PREPARE FOR DRAMA…and also a lot of descriptions of trains! This group of characters is just a lot of fun to write. I am in my element here.

Gale, Peeta, and Effie are already on the train. They're standing in a loose triangle, eying each other up like they're considering homicide. This is off to a great start. Haymitch clears his throat and the rest of them lower their metaphorical hackles. Effie perks up immediately. "Oh, good, you're here. Let me show you around, Katniss!"

I don't say anything at all. I let her drag me- Jesus, this is the third person just today- around the train and 'show me around'.

And I thought the Justice Building was luxurious. This is obscene, but also oddly tasteful. I guess you do get what you pay for, when you're talking about train interior design. I want to stare at every painting, touch every curtain, but I also want to curl into a ball and cry, and that does not make me a very receptive tourist. Effie shows no sign of frustration at my continued lack of enthusiasm, but she does end the tour with a pointed, "Here's your room! Perhaps you should stay here for a few hours. I'll send someone for you at dinnertime."

She's gone before I can argue. Not that I think I would. Being alone sounds a lot better than facing Peeta or even worse, Gale, right now. I can still hear them arguing in the dining car, with Haymitch's increasingly-slurred voice chiming in once in a while, and I want no part in that. Everything is hitting me all at once. I need to be alone.

The inevitability of death is what stands out the most. I squeeze my eyes shut and it still beats in my head. I'm trying not to lose myself, trying so hard for Prim, but it seems impossible not to just give up now. It would be far too lucky for District Twelve to win the Games two years in a row. Even with Peeta by my side. Why even try?

The train lurches forward for the first time, and suddenly, I'm unsteady on my feet. There's nothing to grab by the door, so I stumble into the room and throw myself on the bed, which is comparable to the size of my bedroom at home. After the initial lurch, travel is as smooth as if we weren't moving at all, but I stay on the bed anyway. The temptation to explore the room pales in comparison to the temptation to lie here and feel nothing, and I give in without any hesitation at all.

§

Effie wakes me at dinnertime. At least, I assume it's Effie. I wake up so groggy and confused that by the time I get to the door, nobody's there. I rub the sleep from my eyes, and the confusion is replaced with existential dread. Right- the Reaping, being dragged, my own personal nightmare coming true. I remember why I'm here.

I shut the door and head for the dining car. A lot of Effie's tour went over my head, but on a train, it's pretty easy to find stuff. Either you go towards the front of you go towards the back, and the bedroom car is the front-most compartment I have access to. I'll just walk back until I see something that looks like food.

By the time I get to the dining car, everyone else- Haymitch, Effie, Gale, and Peeta- is already sitting down. They haven't waited for me to start eating, and I guess that's good; I don't want to make a fuss. I sit down next to Peeta (the only seat left) and survey the abundance of food in front of me. This smorgasbord makes even the heaping table at Gale's victory party look tame, and this is only meant for five people. Every square inch is covered, with some things stacked on top of each other, lazy Susans that are three or four levels high. Everything looks and smells delicious, and there's no denying that my stomach is rumbling.

No one else has said a word so far, and I don't want to break that silence by asking someone to pass me a dish. No matter. There's so much that I can reach right in front of me; I doubt I'll go hungry. I start to load up my plate, the only sounds being the occasional scrape of silver on china or Gale's loud chewing, which Effie glares at him for periodically.

I take my first bite of wild rice and suddenly, the truce is broken. Haymitch clears his throat. "So, now that we've all had some time to process…there's some things you ought to know."

"Haymitch?" Gale asks, all but swallowing a chicken wing whole.

Haymitch glares at him irritably, which seems to be the only emotion he's capable of feeling towards Gale. "…yes?"

"Shut up."

Haymitch's face about turns purple. "Excuse me?"

It doesn't faze Gale at all, somehow. I guess it's clearly not the first time he's argued with Haymitch. He actually has the nerve to wave a hand dismissively. "No strategy talk. Not yet. Actually, why don't you have a drink?"

I get where he's coming from. I know there's a lot I'm not yet ready to hear.

I don't think Haymitch is used to taking orders, though. Not from anyone except Effie. His scowl deepens. "But-"

"Drink."

Gale actually goes so far as to push a very full wineglass over to Haymitch's placemat. I can see the moment the old drunk gives in, and a sigh of relief makes its way around the room.

"Don't think I'm forgetting about this," Haymitch says threateningly. "We will- we do have to talk strategy. But I suppose…a whole day of travel…"

I know he's right. Someday in the very near future, we will have to acknowledge and discuss what's going to happen to us. But I'm glad day is not today, or at least, not this very moment. I want to put off that moment for as long as I possibly can, enjoy this meal, enjoy the fancy train, pretend I'm not here for the worst of all reasons.

Even once Haymitch gives up, we cannot eat a meal in silence. I'm not talking about Gale's chewing (although that does get to me after a while) but Effie. For a professional escort, she cannot read a room. While the rest of us eat (in Haymitch's case, drink) she prattles on about manners and posture. Does she not know about the murder aspect of the Games? I'm not going to be in a fight with a Career and have them go wait a minute, she just has such nice posture. I wish Gale would tell her to shut up too, but for whatever reason, he does not.

I can sense the change between us. Something in the air. Gale has played many roles in my life so far: hunting partner, confidant, friend, boyfriend, and now, mentor. I have no idea what our relationship will look like from now on, and it's hard to meet his eyes.

Of course, it's not nearly as difficult as meeting Peeta's eyes. We're partners now, too. Not by choice, obviously, but partners all the same. I'll have to get over not being able to look at or talk to him if I want us to win. But not yet. Definitely not yet.

I eat until I feel sick and then rush back to hide in my room, ignoring Effie's suggestion of 'all getting to know each other'. I know as much as I care to know, thank you. Laying flat on my back as the train hums along suits me just fine.

I hope to sleep, to shut all of this out until dawn, but it evades me. The curse of the nap. When I can't sleep, the thoughts creep in, and I sit up abruptly. I can't think about any of that now. It's selfish, I know, to demand peace, even just in my own head, but facing it head-on doesn't even feel like an option.

I get up and indulge my restlessness by exploring my room. "Room". This "room" is nearly the size of my family's home in Twelve. There's a giant television screen controlled by a remote with dozens of buttons. I can't figure out how to make it do anything. I have my own bathroom, with a shower and decent water pressure! There's a closet filled with generic girl clothes, so I have the option of changing out of my rumpled blue dress I've already slept in once, but I choose not to. This dress was my mother's, once. It reminds me of home.

Attempting every combination of buttons on the remote control does nothing to ease my restlessness. If anything, it makes it worse. I peek out the small window- the only un-luxurious thing about this room is the size of the window- but it's already dark out. I can't see a damn thing.

It's the darkness, actually, that convinces me to explore beyond my room. I pause at the door before I go out, making sure everything is quiet, and it is. I push the door open gently, and everything must be brand-new down to the hinges, because it doesn't make a peep.

The lights in the hall are dimmed, a few small strips of electricity creating a warm glow in an otherwise-cold place. Once I get out of the bedroom car, there's even less light to go by, but I'm used to the dark. I prowl through the silent and empty train, only halfway-knowing what I'm looking for, but I know when I find it. The viewing car, the very end of the train. Velvet seats and a glass ceiling, a view of summer stars. Coincidentally, the only non-bedroom car that's not empty.

"Hi," I say softly, taking my place on one of the velvet seats. I'm not looking at the stars, though.

Gale continues to look brooding. He hardly even reacted when I first stepped into the room- his hunter's ear is finely tuned to my hunter's tread. "How'd you know I'd be here?"

"Just a hunch."

He's quiet for a moment. I don't think this is any easier for him than it is for me. "I don't know what we're going to do, Catnip."

I don't either. But that's not an answer. "…I'm going to fight, I guess. I promised Prim."

"Yeah, I know."

Dread washes over me and every bad thought seems to hit at once. I flash back to this morning, to our house in Twelve, to worrying that Prim's name was going to be called. This time, I should have worried about myself. For a moment, I'm back there, arguing with Prim about whether Lady's belly looks bigger than yesterday, folding and unfolding the note from Gale that had been slipped under out door overnight.

I'll miss you.

And now here we are, together and alone for the first time since January. I wish I could enjoy it. What joy I might have at spending time with Gale is overshadowed by the nightmare of what's to come.

"I just…" I struggle to get the words out. "Why? Why did it have to be him?"

"I know." It almost comes as a surprise that Gale agrees with me, given how much he hates Peeta. He would hate him even more if he knew about half of what happened last Hunger Games. "Anyone else…anyone else would be better."

"At least it's the Quell," I say, taking Prim's words and trying to find comfort in them without much luck. "At least he's not…my enemy. Not really."

Gale's face sours a little, reminding this is one subject we look at from very different perspectives. "Your only real ally is yourself. Remember that, Katniss."

I force myself to smile, try to lighten the mood. "You don't count?"

"Of course I count. But I can't be in there with you." Judging by his strained tone, I almost think he wishes he could be. I'm sure that's not the case. Gale has spent weeks in the arena- no one would wish themselves back.

Then again, when it comes to matters of the heart, I'm aware that Gale is not always sensible. He's fiercely protective of me, like he was fiercely protective of Madge during their Games. I've tolerated it, even enjoyed it before, but for some reason, this time, the act of protection annoys me.

"You've done your time in the arena, Gale," I snap. "Now it's time for me to do mine."

I think I come off a lot braver than I feel, because I'm still almost certain I'm going to die. I'm even more certain, though, that I'm going to fight.

For some reason, my harsh tone convinces Gale to soften. He puts an arm around my shoulder- the first time we've touched in half a year, and it still has the same effect on me. I could be furious with Gale and that one single touch would remind me exactly why I loved him.

"Just so you know…" he trails off, letting his fingers brush the bare skin by the end of my sleeve. "If- when- you survive, I intend to marry you."

His words wash over me like an icy fog. Marriage has never been on the table for us. Between the Capitol and Gale's image and my aversion to children, it's just never been an option. Now it's my turn to look brooding as I turn to him. "Gale…"

"Shh."

His lips find mine, and there's a brief flash of annoyance before I melt into his arms.

Even though I don't like Katniss and Gale together, I like writing for them in BYS. They're a good writing exercise. But don't worry, it's not forever! Although this is much more an "adventure" story than a "romance" story so if you're just here for the Everlark you WILL be disappointed.