Thom didn't know how important Madge was. For Gadge April monthly prompt: orders and/or promises.
It's Always a Girl
Gale had gone through the Seam, warning everyone, trying to evacuate as many people as possible.
"But what about people in the Town?" Prim's frightened voice came. Though full of fear, her voice rung clear in the air, and a silence which hung as heavy as the smoke in the distance ensued.
They'd die if nothing was done. "I'll go." Thom volunteered.
Gale stared at him, but Thom could not quite make out the expression on his face. "Thank you, Thom," he murmured finally, after what must have been only a few seconds but seemed like an age. Thom turned and was about to start running when he felt his best friend's hand on his arm.
"Stay safe, Thom."
Thom nodded and turned, but Gale's hand still stayed on his arm. Curiously, Thom peered over his shoulder. Gale was hesitating, but clearly wanted to say something.
"If you can, try to go to the Mayor's house. The Mayor should know by now, but just in case…"
The request was a strange one, but Thom nodded. Gale had his reasons.
The bombs were already falling. The heavy smell of smoke and fire and burning ashes was still in the distance, as the outskirts had been hit first, but it was getting closer and he could see the helicopters in the distance. The Town part of District 12 was already being destroyed, being richer and full of resources; presumably the Capitol would not want any survivors for this round. Thom realized that he'd be in trouble if he didn't make his way back soon. But he had promised Gale; he would try to reach the Mayor's house.
He was running, yelling at the top of his voice as he his way towards the Mayor's house. "The bombs were falling and everyone should go towards the forest!" Some people ran, others scoffed but that soon changed when a bomb fell onto the shoe shop and went up in flames.
"No!" a voice cried from the streets. He turned to see who had been the one to scream in denial; it was a girl a few years younger than him, possibly Katniss and Mellark's ages. She must have been the shoemaker's daughter. Beside her was a boy whose features were so similar to hers; that must be her brother or cousin or something. She made to run towards the shop, leaving the boy standing behind and clearly in shock, but Thom managed to intercept her.
"Are you crazy? Didn't you hear what I said? You need to evacuate, now."
"But –"
"There's nothing you can do for them except stay safe. Run towards the forest. Do you know who Gale Hawthorne is?"
"That guy who everyone says is Katniss' cousin but isn't really. Yes, I know him. He took," (and here she checked herself) "Well, at least I saw him and a friend go to the Slag Heap several times. Not that there aren't rumors that he's taken tons of girls there…"
Gale? And a girl he's been seen with more than once? And a girl who most likely wasn't Katniss, from the sounds of it. Well, it wasn't like Gale could be together with Katniss now that Katniss was being forced to act in love with Peeta, so it was about time that Gale moved on… But Thom couldn't waste his time wondering about Gale's surprisingly existent love life outside of Katniss.
"Right," he shook himself out of his reverie. "He's at the gates. Find him, he'll take you guys outside into the forests."
"But it's illegal…"
"Do you want to die?"
She shook her head.
"Then run!"
The girl didn't need to be told twice. She ran back, took her brother's arm and ran for dear life, without a glance back at him, while Thom ran the opposite direction.
He could hardly breathe.
The smoke was thicker now, but he could still breathe and see quite a distance ahead. At this point, he was worried as it seemed as if he was running towards the direction of the smoke…
His eyes widened and he stopped as the Mayor's house came into his line of vision. Half of it had collapsed, and the remaining part which stood was burning, the flames flickering around its walls as it devoured the once magnificent. There was a scream from inside, a high pitched one that could only have belonged to a woman. The beautiful tunes of a piano were heard, but he couldn't tell whether a piano was being played, or whether it was a recording.
The music suddenly stopped as the entirety of the building suddenly collapsed. The screams continued for a while, and then the whole of the collapsed house was aflame.
The screams stopped. The fires continued their hypnotic dance, and it was only when the heat became unbearable that Thom realized that a wall of fire had formed.
He didn't spare another glance at the ruins. Instead, he turned around and ran for dear life towards the forest.
Only 900 people survived.
Gale's eyes were darting here, there and everywhere. It was as if he was looking for something.
"So many people in one place," Thom remarked, as they tried to lay low and hide in the forest.
Gale nodded briskly but made no reply.
"There's not that many Town people though," Thom continued, before letting his voice drop and letting shame creep into it. "I couldn't get past after the Mayor's house."
Gale turned towards him. "What happened?"
"The Mayor's house was in flames. Totally destroyed. And the other houses were either on fire or completely demolished. At one point, I think the fire formed like a barrier, preventing anyone from passing through…"
"I see," Gale nodded brusquely. "They didn't make it then."
It was said so much like a statement, but Thom instinctively felt that Gale wanted to hear more. "I heard the piano playing, and then the screams. I think they were female. And then the screaming stopped."
"So the Mayor's family died. I see," Gale said stiffly.
"Well, at least I saw him and a friend go to the Slag Heap several times. Not that there aren't rumors that he's taken tons of girls there…"
For some reason, his conversation with the shoemaker's daughter came to mind. "Gale, was there something going on between you and the girl?"
Gale stared at him. "That's ridiculous," and his voice was hard as he spat the words out.
"Because I think the shoemaker's daughter – can't remember her name, but yeah, I think that she said that you had gone to the Slag Heap with a girl and –"
"Delly Cartwright is a gossip," Gale stated flatly, but Thom knew it was an order to drop it. He knew an order when he heard one. So he shut up, and he didn't ask about Gale's mystery girl, the one he met with several times.
It was unlikely that it was the prim and proper Mayor's daughter anyway.
Katniss asked about Madge Undersee.
For a second, Thom had to think who that was, but then realized that Undersee was the Mayor's last name, and Madge must have been the Mayor's daughter.
He told her she died. He had been there to help evacuate, but he was too late. Screams had been heard from the house, and he could remember hearing the piano before the entire house collapsed.
Katniss had stared at him in horror and anguish. "Gale should have protected her as well. He as good as promised to take care of everyone."
And everyone includes the Mayor's daughter? But instead, Thom said, "Gale doesn't like talking about her."
"He hated her."
"Did he?"
Katniss frowned. "That's what I thought," but she gave a brittle laugh. "Then again, I'm horrible at emotions. Perhaps they were in love; Haymitch certainly thought so."
"Haymitch isn't always correct though."
"He's correct too often for my piece of mind."
"He loves you. He's in love with you."
Katniss pursed her lips. "I can't give him what he wants."
"He doesn't want anything –"
"He'll find another pair of lips to kiss," she interrupted him harshly, and the conversation ended there.
Thom didn't see Gale, not after Gale landed a cushy job in District 2. Hazelle Hawthorne and the rest of the brood stayed in District 12, however. Rory grew solemn, and Thom knew that Prim's death had hit him hard.
Sometimes, Thom wondered what was so special about the Everdeen girls. Yes, they were good people, but…
On the rare occasion that Gale visited District 12, Gale would visit his family. Thom rarely was free to catch up with him but on this particular instance, he was.
Gale suggested meeting up at the bar.
Thom was immediately suspicious.
The bar was in the seedier side of Panem, and not many of the Merchant folk came around. Even despite the fact that District 12 had for the most part done away with the Town/Seam divisions, there wasn't a blonde head of hair to be seen. It was just so much easier to fall back into that dichotomy.
Gale drank too much.
Thom got it. A therapist he had spoken to remarked on how prevalent PTSD was in the Districts, but that it was severe and crippling for those who had gone through the Hunger Games. Katniss had it bad, so bad that she was declared insane. Peeta Mellark, who was hijacked as well, was bitter and cynical, a far cry from when he had first become Panem's superstar, all hopeful and loving and romantic (romance was dead). Gale…
Well, Gale was at the forefront of the war effort. He had to have been badly affected.
"You going to drink that?" Gale asked him, after finishing his who-knew-how-many-cups of liquor (probably in the tens now). Except his voice was more slurred than anything.
Thom was still on his first drink.
"Damn it, Gale, is this your idea of fun? Getting sloshed?"
Gale snorted. "Life's a mess. Can't come back to District 12 anymore, everyone knows I killed Primrose Everdeen. I'm all alone in District 2. Even though the whole Capitol system under Snow has stopped, doesn't stop the citizens of District 2 looking down on us District 12 folk. It sucks but it pays the bills."
"Really Gale?"
"I promised I'd keep her safe."
"You did your best. You could hardly prevent Prim from being there –"
"Not talking about Prim."
"Katniss doesn't –"
"Know anything. She never did. I was a fool to think we'd ever be more than friends. I was a fool to think we'd ever be more than friends."
The emphasis on the second 'we' made Thom start. Were they still talking about Katniss?
Gale's eyes still darted around though, despite his general drunkenness. Thom couldn't understand how paranoid Gale still was. Even after all this time…
Then Gale suddenly sat up straight, alert. His eyes focused at the doorway. Thom turned and looked in the direction Gale was gazing at. A blonde lady had just entered on the arms of one of the Seam men.
Thom snorted. "Rare to see a Merchant girl with a Seam boy, huh, Gale?"
When Gale didn't answer, Thom turned back to stare at him. Gale had sneaked Thom's drink away and finished it up in a gulp.
"I didn't hate her, you know?" Gale said gloomily, after he'd finished the drink.
"Who are you talking about?"
"Madge Undersee."
To this, Thom made no reply. He was still stunned.
"Good-for-nothing Merchant girl, that's what I called her. I thought she had never spared me a glance, seeing as we Seam people were all scum of the earth. But I was wrong, like I always am," Gale snorted. "I was the Good-for-nothing bastard. Thought she had no spunk. Turns out Daddy Mayor had been involved with the Rebellion from before we were old enough to be reaped."
"Not that I knew that at the time, of course," Gale hiccupped. "I was a punk idiot. But she was there when Katniss wasn't and put up with my attitude. And she kissed me. And I hated her. But I kissed her back and bit her and used her."
Gale's smile was dark now. "And she knew she couldn't replace Katniss. She never made me promise to love her, because I couldn't. Not at the time, of course. But I was horrible and messed up and cruel to her. She gave as good as she got though. Those scars you remarked on back when I first started? She drew blood."
"I wanted to feel something when Katniss was gone. I was so numb with hate. She made me feel something other than that. So I promised I'd protect her, since I couldn't promise anything else. She laughed at me then."
Gale laughed bitterly. "She told me – ordered me – to not make promises I couldn't keep."
Thom stared at Gale in shock. "Did you love her in the end?"
Gale was silent for a long time. Just when Thom thought he wouldn't answer, Gale did. "No," he murmured. "No, that time I was too fixated on Katniss to spare any thought for her. I was a Capitol-class jerk. I mean, when you told me she died, I felt awful, but not like I was going to die myself without her around. I still had it pretty bad for Katniss."
"But you still think about her."
"She let me use her like that, and I never got why. And then I realized that she was stronger than I was, stronger than all of us put together." Gale's laughter this time was still bitter. "Her armor was courtesy, and her weapon was wit and if she lived, she'd be President of Panem. But she died too young and only able to help me, the unworthiest bastard in District 12."
"You helped the Rebellion win though."
"Only to lose everything. I killed Primrose Everdeen, I lost my best friend and I can't come home to District 12 without remembering that Madge Undersee shouldn't have died. Too many good people died."
Gale paused. "The worst thing though, Thom, is that sometimes, when I dream, I don't dream of Katniss and hunting; I realize now that what I felt. I dream of the Mayor's daughter, in the pretty white dress and the ribbons, in her home playing the piano for me. Sometimes I reach for her, but I'm too late; the fires consume everything and she is burning with it. And then I realize my words must have meant nothing to her. My words were wind, there to fill the space hanging between us only for a second. I meant it all though, at the time. I promised…" And here Gale paused.
"Was it love?" Gale finally continued, before flagging the bartender. "If it was, it was sick and twisted. I ruined it anyhow, because I was full of anger and vengeance. I was consumed by hatred, and it killed any chance of…"
Gale didn't finish his sentence, but instead held his glass out for the bartender to refill. He downed the glass almost immediately after, but he didn't resume where he left off. Thom couldn't order him to finish up his story anyway. He would never do that to his best friend.
Woman I can hardly express,
My mixed emotion at my thoughtlessness,
After all I'm forever in your debt.
Fin
A/N: Unbeta'd so mistakes are mine.
Song lyrics from John Lennon's Woman. The song isn't Gadge but that paragraph was fitting.