"The pain is inevitable, hon. You can't live in this world without being a little bit jaded. But seeing them die over and over again doesn't make it any less significant. They're still dying for us. If they do it and we don't acknowledge it, then what's the point?" Jessica fidgeted a little, swirling her glass and watching the alcohol whirl into a spiral. Clearing her throat, she carried on.

"I call that being his mentor," she said in a guarded tone, just in case anyone was listening in. She'd gotten off relatively easy for what she'd done with Ian. She'd been lucky, able to use her relationship with him as a pass to talk to him without fear of punishment. If the Peacekeepers found out she'd been more involved than that, she risked serious injury or worse. "I'd do the same thing for any of my tributes."