Puzzle Pieces • Finnick Odair

C H A P T E R 8 2

They make their way down the stairs, switching the light on to reveal a large basement used for storage.

They entered, Katniss first, then Cressida, Peeta, Pollux, Jessica, Finnick and Gale. Once the hatch closes, they make themselves comfortable. Pollux sobs quietly, finally able to mourn the death of his brother.

Part of Jessica wanted to cry for the death of her friend but she couldn't find herself to do so. She'd known so much loss but it was unknown to her for someone she cares about to have died actually wanting to die. Leah had chose to stay, she chose to sacrifice herself in order to join her brother in the afterlife. Jessica found some comfort in that.

Cressida silently mourned her fallen friends and crew as she announced, "Gale and Finnick will need stitches." She held a cloth to the wound on Gale's neck as Finnick held one to his left shoulder.

Jessica had stopped besides Pollux on her way in, rubbing soft circles on his back as he wept.

"I made it up," Katniss finally turns from the hatch to face the team. "All of it. There is no special mission from Coin. There's only my plan. Everyone that's dead is dead because of me. I lied."

"We know. We all knew," Cressida answers.

"Soldiers from 13-" Katniss starts.

"They did,too," Cressida replies. "Did you really believe that Jackson though you had orders from Coin? She trusted Boggs, and he clearly wanted you to go on."

"I never meant for this to happen. I failed. I-" Katniss swallows back tears. "I kill- I killed them. I killed Leah." She looks at Jessica. "I almost killed Finnick," she looks at the boys deep claw mark, he had gotten the brunt of the mutts and therefore the worst injuries. She then looks at Pollux, "I'm sorry, Pollux. I'm so sorry." Pollux's chin shakes as fresh tears threaten to escape.

With a reassuring pat on the shoulder, Jessica left Pollux's side to give him some alone time, walking over to Finnick and taking a seat besides her husband and taking the cloth from his hands and holding it to his wound for him.

"Glimmer. Marvel. Clove. Wiress. Rue." Peeta lists. "What do all those deaths mean? They mean that our lives were never ours. There was no real life because we didn't have any choice. Our lives belonged to Snow and our deaths do too." Everyone looks at Peeta. "But if you kill him, Katniss, if you end all of this, all those deaths, they mean something. Cinna. Boggs. Castor. Jackson. Leah. Messalla. They chose this. They chose you."

Jessica helps Finnick with his wounds, cleaning them all and stitching his shoulder which held a deep gash that would definitely scar.

They made beds out of fur coats, laying them on the floor. Jessica and Finnick soon fell asleep wrapped in each other's arms (Jessica on Finnick's right to avoid touching his injured shoulder) but were woken by the sound of bombs, mortar shells to be precise, exploding outside.

Another 'mandatory viewing' warning alerting on a projected screen in the basement, revealing the sickening sight of President Snow. "To all Capitol citizens more than a half mile outside the city circle, I am announcing a mandatory evacuation. Come to the mansion. I am promising you shelter and sanctuary. All refugees, come to my home. There you will be provided with food, medicine, safety for your children. And you will have my solemn path to protect you until my dying breath."

"Wish he'd hurry up with that last part," Cressida mutters.

"Tell me about," Jessica sighs in agreement.

"Our enemy is not like us," Snow continued. "They do not share our values. They have never know our comfort and our sophistication, and they despise us for it. Make no mistake. They are not coming to liberate us. They are coming to destroy our way of life. They are coming to bury us."

"Is he still in the mansion? Peeta? Jess?" Katniss asks.

"Yeah. I recognise the room," Peeta stated, Jessica silently agreed by nodding.

They talk plans and come up with the idea to disguise Katniss, Jessica and Gale as refugees to get close enough to Snow for her to assassinate him. Peeta was told to stay with Cressida and Pollux, and Finnick was too injured to go, he couldn't stand up without feeling pain.

AN: I can't wait for Snow to die :))