A/N: This is a two-shot story from MJ, approximately pg. 186–191, from Delly Cartwright's POV. Most of this half might be a bit boring, as it takes place when Katniss is not even there yet. I apologize if Delly seems OOC, but I can only say that I characterized her a bit differently than Katniss seemed to view her as in the book, as if there's another more delicate and sorrowful side to her personality. Hope you enjoy!

Smiles Are Contagious — Part One

It's been rough here. Ever since that first bomb was dropped on District 12 nearly two months ago, I've changed more than possible. Who could've imagined the outcome of it all?

My little brother Safario and I managed to escape the worst of the flames, with the help of strong Gale Hawthorne and his family, but losing our parents has made us weak and susceptible to cries. I still often catch Safario crying himself to sleep some nights, and even the crooning voice of Mrs. Capillion, a native of 13 and our adoptive mother, cannot comfort him.

I do not blame her for all of this. Katniss Everdeen. It was not her arrow that shot the force field in the arena and brought on this brutal war, I tell myself. It was not her idea to take out those berries and start a rebellion. And, lastly and most importantly, it was not her that destroyed our home.

Safario is napping in our compartment, 76E, while Mr. and Mrs. Capillion are out training for battle. I'm supposed to be watching my brother, and I have nothing else to do until my training starts in two hours.

The schedule on my arm states that lunch is in 30 minutes, but the rescue mission should be back any minute now. Plutarch Heavensbee and President Coin have planned a dangerous mission to rescue the living victors from the Capitol. I don't know the details, but apparently Katniss had a major breakdown a few days ago, bad enough to convince Coin to let this mission go. I feel sorry for Katniss, as I know being the Mockingjay must be difficult. I suppose that 13 owes her enough to bring Peeta and the others back.

I hear them arriving now. The hovercraft from 13 are landing on the surface and the surviving victors are probably being wheeled out right now. Our compartment does not have a view of the outside world, but I know enough to know that if the mission was a success, Peeta will be one of them. It's been a while since I've seen him; seen his father smile as he gives me free samples of bread. I honestly do miss him.

I fall back against my pillow next to my brother and close my eyes. The roaring of the hovercraft fades away as I fall into a deep slumber.

I do not know when I awake. It must be at least a day later, by the stiffness in my legs. My medicine must've put me into a period of unconsciousness. Mrs. Capillion is shaking me vigorously. My eyes are heavy with sleep. What's going on?

"Delly." Mrs. C looks relieved that I am now awake. "Delly, you are needed straight away in the hospital with Plutarch Heavensbee."

"What?" I blink groggily.

"I don't know anything else, sweetie. A messenger just dropped by and reported that you are needed immediately. Go on, before you are accused of dawdling!"

"But, my schedule, it says to —"

"Disregard your schedule, Delly; you are needed now. Go!"

I do what Mrs. C says without hesitating. Now that I am fully conscious, I understand. If this is truly an order from Mr. Heavensbee, I could be accused of treason if I do not obey. I do not even bother to put on my coat over my 13 uniform or brush back my hair, which a pulled back into a messy braid before I slept. No dawdling in the corridors will help either.

As I board the elevator, I press the button that will take me to the floor with the hospital entrance. The elevator moves laterally and vertically until I finally arrive. After quickly stepping off, I run frantically down the halls until I reach a secretary's desk.

"Name?" The woman asks curtly.

"Soldier Dellia Cartwright," I say with a gasp.

The secretary frowns. "And you are here because . . ."

"Plutarch Heavensbee called me up immediately," I say, knowing she won't believe me. I am correct.

"Just one moment please, Soldier Cartwright," she says, tapping on her keyboard and murmuring into her headset.

I stand impatiently in front of the secretary's desk as she checks with Plutarch about my arrival. I notice that her desk is covered with many scraps of papers and no photographs of loved ones that you would expect.

The secretary hangs up her call and motions me inside the hospital wing. "Room 43, please, Soldier Cartwright. Plutarch is waiting for you."

I locate the elevator and take it to the fourth floor of the hospital. After I locate Room 43, I stand for a while in front of the door, not knowing what to expect. I finally work up enough nerve to knock on the door with thick knuckles, hesitant to do much more.

"Enter," someone says from inside, and I do.

When I close the door firmly behind me, several sullen faces stare back. I recognize a few of them immediately. Plutarch Heavensbee, former Head Gamemaker, leader of the rebels in the Capitol. Haymitch Abernathy, oldest living victor from Twelve, mentor to Katniss and Peeta. There are also several men in ties and jackets who sit idly with open notebooks and pens, as if they are to record every little thing I do.

I try to smile, but my lips seem to be frozen.

"Soldier Dellia Cartwright, I presume," Plutarch says with no emotion whatsoever in his callous voice of authority.

"Yes, sir," I say quietly, not bothering to add that I am called Delly.

"You may call me Plutarch," he says with the beginnings of a grin.

"Hello," Haymitch says with a nod. The men in ties say nothing.

"You're probably wondering why you're here, Delly." Plutarch gestures to the room, which seems to be a work space for this team of men in ties.

"I am," I admit.

"Have a seat."

I sit down in a plastic chair next to Plutarch and awkwardly cross my legs. The calm demeanor of this room is beginning to scare me. I just want to get out.

"Delly," Haymitch begins, "do you know Peeta very well?"

The questions shocks me. Why are they asking me such a thing?

"I did," I say in my quiet tone. "We were extremely close as young children. Growing up near each other must have been a factor. We were in the same class and we even could pass as siblings."

Haymitch smiles and looks over at Plutarch. "I told you she might've known him."

I'm appalled. "How did you know that I knew Peeta?"

"I didn't," he explains. "We've been calling in people all morning that may have had a connection to Peeta in the past, before the Games even began for him."

"But why?" I question, still perplexed.

Plutarch looks confused as well. "Haven't you heard?"

"No, I've basically been asleep for the past twenty-four hours," I say. "What's going on?"

Haymitch sighs. "Oh, my. Well, where to start?"

"We got Peeta back," Plutarch says.

My face breaks into a smile. "But that's wonderful! Katniss will be so happy!"

The team of men shifts their feet and adjusts their ties synchronically. Plutarch stares at his notes, and Haymitch shakes his head. There is something here that I do not know. I say nothing, hoping they will explain.

"Delly, Peeta has changed from his time in the Capitol," Plutarch says. "His memories of nearly everything we can find have been either destroyed or tampered with. Now, I'm going to explain this more thoroughly, but please do not interrupt or ask questions until the end, okay?"

I nod wordlessly. Changed?

Plutarch turns to the notes in his lap. "You may or may not know this already, but after Peeta was captured from the arena by the Capitol, his plan to save Katniss had, he believed, failed. Two other tributes, Johanna and Enobaria, were captured as well, but their memories have not been tampered with like Peeta's have."

Haymitch steps in. "To put it simply, he has been subject to a type of fear conditioning called 'hijacking'. The method involves the use of tracker jacker venom, which can distort your memories of certain things and change how they are seen. We believe that Peeta now views Katniss as a threat and not an ally, or anything else that signifies who she really is."

Tracker jacker venom. The terrible substance that drove Katniss to sheer madness in her first Hunger Games. I swallow a lump of saliva in my throat.

"We believe that this was used, in a way, to effect Katniss as well, but she hasn't discovered that yet." Plutarch nods and closes his notes, signaling that I can now freely speak.

I clear my throat. "So they've taken Peeta's memories of her and changed them so that he might be afraid of her?"

"Worse," Haymitch says gravely. "Yesterday, we scheduled a reunion of the happy victors, but before anything could be done, Peeta had gotten her in a chokehold and tried to strangle her."

"It was terrible," one of the men speaks up.

"So he now sees her as so threatening as to feel the need to kill her?" I briefly clarify.

Plutarch purses his lips. "Yes. I'm sorry, Delly."

"Is it reversible?" I choke out.

"Beetee, the mechanical victor from 3, says it's possible. But I personally believe he will never be the same," Haymitch says.

"Why am I here?"

Plutarch looks up. "Delly, as someone who knew Peeta in his childhood, you may be able to trigger some good memories of his life before the Games. If you are able to convince him of something good, it may be easier to cure him."

"You want me to talk to him," I say flatly.

"Yes, it —"

"You want me to be in the same room as an unstable fool who cannot tell the difference between reality and fantasy?"

"It will be perfectly safe," Plutarch reassures me. "We will have him strapped down to a table and in case he flies off the handle again, we will be able to inject morphing into his veins to calm him down. His recovery team will be taking notes on his reactions to your words and hopefully it will help uncover exactly what damage has been done to his brain."

I don't know what to say.

"I haven't talked to Peeta in almost two years," I retort.

"If his long term memories have not been tampered with, it won't matter," Plutarch replies. "Just make sure to stay away from topics such as the Capitol, District 12, Katniss, and the Games. Just remind him of things you two used to do back when you were children."

"What do you say, Soldier?" Haymitch asks me, his somber face tugging at a smirk.

"We need you," Plutarch adds.

I can't believe that the commander of the rebellion, second only to President Coin, is acknowledging my participation in something that will help our success. How else am I supposed to answer?

"All right," I decisively say. "For Katniss. And for the rebellion."

Plutarch smiles. "All right then."

A/N: I requested that Delly be added to the character list. Hope they approve soon, because for now, it's listed as being Peeta M. and Katniss E.

Part Two will be up soon! Stay tuned, s'il vous plaît. :)