CHAPTER 21: Enough Punching for a Lifetime
Gale touched his fingers to his cheek gingerly, wincing away from them as a fresh sting of pain reminded him that he might walk down the aisle with a black eye. He let out a pained breath and flexed his fist, bringing it to rest at his side as he and Peeta travelled the ½ mile road from the Victor's Village to the main square of District 12.
This was a walk he was familiar with. He had taken it with Katniss many times after her first Games. Absentmindedly, he felt a pang of familiar longing in his chest.
Why was it, that even though he was about to marry Madge, he couldn't help but wish things were different with Katniss? Every single time he took this walk with Katniss, he remembered, he wanted something more. He had wanted her to stop, throw her arms around him, and admit that she couldn't stand it any longer; that Peeta meant nothing to her, and that she wanted him and no one else. And even now, after talking to Johanna, knowing what Peeta's death would have meant for Katniss's future, part of him still wished that things had gone differently.
Maybe that was always the problem. Peeta had never expected Katniss to leave Gale behind, even if it might have made things less complicated for them. Gale recalled, the best he could, through the flashes of pain and bouts of unconsciousness how Peeta had helped Katniss get Gale back to her house in the Victor's Village after his whipping. Would Gale have done the same for him?
He remembered Peeta being there, sending Katniss to bed after she had fallen asleep at his side... after she had kissed him. Peeta had stayed, had watched over Gale, tenderly even. Changed the cloth on his forehead, helped him drink some water, and brought bread for the Katniss's family to ensure that they remembered to eat while they were so focused on saving Gale's life.
He had accused Peeta then, in a weak, drug-hazed voice, "You probably hoped I wouldn't make it through the night, huh?" It was what Gale would have wished for him. Peeta, out of the picture, with no one to blame but the Capitol.
Peeta had looked at him, and kept for a few moments, the most profound silence. When he finally spoke, it was with a clear, strong voice, though agony colored the tone. "No, Gale. Of course not." Gale could remember the sad look in his eyes with shocking clarity as he finished, "I'm glad you're alive."
He cast a sidelong glance at Peeta, taking in the man whom Katniss had chosen over him. Peeta was shorter than he was, stockier, though not by much anymore. He never seemed to put back the weight that he lost in his time in the Capitol. Gale had never really seen Peeta's appeal. Physically, certainly, Gale knew that he himself was more handsome than Peeta, but then again, had Gale ever bothered to wonder what else there was to Peeta?
Sure he had. He just hadn't come up with anything. Peeta couldn't hunt, couldn't seem to protect Katniss worth a damn, or even himself. He had never understood what Peeta offered Katniss except that he was "nice." All Peeta was was nice. Gale could be nice. He was nice to Madge wasn't he? And Maysilee?
With a pang of guilt, Gale realized that he wasn't. Back when he wanted Katniss to declare her undying affections for him, to run away with him into the woods, and never to look back, it already would have been too late. Madge was already pregnant with Maysilee, who, at the time was growing inside Madge with each passing walk that he and Katniss took. He was the one who ensured that there was no going back to way things were before the Games. The fault was his, not Katniss's, and not Peeta's, and not the Capitol's.
No, he hadn't been nice to Madge at all.
Still, he wished Katniss hadn't punched him. Maybe he would never stop wanting something different from her. What did he want from her? Not romance certainly, but, what? The pain in his cheek that came from being slugged in the face by his best friend would subside, but the tightness in his chest might last the rest of his life. Gale hissed at the collective pain and kicked a rock as they passed by.
He became aware the Peeta had stopped walking, and spun around to face him. Peeta's face was strange. He was obviously studying Gale, intensely. Apparently, he hadn't been the only one deep in thought. Pity began to creep across Peeta's features. Gale couldn't stand it. When would Katniss stop hurting him, and when would Peeta stop being nice about it?
"You probably think I deserved it, huh?" he spat, with much more venom than he intended.
Peeta smiled, sadly. "No Gale, of course not."
Gale's body moved before he could comprehend enough to try to stop it. A burning anger surged through him, reaching his limbs before his mouth, and his mouth before his mind. With the full force that Katniss had used to hurt him, he threw a punch at Peeta, shouting profanities at him as he did so.
Unlike Gale, however, Peeta had survived the Hunger Games, twice, and caught the punch with surprising deftness for how clumsy he could be on his feet.
Gale found himself shaking, not from exertion, but from the unmistakable feeling that he had been emotionally eviscerated. He found himself feeling weak, confused, and vulnerable. He readied another string of profanities, and found his target - Peeta's face, tense, but still not angry.
For some reason, at this, Gale's voice caught in his throat, and all he managed was a strangled growl as he tried to jerk his fist away, but Peeta held it, with considerable effort. Gale struggled, but Peeta's face remained unchanged. Perhaps it took some amount of focus for him to stay steady.
This was a part of Peeta that Gale had not considered. His assumption had always been that Peeta just 'was' nice. The idea that Peeta was nice because he worked so damn hard to be was not something that had crossed his mind. Gale's confusion must have shown on his face, because Peeta took the opportunity for a deep, calming breath, preparing finally his verbal retort to Gale's violence.
"I'm going to let you go, but you can't do that again." The way he said it was cautionary, but not threatening. Gale remembered suddenly that Peeta was severely mentally damaged, and rather unstable as a result of his hijacking. Surely he had gotten better in the time that had passed, but physical violence was probably still a trigger for him.
"Fine." Gale barked, jerking away again, successful this time, as Peeta released his fist willingly.
Gale rubbed at his hand, and spoke the words before he could regret them, "I'm sorry."
Peeta inhaled again, betraying how hard it was to stay calm and be nice under the circumstances. When he did let his breath out, it came, surprisingly, with a laugh.
"I think it's been a hard day for all of us so far," he admitted.
Gale brought his hand to his cheek, "You can say that again."
Peeta looked at him cockeyed, and seemed to choose his next words carefully, as he offered, "That hurt?"
"Yeah," Gale shrugged. "No." He brought his hand down. "I don't know."
"I don't think she did it for her. Or even for me, if that helps." Peeta considered, and turned on his heel to continue towards the Square. "I think she did it for Madge."
Gale was surprised. He wasn't sure exactly where he thought Katniss was coming from when she hit him. He had assumed it had more to do with Prim or how they'd left things in District 13. Of course, he had never viewed Katniss as being selfless, which seemed to be how Peeta thought of her.
After taking this walk, if she had hit him for Madge, Gale decided that it might even be okay with him.
He knew, however, that this was not a problem to solve at present. He considered himself to be a man of few words, and so this conversation would take time, and would mostly continue to play itself out in his head, rather than with another person - least of all Peeta Mellark. Maybe he could even slip off to the woods later, or find the ruins of his old home to think it over.
There was one more thing he needed to know before their walk could continue, so, even though Peeta was about 10 feet ahead of him, he stayed put as he called, "Did she mean it? When she said she loved you? Or was it just to hurt me?"
Peeta stopped, and turned to face off with Gale. "Not in that moment. That was just to hurt you, and yes, it did hurt me too." Peeta's voice was hard and direct when he continued, making it clear that he would not be answering this question, or any others like it again, "But yes. Katniss loves me." He said it with a great deal of finality, and for the first time, he looked angry - not angry perhaps, but firm. The unspoken ending to Peeta's answer was that Gale showing up was not going to change the feelings between him and Katniss.
Gale was surprised that Peeta's certainty made him feel better, rather than worse. He nodded and caught up to Peeta, who waited for him. As Gale reached him, Peeta's face changed, losing its hardness to assume a softer, more amiable look.
"Now," Peeta smiled, "Katniss and I don't really drink, because we don't need anything to increase the likelihood of nightmares, flashbacks, or hijacked episodes." He said this with such good humor that Gale couldn't help but do a double-take. Peeta turned his smiling face towards Gale, who looked away uncomfortably. He and Madge never talked so openly about such morbid things.
Peeta gave him a good-natured - but pointedly hard - slap on the back as he explained, "So you'll have to help me pick something out to go with dinner."
"S-sure." Gale tried to keep his composure, which was fragile, since it had just barely been regained.
"And..." Peeta paused, "I thought Annie and Johanna had come on the same train? I made enough food for a dinner for all of us plus Haymitch. Are they going to be joining us later or have plans changed?"
Gale shook his head no, and quickly followed up, "They- we brought a few of our friends from 2 and my family is coming in later this evening. Beetee will be in tomorrow, too. Annie and Johanna are helping to get everyone set up at a Bed and Breakfast in town. They- Johanna said that the Bride and Groom shouldn't have to worry about the logistics of things for their own wedding."
"Right," Peeta smiled genuinely, though his words were very deliberate. "They should just worry about being happy."
"Right." Gale nodded, and so he did. He willed some of the confusion from his mind, and as they reached the Square, found himself genuinely excited to see the progress that had been made on rebuilding the town. "So since when does 12 have a Bed and Breakfast anyway?"
Gale and Peeta toured the new 12 thoroughly. They went into each of the shops, some of which were owned and operated by Gale's old friends. Others recognized him from the rebellion or his recent TV appearances. He was hugged and congratulated by almost everyone they saw, and even invited a few more people to the ceremony, including Greasy Sae, Thom, and Delly, who he hadn't seen since 13, but who was so enthusiastic about the idea of his getting married that she cried about it for nearly a half an hour.
By the time they had passed by the construction zone of the factory that was being built to manufacture medicine and even made the loop to both the old entrances to the still smoking coal mines, Gale was emotionally and physically exhausted. Hiding out in the back of the small Grocer and reading the labels on the various wine bottles seemed to Gale to be a well-deserved and greatly-appreciated break.
By the time he had read yet another bottle of white wine claiming to be "oaky" and "complex" with "a smooth finish" his head began to spin - he and Peeta had only managed to ascertain that chicken was supposed to be served with white wine rather than red, and they had been there nearly 45 minutes.
Finally Gale admitted, "I don't think I'll be much help here. Madge is always the one who does this kind of thing. You should have brought her."
"Naw," Peeta smiled, glancing back and forth between two bottles nonchalantly, "I wanted to spend some time with you. Besides, we still have to think of what you tripped into so Maysilee doesn't find out that my wife punched her daddy in the face."
There it was. Gale had forgotten that Peeta's greatest skill had always been not his painting, nor his baking, but his words. He had made a harmless, casual mention - not out of place, not hurtful, just matter of fact. 'My wife.' The way that he himself would refer to Madge in a matter of days. His mind filled with questions, when, how, why, but they tangled on his tongue, and he knew that he would never ask any of them.
He had been wrong, earlier when he thought Peeta's answer was complete. This was Peeta's answer. 'Yes, Katniss loves me. No, you're not going to change that... because she is my wife.' After Gale's conversation with Johanna on the train, he knew that the bond between of marriage was one that he could never bring himself to disrespect. Instead of asking one of the million questions eating away at him, he asked, "Oh yeah? You wanted to spend time with me?"
"Yes." Peeta set down the bottles and picked up another one.
"Why?" Gale copied Peeta's motions with the wine bottles, so as not to seem as floored as he was by the news that Katniss was married to him.
"Because you and I never..." Peeta chewed his lip, thoughtfully, "Connected really. Except that one night when we talked about Katniss, and the time you gave me Nightlock pills."
Gale shrugged, "Why does that matter to you?"
"Well," Peeta finally set down the bottles and dropped the pretense of picking more up, "Because you're still important to Katniss, even if she doesn't realize that right now, and because I grew up with Madge. She and I were never best friends, but I care for her, and you're marrying her. It just seems that you're important to people who are important to me, and so... I should try to find a way to make you important to me too."
Gale also set his wine bottles down, mind feeling cloudy, confused with all of the thoughts that Peeta was filling it with. He was important to Katniss? Still? Maybe that was the 'different' that he wanted to be after all. The idea certainly made him feel better, if only he could believe it. If Peeta was bothering to say this, it was for his benefit, so it must be true. He allowed himself to consider the possibility as he smirked weakly, "So what's the verdict then?"
Peeta looked at him, earnestly. This caught Gale off guard. Honest, direct people like Madge and Peeta always seemed to get under his skin. He realized numbly how similar Madge and Peeta were to each other. "I like you."
Gale realized that he had actually been holding his breath, waiting for Peeta's answer. He let it out, as he asked, "Oh yeah?"
Peeta nodded, "Yeah."
Gale smiled, and then sighed heavily. "Alright. Enough of this. Neither of us has any idea about this wine thing."
"That's for damn sure," Peeta laughed. For some reason the idea of Peeta cursing was funny to Gale. He was just full of surprises. Drawing a parallel between Peeta and Madge had suddenly made it very easy to understand what Peeta saw in Katniss besides, 'nice,' and had made it easier for Gale to see too.
"There's not that much here." Gale had counted somewhere around 60 bottles of wine in the small area where they were kept. "We need some for the wedding anyway, so let's just get it all. Johanna and Haymitch could probably polish off half of it between the two of them," he shrugged, and added, while he was being honest, "And hell, I can probably make quite a dent myself."
Peeta cocked a reproachful eyebrow, but couldn't hide the smile on his face.
"And besides," Gale puffed his chest out a bit, "I'm getting married. This calls for a celebration."
"Right." Peeta gave a nod, and with that, Gale paid the shop keeper, who was tickled at the great pile of coins that Gale gave her for the lot, and they packed up a cart with the entire stock of wine in District 12.
They picked up a few more items for the evening: cheeses for a before dinner snack, some jams so Peeta could make window pane cookies for dessert, and mixes for Hot Chocolate for Finn and Maysilee, and probably Katniss too. They bought and loaded up a cart, the kind Peeta used to haul large bags of flour back and forth to town, and began the trek back to the Victor's Village.
The sun was beginning to set, and as Gale and Peeta made their way, the light cast their shadows, long and distorted, on the gravel path. Gale found himself enjoying the fading warmth of the sun, and the comfortable silence that had fallen between him and Peeta. They took turns with the cart, even though the trip was short. They had walked a great distance that day, and neither felt like being macho and pulling the heavy cart the whole way.
Just before they reached the edge of the Victor's Village, Gale knew it was time to speak, or forever hold his peace. "For what its worth," he cleared his throat. "I like you too." Peeta stopped and looked at Gale, wiping his brow on the sleeve of his shirt.
He reached out to Gale, offering a handshake, and smiled, "Well, thank you."
They shared a firm but meaningful handshake, and then, with a bit more haste, made the rest of their way back to Peeta and Katniss's home in the Victors' Village. By now, he hoped, Katniss had quieted her anger enough that this night could be pleasant. Wandering 12 with Peeta today had made him excited to share dinner with the people with whom he would share his wedding.
Madge struggled to control her features as Katniss turned away from the door through which Peeta, and a very shell shocked Gale, had passed. There would be time to be surprised, to ask questions, later. As her face came into view, Katniss looked a bit shell-shocked herself. Madge pursed her lips and prepared to speak, but Maysilee beat her to the punch.
"Can we go to the woods now?" she asked Katniss, not noticing that the mood of the room had changed.
Katniss looked at Madge, helplessly. Madge found her voice automatically, though her insides felt numb. "Honey, it's been a big day so far, and there's more to come. I think it would be best if you had a nap first."
"Oh," Maysilee seemed, at first, to accept this. "Is Katniss going to take a nap?"
"No honey," Madge cast a quick glance at Katniss to confirm this. Katniss shook her head no. "Grown-ups don't have to take naps."
"Well," Maysilee, as stubborn and as volatile as her father, immediately changed her mind. "Then I don't want to take a nap either." She crossed her arms across her chest and looked challengingly up at her mother.
Madge took a deep breath. "Remember what we talked about before we left? Sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do."
"Nu-uh!" Maysilee argued, rather finally. Great, she was digging her heels in, showing off for Katniss.
"Maysilee, if you don't take a nap now, you won't be able to make it through dinner." Madge tried to bargain with her, to make it look like there was a payoff to her nap besides giving her mother and Katniss some time alone - which seemed to be the opposite of what she was interested in doing.
Maysilee gave her best scowl, looking, suddenly, even more like Gale than she already did. "Daddy will let me come to dinner. He never says no."
Katniss cleared her throat, and then began tentatively, with a quick sidelong glance at Madge, "Maysilee, you know... I don't take naps because I can't, not because I don't want to."
"What?" Maysilee dropped her arms, confused.
"Yeah," Katniss continued awkwardly, leaning against the door, "Grown-ups... We're really tired too, but we just have too many boring grown-up things to do." The word 'grown-up' came out awkwardly, and it was clear that Katniss had never used the phrase before, perhaps never even heard it until Madge had used it moments ago. "In fact, I could really use a nap, but your mom and I have so many... wedding things to do." She stammered. "I'm really jealous that you get to take one."
Maysilee was young, but smart. She was suspicious. "Wedding stuff like what?" She wasn't quite antagonizing Katniss, just making it very clear that she was onto her ploy - that is, if there was one.
Madge racked her brain for Maysilee's least favorite thing, which was helping with the laundry. "We have so many napkins to fold, right Katniss? And tablecloths, you know."
Katniss's head began to nod before she found words, giving her an almost humorous, delayed effect as she said weakly, "So many... and... flowers."
Maysilee seemed to consider this answer, and apparently assessed it as plausible enough when she caved, "Okay... I guess. If you promise I can sit by Katniss at dinner."
Madge argued, despite herself, "But you always sit by Daddy at dinner."
"So I'll sit between them," Maysilee explained as if this were the most obvious thing in the world. She crossed her arms to make it clear that this was her final offer.
Madge bit her lip. The idea of Maysilee sitting between Gale and Katniss was incredibly uncomfortable to her. After all, Katniss would be taking Madge's spot. Madge could picture, Maysilee feeding them both bites of her dinner, and needing help cutting her meat or buttering her bread. The idea of Maysilee asking for Katniss's help with these tasks was enough to bring Madge to tears.
She blinked them away quickly. What could she do? "Sure honey," she gave her assent with altogether too much effort.
"Okay!" Maysilee chirped, not even noticing Madge's distress as she took Katniss's hand and began to walk with her out of the kitchen. Madge began to protest, but Maysilee interrupted her.
"It's okay Mom," she assured, "Katniss will tuck me in." Madge hated when Maysilee called her 'mom.' She only said it dismissively, whereas 'momma' was Madge's title when she was happy with her.
Katniss gave Madge a panicked look, but as Maysilee led her from the kitchen, she assured her, "I'll just be a minute."
Madge leaned on the table and took a steadying breath. Tears threatened her eyes again, and she wrapped her arms around herself, feeling more out of place than ever in the kitchen where she had spent hours with Katniss and her family when they were girls.
She couldn't figure out why it upset her so that Maysilee had this sort of 'crush' on Katniss. Wasn't that the way it had always been? Everyone had always loved Katniss - everyone, including Maysilee's father. Maybe it ran in the family. Maybe it shouldn't surprise her that even though Madge was the one who cooked, cleaned, and took care of her family that they should prefer Katniss anyway.
She tried to shake this thought as she heard soft singing coming from down the hall. She absent-mindedly followed the voice, so warm and familiar. She could remember spending time playing the piano to this voice, following it through the woods. Though the Katniss who welcomed Madge into her home didn't look like the Katniss Madge knew, she still sounded like her.
Madge peaked in the door and watched Katniss, perched on the side of the bed, stroking Maysilee's hair from her face, and singing softly, "Deep in the meadow... under the willow..." Madge suppressed a gasp as she noticed the tears streaming down Katniss's face, and tremors in her hands.
She quickly moved back to the kitchen to leave Katniss in peace to finish her song. Instead, Madge busied herself making tea for them, since she knew where everything was in the kitchen anyway. She was surprised, however, at the various unrecognizable spices that nearly spilled out when she opened the cupboard to find tea.
Just as she was awkwardly fished out a few tea bags and struggled to push the spices back in, Katniss re-entered the kitchen behind her. "I keep telling Peeta he needs to reorganize that cupboard."
Madge shut it and hugged the tea bags tight to her chest. "What are all those spices for?"
Katniss smiled timidly, "We've... started a bakery cart. Not as much work as his parents' bakery, but... it keeps us busy."
"Ah," was all Madge could say.
The water began to whistle, and Katniss turned grabbed it from the stove. Madge noticed she was moving awkwardly with the teakettle, but then saw that Katniss's dominant hand had begun to turn purple and blue.
Madge realized she felt incredibly tired already, and wedding preparations hadn't even really begun. Though Maysilee and Madge had full days of playing, keeping the house clean and occasional baking, mostly Madge was content to sit quietly. In the several years that had slipped by since she and Gale came to live together, she had grown accustomed to tranquil days with her little daughter, who could be equally silent, when she wanted to. All this travel, and this less than glorious reunion in 12 was incredibly taxing.
Madge wasn't sure exactly what had been behind Katniss's violent outburst, but the past few days on the train and the past few years with her soon-to-be-husband had almost brought her to the same point at least a handful of times. As far as Madge was concerned, Gale had probably experienced much worse, and probably didn't deserve much better than a punch square in the face every now and again, not that Madge was going to ever be the one to deliver it. Honestly, she loved him entirely too much to lash out at him, her stubborn, smart, dangerous, handsome, ridiculous fiancé. Perhaps deserved was a harsh word. But he had a good tendency to get punched, whether he deserved it or not.
Quite frankly, after years of separation from Katniss, whom Madge knew from watching two Hunger Games and countless rebel propos, she was no longer simply the quiet huntress she had grown up with. Katniss could absolutely kill on sight when necessary, so punch in the face for however many years of transgressions seemed fairly lenient. Madge wanted to pretend that the things Katniss had done didn't bother her. She knew Gale had done most of the same things, and possibly with less remorse, but she hadn't watched him doing them on live television. Maybe it was different because she saw Gale's gentleness, and his very real vulnerability on a regular basis. The last image she had of Katniss was the footage from her trial, after she had assassinated the president, hysterical, screaming for Gale to kill her.
So she was just a little surprised when Katniss whispered to her,
"I am...sosorry." The hurt in her voice was so apparent that Madge suppressed the urge to reach out for her.
"Don't worry about it; Gale's come home with much worse. We'll get some ice on it and..."
"Not that," Katniss interrupted, "I meant... four years. If I had known I never, never,"
Of course she was being honest. Perhaps Katniss would have even welcomed Madge as a reason to choose Peeta, had she known, though probably not, realistically. They were all so young at the time, every decision seemed so monumentally important - and most were. It was hard to know what they wanted, hard to choose. In light of recent events, Madge realized that maybe it didn't get easier as they got older, as she would have assumed.
"But you didn't, because we didn't tell you. Gale and I made our own decisions." Madge avoided eye contact with Katniss, and instead poured them each a cup of tea. She sat down at the table with her and took a steady, leveling breath. She and Katniss had never talked about boys. It was like an unspoken agreement, since they were little. But they weren't little, and the males in their lives were no longer boys, but men.
And they themselves were older too. Women, she supposed, though it was easier to view herself this way than Katniss, since she had given birth and Katniss sat across from her in the same dress she was reaped in at the age of 16. Madge knew this was a time for honesty, but also for discretion, so she made her explanation brief, and clear.
"We watched your first games together. I don't know if you knew that. The first time we kissed was in the middle of the night, right before the feast. When you were away on the victory tour, Gale came to me, the night Peeta proposed to you. And you said yes. So it seemed that even though I knew Gale was in love with you, that night, he told me that he had come to see me.I believed him."
Katniss was frowning deeply, still seething, it seemed. "I can't tell you all of the times he kissed me or tried to kiss me or told me he loved me after then. When we were in Thirteen..." her voice broke off in what sounded like frustration.
"I know," Madge offered. "When Gale came to find us in 2, we- all 3 of us were lost, and we found each other, and that was good enough." Madge tried to say this calmly, without any malice. She wasn't sure how it had come across, but Katniss's face seemed to stay the same, all shame and concern. "He did apologize, but I don't feel like holding it over his head, trying to make him feel like he has to make up for it, because he can't. So we moved on."
Katniss tried to change her angle. "Where did you... go?" After a moment, she admitted, "I thought you were dead."
"A home for unwed mothers in District 2."
Katniss raised her eyebrows, it was clear she had never heard of such a thing.
Madge explained the home, how it was a place designed by the Capitol to ensure that each District kept supplying Tributes for the games, workers for their industry. She talked about the cruel peacekeeper women who ran it, women who, oddly, weren't allowed to have children and didn't seem to care about them, though making sure their charges got through their pregnancies and raised their children to age two was their only job. Perhaps, Madge reflected, they felt resentful that of all the assignments they could have gotten, in the end they had to babysit teenagers who had violated the rules. It was a strange prison. Madge tried not to become emotional when she talked about her kind roommate, Caridee, and how she had helped her when she had become so depressed and given up hope. Finally, she told Katniss how it felt to finally leave with Gale and Maysilee and never look back.
"The nicest thing... I think that Gale ever did was..." Madge's voice broke as she recalled, "Was to help Gentry get to 2 to get Caridee out that wretched place. Even after the rebellion, the Home was allowed to keep us until our children were 2, since most of us didn't have homes to go back to. Caridee was stuck there with River, and Gentry in 10, with no money and no way to get to her. Gale, without having even met either of them, sent Gentry the money to get to 2, simply as a thank you to Caridee for taking care of me during my depression."
Katniss's face was unreadable, blank almost as she nodded mutely. Her voice was tiny when she said, "I never... knew Gale could be so nice."
"He can be, but you wouldn't have known that. You always liked him more than you needed him, or more than you let yourself need him, I guess," Madge hoped she was making sense and not just being cruel when she explained, "I don't know if I always liked Gale, but I knew that night during the first games, we needed each other. And he needed me, the night you and Peeta got engaged. And I needed him, when he came for me at the mother's home. Maysilee eventually became a handful, and we've needed each other since then, and he has always been there when I needed him since he came for me."
There was a long, deep silence.
Katniss took a breath, and her face told Madge she had more questions. Unfortunately, Madge was out of answers for this stranger named Katniss Everdeen. "Katniss, please," she stopped her with a hand. Katniss closed her mouth, and blushed, and Madge felt only the smallest bit of guilt.
"I believe," Madge cleared her throat, doing her best to change the tone. "We promised my daughter flowers."
"What?" Katniss stammered.
"We said we were doing flowers and things. I do need a few bouquets for the wedding, I will need one, Annie, Caridee, and of course Maysilee would just die if youdidn't have one." Upon hearing the cutting tone of her own voice, she felt a lot guiltier, but Katniss simply rose to her feet and declared,
"Okay. Peeta and I planted some Primrose bushes around the house. I'm not sure that's good enough for you, I'm sure they have better in 2 but they're just my dead sister's namesake so-" Katniss's tone cut right back.
Madge rose to Katniss and slapped her across the face, hard.
She was hardly aware of what she was doing, and the stinging in her hand reached her brain before she registered the shocked expression on Katniss's face or that she herself had been the cause of it. Madge's mouth moved, trying to find the words 'I'm sorry,' but nothing came out.
Katniss's next move surprised Madge almost as much as her own had. Katniss grabbed Madge around the shoulders and pulled her in for a tight, secure hug. Madge found herself struggling and sobbing in Katniss's firm grip. Nothing in her life seemed to have gone the way she had planned. She couldn't get a handle on it, she just cried and cried, and Katniss held her tightly, shushing her lightly.
When Madge calmed down, Katniss put her at arm's length and spoke, clearly, and with a gentle expression. "Madge. Thank you for inviting me and Peeta to your wedding. I would really regret missing it." Madge was taken aback by this. It seemed genuine, but the words were so formal, so unlike Katniss that she just stared at her, uncomprehending.
Then, Katniss released her, and grabbed a pair of kitchen shears from a drawer, moving toward the door as she said, "Now, how about those bouquets?" Madge nodded and followed her. What else could she do? She just couldn't believe that Katniss hadn't said anything about Madge hitting her. Just who was this new Katniss? She was gentler than Madge had anticipated, more in control, certainly. Much more like the quiet huntress she had known in her youth.
As the afternoon progressed, she allowed herself to know this new Katniss, and even, inexplicably, to like her, as everyone always had. Katniss helped her pick blooms from the Primrose bushes, and they pruned the leaves and thorns from each stem carefully. It took longer than it should have, but by then end of a few hours, they had made 4 beautiful arrangements, Primroses supplemented by wildflowers, and wrapped in ribbons and scraps of cloth from some of the beautiful Capitol gowns that no longer fit Katniss. Madge had protested at the destruction of the garments, but Katniss had insisted.
Madge realized, in an instant, that they weren't going to get anywhere continuing to throw punches. They had always worked together, even when they had no idea what the other was dealing with. Madge held up her bridal bouquet and analyzed it, Primrose, bits of the Capitol, new flowers from the re-grown meadow, all coming together. Flowers coming together seemed much easier than people, but the idea of getting married in secret, in silence was not an option, in her mind. And they had the election to think about, as well. Like it or not, the four of them would have to learn to get along, if they were going to be of any help.
"I think we're going to get through this a lot better if no one hits anyone, from here on out," Madge said, her eyes still trained on her bouquet.
"Easier said than done," Katniss mumbled, setting the other bouquets on the table, "But I'm happy to give it a try." She sounded tired, as she added, "We just never were much for talking."
"Maybe that can change," Madge mused, more to herself than to Katniss.
"Maybe," Katniss agreed lightly.
The sound of footsteps coming up the walk startled them from their bouquet-induced reverie. Madge cast a glance out the window to see, with a flutter of hope in her chest, as well as a small stab of jealousy that Gale and Peeta appeared amiable, shoving each other's shoulders, talking animatedly, and laughing as they hauled what appeared to be the entire town's supply of wine in a cart behind them.
As Gale pushed the door open, arms full of wine and other goods from town, he announced awkwardly, "There was a new lamp post in the square, and I ran into it!" He said this with his face directed towards the ground, obvious anticipating that he would say it to Maysilee. When he realized she wasn't there, he flushed a bright red, as Peeta gave him a slap on the back, pushing past him to greet Katniss as he teased, "It's alright Gale, you showed that lamp post who's boss!"
Peeta reached Katniss, and noted the handprint on her face. "What did you run into?"
"My hand." Madge admitted sheepishly.
Gale met her eyes, and said, with the biggest smile he could muster, "Well, I've got wine!" Madge found her face lighting up, despite herself as she held out her own armload, "I've got flowers." Gale set his things down on the counter and moved to Madge, scooping her up in his arms, bouquet and all. He paid no mind to the presence of Peeta and Katniss as he said, "Now let's get the hell married, huh?"
Madge laughed and wondered briefly if they had already broken into the wine, but could only protest, "We have a lotmore to do!"
"Well," Peeta supplied, setting another armload of wine on the ground, "good thing we have a few days. But tonight, we're just going to eat and get caught up," he cast a mockingly dark glance at Katniss and Gale, "nicely."
Everyone's eyes fell on Katniss, who seemed to be the only one in the room not swept up in the new feeling of elation. She met each of their eyes, jaw set, steeling herself. Looking somehow, exactly like Maysilee had when Madge had insisted it was time for her to nap.
"Katniss?" Peeta's tone was reproachful.
Katniss wrinkled her nose and tried a smile. Katniss always seemed to look a bit strange when she smiled, but sounded even stranger when she tried to make a joke, "Well, does anyone else need to get hit before we start the merriment?"
Everyone laughed, probably harder than they should have, but it was Gale who laughed the hardest, as he replied, "Nope, I think we've all thrown enough punches for one day."
"For one lifetime," Peeta interjected.
"So, let's open a bottle of wine, shall we?"