Chapter 13 - Showdown
Katniss' mouth dropped open. "Madge Undersee?"
"Yeah," he said sheepishly. "I should have told you. I was going to. But we were waiting until after graduation to say anything. And then you left for the show."
"Did her father get you a job in the Justice Building?" she asked, remembering what she'd seen on television.
"He did," Gale said. "I'll start there as soon as I get back."
"Oh." The news was so surprising that it rendered her speechless for a few minutes. As the star of The Match Game, she'd intended to rescue Gale from the mines, but he'd already done that for himself. They continued to walk, but then the anger bubbled up and she stopped to face him.
"Why did you come to the Capitol then?" she fumed. "You're not even an eligible contestant."
Of course very few of the contestants were eligible, in the sense that they were unattached bachelors, but that was beside the point.
Gale bit his lip. "I didn't want to come. But Mayor Undersee thought I should. He was concerned that they'd stop construction on the medicine factory if I refused. The foundation's already been laid and…"
His voice dropped off and a look of frustration crossed his face. "It would have been nice if you had talked to me about everything beforehand Catnip instead of planning my future for me. Did it even occur to you I might want to have some say in who I married?"
Katniss' face turned to stone, embarrassed at Gale's rejection of her. But could it be rejection if there had never been anything romantic between them in the first place?
"I know Finnick is taken, and you don't like Cato," Gale continued. "Can't say I blame you. He can be an ass. But Gates seems all right. A little too obsessed with his work, if you ask me. But a decent sort."
Katniss snorted. Gates. Was this Gale's idea of a joke?
"Katniss you've never been interested in romance. For years Peeta's been pining away for you, and you've completely ignored him. So why would it matter which guy you end up with, as long as the person treats you well?
Katniss flinched at his comment about Peeta. If Gale knew that Peeta liked her, why hadn't he said anything to her? But then she remembered that he had. But she had interpreted it as Gale being jealous.
"I think Gates would treat you well," he continued. "At any rate you'll be financially set for life. You might not live in District 12, but you'd have the money to visit often. Maybe your mother and Prim would be willing to relocate to be near to you."
Katniss realized that Gale was speaking out loud his rationalization as to why he didn't need to feel guilty.
She had to admit that she was angry with Gale, and even Madge, for keeping their relationship secret from her. But then she remembered her mother warning her to talk to Gale about The Match Game even before she signed the contract. Katniss had been so sure about their friendship, so sure that Gale would help her out that she hadn't bothered.
And Gale was right, she hadn't been interested in romance when she signed The Match Game contract. She'd already resigned herself to a marriage of friendship and survival.
Katniss and Gale turned and walked back toward the others who were grouped together on the beach.
As they got closer, Gale pulled his hand from hers. Katniss caught his eye, but he looked away. Sorry excuses for friends that's what we are, she thought.
"Beautiful," Cressida shouted. "That looked like a very intense conversation."
Katniss tried to pay attention as she was filmed walking with Gates on the beach. But she was quickly bored as he talked about the importance of some electronic device he'd invented. Gale was right in his assessment that Gates was decent, but she had nothing in common with the man. She could not picture a future with him. Besides for all she knew, he had a girlfriend back home like most of the other contestants.
She grimaced as she took Cato's hand. He spoke to her softly and she couldn't hear what he was saying over the roar of the waves and the wind that was picking up.
"What did you say?" she asked, as she leaned in closer. Cato took that opportunity to kiss the side of her face.
The slobber of wet mouth on her skin jolted Katniss from her mental stupor. She shrieked and pushed him away, shoving him toward the waves. When they walked back separately, Cressida was beaming.
"That looked so playful," she said. "Great."
Finnick was the last person Katniss was filmed with. As they strolled down the beach, his arm linked around hers, Katniss asked his advice.
"How angry does the Capitol get if you don't play by their rules?"
"So does your rule breaking involved toasted bread?"
Kantiss frowned, remembering his warning at the cocktail party weeks ago. "How did you even know about that?"
Finnick laughed. "When I won The Hunger Games and visited Twelve on the Victory Tour, my mentor Mags told me about your district's quaint marriage ritual. She wanted to make sure that I didn't inadvertently get hitched to some crafty girl, who was looking to marry a victor."
"Someone would do that?"
"You'd be surprised at what they'll do when you're well known. I'm sure your friend Peeta is experiencing that now."
Katniss thought back to the women screaming Peeta's name on the television that morning. Suddenly she felt even sicker than she had when Gale had told her about Madge.
"Well, they'll be angry," Finnick said, answering her original question. "Your best defense would be to say that you were both so madly in love that you weren't responsible for your actions. The Capitol thrives on a good love story."
"Will they just end the show if I tell them what we did?"
Finnick laughed. "Do you really think they'd end it? No, you'll have to see it through. Marry him in a Capitol wedding, assuming he's willing, and from what I've seen, he may be."
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They left District 4 that afternoon by hovercraft to visit District 3 to shoot another group date. Gates led everyone on a personal tour of a factory that made high-tech toys. It was fun to play with the inventive gadgets, but Katniss was disappointed to learn that the products were only available to people in the Capitol who had the extra money to pay for such devices.
Afterwards, the group returned to the Capitol.
The next morning Cressida instructed Katniss to present Finnick and Gates with a rose and bid them goodbye. For once Katniss didn't have to pretend to be sorry to see them go. Both men had treated her kindly, and she considered them to be friends.
Gale looked at her in surprise as she let Gates depart. Maybe someday she'd get the chance to tell Gale that she had no real say over the outcome of the game.
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That evening Plutarch, Fulvia, and Cressida arrived at the penthouse to join Katniss and Effie in watching the day's episode of The Match Game.
Katniss had missed the previous night's show because they had traveling back from District 3. Apparently, Plutarch hadn't been impressed. Tonight's episode featured Cato's fake electrocution and Katniss' comforting kiss.
After the show ended, Plutarch called the episode a little better, but not quite there yet.
"We'll see if we can do a better job of editing future shows," Fulvia replied, glaring at Cressida. "But we're down to the final two contestants now. We'll have to come up with a spectacular finale."
Katniss took a deep breath. This was the moment. It was time to tell them what she'd done - that she had married Peeta weeks ago in a toasting that had been aired on television in the Capitol. The Match Game was over. But then she remembered Finnick's words. The Capitol wouldn't let her off so easily. No matter what she said, the show would go on. She would never return to her old life as a single woman living in District 12. If she told them, at the very least she'd have to marry Peeta for real.
He had said he wanted to help her when he suggested the fake toasting. But would Peeta want to be married to her for real? How could she force him into something that he might later regret? Especially now that he had attained celebrity status in the Capitol with adoring female fans. It seemed wrong to hold him to a fake marriage. They were only friends.
That had been her mistake with Gale, assuming that the relationship was stronger than it was. She didn't want to make the same error again. The only choice she had was Cato. She didn't want him, but he wanted her. She didn't like him, but she imagined she could grow to tolerate him at least. Maybe somewhere down the road they would have a marriage based on friendship.
So Katniss didn't say anything as Cressida outlined the next day's schedule – a hovercraft ride to District 2 to see Cato's family business, then a flight home to District 12 to film Gale on his home turf.
Katniss hoped she'd get a chance to meet up with Prim and her mother. It might be her last opportunity to visit home for a while because once she was married to Cato, she would live in District 2.
She didn't sleep very well that night. She'd made the decision she thought was best for everyone. Gale and Peeta would have the futures they deserved, not something she imposed on them. Cato would be happy. No one would be hurt by her actions, except for herself. And that was okay, because she had the strength to deal with it. That's what Katniss Everdeen excelled at - putting everyone else's needs before her own.
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Katniss paid close attention the next day as she toured Cato's family business. It some ways it was very similar to visiting the coal mines in District 12. Although Gale was avoiding her, Katniss could tell he was curious about the procedures used to extract the stone from the earth and then shape and polish it to be turned into building materials.
For the first time ever, Cato didn't act like a jerk around her. He introduced her to his father and his brothers nervously. Katniss even managed a faint smile.
After the tour, everyone got back onto the hovercraft for District 12.
"We'll do a quick walking tour," Cressida told them. "We're already got lots of footage of Twelve, although we need something of that medicine factory since they paid the contestant's entrance fee for the district. Also, we need to get some tape of Gale in front of the Justice Building."
Katniss sat back in the leather seat of the hovercraft and sighed. She wanted to go home, but it seemed so painful because it wouldn't be her home much longer.
The hovercraft landed on the other side of town, behind the town square. Katniss got out and breathed the fresh air of District 12. She wished she could leave the group and go hunting. A sharp pain pierced her chest as she realized she'd probably never get to go into the woods of her district again.
At least she'd noticed some wooded areas before the hovercraft landed in District 2. Maybe she could hunt there in the future, if Cato didn't object.
The five of them, Cressida, Castor, Katniss, Gale, and Cato made their way to the Justice Building where Castor filmed Gale talking about the important district business that occurred inside of it. Since he hadn't even started working there, his comments were quite vague and a bit inarticulate. It was obvious to Katniss that her friend didn't have the way with words that Peeta had.
News must have spread throughout the district that Katniss and Gale had returned because it wasn't long until the Hawthorne family and Katniss' mother and sister had arrived at the Justice Building.
Cressida told Castor to film construction on the nearby medicine factory while Katniss and Gale greeted their families.
Sometime during the short reunion Madge arrived. She ran up to Gale, hugged him tightly, and then kissed him long and hard on the mouth.
Cressida eyed the couple curiously glancing quickly at Katniss, who had immediately turned her back to them once Madge had appeared.
Cato stood off to the side grinning. After re-connecting with Prim and her mother, Katniss introduced them to Cato. He smiled politely. "It's good to meet my future wife's family," he said.
A curious look crossed Mrs. Everdeen's face but she quickly recovered.
"What?" Prim choked. She looked like she wanted to say more, but Katniss grabbed her arm and squeezed it.
"We really need to get going," Cressida interrupted, when Castor returned. "We need to stop by the bakery to pick up some things for Fulvia before it closes, then we have to start for the Capitol."
Katniss and Gale reluctantly said their goodbyes.
"We'll see you in the Capitol for Katniss' wedding," Cressida called out to Mrs. Everdeen and Prim, as she herded everyone toward the town square.
Katniss reached into her pocket and rubbed Peeta's tattered letter frantically. The thought of going into the bakery for what would probably be the last time in a long time made her sad. But Peeta wasn't there she reminded herself. He was back in the Capitol with his adoring fans.
The witch was manning the front counter when everyone walked into the bakery. She startled a bit when she saw Cressida with her bald head tattooed with vines; but she gave Katniss her customary glare.
"What can I do for you?" Mrs. Mellark asked, her voice sounding strained.
Cressida pulled a crumpled list from her pocket and began to read from it. When she asked for a dozen cheese buns, Mrs. Mellark turned toward the kitchen.
"Peeta, bring out more cheese buns."
Amazed Katniss watched Peeta carry in a tray and set it onto the counter that stood next to the bakery case.
He was wearing his usual bakery garb covered with a white apron. His hair was starting to grow longer from his Capitol haircut and it was tousled about, as if he had been running his hands through it. His cheeks were rosy, probably from the heat of the ovens and the contrast made his eyes look even bluer than usual.
He looked around the bakery catching sight of the visitors. His eyes locked onto Katniss. He studied her curiously.
"I thought you were staying in the Capitol," Katniss mumbled. "I saw you on t.v." Her heart was pounding. She hadn't seen Peeta in person in weeks. After today, she might never see him again.
"I left a couple of days ago. That life wasn't for me."
His mother glared at him. "That's all Peeta. Go back and finish up those cookies."
"All right," he said, but his eyes stayed on Katniss. "Oh, I forgot. I copied down a few more of those recipes you wanted for the book we were working on in the Capitol. I have them in the back."
Mrs. Mellark's eyes flashed. "You what? You've giving this girl our family's baking recipes?"
She raised her hand as if to strike him, but quickly lowered it, when she remembered there were others watching.
"No, these are some of Dad's dinner recipes."
Mrs. Mellark frowned. "I guess those don't matter. It's not like they're anything special."
"Why don't you come back and get them Katniss," Peeta suggested.
Katniss looked from Peeta to his mother, who looked ready to explode in rage.
"Get them," Cressida urged. "Plutarch was talking about finding a publisher for the book."
"Really," Mrs. Mellark, cooed, her mood quickly changing. "Our family's dinner recipes published in a book. That would be something."
Slowly, Katniss walked around the counter, past Mrs. Mellark, and followed Peeta into the kitchen.
In the back room, trays of raw cookie dough were set out on the counter. She followed Peeta into a tiny office, not much bigger than a small closet. Once she was inside, Peeta reached behind her and closed the door.
"What are you doing?" she asked, her back against the door. Why was she so nervous all of a sudden?
"What are you doing?" he countered, taking a step closer until he was right in front of her. "Did you know Gale and Madge are getting married next month? Madge put in an order for the cake yesterday."
Katniss swallowed hard. "Gale told me they were together. I didn't know about the wedding, though."
"I see two contestants left out there," Peeta said. "Are you planning to marry Cato? I saw you two on television last night."
He frowned at her and Katniss turned pink, remembering her kiss with Cato that had aired. Did Peeta think she actually liked Cato? Is that what this was all about?
She shook her head. "I don't.." she began, but he interrupted.
"I gave you an out. Why aren't you using it?"
"It's not an out," she explained. "They're not going to cancel the show. I have to marry someone."
"Katniss, you already did," he whispered. He slowly ran his thumb along her jaw line, under her chin, and down her neck. She shivered in anticipation, waiting to see what he would do next. Her eyelids slowly closed as he leaned into her, his warm lips capturing hers, pinning her against the door.
He pulled away after a minute. Her eyes opened wide as she looked into his blue ones. She licked her lower lip. She wasn't ready to stop. She'd been missing Peeta for far too long. Missing his compliments, his kindness, his caring, his cooking.
She reached up and hungrily pulled his face back toward hers. Her mind went blank as she focused on the feelings bubbling up inside.
In all of Effie's descriptions of kisses, she had never mentioned the warm sensation that was spreading throughout Katniss' body as their kisses deepened. Instead of feeling satisfied, her need was intensifying.
After a few minutes, or maybe it was a few hours, Katniss lost all sense of time, she heard Mrs. Mellark yelling.
"Open this door right now. What's going on in there?"
Someone was trying to push the door open, but the combined weight of Katniss and Peeta leaning on it was making it difficult.
Peeta finally drew away, pressing his face into her hair. "I'm going to tell them," he murmured.
Katniss blinked. She was so dazed she could hardly think straight, but then she realized what he was saying. "No Peeta," she insisted. "I can't let you. You'll have to marry me for real."
"Maybe I want to," he whispered.
Katniss heart was thumping loudly. She took a deep breath. Would her heartbeat ever calm down? All she knew was that here with Peeta she felt safe. How could she even think about marrying Cato now, knowing what she'd be giving up with Peeta?
Mrs. Mellark continued pushing on the door and Katniss stepped forward wrapping her arms around Peeta's neck, burying her face into his chest. His arms wrapped around her waist.
"Get your hands off that girl," Mrs. Mellark screamed as she got the door partly open and pushed her way into the office. She grabbed at Peeta's arms trying to pull them off of Katniss.
Kantiss felt a blow hit her back and she pushed herself further into Peeta who was now sitting on the desk behind him. He reached down and pulled Katniss up into his lap.
Blows rained down on the two of them as Mrs. Mellark pelted them with her fists. Peeta quickly twisted his body around so that he, not Katniss, would take the brunt of the battering.
The hits lasted several seconds before Mrs. Mellark screamed and then the strikes stopped. Katniss turned her head from Peeta's chest to see that Gale had grabbed Mrs. Mellark from behind and was pulling her away.
Castor pointed the camera into the closet and Katniss immediately turned back embarrassed. She buried her face into Peeta's chest.
"Did you get it all?" Cressida asked. Castor mumbled affirmatively.
Peeta twisted back around and Katniss slid down off his lap and stood up. He stood up behind her, holding her waist as they left the office. Gale was no longer holding Mrs. Mellark but she was standing with her arms crossed and her face bright red.
Cressida was beaming. "Plutarch will love this."
Katniss winced. Gale was smirking, while Cato looked almost as angry as Mrs. Mellark.
"Peeta you'll need to come back to the Capitol with us." Cressida insisted.
"He can't," Mrs. Mellark blustered. "We need him here at the bakery. He's spent too much time in the Capitol already. It's confused him completely." She glared at her son.
"We can manage without him for a while longer," Mr. Mellark stated firmly.
Katniss looked around. Did Mr. Mellark see what had happened?
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It was a quiet ride back to the Capitol. Katniss sat with her head back in the seat and her eyes closed. Peeta sat next to her. He tried to hold her hand, but she pulled it away. She was embarrassed. She was not a person who liked being the center of attention, and the spectacle that she'd been part of in the Mellark Bakery had been more than she could handle.
When the hovercraft landed, Katniss followed Cressida back to the penthouse. Peeta attempted to go with them, but Cressida directed him to go with Gale and Cato to the house they were staying at.
Peeta mouthed a goodbye to her and she smiled faintly before turning and leaving with Cressida.
The night's episode of The Match Game had already aired when she and Cressida got to the penthouse. Plutarch, Fulvia and Effie were sitting at the dining room table talking. Katniss looked at Cressida and yawned.
"It's been a long day. You can turn in," the director said.
Katniss headed for her bedroom.
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"I got your message," Fulvia said, looking at Cressida, as she took a seat at the table. "What happened in Twelve?"
"Probably the best footage we've had during the entire show," Cressida crowed.
Everyone looked at her expectantly.
"Katniss was making out in a closet at the bakery and Mrs. Mellark found her and attacked her.
"What!?" Fulvia screamed. "Was it Cato? His people will pay extra for kisses."
"No," Cressida said. "It was Peeta Mellark."
"No," Effie cried out, her hand falling upon her heart dramatically. "I knew there was something between those two." She smiled. "I just knew it." She paused. "I thought he was still in the Capitol, though."
"He went home a couple of days ago," Fulvia said. "You picked up my bakery order then Cressida?
The director nodded.
"So did you actually get the making out part on tape?" Plutarch interrupted. "It's taken that kid long enough to do something."
Cressida's face dropped. "Not entirely. We did get them looking fairly cozy. She was sitting on his lap and they were snuggling. But we have great footage of them being attacked by his mother."
Plutarch groaned. "Why was she kissing him if she's planning to marry the other fellow from her district?"
"Apparently the contestant she choose has a girl back home," Cressida said. "The girl ran right up and kissed him in front of Katniss. It was awkward, to say the least."
"This is exactly the kind of situation I told you to avoid," Plutarch glared at Fulvia.
"What?" Fulvia shouted. "He didn't tell me he had a girlfriend when he agreed to do the show."
"So I guess Cato is the winner," Plutarch said.
"She's already said she doesn't want Cato," Cressida pointed out.
"I don't care about who she wants," Plutarch stated. "We're putting on a wedding in a week, and we need a groom. Cato is the last man left in the game. It's not our fault her friend didn't want her."
Fulvia sighed. "This is awful. The wedding night special will be aired throughout Panem. We need her to look like she's enjoying herself, not getting ravished. Sales of that tape could potentially bring in a lot of money."
"We can drug her," Plutarch suggested.
"And keep her drugged when she goes back to live with Cato in District 2?" Fulvia asked sarcastically. "It's not going to work."
"I brought Peeta back to the Capitol with me," Cressida interrupted. "I think we should bring him into the game. Believe me, they looked very cozy together."
Plutarch closed his eyes tightly, rubbing her temples. "It's too late. What are people going to think if we announce a rule change? It will make The Match Game look fixed."
"I think we could sell it," Cressida argued. "We've got lots of footage of them already, things we've never used from those cameras Castor installed for us on the train. The districts never saw the live feed from the penthouse. We could edit everything, turn them into star-crossed lovers that came together as we were preparing the show."
"There's that lovely moment when they kissed in front of the fire," Effie remembered.
"Oh, I wish I had insisted upon Peeta from the beginning," Fulvia said. "I had a bad feeling about her choice."