Let Me Fly
by FanficAllergy & RoseFyre

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Chapter Three: Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around

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Last Time in Let Me Fly:

After lunch on the day before we plan to leave, my mother stops Prim and Rory from going out again. The two share a glance and sit back down nervously. "What's wrong, Mom?" Prim asks.

I take a deep breath. "Prim. Rory. There's something we need to tell you."

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Prim looks between our mother and me in confusion and growing concern. I immediately feel bad for keeping her in the dark like we have.

Before my sister can speak, Rory asks a question. "Gale? What's going on?" I flinch internally, I've been so focused on Prim that I forgot that Rory has had even more cause for concern.

Gale opens his mouth to answer Rory's question when Prim can't hold it in any longer. "Are you two getting married? Are you pregnant? Oh no, that's it! You're pregnant. I knew it! You've been so tired and not wanting to eat and in the mornings you've been nauseous. And I can't remember the last time you had your period." The words spill out of her mouth like a waterfall. She's talking so fast that no one can get a word in edgewise and she seems to take our silence as confirmation. "That's it, I'm right. You're pregnant!"

"No! Why is that the first thing everyone asks?" I glare at Gale. "This is your fault."

He holds up his hands. "Don't blame me. I'm not the one jumping to conclusions," Gale says, pointing at my mother and Prim. "They're the ones who seem to think you're knocked up!"

"You're not helping," I growl then take a deep breath. "No, Gale and I are not getting married and I am not, under any circumstances, in any situation, in any way, shape, or form, pregnant! Got it?"

Rory and Prim nod their heads solemnly. Rory looks confused and asks, "So what's going on?"

"Somebody else take this," I say. "I'm done."

My mother steps up and takes over, explaining that, tomorrow morning, we're leaving District Twelve. It goes over about as well as I expected.

"I'm not leaving without my cat!" Prim interjects partway through the explanation.

"We know," my mother, Gale, and I chorus.

"We think we've figured out a method to carry him with us. We'll need to pacify him a bit with some catnip. It's going to be your responsibility to see that he stays fed and doesn't run away. If he runs, we're not going after him," I warn.

Prim looks petulant but nods her head, understanding that I'm not being unreasonable. "Can I at least say goodbye to my friends?"

"No," my mother says. "We can't let anyone know we're leaving. You understand why."

"No, I don't understand! My friends aren't gonna tell! They're my friends! They wouldn't do that! And I won't ever get to see them again! Not ever! Even the tributes get a chance to say goodbye!" She's working herself up into a fit.

I crouch down in front of her and take her hands. "You're not a tribute, and with luck, you never will be," I say. "If we get caught trying to leave, we will get killed. All of us. The Capitol doesn't care how old you are. I can't have you go into the Games. I just can't."

Prim squeezes my hands but doesn't say anything, I can tell she understands now why we've had to keep quiet but that she still doesn't like it. She doesn't have to like it. She just has to live with it. I don't want to leave Twelve either but I can't take the chance that Prim or I will get reaped. And now she understands too.

"Why are we leaving now?" Rory asks.

"We want to leave while everyone's still dealing with the flu, while there's all this confusion going on," my mother answers, seeing that I'm still dealing with Prim. "We're less likely to be missed."

"No, that's not what I meant," he says with a shake of his head. "Why are we leaving now? Why didn't we leave before, when Mom and Vick and Posy were still alive?"

"The chances were better then and Posy and Vick were too young to travel. Now, with everybody being so sick and dying, the chances of you or me being Reaped have gone up," Gale says. "Same's true for Katniss and Prim. I can't lose you too. And what would happen to you if I got Reaped?"

We don't need to keep explaining. Both kids know our chances, how many slips we have in the bowl. They understand that circumstances have changed. We could talk about it for hours but it wouldn't change the outcome. We need to leave, the sooner the better.

"Do you have any more questions?" Mom asks. Both kids shake their heads. "Good. We've got a lot of work to do."

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Later that afternoon, Gale returns from the bakery, where he was buying a bunch of bread for the trip. We'd decided that we wanted to spend all of the coin we'd had saved since there will be no use for it out in the wild. My mother, Gale and I are each going to hit a different shop while the other two stay back to make hardtack and meat pies for travel food. Also, none of us wants to leave Prim or Rory alone. We don't quite trust them not to go tell their friends that we're leaving. And additionally, if one person went to every store, it might be suspicious. By splitting up, it looks more like normal shopping.

Gale sets the bread down on the counter with a thud. "There's something weird going on at the bakery," he says in greeting.

"Oh?" my mother asks, looking up from where she's folding the dough around the cooked goose and root vegetables.

Gale snags a carrot and pops it into his mouth. "They're really pushing these new herb biscuits, claiming they'll help protect you from the flu."

My mother frowns. "That doesn't sound like Matz."

"His wife was the one at the counter," he says with a shrug, reaching over to grab a turnip slice. "She was in even more of a mood than normal. Even tried to sell me one."

"That's all really interesting, but if there's nothing else, I'll head out now," I say. "Try not to eat all of our travelling food while I'm gone."

I put on my jacket and head out. I've got two stops to make: the butcher and the apothecary.

I stop by the apothecary first to get a few essential oils and other things that don't grow near Twelve. My mother also asked me to see if I can get morphling or any other Capitol drugs that might be available. I'm not sure if I'll be successful. Capitol drugs are expensive and in short supply even during the best of times. I'm sure they're going to be out of stock or unreasonably priced but I've agreed to check anyway.

When I get there, I see Madge Undersee, the mayor's daughter, at the counter. She's got a box in her hands and she's arguing with the apothecary.

"No refunds," the man says, crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't take used medicine."

"But my mom didn't use it," Madge protests.

He shakes his head. "Doesn't matter. Once it leaves the store, it's used. Them's the rules that the Capitol made and I've got to follow the rules."

Madge sighs and gives up, pulling the box back. She turns around to leave and sees me. Her eyes brighten. "Katniss! It's so good to see you! I'm glad to hear that you're better!"

"Thanks. I'm glad you're better too," I reply. "Sorry about your mom."

"Me too." She pauses, looking down at her hands and the box. A weird expression crosses her face and she seems excited. "Hey, wait a minute. Your mom's a healer, right? Do you think she could use this morphling? He's not gonna take it. Says that it's against the law or something." She gestures at the apothecary who just shrugs.

I'm a little surprised at her abrupt offer but I'm not about to turn it down. "I'm sure my mom could use the morphling. What do you want for it?"

She shoves the box at me. "Oh no, you can just have it."

I shake my head and push the drugs back at her. "I can't do that. I can't take charity."

"It's not charity if it helps people." She pushes the box forward again.

We have a weird little tug of war with each of us trying to push the box of morphling at the other. Finally I get tired of the game and take a step back, holding up my hand to stop Madge from following. "Enough. Look, I can give you this," I say, revealing the pin. "It was yours, right? I'm sure it's got meaning for you."

"It does, but I gave it to your mom and I'm glad to see you wearing it. It should be worn. And I can't." She doesn't explain why.

I make a face. The pin's not useful and I'd hoped she would have accepted my offer. Now I have to come up with something else. I pull out two coin. "Well, it's not much, but I can give you this."

"Alright," she says, taking the coins, although I can tell she's not happy. She hands me the box.

I take it and put it in my bag. Part of me wants to say something to Madge, to say goodbye, but I fight down the urge. She may be my closest friend other than Gale, but even she can't know we're leaving.

"Have a good day," Madge says.

"You too," I respond.

She leaves the store and I turn back to the apothecary. "What do you want?" he asks, obviously amused at the bartering going on in his store.

There isn't much of a selection, but I still manage to find a few useful things, I get a good deal and what he calls 'the family discount.' I know he's my mother's little brother so he's technically my uncle, but other than trading, we don't interact at all. I see an old woman glaring at me from the back room and can guess why.

I finish my business then head over to the butcher. There, I spend the last of my share of the coin on food that can travel easily: dried sausages and dried smoked meat.

When that's done, I head back home. My mother takes the last of our combined coin and heads for the general store.

I turn to Gale, Rory, and Prim. "So what else needs to be done?"

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With the last of our chores and shopping done, Gale heads out into the woods to drop off what things we can leave out there overnight and to stop at his house on the way back to make sure he hasn't forgotten anything, since this is the last time he's going to be there.

He comes back with a few miscellaneous items and Posy's doll. "I know it's not necessary, but I just couldn't leave it behind." His voice is full of emotion. He hands the doll to Rory who retreats into the bedroom with it. None of us say anything to condemn either Hawthorne.

We understand.

By mutual agreement, we all sleep at our house. Gale and Rory share one bed while my mother, Prim, and I share the other. I'm not used to Gale and Rory's snores and Gale isn't used to my sister's cat making a nest on him in the middle of the night. None of us sleep very well but I don't know if that's because of nerves or the night noises or both.

We wake up before the sun rises and get dressed. Prim puts Buttercup into the cat-carrying case that my mother made from my old school bag. He goes into it willingly for her, but she gives him some catnip to keep him docile anyway.

The rest of us pack up all of the food we're going to take with us. I scour the house, making certain we haven't left anything edible behind, even pulling out an old packet of dried meat that I stashed under my bed just in case something happened, as well as an old dented can from underneath the sink that holds who knows what. My mother raises an eyebrow at the stashes and I shrug. I don't bother to explain. My mother should understand why I hoard food.

By the time we finish, the sun has risen and the first shift at the mines has started. This is good. We don't want to run into anyone.

The morning is cold but clear. I'm grateful that it's not raining or snowing. April's weather is really unpredictable and it's the one thing that could have prevented our leaving.

We get to the Meadow, thankful that we haven't run into anyone who might ask us about the packs on our backs or all the clothes we're wearing. We head towards the hole in the fence, not bothering to keep quiet. All of us feel a bit of exhilaration and anticipation. It's a beautiful day. The birds are singing. The wind is gentle. Nothing could go wrong.

Which of course means it does.

As we pass a large bush, I hear someone say "Katniss?"

I whirl around to see who's spoken and start when I see it's the baker's youngest son, Peeta Mellark.

I'm not the only one surprised to see him. "What in the hell are you doing out here, Mellark?" Gale asks. His hand is inching towards his knife.

"Gathering herbs. What are you doing out here?" His eyes flick to each of us, taking in our packs and clothing.

This is bad.

My eyes catch Gale's. I can see he's made up his mind: Peeta Mellark must die. I can't allow that.

I take a step forward, placing myself between Gale and Peeta. "We're just heading out into the woods to gather a few things."

Peeta stands up slowly and regards me seriously. "You're really not a good liar, are you?"

I shake my head, noticing out of the corner of my eye that Gale is moving around the bush to flank Peeta so he doesn't try to run away while we're still figuring this out. "No, I'm really not."

A smile ghosts across his lips. "It shows. So what are you doing out here, really?"

"What are you? I've never seen you gathering herbs before." I deflect the attention back onto him so he doesn't notice Gale.

"I haven't. Not until recently. My mother had this idea that we could sell herb biscuits to take advantage of the hysteria surrounding this whole flu thing. They seem to be selling well, especially to the Peacekeepers, so we run out of ingredients a lot."

"But why you? Couldn't one of your brothers gather the herbs?"

He shrugs. "I volunteered. Gets me out of the house."

I don't blame him. Mrs. Mellark is a really difficult woman to put it nicely.

I can see Gale is almost in position so I ask another question. "What kind of herbs are you gathering?"

Peeta pulls a root out of his bag. "I think this is ginger. It kind of smells like it, and it tastes good in cookies. But my mom says it's not 'medicinal' enough..." He trails off, his eyes widening. "You're trying to distract me, aren't you?"

I flinch guiltily.

"And it worked, too," Gale says from behind Peeta, his hunting knife held menacingly in his hand.

"Katniss...what's going on?"

Gale doesn't let me speak. "It's none of your business, Mellark."

Peeta shifts slightly to keep a better eye on Gale and the rest of us. "Since you're holding a knife on me, Hawthorne, I think it really is kind of my business."

Right then, Buttercup lets out a drugged meow from inside the bag that Prim's carrying and Peeta's eyes zoom right to it.

Everybody winces. I am going to kill that blasted cat.

"Was that a cat?" he asks, almost as if he doesn't believe it.

"No," I say.

He ignores my protestation and starts to speak as if he's talking to himself. "Why would you be carrying a cat? Who in the hell carries a cat into the woods?" He looks more closely at our bags and our clothing and he gasps. "Oh my God. Oh my God! You're running away!"

I open my mouth to protest but I know, no matter what I say, it'll sound like the lie that it is. Slowly, I nod my head.

"Observant of you, Mellark," Gale says, his voice hard.

Peeta looks between Gale and me. "Why - no, it's none of my business. Just go. I won't tell anyone. I promise."

"That's right, you won't." Gale takes another menacing step forward.

"Gale, you can't kill him. It'll draw too much attention." I don't even know why the thought of Peeta Mellark dying bothers me so much, but I just know that I can't let him die. He saved my life when I was eleven years old. I can't take his.

"Katniss, you can trust me. I'll keep your secret," he pleads. "I won't tell a soul, I give you my word. Just let me go."

We can't do that either. I look at Gale. He looks at me.

"Your word's not good enough, Mellark."

"What can I do to make you trust me? I won't tell, I promise. I swear on everything I love, everyone I love." He looks at me oddly before continuing, "I won't betray you. I'll swear on whatever you want. Just let me go."

"No can do, Mellark, we can't take that chance. You're coming with us."

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AN:
Written: 1/25/15
Revised: 1/26/15

The chapter title comes from an old Civil Rights song that was sung by protesters in the American South while on their marches or while in jail. The lyrics are about how the people are going to keep walking until they get freedom and nothing is going to stop them. And well, they really fit what this chapter is about.

So yeah, we'd planned on having Peeta come with them the whole time.

We are still keeping it vague about what they are taking with us, but the majority of it is food, clothes, and tools. There are some odd things as well but we're going to keep them a surprise.

There are a few in jokes hidden in here for readers of FanficAllergy's other works.

We look forward to hearing what you think!