AN: This is my first published FF so please tell me what I can do to improve. I would love any feedback that you could provide. Thanks so much for the reviews so far and for reading!

NOTE: I do not own any of these characters or claim to. All that credit goes to the brilliant Suzanne Collins.

If you have any suggestions or want to be a beta, please feel free to contact me.

Enjoy!

It's been one of those nights where I'm sure I'm never going to get to sleep because there are a million ideas racing through my head and just as I have convinced myself that sleep will never come, it's suddenly morning. The light floods through my window and for a split second I forget everything that has transpired in the last 24 hours. I forget that it isn't Reaping Day, that Katniss and Peeta are arriving in the Capitol in just a few hours, and that I've made a pact with Gale to figure out a way to support them even though we won't hear from them until the games are over, if at all.

I creep downstairs and find my father, asleep, in his recliner in the study. The projector is still on and they are still showing the Reapings that happened yesterday but now more emphasis is being put on the fact that the tributes are starting to arrive in The Capitol. Here is another problem in being from the last district. The trains arrive, of course, according to distance from the Capitol. At first the numbers are mixed a bit but District 12 always arrives dead last and by then the Capitol citizens are tired. I can't stand to watch it anymore so I flip it off and exit, my father never even knowing that I was there in the first place.

Slipping into the kitchen I grab some fruit and a piece of bread and decide that is a good enough breakfast. Taking a pouch with some money in it from a drawer, I head out into town. It will be moderately busy today as work loads in general are smaller during the entire course of the games. I wish I could just use some of the money my father has set aside but I know that's not possible. Mayors aren't allowed to sponsor their tributes or bet on any part of the games. Doing so could put my father in a lot of trouble. Which is why I'm doing what I can while simultaneously supporting the shops by purchasing a little something at each one.

As I walk to the town square I see a few people out and about. I've been to the sweets shop, the apothecary, the tailor, and the general store before I see a Peacekeeper approaching me. Great, I think, I probably am breaking some imaginary rule. I decide ignorance is probably my best defense here and get ready to go into sweet, naive mode when the Peacekeeper raises his helmet and I see that it's Darius.

At once I'm relieved, since Darius is probably my favorite of all of the Peacekeepers. I don't even know how he became one but your can sure tell that he isn't from District 12. His hair is bright red and while his eyes are bright blue like a good number of the merchants, his skin has no olive tint to it. With the uniform and the helmet on, though, it's hard to tell which Peacekeeper is which from a distance.

"Hey, Madge, can I talk to you for a minute?" he asks me in a tone that is much more serious than his usual one. I nod and we walk over to a bench that is in the square.

"What's going on?" I ask him, genuinely curious.

"You're collecting money to sponsor Katniss and Peeta, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I'd like to give you a little something." He says as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a wad of money that is far more than I have ever seen in my lifetime.

"A little? Darius, where did you get all of that money?" I ask with a slightly raised voice. I can't even help myself, I must sound panicked.

"Calm down, Madge. This is from all of the Peacekeepers together." I breathe a sigh of relief and it must be written all over my face. "We all really like her, Madge. I think she actually has a shot at winning," he reassures me with a smile. Then just as quickly as he appears, he has put his helmet back on and goes back into the crowd, blending in with the other Peacekeepers that are lurking about.

I feel a sudden twinge in my lower stomach and quickly recognize it as guilt. Poor Peeta, everyone has already all but given up on him. He isn't in the same league as Katniss physically but he has a charismatic side that is equally as important. As I weigh out this idea I feel slightly less guilty. People that know Katniss like her but she takes some warming up to. On the other hand, Peeta can charm you in about 20 seconds. He probably won't have much of a problem getting sponsors early on like Katniss might. Which is why it's important that we get together some funds for her. I still feel guilty but I've justified myself a measure.

From the bench I'm still sitting on I see Gale across the crowd and can't help but smile. I'm not going to pretend he isn't an attractive guy, but he belongs to Katniss. He has for as long as I can remember, even with all the girls looking at him in school. From the eyes of any Seam girl, he is the ultimate catch aside from a good merchant boy. Not only is he handsome but he also is strong enough to work in the mines, skilled enough to provide food for his family, and smart enough not to get caught. Still, it's unthinkable that he would even look at any girl besides Katniss, at least in my mind. I'm not sure that he even realizes it but deep down I don't doubt it. It won't hurt to actually become friends with the guy, though.

We make eye contact and he walks over to me and sits down next to me. He looks tired and I imagine he didn't sleep too well, if at all, last night.

"Did you think about who you could ask for donations for sponsorships?" He asks me, cutting straight to the point. So much for becoming friends.

"Uhh… Yeah. I've already visited some of the shops and gotten a few donations and then I got a pretty hefty sum from Darius."

"You asked a Peacekeeper for a donation?!" Gale looks furious, like I've done something terribly stupid.

"No. He approached me and gave it to me."

"Oh. I'm sorry." He leans forward and puts his elbows on his knees, looking defeated. "I didn't really sleep last night. Between the thoughts running through my brain and the crying coming from my mom and Posy's bed, I couldn't sleep."

I don't know what to say to him so I don't say anything at all. I put my hand on his back, hoping it's some sort of comfort to him. Apparently it is, since he starts talking again.

"I always wish that my dad was still around but it's times like this that I really wish he were. I wish he was there to comfort the daughter he never got to meet and, who am I kidding, to tell me it's going to all be okay. I always remember him saying just the right thing when I needed to hear it and I need it. Badly."

"I'm sorry, Gale. I really don't know what to tell you besides that." I pause, trying to think of something good. I don't get a chance, though. Suddenly the screen comes on in the square and everyone is startled, looking up to see what in the world is going on. As we focus on the screen, we can see a train pulling into the station in the Capitol with the number 12 on it. In the window we can see Peeta and Katniss, looking out at the beauty of the city. Katniss looks sullen, like usual and then steps away but Peeta's face is bright, excited. He's waving to everyone in sight at the station and the crowd is so excited to see them. They can't seem to contain themselves and I can see easily that Peeta is already working the crowd. The entire city is going to fall in love with him while he is really only concerned about one girl. The pull into the station, out of view of the cameras and the crowd and the screen shuts back off.

If I know anything about Katniss, it's that she'll look for the bad in everything. She'll probably see that as an act of aggression, which is going to make Peeta's attempt to prove that he loves her even harder. I turn and look at Gale but the moment we had earlier is gone. He's sitting back up looking angry. The look in his eyes scares me for a moment but then he shakes his head and returns to his normal self.

"Where were you just now?" I ask, trying to get something out of him.

"Huh?"

"You looked like you were a million miles away."

"Oh, I was just thinking about the hell that Katniss will have to go through with those stylists now that she's in the Capitol," he replies, clearly lying. He must not have heard about my talent of reading people. Still, I accept the answer and move on, knowing I'm not going to get any more information from him.

"Anyways, here is the money I've collected today," I say, handing him the pouch, "I think I can get some more from the other merchants but I thought I should leave the Hob and most of the Seam to you."

Gale chuckles and agrees with me, "Yeah that would probably be the best case. Unless, of course, you wore that pretty dress from yesterday. In that case, they might just give you whatever you wanted." He stands up, clearly ready to head to the Hob or wherever he might go in the early morning now that his hunting is done.

"Well I think I'll leave that up to you anyway."

"Sounds like a good idea," he replies, opening the pouch.

"Oh wow," he continues, simply speechless. It's then that I realize that Gale has probably never seen that amount of money before in his life. It's not that we just have piles of money sitting around but I know that my father's salary provides enough that we can have just about anything in the district that we need. Still, we don't live extravagantly but subtly try to help everyone else out a little bit.

"So, I guess I'll see you later then?" I say, the statement coming out more like a question.

"Um, yeah. Yeah you will. You're not going to get rid of me that easily." He smiles, a little bit uneasy. Gale waves and walks back in the direction of the Seam and I wonder what he'll say to his mother when she sees the pouch. How easy it would be just to pull a little bit out. I would never know and I wouldn't care if he did. Still, I don't expect him to. He cares so much for Katniss that I don't think he would even consider taking money that could benefit her. It's then that I even forget becoming friends with Gale. I just want him to be comfortable around me. I want him to be able to say things on his mind to me like he did today even when Katniss is around.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that this means I do want to be friends with Gale. In fact it may mean that I want to be good friends with him. I want to tell him about Peeta and his feelings for Katniss too but I think that would probably not help him much right now. If we're going to be friends, we need to start somewhere.

"Wait! Gale!" I cry out and he turns around, hearing me from the edge of the square. He walks back towards me and I walk towards him.

"Is everything okay?" He asks, actually seeming slightly concerned.

"Oh, yeah. I was just going to ask you something but I forgot." We stand there for a moment while he looks at me expectantly. "Oh! Duh, um do you want to come over to my house tonight? To watch the chariot procession? We can talk about what we're going to do with the money and other things we can do to help too."

"Sure, sounds like a good idea," he say, giving a slight smile. "I'll see you later then."

"Alright, see you." I say as he walks away. I am such an idiot. Could I have sounded any stupider? Probably only if I had tried. Even then I would have had to have been trying really hard. Oh well, what's done is done.

I finish talking to some of the merchant and gather a few more donations and then head home. After all, I have to get the house ready for my guest