I’m in a shallow hole, not filled with the humming orange bubbles of my hallucination but with old, dead leaves.

Got it," I say. "Did you tell Peeta this?" "Don't have to," says Haymitch. "He's already there.

We sit in silence awhile then I blurt out the thing that's on both our minds. "How are we going to kill these people, Peeta?

Not exactly. You see, Portia and I think that the coal miner thing's very overdone. No one will remember you in that. And we both see it has our job to make District 12 tributes unforgettable,' says Cinna. I'll be naked for sure, I think. 'So rather than focus on the coal mining itself, we're going to focus on the coal,' says Cinna. Naked and covered in black dust, i think. 'And what do we do with coal? We burn it,' says Cinna. 'You're not afraid of fire, are you, Katniss?' He sees my expression and grins.

The audience must be sick to death of the star-crossed lovers from District 12. I know I am.

Positioned on my dresser, that white-as-snow rose is a personal message to me. It speaks of unfinished business. It whispers, I can find you. I can reach you. Perhaps I am watching you now.

That if desperate times call for desperate measures, then I'm free to act as desperately as I wish.