WITHIN THESE WALLS
CHAPTER 1 - STORM INCOMING
The arrow sliced through the air, missing its target by a foot. Startled, a deer scrambled away, and the girl in the bushes scowled.
"You're getting soft," whispered the boy next to her.
"I am not," she said, getting up to retrieve her arrow. The deer was long gone.
As she walked across the forest floor, the girl berated herself for losing the deer. She would not find another before the storm hit; the air was already heavy and smelling of rain.
The girl tried to pull her arrow free from a bramble, but it was deep within the bush and she kept cutting her hands. She pretended not to see the amusement in her companion's face.
"A little help here, Gale?" she said, giving up on the bramble and lifting her hands to her face to inspect the damage.
The boy stood and gave a stretch before walking across the moss to help her. He chuckled at her.
"I think you should just let this one go, Katniss," he said, looking at the bush.
"That's the third arrow I've lost this week, though," said the girl. "I don't want to keep letting them go."
"You could always try hitting something," Gale said.
He was completely unmoved by her glare.
"I think it's the string. It's old," she said. "We should probably head back anyway, it's going to rain soon.
"Alright."
Without another word, Katniss and Gale began to make their way back to the District. She ignored him as they walked, their footsteps silent on the soft forest floor. He'd been trying to get on her nerves all day. It didn't help that he'd shot a huge, fat turkey.
"So are we going to have time to come out here again before you go?" asked Gale, hoisting the turkey over his shoulder.
"I doubt it," Katniss said.
"When do you leave again?"
"Three days," she said. "I'm pretty sure, at least."
Gale nodded slowly.
"What," she said, rolling her eyes.
For a while he didn't respond and they continued in silence. She'd twice forgotten the whole thing when he responded.
"You're always there," he said. "You're barely here anymore. That's why you—" he broke off.
"That's why I what?"
"You're just going to get mad."
"Tell me anyway."
"That's why your aim is such shit lately," he said.
"Christ Gale. It's only five days this time," she said, her temper flaring. "Barely any time at all."
"Yeah, I know."
The trees thinned and the slope steepened sharply. They were approaching the edge of the forest now. Heavy breathing provided an excuse for Katniss not to answer.
At the top of the hill, Katniss slipped her bow into its hiding spot at the base of an old tree, thinking of the time the forest had been her escape. She glanced at Gale and wondered if her aim was the only thing suffering.
Gale was offended by her engagement. A week earlier, Katniss had repeated to him a joke Peeta had told her. Gale had not laughed, and then he'd claimed to be feeling under the weather and gone home early. He was unwilling to accept what she'd told him: that she and Peeta were friends who'd made a choice for safety alone. Still, he seemed to think Peeta had won something.
After double-checking that her bow was not visible, Katniss bent close to the fence that marked the border of District Twelve. It was humming and she let out a groan.
"It's electrified today," she said, turning to look at Gale a few feet behind her. He nodded and headed in the direction of the tree they used on these occasions.
Gale scaled the tree and landed elegantly on the other side of the fence. Katniss rubbed her hands on her pants before attempting. Though she'd learned, with practice, how to get down safely, she still sometimes fell gracelessly to the ground. The first time, she'd even broken her ankle.
Katniss hung from the branch and dropped. Though she landed on her feet, her momentum shot her a bit forward and she barreled into Gale, knocking him down. He laughed, and after a moment Katniss joined him.
Laughing, that was more like before.
They recovered, stood, and brushed themselves off. Katniss could feel Gale's eyes on her.
"Are we still going to do this once you're married?" he asked.
"Don't ask stupid questions," she said lightly, turning away from him.
"It's not like you need the money anymore," he said quietly.
"That's not why I hunt."
They set off across the meadow, and Katniss kept her gaze forward.
"I hunt because I like hunting," she said. She doubted that was what he had wanted her to say, but steering him clear of certain subjects required her to play dumb.
"Any other reasons?" he asked a moment later, as she'd expected. She walked a little faster so he'd fall behind her. "Say it. Just say it."
"Stop, Gale," she said.
"Fine," Gale said with a sigh. "Never mind."
They were quiet and Katniss continued walking ahead of him. She noted absently that the pollen smell would be gone once the rain came. It was a shame; she actually liked that smell, and she'd never had allergies.
"Look," she said, turning around. "I hunt because of you, okay?"
Gale looked at her as though expecting more, but nothing else came. It was never enough, what she gave him. He sighed.
"All right. Okay. I'll see you later then," he said.
"Where are you going?"
"Home," he said, looking confused. He pointed at a fork in the path ahead of them, one she hadn't noticed. "The Seam is that way. To the right."
In the old days, of course, they'd walked the whole way together, when she'd been poor and lived in the Seam too. It had been a five-minute walk to the Hawthornes' then. She missed having them as neighbors. Nowadays, though her house was much larger, there were only two occupied houses in the vicinity; Haymitch occupied one by himself, and Peeta and his family the other. Peeta was the only one of the Mellarks she'd ever really spoken to.
"Oh, right," said Katniss.
Before he could get too far away from her, she threw her arms around Gale and hugged him. He hugged her back, tightly, before slipping away.
She turned and started down the path towards Victor's Village with no bow, no game, and no Gale. Very different from the old days. A second later, she remembered.
"Hey!" she called after him, hoping he would hear her. "Come to the train station with us!"
He flipped her the bird and she relaxed.
Ding dong
Katniss jerked awake. She peered groggily at the clock over the mantle, and swore. She'd sat down on the couch for five minutes and ended up falling asleep for an hour and a half. She'd been the one who was supposed to make dinner, too.
Ding dong.
She jumped up and tried to smooth her mussed hair, unsuccessfully, before going to get the door. She opened it to see Peeta on the doorstep.
"Hi," he said. He was carrying a box and a canvas bag "Oh, sorry, did I wake you?"
"No, you're fine," said Katniss, rubbing her eyes. "What's up?"
"I've got your mom's cake," he said, holding up the box.
"Thanks," she said, opening the door wide and motioning for him to come in. He stayed on the doorstep.
"Oh, but I gotta go right away. We've got a big order."
"Oh, well-" she said, as he handed her the box. "Thanks for bringing it over."
"These are for you too," he said, and held out the canvas bag. She could clearly smell cheese and the yeasty smell of fresh baked bread.
"You really didn't have to," she said, though she was very glad he had. "Please let me pay you, at least."
"I would be offended if you tried to pay me," Peeta said easily, and patted her on the shoulder. She smiled awkwardly, not knowing what else to do.
A month and half ago they'd shared a bed (a literal description only) and now here they stood, vaguely uncomfortable even though they shouldn't have been. They'd been getting along fine, and they knew each other well enough. They were friends.
Friends who were engaged to be married.
"Oh," said Peeta. "This was lying on the doorstep for you." He handed her a letter. "It's private, I think."
"I never get private mail," Katniss said.
"It's got your name on it," he said, shrugging. "See you in a few days." He went to walk down the steps.
"Yeah, see you," Katniss said. She closed the door, embarrassed.
Peeta was in love with her. He would do anything for her, die for her even. His captivation with her was puzzling. Sure, he'd been the one who kept her sane during the Games and after, but the degree of his devotion had never made sense to her. Twelve years seemed a ridiculous amount of time to carry a torch.
Katniss placed the cake and cheesebuns on the table, paused, then took out one of the loaves. She took a bite and brought it and the letter with her to the couch.
She plopped back down on the couch and examined the letter. The paper was dingy and slightly yellowed, her name printed perfectly across the front of it. Flipping it over, she saw it was unmarked otherwise. The lack of a Capitol seal meant that it had to be from the Districts.
She opened the envelope and removed a folded piece of paper.
So this is how it is:
You don't know me, but I know you. I don't care that you won the Games. Let there be no mistaking that I will kill you without blinking an eye.
This letter doesn't exist. You tell nobody about it. Trust me, I'll know. There's a shitstorm coming, and if you don't tread carefully...well, let's just say you'll be sent back home in a coffin, or maybe I'll go down the list of certain... other people first. I guess we'll see.
Let the 75th annual Hunger Games begin.
Katniss ignored the prickling on the back of her neck as she grabbed for the envelope again. She looked all over it, but it was no use. There was no sign of who sent it.
You don't know me, but I know you.
Katniss jumped at the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Her cheesebun fell to the floor.
"Was that Peeta I heard?" asked Prim's voice.
"Oh. Yeah. He brought mom's cake," said Katniss, shoving the letter under her thigh. "It's there on the table. How long have you been home, by the way?"
"I was home when you got back," said Prim, coming down the stairs. She went straight to the table to inspect the cake.
"Why didn't you wake me up then? I was supposed to make dinner tonight," said Katniss.
"I thought I'd let you sleep. Ooh, purple frosting."
"Mom's going to be angry with me," said Katniss.
"No it's fine, I threw a stew together," said Prim, waving her off. "I don't mind, and I think it's better if I make the food, anyway."
Katniss opened her mouth to protest, but her sister was right. All serious previous attempts at food preparation had been disasters, and Katniss didn't want to serve cheese and water crackers again. Prim grinned at her.
"What's that paper you're sitting on?" she asked. "And you shouldn't leave bread on the floor. We'll get ants."
"It's nothing," said Katniss, scooping up the cheese bun. She looked at it and tried to decide whether she could eat it, or if she should wait until Prim left.
"Why are you hiding it then?" asked Prim.
"I'm not."
"So what is it?"
"I told you," said Katniss. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it. It's trash, that's what it is."
Prim crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes.
"It's nothing," said Katniss again. She held the letter out in front of her and ripped it up. Prim stared at her as she went to the fireplace and threw the shreds into it. Pausing a moment to light a match, Katniss set the letter ablaze, and a moment later it was no more.
She turned back to face her sister, who was studying her carefully, with pursed lips. Katniss thought vaguely that Prim was too young for the kind of adult worry she wore now.
"It's fine. Just forget about it," said Katniss. "Trust me."
Prim studied Katniss's face a long time.
"Okay," she said finally.
The next day Katniss ran out onto the doorstep to catch the mailman. She tried to describe the letter and ask him if he knew where it came from, but got nothing useful. Not only could she not produce the letter she was talking about, but the mailman also said he delivered too many private letters to know much about any one in particular. He asked if she'd checked the return address and District number, and when Katniss told him there hadn't been one, he simply shrugged and said he couldn't help her.
The night before she was to leave, Katniss and Prim went to pack Katniss's things.
"Is this all you're taking?" said Prim. The suitcase was very small.
Katniss laughed. "I don't really need anything."
They were kneeling on the floor of Katniss's room, which was originally a closet. The tiny, shabby old house she'd grown up in still had a hold on her. She'd felt uncomfortable and exposed in the large bedrooms, so she'd moved her things into the linen closet.
"Why pack a suitcase at all then?" asked Prim.
Buttercup stood next to the suitcase, pawing at the handle. He jumped into the case as Katniss tried to close it.
"I leave space so Peeta can bring back painting supplies from the Capitol. Get out of there!" Katniss said, picking up Buttercup. The cat hissed halfheartedly.
"He's got a lot of paintings of you," said Prim.
"You've seen them?"
"Peeta's my friend too, you know. But yeah, he showed them to me. I think he was a little embarrassed." Katniss looked away and closed the suitcase again, double and triple-checking the clasps. Buttercup glared at her. "What's happening in the Capitol again?"
"We're having a panel on the Quarter Quell," said Katniss. "Whatever it ends up being."
Prim frowned, and Buttercup forgot about Katniss and went to her immediately. He settled in her lap.
"Hey," said Katniss, putting her hand on Prim's shoulder. "You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm good. I'm just going to miss you is all."
Katniss hugged her sister tightly.
"I'll miss you too," she said. "But I'm only going to be gone five days."
"Yeah..." said Prim with a sigh. She petted Buttercup and didn't say anything for a moment. "We're never going to be rid of those Games, are we?"
Katniss sighed as well.
"I don't think so, no."
A/N: This story will comprise of 25 chapters and will be updated every Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. I hope you enjoy it.
Being a fanfiction enthusiast myself, I know what it's like to go skimming around for a story you might like, sort of half-reading everything. I have managed to waste an incredible amount of time in this half-reading state. To save you this trouble, I suggest you read to around Chapter five or so. If you still don't like it by then, you may never.
Because it's a mystery, I don't recommend skimming this story. Of course, I hope you'll like it so much that you can't wait for the next chapter!
Either way, thanks for reading!