I am sorry about the gaps of time between chapters... I try to update every Thursday after school. It'll be the end of term in less then two weeks though, so I'll hopefully up the pace during the holidays!

And thanks to all you guys that have been reviewing! We're past 50! Yay!

Disclaimer: And I didn't own then, I don't now, and I won't later.

Chapter 20

Test

"What is the meaning of this?" thundered Boggs as he strode towards Gale. The rest of us instinctively moved in front of Peeta.

"I'm joining your group," said Gale, barely controlling his voice.

"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am."

"On who's authority?"

"Mine." Everybody turned to see Coin striding towards us.

"President," said Boggs in a forced tone. "You really can't risk him-"

"Oh can't I?" she asked. "We have taken the necessary precautions. You knew of this, and you never complained."

"I, well, I expected it to take an awful lot longer than a week! He can't be fully healed yet! He just can't!"

"Yes, he can. Peeta, prove it," commanded Coin. I heard Peeta sigh behind me, and start to walk around the group of us clustered in front of him.

"What are you doing?" I hissed, grabbing his arm. "Are you crazy? Do you have a death sentence."

"No," said Peeta. "But I don't have a choice. Don't worry, it should be okay…" The uncertainty in his voice almost sent me into full-scale panic mode, but he was right. He didn't have a choice.

Peeta pulled out of my grip, and moved so that Gale could see him. The moment he did, Gale stiffened, and what could only be described as a snarl rippled through his chest. I felt a sudden urge to run, but held my ground, unwilling to let anyone think I was weak.

Suddenly, Gale's face relaxed slightly, and he closed his eyes, breathing loudly. He seemed to be muttering under his breath. What ever he was doing, after a few moments, he had managed to completely calm himself.

I stared at him, my mouth gaping open.

What?

"Good enough?" barked Coin, looking behind her at the doctor I hadn't noticed before.

"I guess…" he said with uncertainty. "I haven't seen how he will react if Peeta picks up a weapon near Katniss though, we haven't tested this enough. Maybe if he were to come back to the hospital and then-"

"No. we don't have time. He has to train. You may stay here to observe him, but that is all. Do not interrupt unless he is about to kill, do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Wonderful. Boggs, Gale is to join in for all of the activities, and is not to be restrained. You will report to me at the end of every day."

Before Boggs could protest, Coin had swept out of the room, leaving the doctor and Gale with us.

"Well," said Boggs, fuming. "Right then. Hawthorne, you come over here-" he gestured to the opposite side of the group to where Peeta and I were standing, "-and then we can get back to it."

After Gale had moved, Boggs continued on with his demonstration. I turned to to Peeta, silently asking for an explanation, but he just mouthed 'later'. I huffed in exasperation.

"Oh, Peeta," whined Bryce, quiet so only Peeta and I could hear. "You had better watch your back now, or the mad little boy from Twelve might get you."

"Watch it," I growled, spinning on the spot to face him.

"Let it go, Katniss," whispered Peeta.

"Alright over there?" called Boggs, annoyed at the interruption.

"All fine," said Peeta, and spun me around again before I could do anything stupid. "Ignore him," he hissed at me.

The day's training was fairly uneventful after that, with Gale staying on the opposite side of the group to Peeta at all times. When we were dismissed, he was the first to leave the room. It seemed like he really was trying his hardest to stay away from Peeta.

The moment we got back to our room after dinner, I turned on Peeta and demanded to know what had happened. He sighed and sat on his bed, motioning for me to sit next to him.

"You know how the doctors kept asking me to go with them to the hospital," he said, and I nodded. "It wasn't my leg they wanted to research." Peeta paused and watched me for a second, trying to gauge my reaction.

I took a deep breath.

"Go on."

"Well… they would put me in Gales room and try to see how he would react… to try and make him get used to my presence without attempting to murder me. When he was able to be in the same room as me, they tried to see how he would react if I had a weapon… He wasn't ready for this, though. They were taking way to much of a risk today. We had no idea what he would do if you were in the room as well, but Coin was so sure that he'd be fine…"

"Wait," I said, feeling my stomach grow heavier by the second. "You lied to me? You told me you were going to get your leg checked out… do you have any idea how big this is? I thought we agreed to be honest to each other?"

"I'm sorry Katniss," he said, his eyes wide and begging for forgiveness, "I knew how much it would mean to you. But he had hurt you so much and you hated talking about him, so I didn't want to bring it up, or raise your hopes. I didn't want you to worry either. And, Coin ordered me not to tell anyone."

"Why would she do that? What's so special about Gale?"

"Remember when we were thinking about why the Capitol would Hijack Gale? How they might have done it to kill me to get to you?" I nodded. "Well, Coin doesn't want the news of his recovering getting back to the Capitol."

"Wait, so he's getting better then?" I asked. Before Peeta could respond, however, I realized the importance of the other thing he'd said. "Hang on a sec. What do you mean Coin doesn't want it reaching the Capitol? Does she think there is a spy?"

"We don't know how much the Capitol knows, but as they haven't been able to pinpoint most of our raids and such, Coin does not think there is a spy – at least not one in an important position. She is, however, sure that people are somehow communication with the districts; whether it be soldiers gossiping to people in the districts or family members sending messages – via the rebel system of course – but some of the more trivial stuff is getting out. Coin doesn't think the Capitol could use it, but the less people that know the better."

"But why couldn't she tell me? Person to person, no messages or anything. I was going to find out anyway, right?"

"Not if it didn't work," said Peeta. "As I said, I didn't want to get your hopes up. But it doesn't seem to have worked how I hoped it would, anyway. Gale still isn't himself. I can't say I ever knew him very well, but I know he wasn't like this. The only thing that has changed is that he has better control over his rages. But we hadn't tested it with you there with me! He wasn't ready!"

I sighed as I saw the fury in his eyes, knowing that, even if he did lie to me, he meant well. Peeta always means well.

"Well, he did seem to be okay…" I said.

"Yes, but we didn't know! Anything could happen! And we haven't tested him with a weapon either."

"I guess we'll have to wait and see."

"Yeah," sighed Peeta. "I guess that's all we can do."

~~0~~

The next day, we got to the training centre to find Boggs in a heated argument with Coin. The moment they saw us, they immediately went quiet, before telling us to leave the room. We waited outside the door for about half an hour – by which time the others had arrived.

"What do you think they were arguing about?" asked Finnick after we tol him what we'd seen.

"No idea," I said, "But it must have been bad – Boggs doesn't usually argue with Coin, does he?"

"He did yesterday," said Peeta, thinking, "when Gale came."

We all automatically looked over to where Gale was leaning against the wall, staring at the ceiling.

"Not much though."

"No Katniss, I think he's right. That is the only time we've seen him show any sign of not agreeing with her."

Before I could answer, the door finally opened.

"Sorry about that," said Boggs, looking thoroughly worn out, "we aren't going to be in here today. If you'll follow me please."

Boggs lead us back up to the obstacle course, then told us to gather around.

"Now, today you will be doing your exam, as the President has decided we shall leave for our first mission tomorrow." Some muttering sprang up here – Peeta, Finnick, Johanna and I included as we wondered if that was what they were arguing about - but Boggs motioned everyone to be quiet again. "If you fail, you will not go on the mission. If you are a Victor and you fail-" here Boggs looked over to the four of us, "-You will still go, but you will not be able to participate in battle, only to be filmed on the sidelines. So you four, please try to pass."

"Righto, boss," said Finnick with a salute.

"Now, there are four sections to the exam. The first is an obstacle course, the second a written tactics exam, the third weapons proficiency test, and the fourth a simulated battle situation. All tests will be done individually. You will go in Alphabetical order. You will not watch each other's tests. That is all."

I groaned as I realised I would be going first. Brilliant.

The obstacle course was as simple as the first time I'd tried it, and everyone, even Johanna, got through without difficulties. I had kind of hoped Gale wouldn't be able to do it, as he had lost a lot of strength in the Capitol, but the doctors seemed to have been training him in his room as well as getting him used to Peeta. And years of hunting for food don't just desert you.

The written test was a breeze; I barely had to even think. However, when we got to the weapons proficiency test, I was more than a little nervous; what would Gale do? He hadn't with weapons around us yet! But then I remembered what Boggs had said before the obstacle course; you will not watch each other's tests. I grinned. Thank goodness Boggs was on the ball.

For the combat simulation we were sent to a place called the Block; a large room with several doors that would lead us to our test. Boggs told us that inside the room was modelled to be like a Capitol street, and that we would have to get to a rendezvous point in the back. The situation could be anything from a full scale battle to avoiding snipers, and would test our weaknesses.

I was glad I wouldn't have to wait as I walked up to my door; it meant I wouldn't be sitting around getting nervous.

Peeta wished me luck as I went through the door, and I smiled at him, not trusting my voice. When I entered the room it was pitch black, but the moment the door closed behind me I could see.

I took a quick glance around to see several houses lining a street as my arena instincts began to kick in. The moment they did, I realised something was wrong.

I dived to the side as a ball full of paint exploded on the door, right behind the spot I had been in two seconds ago. I smiled as I realised they were using paint balls to determine if we'd been hit.

Quickly rolled behind a wall, then looked up to get a better view of the area. In the ten or so seconds it had taken me to hide behind the wall, a heap of peace keepers had appeared on each roof. I grinned as I realised that they would not be able to see me if I stayed under the parts of the roof that stuck out over the footpaths, and stayed close to the walls. I quickly ran to the nearest building, pressed my back against the wall and began sliding down the street, thinking that this was rather simple.

I was bout half way there and in sight of the rendezvous point when things began to heat up. A group of peacekeepers came down the street, looking like they were dragging something along. I ducked into the house closest to me, and immediately checked it for an escape point – I found a door in the back – before turning back to the front. The Peacekeepers had stopped right outside of my house, and were scanning the area, and one of them had started to speak.

"Come out!" he yelled, and, had it been a less serious situation, I might have rolled my eyes. Honestly, as if I was going to come out! I started edging back to wards my door. "We know you're here somewhere! Come out now and we'll free you little boyfriend!" I frowned, and moved back to the window. What did they mean?

I glanced out quickly so that they wouldn't see me, but had to look again to confirm what I'd seen.

The Peacekeepers were standing in a circle around a figure on the ground, one of them pointing his gun at him.

The person was Peeta.

I felt the urge to go out there, no matter the consequences on my part, to set him free. But my survival instinct were warring with my urge to protect Peeta, telling me to leave him, run away and never go back. In all of my confusion, I forgot that this was a test, and that he couldn't get hurt; to me, this was real. Peeta was to get captured, and possibly get taken to be tortured like Gale was. Suddenly a resolve formed in my mind. I couldn't let Peeta experience what had happened to Gale.

Just as I was about to step out of the house, Boggs' voice sounded through my communicator.

"Katniss, get out of there. Leave Peeta and get out of there!"

What? Leave Peeta? No way. I did that in our first Games, and he was nearly killed by a pack of giant wolves.

I went to step out again when I spotted Bryce, lurking in a doorway like I was; only he didn't have a peacekeeper looking at him. He could save Peeta.

I groaned. Brilliant. Our only chance of survival rested in Bryce Johnson. There was no way I wanted him to risk our chances.

"Katniss, leave."

One of the peacekeepers spotted movement, and shot at the house two left of the house opposite mine. When I saw the red paint splatter on the wall, I remembered where I was, and what Boggs had said.

This was a simulation. A simulation designed to test our weaknesses. And I knew what, from a military point of view, my biggest weakness was. From when I ran for that back pack in my first Games to when I chased after Rory in district Eight, there is one main thing that stands out.

I cannot follow orders.

I immediately turn around and run for the door in the back of the room before sliding along a back street and coming out into a square. I can once again see my destination, but there is a problem. It is across the other side of the square, and there are peacekeepers in the middle.

I quickly jumped into another house as I realized that from their position, the peacekeepers would be able to see every inch of the square. I couldn't go through or around it. I groaned, then quickly ducked into another room as the door opened. Luckily, it wasn't a peacekeeper. It was Peeta, Bryce and Finnick, who seemed to have been the person the peacekeepers had fired at earlier.

I smiled and announced my presence before walking over to them – and good thing too, as Bryce looked pretty jumpy.

"So," said Finnick, "How are we going to get out of this mess?"

"No idea," muttered Bryce.

"Well, lets watch this guy," said Peeta, gesturing to the window.

As we watched, one of the other soldiers in our group jumped out of a small alley and started firing at the peacekeepers. He brought a couple down, but didn't make it to the rendezvous before he received a blob of paint on his chest, causing his gun to shut down and his communicator to tell him he'd failed. The Peacekeepers immediately moved towards that alley to check for more people.

"Quick!" I said. "Lets go now!"

"Don't you think we should talk about it? Think it over a little more?" Asked Peeta.

"No, we'll miss our chance! Lets go!" I exclaimed. He nodded along with Finnick, and the three of us moved towards the door. Bryce, however, stayed put.

"I'm staying," he said.

"Leave him," said Boggs through the communicator. The three of us turned without a second thought and sprinted across the square. We were about half way across when one of the peacekeepers noticed us, but we made it to the point, and a man congratulated us.

"Nice job," he said. "Just wait here now, and Boggs will be down in a sec."

Bryce was the next to arrive with one of the other soldiers in our team that I didn't know, but I thought his name was Mitchell. Apparently, Boggs had told Bryce to stay behind to help Mitchell, who had a 'wound' in his leg and couldn't walk. The next were Gale and Johanna – Johanna looking rather frustrated, and Gale with barely controlled rage on his face. When they arrived, he immediately sat in a corner facing the wall.

I figured they had been forced to work as a team to get out of there.

When everyone was back, Boggs came out of the control room and congratulated us. All of us except that one guy had passed. I sighed in annoyance. Was it too much to ask for Bryce and Gale to have failed as well?

No, Katniss, don't think like that. It's mean.

Our testing had taken up the whole day, so Boggs let us go, telling us to be in Command the next morning at six.

It's a tribute to how hard we had been working the past couple of weeks that we found the thought of getting to report in at six exciting. That was a whole extra half an hour sleep!

Just like the day before, Gale left as soon as we had been dismissed. I sighed. He might be getting better, but he still wasn't the Gale I used to know.

~~0~~

"As I am sure your Commander told you yesterday, you will be beginning your first mission this evening," said Coin. We all looked up with excitement, and Finnick even seemed to stop mid-yawn. We were all very excited to be getting back into some real action rather than just training. "You will be going to the outskirts of the Capitol to film some propos."

I sighed. Of course we would be just filming propos, even if we were going to the Capitol.

Plutarch moved forward, a large mechanical device resting in his hands.

"This is a map of the Capitol," he said. We all stared at him in confusion until he hit a button and a hologram erupted from the device. It was, as he had said, a map of the capitol. As we watched, he twiddled a knob and zoomed in on a street until small lights were visible. "Each of these lights," he explained, "represents a device called a pod. Pods are traps that can be triggered in different ways, and each with a different – yet very deadly – result. Your job is to destroy the pods marked with a green light in this area. They are the least dangerous pods. You will be filmed while you do this. When your mission is complete, you will return to District Thirteen for further instructions. Understand?"

We all nodded somewhat grudgingly. Shooting Pods sounded interesting, but if we were only shooting the least dangerous ones… well… Something made me think that we weren't exactly doing such an important job.

The rest of the day flew by quickly in a blur of preparations and last minute training – which Gale was not present for – and before I knew it, we were in the hovercraft and heading for the Capitol.

The area we were headed for had been evacuated as rebel raids had proved a danger to the residents. We landed quite a way off and had to walk in to where the streets were, but Boggs decided that we would do that tomorrow. Instead, we set up a camp in a cave in the nearby mountain.

I groaned when I heard this plan. For the entire hovercraft ride and the short walk I had managed to avoid Gale. However, in the cave, that would be very hard.

In an attempt to make us all feel safer with Gale around, Boggs asked his second in command, a woman called Jackson, to set up a round the clock two man guard on him. When we had laid out our sleeping bags, Peeta and I went over to Jackson to find out when we were on duty.

"I didn't put you two on the roster," said Jackson. "I don't think that, should it come to it, either of you would be able to shoot him."

This comment, just one to many, pushed me over the edge. I spoke up so that my voice rang out through the cave, and let out the emotions I had pent up over the last couple of weeks since Gale returned.

"It wouldn't be shooting Gale. He's not Gale, just like how those wolves in our Games weren't Glimmer and Rue. He's the same. He's just one of the Capitol's evil creations. It would be like shooting a mutt."

"Katniss…" Peeta laid a hand on my shoulder.

"Well, that sort of comment isn't helping your case either," said Jackson.

"Put them on the rotation," said Boggs from behind me. "Separately, mind."

Jackson frowned, but nodded.

"Katniss, your on at midnight 'till four, with me. Peeta; eight 'till midnight, with Bryce." Peeta groaned next to me and I felt a stab of sympathy for him. Of all the people on the mission, he got Bryce.

While we were eating that night, the soldiers that didn't know me so well were shooting nervous glances at me, and refused to meet my eye. I frowned, sure that not so long ago, Gale was the one that everyone had been afraid of.

The moment I had finished, I walked out of the cave, sat down on a rock and looked out over the Capitol. It was just as beautiful as I remembered it being the first time I saw it – maybe more so, as it was lit up in the darkness – yet it seemed more sinister. Maybe it was because I had a better knowledge of what went on inside.

"Are you alright?"

I glanced over to see Peeta looking down at me worriedly. I nodded once then looked back to the city.

"No, you're not," he sighed. I continued to ignore him. "You know, they think you were trying to provoke him or something."

"What?"

"They kept looking at you because after what you said earlier, they're afraid you might do something to set Gale off."

"What I said was true though," I said, trying to defend myself. "He's not Gale, he's a mutt."

"Yes, you're right, he isn't Gale," said Peeta, and I felt a smile appear on my face. However, it disappeared at his next words. "But, he could be."

"What does that even mean? It doesn't make any sense."

"He isn't your Gale at the moment, Katniss, and I don't think he ever will be. But he's getting better – the fact that he was in the same room as me and I'm here talking to you is testimony to that – but he can't if you are continuously putting him down and telling him that he's no better than a mutt!"

"But he is a mutt!" I exclaimed. "He's something the Capitol created! Isn't that the definition of a mutt?"

"Is Johanna a mutt?" asked Peeta. I stared at him.

"What?"

"Is Johanna a mutt?"

"No, of course not."

"Is she the same person that we met before the Quell?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

I thought back to how Johanna was during the Quell; outspoken, confident and difficult. Now, she was just a shell of her former self; still fairly outspoken, but not nearly as confident, and no longer as stubborn.

I sighed.

"No."

"Then why don't you think she's a mutt? The Capitol changed her, just as they changed Gale. Not as drastically, but there's still a change? So why isn't she a mutt?"

Before I could respond, Peeta continued.

"Am I a mutt, Katniss? The Capitol has changed me. I am most definitely not the same boy that was reaped a year and a half ago. And what about you? You've changed. Or Prim? Prim wasn't that little, innocent twelve year old when she died. She had changed. Was Prim a mutt?"

"No!" I was close to yelling now.

"So what about Gale?" asked Peeta.

"Fine," I muttered. "He's not a mutt. But he has been changed."

"And you can change him back. Think, what would he have done? If you were the one who had been hijacked, what would have happened?"

"You would have helped me," I whispered. "He would have let you do it." Peeta shook his head.

"If I wasn't there. If Gale was in your position right now, and you in his, what would he have done?"

I sighed. Gale would have tried to get me back. I know he would have.

I groaned as I thought about Prim, and how she would have reacted to the way I've been behaving. She would have been appalled. I know that Prim would have done everything in her power to help Gale. She would have been so disappointed in me…

I felt my breath catch in my throat and put my head in my hands. Peeta sat down next to me and wrapped his arm around me.

"There now,"he said, his tone much softer than it had been before. "I didn't mean to make you upset, I just-"

"No Peeta, thank you," I said. "That was just what I needed. I'll try and be better from now on."

"Good." He said. "It'll make you feel better."

"I hope so." I took my head out of my hands and leaned on his shoulder, looking back out at the Capitol. We sat there for a while until we heard that annoying voice behind us.

"Oh, look at the two little love-birds."

"What do you want, Bryce," groaned Peeta, pulling me closer against him.

"It's time for our shift," he droned. "Boggs has been getting worried. Thought you'd been captured or something. Don't know why he cares, to be honest. Oh, and big day tomorrow and all that, wouldn't want our ickle Mockingjay and her nest mate t be tired in the morning."

"Shut up," I moaned.

"Now, now, little birdie, that's impolite."

Peeta sighed and stood up, pulling me with him.

"Alright, alright, we're coming."

"Good. We don't want to keep Mr. Hawthorne waiting now do we?" he sent a pointed look at me. With much effort, I ignored his jab and walked past him into the cave.

"There you are!" called Boggs. "Don't go out again without permission, understand?"

"Yes," I muttered.

Peeta followed Bryce to the back of the room where Gale had already fallen asleep. I looked down at my sleeping bag and sighed. I wasn't going to be able to sleep by myself. Picking it up, I went over and surprised Peeta by curling up next to where he was sitting, pressing my back against his leg. He didn't say anything though, just smiled and, ignoring Bryce's jabs, started playing with my hair.

I was surprised when I felt my own smile on my face as I remembered another time, quite a while ago, when I fell asleep in a cave, with Peeta at my side, and danger at my door.

All we were missing was the storm.

Alright, I don't think that's a cliffhanger... I didn't mean to do one last time, it was an accident, I swear. And don't worry about Gale's lack of anger or whatever, it'll come back in the next chapter. Promise.