CHAPTER 14: A Very Big Day

Madge clutched her cup of coffee tightly, and blew softly at the vapors of heat escaping the surface of the dark, bitter liquid. She tried to pay attention to what Johanna and Annie had come to say, as the four adults sat around their square kitchen table; but she found herself distracted by Finn and Maysilee, as they scribbled with bright colored crayons on the papers Madge had lain out for them when it became clear that this reunion would not be a short one. Maysilee would be four in a matter of months and little Finn was just three. They were the same age, technically.

She recognized his features, though she had never seen his father, the famous Finnick Odair in person - she could see the resemblance. His golden hair and sea green eyes were just like his father's. Even the way he smiled when he showed Maysilee his picture smacked of his father's cheeky nature. She remembered Finnick most clearly from watching him in the Quarter Quell as he had been on of Katniss's allies. He was also a prominent figure in the Rebel's Propos that had featured Gale that she had watched in the Home after Maysilee was born. Unfortunately, the announcement of his death in the rebellion had not later turned out to be incorrect, as had been the case with Gale.

Her eyes travelled to Annie's face, and she found herself just staring, trying to comprehend the pain that this woman had gone through that was not soothed, that never would be, by Finnick's return. Though the timing was probably inappropriate, her fingers found Gale's hand under the table, and she held fast. He squeezed her hand in kind, and she cast a quick glance at him. His face was hard, intense, taking in every word coming from Johanna's rapidly moving lips. Madge willed herself to pay attention.

"So we've had a team of people studying republics. And the consensus seems to be that we need leadership from each district, chosen by each district." Johanna sat straight in her chair. Katniss and Peeta were the only victors Madge had ever met, and Madge wasn't sure whether it was the fact that she knew Johanna was incredibly, irrevocably dangerous, or that she was here in her dining room, being strangely demanding that made her feel so ill at ease with her presence.

"The thing is, everyone's still in recovery mode... from the rebellion," Johanna's voice was loud and abrasive. "They need a little encouragement, a little help. Someone to tell them what to do and how to do it!"

"This isn't District 13, Johanna." Gale smiled ruefully. "We need to have patience, and not force people into things they're not ready to handle."

"Well," Joanna threw back the remainder of her coffee. "We don't have that luxury. This election is happening, whether people feel 'ready' or not." Her tone was impatient, but Madge found Gale's reaction even more startling. He just laughed at her seeming lack of compassion. Madge dropped his hand and went back to clutching her coffee a little too tightly, no longer drawing comfort from the contact between them.

Annie cleared her throat, seeming to sense that the atmosphere in the room was getting a bit strained. "What we're asking is that you two continue to stay involved. We're just starting out small. Voter education. We want everyone to know how to vote, how to decide who to vote for, and what voting means. We're not talking about campaigning for anyone in particular." She turned her sea-green eyes to meet Madge's. "Like you said, on television, we want everyone to have a part in choosing their children's future."

Annie's warmth put Madge at ease. She studied her again, taking in the paleness of her skin, almost transparent in the bright kitchen light. Her thinness, the lines around her eyes. Yes, Annie had suffered, but if she could be strong, so could Madge. She knew, with Annie's words, that, Victors or not, these women were here to implore them to do the right thing. Just as she was about to voice assent, Annie's eyes, which had patiently held her gaze, flicked behind her with a look of concern.

"Oh, Finn! Honey, no!" Annie chastised her son, rising to her feet and moving to where the children sat. Finn had cast aside the sheets of paper and was showing Maysilee how he could scrawl his "letter" in cerulean crayon on the surface of coffee table. Several messy, blue F's adorned their coffee table. Maysilee was giggling, enjoying watching Finn do what she knew to be against the rules. Madge gave Maysilee a sharp look, which instantly abashed the tiny girl.

Annie had just reached Finn and scooped him up when Johanna barked out a laugh, and slapped Gale's shoulder, hard. "Finn seems to have taken a real shine to your kid!" Gale smiled, stiffly, and, as inconspicuously as he could, rubbed his shoulder gingerly. "Can I tell Plutarch you're in?"

Gale couldn't hide his disgust, "Plutarch? This was Plutarch's idea?"

Annie was returning to the table, struggling to remove the crayon from Finn's chubby fingers. "It was Cressida's. Plutarch is just funding it, and supervising, but Cressida will be the program's director."

This seemed to placate Gale, but Madge felt out of the loop as she packed the crayons back into their box with the help of her daughter. "Who is Cressida?"

"Cressida was the director of the Rebel Propos." Gale explained, admiration thick in his voice. "She was a real fighter. She and her crew filmed the entire storming of the Capitol. She was right there with us, in the thick of things." Then, in a quieter voice, he added, "And she managed to live to tell the tale."

A somber silence swept over the table. Madge was just returning with Maysilee in tow, and she sat, self conscious of even the tiniest squeak from her chair interrupting the complete lack of sound. Annie cupped her hands against her ears tightly, as if trying to block out some terrible noise, but this made no sense, since the room was so quiet, they could practically hear each other's heartbeats.

With uncharacteristic gentleness, Johanna reached over and took Annie's wrists in her hands, and pressed her forehead to Annie's. Very quietly, she whispered something to Annie, which, even in the silence, Madge couldn't quite make out. Annie's eyes opened, tear-filled and distant, but she turned her face to look at Johanna, who gave her a small nod. She released her ears, and brought her hands down to rest on the table, flexing them a few times on the way.

Finn toddled up between the two of them. "Ma?" He babbled, "Mamamajamajamamaja." This seemed to bring all of the life back into Annie's features. Color flushed her cheeks, and she let out the breath that she had been holding. Johanna pulled Finn up onto Annie's lap, and Annie wrapped her arms around her son, smelling his hair and giving his cheek a pinch. He giggled, and Annie's eyes brightened with joy. "Mamamamamama," Finn warbled on.

"That's right kiddo." Johanna nodded to Finn in approval, "You take good care of your mom, huh?" She wrapped an arm around Annie's shoulders, gave her a squeeze, and cleared her throat. "Why don't we change the subject for a bit? I haven't been to District 2 since my Victory Tour, and we'd love to take you guys out to dinner, now that we're here. We can talk more about the voting education tour later."

Madge, eager for some breathing room to think over their proposal agreed, "I could cook for you. You guys don't have to take us out. You're our guests, after all."

Johanna laughed again, that barking, loud, unabashed sound. "Gale here tells me you're not too fond of cooking and not too good at it either, so why don't we take our chances hitting the town?" Annie shot Johanna a look, but then returned her attention to being absorbed with her son. Madge felt blindsided. Shocked. Granted, she wasn't a great cook, and she didn't love it - well, she didn't love cooking dinner certainly. It brought back too many memories of caring for her family in District 12. Lunch was easy enough, soup and grilled cheese sandwiches that type of thing. Gale usually made breakfast, but how did Johanna know about any of that?

Her confusion must have been plain on her face, as well as her displeasure, because Johanna went on. "Oh don't be so indignant. He didn't say you were a bad cook. Besides, you're pretty enough that it doesn't matter," she said with an even more unsettling leer.

"Jo, really," Annie chided gently. "We would love to take you to dinner. You're already letting us stay in your home, let's just go have a night out."

Madge nodded to Annie, but could feel her face flushing hot with embarrassment. Gale had been so quiet all morning; was he worried that Madge would figure out that he and Johanna were keeping in touch? Why should that bother her anyway? She looked at him, but he was staring at Finn, trying not to meet her eye - or perhaps, genuinely absorbed in the boy's resemblance to Finnick, who had been his friend in District 13 after all.

"Let us," Gale stammered, seeming to feel the 3 women's eyes on him, "Madge and I, give us a bit of time to get ready if you would." They were still in their pajamas, unshowered, since they had thought that today would be laid back, and uneventful. "You're welcome to watch TV or to more coffee or anything while you're waiting." he added lamely.

Johanna gave him a meaningful look. "I was thinking Annie and I might check out your porch swing." Madge's face grew warmer in an instant, and Annie's eyes flew to Johanna's face, looking incredulous. So they had seen that. Great.

Madge rose and left the room without another word, shaking in anger, embarrassment, and something else... excitement over the idea of the election and the possibility of having a role in it? She wouldn't know until she had a minute alone to let the events of the morning settle. She could hear Johanna's laughter, Annie's scolding, and Gale calling after her, but she didn't care. She slammed and locked the bathroom door and started the water. Gale could shower alone today.

So Madge showered and dressed, avoiding Gale, though he spent some effort trying to catch her eye, her hand, or her attention. By early afternoon, she was in a peach pink summer dress with a tan shrug, a draping necklace, and a pair of boots, ready to spend the day wandering around the shops in District 2 with her daughter, her daughter's father, and two of the handful of surviving Victors from the Hunger Games.

Madge estimated that her day had gotten a lot better, watching Little Finn and Maysilee playing in the toy store, teasing Johanna with perfume at a clothing store, watching Annie model different hats, which all looked beautiful with her round face and flowing hair. She even found a little statuette to put on her piano. Madge was starting to feel that having Annie and Johanna here was not going to be so bad, that Maysilee having a playmate and having other women around would keep her more sane. That is, until Gale and Johanna began to order drinks.

Madge had never known Gale to be much of a drinker, but then again, she had never known Gale. She honestly couldn't tell if he was having fun, or if he and Johanna were having some sort of "macho-off." Annie seemed unconcerned, but then again, Annie herself had had more than few glasses of a pink sparkling wine that was popularly served alongside seafood in District 4. Gale and Johanna threw back flaming shots, specialty brews, and mixed concoctions, all of which reeked like the white liquor that had been the only alcohol available in District 12.

Johanna and Gale were becoming belligerent, slapping each other's backs, guffawing, and swapping all sorts of stories about shenanigans they'd had in "the good old days," stamping out the last of the capitol's forces throughout Panem. Madge realized that she had seen this behavior before, on TV, between the mentor from District 12, Haymitch, and his friend from District 11, Chaff, who was now dead. She even considered bringing this up, but didn't want to risk killing the mood. Even if she was feeling annoyed, everyone else seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Toward the end of the evening, as Johanna and Gale were staggering their way over to the bar to order another drink, Annie caught Madge's eye. Madge, who hadn't indulged in a drink, decided to treat herself in a different way, by enjoying a giant dish of delectably rich custard called 'Panna Cotta.' Gale had spent the evening sneaking small spoonfuls from Madge's dish, alternating between stuffing the spoon in his own mouth and veering it toward Maysilee's. Unaccustomed to being spoiled by her father, Maysilee took the first few bites suspiciously, but eventually took to opening her mouth expectantly as every bite came her way.

Madge watched Gale and their daughter, and every trace of annoyance she had felt with Gale over the course of the day vanished, replaced by a warm feeling her chest. This feeling was so satisfying, so filling that she ached. Smiling seemed to be the only way to release the pressure this feeling - to the point where, though Madge had not had a drop to drink, she was grinning as unabashedly as Gale and Johanna.

Even as the entire Undersee-Hawthorne family had attempted to demolish the desert, it was enormous, and nearly half was left. So when Annie caught Madge's eye, she offered her a bite. Annie smiled, and graciously took the spoonful, licking it clean, almost childishly. Annie's eyes were bright, her cheeks flushed, and watching her suck on the spoon just made her seem so... young. Perhaps this is why her next words, so serious and self aware, came as such a surprise.

"Johanna is a bit much for you, isn't she?" When Madge didn't answer, Annie continued, "I mean, Gale and Johanna being friends seemed to surprise you." Annie offered the spoon back to Madge.

"Yeah," Madge replied lamely, scooping out another spoonful of her dessert, holding the spoon listlessly, unable to convince herself to take another bite of the rich custard. After a moment, she handed the spoon back to Annie, who took it without complaint.

"They've been writing letters." Annie sucked on the spoon again, letting her words settle in before she added, "It's part of Jo's therapy." She took the spoon from where it hung in her mouth, and held onto it a little too tightly, like she had an inkling that it may crawl away if she set it down. She glanced to Finn, who had nodded off in his high chair.

"Gale never told me. I knew he was friends with the Victors in 13, but we don't talk a lot about the war or after."

"Jo and I don't have to." Annie fiddled with the spoon, and concentrated on the way the candlelight from the table's centerpiece reflected off of its curved surface. "We were both there. Neither of us went to the Capitol. We were watching the broadcasts together... when..." she trailed off, eyebrows knitting together, pain showing in her eyes.

"When they were pronounced dead. Gale... and Finnick... and..." Madge didn't want to go through the list of names. It was painful for her, and she didn't even know them all, like Annie had. "Maysilee was just 5 months old, and..." Madge's eyes flooded with tears at the memory. "I thought that- I'm sorry. My husband came back." The word slipped out without Madge even thinking about it. Husband. She and Gale weren't yet married, and anyway, it was so insensitive to talk about this with Annie.

She was almost certain that she had triggered another fit in Annie, and with not Johanna here to calm her, who knew how bad it would get. When her eyes darted back up to Annie's, however, she was smiling, sadly, "I'm not sorry that Gale came back to you."

Hot tears spilled down Madge's cheeks, and she wiped at them. "Thank you," was all that she could find to say.

"I miss Finnick," said Annie, simply. She was not self-pitying, or resentful. "Every day... but I am so lucky to have little Finn," she reached out and brushed some crumbs off her baby's face, "and Jo... to have anyone. Some people didn't make it through the war with anyone left to call their family, and I have... my family is wonderful." Her voice, usually fragile, quiet, sounding like at any moment it might break was clear and strong. "That is why it is so important to be a part of this election. To help people who have lost everything... who have lost the will to help themselves. The way you and Gale were talking on television the other night... I thought that you understood."

Madge sighed deeply, "I do." She was just reaching out to touch Annie's hand, when her daughter's resonant little voice provided a timely interruption.

"Daddy! Walk nice!" Maysilee ordered, noticing, just before Madge and Annie did, Johanna and Gale stumbling back to the table. Their forward motion seemed to rely greatly on help of their waiter, who was looking worse for wear than he had when their evening had begun. His expression brightened considerably when both Gale and Johanna, who were propped with the help of either one of his shoulders, slapped quite a few dollars into each of his hands. The waiter seemed speechless, so Madge, the most sober one of the lot offered, "Is there a problem?"

The waiter took another look at the wad of bills in either one of his hands, and then shook his head no. "I was just going to offer to call you folks a cab!"

"That would be wonderful, thank you." Madge said, as politely as she could. Then, as if repetition would prove her sincerity, she added, "Thank you."

The cab ride back was precarious. Johanna had her head between her knees, swearing up and down that she wasn't going to throw up as Annie rubbed her back. Gale wasn't in danger of puking, but rather, seemed to be having trouble with the idea that the backseat of the cab was not their bedroom. He kept trying to slip his hands up Madge's dress, and kissed her sloppily on the neck and collarbone, telling her again and again how beautiful she was.

Flattering as this was, Madge had both Finn and Maysilee on her lap, because Annie was otherwise occupied with Johanna. On the bright side, both kids were worn out, and fell asleep fairly early in the ten-minute drive. They missed, thank goodness, the 3 times that the driver had to pull over so that Johanna could open the door and throw up on the street before the ride could continue.

"You would think," she spat between heaves, "Two goes in the damn games, getting tortured by evil government lackies, morphling addiction, hacking apart the last of the stupid capitol with just an axe, I'd be able to hold my damn," another ineffective heave, "liquor." When Annie shushed her, attempting to pull her head back into the car in order to shut the door, Johanna added, with a slur, "It'sh part of my therapy. I'm not supposed to..." the door flew back open, and Johanna threw up a great deal. "Censor myself." She finished, and shut the door, "Okay, 'm done. Drive."

When they finally arrived back at Madge and Gale's home, Madge was exhausted. She and Annie helped Johanna and Gale into the house, with considerable difficulty. Madge and Annie dutifully put their children to bed as Gale and Johanna groaned their regrets, how, without "that one shot" or "that one beer," they would have been fine, on couches in the living room.

Then Annie got her shoulder under Johanna's arm, and Madge did the same. They half helped, half dragged her into the guest room. When they dropped her onto the bed, her lightning fast, Victor-strong arms wrapped around Annie, pulling her down on top of her. Madge blushed as Johanna teased, "Where have you been all my life, beautiful?"

"Jo," Annie cooed, and kissed her forehead. "Go to sleep."

"'nee, you have the best ideas," Johanna mumbled, before losing consciousness. Annie stayed, held in Johanna's arms, squirming only slightly to get into a position more comfortable for sleeping, and seeing Madge's wide eyes, gave her a soft smile and said, "Goodnight." Madge realized abruptly that this was her cue.

"Goodnight, ladies."

Madge returned to the living room to find Gale on all fours, dragging his way toward the hallway that lead to their bedroom. Madge couldn't help laugh. The sound seemed to startle Gale, and he tried to whip around, but just ended up falling flat onto his back with an awkward "oof" sound as the air escaped his lungs.

Madge moved to him, took his hands, and pulled him slowly to his feet. They danced clumsily to their bedroom. Gale was drunkenly humming some tune that Madge wasn't sure whether she should recognize or not. She had never heard him do anything musical before, and, though it was off-key and warbling, it made her smile. Finally, he collapsed onto their bed, and, just like Johanna had done to Annie, used his strong arms to pull her down with him. They flopped onto the bed unceremoniously, and he let out another "oof" sound as her elbow found its way into his chest.

Catching his breath, and squinting to keep her face in focus, he coughed out, "So, Madge, y'wanna be on TV?"

She laughed softly, and brushed his hair back from his face.

"Yep. We're going to be on TV."

This answer seemed satisfactory to him, as he made some silly growling, roaring sound and squished her to him so tightly that it was her to turn to exhale a less-than-attractive "oof" sound. He kissed her, in earnest, for so long, that, in combination with him squeezing the air out of her, it took her a full minute to catch her breath when they finally broke the kiss. He breath tasted terrible, and his whole body smelled like liquor, but she didn't care, especially when, as lucidly as he could manage, he assured her, "I meant it Madge. I meant... what I said."

Confused, Madge tilted her head, studying his face. Trying to imagine what it was that he said that was surfacing in his consciousness at such a strange moment. He laughed and pulled her closer yet, "I love you," he said almost cheerfully, "I really, stupidly, love you."

Madge suddenly appreciated Johanna Mason's arrival, her abrasiveness, and her friendship with Gale. He would have never said this sober, even if he meant it, every minute of every day.

"I love you too," she said quietly, and then gave him a little shove, "now get some sleep."

"Yes, ma'am." Gale gave her a tiny salute, and then rolled the both of them over onto their sides, and promptly passed out. Madge felt sleep creeping into the edges of her consciousness. It had been a very big day.