In the 75th Hunger Games—the third Quarter Quell—the tributes will be reaped from the victors of previous games. As the only surviving female tribute from District 12, Katniss is immediately thrown back into the game. Peeta chooses to return to the game in place of Haymitch, so he can protect Katniss.
Why does Katniss go back and forth between Gale and Peeta?
Katniss didn't really have the time to consider romance when she was worried about survival. When Peeta and Gale both made their feelings clear, Katniss wasn't entirely receptive despite caring for them both. In the end, her feelings for Peeta and Gale diverged, with Peeta ultimately winning her heart.
This suggests that Katniss loves Peeta, and not just because she feels that she owes him her life. Instead, Katniss wants to protect him and bring him home because she has strong feelings for him, even though she isn't sure what those feelings mean.
Why did Katniss end up with Peeta instead of Gale?
Katniss's focus on survival and her family's safety prevented her from fully considering romance, but her feelings for Peeta and Gale diverged in the end. Katniss ultimately chose Peeta because he understood her trauma and she didn't want to lose him, proving her love for him.
The plan is to break the victors out of the game and start the rebellion. They need Katniss because of her power and influence, but they know she won't join if Peeta dies, so they work to protect them both during the Quarter Quell.
Later, the two learn President Snow considered their actions to be an act of rebellion against the Capitol. After their last interview, in which the two continue to affect their romantic feelings for one another, Peeta comes to the realization Katniss has staged her love for him all along.
Katniss competes in the Hunger Games twice during the trilogy. She first enters the arena for the 74th Hunger Games, after volunteering to take her sister's place as Tribute. According to the rules of the Hunger Games as laid down by the Capitol, she is supposed to be exempt from all future Games.
Gale does not marry anyone in The Hunger Games. He and Katniss talk about running away together and starting a new life in the wilderness, but they never officially marry.
Katniss Fell in Love With Peeta During the Quarter Quell
However, it wasn't until Mockingjay -- when Peeta got kidnapped by the Capitol -- Katniss realized how much she cared about him and that she couldn't live without him.
Although she will never know for sure, Katniss does recognize that she cannot be with Gale. She will never be able to forgive him for his idea — the parachute bombs — that killed Prim.
Snow can't stand to see a young woman betray a young man's affection—his view of what happened 65 years ago. And so he takes out his old, festering wound on Katniss.
Due to the horror of his Games, his grief over his family's and girlfriend's deaths, and the overwhelming guilt he felt from being obligated to participate in the Games he hated while each and every one of his mentored tributes died in them, Haymitch turned to alcoholism to cope with his issues and feelings.
It's only implied that they get it on via snuggling and other affectionate acts in close quarters — but if you have read the book, they really imply that they took their relationship to the next level.
What does Peeta whisper to Katniss when they reunite?
Then, he opens his eyes. He has camouflaged himself in mud, leaves, and vines. He jokes with her, whispering that it's okay to kiss him since they're madly in love, but once Katniss begins to clean him in the stream, she can see how weak he is.
However, each tesserae they sign up for puts another slip with their name in the reaping ball. It is also cumulative, so Katniss Everdeen, when she was sixteen, had her name put in the glass ball twenty times.
While the Hunger Games film never talked about it, the Catching Fire novel explained why she could only communicate through hand gestures. Katniss briefly mentioned that a previous stroke could have caused Mags' garbled speech. However, post-traumatic stress disorder could have also caused her speech incapacity.
Katniss has just learned that Peeta has romantic feelings for her, and initially she feels she is being used. She becomes angry with Peeta as a result, going so far as to shove him over an urn of flowers.
Eventually, she finds herself truly worried about losing Peeta, being without him, and when they kiss, she feels her heart stir for him. They go to sleep, Peeta's arms around Katniss, and for the first time since her father used to hold her like that, she feels safe. They wake hungry.
Gale was responsible for creating weapons that would trigger a second wave of bombs to target first responders and combat healers. This invention potentially ended up killing Prim, but even if he wasn't directly responsible, Katniss found this tactic so abhorrent that she lost her affection for him.
Gale is jealous of Peeta and the relationship he has with Katniss, and he wants Katniss to decide between them, though he doesn't press Katniss during her recovery in District 13. Gale is an excellent hunter and excels at setting snares and traps.
The following year after Lucy Gray Baird's victory, another female tribute emerged as the Hunger Games winner. Mags Flanagan became the first victor from District 4, living off of nuts and her survival skills by creating fishhooks. She was also the first victor to move to Victor's Village before serving as a mentor.
Though still suffering nightmares from the entire ordeal, they comfort each other. Twenty years later, Katniss and Peeta are married and have two children. Under Paylor's administration, the Hunger Games are abolished with the arenas replaced by memorials.
Why is Jennifer Lawrence not in the new Hunger Games?
The now 32-year-old actor mentioned (via Screen Rant) that she felt "old as mold" at the idea of The Hunger Games already being continued with a new generation of actors. However, Lawrence has given Rachel Zegler, who plays the new District 12 female tribute in the prequel movie, her seal of approval.
