Chapter 54 of Rebel or Madge?

A/N: Noooooo I have school in less than two weeks (*cries forever*)! And of course like two of my friends are switching schools and our school is going down the drain because they made a bunch of changes that no one, I repeat, no one, likes. And they let go of a bunch of teachers and it's just…it's bad.

But I'm still hoping to finish this story!

How are all your guys summers going?

Shout-out: Thank you EStrunk for your comment on Chapter 1, very much appreciated! Glad you're curious and love angst Gale!


The war was progressing significantly. I was rising through the ranks as fast as a bullet and my job was becoming increasingly more involved – which I didn't like. Madge had been taken into custody after Coin figured out who she was and was grueling her all day, every day about the Capitol and what knew. She was let out for dinner and recreational time, but that was. And of course, probably just to torment me, I was busy every damn day during recreational time and usually ate with Beetee in the lab as we slaved over blueprints.

Beetee and Coin had promoted me to Bomb Specialist and Strategist. During the day I would look and draw up blueprints of everything and anything that I could imagine of different types of bombs and weaponry. At night, I would have secret meetings with Haymitch and President Coin about advancing the war and how we were going to go about it. Where do we go? Where do we start? How are we going to execute it? Etc. Etc. Etc.

That was where I was now. Coin's face was getting redder and redder as the minutes tick by. She doesn't agree with my idea to sweep the Capitol's army into a circle, trapping them in the middle of ours. She thought it was too dangerous and we'd lose too many men. But it was war. Men and women's lives would be lost, it was inevitable. Haymitch was stuck in between us. He couldn't figure out a different way to protect our militia against an army while still trapping their Army. Coin was just being bullheaded and refused to even come up with another idea because it was my job, despite the fact that I had already come up with a plan.

"We'd lose too many men, Private Hawthorne." She was shaking her head for the thousandth time that evening.

"Then we'll use the underground tunnels, but that leaves us trapped on every end. You don't think they'll booby-traps and poisonous gas running under those tunnels? You don't think they want us to use those? Sure, we'll be covered from civilians eyes, but with nowhere to run – to go, we'd lose more men than we would if we just walked straight up to the Presidential Mansion ourselves."

"The tunnels might work, though. We could send in a specialized group led by you to check it out first." She writes something on her yellow legal pad before looking at me. I don't move, a dumbfounded expression set deep in my face.

"You want to risk his life? The one you promoted to Startegist because he's quick on his feet and can thrive under pressure? You want him to be blown to bits?" Haymitch's asks, his eyebrows are set high on his forehead and mouth hung open, catching flies.

"Well it's not like he's proving anything right now," she mutters under her breath, "Besides, he was his idea. He should be the one to execute it."

"What about your promise to the Mockingjay? Hmm? Shouldn't you be using this time to rescue Peeta?"

"Shouldn't ending a war be more important?" she left no room for arguing but that doesn't mean Haymitch didn't find one for it.

"The farther this war progresses, the farther those Victors will be punished? Set up a team, I'll run it." Haymitch slams his palm on the table and takes a hearty swig from his water bottle. You can tell he wishes it was liquor.

Coin's eyes are as dark and as hard as night. It was like being on the beach in District 4 at night and walking along the shoreline. It was too dark to see how close you are to the water, too dark to see the wave about to crush you. She did not look pleased with Haymitch or me. She looked like she'd kill us both if we weren't worth something to her.

We were expendable and we knew it.

But that didn't mean we didn't push the limits sometimes too.

It was around 4 in the morning by the time I got to unlock my family's compartment door. Leaning heavily against the door for support, I twisted the key in the keyhole. The world swished and swirled around me from lack of sleep. I stumbled through the dark, banging my knee hard against the couch and whacking my head against the counter jutting out from the small counter connected to the kitchen after about sprawling out on the floor from tripping over a stool. God, how I hated this place in the dark.

I finally made it to my room (only spilling half my cup of water on me and my hand) and slumped into my bed with a loud sigh. I fluffy my pillows and fought with the tucked in blankets before I was covered and comfortable. I could feel the night stretching out in front, and I was restless. My mind buzzing with everything about the last few days. My thought circulated back to Madge Undersee, she was supposed to be released tomorrow and I was due for a day off. I was deeply considering blowing off my schedule and spending the day with Madge.

I twisted and turn all night, my stomach hurt and then my head and then repeat. It was agonizing. I was exhausted, but passed the point of sleep. I craved sleep, but I wanted to see Madge and my family too. I was sick of working long hours, but if I wanted to fight I had to push through. But god was I tired and yet sleep didn't come.

And when it did, the bombing was all I saw.

Shard of glass were blown into the air from windows shattering and planks of wood were flying a hundred miles an hour through the air only to be diminished into dust like thousands of bodies were doing at the moment and would be doing for hours. The smoke was so heavy it was creating a film over my vision and constricting my lungs. Every time someone coughed a cloud of dust would escape their mouths. With each breath I took it was like I was drinking fire and my legs felt like they were even a part of me anymore. I just ran as fast as I could.

Buildings collapsing and exploding around was what made me look the other way. A shining white house stood tall in the distant, causing my feet to stop. The mayor's house. Madge. My lungs tighten even further. My legs felt like they had turned to jelly. And my heart had stopped beating. I saw the thick, black thing fall from the sky, heading straight for the white house. The white picket fence seemed more like a post for dead people. I shook the kids off of me and went screaming towards the house.

"Madge!" I scream, "Madge!" the burnt air didn't bother me now, the air didn't constrict me, and my legs didn't worry me about collapsing. My heart was what bothered me. It was beating so hard I thought it was going to explode. It was beating so hard that I knew she was going to die, that I was going to die. But that didn't slow me, nor did it quicken me. It was like my body wouldn't corroborate with me. It was saving me, it was saving me, not her. It wouldn't propel faster because it knew it would end badly for both of us.

But I needed it too. I wanted it too. But it didn't, and just as I reached the white picket fence, the house exploded.

I woke up sweating buckets. It was far worse than the actual version. I had tried. I tried to get to her and I couldn't, and that made it ten times worse. I wanted to make it so bad, I can still feel the lingering determination coursing through my veins like a rollercoaster rushing through its tracks. I was so close and yet so far that the pain stung like an arrow through the heart. I wanted to save her, my girl, I was her to live. But I was too late. I was a failure. And now she was gone.

A whimper escapes my throat. It was dry and scratchy.

A hand pressed the glass of water against my hand from my bedside table. I clutched it and drank greedily from it. "It's okay." My mother voice seeps through the darkness to my fuzzy, sleep filled brain. She pet my hair back with her hand and kissed my temple. She was standing beside my bed with a worried look on her. We were still surrounded by darkness because she forgot to flip the switch, but somehow that made me feel better because I could hide the tears in my eyes better. "You're okay." She whispers again, kissing my temple twice before wrapping me in her arms.

I feel like a little kid again, inadequate to the problems of an adult. I feel like I can't even take care of myself, I can't even deal with my own problems with my mom's help. I was a helpless boy. And I hated it.

I must have fallen back asleep and my mom must have left because I woke up alone and cold. The gray walls represented my attitude and I had to lie there and remind myself Madge alive and set free from her containment today. My hands still shook under the blankets and my lips still trembled, but I didn't move to start my day. I didn't feel like getting up at all, actually. I pushed my hands through my hands and close my eyes to just breathe. My heart thumped calmly in my chest and the air was smoky or suffocating. It was cold and recycled. On any other day I would have hated the smell of stale air, but now it felt refreshingly close to home. After last night, it felt freeing.

A knock sounded through the wood on the door.

"Gale, time to get up. You got to go to work soon. Oh, and would you mind dropping the boys off at school for me? I have an early shift today."

"Yeah, mom, that's fine."

I listened to my family going about their daily activities. I could hear the water running in the bathroom across the hall from me and someone choking on their toothbrush. I could hear Vick yawning and I could see clear as day in my mind, him raising his head about his head in the process.

Another knock hit the door and Rory stuck his head in. "Hey, so what happened last night? I heard you making a lot of noises."

Embarrassment surged through my veins, heat rising to my face, "Don't worry about."

He enter fully into the room, shutting the door softly behind him, "Bad dream? You can tell me, ya know. I won't tell a soul."

I smile softly at him, "It was nothing. Just a fleeting moment, that's all." He nods like he's trying to convince himself I was okay.

He smiled again and walked across the room and settled on my bed like he owned it, "So," he says and poking my bare chest, "Madge is getting released today." His smirk never leaves his face.

"Yeah, so what?"

"Whatcha gonna do to celebrate her freedom?" he asks, still smirking, "Show her how much you care?" My eyes widen and push him off my bed.

"No! And you shouldn't even be thinking that!"

He laughs hysterically on the floor, so hard that he holding his stomach tightly.

"You're an idiot." I snap sourly.

He scurries from the room to get his schedule printed on his arm and for his ass to be saved. Where does he think he can get away with stuff like that? He's not even supposed to know about things like that. He better not be imposing on Vick's innocent thoughts or I'm gonna kill him.

"Gale! Time to go to breakfast."

"I'll meet you down there!"

Madge flutters up to our table with the hugest smile I've ever seen. It was so bright and genuine that it made my heart flutter in my chest. Rory clears his throat and winks at me with that devilish smirk of his. If I could kill him…

"Hi!" she waves and my mom gets up and gives her a giant hug and a so happy you're here in her ear.

She takes a seat next to me and places a hand on my thigh. I tense at first but then relax, so what if Rory shot me another smirk and an eyebrow raise. Her plate of food sits untouched for half the meal, she too happy to eat. She laughs and smiles and jokes around with Rory and Vick. She even ends up braiding Posy's hair after she was done eating. Although, she does keep sneaking strawberries off my plate.

"Mmm, that's my last one!" I say through a mouthful of oatmeal. She smirks, a certain little gleam in her eyes, and pops it into her mouth. "Hey!" she leans over and kisses my cheek sweetly.

Haymitch, Katniss, Finnick, Coin, and I sit in the meeting room. Katniss is glaring daggers at President Coin. Coin is studiously ignoring the unspoken death threats coming from Katniss' eyes.

"So," she claps her hands together and shoots a quick look at everyone in the room. "Haymitch, take the floor."

He nods and smiles, "Thank you, President…Coin...anyways, here," he taps a few things on the screen that is built into the table. A screen is projected onto the gray wall behind him in perfect clarity, "Katniss you will enjoy this…This is the plan to rescue the Victors." Katniss' face lights up and her eyes hone in onto the projection, her eyes flying over each and every word as fast as she could.

Haymitch goes on to tell us about volunteers (Finn and I automatically volunteer afterwards when Katniss left at the end of the meeting), and uncover work, and protective barriers that Beetee is working on breaking.

"I like it!" Finnick pumps his fist a few times in the air, his excitement clear as day on his face.

"Then let's get started." Haymitch says, his lips form into a line, a gleam in his eye.


A/N: BOOM! Two stories updated in a day! Ok, bye!