Chapter 21

I wake up to sounds coming from the other room. At first I think it's Gale but a glance at the clock tells me it's too late for it to be him. He should long have been at work by now. Surely he didn't stay home from work on account of my hand being burned. I throw back the blankets and march across the bedroom floor, intent on throwing a fit about him skipping work but stop in my tracks when I see that it's Katniss.

"What are you doing?" I ask, probably sounding more rude than I mean too. It's really just surprise is all.

"Oh, hey. I let myself in. Figured you could use a hand around here. No pun intended."

"I don't need help with anything. I mean, I appreciate it and all but I can manage."

"Sure you can." She says sarcastically as she continues to move about my kitchen. "Come over here and I'll show you how to heat the bath water. You're probably dying for a bath."

"Honestly, I really could use one." I confess with a sigh as I join her by the stove. I'm still wearing the overalls I wore all day yesterday. I haven't had a bath since the morning of my wedding day so I'm long overdue.

She shows me how to heat water on the stove and transfer it to the tub, making sure to point out the hot mitts I need to wear. Since my hand is still hurting like crazy I won't be able to do this on my own. The cast iron pot is too heavy for me to lift with one hand. Katniss transfers the hot water for me and pulls the curtain so that I can have privacy while I bathe. I let my clothes fall to the floor and step into the small wash tub. It's so tiny that I can't stretch out in it like my tub at my old house. In fact, I barely fit in it at all. And my legs aren't even that long. How in the heck does Gale ever manage to do this I wonder? Small as it may be, the hot water still feels good. The lemony smelling soap is a nice touch too. I struggle to wash my hair because I can't get my right hand wet. I wish we had a shower but we don't of course. I settle for just dunking my head into the tub and doing my best with only one hand. I take one of the towels and dry off, then wrap it around me and head to the bedroom to get dressed. Getting dressed is no easy task either. I fight through the pain of bending my fingers in order to pull my dress over my head. I am definitely going to need some more of that tea from Mrs. Everdeen to deal with this pain. Once I'm dressed I go to throw my towel in the hamper only to see that it isn't there anymore. Instantly I know that Gale took it to Hazelle so she could do our laundry. I try to ignore the annoyance I feel over that and go back out to the main room where Katniss is waiting.

"You hungry? I brought over some bread. Peeta made it this morning for you."

"I'm starting to understand why living in the Seam makes a person feel like a charity case."

"What do mean?"

"Well, Mabel gave me lunch yesterday. Gale took our laundry to his mother so I wouldn't have to do it. You're here to show me how to bathe and Peeta's sending me food. Doesn't anyone think I can handle this?" I spout out.

"Hey, it isn't that we don't think you can handle it, okay? We just know how different this all is for you and with your hand being injured you'll need the help."

"Whatever. So are we starting training?" I say. I can't believe how rude I'm being. What is wrong with me? I'm never in this foul of a mood. I just snapped at my friend for caring enough about me to want to help. I take a deep breath and tell myself to get a grip on my attitude. "Wait. I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm being so ill."

She just laughs and says "You're probably hungry. When's the last time you ate?"

"Yesterday at lunch. I had a sandwich and a pear."

"So no dinner and my guess is that you didn't eat breakfast either. Being hungry can make people grumpier than usual and you're used to eating a whole heck of a lot more than a sandwich and a pear. And it probably doesn't help your mood any that you're in pain either. Does it still hurt much, your hand?"

"Yeah, I'm surprised how much actually." I admit through a mouthful of bread. The bread tastes so good and it's only now that I really can tell just how hungry I really was. I'm cramming it in my mouth as fast as I can chew it.

"After you finish eating we can go to my house. I'm sure my mother can give you something to help ease the pain. And we can train over there too. I'd planned to teach you to climb trees today but we'll have to wait on that. Guess we'll start with plants. Teach you how to identify them and know what's safe and what isn't."

"Sounds good. I know a little about plants from my gardening but not much about plants out in the wild. I really want to train as hard as I can so anything you think will help, I'm willing to try."

"Trust me, I plan to be tough on you. Peeta said he'd help some too. We'll be your mentors you know."

"I know. Katniss? Be honest with me. Do you think if I train, if I give it everything I've got, that I'll have a chance of winning and coming back home to Gale?"

She's quiet for a minute before she answers me. "I don't know. I'm confident that you'll have a slew of sponsors and that will help me send you things to keep you alive. Right now, that's your strongest attribute."

"And my weakness?"

"Right now it's that you don't know how to use any weapons. As soon as your hand heals we'll get out in the woods and I'll teach you snares and then how to shoot a bow. Maybe teach you to throw a spear or knives. The more you're familiar with ahead of time, the better."

I nod and finish off my breakfast, my stomach finally feeling full. I run my brush through my tangled mess of damp hair, having to leave it down because I can't tie it up with only one hand. I slip on some flats and we head out.

Once we're at Katniss's house we get right to work. Because her mother works with healing and came from a family of apothecaries, they have several text books that teach about plants. Katniss pulls one of the large books out and we sit down at the table and begin reading. I'm kind of relieved to start with plants instead of the physical side of training. I've always been very intellectual and because of my gardening I'm somewhat comfortable with plants. We read the first several chapters of the book and as we do, Katniss points out identifying features of each plant in the pictures that accompany the text. There are a lot of tricky ones where one minor, barely noticeable detail could mean the difference in helpful versus harmful. Right away, I can see that my success with this area of training will depend greatly on attention to detail. That I can do. After we've read a few chapters, she pulls the text where she can see it but I cannot and begins to quiz me on the names of plants. She calls out a name and I have to tell her if it's helpful or harmful. Out of 50 different plants, I get the majority of them right, only being wrong twice. Not bad for a first attempt, however in the games I will need to be spot on perfect. To pick incorrectly in the games could mean sickness or death.

We take a break for lunch after my quiz. Katniss slides a heaping bowl of steaming hot stew and a plate of buttery corn muffins in front of me.

"So, what's it's like getting to be a Victor and not having to work or go to school? Do you get bored?" I ask, mostly just making conversation as we eat.

"It's different, that's for sure. Can't say that I like it all the time. Mostly I just hate all the constant attention it brings. It's better than the alternative though, so I'll take it. And it does get boring but we find stuff to do. Peeta bakes and paints a lot. I haven't found a hobby yet but I'm supposed to be working on one. When we do our Victory tour I'm supposed to present a talent."

"When's the tour?"

"A couple weeks. I should have developed a hobby months ago but the only thing I'm good at, I can't exactly do legally." She says with a roll of her eyes. I know she's referring to hunting.

"Surely there's something you could consider a hobby."

"I don't know. If nothing else, my stylist, Cinna, will help me pretend to be designing clothes. Still, it'd be better if I really could do my own work."

I laugh out loud at the thought of Katniss having any interest in designing clothing. She may very well be the least fashionable person I know. "Fashion designing?"

She throws her napkin at me in response but laughs along with me. This feels good. To sit and laugh with her. Ever since she came back things have been so different with us that I wondered if we'd ever be close again. After we finish eating, we work with the book for a little while longer. This time when she quizzes me, I only miss one question.

Before I leave, Mrs. Everdeen puts some herbs in a tea tin for me to make more of the pain reliving tea I drank last night. As much as my hand is aching right now, I really don't want to drink the tea because it makes you sleepy. I'd fallen asleep in Gale's arms on the walk home last night. Part of me wants to just go to the drugstore and buy a medicine created by the Capitol. I'm sure they have some sort of cream or pill that would eliminate any pain and heal my hand in no time. And I know my father would pay for it without question. But, I know that Gale wouldn't want me to have to ask my father to pay for anything. It would still feel like charity to him. Or worse, it would make him feel like he was failing to provide for my needs himself. And Gale is wonderful so that's the last thing that I'd ever want to make him feel. I tell myself that in a way, this burn could be a good thing for me. It's teaching me to deal with pain and how to handle it without access to quick Capitol fixes. That will be helpful in the games. Katniss sends me home with one of the books and tells me to keep studying. We make plans to meet up the next morning to continue training.

As I'm walking back to my house, I run into Tripp.

"Hey Madge!" He calls out as he approaches.

"Hi! What are you up too?"

"Just coming from making a delivery. You?"

"Heading back home. Spent the morning at Katniss's house working on my training."

"Did you hurt your hand?" He asks, suddenly noticing my bandaged hand.

I sigh. "Yes. I burned it pretty bad yesterday."

"In training?" He asks, eyes wide with concern.

"Oh no, not at all. This was the result of me trying to cook. Pretty pathetic, huh?" I say, trying to laugh at myself.

"Geez! What'd you do wrong?"

"I put my hand on the hot stove without a hot mitt on."

"Ouch! Well, I bet you won't go doing that again anytime soon!"

"I bet I won't be cooking again anytime soon. Not only did I burn myself, but I also ruined the soup I was trying to make for dinner. I'm a total kitchen disaster, all the way around."

"How do you mess up soup?"

"Don't ask." I laugh remembering how Gale said I'd used cinnamon with the vegetables.

"Well, if you want, I can teach you to cook. It's really not hard once you know what everything is."

"Really? You think you could teach me? Just a few basics maybe?"

"Sure, there's really nothing to it."

"Oh Tripp! That would be a lifesaver! I feel like such an idiot because I can't prepare a meal so I'd be grateful for anything you could teach me."

"What are you making for dinner tonight?"

"Well, we don't have a lot of food in the house yet so there isn't a lot to work with. I have a ton of vegetables from my garden and some herbs and seasonings."

"Okay, we can work with that. Lead the way." He says, falling into step with me.

"Are you sure you have time? I don't want to keep you from anything."

"I'm not doing anything. Now's as good a time as any. Besides, this way you can surprise Gale with having dinner ready when he gets home from work."

"He'll definitely be surprised, especially after last night's disasters." I say thinking how much Gale would love coming home to an edible meal and an uninjured wife.

"Aside from cooking challenges, how are you adjusting to living in the Seam?"

"It's so different here. I knew that coming into this but I had no idea what it would feel like. Everything here is so primative."

"You'll get used to it sooner than you think probably."

"I hope so. It's crazy how easy we have it in town compared to the Seam. It's almost as if the Capitol intentionally keeps it this way to create a gap, a divide in the district. There's no reason they couldn't have plumbing or electrical out here like we do in town." I comment quietly so no one can overhear what I'm suggesting.

He nods but doesn't answer out loud. Once we arrive at my house, I let us in and apologize for the mess. I still haven't figured out what to do with all the presents that are lined up along my wall. He looks around, taking in his surroundings and I realize this may be the first time he's been inside a Seam house.

"First time in a Seam house?"

"Yeah. It's so tiny and simple."

"But it's all mine and Gale's and I can't begin to tell you how good that feels."

"So, what are we working with here? A wood stove?" He asks, eyeing the stove.

"Mmmhmm. Do you know how to use one?"

"Yeah, we have one in the café kitchen. Don't use it much anymore though. I think we mostly just use it for making pizzas over the fire. But it's simple enough, I can show you."

He shows me how to arrange the wood inside the oven to get the most even flames and he shows me a trick for lighting it. Once the fire gets going he fills the big pot half full with water. He uses much less water than I'd used last night. He lets the water heat up slowly while we go over to the table and he looks over the assortment of vegetables.

"This is good, you have a lot of variety. How do you feel about spicy stuff?"

"I'm good with spicy. Gale will be too I think."

"Okay, do you think you can cut up vegetables with your left hand?"

"Maybe."

He pulls a few green bell peppers from the basket and shows me how to hold it still when I'm cutting it and how to cut out the seeded cores. I struggle at first but with guidance I'm able to do it. We dump the peppers into the steaming water and then return to the table. This time Tripp takes a few ears of corn and says he has a trick. I soaks them in cold water, husks still intact, and then places them inside the stove on a wire rack I hadn't even noticed was there.

"It'll roast the corn. If you try this ever by yourself, just make sure you really soak the husks good first. It'll keep them from catching fire. And you want to keep that rack high above the flames too."

I nod already thrilled at what he's shown me. Yesterday all I'd done was chop and dump vegetables in the water and called it soup. Back at the table he takes several plump tomatoes and drops them whole into the now boiling water.

"Let them boil and once they're softer, we'll mash them up."

He takes the seasoning packets and looks through them, telling me what they are as he does. He selects one called cumin and says it goes good with peppers or corn. He shows me to start with just a pinch, adding more if I need too. He also adds plain salt and pepper to the pot, stirring it. Next he shows me how to mash the tomatoes without having to take them back out of the pot. When it's time to pull out the corn from the oven, he shows me how, reminding me to use the hot mitts. Over on the table, he peels back the husks to reveal, fully roasted corn. He takes one ear and stands it on end, holding it still with one hand and runs a knife downward along the corn making it come free of the cob. He helps hold it steady for me as I give it a try and it amazes me how easy it is. Once all the corn is cut, we pour it into the pot with the peppers and tomatoes. He checks the fire again, showing me how to add more wood and still keep it burning evenly. He ladles out a spoonful and lets me taste it. The flavor is incredible, spicy and warm. I can't believe he just made this look so easy.

"And that's it. Just let it sit and stew like that until you're ready to eat dinner."

"I can't believe how easy you made this all look."

"Told you, it's easy if you know what you're working with. Just takes practice and trial and error. I've had my fair share of kitchen fails myself you know."

"Thank you so much, you have no idea how much I needed this!"

"It's no problem. I can come back one day next week and show you more if you want."

"That would be wonderful. We should make this a regular thing. It was fun."

"Yeah, it was fun." He says as he heads to the door. "I'll see you later!"

After he's gone, I clean up the table and get it set for dinner. I take one of the tablecloths we got as a gift and cover the table with it. I take the still uneaten brownie from yesterday and cut it in half, setting a piece at each place setting. I pour us each a glass of water, wishing we had ice cubes. The leftover bread from this morning and cut two slices, putting one at each place. I leave the soup in the pot so it doesn't get cold. Stepping back, I take a look and decide the table looks presentable. Dinner already smells amazing, it's spicy aroma filling the tiny house. The only thing not perfect is me. I go over to the bathroom area and look at myself in the tiny mirror. My hair is a frizzy mess and while I'm clean I just look a little unkempt. I take the brush to my hair again and that helps smooth it out somewhat. It would be nice if I could pull it back but I just can't do it with only one good hand. Tomorrow, I'll have Gale help me tie it back before he goes to work. I swipe a little mascara on after having to use a lot of effort to open the tube. I have the same trouble opening my lip gloss but manage. As soon as that's finished, I go and sit on the front steps to wait for Gale to come home. He should be here any minute and unlike yesterday, I'm excited for him to see all I was able to accomplish. Yes, day 2 of living in the Seam was by far a much better experience than day 1 had been. Today, I was able to take a bath, cook dinner, and come out unharmed in the process. Granted, today I had scores of help but it was a good day nonetheless.

I don't sit for long before I see him walking up, coal covered and gorgeous.

"Hi." I say, grinning from ear to ear. I'm just so happy to see him. Can't wait to show him our dinner.

"Well you look much better than you did yesterday this time. Have a good day?" He asks, leaning in to kiss me.

"Much better day. Get washed up, dinner's ready!" I tell him.

"You cooked?" He asks sounding very wary.

"Yes. But I had help, don't worry. And I left the cinnamon alone."

He laughs as he washes up at the rain barrel. I catch myself staring as he peels off his shirt. As I watch him washing up, I feel desire stirring up inside myself. I bite my lip, fighting the need to run my lips over his skin. Dinner. We need to eat first. Then I can have all night to ravish him. He sees me staring, biting my lip and splashes water at me, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Come on, I'm starving. Let's see what you've cooked up today." He says, taking my good hand and leading us inside.

"Wow, it smells good, whatever it is."

"Sit. Let me get it for you."

He sits, still shirtless, while I fill his bowl with soup and bring it to him. He then again waits while I fill my own bowl and join him at the table. One bite and he smiles across the table at me. "This is delicious! How did you do this?"

"Tripp came over. He taught me a few things about cooking. Helped me make our dinner." I say, beaming with pride over how much he likes the meal.

"Tripp came over?" He asks.

"Yes. I ran into him on my way home from Katniss's house. He saw my hand and I explained how disastrous I was in the kitchen yesterday so he offered to come and show me a few things. He was a huge help!" I explain. I hope he doesn't care that Tripp was here. I didn't really think about it being an issue since he hasn't had any jealousy issues with Tripp lately but perhaps I should have considered this a little longer before I brought him here. "Is…was that alright? That I let him come here?"

"Yeah, it's fine." He says. "Just had a moment of surprise is all. I'm glad he was able to help you."

"I learned a lot at Katniss's house today. She's teaching me about plants and how to identify them. I'm catching on pretty fast."

"That's good. It'll be a useful skill for you to have. Maybe Sunday we can get out in the woods and you can show me what you've learned."

"Can we go to the lake? I know I can't swim because of my hand but I'd love to go, spend the day out there. Just me and you."

"I'd love that. Wish we could go right now. How is your hand by the way?"

"It still hurts. Mrs. Everdeen gave me more tea but I haven't made it yet. It makes me so sleepy."

"If you're hurting then you should drink the tea."

"I will. Before we go to bed."

Gale washes up our dishes and shows me how to save the leftover soup in mason jars. He called it canning. Said it would keep longer this way. I've seen jars like this at his mother's house but never knew much about them. I'm glad to know that leftover food won't be wasted and that there's a way to keep it from spoiling until we're ready to eat it.

Once everything in the kitchen is cleaned up, we get ready for bed. I go to brush my teeth and when I come back to the bedroom, Gale is lying back on the bed, arms folded back behind his head. Seeing him like this, lying back on the bed like that, on our bed, revives the desires from when I watched him bathing earlier. I turn down the oil lamps and make my way over to him in the darkened room. I climb into bed, leaning over him, kissing his lips first and then his neck where I let my lips linger. He breathes into my ear, his hands tangled in my hair. I push my lips further down over his chest. His hands leave my hair, moving over the curves of my body and pull me up, over his body completely. He pulls my nightgown up and over my head as I raise my arms slipping out of it. His arms encircle me and our lips come together, as we begin to move as one. Our bodies move in prefect rhythmic motion, fulfilling our want for each other.

"Have I told you how much I love being married to you?" I ask as I lay in his arms.

"No. But I'd love to hear all about it if you want to tell me."

"Well, I love having your last name as my own. I love having you hold me all night long. Love being with you whenever I want."

"Know what I love?"

"Tell me."

"I love all of it. Being with you. Holding you. Sharing my name with you. Everything. But do you know what I hate?"

"What?"

"Knowing this may not last as long as I want it too. As long as I need it too." He whispers.