A/N: Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games. So, the third chapter is up! This one is slighly longer in length. R & R please! Enjoy!
Chapter 3: Madge & Gale
As I open the door to go hunting, the mayor of District 12's daughter, also known as my friend from school, Madge Undersee, bumps into me. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Katniss," she apologizes, "I just stopped by to give you something."
"It's okay, Madge," I say, giving her a hug. "Why are you up so early?"
"Oh, you know, the nerves, I could hardly sleep! I had to get out of the house and walk around, so I thought I'd stop by now to wish you luck," she says with a sad, forced smile.
"Don't worry, Madge. My name's in the bowl more than yours; too many times to count. The odds are not in my favour this year," I explain.
"I'm sorry, Katniss. I brought you this," Madge says, slipping something cold in my hand. "It's a Mockingjay pin. I thought of you."
"Thank you, Madge. It's beautiful!" I tell her honestly.
"You're welcome. Well, Katniss, I must go back home; my parents will get worried if they wake up and I'm not there," she adds in.
"Goodbye, then. I'll see you later," I say to Madge as we part ways.
Before she leaves, I tell her, "And don't worry, the odds will be in your favour."
After I grab my bow and arrows from my secret hiding place that only Gale and I will ever know about, I get to hunting. After about an hour or so, my game bag is full with five rabbits and three squirrels. I make my way to me and Gale's meeting place, expecting it to be vacant, but surprised to see Gale himself sitting on a rock, staring off into the distance.
"Gale!" I exclaim in surprise. "What are you doing here?" Gale and I go hunting every day, but never this early. I guess he's here to calm himself, like I am.
"Same reason why you're here, Catnip," he replies, answering my question and using my nick name. "Couldn't sleep; too stressed."
"I caught some stuff," I say cheerfully, as if today were any other day.
"So did I," Gale says, holding up his loot. "The woods were quiet today. It's like they know the Capitol's evil is coming for two of us."
For the longest time, Gale and I just sit there, staring at the infinite trees and greenery that we know we'll never be able to explore if Panem never changes. We're both wondering what life would be like outside of District 12, or even outside of the rules of District 12 and all of Panem. This is how our friendship works: we know each other so well that we know what the other person is thinking. We can just sit together, not muttering a single word, but feel like we had a long conversation full of laughter and tears. I'm so very lucky to have Gale as my best friend and hunting partner. Without him, my mother, Prim and I would've probably died long ago of starvation.
Gale suddenly stands up and announces his departure. "We better get going, Katniss. The Reaping is going to start soon, and you and I both know how much the Capitol would hate it if we didn't show up," he says dramatically, holding up his hands. I can't help but laugh at our common hatred on the Capitol. That's just the thing about Gale; he can make me laugh, even under the most serious of circumstances.