I Promise to Get You Out of There

After the Interview

I stand there, frozen, watching the Capitol Seal on the screen as it fades and the screen goes black. She's alive. That's all I can process at the moment.

All around me, there are whispers and every now and again I catch a word like 'betrayal' or 'rose'. I turn to Gale and I see him looking at his shoes, a small frown on his face, he's worried about her. We both are. He catches my eye and looks pointedly towards the exit, I nod and we both slowly make our way over.

"You have not been dismissed, Soldiers," calls President Coin from her chair. She has perfectly straight, grey hair. I often stare at it because it truly is perfectly straight. Not even a strand out of place. Gale and I turn around briefly to acknowledge her, before continuing to move towards the door. Boggs steps in front of us. I prepare to politely ask him to move but Gale draws his fist back and smacks him in the face before surging forward. I look at him briefly in shock before following closely behind.

Gale is breathing heavily and powering forward on his long legs, I quickly catch up and walk alongside him, deep in thought. Katniss is ok, but she's still in the Capitol, I have to get her out.

Gale takes a left into one of the classrooms and slams the door after I hastily scramble inside. Gale starts pacing and running his hands through his hair, I stand there in shock, I suppose The anger hasn't really set in yet. "We have to get her OUT!" Gale shouts, startling me, I remember when I asked Coin about getting Katniss out of the Capitol and she had replied with a curt 'no'.

"Soldier Mellark, we need you to be the face of the rebellion," Coin said in a tone that held both authority and a hint of desperation, both of which were apparent in her eyes. "The people need someone to follow, to join forces with against the Capitol. This is a rare oppertunity, Soldier, and if we don't act now we may be waiting another 75 years." Coin clasped her hands on the table in front of her and waited for my verdict. We were in some sort of conference room on the lower levels of 13. Coin made a good argument, I had to admit it, but I was still very angry at her for leaving Katniss in the arena. Katniss who's now in the Capitol. I remember thinking bitterly. "If I do agree to this," I began, "I'm speaking in the hypothetical sense," I said when Coin rose in her seat with excitement, she nodded and sat back down, allowing me to finish. "If I do, what will happen to Katniss," I finished, surprized at how calm and confident I sounded.

Coin studied me for a while, "Soldier Mellark, I hope you realise what I difficult feat it would be, to break into the Capitol, past all of the defenses, locate Ms. Everdeen and then bring her back to district 13. It is an impossible task. So, I say this with the utmost sincerity, Ms. Everdeen shall remain in the custody of the Capitol until such a time that it becomes safe to remove her." Coin finished with an extremely tender expression on her face. I clenched my fists, "then I cannot be your Mockingjay".

I remembered the moment and a surge of anger built up inside me, "I couldn't convince her," I said to myself, "I failed her, it's my fault she's there in the first place."

Gale, having heard my mutterings of self-hatred, stopped pacing and leant back on one of the desks that filled the classroom. "You could demand it," he said. I looked up, "sorry?" I asked, startled, "you could, if you agree to be the Mockingjay, demand the she be rescued as soon as possible," he says, his anger-filled eyes darting around the room in frustration, "I don't think you understand how much they need you, how much they need someone the districts are familiar with to lead them to the Capitol, before the peace-keepers can kill their spirit". He laughs a dark, humorless laugh, "before they can kill her". He finishes, I stare at him for a few minutes, this is a man being crushed by enormous amounts of guilt. It takes one to know one.

I pull myself up straighter, "then I'll do it," I say, "if they really need me as much as you say, then they won't have much of a choice in the matter". Gale smiles grimly at me, "well then let's go and tell them the good news". We both make our way towards the classroom door.

I'm going to be the Mockingjay.