On the flight back from District 12, Katniss anxiously watches for a Capitol attack, but the airspace remains clear. Gale understands why Katniss risked the trip when he hears Buttercup in her game bag, and the two quietly share their grief over their destroyed home. As they approach District 13, Katniss reflects on what she has learned about the district: after the Dark Days, District 13 survived underground through nuclear deterrence, strict resource control, and rigid discipline. Katniss also describes 13's scheduled, tightly monitored daily life and admits that, while recovering, she has mostly ignored its rules under the protection of being labeled mentally disoriented.

Back inside Compartment 307, Katniss hesitates to face her mother and Prim, unsure how to speak about District 12. Instead, she empties her bag, and Buttercup's return overwhelms Prim with emotion. Katniss's mother carefully puts away the family items Katniss recovered, and for a moment the compartment feels more like home. Before dinner, Gale receives a summons through his communicuff, and he and Katniss are called to Command.

In Command, Katniss expects another argument about becoming the Mockingjay, but instead she finds everyone watching a Capitol broadcast. Caesar Flickerman is interviewing Peeta. Katniss is stunned to see that Peeta looks healthy and composed. During the interview, Peeta vividly describes the arena's moral horror, insists that Katniss did not knowingly participate in the rebels' plan, and shows anger when Caesar suggests otherwise. However, Peeta also distances himself from Haymitch and then publicly calls for an immediate ceasefire, arguing that continued war could destroy what remains of humanity.

The interview leaves Katniss torn between relief and alarm. She is grateful that Peeta is alive and that he defended her innocence, but she also understands that his ceasefire plea supports the Capitol's interests at a moment when the rebels are still weak. When District 13's leaders begin denouncing Peeta, Katniss flees the room. Gale later finds her in a hiding place after being bloodied while blocking Boggs from following her, a small act that costs Gale his privileged communicuff.

As Katniss and Gale talk, Gale argues that Peeta was likely trying to protect Katniss by making her seem uninvolved and salvageable if the Capitol wins. Katniss realizes that Peeta is still acting as if their struggle is another extension of the Games, where preserving her life remains his goal above all else. But when Katniss remembers District 12's destruction, earlier rebellion, and the Capitol's cruelty, she concludes that returning to the old order is impossible. Peeta's televised appeal clarifies what Katniss must do, and by the chapter's end she finally decides to become the Mockingjay.