

Beetee decided to frazzle Lucretius Flickerman with statistics in an attempt to undermine the entire institution of the Games. He rattled off examples of how many arenas had included forests, fields, and natural disasters and questioned the creativity and ingenuity of the Gamemakers. He was assured of a surprise for the upcoming Games and Beetee said he would be the judge of that.

It was down to District Four's tributes to create a more jovial atmosphere because everyone knew that would be difficult for most of the remaining victors. Noah, Finnick and Ossian cracked jokes at the Capitol's expense and Aquaria was forced to speak in earnest about her role as the newest victor and youngest member of the group. But even she managed to twist the knife as she told Lucretius that she had learnt more from the other victors than she could ever imagine. The Capitol could not compare.

Soleil took the lead in District Five's interview, dragging her fellow victors through their allotted time, telling them it was good they had her around as none of them were any good at interviews. Poppy did the same for her and Cameron, albeit because Cameron was angry and ready to attack anyone who said the wrong thing.

Lucretius Flickerman could not get a word in over Seven's victors. They carried on their conversation as if he were not there and made it clear that they did not care for his presence. It was left to Cecelia and her girls from Eight to pick the atmosphere back up and charm Flickerman back into the spotlight. As ever, Cecelia knew what she was doing and was the one in control of their interview.

Ryan spent the entirety of District Nine's interview trying to disguise the fact that Barley was drunk and unwell and that Barric was holding him upright in his seat. Maizey was trying to support him, but the work was left to Ryan who joked and laughed with Flickerman before switching the conversation to the supposed joys of life in District Nine.

Charo looked like she could be sick and Adan like he was about to murder Lucretius when he raised their daughter's eligibility for the Reaping as a topic of conversation. They all knew Maria would never have allowed that comment to pass but Charo and Adan dealt with it in their way. Every time the conversation was brought back to Rosa, they pivoted onto another matter altogether.

When it was finally Eleven's turn, Seeder was relieved that Marshall could be trusted in interviews otherwise they would have been treated to the drinking songs Chaff proposed to sing. She was one of the older, wiser victors as she had told Lucretius and she had assured him that nothing the Capitol could do in the Ninetieth Games could surprise her. Marshall spoke of his hopes for a District Eleven win in such a pinnacle year and Seeder knew they could leave the stage having not caused any trouble for themselves or their people at home.

….

"What was I supposed to say? Enjoy watching Twelve's tributes last five minutes!"

"Katniss and Haymitch sure left you with a lot of work in interviews."

"Haymitch was drunk. I'd rather not have to deal with whatever came out of his mouth when he'd had too much whisky and was angry about being forced on stage. Katniss was just Katniss. I'm used to it."

"But you did well. There was a group of us, so it made it easier. I hardly had to speak as they wanted to pretend I wasn't there in case I started screaming. They only wanted me there for the sake of it."

"You did well, Annie."

"You were great," Noah echoed. "Did what you needed to do and went home without any fuss. We all knew they only wanted to paw at Finnick anyway."

"I remember you and Ozzy getting lots of attention!" Peeta laughed.

"Of course. The three shirtless men from District Four, at our most natural half-naked in front of an audience. But they forgot I was in my mid-forties and didn't have the body of an eighteen-year-old anymore. They always put me in a shirt after that."

"I only had to carry on playing the lovestruck teenager. So, I had it a lot easier. But like you, me and Katniss were not sixteen anymore. We had been together properly for ten years, married, for us at least, for five, not however long we had been married by Capitol standards."

"You're adults, in your thirties, not about to act sickly sweet for the cameras."

"Katniss never did that anyway."

"You sure did!"

"I know. But they loved it, and it kept us safer than most. Sorry, Noah. But it was all so ridiculous, having us back like that, treating us like we were children and watching us run riot."

"Flickerman junior didn't know what to do with himself."

"He wasn't as good as Caesar. Always asked inane questions and lost control when we answered however we wanted."

"It started with Gem and then it all went downhill from there. Poor Lucretius."

"I can't say I have too much sympathy," Peeta said. "It's not as if he had a difficult job."

"You would say that. It's the sort of thing you're good at. You could read the room and he never could."

"Despite the silliness of it all, I enjoyed being back, with all of you, in a strange sort of way."

"I did too," Noah added. "It was bonus time with you all, more time for scheming, drinking, taking those huge winnings in the casino."

"Best game I've played and at the right time too. Gave us a head start in Twelve once the money found its way through the system."

"I don't understand how they could be so stupid," Annie added. "I'd been away for years so I guess I saw it differently, but it was so obvious. We hated everything about the Games, worked with a lot more freedom than anyone else in the districts and trusted each other."

"They didn't realise until it was too late. They were too concerned about the Games and planning the lead-up to the centenary to see what we were doing."

"It's their own fault."

"And it was so well deserved. They had it coming, everything from that point on was meant to happen."