Title: Happy Birthday, Katniss

Summary: Missing moment fic set during Catching Fire. Gale, Prim, Madge, and Peeta plan a surprise birthday party for Katniss. Here's what happens at the party and afterward. G/M, K/P, G/K.

Characters/Pairings: Gale/Madge, Katniss/Peeta, Gale/Katniss, Everdeens, Hawthornes, Haymitch.

Rating/Warnings: Teen. Swearing and alcohol use.

Disclaimer: This is fanfiction; by definition I'm just playing with SC's lovely characters. (Shhh, don't tell Gale and Katniss I called them lovely.)

Author's Note: This is something I've had lying around on my hard drive since about February... I had to take a break from fanfiction for a while, but polished this up as a way of easing back into writing. Basically, it's a continuation of my "Saturday Night in the Seam" and "Tuesday Night in Town" stories, though I don't think it's necessary to read those first (just be aware that Gale and Madge have a somewhat awkward, unresolved history together, and talked about planning a birthday party for Katniss).

Gale walked swiftly down the road toward the Victor's Village, trying to stick to the shadows to avoid attracting Peacekeeper attention. He was late for the party. Foreman Jerkoff Shipped In From Some Other District kept their crew after-hours to meet the ever-increasing quota, without overtime pay of course since they "should have" met the (impossible) quota during their shift. Then Gale had to stop at home to change into soot-free clothes and pick up the gift. He never wore his mining clothes to Katniss's new house. And he refused to show up to this party empty-handed.

Skipping every other step on Katniss's porch, he paused before barging in. Through the large front window he could see everyone seated at the dining room table already. His family and Katniss's family, like all the old birthday parties they'd celebrated in the Seam, only now with more food, even more dire circumstances, and the (unwelcome) additions of Peeta, Haymitch, and Madge.

When he pushed open the front door, Katniss turned around in her seat first, her face breaking into a relieved smile. Posy leapt out of her chair and ran over for a flying hug. He hid his wince as he lifted her. Every muscle in his body ached after that shift.

"Sorry I'm late." Gale set Posy down and walked toward the table. "Long shift."

"Just glad you're here," Katniss said. Thankfully, she seemed more relaxed than during her training sessions with Peeta and Haymitch.

Mrs. Everdeen stood and moved toward the kitchen. "We have a plate in the oven for you, Gale."

He noticed for the first time that everyone seemed to be finished with dinner, which meant he was even later than he thought. Great. Even better: there were no extra chairs. Peeta and Madge both jumped to their feet at the same time, offering him their chairs. They were seated on either side of Katniss, and while he was glad they recognized that he deserved to sit next to Katniss rather than either of them, he didn't like the idea of them getting credit for being the "considerate" friends while he was the "show up late" friend. But he pushed the feeling aside and took Peeta's chair with a nod and a grunt. Displacing Bread Boy for one meal was hardly payback for Peeta displacing Gale from Katniss's life, but at least it meant Peeta wouldn't be next to Katniss tonight.

"Peeta, you can have my seat," Madge offered. "I'm going to tidy up in the kitchen."

"I'll help you," Peeta said quickly and then they proceeded to debate which of them would clean, which Gale tuned out. Finally they both disappeared, much to Gale's relief. Less Peeta was always a good thing, and life was easier if he didn't have to think about Madge.

"Happy Birthday, Prim-squeak," Gale called down the table to Prim, triggering her to giggle and roll her eyes at Rory, who shook his head in commiseration before they returned to whatever conversation Gale's arrival had interrupted. Their chatter seemed to cue the others to start talking again as well, with Haymitch picking up on a story he'd apparently been telling to Gale's mom and Vick and Posy about how one of the vacant Victor's Village homes was haunted.

"You too, Catnip," Gale added in a quieter tone for Katniss. "Happy birthday."

She scrunched up her nose at him. "I should be mad at you for this party. I'm only okay with it because it's for Prim, too."

"I figured," he said, smiling in thanks as Mrs. Everdeen set a warm plate of heavenly-smelling meat—beef? Steak!—in front of him. "It was Prim's idea, and letting it be for her too was a compromise we worked out." Prim had been easy to convince to share the spotlight after Gale pointed out that a party where Katniss would be the sole focus was last thing her sister would enjoy. "So. Were you surprised?"

"Yes," Katniss hissed, apparently still annoyed at having been caught off-guard, which made him regret even more that he'd been late. "Prim and I went into town to pick up the supplies from the train station and when we got back… Everyone was here. Well, everyone except you."

He took a bite of steak and smiled smugly, glad he'd been missed. The meat was perfection and for a moment he couldn't even respond to Katniss because he was so focused on the flavors. By rights he should have hated the meal, paid for with Katniss's victor winnings and no doubt the result of slave labor in another district, but he hadn't eaten anything since choking down an undersized, stale tesserae loaf on his lunch break more than seven hours ago.

While he ate, Katniss told him about the new training drills she and Peeta had been working on over the past week. It meant having to hear more about Peeta than Gale was in the mood for, but Katniss seemed to be encouraged at the progress they were making and didn't even complain as much as she usually did about Haymitch. He took that as a sign that the party had put her in a good mood, which was all he'd really hoped the evening would accomplish. Maybe give her a few happy memories for motivation when she was in the arena…

It didn't take Gale long to finish eating, and as though on cue, the second he pushed his plate away the lights in the dining room flipped off. He was momentarily confused—the lights went out in the Seam, not in the Victor's Village—until he noticed the glowing candles sitting atop a large cake being carried by Peeta. The candle lights gave Peeta's face an ethereal glow, making him look like one of those cartoon angels on the TV shows Posy watched when the electricity was on. Mrs. E and Madge followed behind Peeta, carrying plates and ice cream.

The two moms started singing the birthday song, joined enthusiastically by Posy, Peeta, and Madge. Rory and Vick mumbled along, clearly attempting to avoid being rude but not wanting to get caught singing. Haymitch seemed to subscribe to Gale's policy of No Singing, Ever, and sat back in his chair with an appraising look at the cake.

Peeta set the cake down in front of Katniss and said quietly, "Happy Birthday, Katniss." He'd strategically approached her from the side Gale wasn't on, meaning Gale couldn't "accidentally" shove the guy. Instead he clenched his teeth at the intimate tone Peeta used with Katniss and the fact that even in the candlelight it was obvious she was blushing. She hadn't colored in the slightest when Gale wished her a happy birthday—she'd scolded him. Which was normal and he was glad for that at least, but seeing her act goopy around Peeta was nothing short of nauseating.

Gale stood up and gestured Prim over to his seat so she could be next to Katniss and blow the candles out, too. The two sisters counted to three and then jointly blew, extinguishing every single flame. Everyone cheered while Prim whispered something to Katniss and they hugged tightly. It wasn't hard to guess what Prim had wished for. Gale could see Mrs. E biting her lip in an effort not to cry, and was grateful when Madge stepped forward to start cutting the cake.

"Who wants a corner piece?" Madge asked brightly, raising her eyebrows at the younger kids, who were pushing to get closer to the cake.

"I want a big corner piece," Vick said breathlessly.

Gale tugged him back before any drool fell on the cake. "Katniss and Prim get the first pieces since it's their party." He squeezed Vick's shoulder and then leaned down to whisper, "but there are four corners so your odds are good."

"Wait!" Katniss shouted as Madge held the knife above the cake. "I want to look at it first." To Gale's extreme annoyance, Katniss stared at the cake like it was prey she was tracking and then started blushing again. She glanced at Peeta, who shoved his hands into his pockets and looked at the floor, but Gale could see that he was hiding a smile. Gale tried not to sigh out loud. Their dynamic was getting tedious—each pretending that all they cared about was their training schedule, while secretly casting longing looks at one another when they thought they wouldn't get caught. He doubted Katniss even realized she was doing it. And Gale wasn't about to say anything to her about it, so he just pretended not to notice, either.

Katniss leaned over to inspect the complex, multi-colored swirled mass of frosting, and was joined by the others. Soon there was a running commentary on the intricate patterns and people couldn't stop asking Peeta about how he made the colors and what tools he used. Gale pointedly looked at the ceiling, the wall, anywhere but the stupid cake. A cake was for eating, not for art. He noticed Madge watching him while she waited for the cake ogling to wrap up. She shot him a sympathetic smile so he narrowed his eyes at her. He didn't need her sympathy, and worse, he didn't need her understanding that he was annoyed at the cake worshipping session.

Peeta also seemed uncomfortable with all the praise being heaped on him. "It didn't take that long," he protested. "I'm sure Madge spent more time making the decorations." He pointed to the ceiling and windows, which were adorned with a cheerful rainbow of streamers. Gale hadn't noticed them before: brightly colored, delicate papers twisted and draped throughout the room. Even the chairs were decorated.

"It looks beautiful, dear," Gale's mom said warmly to Madge, who blushed and stammered her thanks.

After what seemed like forever, Katniss finally finished memorizing the damn cake and let Madge start slicing. As his siblings crowded around her, Gale stepped away from the table and leaned against the dining room wall, distantly observing the scene. The mood in Katniss's house had—understandably—been strained and tense ever since the Quarter Quell announcement, and he was grateful for the elevated atmosphere this evening. Sometimes the constant babbling and high spirits of his brothers and sister were a blessing. Katniss's shoulders weren't tense for the first time in weeks, and she even laughed at Posy's re-enactment of one of their Seam neighbors discovering a snake in his coal bin.

Gale watched Madge slide generous slices of cake onto plates. She was wearing a light blue sundress, and whenever she shifted to hand someone a plate he could see the outline of her bra under the thin fabric. He wondered if it was the blue one he'd seen in her bedroom. From his spot on the wall, he had the perfect vantage point to check her out without raising any suspicion; he was far enough away that he just appeared to be watching the scene at the table, and everyone else was occupied with conversation and cake. Watching Madge was an indulgence and he rarely got opportunities as good as this; usually he had to be careful that no one else, especially not Madge herself, noticed. He didn't want to encourage her, but that didn't mean he couldn't appreciate how she looked when it was safe.

Suddenly Madge twisted around, apparently scanning the room, and stopped when she spotted him. It was enough time for him to make sure his eyes weren't on her ass and he just gazed coolly back at her. Seconds later, she approached and held out a slice of a cake for him.

"No thanks." He kept his arms crossed and didn't move an inch from his reclined position against the wall. "Not a big fan of bakery products lately."

Madge shoved the plate into his chest, which kind of hurt, but he didn't unfold his arms. "It's a small piece," she said. "Minimal frosting." She smiled, but her tone had a threatening undercurrent.

He ignored the cake plate stabbing him and stared back at Madge. Her eyes were even brighter than he remembered and there were more faint freckles over the bridge of her nose, suggesting she'd been spending time outside. Lucky her. Beyond the sugary sweetness of the cake, he could smell Madge herself and whatever expensive soap she used. He didn't want her to move away, and studied her, pondering the strangeness of knowing so many unexpected things about her. Like how her bathroom was overrun with all those shampoo bottles and that she wore brightly colored bras and kept stuffed animals on her bed. Her differences from him made her seem like an unfamiliar animal that he needed more time to observe.

"No one will believe you aren't hungry," she warned in a low tone, jabbing him again with the plate. "Do not cause a scene."

But forest animals didn't give him grief the way Madge Undersee did. He smoothly grabbed the plate and pushed himself off the wall. "You're the one causing a scene," he whispered in her ear as he brushed past her and plopped into the nearest chair at the table. He knew he'd flustered her, and took pride in the awareness that she was trying to compose herself before returning to the table.

He stabbed his fork into the cake slice a few times before taking a bite.

#

Gale managed to lure Katniss onto the front porch after the rest of his family went home. Posy's inevitable post-cake sugar crash had led her to fall asleep on the sofa, which triggered the winding down of the party. Peeta and Madge, still competing for Most Helpful Suckup, stayed to help wash dishes, giving Gale the opportunity to get Katniss alone. Haymitch had bailed long ago.

"Prim said no presents," Katniss protested when Gale held out the small package he'd hastily wrapped in brown parcel paper.

"You know me and rules," he said, glad when Katniss gave him one of her old knowing smiles. Besides, Peeta made that monstrosity of a cake for her.

Katniss ripped open the wrapping and immediately gasped. She turned the figurine over in her hands a few times, looking at it from every angle and running her fingers along its edges.

"It's the lynx," she breathed.

Gale let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He'd been working on the carving for so long, and last week as he was sanding it, he worried she'd think it was Buttercup. He'd trimmed even more length off its tail to be sure.

Katniss gave a half laugh. "Do you remember that day he surprised us by the abandoned mine? You screamed."

"Did not." It was more of a manly shout—the damn cat came out of nowhere—not that he'd even admit that much to Katniss. His theory was that if he kept denying it she'd eventually think she was the one misremembering the day.

"If we hadn't killed him, he'd back me up. You screamed, Gale Hawthorne."

He rolled his eyes in a good-natured way, but inwardly wondered why giving her the carving wasn't going the way he'd hoped. She was supposed to be moved, and to remember that the lynx was why he started calling her Catnip. Then he'd whisper "Catnip" and she'd finally want to kiss him… She wasn't supposed to tease him about the one time he'd ever… vocalized his surprise.

Katniss sighed. "I miss it. Hunting. The forest." She looked up at him, sadness etched into her features.

"Me too," he said. "I miss… everything." He missed her. The way she used to be before the Capitol started clawing her apart, inside and out.

Katniss studied the lynx in her hands, turning it over and over. "They'll shut the fence off again, Gale. You'll get out there soon enough, after all this dies down…"

"We'll get out there again," he corrected, only to see Katniss flinch. Was she upset at the prospect of losing Peeta? Or worse: the knowledge that she'd die to ensure Peeta's survival? That no matter what, she wasn't coming back?

He wanted to remind her that she'd done it before—gotten both of them out of the arena—but the words would be hollow. They both knew the Capitol wouldn't let that happen again. He also suspected Katniss wouldn't admit to him if she intended to sacrifice herself for Peeta, that she thought it would be too cruel to him and to her mother and sister to not act like she would give everything she had to come home to them. It was her gift to them that he couldn't take away, even though it pissed him off—it felt like one more thing she wasn't talking to him about, like before the Victory Tour. But obviously fighting with her about it wouldn't be a comfort, and he knew better than anyone that if she had her mind set on something then tough luck for whoever had other ideas. He just wasn't used to not having the same goals as Katniss.

Gale looked out over the lawn spanning the Victor's Village houses and then leaned forward on the porch, struggling to stop himself from pointlessly yelling at the injustice of it all — that would only upset her even more. Being quiet together was what Katniss liked best and he could do that for her now even if inside he was boiling.

He noticed a figure walking across the lawn toward Peeta's house. Katniss saw the person, too, and called out when the guy started banging on Peeta's front door.

"We're over here!"

The person turned around and Gale recognized him as Emery Mellark, Peeta's middle brother. He'd been in Gale's class at school, and Gale's new anti-bakery policy definitely extended to Emery. Like this night hadn't been frustrating enough, now he had to get a double dose of Mellarks.

Katniss opened the door to her house and hollered for Peeta. He came out, wiping his hands on his shirt. "What's up?" When he spotted his brother approaching, he hurried forward.

Emery paused on the lowest step. "Mom's freaking out, Peeta. She wants to see you…" He glanced uneasily at Katniss. "Uh, happy birthday, Katniss."

Katniss nodded in acknowledgment and then crossed the porch to Peeta. They shared a look that made Gale's stomach clench. He had to turn away, only to see Madge, Prim and Mrs. E watching anxiously from the doorway. Prim and Mrs. E had their eyes on Katniss and Peeta, but Madge was staring at Gale. He waited for her to look away in embarrassment at having been caught, but she didn't. He didn't like that she could see how obvious it was that he and everyone else knew that Katniss didn't like him in the same way she felt about Peeta, and that he was a bastard for even trying to gain Katniss's undivided affection tonight when she and Peeta were facing death in the area. He ended up having to look away from Madge first, which made him even angrier.

Turning his eyes back to Katniss and Peeta, he didn't like what he saw: they stood too close together, probably not even consciously, and were holding a whispered conversation. Seconds later, Peeta turned back to Mrs. E.

"I'm sorry I can't stay and help clean up longer—"

"Go," Mrs. E urged. "Go see your mother."

Peeta gave a tight nod. "Later, Prim, Madge." He turned to Gale. "See ya." Then he took off with his brother. Katniss watched them recede into the darkness.

Peeta's departure seemed to truly mark the end of the party. Katniss walked straight into the house and immediately started helping with the cleanup, so Gale trailed behind her. There wasn't much left to do—Madge and Mrs. E were washing and drying the dishes, Prim was wiping down the counters, and Katniss had started violently sweeping. Useless at comforting her where Peeta was involved, Gale took the garbage outside and then decided to call it a night. When he poked his head back in the front door to announce his departure, Katniss just waved distractedly and said she'd see him the next time he was free.

As he left, he spotted the wooden lynx on the porch railing, abandoned with the sudden arrival of Peeta's brother. It would embarrass Katniss if he took it back inside—she wouldn't want him to know she'd forgotten it—so he just jogged down the stairs and started walking back to the Seam.

He knew Peeta's mom was a piece of work, but he'd made such a point of avoiding the bakery since Katniss and Peeta won the Hunger Games that he realized he had no idea how Mrs. Mellark was dealing with her son's return to the arena. Not well, apparently. And she was such a manipulative shrew, she didn't seem to mind prioritizing her own comfort above her son's. Gale felt a swell of appreciation for his own mother and picked up his pace to get home.

A wheezing, hacking sound shot out from the porch of the house he was passing. Gale slowed and in the dim light saw Haymitch sitting on the porch with his feet up on the railing, recovering from a cough. Gale could see a familiar green-hued bottle in his hand.

"Thought you weren't drinking anymore," Gale said as he approached.

"Special occasion. There was a party tonight, you know."

Fighting irritation on Katniss's behalf that Haymitch was cheating on their training regimen, Gale thought about stomping up the stairs and knocking the bottle out of Haymitch's dirty hands. Then he realized that if Haymitch was boozing it up he might not be as tight-lipped as usual. Gale climbed the stairs, yanked one of the porch chairs a good distance away from Haymitch, and threw himself into it.

Haymitch barely reacted. After a few seconds he raised the bottle to his lips, took a long drink, and then, without looking at Gale, held it across the empty chair in offering.

Gale accepted the bottle and took a sip. He recognized the burning liquid instantly as Ripper's brew, and smiled into the darkness at the knowledge that she'd found another location for her still after the raid. Haymitch didn't ask for the bottle back, and merely stared out into the darkness of the Victor's Village lawn. The silence wasn't exactly companionable—Gale didn't like Haymitch and suspected the feeling was mutual—but tonight had been about Katniss and that focus carried over to Haymitch's porch.

Once Gale had built up his own liquid numbness, he spoke into the darkness. "She's trying to save him, isn't she?"

"Do you even need to ask?"

What he needed was to hear Haymitch confirm it. Haymitch, who knew more about Katniss's secrets these days than Gale. He took another long gulp from the bottle.

"What're you gonna do about it when they're in there?" Gale asked. Because obviously Peeta intended to sacrifice himself for Katniss. (Fat lot of good that would do—Peeta Mellark against other victors was a pitiful joke.) But if they both intended for the other to win, that put more in Haymitch's hands than Gale would have liked. "Which one are you helping?"

"Both," Haymitch growled.

Gale snorted. "Katniss could actually win." Haymitch had to know that as clearly as Gale did.

"At what cost?" Haymitch shot back. "And how is that winning? I won. She already won once. It occur to you that maybe winning twice would be twice as great as all this?" Haymitch swept his hand out to the rest of the Victor's Village sarcastically.

Gale kicked the porch railing in furious agreement and took another drink.

#

Madge drained the last of her tea and reached across the table to grasp Katniss's hand. "They'll get her to bed. It will be fine."

Katniss glanced out the window again, checking if Peeta's lights were on yet. "Whenever she does this, it rattles him for days."

"You'll do your training tomorrow, distract him… I'm sure the routine helps." It helped Madge whenever her own mother acted up. Usually Mrs. Undersee just slept after taking morphling, but occasionally she'd go on what Madge called a "rambling rampage." Most of what Madge knew about her mother, her aunt Maysilee, and Haymitch Abernathy came from overhearing those episodes. But Mrs. Mellark's outbursts were most likely intended to change Peeta's mind about sacrificing himself to save Katniss in the arena. The only effect they had was to make Peeta's remaining days in District 12 filled with even more guilt and anxiety.

Katniss sighed and looked so drained, Madge thought the best thing would be to let her friend get some sleep. She stood up and retrieved her shawl from the back of the sofa where she'd left it. Katniss stood too.

"Thanks again for the party, Madge. The decorations are really pretty."

Madge smiled. "If there's one thing I've learned from my mother, it's how to decorate for a party." The Undersee women were skilled at making despair look good.

Katniss walked her to the door, and as they were saying good-bye, picked up a little wooden animal toy on the porch railing. Looking worried, Katniss glanced around the yard and back into her house. Madge waited for her to explain what was wrong, but Katniss just hurriedly hugged her and darted back inside. One more mystery Madge was utterly useless to solve.

Setting off on the road to town, Madge tried not to think about the upcoming Quell, even though that's all the Victor's Village reminded her of these days. The party had gone well, and it was a beautiful, cool May evening. That's what she needed to focus on. One good day was as much as any of them could ask for, and she'd take what she could get. But as she hugged her shawl closer to her shoulders, she couldn't help worrying again about Peeta. Parents should support their children, not make already difficult circumstances even harder for them. She wondered if she could get her own mother to talk to Mrs. Mellark. Madge's mother was very particular about which town women she spent time with, and Raye Mellark was decidedly not on her preferred list, but maybe the shared hardship brought on by the Hunger Games could bridge that gap...

As Madge approached Haymitch's house, she spotted him sitting on the bottom step of his porch. Or rather, a skinnier version of him. On closer inspection, she saw that it was Gale, not Haymitch. He was looking down the road that led to town, sitting so still it made Madge wonder if that's what he looked like when hunting in the forest. Like he could spring into action at any moment. But why was Gale hanging around at Haymitch's house? As far as she knew, they didn't particularly care for one another, probably because neither restrained their snide comments. Madge considered them both living proof of why manners were valuable in society.

When Madge paused at the path to the house, Gale turned his focus to her but didn't say anything or stand up from where he was parked on the bottom step. Madge shifted her weight from one foot to the other awkwardly and finally broke the silence. "What are you doing here? Is Haymitch all right?"

Gale used the railing to pull himself up, moving stiffly rather than with his usual smoothness. "Is he ever all right?" He glanced back toward the house. "He's sleeping it off."

Madge felt her face twisting into one of her mother's disapproving expressions. "He wasn't supposed to be drinking during training." What a typically jerky Haymitch maneuver. The man could not be trusted for anything! And why hadn't Gale stopped him? Gale cared about the training as much as anyone.

Glaring at her, Gale just said curly, "Does it really matter?" Still gripping the porch railing tightly, he waved his free arm in the air and kept talking. "He'll be fine tomorrow. They won't know. He'll be fine. Tomorrow."

"What are you doing here?" she repeated.

He shrugged. "Waiting." Then he glanced down the road to town again as if he expected someone to appear.

Madge suddenly figured it out. "For Peeta?" Did Gale want to talk to Peeta away from the party? Maybe even fight with Peeta? She'd seen the way he'd looked when Katniss and Peeta had spoken just before Peeta had left to see his mother; Gale had to be aware that whatever was between Katniss and Peeta wasn't purely for the Games. But fighting Peeta was a horrible idea, and would totally alienate Katniss, which Gale must surely understand…

"I was not waiting for that Frosting Freak." Gale took an unsteady step away from the porch railing and glared at Madge. He swayed as he walked toward her and Madge realized that Haymitch had apparently been in a generous mood. If Gale had been drinking, maybe he really did mean to fight with Peeta.

Gale stumbled on a clump of weeds in the path and had to grab Madge to stabilize himself.

"You smell like Haymitch," she accused, leaning closer to confirm. The unmistakable odor of white liquor wafted off Gale.

"You smell like Madge," he mumbled, swaying again and putting his head near hers. Was he smelling her hair? He was. And his hands had moved from gripping her shoulders for balance to exploring her hair. Madge immediately felt her heart start to pound at his proximity and the fact that he seemed to be acting on his attraction to her.

Just a few houses away from Katniss's house.

When he was clearly not himself.

She gently pushed him away.

"Let's go somewhere," he murmured, closing the distance between them again. He slid his hand onto her waist and squeezed. "I know a lot of good places where no one will be right now…"

"I think you should go home." Madge removed his hand from her waist and took a step backward.

Gale suddenly swiveled and stumbled back to Haymitch's porch. He returned holding a bottle triumphantly in the air. "Come on," he said, grabbing Madge's hand and tugging her toward the pathway to town. "Nobody'll be at the slag heap this time of night."

He grinned at her, and Madge snatched her hand back. Then she reached across his chest, plucked Haymitch's bottle out of his hands, and poured its contents out.

"Hey!" Gale tried to stop her, but he was too late. "That wasn't yours!"

"This stuff is addictive," Madge scolded. She walked the bottle back over to Haymitch's porch and set it down. She didn't like the idea of alcohol under any circumstances after seeing what it had done to Haymitch, but she was particularly frustrated with it tonight because Gale would never normally come on to her like this. It was an infuriating reminder that he had to be drunk to want to kiss her. She was just another one of those girls he was always taking to the slag heap.

"I don't need to worry about getting addicted," Gale fumed. "I can't even afford one bottle. And when I finally get one… You… you waste it!"

"There was barely anything left," Madge corrected. "I'd say most of it is in your body." And maybe Haymitch's.

He glared at her and poked a finger at her chest, but missed and hit her collarbone. "You know, Madge, not all of us are rich enough to buy that stuff whenever we want. Maybe your family can, but the rest of us... can't afford to be addicted."

Madge froze, wondering if he suspected anything about her mother… He'd seen the massive stash of morphling in their bathroom… But Gale seemed preoccupied with being mad at her, and too fuzzy-brained to make the connection.

When he opened his mouth to start another rant, she quickly covered his mouth with her hand. He blinked in confusion.

"You're drunk," Madge hissed in a whisper. "And you're causing a commotion out here. Do you want Katniss—and her mom and little sister—to see you like this?" She glanced up at Haymitch's house, and then back to the Everdeen house at the other end of the Village, but didn't see any signs of movement in either one.

Gale mumbled something, his breath hot on her hand. He'd stopped struggling and seemed to be looking at something over her shoulder. When Madge took her hand away, he said quietly, "I knew it."

Following his gaze, Madge saw two Peacekeepers marching straight toward them. She gripped Gale's arm, fighting panic. He was already known as a trouble-maker, and had been looking for a fight with Peeta tonight. This was a disaster.

"Don't talk," she whispered.

"I'm not scared of those assholes." He tried to push her out of his way and stood straighter in an attempt to make himself look larger. In his deluded state she doubted he'd think through the fact that they outweighed him by at least half of his malnourished body weight and, more importantly, were armed with deadly weapons. Gale had nothing but his endless anger.

"Problem here, miss?" one of the Peacekeepers called.

In one fluid motion, Madge turned around and looped her arm around Gale's waist. With the other hand she waved at the approaching Peacekeepers and then rested it on Gale's chest. "No problem," she said with a smile. She patted Gale's chest comfortingly, willing him to stay calm or at least be distracted by her actions.

Gale seemed surprised and turned his head to look at her. Good, he was distracted. She smiled up at him and slid her hand from his chest to his neck. His eyes widened when she slowly traced the line of his jaw to his lips.

"We heard arguing," the Peacekeeper said. The pair stopped a few feet away from Gale and Madge.

"Just a silly quarrel," Madge said sweetly. She didn't recognize either of the Peacekeepers; they must have been some of the new ones imported to enforce the security crackdown. Did they recognize her as the mayor's daughter? Gale as the district's convicted poacher? "We couldn't agree on where to go stargazing tonight."

"The Victor's Village is not for use by non-Victors," the first Peacekeeper said sternly. "Keep your stargazing activities to locations you're entitled to be."

"We were just leaving," Madge assured them. She glanced at Gale, who looked confused. Keeping her arm around him, she grabbed his elbow with her other hand. "Come on, Hon. We'll go to my house." She smiled again at the Peacekeepers as she steered Gale around the roadblock they posed in the pathway. She gripped him tightly as they passed, praying he wouldn't speak or do anything more aggressive than the glaring that came so naturally to him. And glare he did, to the point that he tripped on a rock in the road. She helped him up, and them immediately had to steer him off his lurching trajectory toward the Peacekeepers and instead drag him on the road to town.

"By the way," Madge added in a helpful tone as she turned to face to the Peacekeepers again, "We heard some rustling in that greenery at the end of the Village." She pointed to the far end, where all the vacant houses sat. She'd seen Buttercup there earlier. "I thought maybe a wild animal climbed a tree over the fence. Worth checking out."

The Peacekeepers nodded skeptically and glanced toward the collection of bushes and trees Madge had pointed to. Madge used the opportunity to push Gale farther down the road away from them. He was unsteadier than he'd been earlier and wobbled again. Closing his eyes, he clung to her for a few seconds. "Everything's spinning," he mumbled. Then he grinned and lazily reached for her hair again. "Remember… when we spun together at that dance? I thought you were gonna puke."

"I remember," she said quickly. She wanted to put some distance between them and the Peacekeepers, so she grabbed his elbow again and they resumed their stumble to her house, leaving the Peacekeepers and Victor's Village behind. She didn't talk so Gale could concentrate on walking, and, hopefully, on not throwing up—whenever Haymitch got to the spinning point, Madge knew to maintain a safe distance.

When they reached the back gate to her house, she opened it slowly so it wouldn't squeak, and then guided Gale into the backyard. It had been sunny that afternoon and the reclining lawn chairs were still set up on the lawn, so she steered Gale to the nearest one and pushed him into it. Catching her off guard, he tugged her onto the chair with him.

"Nicer than the slag heap," he mumbled. "Good thinking." He tried to kiss her, but she ducked. How had he managed to get her wedged in next to him so effectively? Did he have a natural instinct for making out in the most convenient locations available?

With half-closed eyes, Gale rested his head against the lawn chair's cushion and turned so his body aligned with hers. If it weren't for the fact that she could still smell the white liquor, she would have had a hard time working up the will to extract herself from her Gale tangle. As it was, she wanted to cry because it was so unfair. The idea of making out with him in a lawn chair in her backyard was a lot better than some of the other fantasies she'd entertained (yes, involving that disgusting slag heap—she couldn't help where her mind wandered during math class). But if he weren't drunk they wouldn't be in this position. He'd barely even talked to her at Katniss's house. Stared at her, yes, but talking he limited to jerky comments.

Madge rolled out of the lawn chair. Gale barely noticed, his eyes drooping even farther shut. "I'm going inside to get you some water," Madge announced.

Eyes closed, Gale nodded faintly. Within seconds his chin fell gently to his neck. Dozing already. Haymitch did the same thing—fell asleep practically mid-sentence once he hit a certain point. Madge sighed and went inside to get the water and to let her father know she'd made it home safely.

#

It was peaceful in a way, Madge mused, setting down the book she was not-reading and glancing over from her lawn chair to Gale in his. She'd successfully gotten him to drink some water and then covered him in a blanket. He'd been asleep since then. It was much easier to be around Gale when he was unconscious—she didn't have to worry about saying something unintentionally offensive or wonder whether he was thinking mean things about her. She had a hard time even remembering how intimidating he could be, not when he was curled in on himself in the chair, sleeping deeply. He looked more like his adorable little brothers than the scowling presence she'd grown used to over the past year.

She checked her watch and decided it was still too early for her father to finish his paperwork and come outside to collect her. When she'd gone inside for Gale's water, she'd ducked her head into her father's study, gave him a quick "Daddy, I'm home and am going to watch the stars from the backyard before going to sleep so don't worry about me!" and then vanished again. Her father didn't have the same concerns about stargazing that the Peacekeepers did; he'd nodded distractedly and barely looked up from his desk. Of course, her father didn't know that she wasn't alone.

Heavy footsteps in the alley behind her yard caused Madge to look up in alarm. Relieved to see it was Peeta rather than more Peacekeepers, she hurried over to the fence, where Peeta had stopped to look questioningly at Gale's form on the lawn chair.

"Why is Gale—?" Peeta started.

"Haymitch." Madge put on a mock serious expression and said in an exaggeratedly snooty voice, "Peeta, were you aware that Haymitch can be a bad influence on the impressionable youth of the district?" She looked over her shoulder at Gale and then turned back to Peeta and spoke normally. "I've seen my mom take care of Haymitch before, when he gets like this… With all these new Peacekeepers, letting Gale walk home in his state didn't seem like a good idea."

Peeta was still watching Gale like someone might keep an eye on a rabid dog. "I could walk him home," he offered reluctantly.

Madge shot him an Are you kidding? look, which caused Peeta to smile sheepishly.

"Yeah. Bad idea. I'm sure he'll be fine."

"How is your mom?" Madge asked.

Peeta sighed and leaned forward against the fence. He shrugged. "We got her to calm down and I promised to visit more often. Looked at old family photo albums… She kept saying how unfair it all is." He shoved his hands into the front pouch pocket of his hooded sweatshirt. "Believe me, I'm aware."

Madge couldn't think of anything comforting to say. It was beyond unfair; the Games were a travesty. Her own mother used morphling to deal with the horror, but that didn't seem like a suggestion she could make to Peeta.

"I don't understand all the fuss; she'll still have the other two," Peeta said with a wry smile.

"Don't say that," Madge said automatically. "You never know—" She stopped herself because nothing she could say would make him feel better. Not with only one victor.

Peeta seemed to be thinking the same thing and pushed himself back from the fence. "I should get back. Unless you want some company while you wait?"

He didn't sound particularly enthusiastic about the prospect of staying awake while Gale sobered up, and Madge didn't think Gale would appreciate waking up to Peeta. "I have a book," she said, gesturing toward her chair. "You must be tired and I know Katniss has a lot planned for you tomorrow." Not to mention that Katniss was probably still anxiously staring out her window, waiting for Peeta to return before she went to bed.

Peeta nodded and then raised his hand good-bye. Madge watched him disappear into the darkness and then walked back to the lawn chairs. Gale had shifted onto his back, and she thought she could see him watching her through his eyelashes.

She stood next to his chair, looking down at him. "He's gone. You can stop pretending to be asleep."

Gale opened his eyes, glanced toward the fence to confirm Peeta's absence, and then pushed himself into a sitting position. He leaned forward and paused, making Madge worry he was going to throw up. But then he just kicked the blanket off his legs and started roughly folding it.

"Thanks for the water," he said gruffly, focused on the blanket.

"Are you… feeling better?" Madge felt suddenly awkward. Did he remember trying to kiss her? Did he remember when she'd called him "hon" and practically groped him in front of the Peacekeepers?

Gale grunted in a way Madge guessed she was supposed to interpret affirmatively. She sat down at the foot of his chair to watch him. He seemed steadier and more alert than before, and when his eyes landed on hers as he pushed the folded blanket toward her, she saw that his eyes were more focused now, too.

He kept watching her, and seemed to be trying to figure her out in the same way she was struggling to make sense of him. Was he waiting for her to say something? The last civil conversation they'd had had been about the importance of him being nicer to Peeta for Katniss's sake, and from what Madge had seen during their training sessions, Gale did seem to be making progress at tolerating Peeta. Since he wasn't trying to leave just yet, she took a breath for courage and broached the subject.

"Gale, would you really have fought Peeta when he came back to the Victor's Village?" Even drunk, that seemed out of line and guaranteed to upset Katniss.

Gale squinted at her in confusion. "What?"

"When you were waiting for him outside Haymitch's house tonight."

He rubbed his hands over his face, as though trying to wake himself up. "I wasn't waiting for him," he mumbled. "I was waiting for you."

Madge felt something burst in her chest and immediately tried to keep any surprise from showing on her face. Waiting for her because he liked her? No, that was ridiculous. He'd been rude to her at the party and had been so ready to fight with those Peacekeepers. In all likelihood he'd wanted to pick a fight with her… and then forgot to fight when he realized he might be able to convince her to take a trip to the slag heap. Unless he'd forgotten that part.

Gale seemed to be waiting for her to react, so she tried to keep her voice steady. "Did you… need to talk to me about something?"

He looked at her like she was an idiot. "Did I seem like I wanted to talk to you, Madge?"

She shook her head and focused on her hands in her lap to hide her blush. So he did remember, and wasn't even denying it. That just showed how inconsequential hitting on her must have been to him.

Gale sighed and stared down at the ground for a few seconds. "Sorry," he muttered. "About tonight. I wasn't thinking straight earlier. I was... out of line."

"It's okay," Madge said hesitantly. Gale looked pale and miserable, and she wondered if still felt queasy. Then it occurred to her to that, in his own way, maybe he was actually embarrassed about how he'd acted. "You should see what Haymitch does at my parents' parties," she offered in consolation. "You were nothing."

He shook his head. "Not exactly a comparison I want. And that doesn't make it okay. You should've punched me or something." He glared at her out of the corner of his eye, surprising Madge into silence. He was frustrated with her for not being harder on him? She bit her lip to keep from smiling—it was almost sweet in a screwed up way. Trust Gale to turn his own bad behavior into a reason to be mad at her.

"Well," she said brightly, "I assumed you were looking for a fight tonight and I guess you still are."

Pursing his lips together, Gale seemed determined not to respond right away and instead slowly stood up. "If Peeta came along first and wanted to get in my face about something, I wouldn't have sat there and taken it." He took a test step, wobble-free, and then turned to face Madge. "Guess it didn't happen that way, though." He added in a more sincere tone, "Thanks for getting rid of the Peacekeepers."

Madge shrugged, making an effort to appear nonchalant. If he didn't think it was a big deal that he'd wanted to take her to the slag heap, she didn't want to make a fuss about posing like his girlfriend. "I have to be useful somehow. Guess I'm qualified for avoiding incidents with Peacekeepers and making streamers for parties."

Standing over her, Gale reached down to gently squeeze her shoulder. "You're a good friend," he said quietly.

His hand drifted over to the exposed skin of her neck, and to Madge's horror, she felt her face growing warm again. It was mortifying that a simple touch and some kind words from him affected her so strongly. Gale must have noticed her reaction because he quickly withdrew his hand and took a step back like she was dangerous.

"I'll… see you around," he said, still moving away from her.

She nodded mutely and waved as he left. Did he mean she was a good friend to Katniss, or a good friend to him? Was she even friends with Gale? She honestly didn't know. It didn't seem like it. As for Katniss, Madge definitely didn't feel like she qualified as a good friend. A good friend wouldn't keep liking Gale the way Madge did. A good friend would have figured out how to get rid of this obnoxious crush by now…

As she watched Gale let himself out of the gate, she felt a rush of appreciation that they hadn't done anything they would officially need to be embarrassed about. She could face Katniss with clear eyes: Madge had simply helped Katniss's other friend avoid getting in trouble. Disasters averted all around. Satisfied with her reasoning, Madge gathered the blanket and empty water glass to take inside, determined to ignore that her appreciation was polluted with tiny fractions of curiosity and regret.

She was good at ignoring things.

A/N 2: Continued companion fic, "Behind the School." This story was originally a flashback for that one, but it got too long so I decided to separate them. Thanks for reading, and please review!