Mentors

48

"I know you wanna fight." Gale tells me.

"And I'm going to."

"You have to think a little."

We stand in a dim closet, which he pulled me into as I was walking aimlessly.

"I just-" I'm choking on my words trying to speak.

"I just want to go home, Gale. I'll do anything."

His face softens, and he watches me yank at my hair, frustrated. He pulls me for a tight embrace. It's been so long since I've hugged my old best friend.

"We're going to get you there, Catnip."

I laugh a little. "I hate that nickname." He brushes over my statement.

"If you want to fight, they'll put you in combat for propagandas. Nothing more, nothing less."

"I should go check on-"

"Yeah you should go." he cuts me off, immediately going back to the cold shouldered Gale I've encountered recently.

I remain silent for a moment before his voice softens again,

"You're very caught up on helping others. Just.. try to take care of yourself. There's only one Catnip."

"We'll see."

-
I sit with my chin in my hands, leaning on a lunch table. I am half asleep, until I hear a high pitched cry radiate throughout the room.
Talisa's baby squeals as she's bobbing him up and down. It's been a while since I've seen her. I notice that she's walking normally again, no wheelchair. She's spotted me, and she tries to excuse herself through a crowd of people standing. Eventually, she finds her way to me.

"I heard President Coin is angry with you." Talisa chimes, throwing me an amused smirk.
"That's not a concern of mine."
"I don't believe that. Why are you letting her get to you?"
"I'm not."
"Katniss."
"She's just ridiculous. That's all."
"I know you want Kolton back. We all do. Yes, you're Katniss Everdeen. But you seem to forget you're just a person. Sometimes you can't save everyone."
"I know." I mutter. I'm being lectured by a girl who's younger than me, but at the same time it feels like she's decades older.
"You didn't get mad at me." She says.
"What?"
"That I said Everdeen."
I chuckle. "It really wasn't about that. It's the fact that it seems like Coin is stooping to Snow's level." I pause a moment.
"She should not be the new leader of Panem when this is all over."
"Then who should do it, you?" She asks.
"God no. No. Absolutely not. I'd rather Buttercup run this nation before I step into any position of power."
Talisa laughs at my answer.
"Don't underestimate your abilities, Everdeen." She gives me a squeeze on the shoulder before walking off. Her kid sleeps in her arms. I watch her intensely as she heads out. I could never have kids.

"Katniss?" I turn my head to see Raina, not accompanied by anyone. The expression on my face asks what's wrong.
"Mayella isn't awake yet." Mayella. Her older sister that we saw collapse above the ground while we were supposed to be hunting.
"Have you seen her?"
"No. I don't know if I want to." I offer to go with her, but she declines. She tells me she just wanted someone normal to be around. I'm not normal, but I don't argue. She sits down next to me and twists a piece of her ratted hair in her fingers. We're silent for a while. Eventually, she starts to mumble.
"Katniss. I can't raise that baby."
"When your sister wakes up she'll help you."
"Even if she wakes up, she wouldn't."
"You have me."
"But what about the rebellion? The war? And after that? When we shoot propaganda and go into combat, I can't bring my baby sister along. I just can't."
"There are plenty of people in the district willing to help you. You survived the hunger games and sparked the rebellion in the first place. Everything you've done hasn't gone unnoticed." She looks around at the other people in the cafeteria before just simply shaking her head.
"I think you should leave your sister with Kolton's family."
"I can't put that burden on them."
"It's not a burden," I insist. "Everyone here knows it's wartime and that you're a part of that. I think Kolton's mother is the most qualified person to leave your sister with."
She thinks for a minute.
"Okay."
A loud slap of a tray on a table instantly makes me alert. My eyes wander from my gross fingernails. Charity is seated across from me, and I have no energy to say anything. To my surprise, she also remains silent. She looks down at the slop on her plate, and picks at it with her fork. I study her, and I notice she has a black eye and a small, oval bandaid over her left eyebrow. I exchange a look with Raina.
"It was Kalani." Raina mouths. I shrug it off, considering I don't know who that is. As each silent moment passes, the weirder I feel. Soon, I hear the Capitol's anthem on the television screen. Caesar Flickerman introduces Johanna. Her hair is way longer than it was when I last saw her, and there are no longer streaks of red. I've never seen her wear makeup, and she wears a plain yellow dress that covers every inch of her. I can tell she's suffering. They discuss the rebellion among the districts. Halfway through the interview, Caesar offers a glass of water, and her eyes begun to fill up with tears. She quickly wipes them and takes the glass from Caesar with shaky hands before drinking the whole thing. It petrifies Raina that Johanna is the one doing the interview and not Kolton.
"What if he's dead..?"
"Then they'd broadcast it for the world to see." I say.
"Why would they do that?" Asks Charity. I look back down at my nails.
"It's the Capitol. Because it's Snow. That same person who holds the hunger games every year, sending children to their death. The one who will torture teenagers and kill stylists like Cinna. He stops at nothing to keep his power. He's ruthless and not human. If we don't put a stop to this now, who knows how many more people he'll kill. If he wants a fight, we're going to give him one."
I finally look up to see a camera in front of my face. Plutarch pops his head out from behind the camera crew and nods.
"We were testing out our equipment! We came at the right time, I think this is something we can work with."
Raina gives me a small smile. Plutarch steps in closer to us.
"Let the propos begin!" He wails, patting me on the shoulder.

-
A/n: WOW ITS BEEN SO LONG. Sorry that it's technically been two years or so since my last update. I'm wondering if anyone even remembers this story at all. This story has been doing really well despite the lack of updating. We have 52K reads and we've ranked really high in the fanfiction category which is crazy. This book used to mean the world to me, and honestly it felt so good to write this chapter. Thank you for your endless support:)
-Jenni