Disclaimer: Dear Suzanne Collins, please don't sue me. I really enjoy your books, but unfortunately, I don't own them.
Author's Note: Here it goes. After four years of fanfiction, I'm starting up some Hunger Games stories. This is my first one, so I hope you all like it! If you are interested in Harry Potter or The Princess Diaries, go check out my other five hundred billion stories.
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"I'll be back for supper, Mother," I call before swinging the rotted front door open. "See you soon, Rory."
"Why can't I come with you, Gale?" he whines.
Usually, I'd have been annoyed with his repeated questions, but today feels different. It's a cool, brisk autumn afternoon, hinting at the beginning of the winter season. "You're still too young, Rory. When you're older, I promise. Okay?" I ruffle his hair to show my sincerity.
"Okay," he pouts before I say goodbye and run out the door.
I walk to the fence as if I am simply walking the district to not raise suspicion.
"Hi, Gale!"
I turn around, "Oh. Hello, Madge." She blushes.
"It's nice seeing you," she smiles and runs back to her group of friends giggling. I wonder what it must be like to be the mayor's child without fear of the reaping or the Games. I curse the capitol under my breath.
I continue to walk down the ashy district streets until I approach the metal, chain-linked fence. For caution, I lean my ear closer to search for a slight buzzing sound. The fence is silent, and I nimbly slip under the loosened edges where the fence meets the ground. I run through the forest, feeling a cool wind pass my ears and stop by the berry shrub. I grasp my wire and snaps and pull them from the shrubs. Quickly, I throw together the materials to create twitch-up snares. I set them up approximately fifteen yards away from each other. Nearby, I wait in hiding until the first prey is caught.
The rabbit hops innocently in between the trees before its tiny paw skims the snare. Before it knows anything, it is swung violently into the air, bleeding and dead. I start to make my way out from behind the bush before I see something moving. Quickly, I jump behind the shrubs again. The moving thing is not an animal. It's a person. It is a girl with a dead squirrel in her hands. She looks worn but still expressionless as she tosses her messy braid behind her shoulders. She looks around and sees my snare. Her eyebrows raise, but I cannot see confusion cross her glare. She raises a hand to touch the wire.
"That's dangerous," I emerge from the trees before her hand can be caught bloodied in the snare.
I watch her jump back away from me. Being closer to the girl, I can recognize her. She is from district 12, and I've seen her around the Seam. I still rake my mind as to where I know her from. I move my gaze into her eyes and immediately remember how those eyes had belonged to a man who worked with my deceased father in the mine. The girl had been in the Justice Building when we received our medals of valor. I cringe at the memories and especially the medal. How a medal could solve the loss of a father, I still do not now.
"What's your name?" I say, taking a few steps closer to free the dead rabbit. I hook it to my belt alongside the other three. She takes another step back, very cautiously.
"Catnip," she mutters. I'm not sure if I hear her right, but I proceed anyway.
"Well, Catnip, stealing's punishable by death, or haven't you heard?"
I try to lighten the atmosphere. Her face looks vacant, but her actions speak fear.
"Katniss," she speaks louder. "And I wasn't stealing it. I just wanted to look at your snare. Mine never catch anything."
I scowl at her attitude and glance at the squirrel in her hand. She must have been trying to steal it. People in district 12 could be very desperate for food. I was still curious to know, though, if she didn't use a snare, what could she be doing? "So where'd you get that?" I point to the dead animal.
"I shot it." She pulls the bow off her shoulder. It is small, not large enough for any large prey. I wonder where she got it or how she made it, as district 12 would never sell us weapons.
"Can I see that?" I ask, still staring at the wooden curves.
Catnip, or Katniss, hands me the bow and blankly says, "Just remember, stealing's punishable by death."
I almost laugh at her comeback, but instead, I smile. I like her. She does not return the smile and remains scowling.
"Of course, Catnip," I joke.
"Katniss," she corrects me.
"Okay, Catnip."
She scowls again.
"I'm Gale, by the way." I pause for a reaction, but there is none. "Where did you get this?" I ask, fondling the gentle string of the bow.
"It was my father's," I raise my glance to meet hers. She has been looking right into my face the entire time, watching my expressions, looking for some kind of explanation. "I might be able to get you one," she says again, "if you have something to trade for it.
Trade. Of course, everything in district 12 revolves around trade, and this girl is no different.
"I could get you rabbits," I suggest. "They're relatively easy to catch."
"I don't want food," she interrupts.
"Then what do you want?"
"Knowledge."
"What?" I ask, stunned. As a fourteen year old boy, there is not much knowledge I can supply.
"I want to be able to set my own snares and catch a whole belt of rabbits in one day."
"I could work something out with that. It shouldn't be difficult to teach. You a quick learner?"
She nods, thanks me, and runs from the woods toward the fence. I turn to watch her agility. She darts between trees, over rocks, and under branches. There is something about that girl, something different. She is no Madge Undersee. It feels strange, this feeling in my chest. She is just different. I don't know much about her, but I know I will soon.
My thoughts are interrupted by the squeal of another two rabbits each getting stuck in my snares. I unlock the snare and attach the animals to my belt, deciding to feed both to my family tonight. I will not trade at the Hob tonight. I take a look at my last snare and decide to check for prey it may catch tomorrow. Maybe, if I'm lucky, I'll see this Katniss girl again.