A/N: Sorry for the delay. It appears traffic and reviews are way down on stories. I will admit my desire to write has dimmed without knowing if folks like what I write or not. For all of you still reading and reviewing, I thank you for giving me the energy to keep writing.

Thanks BetherdyBabe and Belle453 for the beta.

"Are these your ribbons?" Gale held out a handful of brightly colored lengths of cloth to the girl clutching her school books to her chest like a shield.

"No," Madge said, looking straight into Gale's eyes. She had big blue eyes the color of a cloudless sky and they were framed by the longest lashes he'd ever seen.

"You didn't lose your ribbons in my yard?" Gale scowled and gave her his most fierce expression. I will not be taken in by her innocent looks.

"Nope," she said and turned, walking briskly away.

"I know what you're doing and I don't like it." Gale jogged up to her. "Hey, you walk fast for someone with such short legs."

"So I can get away from bullies," she retorted.

"Who bullies you?" Gale stepped in front of her, making her halt in her walk toward the library. He didn't know why he was angry at the thought of someone teasing Madge. Hell, he'd done it just last weekend before the Reaping.

"I don't own those ribbons, Gale," she said.

Gale had spent more time with Madge the past week of the Games than he'd spent with Katniss the previous month. Thinking about his friend in the Games made him angry and that anger came out when he was around Madge. The Mayor's daughter didn't seem to mind and held her own against him. Since he was a cousin of the Everdeens, he was allowed access to viewings that others in District 12 didn't have. The special viewings happened at the Mayor's residence, hence his new relationship with Madge. "Did you leave ribbons in my yard for my sister to find?" Sometimes she was so damned literal.

"No."

"You're a horrible liar."

"I'm not lying. I did not leave those ribbons in your back yard for Posy to find." She sidestepped around him and continued toward her destination.

"Aha!" He got in front of her and waved his finger under her nose. "How do you know I found them in my backyard?"

"You only have a backyard, Gale." She stepped around him once again.

He grasped her upper arm and turned her toward him. His gaze traversed her flawless features. Wispy bangs dusted her forehead. Perfectly arched brows rose above blue eyes, which were open wide with curiosity. A button nose and pink lips that formed a smirk rounded out the most perfect face Gale had the privilege of looking on.

"I left them for you to find… and give to Posy."

He staggered back after lowering Maddy to the sofa. Her eyes. Her face. Madge? He hadn't thought about her in years and found her on his mind several times in the last few days. Maddy May looked like Madge Undersee.

"Maddy!" one of the two dark-skinned girls in the dressing room knelt beside her.

"I'm a medic," Rory said as he joined her by the couch. "We should get her something to eat or drink. I'm sure this is from adrenaline and exhaustion."

"She does overdo it often," the other girl said. "I've got an energy drink for her."

"Let me check her pulse." Rory took her dainty hand in his and held her wrist.

Gale was frozen and unable to move. His eyes couldn't leave her face. It was a trick. Maybe the Capitol created her before they were defeated. Katniss and Peeta claimed the final mutts in their Games looked like the dead tributes. He wouldn't put anything past the Capitol.

"Daddy, we have to help him!" Madge screamed.

"Don't even think about going out there, young lady!" her father shouted, physically blocking the door to the yard.

"They're killing him and you won't do anything about it." She tried to keep her voice from cracking.

"Thread is in charge now," her father sounded defeated. "There's nothing I can do." Madge turned and raced up the stairs.

She quieted her sobbing with deep breaths. She stepped into her mother's darkened room. Her mother's migraines became worse in the winter. Something about the cold air caused her to feel pain more intensely. "Mom?"

"May, is that you?" her mother's feeble voice asked.

"Yes, Maddy, it's me." She used her mother's nickname since it was obviously one of those days when she confused her daughter with her deceased sister. "I need to ask you a favor."

"Anything for my big sister," she said, a chuckle rising from her chest.

"Remember the boy I told you about from the Seam? The tall, dark one with the perfect smile?"

"Jake Hawthorne?"

"Yes." Madge hated lying, but her mother was obviously high on morphling at the moment. "I need some of your medicine for him. He will die without it."

Maddy surged up from the couch to be caught by a firm hand forcing her to lay back. "Easy, Miss May," the young man said.

Her eyes flew to his and she gasped. His grey eyes looked so familiar, yet the jovial face they resided in could never belong to Gale. "Who…?"

"I'm Rory Hawthorne," he answered. "Don't you worry about anything. I'm a medic and I'll take care of you."

Of course he looks like Gale. Hazelle said Rory looked like a younger version of Gale all his life. So this is what Finnick planned. "R-rory, wh-what're you doing here?" Panic shot through her that he might recognize her up close. The silver hair was so vibrant it drew everyone's attention away from her face. She could never manage to allow anyone to change her features. Her eyes, nose and hair were gifts from her dead mother and aunt, to permanently alter them felt like a betrayal of them.

"I'm an old friend of the President's. When he found out what a big fan of yours that I was, he invited me backstage. Now don't you worry your pretty little head about anything." He took the drink from Autumn and looked around before asking for a pillow. "It's truly an honor to meet you. My brother and sister are huge fans. I hope I can get an autograph after."

"Vick and Posy," she said quietly. Her eyes drank in Rory's youthful appearance as tears welled in her eyes. Damn you, Finnick. She knew he meant well, but this was killing her.

"Yeah, Vick and…" he paused, his eyes narrowed, "How do you know…" His face lost its humor. "Let me guess. You were an admirer of my brother."

"Yes. He was a great hero and patriot," she said before her voice cracked. "I need to get up."

"Of course," Rory said, resentment in his voice.

A cough from the man behind him drew her attention.

Rory offered a sad smile to Maddy. "That's Slayer. He's an Avox. He likes your music too so I let him tag along."

The Avox narrowed his eyes at Rory from his place in one of the darker corners of the dressing room and her heart broke. That was supposed to be her destiny. An Avox with no voice. The tears she fought since she finished her musical eulogy to Gale came pouring out.

"Hey," Rory soothed, reaching out to gather Maddy in his arms.

"Get away from her, soldier-boy!" Autumn snapped, pushing him back. "No one gets that close to Maddy."

"She's obviously upset…" he started.

A sudden banging sound, followed by the lights flickering caused everyone to freeze. Maddy remembered the sound from her nightmares.

"Better check that out," Finnick said, looking to Slayer in the corner.

The Avox moved forward and spoke to the President. "You need to evacuate. Now!" An explosion – there was no other word to describe it – shook the building. He then raced down the corridor.

The explosion. That voice, so much like Gale's. Her emotions. Rory. Everything swirled in Maddy's mind. I am finally losing it.

Chaos erupted around her as Rory jumped to his feet, Finnick was marshalled into the room by his big bodyguards and Autumn screamed. Maddy snapped out of her trance and grabbed her young friend. Seeder rushed to her sister's side.

"No! Not again! No bombs!" Autumn moaned as Maddy held her and rocked her.

"We'll be okay," Maddy said, looking to Rory Hawthorne for their salvation.

Gale just knew something bad was going to happen. His life was full of adversity and challenge; why would a simple concert be any different?

The second explosion rocked the building and knocked him into the wall. Several people screamed and the smoke alarm went off. "A little late don't you think," Corvus growled.

Gale had been so intent on getting to the hoverport that he didn't notice who was around him. His fellow Marine was still in civilian clothing from the concert.

"What's the plan, sir?" Bristol appeared out of the crowd next.

"We need to make sure we can evac the president and our guests," he said, a few more Marines appeared behind Corvus and Bristol. He couldn't help but smile because they obviously had the same idea as him. "And get some damned weapons!"

"This way, sir," Billy, a young Marine not much older than Rory, said and pointed down a hallway toward the sounds of the explosions.

"Of course," Gale shook his head. "Okay, let's go. Oo-rah!" They echoed the battle cry and took off down the hallway into harm's way.

The smoke was choking, so Gale ordered Bristol to take half the squad and scope out the hoverport. She was to offer whatever assistance she could in ensuring that the evac area was secure. Gale took Corvus, Tank, a giant from D11 that looked like Thresh from the 74th Games, Rat, a small, wily Marine from D3, and Vaz, a female from D10.

"Who's securing the President?" Corvus asked as they wove through the walking wounded.

There were many smaller blasts that shook the compound, but nothing brought down the ceiling on top of them.

"His guards and Rory are with them," Gale explained. The number of soldiers coming from the armory section dwindled. The last one had the rank of Lieutenant and was cradling a wounded arm. "Lieutenant, what happened? Why don't any of you have weapons?"

"They took out the armory," the Lieutenant said, his voice shaking. "The whole roof collapsed. We couldn't get to the cages, so I ordered everyone out. What the hell's going on? Who did this?"

The man's eyes were open wide, he was shaking and taking very fast. Gale suspected he'd never seen combat before. "Vaz, get him back to the hoverport. Make sure all the injured get there for evac."

"Sir, you'll need all the help you can get to get into those cages." She stood not much taller than the height requirement to be in the military, but her attitude and spirit made up for her lack of height.

"I gave you an order, Corporal." Gale glared.

"Who are you? You look familiar," the Lieutenant said, his eyes narrowing.

"I'm your worst nightmare come alive," Gale said, Corvus and the others chuckled. "Now get the hell out of here."

The room that held the caged armory was massive, a warehouse sized facility that was mostly crumbled. Luckily the sprinkler system put out the fire, which left only the rubble to be maneuvered through.

"Give me a few minutes to the lay of the land, sir, and I'll find us another way around." Rat pulled a small electronic device from his pocket, causing Gale to smile.

"Since your hand-to-hand sucks, it's a good thing you're such a gadget whiz," Corvus said.

"Don't expect to ever get hot water in the shower again, Sarge," Rat retorted.

Gale allowed his Marines to banter with each other and tease. It was similar in the Star Squad. He could never stand the rigid discipline some commanders required. Movement to his right caught his attention and he held up his hand for silence.

Two figures in black approached the rubble that covered the armory cage. One of them had a large rocket launcher, while the other had an ordinary gun. Gale motioned for his men to move back along the passageway so they couldn't be seen.

"What've you got, Corporal?" Gale asked the smaller man from D3.

"As long as nothing's collapsed, back at the last intersection, if you take the right turn it'll bring you up behind them."

"Tank, you're with me. Corvus, you and Rat create some kind of diversion. We can't let them use the rocket launcher or it'll destroy all the weapons."

"Understood," both men agreed at the same time. "Oo-rah!"

For a big man, Tank moved as quietly as Gale. He might not speak much, but he was always where you needed him to be. Gale was glad to have him as back-up when taking on two armed soldiers while unarmed himself.

The two soldiers in front of him had been surveying the collapsed ceiling and the cage most likely to see if they could find a way inside. Their orders were most likely to destroy the weapons if they couldn't get to them.

Gale noted they were about the same size, so he looked to Tank and shrugged. It was his way of saying he didn't care which one he took and offering Tank the option. The big man narrowed his eyes and zeroed in on the one holding the rocket launcher that left the slightly smaller one for Gale.

They moved further down the darkened hallway and waited for a diversion to grab their quarries' attention. It wasn't more than a few seconds before lights started exploding on the opposite side of the warehouse.

Gale shook his head. How did those guys from 3 find a way to use electricity like that? A brief thought of Beetee, dead well over a year now crossed his mind. He took anger over his friend's death and molded it into resolve. A resolve that he'd use to take down the bastards in front of him.

He and Tank moved in sync, silently and without any fear. When their targets stepped over to peer through the I-beams and metal that had fallen, they made their move. Tank rushed low and nailed his target in the lower back with his massive shoulder driving the man to his knees. A crack told Gale that his partner had broken the soldier's neck.

As Gale got closer to his target, he realized they were smaller than he was by almost a foot so he changed his tactic. He wrapped his arms around his victim's middle, knocking the rifle out of his hands. While in the process of picking the person up to crash them down to the floor, their head flew back and slammed Gale in the chin. He staggered, but didn't release his grip.

"Let me go, you son-of-a-bitch," a female voice hissed. Her head came back again, but Gale was ready this time and her helmet only hit into his shoulder. Her boots stomped down on Gale's feet and kicked his shins, but he held on.

"Tank!" Gale shouted as he spun to face the other man.

"Holy shit, sir," Tank exclaimed as he lowered the pistol he took of the dead man.

"What!"

"It's Enobaria!"

"My lucky day," Gale said as she continued to swear and smack him with her helmet to his chest. "Knock this bitch out before I accidentally kill her."

Gale stood in the chaotic hoverport and oversaw the evacuation of the Generals, their prisoner and the President. Finnick didn't want to go in the middle of a fight, the natural warrior in him took over.

"Mister President," Gale said roughly, cutting off the General and others. "You need to make sure we get the prisoner back for questioning. We know what to do."

Finnick nodded reluctantly. "Questioning her on the trip back, might make me feel a bit better." A grin spread over his face. "Might have to find my trident for that."

He stood back and watched the President get on board and the ship rise into the sky. Flashes of weapons hitting the strong shield around the hovercraft marked its ascent toward safety.

"Captain!"

He turned to see Rory and several other soldiers ushering Maddy May and her two assistants toward a hovercraft. Anger roared through him. "Why the hell weren't they on that hovercraft!" An explosion rocked the ground and caused several people to stumble to the ground. Klaxons sounded and people shouted. It was a miracle he'd even heard his brother shout.

"I wasn't going to leave without you," Rory said, jogging over. "And Miss May wants to stay near me for some reason." A sheepish grin spread over his young face.

"Start thinking with the head on top of your body for once," he growled. His eyes settled on the silver-haired siren and the two girls clinging to her side. Her blue eyes met his and once again shock flooded his system. Madge Undersee's laughter, smiles and sad, blue eyes came to mind. He'd never found out why sadness seemed to fill her eyes when she looked at him. It was one of many mysteries about her he'd never gotten to solve. "Why the hell are you still here!" he shouted at her over the roar of noise.

"I wanted Mister Hawthorne to accompany us, but he wouldn't leave," she yelled to be heard, but her voice was even and strong for a civilian caught in the middle of a battle.

"Mister Hawthorne's place is in the battle, not babysitting you!" Jealousy he couldn't explain ripped through him. She had a crush on him – Gale Hawthorne – but he was supposed to be dead, so she was now focusing on his brother. This was why he kept away from women the past decade. One night stands were all he could stomach! They went from one guy to the next at the drop of a hat. "Rory, get her the hell out of here!"

Unable to control his irrational anger and jealousy, he lifted his rifle and ran toward a breach in the line protecting the hoverport. He could take his anger at Miss Maddy May, Katniss and women in general out on the enemy. The only one who had been loyal to him was Madge. She risked her life in a snowstorm under Thread's curfew to bring him morphling. Then she died before he ever knew.

The roar of the hovercraft taking off could be heard over the sound of gunfire and grenades going off. The sound of several small zippers – single-man hovercrafts – made Gale smile. It was obvious that the enemy underestimated the strength of New Panem's military and was going to pay the price.

"The President is safely away," Rat said as he settled next to Gale. They were protected by a large wall and able to fire on the enemy with ease.

"Good." Gale wished he had his militarized bow, but would have to settle for the rifle. He was a decent sniper and picked off one rebel after another.

"Now Rory and his fan club are away," Rat added over the sound of another hovercraft taking off.

Gale didn't reply, only shot more people. The sound of a deafening explosion overhead made him look up. One of the engines was flaming. "What the hell! Why didn't they have their shields up?" The hovercraft rose unsteadily into the sky, barely getting out of weapons' range before it took another hit to the aft engine. It listed from side to side and then continued to lumber toward the mountains in the distance. Mountains that were crawling with the enemy.

"Sir!" Bristol shouted as she opened fire next to him. "Get down!"

"Rory!" he murmured as the ship began to descend rapidly. Did I just sign my brother's death sentence?

TBC

A/N: I apologize for any 'non-Marine' behavior. This is probably at least 500 years in the future and they are attempting to rebuild. They might not get everything right off the bat ;-)