Chapter Text
Seconds later
Walking away from the District Four train station
Katniss noticed several Peacekeepers, who were standing on the train-station platform, watch the four Victors leave. These Peacekeepers all were helmeted.
Katniss thought, Maybe the Peacekeepers are all wearing helmets to keep the cold wind off their faces. But Katniss did not really believe this. The winter wind had also blown cold in Twelve, Ten, Nine, Seven, Six, and Five, but Peacekeepers in those districts had remained unhelmeted.
Only in Districts Eight and Eleven—both being districts where Peacekeepers oppressed district people—had the Peacekeepers worn helmets during the Victory Tour stopover.
“—Victor you are,” SurfEllen said.
Katniss replied, “I’m sorry. Say that again?”
Late-twenties SurfEllen said in a challenging tone, “You confuse us. We don’t know what kind of Victor you are.”
Forty-something Hammerhead clarified: “You volunteered to save your sister. You blew up the Cornucopia stash, which was dangerous for several reasons. You sang to dying Rue. You covered dead Rue with flowers. You’re a hero to the people of Four, even though your tracker-jackers killed Marina. But you have the note from Snow, which means you’re at least a little bit Loyalist.”
“Wait, you know about the note? The Victors in Seven, Six, and Five didn’t know anything about what had happened to me in Eight.”
Old Mags scribbled on her tablet, IT WAS ON PNN.
“Do you know what PNN is?” Hammerhead asked Katniss. “Panem News Network is—”
“—a subscription news channel that reports the news everywhere in Panem.” Katniss rolled her eyes. “Listen, I’m only sixteen years old, and from the coal-grubber district, and a new Victor, but I know about Panem News Network. And part of what I know is that they’re for Capitols only. In the districts, they offer their service only to Capitols living in the districts, to Head Peacekeepers, and to district mayors. But what Peeta was told, when he tried to sign up, was ‘Victors are not acceptable subscribers.’ ”
“Same in other districts,” SurfEllen said. “So you’ve probably noticed, Katniss, that starting with District Ten, the Victors who greet you have no idea what you’ve been up to this week.”
Katniss said, “Yeah, Johanna made a comment before our speeches in Seven that she expected the speeches to be boring and she’d have to pretend to find them interesting.”
Then Katniss looked at the District Four Victors. “But somehow y’all are pirating Panem News Network. So y’all know about—”
Hammerhead said, “District Eleven—or at least, what you’ve been saying about District Eleven since you left there. All three of us watched the clusterfuck in District Eight, live as it happened.”
Mags scribbled on her pad, CAN WE SEE YOUR NOTE?
Katniss took the note out of the outer pocket of her coat, unfolded it, and handed it to Mags. SurfEllen’s eyebrows went up as she read the note.
Mags passed the note to Hammerhead, who read it, refolded it, and handed it back to Katniss. Hammerhead’s face was expressionless.
Meanwhile, Mags was writing on her pad, THAT’S SNOW’S WRITING. She underlined her sentence three times.
SurfEllen said to Katniss, “We’re awfully curious why Snow gave a note like this to the same girl who pulled off ‘the berries stunt.’ We heard he was pissed at you.”
Katniss replied archly, “And I’m curious why I see helmeted Peacekeepers in a Career district. Isn’t the reason y’all get to keep your Secret Academy”—which trained children how to fight as Careers when someday they volunteered for the arena—“because you’re loyal to the Capitol?”
Silence.
For a while, the Victors walked in silence. Katniss did not answer SurfEllen’s question, and no Four Victor answered Katniss’s question.
Katniss spoke into the silence: “Listen, when we get to the Justice Building, I’m giving my speech. When I finish it, I’m heading back to the train to be with sick Peeta. I won’t leave the train except for the mayor’s dinner.” Which would give Katniss no opportunity to talk privately with anyone, as the Four Victors all knew. “So whatever you want to ask me or tell me, talk fast. Besides, it’s cold out here.”
Hammerhead lowered his voice and asked, “If a Rebellion broke out today, would you side with the Capitol or with the Rebellion?”
With no hesitation, Katniss said, “The Rebellion. In a heartbeat.”
Mags wrote, DOES SNOW KNOW THIS?
Katniss replied, “I’ve never told Snow I’m a Rebel; but I’ve told him several times that he should end the Hunger Games now, and if he doesn’t, he’ll never have peace in the districts.”
Mags wrote, WHY HAVEN’T YOU BEEN HUNG FOR TREASON?
Katniss shrugged. “I can’t tell y’all that, not yet. It’s connected to why Snow gave me this note.”
“ ‘Not yet,’ ” Hammerhead repeated. “When can you talk about the note?”
Katniss said, “Soon. Right after PNN explodes.”
Mags, Hammerhead, and SurfEllen all looked surprised.
Mags began to tap her pencil against her lips. Hammerhead and SurfEllen waited for whatever Mags would write next. Eventually Mags wrote—
DISTRICT FOUR IS REBEL—FISHERMEN, SECRET ACADEMY LEARNERS, ALL D04 VICTORS, ME.
Hammerhead and SurfEllen gasped. SurfEllen hissed, “Mags! What have you done?” SurfEllen looked worriedly at Katniss.
Mags smiled at the other two Four Victors, patted SurfEllen’s cheek, then went back to writing—
SNOW SUSPECTS WE’RE REBELS BUT HAS NO PROOF. THIS IS WHY WE NOT HUNG. BUT IF YOU TELL SNOW, WE ALL HANG.
Katniss promised, “I won’t tell him.” She saw Hammerhead and SurfEllen relax a little.
Then Katniss shook her head in confusion. “How can you be a Career district and be Rebel? And why tell all this to me? You don’t know me.”
Hammerhead said, “I asked Mags the first question back when I was a learner. What she said was, If only Loyalist districts have Career Victors, what happens when there is another rebellion? Total slaughter. When the time comes, the Rebels need to have Career Victors too.”
SurfEllen added, “Mags tells the learners in our Secret Academy what Panem was like before the Treaty of the Treason. Trust me, nobody who goes into the Games from Four is a Loyalist, no matter what bullshit we might spout in interviews.”
Mags wrote, KATNISS, I AM CONFUSED BY YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH SNOW. BUT THE GIRL WHO DID RIGHT BY PRIMROSE, RUE, AND PEETA WILL NOT BETRAY THE REBELLION TO SNOW. I TRUST YOU.
Hammerhead and SurfEllen looked worried again, but said nothing.
“Whoa,” Katniss said. She was stunned by the amount of trust that this old Victor had just shown her, and Katniss pledged to prove herself worthy of this trust.
And with this last spoken word, the foursome had arrived at District Four’s Justice Building. The D04 Victors went off in one direction, while Katniss went off in another.
****
Minutes later
On the patio of District Four’s Justice Building
Four’s mayor apologized for Peeta being out sick—the people in Four’s main Square actually said “Aww.” Then the mayor called Katniss Mellark to the microphone. As helmeted Peacekeepers held guns and watched, the Fours chanted Katniss’s name. Loudly.
Later, Katniss warned the people of Four, just as she had warned previous districts, not to give her the District Twelve funeral salute, lest the Peacekeepers go apeshit.
****
Hours later, in the Capitol
On “Victors Tonight,” Cordelia Flickerman announced solemnly, “In District Four today, Co-Victor Peeta Mellark was not able to meet his fans because he was ill with an unknown ailment. He spent his day recovering on the tribute train.”
“Victors Tonight” acted as if tragedy had befallen the entire nation, just because the general public had not been able to see beloved Peeta for one day.
“Victors Tonight” showed teenage Capitol girls saying variants on “We love you, Peeta! Get well soon!”
But while “Victors Tonight” was treating Peeta being sick like a tragedy, Septicus Kopf was grinning. He had just thought-up a brilliant idea.
He immediately made telephone calls.
****
The next day, in District Three
Katniss noted that District Three, like Districts Four, Eight, and Eleven, had its Peacekeepers wearing helmets.
Victors Beetee and Wiress were part of the District Three group that met the full Twelve Team at the train station. (By now, Peeta was fully recovered.)
When Three’s Victors suggested that they walk Katniss and Peeta to Three’s Justice Building, Haymitch did not object this time. Haymitch merely rolled his eyes, tapped an imaginary wristwatch with a finger, then followed Effie into the limousine.
As soon as the District Three Victor couple and the District Twelve Victor couple walked away from Three’s train station, Wiress said, “Commercials.”
Beetee translated: “Wiress thinks the commercials that Panem News Network shows to subscribers are funny. They do not intend the commercials to be funny, but to district people they are absurd.”
Peeta said, “So you know about our adventures in other districts—even though PNN won’t let you watch their show.”
“Child’s play,” Wiress said.
Beetee translated: “The subscription box is made right here in District Three. And the schematic for the subscription box is available for the price of a six-pack of beer.”
Katniss said to Beetee and Wiress, “I’m guessing you have questions for us.”
Wiress said, “Crowning and legs.”
Beetee said, “I would expect a Victor from District Twelve to hate President Snow, to absolutely loathe him. Yet, Katniss, it looks to Wiress and me like you have a strange friendship with President Snow. This friendship looks like it started with the Crowning Ceremony—which, Wiress and I are pretty sure, is when you and Snow first met.”
“Um...,” Katniss said. She shot Peeta a panicked look: Help me to not reveal my secret!
Peeta smiled like a Capitol car salesman and said, “Beetee, I’m sorry, but you’re wrong. I’m a Victor, I’m from District Twelve, and I don’t hate or loathe anybody.”
Beetee did not let himself be sidetracked. “The other question we have is, Wiress noticed that beginning with your Reaping, Katniss, Panem has never seen your legs below the knees.”
Katniss said, “Maybe I think my legs are ugly.”
Wiress said, “Remake.”
Beetee translated, “If you had scars on your legs on Reaping Day, you have been to the Remake Center twice now—those scars would be gone. Yet you still cover up your lower legs.”
Beetee looked at Katniss with raised eyebrows. Would you care to explain?
Katniss said, “Boy, it sure is cold out here! Does District Three always get this cold in winter?”
****
The next day
On the patio of District Two’s Justice Building
District Two was a very different place than the districts that Katniss had previously visited.
To start with, the Peacekeepers who were guarding the district residents were unhelmeted, and Katniss saw fewer of them. Two’s Peacekeepers held their rifles in front of their waists, instead of assuming the ready-to-shoot posture of helmeted Peacekeepers. Some in the men who stood in the Square themselves wore Peacekeeper haircuts—as did a middle-aged man who was standing at the far side of the Square on Clove’s platform. Closest to the Justice Building patio were teenagers—cadets from the Peacekeeper Academy and learners from District Two’s Secret Academy.
Katniss saw women in the crowd who she thought at first were Capitols—then Katniss realized that she was seeing District Two women who were copying Capitol fashions. This was something Katniss had not seen in any other district.
Now Two’s Mayor walked to the microphone and introduced the Co-Victors from District Twelve. Yesterday in Three, Peeta and Katniss had been cheered by district residents after their introduction; Katniss wondered whether today, she and Peeta would be booed.
It turned out that the Twos neither cheered nor booed the outer-district Co-Victors. Instead, as Katniss and Peeta spoke, the Twos stood there in an angry silence that reminded Katniss of many District Twelve Reapings.
****
Minutes later
Katniss was crying. She was talking about Cato to a full Square of District Two residents, plus Cato’s family and Clove’s family up on platforms, and tears ran down Katniss’s face as she unburdened her conscience—
“...There I was atop the Cornucopia. Peeta had pushed Cato off the Cornucopia, and Cato was lying on the ground, being chewed-on by ten werewolf-mutts. Meanwhile, those same mutts had ripped open Peeta’s leg; he was bleeding to death. I used my last arrow to make a tourniquet for Peeta’s leg. But the whole time I was working, I was listening for the cannon that would tell me that Cato was dead, and I was trying to ignore the screams that told me that Cato was still alive.
“I figured that Cato would live only a few minutes. But when I thought this, I forgot about his armor. Which was stupid, people, because I’d lost my second-to-last arrow when it had bounced off that same armor, and at that time in the Games, I needed every arrow.
“Cato’s armor was good enough that even ten mutts could not kill him. But his armor did not stop them from torturing him. They chewed on his face, they chewed on his hands, their jaws broke bones inside his armor. Cato suffered. He screamed. For hours.
“I could have stopped Cato’s suffering at any time—by loosening Peeta’s arrow-tourniquet, putting the arrow in my bow, and shooting Cato. Eventually I did this—after Cato had suffered for hours. I was selfish, I admit it—I didn’t want Peeta to suffer at all, while I let Cato suffer for hours. And even as I took my shot, Peeta went back to bleeding to death. Then the two-Victors rule got changed back, so I had to get creative. When we finally got Peeta into the Victor hovercraft, he died on the operating table. Lucky for both of us, the doctors in that hovercraft were good at their job.”
Peeta squeezed Katniss’s shoulder.
“People of Two, family of Cato, know this: Of the four tributes I killed, Cato is the one I have nightmares about. Not because I killed him, but because I let him suffer for hours first. I keep thinking, ‘If I had been less selfish, Cato would not have suffered. If I’d been smarter, I would have found a way to quickly end Cato’s misery and save Peeta’s life. I was lazy too, thinking I could let the mutts do my work for me.’ I am sure that there must be a better way I could have handled Cato and Peeta, but I did not see the better way and did not work it, and for this I am so sorry.”
The District Two residents remained silent, though now their postures were no longer angry. The family members on Cato’s platform continued to glare at Katniss.
But what happened on Clove’s platform was a total surprise to Katniss—
On Clove’s platform were five people: two children who looked like Clove, a man and woman in their thirties, and a muscular man in his fifties with a Peacekeeper haircut. Katniss figured he was Clove’s grandfather.
Clove’s grandfather surprisingly yelled, “ON-DUTY PEACEKEEPERS! OFF-DUTY PEACEKEEPERS! PEACEKEEPER-CADETS! PRESENT ARMS!”
The Peacekeeper-cadets in the front, the Peacekeepers standing at the edges of the Square who were watching the crowd, men in the crowd with Peacekeeper haircuts, and some plainly-dressed women in the crowd—they all instantly went to a posture of heels together, backs straight, stomachs in, shoulders back, and chins jutting out.
An instant later, the Peacekeepers who were performing crowd control moved their rifles from being held in front of each man’s waist to being held in a ceremonial position. Now each on-duty Peacekeeper held his rifle in front of him, its barrel pointed straight up, and with his two cupped hands holding the rifle by the stock; each on-duty Peacekeeper’s eyes looked straight ahead.
Meanwhile, off-duty Peacekeepers in the crowd, and the Peacekeeper-cadets in the front, all were saluting. Clove’s grandfather also was saluting.
Behind Katniss, Haymitch murmured, “Kids, they expect you to salute back.”
Which Katniss promptly did, right next to saluting Peeta.
As soon as Katniss saluted, Clove’s grandfather ordered “AS YOU WERE.”
The Peacekeepers with rifles went back to holding their rifles across their waists, and everyone in the Square who had been saluting, stopped.
****
The next day
In District One
The Co-Victors’ Victory Tour speeches in the luxury district went over as expected, considering that Katniss had killed both District One tributes. In other words, Katniss and Peeta were not given a friendly welcome, though at least nobody in One threw gold bars at them.
In District One, Katniss did not cry over tribute deaths. As far as killing Glimmer from One and Marina from Four went, Katniss had been put in a “kill or be killed” situation, she had killed (at the cost of being tracker-jacker stung herself), and so her conscience was clear. So far as killing Marvel—the first human whom Katniss had targeted with her bow and arrow—Katniss regretted having to kill him; but on the other hand, he had just speared Rue like a frog!
Just like in District Two, here in District One, Katniss saw district women who were dressed like rainbow women. Katniss thought all these Effie-wannabees looked ridiculous.
****
That evening
At the District One mayor’s dinner
Katniss and Peeta were sitting at the mayor’s table along with Haymitch and Effie, and Glimmer’s and Marvel’s mentors Cashmere and Gloss. Who, besides being District One Victors, were sister and brother, so they sat next to each other.
After dessert, Gloss leaned over and whispered in Cashmere’s ear. Katniss caught the word snake.
Cashmere stood up and looked pointedly at Katniss. “I need to use the ladies’ room. Join me?”
Katniss asked, “Why? Do you think I’ll need to find toilet paper for you?”
Effie leaned over and whispered, “Dear, Cashmere wants to talk privately with you about something.”
When Katniss looked back at Cashmere, Cashmere was rolling her eyes.
Just before Cashmere and Katniss walked into the women’s restroom, Cashmere said, “Honey, you really need to spend more time with other women.”
Katniss shrugged. “If I’d done that before, I’d have looked pretty at my Reaping, but now I’d be dead.”
In the women’s restroom, Cashmere said to Katniss, “When you get to the Capitol”—the Victory Tour’s next stop—“both of you watch out for the Minister of Security, Septicus Kopf. He’s in his fifties and he wears a purple wig all the time. He’s a pig.”
Katniss nodded. “If he is who I’m thinking, he asked Peeta very personal questions at the Victory Banquet. Peeta likes almost everyone, but Peeta did not like him. Peeta said the guy was creepy.”
Cashmere said, “Just remember, Septicus Kopf is a bad man who does bad things. Try to keep away from him.”
****
Meanwhile
In the library of the Presidential Mansion
The Capitol
Coriolanus Snow was sitting in his favorite chair, with the upcoming Peacekeeper Detective Lewis novel in his lap. Sometimes Snow picked up the galley-proofs book and read from it.
But mostly Snow spent his time in the library thinking about his soulmate, Katniss Mellark. Tomorrow at the Presidential Ball, Snow would announce to Panem that he and Katniss were soulmates; and he would announce that this unruly Victor, not yet seventeen years old, would become president after he died. Now-Snow in the library was trying to foresee every outcome of tomorrow-Snow speaking those words.
By Snow’s wing-back chair was a small table, and on the table set a decorated telephone. Now the telephone proved it was functional as well as artistic: it rang.
“This is the president,” Snow said into the telephone.
A woman’s voice said, “Sir, it’s Minister Kopf calling. He says it’s about a delicate matter concerning your granddaughter, and it’s better that you talk with him tonight instead of in the morning.”
Snow almost muttered an obscenity. “What time is it now?” he asked. Snow did not need to wear a watch—he had plenty of people who would keep track of time for him—and the library had no clock.
“It’s 9:46, Mr. President,” the operator said.
Snow did not sigh, but he wanted to. “Very well, put Kopf through.”
****
Twenty-one minutes later
When Septicus Kopf walked into the library, he was carrying a tablet computer. While one bodyguard patted down the purple-wigged man, the other bodyguard glanced over the tablet, looking for signs of a hidden bomb.
When the bodyguards finally gave Kopf permission to approach Snow, Snow’s first words were, “It is after 10 p.m., Septicus, and I am fatigued. What about Minerva is so important that it cannot wait till tomorrow?”
“It’s about the Mellarks, Mr. President. Katniss and Peeta. The Star-Crossed Lovers of District Twelve. It is well known that Minerva is a fan of their great love story.”
“Indeed, sometimes Minerva becomes tiresome about the Mellarks. Come to the point.”
“Do you recall that three days ago, when the Victory Tour was in District Four, Katniss appeared alone because Peeta was on the train all day? Sick, supposedly, or recovering from sickness, supposedly.”
“ ‘Supposedly’?”
Kopf moved his tablet computer from down by his thigh, up to where he could stroke the screen with a fingertip. “I’ve managed to keep this off the panemnet so far, but I thought you should see this before Minerva does.”
Seconds later, Snow was watching a two-dimensional video of poor quality. From the placement of the camera (almost as high as the ceiling, looking diagonally down) and the setting (the private compartment of a train), Snow figured out that he was looking at surveillance video from a tribute train.
The date that was stamped in the lower-right corner of the video was “74-12-29,” which was the date that the Co-Victors’ train had been in District Four.
The video showed Peeta Mellark in bed with a young woman. The young woman was not Katniss Mellark.
****
AUTHOR END NOTE: I know these four Victory Tour chapters have been boring in places. But know, readers, that things are about to get exciting for our heroes, beginning with the next chapter. Because when Snow announces, “See this girl with the white writing on her leg? She is your next president,” the shit hits the fan.