Katniss wakes up a few times throughtout the night, but it's always only briefly and I don't think she really knows what's going on. Once, she mumbles my name before slipping back under. Another time she just stares at me. And then, when the half dose of morphling wears off, she awakes screaming.

Mum, her hands shaking, injects her with the rest. What we'll do when she comes around next, I have no idea. When I ask Mum, she shakes her head sadly."We used to have a lot of whippings, before Cray. I got by then, I'll get by now. By the time the morphling wears of again, Katniss'll be fine."

God, do I want to believe her...

Next thing I know, I wake up in my bed. Mum or Haymitch must've carried me up after I fell asleep by Katniss's side, having refused to leave her.

I hop out of bed and sprint down the stairs to see how Katniss is doing. Mum raises a finger to her lips as soon as I enter the kitchen and I see that Madge has taken up my spot by Katniss's side, both of them asleep. Or, in Katniss's case, likely unconcious. It's hard to tell.

"How is she?"I ask my mother in a whisper. She looks like she might faint from exhaustion at any second but her eyes hold a determination that calms me."She'll be perfect. The wound set, so I could put the snow coat on."

I only nod, not needing a further explanation right now."Did you sleep at all?"

Mum shakes her head at this."Of course not. And don't even think about starting with me, young lady. I'm not having it."

"Yeah, you should have heard her chew out Haymitch when he told her to go to bed,"Madge remarks, stretching and wiping the sleep from her eyes. I almost grin at the thought of Haymitch's face. He's used to bossing people around but he should have known Mum wouldn't be dragged away from her daughter at such a time, not if she could help it.

"Where is Haymitch, anyway?"I ask, frowning. It's not like him to leave at a time like this. My mother jerks her head towards the living room."On the phone."

I look at her incredulously. Haymitch doesn't use phones. He doesn't even have anyone he could call, even if he wanted to. Which he doesn't. My mother reads my thoughts easily."Your escort tried to reach you."

Of course. I should have called her about two hours ago as usual, but I didn't even think about something so trivial.

"Breakfast?"Madge asks, moving about our kitchen as if she lived here, too. I only nod and give my mum the sternest look I can muster."Fine, stay awake. But you have to eat. I'll check on Haymitch."

I find him in the study, looking about as exhausted as my mother, phone raised to his ear. He looks at me almost the second I enter."Kid's up."

He pauses to listen to whatever Effie is saying, getting up and walking towards me."Yeah, you too, Effie."

Then he hands the phone over to me. He already told Effie everything that is safe to say over the phone but I relate events again, anyways. Haymitch wasn't there to see and I need to straighten it all out in my head anyways.

By the time I hang up, the smell of breakfast is wafting through the house. I'm on my way to the others when there's a knock on the door. I open it to find Taftan. His clothes are soaked, his nose is read, his lips almost blue and he's shivering. He marched all across town in a blizzard. His hands shaking, he holds out a bag to me he somehow kept dry."I thought you might need bread."

"She's still unconcious,"I tell him, because we both know why he's really here. I wave him inside."Have breakfast with us?"

When we step into the kitchen, it turns out that Katniss woke up while I was on the phone. She's groggy and in pain – even though she insists it's not bad – but she is awake and staying so. My heart soars with relief.

The blizzard wrecks havoc for two more days, ending with Haymitch, Madge and Taftan all being stuck at our house for the time being. I don't mind, we have the room and enough food to last us all for atleast a week. It's actually pretty great to have this many people over. Makes the house feel less gigantic. And Madge, at least, can call her parents and explain where she is. Taftan only shrugs and says his parents surely prefer him disappearing for a while over him freezing to death on the way home.

Katniss's back and Taftan's arm start to heal nicely and with the blizzard, I doubt Thread can do any more to ruin our district right now.

I decide to allow myself a few days of calm.

)o(

Quarter Quell Announcement next chapter probably! :o