A/N: This story picks up immediately after Catching Fire. Gale has just told Katniss that District 12 was destroyed. This first chapter is short, but I really wanted to post something. Hope you like it!
Gale's words hit me a painfully as a bag of rocks. All the air left my body and the simple task of breathing became difficult. I could vaguely hear Gale calling my name, but the overwhelming thought that I had somehow helped to destroy the place I had once called home suffocated all my senses. It wasn't long before colored dots enveloped my vision and I passed out.
I awoke slowly, keeping my eyes shut tight. As my senses began to sharpen, I carefully took note of my surroundings as best I could. It seemed I had been unstrapped from the table and placed on some sort of sofa. A subtle whooshing sound let me know that we were still on the hovercraft- I hadn't been out too long, apparently. As I came to my senses, I took a few deep breaths and prepared myself for the onslaught of emotions that were sure to follow consciousness, but nothing came. Not even the numb feeling I had been experiencing for the past several hours. Not fully convinced I was free from my emotional torture, I slowly opened my eyes and found Gale and Finnick sitting across from me. Finnick was asleep in his chair, but as soon as Gale noticed I was awake, he rushed over and kneeled beside me.
"Katniss!" He sounded distressed. "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have said anything!"
I shook my head, but stopped as another wave of dizziness overcame me. I focused on breathing- in, out, in, out- and as soon as I felt better turned towards Gale.
"No, I'm glad you told me," I said. "You're the only person that's being honest with me."
Gale still didn't look certain, so I reached out and took his hand. His warm skin felt soft against my chilled fingers. He gave a light squeeze. "Are you ok?" he asked.
I knew he wasn't talking about my little fainting episode. I took a moment before answering, wanting to be as honest with him as he had been with me. I answered slowly, choosing my words carefully. "Yea, I am. I don't know what happened. It's like I realized that being catatonic wasn't going to help anyone."
Gale's eyes narrowed as the words sunk in. "You don't mean you're gonna-"
"Yes. I mean, I want to do something now. I want to fight." I let out a small smile, "I am the mockingjay, after all." I immediately regretted saying this as Cinna's face passed through my mind. But Gale beamed and leaned down to kiss my forehead, which surprised me.
He kept his head rested on mine and whispered, almost to himself, "Thank you."
It was strange to see him so emotional. I'd known Gale for so long; I thought I had seen every side there was to him. Angry, protective, strong, arrogant, caring. But this was new. This was…affectionate. Despairing, almost. He kept his gentle grip on my hand and laid his head in my lap. He kept completely still and all was quiet for a moment, but I felt his tears as they landed on my shirt. Sure enough, when he finally looked up, pools of water were quietly streaming down his cheeks. But his face wasn't one of a hopeless man; instead it showed a fierce look of determination.
His voice was gruff and he stared intently into my eyes.
"We're gonna save him, Catnip. We're gonna save Peeta."