IT WAS TIME FOR THE ARGUABLY MOST IMPORTANT PART — THE INTERVIEWS

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for being here tonight on the eve of the 75th Hunger Games!" Caesar Flickerman announced to the cheering crowd. "We have never seen anything like this. And we will never see anything like it again. Because tonight, on this stage, 24 of Panem's brightest stars will vie for the ultimate crown. Tonight will be their final opportunity to express their thoughts. Our final opportunity to express our love. And heartbreakingly to say goodbye to all but one."

The first Tributes seemed to fly by, but Leia's breath hitched in her throat when Finnick walked on stage. She was standing backstage, watching the screen intently as Caesar greeted him. "Finnick. I understand that you have a message to somebody out there. A special somebody. Let me hear it." The Odair man just nodded and turned to look at the camera.

"My love. You have my heart. For all eternity. If... If I die in that arena. My last thought would be of your lips. I love you," he told her, and Leia couldn't take her eyes off of him and the camera. Tears were beginning to form in the corners of her eyes, and she had to take a few deep breaths as he moved to stand with the rest of the Tributes on the stage.

She wanted to bang her head against the wall. She loved that man so damn much, and she couldn't protect him. Her hand automatically moved to her stomach, rubbing the area up and down and thinking about her unborn child who had a chance of growing up without a father.

The next interesting one was Johanna, and the entire time, she had been expressing how livid she was through her mannerisms. "We have seen a lot of tears here tonight. But I see no tears in Johanna's eyes. Johanna, you are angry. Tell me why?"

"The hell does he mean, 'why'?" Leia questioned angrily, even though there was no one else in her vicinity.

"Well, yes, I'm angry. You know I'm totally getting screwed over here. The deal was that if I won the Hunger Games I get to live the rest of my life in peace. But now you wanna kill me again. But you know what?" She then stood up and pointed at the crowd and the cameras. The Calore woman grinned backstage, glad that someone finally said something. "Fuck that! Fuck anybody that has to do with it!"

Caesar awkwardly dismissed her and moved on to the next Tribute. Finally, they reached District 12, the people everyone in the crowd was waiting to see. Katniss stepped out, and jaws dropped across the country. She was wearing a wedding dress.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the victor of last year's Hunger Games — Katniss Everdeen," Caesar announced, trying to act like her dress wasn't what they were all interested in. "You look fabulous, doesn't she? My my. Now, Katniss, this is a very big and very emotional night. For all of us. Wouldn't you say?"

"Now don't go crying on me now, Caesar," she joked.

"I can't be getting promises. You know me," he replied with a chuckle before leaning forward in interest. "But Katniss. On more serious note. I think we're all here a little disappointed more than a little disappointed that a certain wedding did not take place. Am I correct and assuming that this is the gown that you would have worn on that day yes or no?"

She nodded, and she did not seem to be happy that she was wearing it. "Yes. President Snow thought everyone would want to see it." Of course, he did. The best way to make her seem less powerful was to put her in a wedding dress and act like she was just a girl whose only wish was to get married.

"Well President Snow as usual was right. Was he not, folks? Will you do us the honor?" he asked, gesturing to the space in front of them. Katniss nodded and stood up, making her way to the front. She took a deep breath and began twirling, the white fabric dancing around her ankles. However, gasps echoed throughout the room when the dress began to go up in flames, revealing a black one underneath. Once it was finally all black, she stopped and extended her arms out by her sides, wing-like appendages spread out with them. "Oh my God. It's like uh... it's like a bird... it's like, um..."

"A Mockingjay," Katniss finished for him.

"Your stylist has certainly outdone himself this time. Cinna. Take a bow," Caesar told her, and she complied before moving to stand beside Seeder and Chaff. Peeta came on next, being his usual, charming self. "But Peeta. The wedding. The marriage. Never to be?"

He sighed and leaned back in his seat for a moment, but then, something mischievous spread across his face. He smirked and revealed, "Well, actually we got married. In secret."

"A secret wedding? Do tell," Caesar inquired with a grin, loving the juicy gossip that he was receiving. He looked like he was being let in on a secret, as if the entire rest of the country wasn't watching.

"We want our love to be eternal," he explained with a nod. Katniss was eyeing him carefully, and she looked like she wasn't aware that he was going to be saying any of this stuff. "You know, Katniss and I, we've been luckier than most. And I wouldn't have any regrets at all if it weren't..."

"If it weren't for what?" Caesar questioned, leaning forward in intrigue as did many of the audience members and the tributes. They were very interested in what was getting the great Peeta Mellark all choked up.

He sighed. "If it weren't for the baby."

The crowd went nuts, and thousands of people were shouting and telling them to call off the games. Leia had to hold back from laughing because that was freaking genius, even if Katniss was pregnant, which she doubted she was. Peeta grinned mischievously as he stepped off the stage and stood by the Everdeen girl. Caesar tried to calm down the crowd, but he did not have any success because behind him, the Victors were scheming.

They all grabbed hands and raised them, united as one against the injustice of the games, and the people were mad.

《✵》

LEIA WAS BRUSHING HER HAIR IN THE BATHROOM WHEN SHE FELT ARMS AROUND HER. She had been standing at her dresser, and she placed her brush down as Finnick hugged her from behind and kissed her neck gently. She leaned her head back against his bare shoulder for a moment, just soaking in the feeling of his touch because she did not know when she was going to feel it again after that moment. His hands ran over her protruding stomach, dancing along the skin that stood between him and his unborn child.

"I'm going to try to be there before you go up," she told him, placing her arms over his around her waist and intertwining their fingers. They only recently began letting in designers, so she wanted to be there in the moments before he went up. She wanted to be with him every moment she could. "They're letting in Cinna, so I should be allowed too."

"Good. I want you there," he murmured against her neck, his nose tickling her jaw.

She turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck, looking up at him through her eyelashes. Her loving look was mixed with something serious and sad. She bit her lip for a second before saying, "Promise me that you'll do everything you can to stay alive."

"There's a plan—" he started, but she cut him off.

"I don't care about the plan. I can't watch you die, Finnick Odair. I love you," she told him, and she was just begging him at that point. She didn't give a damn if anyone else made it out as long as he did. She felt awful for thinking it, but at the same time, she didn't. He was the same that she loved and the father of her child. She needed him alive. "Promise me, please."

He finally nodded, knowing how much this meant to her. His hands moved from her back to play with the hair on the back of her neck. "I promise."

"I'll work on getting you sponsors. Haymitch and the other mentors are helping," she reminded him, and he began to sway ever so slightly as they spoke. She closed her eyes for just a moment and let herself imagine. They were in their own house, the fire was crackling in the corner, and they had just put their baby down for bed. Music was playing through a radio on the kitchen table, and they were dancing. There were no Games, nothing stopping them from being happy together.

He spoke softly, but his voice brought her back to reality, looking up at him. "Thank you so much, Leia, for everything you have ever done for me."

"Don't say that. Say that after we get you out," she told him. She did not want him saying goodbye.

"I'll tell you what. When I'm in the Games, I'll touch my lips," he told her, and he brought his fingers up to brush his lips. "Just like this, and that'll be our signal just so you know I'm thinking about you and that I love you."

She nodded, and someone called from the other room, asking where Finnick was and saying that they needed to go. She kissed him one last time, knowing that she would see him soon. He slipped out of the room, and she got ready. She had something to do before she met him.

After her appointment, she headed to the pod, and Peacekeepers brought her down a hall and into a room where Finnick was waiting for her. They closed the door behind her, allowing the two some alone time before he went up. He quickly moved to hug her, and she embraced him back, holding him like she'd never see him again.

"I love you so so much, Leia Calore," he muttered in her ear before pulling away. She kissed him, and their lips moved passionately against each other. She didn't want to let him go. The timer on the wall indicated that Finnick needed to step inside the tube soon. He backed up, and she followed him, standing just outside the circle that he was in.

"Finnick, I need to tell you something," she informed him, and he raised his eyebrows, waiting for it. As the clock reached one second, she announced, "It's a boy."

The tube closed, and his eyes widened. She placed her hand on the glass separating them, and he did the same as both of their eyes began to fill with tears. She knew it might distract him, but she also knew that it would give him something to fight for. She watched through her tears as the platform began to lift.