** Sorry again for taking such a long time to update, work is really throwing off my writing routine. Please keep checking for updates!

Thank you soooo much to those of you who continue to review my story! I am beyond flattered. You make me smile :)

This is my first shot at a FanFiction. Please let me know what you think. :) I DO NOT own the Hunger Games Series. Some lines taken directly from Suzanne Collins' books.

I haven't read many FanFictions either so any theme resemblance to other Hunger Games FanFiction is entirely coincidental.

Chapter 10:

Haymitch had actually been right. I never imagined myself saying that about the District's most famous drunk. I arrived home to see Gale laying next to a pond slowly swallowing water, then refill his bottle add some sort of drops to it, then wait.

Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith, the commentators for the Games, let out a sigh of relief and congratulate Gale on finding the water (not that he could hear them). After their initial excitement of his discovery is over and since watching a boy drink water isn't considered entertaining television for the audience, we are shown the other tributes. The Careers are on the hunt but finding no one, and everyone else is laying low getting ready to settle in for the night. Things are quiet. On screen we are shown a basic map of the arena with lights indicating where each tribute is located, and they are pretty spread out. There's one way off on the other side of the field of grain- Thresh; one a bit away from a river- Foxface; one by the lake- the boy from 3; a cluster of five working its way through the forest -the Careers. The rest of the lights are in the forest and are actually in relatively close proximity to one another.

The anthem plays; there were no deaths. Usually I turn the television off at this point and go to bed, but I have this nagging feeling. Things today were what would be considered "dull" for the games; no deaths, no fights. People in the Capitol must be getting bored and that is unacceptable. The Gamemakers have been known to tweak things, rigging areas and adding obstacles to get things started again- the audience hasn't really had a good dose of adrenaline since the initial bloodbath.

My mother and Prim go to bed but I stay in front of the television, turning the volume down. I'm scared of what the Gamemakers may do. I'm scared not just for Gale and Madge but for the other tributes who are by themselves. There's no telling what could happen, the Gamemakers don't have any rules.

I'm woken by a crack and a flash of red-yellow light. Bolting up from where I dozed off on the floor I see a wall of fire. Trees were ablaze instantaneously, it was like someone flicked a switch, it was clearly man-made; I wish I hadn't been right about the Gamemakers planning something. All the tributes in the woods bolted up from sleep and run as soon as their feet are under them. There was smoke and fire at every turn. Flames crackled, branches fell and bushes went up as soon as anything- human or animal- got too close. We are shown footage of the tributes fleeing, scrambling in every direction, completely unaware if they are heading deeper into the blaze or towards safety. Some had managed to collect their meager supplies and even now as they cough, stumble and fall in their escape are still clinging on them for dear life.

We were then shown a split screen image of the District 12 tributes- Gale has his supplies and is very alert, moving with a purpose; Madge has her precious water canteen strapped to her belt and is running around in a daze. Next thing I know the two frames collide and so do Gale and Madge, landing on the ground. Both are extremely startled, gasping for the almost non-existent air only to inhale a lungful of blackish-brown smoke. I see Gale's head twitch like it does when we are in the woods and he hears potential prey, he wastes no time grabbing Madge's hand, dragging her forward and just in time. A flaming piece of debris come crashing down onto the spot they occupied only seconds before. Gale continues to lead them in the direction the animals are heading but eventually the flames have reached such unnatural heights, they have created impassible barriers.

Madge become the first victim of the Gamemakers' next twist- a fireball the size of an apple comes shooting out of the sky, hissing as it descends and hits her right on the back. Her hand is ripped from Gale's as she falls to the ground, the jacket licked with angry orange flames; she screams and instinctively rolls onto her back to extinguish them. Gale quickly rips the burning garment off her, stomping on it. As soon as it is out, in one swift motion he scoops Madge and her charred jacket into his arms and begins to run again.

It cannot be an easy journey, the lack of air, his already weak state, the added weight and the fireballs exploding all around them. After a few minutes of crashing through the woods he is shaking so bad he has to stop and vomit. Madge stays beside him until he is done and for a moment things almost seem to calm down (besides the obvious danger of the surrounding unpredictable yet very controlled fire). When Gale finally looks up at Madge something in her face must have conveyed great urgency because in a matter of seconds he has looked over his shoulder, seen the gigantic fireball headed straight for them and has pushed Madge back on the ground, covering her with his body.

The fireball hits its target sending flaming rock and debris down upon them. Gale receives the worst of the assault, a piece of debris is protruding from his arm and his pant leg is on fire. Rolling out from underneath Gale's protection, Madge stares wide eyed at him. Taking what is left of her jacket she smothers the flame on his leg and tentatively touches the piece of jagged wood in his left bicep. He hisses in pain, gritting his teeth.

"Pull it out," He groans. Madge freezes and shakes her head, "Do it!"

Swallowing hard she wraps her fingers around it, closes her eyes and give a firm yank. Gale hisses again, clutching the wound. His knees go weak. Madge throws the offensive bloody object to the ground, she looks a bit green. I am queasy just watching, I do no handle gruesome injuries well.

The fireballs return and the two of them are on the move again, frantically dodging the attacks, leaping over logs, reacting in just enough time to avoid the direct impact. Ashes rain down, singeing their clothes, skin and hair.

The Gamemakers snap back to the other tributes, but I am in too much shock to absorb what is happening to them. Gale and Madge are together and alive. Gale just risked his life for Madge without so much as a second thought and even though they are running for their lives I find that I mind her hand in his, more than I would care to admit.

And just as fast as they appeared the walls of fire are gone. I see the two of them collapsed on their knees, Gale's hand placed on Madge's back as they take in deep breaths. The part of the forest they had just emerged from was black and charred whereas the trees ahead of them are completely unscathed. They survived the first phase of the Gamemaker's trap.

I bet their stylists never imagined the fire theme to be continued this far.

Right now, in both the arena and here at home, daylight is emerging, my eyes are heavy from lack of sleep but there is no point in attempting to go to bed, my mind is reeling too much. Besides I couldn't take my eyes away from the screen if I tried. The tributes are assessing the severity of their burns and other injuries.

Madge's blond hair is coated with a dark layer of ash and grime, her hands are a little brunt and her back shows signs of blistering. It's Gale's injuries that really frighten me. A part of his leg is burnt, bright red, and oozing and his arm wound looks about ten times worse. Neither allows the other to panic though, they find some water relatively easily and douse their wounds wrapping them as best they can.

"They are going to need some medicine," I turn to see my mother, shawl around her shoulders, standing behind me, her face grim. "Not much in that arena will be able to help them, maybe a few basic herb poultices could be made to temporarily reduce the inflammation, if they knew how, but there's nothing strong enough to heal those wounds or ward off infection."

Horrified, I remember what Peeta said yesterday, Say they need medication; you can't find that in the arena. Hopefully Haymitch is paying attention this time and is already organizing sponsors.

My mother brings me a cup of warm goat's milk, squeezes my shoulder and walks back to bed. I've been pushing her away for so long and caring for her that I tend to forget that she is the parent and I am the child. It is her job to comfort me. This gesture just let me know that maybe she is finally starting to come back, after all these years. I won't get my hopes up though.

I turn my attention back to the television. Though obviously in pain Gale says, "We better start moving, I doubt we were the only ones in there, and I'd like to avoid a confrontation with someone like Tresh or Cato as much as possible."

"We?" she looks stunned.

"Yes, 'we'. Come on Madge."

They start off at a much calmer pace this time, walking side by side, all the smoke they inhaled causing them to be rather drowsy.

Coming upon a river Madge stops and looks at it longingly. Gale keeps going forward. "Gale?" she asks, he turns around. "Can we stop here for a minute? My skin is burning and I feel... sweaty and gross." She doesn't say it as a complaint but rather a statement.

He sighs in exasperation, clearly annoyed with his new partner's request. I wonder if he's ever been this annoyed with me, when I change his plans out in the woods. I know I would be.

She has such a naturally sweet pleading look that he has a hard time saying no. So he relents. Madge really hasn't complained this far and a dip in the water wouldn't hurt, besides Gale looks like he could use one too, he's definitely looked better.

When he reluctantly says "okay" she grins and clamps her arms around his waist, she is barely to his shoulder. Awkwardly he sets her aside. Unfazed Madge slips off her boots and socks and sits on the river bank. After some coaxing and a few skeptical looks around the surrounding area Gale joins her.

The next thing I see is the Careers, not near the river mind you but on the hunt in the woods. Apparently Gale and Madge's activity didn't promise to be interesting so they cut to something else. The five of them must have got caught in the fire too; they were coughing and covered in soot but had not received any visibly serious injuries.

"We have to be close to finding someone," the girl from 4 says. "Why else would the Gamemakers have sent the fiery wall of death?"

"You're right, so we better find someone and kill them fast. I don't want to know what the next surprise from them is."This came from Marvel.

"That girl from 12 should be real easy to get, doesn't seem like much of a fighter. I'm shocked she's still alive," the insane looking girl with the knives comments.

"Yeah I know what you mean Clove, she only pulled a four. But what if she is with the boy from 12? Aren't they supposed to be in love or something?" Glimmer says while drawing a heart in the air with her fingers. They scoff as this. Except for Cato.

At the mention of Gale, Cato's jaw ticks, he gets a dark look in his eye and he clenches his fists. "Then she'll just make finding him that much easier. I WANT HIM DEAD."

And with that they are on the move again, weapons clutched in their hands. Ready to kill. On their way to find the District 12 tributes they do end up drawing blood, getting the first kill in days- the boy from 10. He didn't even see it coming; they descended on him like a pack of wolves. Their extreme brutality I think was unnecessary. This must be a preview of what they will do when they find their true targets. As the cannon fires and the hovercraft appears they flash through the fearful reactions of the remaining tributes. The one that stick in my mind the most is the girl from 11, Rue; I've seen that expression on my little sisters face many times.

Rue is high up in the branches of a tree, her small body concealed among the leaves. Her wide eyes and build remind me of Prim, and I shudder at the thought of her being in the Games. This poor little girl, 12-year-old girl, I have the urge to reach out and comfort her, protect her.

I'm surprised by how long we watch her in the tree, since she isn't doing much, until I hear a snap. Her eyes go wide again and her body stills. The crunching of feet on the forest floor grows closer.

"Shhh...do you want the whole arena to hear you?"

"Sorry."

"Just walk quietly. It's not that hard. I'm not making any noise and I'm heavier than you."

Silence. "Well sorry, some of us have never had to practice walking quietly through the woods."

This time the "shhh" was much harsher.

I see the two figures come into view from Rue's aerial angle. It's Gale and Madge.