Outside, the streets were similar to the layout Gale remembered from childhood, yet completely unfamiliar. It took him half an hour and a number of wrong turns to find the path that led towards Victor's Village – which was a road now, in truth, with other buildings along it. The victors didn't have to be kept separate anymore.

As he passed through the gate, Gale saw smoke coming from the chimneys of nearly all the houses, which was another new thing. He wondered, briefly, who was living in all of them. They still struck him as large enough for three families apiece, even though he'd seen much bigger since he left Twelve.

He guessed that the three houses closest to the gate probably still belonged to Haymitch, Katniss and Peeta, although they'd changed a lot. Haymitch's looked like someone might have touched it with a paintbrush at some point in the last year, while Mrs. Everdeen's former herb garden was now full of pale yellow flowers. Peeta's house had brightly colored curtains in every window, each one a different shade. Different times, same people.

Gale took a deep breath, walked up the closest path, and knocked on the door. There was a clatter and some scuffling from inside before the door finally opened to reveal a disheveled, but apparently sober, Haymitch Abernathy. "Gale," Haymitch said, with a hint of a smile on his face. "Did you somehow manage to grow taller?"

"Maybe from side to side," Gale answered with a grin. "You wouldn't believe how well they feed generals in Two."

"Hmph," Haymitch said. "Get in here, you bigwig, and help me with the nonsense someone put in my yard."

Gale set his bag down in the hall on the way to the back door, where he immediately saw the problem: five huge crates, each as high as his shoulder. "What's in all of those?" he asked.

"Tables and folding chairs, apparently," Haymitch grumbled. "Effie insisted on renting them so there could be a shmancy outdoor party after the schmancy ceremony. There are people coming later to handle the decorations and the food, but somehow I ended up in charge of unpacking the damned furniture."

Gale was surprised. "Is this really going to be that big an event? I mean, what, are they inviting the entire population of District 12?"

Haymitch snorted. "Just about. Peeta knows everyone from the bakery, plus I hear the hotel is booked full with folks coming from every District there is. Of course the hotel has less than twenty rooms, so that's not saying much."

"And Katniss is okay with having all of these people at her wedding?" She must be in a much better mental state than when we last met. But then again, Gale already knew that. The Katniss he'd last seen wouldn't have invited him anywhere, except possibly hell. Whatever happened to her in the last three years must have somehow made her into a forgiving person. He started to wonder what she'd say and do when she saw her again. Would she smile, like she used to when they met in the woods? He tried to picture that, but somehow he couldn't quite bring her smile to mind.

Haymitch's voice broke through the reverie. "Guess she must be. The only thing she insisted on was no cameramen and no TV appearances. Photos for the scrapbook, that's all she'll do. And I can't say I blame her, either." Haymitch sighed as he looked around the yard. "Are we going to stand here yakking all day, or are you going to help me unload these damn tables and chairs? Do they force generals to forget how to get their hands dirty?"

Gale shook off his wondering about Katniss and said, "Yes, all right, let's get the furniture unpacked."

Haymitch got a crowbar from somewhere and they worked together to pry one side of each crate off. They had to lift out each table, set and lock the legs, position it on the lawn ("Though we really shouldn't bother since her highness Miss Trinket will probably insist on moving them all twice more anyway"), assemble chairs around it, then repeat for the next table.

Haymitch, true to form, did not put much effort into maintaining a conversation while they worked. The sounds of birds and vehicles going by in the distance were not enough to break the silence. After a while Gale said, "It's so weird to hear quiet again. It's never like this in Two." Haymitch grunted in response. Gale thought, I wonder how I'll stand it for three days.

It took about an hour for Haymitch to finally look around and say, "Well, Effie will find plenty to complain about, which will make her happy. So our work here is done." Eyeing his guest, he added, "I assume you'll want to change out of the clothes you slept in on the train, before you go and greet the groom. Your room is upstairs, first door on your right, bathroom next to it. Let me know when you're leaving."