Gale

Once again I feel like an ass messing up the party that everyone put so much effort into. I'm lucky that everyone in my life is as forgiving as they are. Everyone's asleep and my arms feel empty without Madge. I wish she was here though I know it's not smart to start needing her every night like this. I can't fall asleep; it's as if my whole body misses her. I toss and turn. Finally Vick gets up and goes into Ma's room.

Rory says, "Will you stop moving? You're making too much noise."

"Sorry, just can't sleep," I reply.

"Gale, can I ask you something?" Rory asks.

"Sure."

"Do you really love Madge or were you just saying that to Posy?"

"I really love her," I sigh.

"Are you going to marry her?"

"Rory, she's only 17 and I'm only 19. It's too early for either of us to start thinking about that. Plus it just isn't that simple. I don't know what will happen between me and Madge." I try not to think too much about it. I just know that I have to spend as much time with Madge as I can. I should be happy that the games are over but I feel like a change is coming. It's just one of those feelings I have.

"But if you do marry her, are you going to move into her house with her?" Rory asks me.

"What? Where did you get that idea?" I ask.

"Her house is much bigger. You were gone again all night last night. I just thought that maybe you like being at her house more than here. I'm sure her house is a lot nicer than our house," he says.

I sit up and look Rory in the eyes. "I was with Madge last night but I wasn't at her house. I don't like her house better than our house. And I'm not going to move in with Madge. I like her and I like spending time with her. Madge and I can't make our relationship public because…well because that part's complicated so don't worry about it. I don't know how much more time I have left with her. So I spend time with her when I can. But, I'm not going to leave you guys."

Rory sits up and says, "I like Madge. She's really nice. And I think she loves you too."

I laugh and say, "Yeah, I think she does. But we're keeping it all under wraps. So do you understand that it just stays between the two of us?"

He nods and asks, "Can I talk to Madge? I mean, not that I would ask her questions about you, but can I just talk to Madge. I like talking to her. She makes me feel like I'm smart and I can do anything I want."

I chuckle and say, "She has a way of doing that. I feel the same when I'm around her. Of course you can talk to her about anything you want." We both lie down again and eventually I fall asleep.

Everyone has to go back to school in the morning. I've been really lucky and I've gotten to miss school because I've been excused. Prim was excused from most of it too. It's going to be excruciating to see Madge at school and not be able to talk to her. I get to school early and join my friends at the entrance. We've always made a point to stand by the entrance and check out the girls as they walk into the school. To think I enjoyed this at one point, now it just seems childish to do it.

I spot Madge coming towards the school and I can't take my eyes off her. She looks beautiful in her school uniform. I don't know how I never noticed her before. Her long hair is in a loose ponytail. Her blue skirt and white blouse are clean and freshly ironed. Her black shoes are shiny…beautiful face, radiant smile and bright eyes. How could anyone take their eyes off her?

Next to me Thom elbows me in the stomach and says, "Wow. Undersee sure looks hot. Did she just go from nerdy to sexy overnight?"

I punch Thom in the arm and say, "It's time to go to class." Some of my friends are still ogling her so I slap their backs and get them moving; I don't mean to but I end up hitting them harder than I wanted to. Madge walks past the drooling boys as if she didn't even see them. I wish I had paid attention to Madge before. I never even looked at her before. Did Madge really look nerdy? Why go for sexy now? I watch her graceful movements at her locker. Yes, she is definitely sexy right now. The bell rings and we all rush off to our classes.

Exams have started and in just a week school will be over. For me that'll be the end of my freedom. I will get a few days off and then to the mines six days a week, twelve hours a day. School is easy for me; I've never had to spend too much time studying. I don't even know if what we learn is really learning. It's mainly Capitol propaganda and by now if you don't know it then you'll never know it.

I go from class to class in a daze; several girls try to flirt with me. Did I actually enjoy this at one point? My classes are in a different section than Madge's. She's in another part of the school and I won't even see her at lunch because our lunches are at different times. I just miss Madge.

At the end of the day by the time I get to Rory's and Vick's school, Madge is already there waiting for Prim. We walk to the seam as a group. The girls walk in front of us. As Madge goes into the Everdeen house, I motion for her to come over to my house afterwards. Hopefully she understood that.

An hour later, Madge shows up at my door. She has immaculate timing because no one's home. Ma took everyone on the laundry run with her to give me time to study for my exams. Since they just left, I have some time with Madge and studying for exams couldn't be further from my mind. As soon as she walks in, I grab her hand and pull her into my room. I close the door behind her and push her onto my bed. "You look so sexy, Madge." I kiss her as I pull her shirt out of her skirt. My hands are itching to touch her soft skin.

Madge's hands have travelled under my shirt. "You know a lot of boys were staring at me today."

I grunt and say, "Who? Want me to beat them up?"

She just laughs and says, "No."

As I kiss her neck I say, "Madge, it was pure torture not seeing you all day and not being able to touch you or kiss you. It was worse being at the school than it was being at the square with the reporters. All day, I kept thinking about you and how I should be walking you to class, carrying your books for you, and then giving you a quick kiss before you slip into your classroom. Everytime a girl tried to flirt with me, I just..."

"Flirt? Who was flirting with you?" she asks sounding jealous.

I stop kissing her and lean back a little so I can look at her face as I say, "All the girls...the usual ones in my year and the year below me."

Madge looks so adorable when she's jealous that I can't stop myself and I start laughing. I kiss her on the lips and then trail kisses all the way to her ear as I whisper, "You're are too cute when you're jealous." It's still hard for me to believe how jealous Madge gets about me. The feeling is like a rush and I feel like I could do anything right now.

We kiss for a while and then make our way out to the den where Madge sits down to help me fold the laundry on the table. Madge teases me because I tell her what Thom said about her going from nerdy to sexy overnight. I admit that I never noticed her in school before and I have no idea what her nerdy look was. I tell her how Posy has decided that my punishment will be to do whatever she asks for the next two weeks…as if I don't already do that on a daily basis.

The next day at school the same process follows. I wait with my friends at the entrance of the school as my friends check out every girl that walks into the building. I spot Madge walking towards the school and I want to laugh. If people thought she looked sexy yesterday then they won't know what to think of her today. I'm turned on just watching her; I have to squash the urge to pull her to me and kiss her. Madge has her hair pulled up in a bun behind her head and she's wearing glasses. Her hair is pulled back tight; her uniform is perfect once again but her face is completely closed off. Gone from it is the happy, open demeanor from yesterday. I want to kiss her so badly that it hurts. Thom brings me back into the conversation again as he says, "I guess Undersee is back to nerdy again." He looks at me and continues, "I wonder if she has a boyfriend who got jealous of her sexy look from yesterday." I elbow him and I can't believe the other boys think she looks nerdy. She looks incredibly sexy to me.

Once again Madge comes over to my house after school and this time we sneak off to the meadow for some kisses. She laughs and calls me hopeless when I tell her that I find her nerdy look incredibly sexy. I've never enjoyed anything as much as when I free her hair from the bun and brush my fingers through it. I'm embarrassed to admit that I've never been as turned on as I am watching her long, silky hair fall to her waist in waves. Madge is gorgeous. For the life of me I can't figure out how I never noticed her before in school. That night I realize that I never noticed her before because, while Madge is gorgeous, I've not just fallen in love with just her looks – I've fallen in love with everything about Madge. So everything about her is sexy to me; I see and notice everything about her.

The rest of the week continues the same – exams in school during the day and a couple hours in the evening with Madge. She only got one phone call from Haymitch to let her know that Katniss and Mellark will be fine. Her dad came back the day after my birthday party but she hasn't had a chance to talk to him. He's been holed up in the Justice Building ever since he got back. There was a time when I disliked Madge for having her parents time and attention all the time. Now, I can only imagine how frustrating it must be for Madge to see her dad every day yet not know anything about his trip. I don't know how the Undersees have survived in that Capitol bugged house for so long. I would go stir crazy in just a day. There will be another mandatory viewing of the two interviews that Katniss and Mellark will have. After that it will take them a day and half to get back to the District and the celebrations will start. My training in the mines will start around that time too.

It's the last day of school and Madge manages to slip me a note that says, 'Shed at 7 with dad.'

When I get to the shed, the Mayor and Madge are already there. The Mayor looks tense and as if he's aged a decade in just the last few days. Madge meets me at the door and hugs me. "I think something is really wrong. I've never seen my dad this upset before," she says. I hug her too and rub her back reassuringly. Whatever it is she knows we're in this together; I kiss the top of her head.

The Mayor shakes my hand and motions for us to sit on the sofa. I see why Madge is so worried; her dad looks like he's got bad news to share with us. I sit and take Madge's hand.

The Mayor paces and finally starts, "Snow is not happy about Katniss and Peeta both winning the games. He wants someone to pay the consequences."

Madge interrupts him, "But, daddy, the game makers let them both win. Shouldn't they be the ones to pay?"

Mayor gives her a sad look and says, "Seneca Crane – the head game maker, was executed the day after the games. I watched the execution with my own eyes."

That sounds horrible but I don't say anything. Somehow I have a feeling that isn't the worst part of this conversation. The Mayor is starting out slow; so if this is the good news the possibilities of what the bad news could be are horrifying.

Next to me Madge says, "Daddy, that sounds horrible."

The Mayor continues, "That was the punishment for the game maker. Next one to be punished is our District."

Madge and I both look at him horrified. Oh no, what kinds of horrors are they going to bring upon the district now.

The Mayor continues, "For now, it's not going to be too terrible. The District is only getting a warning. We are removing all Physical Education from the curriculum at school. There will be no more wrestling teams or any other kind of sporting events. There will be an extra class added to the curriculum about the benefits the Capitol provides us. All these changes will take place inconspicuously such that no one will even realize anything changed. The food ration to the town families is being decreased. Peeta Mellark is considered to be too stocky and the Capitol wants to make sure we are not training our children through body building practices. The changes will be miniscule and no one will know anything has really changed."

Before either of us can say anything, the Mayor holds up his hand and I know by the hardened look in his eyes that this is when he will deliver the real news. I squeeze Madge's hand.

The Mayor takes a deep breath and continues, "The District gets off with just a warning this time because the real punishment will be for me. Snow has always believed in 'an-eye-for-an-eye' way of running the country. According to him Crane should've let both Peeta and Katniss die. According to Snow two lives saved from our District means that two lives must be taken from our District."

The hair on my neck stand up and Madge gets goose bumps up and down her arms. I wrap my arm around her. There are only three people left in the Mayor's family and the President wants two of them. I bet I know which two.

"He wants me and mom?" Madge whispers next to me. I pull her closer to me.

"Yes, but in two very different ways. Your mom has a choice. You don't get a choice. Snow gave me the option of either cutting your mom's morphling supply or doubling it. If they cut it she'll probably die within a month. If we double it, she'll probably die a slow, painful death over the next year or so. If I agree to follow all the rules then you get to live."

Madge runs up to her dad and hugs him. She cries into his shirt "No, not mom."

The Mayor hugs her back and rubs his hands on her back. I want to punch something…someone. I sit still. The Mayor hugs Madge but his eyes stay glued to mine and I know what ever Snow has decreed for Madge's future is not going to be good. I can see the look of fear and helplessness in his eyes. I know that if Snow doesn't want to kill Madge then he has something even worse planned for her.

The Mayor continues, "Your mom doesn't want to leave you. So for now she's chosen to have her morphling dosage doubled. I've spoken to Lem and he has to send periodic blood reports to Snow. But we think we can still skip a few of the dosages. Let me warn you now, Madge. It's not going to be good. Lem's not sure how much more morphling your mom's body can handle. But your mom is adamant; she says she'll hang on until she knows you're safe."

They both hug and cry together. Even I have tears in my eyes. I'm ready to start the fight right now, but I still don't know what Madge's future holds. The Mayor walks Madge back towards the sofa and lowers her down into a sitting position. He gets some water for Madge and says, "Don't worry about your mom. She's a strong woman; she'll figure out a way to handle this too. As for you, Snow wants you to go to the Capitol soon. You will not be allowed to wait till you're 18. He's torturing me by not giving me too many details. He told me I would know when the time comes for you to go to the Capitol."

The Mayor turns to me and says, "Snow expects Madge to marry someone from his administration in the Capitol. He's not going to give Madge a choice, he plans to decide for Madge. For now he only told me several people from the Capitol will visit with the victors. Any one of them could be a suitor for Madge. Of course, I opposed vehemently to this. But it was either give you up or bring upon our District the same results as District 13. I haven't agreed to anything yet. I spoke to Haymitch who thinks we can work around the marriage issue because all Snow really wants is Madge in the Capitol so he can control me."

I turn to Madge and say, "I'm not going to let anyone take you from here. They'll have to do it over my dead body."

Madge gets up and says, "You can't talk like this, Gale. I'm one person and the rebellion is bigger than any ONE person. I'm not going to let Snow punish the entire District just to save myself. You have to keep fighting for the rebellion so others don't have to make these kinds of decisions. We will decide as a group and if it makes sense for me to go to the Capitol then you will not do anything to stand in the way of that."

I stand up too. "Madge…"

"No, Gale! You promised. You promised you wouldn't make me weaker. Remember we're stronger together."

I don't say anything. I turn around and I walk out of her shed. I punch a tree outside and just walk around for a bit to clear my head. Does she think that I'm just supposed to watch Snow take her to the Capitol? Even if she doesn't marry me, am I supposed to watch her marry some creep from the Capitol?

The more I think the angrier I get. My feet carry me to Madge's meadow without any thought. I sink down to the ground and lean up against the tree where Madge and I have shared several kisses; I've come to think of this as our tree. Madge slinks down in between my legs like she's done countless times and my arms go around her. She turns and kisses me. "Gale, we knew this wasn't going to last forever. We've known that I'd have to go to the Capitol. Remember we made a promise to find each other on the other end. This doesn't change anything."

I put my forehead on hers and say, "But this is different. You're not just another Mayor's brat that will work in a mindless job in the Capitol so that Snow can use you to control your dad like he does with the other Mayors. Your dad is in trouble, our whole District is in trouble. This is different. Don't you see, now, he has a specific purpose for you. He's going to make you marry someone; you're no longer just going to the Capitol to work. Snow will have full control over your dad, the District, and you. THIS is different."

"Gale, I know, but Haymitch won't let anything bad happen to me. He's a genius. Believe me he will figure out a solution. Come on my dad's waiting," she kisses me once and stands up. Madge pulls me up and takes me back to the shed.

I walk in and say to the Mayor, "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't mean to walk out like that."

He pats my back lovingly and I think he understands why I had to get away. I can see it in his eyes, he feels the same as I do. Madge may be downplaying it, but her dad is terrified. The Mayor continues, "I wanted both of you to know the whole story. While I'm not saying that this is nothing to worry about I do not think anything will happen until after the victory tour so we have a few months. Snow still has to keep up his appearances. I saw Haymitch briefly and he had his hands full with Katniss and Peeta. Haymitch assured me not to worry just yet and that he'll come up with something. But that's hard for me to do when it concerns Madge."

"Don't worry, daddy, we won't. We've had scares before and all we can do is plan and be better prepared. We're not going to freak out. We've known that I'd be going to the Capitol. You don't have to worry."

The Mayor nods and then says, "A new head game maker has been named already - Plutarch Heavensbee. I don't know a lot about him but Haymitch is working on getting information about him. Apparently he has a son and one of the victors, Johanna Mason, is going to try to get to the son."

The Mayor turns to leave and raises his eyebrow at Madge. "May I meet you home in about an hour?" she asks politely. He nods and bids us both good night.

Madge pushes the sofa into a bed again and falls back on it exhausted. I lie down beside her and nudge her head with my arm. She lifts up her head and I slide my arm underneath. Madge snuggles into me and says, "It doesn't change anything, Gale."

"Yet," I finish for her. I rub my hand absentmindedly on her arm and her back. I'm lost in thought but I don't even know what I'm really thinking about. Madge says to not worry about anything just yet. But how can I not? I shake my head and think what a difference a week makes. Just last week we were here and spent the best night of my life out here together.

I lift my head up just a little to kiss Madge and then say, "Come on, I'll take you home now."

She doesn't argue or protest. She just gives me one more kiss before we leave the shed and then we walk back to her house quietly hand-in-hand.

A/N: How was that?