March 31st, 2013
A/N: Not going to lie, I am super stoked that they kept the whipping in the Catching Fire movie. Not stoked that Gale has to endure that, but kinda excited to see the small moment of Galeniss that I so enjoyed in the books. I had originally not planned for this series of vignettes to venture much further than the first novel. But Prim's point of view seemed much more effective here. As always, please read and review!
Katniss' eye is swelling. There's blood running down the side of her face, the skin beneath already discolored an ugly blue. But that's not what scares me.
She's screaming. And crying. Beyond the point of hysterical.
It's very unlike Katniss to not be in control of herself. I've forgotten how much I rely on her to keep from coming unglued myself that it is shocking to see her in a full blown meltdown. I feel like crying too.
Instead, I continue to hand Mother the gauze strips dunked in snow coat. She lays them carefully across the angry criss-cross hash of Gale's back, her hands poised and steady despite the emotional turmoil around her. It's almost as if she barely hears Katniss' agony. It's almost as if she's back to hiding within her shell.
"That won't be enough, I know how it feels!" Katniss shrieks.
She takes a dangerous step closer to Mother, but Haymitch and Peeta are instantly there. She struggles against their hold and continues to yell, her voice cracked and straining to the point of breaking.
"That will barely knock out a headache!"
"We'll combine it with the sleep syrup, Katniss, and he'll manage it," Mother says. It's the first time she's addressed my sister other than a brief comment to pack her own lash with snow. The tone she's adopted is one meant to take control back from a person who's lost all rhyme and reason when a loved one's life is on the line. It's meant to end the argument.
But to Katniss, the acknowledgement only seems to escalate her emotions.
"Just give him the medicine! Give it to him! Who are you, anyway, to decide how much pain he can stand!"
As if he agrees, Gale groans and starts to shift. The snow coat has not set, and I immediately jump up to brace his shoulders. My weight is not enough, though I lean hard to try to keep him down. The struggle makes his cuts reopen, some staining the gauze with red, and the sound Gale makes against the agony is strong enough to make tears spring to my eyes.
He reaches towards Katniss' voice, and I almost can't watch as Haymitch and Peeta haul my sister away, screaming words she'd never say in my presence if she were rational. The obscenities linger in the hallways and fill the kitchen with their cutting tension.
Mother sighs heavily, dipping another gauze strip
"Be still, Gale," she says with the same calm. "Moving makes it worse."
Somehow through the chaos and pain, he hears her and relaxes. I slowly ease off my weight, looking down for some sign he'll attempt to move again. A few tears fall into his hair. I hadn't even realized I was crying too.
"Everything will be okay," my mom says. At first I don't realize she's speaking to me. I watch numbly as she applies the last strip to her patient. "Your sister's just upset and scared. I'll go talk to her in a minute."
"I know," I say, hating that I sniffle.
My mother smiles softly, her eyes meeting mine and I can see that she believes that I do understand. It's not the first time I've seen that emotional instability. People say and do all sorts of things when someone they love is in danger.
It's just the first time it's been my sister.
Katniss has been much calmer since Madge brought the morphling for Gale. I think it's because Gale's been calmer too. But then again, it's hard for me to tell if she was upset because he was in pain, or if he was in pain because she was upset. Probably both, I think.
Since she's been allowed back in the kitchen, Katniss has not once left Gale's side. As I ladle some steaming stew into a bowl, I glance over to them. She sits quietly at his head, hunched closely, almost protectively, her fingers carefully smoothing his hair. When Gale heaves a sigh, Katniss does too, and I wonder if anyone else notices how often they mirror each other.
"Thank you, Prim," she says, her voice grainy and stretched with fatigue. She doesn't move to eat it though.
"Please try, Katniss," I say. I almost don't, but then I add, "Gale would want you to."
In his drug-induced state, Gale mumbles something incoherent as if to back me up. She glances from him to me, her eyes wide. I hold out a spoon to her.
"See?"
Katniss nods, the corners of her mouth trying not to twist into a smile.
"Okay," she relents, and dutifully swallows a spoonful of stew.
The night seems to pass slowly. I guess that's to be expected when everyone stands around watching everyone else stand around. Every time Gale moans or flinches, Katniss gets this panicked look on her face that holds until Gale quiets. Then it's like everyone in the room breathes a sigh of relief.
When it gets close to midnight, Hazelle excuses herself to leave. She thanks Mother for her help before stepping over to the table to see her son. Katniss scoots back to give her some room, and in doing so, meets Hazelle's eyes. The two exchange a pointed look and I can almost hear their silent conversation.
I'll watch over him. I won't leave his side.
I would never have doubted you.
Then she's gone.
Peeta and Haymitch follow soon after. Before he goes, Peeta gives Katniss one last sad glance that she doesn't see. But I do, and my heart twists for Peeta too. Everyone is a little worse for the wear today it seems.
When it's just the three of us, Mother stands surveying the scene. For a minute, I think she's trying to determine the best way to send Katniss to bed. Instead, she walks over, checks Gale's pulse and temperature, and turns to leave when satisfied he's stable.
"Come, Prim," she says. "Katniss will take the first shift."
I nod and say my good-nights, following in Mother's stead and dimming the kitchen lights on the way out. The dark still of the house makes all the tension dissolve from my shoulders and I can't wait to fall into bed. The evening has been thoroughly exhausting, and living each up and down emotion with my sister has left me wanting nothing more than to find oblivion.
I'm halfway up the stairs when I realize I didn't hug Katniss. It's one small comfort that I can offer her hurting heart, so I turn back, hoping that maybe it'll help comfort mine too. I round the hallway corner and immediately stop dead in my tracks.
Katniss has shifted her chair around so that her back is now mostly to me, but she doesn't turn to face me. Instead, her shoulders quiver in silent torment as she gently presses her fingers to Gale's face. Then, she leans close, and though I can hear her whisper, I can't make out the words. For a fleeting moment, I think some part of me knows to turn away, but I don't, watching my sister kiss him once.
It's like a fairy tales she used to tell me, except backwards and real.
The princess kissing her sleeping prince to break some evil spell.
Gale's eyes flutter open and he smiles despite his pain. Whatever he says makes Katniss smile back and for a second, the two of them seem so content just being so close.
Feeling like an intruder, I turn away, realizing my sister has found comfort elsewhere tonight. As I sneak back up the stairs, I feel suddenly light on my feet and dart quickly into the bathroom to wash my face. When I look up at my dripping reflection, my only smile seems to reflect the one that is in my heart.
~Fin