Nightlock and âThe Hanging Treeâ
âI spread  out my fingers, and the dark berries glisten in the sun. I give Peetaâs hand one last squeeze as a signal, as a goodbye, and we begin countingâŠâ THG, Ch.25
âAre you, are you, Coming to the tree
Wear a necklace of rope, side by side with me.
Strange things did happen there, No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree.â MJ, Ch.9
âThe thought of Peacekeepers dragging Gale away starts the tune playing in my head again⊠âAre you, are you, Coming to the tree.â
âTake it, Peeta,â I say in a strained voice. I reach out and close his fingers over the pill.â MJ, Ch.24
The scene in the Capitol, where Katniss gives her permission for Peeta to accept the nightlock pill from Gale, reveals several things to the reader.
It is a parallel that refers back to the first arena where Katniss realized that âdeath right here, right now would be easierâ (Ch.25) than killing Peeta to ensure her victory. And that she was willing to risk both their lives if there was any chance for both of them to survive.
In other words, she chose that they would either both live or both die, together.
In MJ, when Gale gives Peeta the means by which he can kill himself, Katniss has another choice to make. She imagines Gale captured by the Peacekeepers, without his means of suicide. But in the end, her thoughts are for Peeta. She fully expects to not survive her mission, that sheâll âgo to the Capitol and kill Snow, than die for my trouble.â(Ch.14)
And the one she has chosen to hang on the tree with her is Peeta, if it comes to that tragic point. Just like in the first arena. The symbolism makes it clear. It is with the same nightlock poison.
baratheonpilled
gummygunk
