Chapter Fifteen

I get home, only to find Katniss still going through seizures and hallucinations. Why does this go on so long? It must've been twelve hours that this was happening! And it doesn't look like it's subsiding at all. A crazy thought pierces my mind. What if it just goes on like this forever? I don't want to think about that. I think Katniss would rather be dead than go through this forever. If she dies, I want it to be quick. Quick and painless. What the hell am I doing? I'm wishing for Katniss's death? No, Katniss can't die and she won't. She's going to make it home and everything will be better. But I know I'm lying to myself. Everything isn't going to be better even if Katniss comes home. If she comes home, the Capitol will still be cruel and people will still die. If Katniss comes home, she might be so changed, she won't even want to talk to me. I shudder when I think about the countless victors who've come home crazy. I don't want Katniss to become like that.

It's time for the Hunger Games to end today, and Katniss is still in her hallucinating stage. I hope with all that I can hope that Katniss is just blacked out, that's she's not seeing horrible things this whole time. But I know it's futile. The Hunger Games are meant to be torture.

I go to bed, counting the living tributes on my fingers. There's Katniss, what's left of the Career pack, Peeta, Rue, Thresh…and a few others who I can't name. My heart quickens. Rue, Thresh and a few other tributes, like the girl from District 5 I think, haven't been stung. So that means that life continues on for those lucky tributes, while Katniss and the Careers lie on the ground, helpless and completely vulnerable. What easy prey they are! Even little Rue could just come up to them and kill them, barely lifting a finger! It's a miracle they're still alive…if they're still alive.

The night drags on and I'm haunted by the thought of Katniss under that tree…seeing who knows what replay in her mind like a horror film. My tired eyes force their way closed and I'm engrossed in a world of darkness.

I'm running through a forest. Running. Perspiration lines my brow but I don't take the time to wipe it off. I need to get there. I need to get there.

Then I see her. Katniss. A warmth floods my body, making me run faster. She stands in a clearing, some fifteen yards away.

"Katniss!" I cry. "Katniss!"

I stumble forward, falling to the ground. "Katniss!" I get back up and continue surging forward.

But she doesn't see me. She's totally oblivious to my presence. Why doesn't she see me?

"Katniss!"

Then a dark, shadowy figure emerges from the trees with a bow.

"Katniss!" my happy, uniting cry turns into one of warning and anguish.

But Katniss pays no heed to my scream, she just continues to stand there, naïve as can be.

The dark figure lifts its bow, poised to shoot.

"No! No!"

He lets go, and a deadly arrow shoots through the air and pierces Katniss in the back.

"KATNISS!" I cry, finally reaching her body, just a moment too late.

Katniss rolls over in my arms, completely and utterly lifeless. Dead.

"NO! NO!" I cry, letting her limp body fall to the ground. This can't be happening. This can't happen!

Then I notice the dark figure, sprinting towards me. Before the light comes, I catch a glimpse of his face. Peeta Mellark.

"Gale! Gale!"

My eyes snap open and I'm staring up into the concerned face of my mother. It all comes back to me. The forest isn't real. Katniss isn't dead. I'm lying in bed, covered in sweat, my heart beating rapidly.

"Are you okay?" my mother asks.

"Yeah…I'm fine." I say, sitting up.

I haven't had serious nightmares since right after my father died. I have a horrible intuition that this one won't be the last one.

"You were screaming and moaning in your sleep." my mother says. She looks worried. I hate it when she's worried.

I feel myself turn red from embarrassment.

"Oh…" I say, trailing off. "That's strange."

I look over at Rory and Vick who are also both sitting up in their bed.

"I woke the whole house up, didn't I?" I say.

Posy's crying from the next room confirms my assumption.

"Are you going to be okay?" my mother asks me, shooting a nervous glance to the door.

"Yeah, I got over nightmares when I was three." I say with a grin. "I think I can handle this."

"Okay then." my mother says, getting up to leave the room.

I stay awake the remainder of the night, unbothered by the rest of my family, or nightmares.

Then I think of something I haven't thought of before. Why was it Peeta Mellark's face I saw? What do I have against him? Well, he said he loved Katniss, so that might be something. But he saved her life, why would he kill her in my dream? I shake it off, dreams never used to mean anything. They're just random things I think about when I'm sleeping. I shouldn't fret over this.

It's only a few hours until morning, and when the soft light enters my room, it's my cue to go to the television. This is routine for me.

I turn on the television, and to my dismay, Katniss and the Careers are still in their seemingly perpetual state of hallucinating. They're all alive, though, but I know they won't be for long. Someone is bound to kill them. Then a disturbing thought crosses my mind. They need food and water. A person can only go three days without water, and is that small amount of time shortened in the state that they're in? It's already almost been a whole day. Also, the Capitol people will be getting bored with this, the Gamemakers may have to do something about it.

It's time for me to head to school, and nobody has woken up from the hallucination. Nobody does for the rest of the day. I go to school and at lunchtime, everything is just how it was when I left it basically.

I don't have to go to detention today, so I get more hunting time. I get a good haul. Four rabbits, two small turkeys and some plums and herbs. But when I return to my house, Katniss is still in her state. Why won't this stop? I've never been around someone with the effects of the tracker jacker stings, and I'm glad of it. It's horrible. I even scare myself by starting to beg for it to be over. Part of me just wants Katniss to die. Then it will be over and I won't have to worry. I won't have to see her twitching and writhing on the ground for hours on end, stuck in some sort of horrible nightmare. The majority of me is stubborn and level headed. Katniss can't die. I won't let her. No matter what it takes she is going to make it back home. I hate these arguments between myself, being torn between the easy way out and what I really want. But it's hard to know what I really want anymore. I've seen plenty of people with family members and friends in the arena, fazed by their loved one's department. Some people just try to brush it all off and act tough, some people try to forget about it, some people cry their eyes out every minute, and some people just loose hope and beg for death to come quickly. I don't want to be any of those people, but then really, what can I be? I know what I can be. I can be the person who knows Katniss is going to win, the person who is breaking the law out hunting in the woods to feed her family until she does. That's who I'm going to be.

The day goes by quickly and I find myself lying in bed, staring once more at my ceiling. I don't know how much more I can take of this. Everybody has a breaking point and through these years I've just been bent as far as I can go. It's the Capitol's doing. They can never be forgiven and they have to go.

Somewhere in my train of raging thoughts, I slip away, too tired to hate much longer.

I wake up, it's Saturday and I know I can go hunting today and get a good haul. With that, I lift myself out of bed and once again, wait for the recap to start. I have to wait a few minutes, but the recap comes on and I hold my breath. The television quickly shows all of the tributes and my heart drops. Katniss is still going through convulsions. It's been almost two days! She's going to need water soon!

But I don't say anything. I just turn the television off and pack a lunch for myself. My stomach growls and I realize how little I've been eating recently. Even if I don't want to eat, my body is begging for more food. I'm an eighteen year old male, I need to eat sometime. I quickly grab a chuck of bread and cheese and decide to eat on my way to the woods. My mother knows I'll be gone.

I make it to the woods, promising myself to get a good haul today. I don't want any of my siblings to go to bed hungry, or Prim or Mrs. Everdeen.

I check my snares and find five rabbits, a turkey, and a beaver. I designed a wire contraption to place in lakes and ponds so beavers and muskrats can get caught in them, too. I have to give myself credit for that one, it has gotten us a lot of extra money.

Then, I pick berries and herbs. This is my least favorite part of hunting. It's slow, tedious work. Find a plant. Observe the plant. Check in the book if the plant is safe to eat. Pick the plant. But I can't complain. It feeds my family and that's all I need.

I wonder if the people in the Capitol have ever hunted. Probably not. They just probably raise all of their animals in farms, crowded together, bred to be slaughtered. Or they order meat from other districts. The Capitol people wouldn't do work. They just simply couldn't bear the thought of it. If the Capitol people ever hunted, it would probably be for fun, considering how much they like to kill. Hunting for fun. That's sick. I can only imagine a person standing there with a gun, shooting away at animals and leaving their dead bodies to lie purposeless and wasted while children are starving here.

Finally, it's been a few hours and I head down to the Hob.

"Heard anything about Katniss?" I ask Greasy Sae as I head up to trade with her. I don't know why I've asked her this, since I don't like to talk about Katniss to anyone. I guess I'm just so desperate for it all to be over, I just need to know anything if I can.

"Not since this morning." Greasy Sae says with a pained smile.

I nod grimly and place my trades on her counter. When I'm done at the Hob, I head home. I really wish I was in the arena right now, not Katniss. I still can't believe it. Katniss can't be in that arena! But she is and nothing that I try to make myself believe will change it.

"Gale! Gale!" my mother cries as I walk into the house.

My heartbeat quickens. What is it? Is Katniss dead? I hurry to the television where Katniss is sitting up, looking around her slowly.

"It's over?!" I ask and yelp at the same time.

"I think so, the seizures were subsiding the past few minutes and she slowly sat up." my mother tells me.

Katniss stretches and grabs her water bottle. I still can't believe it. Two days of those dreadful hallucinations and it's over. She's alive! She's alive! My whole body is screaming with joy, but I just smile and sit down.

"I was so scared someone would kill her in that stage." my mother says.

So was I, but I'm not going to voice my fear. I just sit and watch as Katniss sips her precious water and eats some wild honeysuckle. Good. She has to have come to her senses. She still has all of her supplies and the bow. The bow. The bow is the key to Katniss winning. She needs every single arrow she has.

The camera cuts to the Careers at the lake. Cato and the girl from District 2 are slowly waking. Something drops inside of me because I'd hoped that they'd died.

"Clove…." Cato says wearily. "Clove…"

The girl from District 2 lifts her head and smiles.

"How long have we been out?" she asks.

"I don't know." Cato says. "It must've been at least a day…maybe longer…"

Clove must be the name of the girl from District 2.

"Is Marvel awake?" Cato asks.

They both glance at the boy from District 1, who's convulsions seem to be wearing down.

"No, but he better be soon." Clove says. I get the nasty feeling that they might kill him if he doesn't wake up.

With that, the Careers head over to their monstrous supply of food and begin to eat.

"Cato? Clove?" the boy from District 1 says, finally awake. "Were you…hallucinating, too?"

They both nod as the boy heads over to join them.

There's a rustle in the nearby bushes and the Careers jump to their feet.

"What's that?" Clove asks.

"I don't know, get weapons." Cato says.

The three Careers arm themselves and head out to the bushes, poised to kill.

"There he is!" the boy from District 1, Marvel, shouts. He's pointing at a skinny figure, cowering in the bushes who I think is the boy from District 3.

"Wait!" the District 3 boy cries.

The Careers don't lunge at him, but their weapons are ready.

"Why?" Cato mocks. "Why shouldn't I just kill you now?"

"Because I can protect your food." the boy says. "Some of the tributes have been eating off it when you were all…out."

Cato's face turns red. "How can you help us?" His voice turns from mocking to demanding.

"It's easy." the boy says. "I've devised a simple, simple but deadly, mine system we can place around your stock. Then only if you know the correct pathway can you access the possessions. Any outsider who tries to steal from you will be blown to bits."

"Oh, really?" Marvel asks, relaxing his muscles slightly.

"What do you want for this?" Cato barks, not relaxing one bit.

"Protection and use of your supplies." the boy from District 3 says confidently.

"Show us how it works and we'll let you in." Clove says.

With that, the boy from District 3 gets up out of the bushes and heads over to the pile of supplies, the Careers following cautiously behind.

District 3 is technology. Everyone there is exceptionally smart. Many District 3 tributes have come up with inventions and smart ways to kill their enemies, that's why you should never rule them out. But then again, District 3 is usually all brain, and no brawn.

The camera cuts to Katniss, who is hunting in the woods with her bow. With her bow, she'll be able to get a lot of food. A rabbit and some sort of bird are already dangling off her back. That comforts me. Katniss is skinny enough already, and in these past days of the Hunger Games, she seems to be getting even thinner. She hasn't eaten a thing in two days.

A twig snaps and Katniss wheels around, bow ready. She stands there for a second, ready to kill, but then her arms drop to her sides and she smiles. What can she see?

"You know, they're not the only ones who can form alliances." Katniss says.

For a moment, I'm confused, but then the camera cuts to Rue, who is hiding behind a nearby tree.

"You want me for an ally?" the little girl asks, peering from behind her hideout.

"Why not? You saved me with those tracker jackers. You're smart enough to still be alive. And I can't seem to shake you anyway." Katniss says. "You hungry? Come on then, I've had two kills today."

Rue hesitantly steps out, revealing herself. "I can fix your stings." she says.

"Can you?" Katniss asks. "How?"

Rue digs in her bag and takes out some leaves.

"Where'd you find those?" Katniss asks.

"Just around. We all carry them when we work in the orchards. They left a lot of nests there, there are a lot here, too." Rue says.

"That's right. You're District Eleven. Agriculture." Katniss says.

I watch as Katniss and Rue make conversation, talking about how Rue must be good at swinging from tree to tree because she worked in orchards. Then, Rue chews up the leaves and places the green mush on Katniss's stings. Katniss looks immensely relieved almost the instant the remedy touches her wasp stings. Then, Katniss gives some of her burn cream to Rue to treat burns on her arm. They then eat a meal consisting of a bird called a groosling, and some herbs and berries that Rue has picks. Then, the camera cuts away to other tributes.

I don't know how I feel about Katniss teaming up with Rue. Rue seems smart enough, and she will certainly be a help to Katniss, so that's a bonus. My main concern is what lengths Katniss will go to protect Rue. Rue is so small, she reminds me of Prim so much, and Katniss loves Prim above anything else. She might get caught up in the fact that Rue is like Prim, and she might sacrifice herself for her. I don't want Katniss to do that, I really don't. But a sick feeling in my stomach tells me it's a highly possible outcome.

"What happened to Peeta?" I ask suddenly. For some reason, I want him gone. The thought of him existing with Katniss just doesn't seem right. I don't want her to have to kill him, and I don't want to have to watch him almost win, and die at the end. The less time I have to feel guilty about him, the better.

"He woke up, too." my mother says. "He got something to eat and drink and headed off somewhere. His leg doesn't look so good."

Then I remember Cato slashing open Peeta's leg and I wince. He must've had time to wrap up that leg sometime, or he would have bled out during the hallucinations.

I catch one more glimpse of Katniss and Rue, who are nestled in Katniss's sleeping bag, and then the anthem plays. No deaths today.

I'd like to think the worst is over. But I know it isn't.