Brilliant.

This chapter was unexpected but very appreciated and respected.

You’ve proven yourself through this fic to be a great writer who not only loves the source material, but respects it and the characters in particular. Katniss and Peeta are human beings with pain and issues and insecurities and loves and things that make them happy and are allowed to discover those things and work through their lives, and it doesn’t feel gimmicky or especially angsty, it feels real.
Johanna’s not a caricature of a character, and we get to see her happier and loving and protecting those she loves, the two former of which we didn’t really have the opportunity to see in canon.
And Haymitch, through all of his flaws, is still the same man who loves and protects his Victors (Everlark especially, but I love that we get to see his soft spot for Joanna) fiercely, sacrificing things on his end (leaving home, not drinking, sobering up for their sake) to do so.

And of course, what made me review for this chapter, Gale. He’s not a caricature of a character either, as we often see in fics. His love for Katniss isn’t a malformed or jealous thing as we might see somewhere else, it’s genuine and borne out of their history together, like in canon. Gale is still flawed, but he’s growing and his learning and for once, the part I really loved about this chapter, he’s allowing himself to be vulnerable. Gale CRIED, here, genuinely, carthartically, and I can’t tell you how much I appreciated and how much he needed it. Although I’m sure you know how much he needed it, you wrote it into existence, after all.
And he’s admitting that he hurts and the whole thing is bittersweet. He still loves Katniss, but it’s because he loves Katniss that he lets her go and can’t truly dislike or hate Peeta. This is one of the best portrayals of his love for her I’ve seen in fanfiction.

He’s a whole human being, and not just a tool to use for jealousy purposes. I also like his awkward acquaintanceship with Johana, and that Johanna initiated the whole thing because she loves Katniss too, albeit differently, and wanted less problems for Katniss, and for Gale, too, because Katniss still cares about Gale. (I realize I write Joanna’s name different pretty much every time but that’s because the proper spelling is eluding me for some reason and I can’t figure it out for the life of me)

Thank you. I really felt him in this chapter. Thank you for fleshing him out so well.

I love Katniss and Johanna closeness! They make a great BFF here

Thank you for taking the time and energy to write such a bittersweet story. You really captured their pain well and also their love. Really a lovely story.

This story was so good. Thank you for writing it.

Amazing Story! This is how I hoped that SC would’ve ended the last book. I was looking for more of What happened to them, how they grew and got to the point of even starting to heal. So this was wonderful! So well written and it even gave me a couple of steamy dreams, lol! Thank you so much for writing this and sharing this with us! It’s going on my Fav list! Thank you again!

This was absolutely beautiful!

Such a beautiful story!

I’m happy they waited until both were absolutely ready. Though I’d wish it had happened in the bedroom at home instead of the Capitol, I’m more happy than I should be that a certain fella overheard them...;)

I think Haymitch is wrong for telling Peeta he will never be her everything. I think he is, or will be because she is his everything and she will return that love in equal measure.

Also, I can’t think of anything that would compel any of the Victors to return to the Capitol, especially using Gale to be the mouthpiece. They can’t force them and I think they should be left alone to heal...but then where would the drama come from...;))

I get that Katniss was going to run...but...Peeta should not feel bad for saying he wasn’t ready and stopping it. They both should 100% be ready before taking that step. Peeta has had all the patience in the world for her...she should honor him the same.

; )

This was beautiful. I have no words. Thank you for the beautifully written story.

Thank you! It was wonderful written. Loved it

Tiny nitpick: the lake wasn't her and Gale's place (that was the rock they sat on in the very first chapter). Katniss begrudgingly lead him to it ONCE in CF because it was the only place safe enough to discuss running away. Before that, it was somewhere only she and her father had been to. They never even took Prim there.