Hunger Games, Gales POV (Everthorn)

Lost but not Gone

The days passed slowly, the games were at a standstill. The biggest competitors were all trapped in their dreamless state. I continue going through the motions of hunting, always hurrying back to see if Katniss was awake. The days since she had left had been dull and full of worry. The less the games distracted me, the more aware I was that I had to begin working in the mines in a mere few months. There was no other choice.

When Katniss woke, the Careers we're beginning to rise too. Everyone watching was hungry for some action, days without cannons made for a lousy games. I had become used to the capitals patterns, their one job was to keep the games interesting, never give enough time for people to linger on the lives of the tributes. The cameras focused on Katniss and Rue; an unlikely alliance. I could see it in Katniss' movements, all she saw when she looked at Rue was Prim. She gave her whatever she could, sacrificing her needs for the child's. I hoped this was all worth it, at the end of the day, I would've left the child. That's where me and Katniss differed, you had to earn my compassion, Katniss only gave it to those she thought deserved it.

All of Panem watched as the two girls plan unfolded, destroy the careers food. It was clearly a good plan, never done in the games before. The careers had a disadvantage that always proved to be disastrous when it came down to it, they had never gone hungry a day in their lives. The moment their stomachs started to grumble, they turned on each other. They were out for blood. Katniss' plan wasn't a plan to create action, it was a plan to speed up the games. She knew the ways of the games as well as I did, she knew to create action so the game makers never had to.

I joined my family around the table, thankful that I had collected enough food for us to have a stew. The days in the games were beginning seem rushed, the light was gone soon before our sun had even set. The game makers were desperate for the action to begin. My mother broke our families silence, "Katniss is close enough to win this thing."

I nodded solemnly, not wanting to think about what it would take to get her home. My mother continued without waiting for anyone to reply, "She's made it so far, I reckon they'll send reporters soon to interview the family. Maybe even you Gale."

My mind raced, hurrying to wrap my head around what she had just said to me. I thought about speaking for all of Panem to hear. There were thousands of things I could say, but I knew the only way to stay alive was to keep it light and airy. Speak nothing of feelings. For the first time, I wondered how Katniss had done her interview so well, she had shared exactly the right amount. My mind began to settle, knowing by the time they were here, I'd know what to say.

I settled into my makeshift bed on the couch, hoping to find a deep sleep tonight. Since the moment she left, I'd slept lightly, waiting for her to need me. I'd only slept like this once before. We'd been hunting all day, trying to get enough food as winter settled in around us. Katniss and I were just becoming friends, sharing food instead of fighting for it. We wandered through the woods, looking for any game that we could find. A large tree was a in front of us, one of its branches was wound with a shimmering wire. Katniss and I knew how much we could sell it for, enough to make the winter just a little bit warmer. Katniss easily scaled the branches to the wire, pulling at it. Trying to unweave it from the branch. Then, she moved suddenly, slipping on the ice coated on the branch. She fell from the tree onto the ground. I carried her the whole way home, knowing something was wrong with her ankle. When we made it into her small house, her mother carefully began to examine the swollen ankle. Katniss had passed out from the pain.

I refused to leave. I slept with my head on the table, knowing if she needed me I'd be there. I woke to her voice calling my name. When our eyes connected, we both smiled nervously, as though it was our first time meeting. Now, sitting on my couch with Katniss hundreds of miles away from me, I understood what that look meant. It meant that our relationship had changed. We'd been running away from that change for years, but we both loved each other.
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The morning of the games was filled with Rue and Katniss preparing their plan. I figured I had enough time to hunt. I ran out the door, hurrying to the woods; not wanting to miss any of Katniss' plan. Most of the snares were full, giving me an easy day ahead of me. I reset each one with the hands of a hunter, it was perfectly blended with the nature around it. I finished my round, heading straight for the hob. As I entered, the screen focused on Katniss. She grabbed three arrows, the most she would ever sacrifice. One. The arrow pierced a bag of apples, lightly tearing it. Two. The bag open more, ready to release the apples. Three. The apples slowly rolled out... hitting the mines hidden in the ground. The explosion was deafening. Nothing that had ever been done before. The cameras give little attention to Katniss, still on the ground from impact. The careers are the stars of the narrative today. They know the only thing that sound could be, their supplies. I continued my way through the hob, knowing that Katniss would wake in time to get away. She had to. I traded for the bare essentials, knowing with the few amount of tributes left, I'd have less time to go into the woods.

My days without Katniss were dull, I just was fighting to keep both of us alive. An impossible job when you can't help the person you love at all. So, I kept my promise. I fed her family well. That was all I could do, my days were spend watching the games and hunting. Usually, I'd give more time to my siblings. Joining them in their games. I'd go to school. I'd spend time with Katniss. But, now I was on survival mode. I just needed to keep going.

When I settled in front of the television, Rue's screams were being broadcasted for the entire world to hear. Screaming for her savior, Katniss. In my heart, I knew it was to late, the boy had caught her. Katniss was simply running into a trap. But, she would never abandon someone who reminded her so much of Prim. The girls feet had barely touched the ground when the spear had left his hand. He never had accounted for Katniss to have a weapon, a weapon that would pierce his heart. Katniss didn't even pause to look at the boy who's life she had just taken. She simply leaned over the child. I kept my eyes down, feeling that the moment was to personal to watch. Quietly, Katniss began to sing, unlocking a memory I had never seen before.

Music class was taught by one of the merchants daughter's when we were young. She only could be away from the store for an hour, so she taught all of the young children together. Every music day, they pushed us into a room to small for the amount of us and she would sing with us. One particular day, she asked about a song. A song I had never heard of, only one girl in the entire room had. Her hand shot up eagerly. The moment my memories showed me her face, I knew it was a young Katniss. Her one braid was split into two and she wore a red dress with matching bows at the end of her braids. Anyone would've mistaken her softness for Prim if they weren't such opposites physically. The girl in my memories and Katniss sang the song with ease, the older Katniss having a catch in her voice. When the cannon blasted, I knew it was for Rue. Katniss choked out the last line, cradling the girls face in her lap.

She rose, staying close enough the hovercraft couldn't come collect the bodies. She collected flowers and surrounded the small girl with them, hiding her wound, making her look whole again. I couldn't watch anymore, it was to personal to them. I walked slowly to the seam, hoping to miss the results of Katniss' work. As I entered the hob, I knew I had made it in time to watch. Katniss pressed three fingers delicately to her lips, holding them up for Panem to see. In unison, the hidden merchant class of the seam surrounding me, did the same. We returned the gesture to her. I hoped all of Panem had done the same, I hoped they all had honored the girl that was killed by a cruel world.

As everyone around me continued with their actions, a merchant and I made eye contact. I had never seen him before but he looked like anyone else in the seam. Carefully he slid up his sleeve to reveal a message burned into his skin "the odds were never in our favor". I reconnected my eyes to his and nodded. My hate for the capitol flared, thinking of all the people that were killed by their cruelty. As Greasy Sae pulled me to her stall, I tried to lose the words that felt printed on my brain, "We're making a collection bin for that girl of yours. We want to send her a gift."

Without even pausing to consider, I dropped as many coins as I could spare into the cup. It was already almost full, the seam had a love for the girl on fire. Anytime the reporters spoke of Katniss, they called her the girl on fire. My mind once again displayed the words burned onto the man, she wasn't a fire yet; she was simply a spark. Someone had to play their cards quite well for her to become a fire.