#weekly installments

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Madge hugged her legs to her chest and turned towards the sky. The pale rays of the sun’s first light kissed her cheeks, flooding her spirit with warmth.

Next to her, Gale stretched his long legs, settling himself comfortably on the flat rock ledge where he’d taken her on their first visit to the woods.

A small smile turned up his lips as he gazed at the horizon.

She still didn’t know what had made him invite her to the woods on that warm summer night or why he had decided to ask her again, but whatever it was, she was grateful for it.

Madge had spent years wanting to go under the fence. She had always been curious about the world which lay so close to her and yet was so out of reach.

She had considered asking Katniss if she could come along more than once, but she knew her friend didn’t visit the woods for fun. Katniss needed to hunt and gather to feed her family, she didn’t have time to take Madge out on a tour.

Come to think of it, neither did Gale. Between his job at the mine, and his missing partner he was probably busier than he’d ever been. Still, the idea had come from him so, who was she to argue?

“I could come out here every day,” she sighed.

“Yeah, me too. I think this is the only place where I can really breathe.”

As if to prove his point, Gale took a deep breath. Madge watched the slow rise and fall of his chest and mimicked his motions; filling her lungs with the smell of damp earth and ripe berries that clung to the air.

A comfortable silence settled over them. Madge relaxed onto the rock and looked around as she tried to take it all in; the murmur of the distant stream, the reflection of the sun on the leaves, the rustling of birds’ wings.

“So, what’s the plan for today?” she asked.

Gale cocked his head. “Plan?”

“Yeah. Are you going to hunt, gather, fish…” she trailed off uncertainly.

“I should check my snares,” he said, pointing somewhere behind him. “I haven’t been out here all week, they’re probably full. Wanna come with?”

Madge’s eyes widened, but her face remained neutral. “Sure, lead the way.”

The next few hours went by quickly as they walked along narrow paths. Gale’s silent footsteps left a trail of prints Madge used as she followed.

Whenever they stopped, Madge held her breath and watched, mesmerized. For someone so rough and surly, Gale was surprisingly gentle when it came to the wires and hooks he used in his snares. The delicate dance of his long fingers as he released his pray, while efficiently resetting his traps, captivated her.

They were already walking back to the district with a full hunting bag and the relentless summer sun warming their backs when she asked, “What’s it like down there?”

Gale stopped short and turned around. His eyes were dark as lead. “You’ve taken the tour. Haven’t you?”

“Of course, I have,” she answered, still surprised at herself for bringing the subject up. “But I’m not stupid enough to believe that what they show us on those visits is the actual truth.”

Gale nodded. His eyes found hers, they were sad and pained. Madge found herself wishing she could wipe all his worries away.

With a shuddering breath, Gale explained, “It’s dark and damp. Suffocating. It’s the worst place in the world.”

Swallowing back her tears, Madge bobbed her head. She wanted to hold out her hand, stroke his cheek, comfort him in any way. But she knew he was proud. He was willing to open up to her, but that didn’t mean he was ready to accept her comfort.

Straightening up, Gale cocked his head towards the fence. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah.”

Gale stepped to the side and motioned for her to catch up to him.

They walked in silence for a while, side by side as they made their way back to the district.

They were about to go under the fence when Madge spoke again.  “Thanks for bringing me out here.”

Gale smiled, it was warm and bright, the joyful kind of smile she’d only seen him use when he was around Posy.  

“Anytime, Madge,” he said, using her name for the very first time.

XXXXX

The loud howls of angry mutts filled the town square.

Gale watched with baited breath as Katniss and her district partner ran madly through the woods.

Next to him, Prim found comfort in her mother’s arms while a stoic Madge wrapped her arms around herself to keep the biting cold from seeping into her bones as she followed the transmission.

The dark night stretched on as Katniss, Peeta, and everyone else in Panem waited for Cato to die.

Quietly, almost instinctively, Gale leaned his weight towards Madge’s side, gently resting his arm against her shoulder. Her body stiffened with surprise, but she didn’t pull away. Relaxing into his touch, she accepted his warmth and comfort instead.

“You ok?” he whispered into her ear as Cato’s pitiful whimpers rang through the loudspeakers.

Keeping her eyes on the screen, Madge shook her head. “I’ll be ok when they’re back home,” she admitted.

After what felt like an eternity, Katniss decided to take the arrow from Peeta’s leg and use it to put their last rival out of his misery.

Gale watched, his body as tense as the string on Katniss’s bow, while his hunting partner aimed straight at Cato’s heart.

The parting words he’d told her in the justice building rang in Gale’s ears. You know how to kill.

He honestly hadn’t believed that killing a few kids to stay alive would be any different from killing the animals in the woods. But now, watching the anguish reflected in Katniss’s eyes as she followed her arrow’s trajectory, he knew he’d been wrong.

Cato died.

A ripple of nervous energy ran through the town square as Panem waited for the Game to end.

Katniss and Peeta abandoned the cornucopia and reached the stream.

As seconds stretched into minutes, Madge’s words bounced against the walls of Gale’s skull filling him with dread. Wait until they revert the rules and tell them that only one of them can survive.

As if hearing his thoughts, Madge slid her hand into Gale’s and gave it a light squeeze. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her forehead, wrinkled in worry as she waited for the Game makers to make their next move. He squeezed back.

Declare them victors, he pleaded silently.

Claudius Templesmith’s voice came crackling through the loudspeakers, “The earlier revision has been revoked. Closer examination of the rulebook has disclosed that only one victor may be allowed.”

The entire crowd gasped.

Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark argued on the screen, neither of them willing to let the other one die.

With mounting dread, Gale tightened his hold on Madge’s hand; impatiently waiting for the tributes to make up their minds. He didn’t dare look in Prim’s direction. He was much too afraid of the sorrow in her eyes.

Finally, Katniss pulled out a handful of poisonous berries and dropped it on Peeta’s waiting hand.

A cold chill ran along Gale’s back as he saw his hunting partner popping the dark fruit into her mouth. He could see her eyes closing as she got ready to say her last goodbye.

Claudius Templesmith’s frantic voice broke through the sound of blaring trumpets, “Stop! Stop! Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to present the victors of the Seventy-Fourth Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen, and Peeta Mellark. I give you –the tributes of District 12!”

The crowd gathered around the town square erupted in cheers.

Without even thinking, Gale pulled on Madge’s hand, bringing her into his embrace. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and buried his face in her hair.

She laughed, trembling like a leaf in his arms. “They made it!” she whispered excitedly into his chest. “They’re coming home!”

Gale nodded. His hunting partner was safe, and she would soon be back where she belonged.

Smiling, he pulled back just enough to look into Madge’s eyes. The happiness he saw reflected in them matched his own, but there was an edge of uncertainty there which made him pause.

They had spent weeks worrying about Katniss, wishing for her safety, hoping she’d come back. Well, she was finally on her way. She was a victor now, and she wasn’t coming alone.

As he looked into Madge’s deep blue eyes, Gale realized he wasn’t alone either. Somehow, Madge had ended up in his arms. She had wiggled her way into his mind and his heart, and he wasn’t willing to let her go.

Slowly, he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss on her temple. “They’re coming home,” he repeated with a smile.

The world around him continued its celebration. Gale closed his eyes for an instant, allowing the happiness of the moment to run through his veins.

Something momentous had just happened, to his country, to his life.