A/N Ok everyone, im back again with yet another Galeniss/Everthorne Fic for you. This is my first attempt at writing smut/lemons and i hope you enjoy it. Please be sure to read the authors note at the end aswell

Disclaimer: I own Nothing! all characters belong to Suzanne Collins.

Trapped

The buzzing pulls my heart into my throat as reach out and tightly grab Gales arm when I see his callous hand is inches away from the now live fence. His eyes whip around and look from my terrified expression back to the fence. I see his gray eyes open wide in realization. He quickly jerks his hand away and takes two careful steps back, he's staring wide-eyed at the chain links that are now surging with electricity. I pull him hard back into the trees. His bulging eyes still locked on the spot he almost touched. Where he almost died, I think to myself. Dark clouds above us are still pouring heavy rain and I pull my hood up over my head and quickly scan to see if anyone saw us. Once I'm sure were safe I look back to Gale.

The sky is scattered with heavy gray clouds but there is still enough moon light shining and I see him walk to a fallen tree. He leans and sits on the wet trunk. A stream of smoke pours from within his hood in a long sigh. I can't see his face but I see his profile, head bend low, shoulders slowly rising and falling. Rain still falling hard, loudly hitting the treetops and the ground around us, but I think I hear Gale's breath catch in a strangled gasp. I see, by the smoke coming from within the darkness of his hood, that his breathing has returned to normal but he makes no move to stand and join me. I walk over and sit next to him, unsure of what to say.

Gale and I aren't the types to say pointless or stupid things to each other; we communicate much better through looks and gestures, more people of actions then words. So asking him if he's ok would be ridiculously stupid and anyway I already know the answer, of course he isn't, he almost died.

Death is nothing new to us. After all, when over half the population of District 12 is constantly at war with starvation or dying from infection, you tend to get used to the subject and that's before you remember the danger of the mines and The Hunger Games. Gale and I have been lucky to escape the Capitols grasps so far but the next Reaping in a few months time will be my fifth time and Gales seventh and final time. I wouldn't be so worried if we just had the normal amount of slips entered in the reaping bowls but with the tesserae adding our names extra times aswell, the odds are most defiantly not in our favour. If by some miracle were too happened and Gale wasn't reaped and pulled away from my life then he would get his reward of working in the mines.

Those mines scared the hell out of me when I was younger, all I could think about was my father's death down there. I once made myself so sick with worry that my mother kept me home instead of letting me go with my classmates on our yearly trip into the mine shaft. It will be worst for Gale though, he will spend twelve hours a day, six days a week, for the rest of his lift down in the dark. Every breath of coal dust killing him slowly and painfully or maybe, he will die as our fathers did, blown to bits in an accident deep below the ground. I hate any thought of Gale going into the mines just as much as the thought of him being reaped and sent into the Games.

Sudden pressure on my hand makes me look down and I see his hand over mine giving it a gentle squeeze. I look up to his face and my eyes have adjusted enough to see his face from within his hood, giving me a reassuring smile that I return without any hesitation. I wrap his hand within both of mine relived he's ok and still alive.

The heavy rain has eased into a light drizzle and a loud rumble coming from Gale's stomach breaks our the silence. We both grin and I lift the back of my hand to my mouth to stifle my giggle at how the tense situation changed to light humor in a heartbeat. Apart from my sister, Gale is really the only person that brings a genuine smile out of me. Whether it's repeating the stupid jokes he hears from his friends or falling into a bush or stream on purpose. Small things like that always bring a smirk or chuckle from within me.

"Guess were gonna have ourselves a picnic tonight Catnip" Gale says still grinning at me.

"Yep" I say popping the 'P', "another cold, wet meal in the woods. What could be better?" I ask sarcastically, as I'm brought out from a particular fond memory when he really did accidentally trip and fall into an ant's nest. Gale sighs in agreement, pulls out a small bag and offers me some of the wild berries we collected early. I take a small handful and begin to eat, letting each berry flood my moth with juice before swallowing. Gale rummages in his bag trying to find something and pulls out one of the dead rabbits he caught today. He looks up and frowns a little.

"Think the fog is heavy enough to disguise a fire? I don't feel like trying my luck again tonight," he asks looking at the carcass.

I look up to hide the scowl on my face at the memory of his hand so close to the death. Above the clouds are thick with the promise of more rain to come. We are still to close to the fence that I wouldn't try it but if we moved deeper into the woods, maybe back to our meeting place, we would be far enough away so no one could see the glow from a small camp fire. I make the suggestion to Gale.

"Great idea, Catnip. There's dry wood around there too, so that will keep the smoke down," he says happily holding a hand out to me. He helps me to my feet and we take off deeper into the forest.

The clouds have thinned and parted by the time we make our way to the rock, illuminating our surroundings in pale moonlight. I watch and see small birds flying through the trees, bursting out high above as I emerge through the bushes. Gale follows me, carrying a pile of dry wood we had kept well wrapped in plastic for occasions just like this.

It's not the first time we've been trapped outside District 12 nor will it be the last. I'm sure Prim will have checked and seen the fence is live. She will assume that Gale and I are still out here before telling our mothers. They will worry, as they always do whenever we go hunting but no matter how many times will tell them that we will be ok and will return soon. The relief on our family's faces when we do come back would suggest that we've disappeared for years.

Wordlessly I wipe the rain from the rock, take a seat and begin to clean the fattest rabbit we caught today. My hands work automatically allowing my eyes and mind to wonder at will. They settle on watching Gale working methodically, stripping away some of the bark before arranging them neatly for a fire. I admire his skilful hands as they brush over sticks and pieces of wood, my eyes travel up and focus what little I can see of his face within his hood. The rain has stopped completely now leaving us surrounded with a wonderful smell of pine that reminds me of past times in spring.

After a few tries Gale gets a spark and soon our little camp fire is ablaze, warmth spreads around us and I take a seat next to Gale as he removes his jacket to dry close by, I join him on the ground, hand him the carcass and remove my own jacket to dry. He skilful skewers the rabbit on a spit and stakes it to the ground to cook. He lays back and sighs deeply looking up at the few gray clouds above. I look up and see beyond the clouds to the white moon and stars twinkling at us.

I go back to looking at Gale's face, much clearer now he's removed his jacket and lowered his hood to find his eyes have drifted closed. I quickly check to make sure the rabbit is cooking properly before examining his face. The frown lines have smoothed out on his forehead making him look like the young man he is, and not the older man people wrongly mistake him for. I notice for the first time the small amount of stubble on his jaw line and the fullness of his lips.

I think back to the split second when I saw his hand reach out to touch the live fence and the rush of fear coursing through my veins when I thought he was about to die. The idea of Gale dying is so disgusting to me that I want to shout at him for his moment of stupidity but my annoyance is outweighed by my concern for his well-being. I want to tell myself that it's the lack of other hunters in District 12 for my concern but I know it's not that. Calling Gale, just my hunting partner or friend doesn't seem to do our relationship justice anymore. What we have is special. The way we move through the forest in such sync, like a single person, I've never felt that with anyone other than Gale. When we first met, I was missing a part of my life and though I don't say it, in the past year I've found it in him.

A thought comes to the front of my mind and my body moves before I can stop it. I close my eyes and gently push my lips against the corner of Gales. The second our lips meet feels longer and a sudden warmth floods from within me that has nothing to do with the campfire. I see Gales eyes twitch from beneath his lids and I quickly jerk my head back to the carcass in sudden fright. I can feel my cheeks burning in embarrassment as I sense Gale's body shift as he sits up yawning and stretching his arms wide.

"Sorry about that Katniss" he says grinning sheepishly at me "didn't mean to fall asleep on you."

"It's alright," I say, not looking at him and I'm thankful my voice sounds normal and steady. "You were only out for a few minutes."

He lets out a long, low whistle in relief. "Really?" he asks surprised, "Felt much longer then that, I even had a dream." I glance to see him smirking towards the fire.

"Was it a good dream?" I ask curiously, my heartbeat starting to hammer a little quicker.

"The best" he says grinning from ear to ear, eyes still on the fire but now seem to have drifted out of focus.

For some reason I feel very proud of myself, "What was it about?" I ask

"Oh nothing important, you know, just one of those stupid… impossible… dreams that's never going to come true. No matter how much you wish it was." he says his voice becoming full of sorrow. I turn to look and see his eyes are hooded and glassy and yet again, I see him take on the mask of someone much older than he is.

We sit in silence until the rabbit is cooked then I begin to slice it in half while trying to ignore the rush of thoughts flowing through my head. I kissed Gale, the though keeps buzzing around my head like a swarm of wasps refusing to be ignored. I've never kissed a boy before so I don't know how I'm supposed to feel about it, I defiantly enjoyed it. The feeling of Gale's soft, warm lips against my own but that wasn't all. The warmth that came from within my very core is still there but now feels dimmed, replaced by a different kind of hunger that I'm not used to. Hunger for food that is a feeling I know too well. This is a hunger for something more primal than food.

I finally finished cutting the rabbit in half and hand Gale his share. I have to nudge him twice to make him snap out of whatever thought has him. When his fingertips brush against mine, I feel a jolt inside me, just bellow my belly and can feel my face begin to heat up. I'm thankful my cheeks are well hidden within my hood as I push this new feeling of hunger to one side as I concentrate on eating. It works for a time until he speaks.

"You ok, Catnip? You're very quiet. Even more so than usual" he asks after taking a swig from a canteen of water and offering it to me.

"Yeah, just a little worried" I say before taking a drink, not quite feeling brave enough to explain further. After a moment, he puts his hand on my shoulder and rubs it gently. I slowly turn my face to see him looking at me in understanding. My heart leaps into my throat again and suddenly I'm sure he wasn't actually asleep.

"They'll be ok, Katniss. It's not like this is the first time we've been trapped outside the fence before," he says trying to sooth me. I bite and rip another chuck off the rabbit; nodding, relived that he took my silence for worry about my family.

"Wish I knew why the fence is on though" he wonders aloud, his brow furrowed in confusion as he looks back to the fire, "Do you remember hearing anything about mandatory viewing tonight?"

I shake my head and swallow my mouthful. "Nope, they would have told us at school if there was. Guess they just felt like switching it on for some reason."

"Hopefully this won't become a regular thing. Could you imagine being stuck out here together all night," he says in mock horror accompanied by a crooked grin.

"Oh no!" I exclaim with the same sarcastic terror. We laugh and soon the feeling of comfortable companionship returns. In truth, the idea of being stuck in the woods with Gale doesn't sound that bad to me at all. In fact, the idea of spending more time with Gale anywhere sounds wonderful. We sometimes hang out at school and whenever there is mandatory viewing my family always joins his but we really only spend time together alone when we hunt.

Gale finishes eating before I do and offers to check on the fence. I agree and he quickly slips his now dry jacket back on, before he stands, I reach out and grab his hand. He looks puzzled at my look of concern but then his face relaxes and gives my hand a squeeze. "I'll be careful Catnip. I promise," he says trying to reassuring me. The lump in my throat chokes me so I am unable to speak so I look and focus on his hand gripping mine. He releases my hand and crouches back down to whisper "Promise" softly into my ear before planting a soft kiss on my cheek.

My face floods with colour and my mouth goes very dry in a heartbeat. My ears start ringing so loudly that I don't hear Gale running off through the nearby bush. I reach into my bag and pull out my bottle of water trying to quench my dried mouth and ignore the place where his lips touch my skin. It's not the first time he's done that, if I ever get upset or worried he would often try his best to sooth me with a hug or some kind words before planting a kiss into my hair or cheek. I never took much notice in the past, as I was too concerned with someone else, usually Prim's safety. I take notice of it now though. I brush my hand against the spot his lips touched and it could be my imagination, but I think I feel heat radiating from it. A sudden jolt shoots through me and hit's a point just bellow my stomach and I shudder and squirm at the feeling. Shaking my head to clear it but the point now feels like it's aching and throbbing wonderfully. My hand slowly reaches to the growing wetness between my legs.

The throb and wetness between my legs is something I am somewhat familiar with, but the lack of privacy in my house has never allowed me to touch myself for more than a few minutes while bathing. My hand slips under the waistband of my trousers and I bite my lip to hold back the moan that threatens to escape from between my teeth. I begin to run my fingertips across the bundle of nerves that sends another jolt of electricity through my body like the fence Gale went to check on. 'Gale…' I think to myself as my fingers brush over my clit, my eyes close and his face fills my thoughts. His strong arms, those soft lips against my skin, his callous fingers squeezing mine just before he left to check on the fence. A deep 'oh' slides softly from my throat at the memory of his touch and I selfishly imagine my own fingers were his right now rubbing me.

I hear him crashing through the forest behind me before I see him, as if he heard my thoughts. I quickly withdraw my hand and wipe it over the damp grass as he burst through the bushes behind me. I find the sight of him thundering towards me strange. In the woods, he normally move so quietly, like a shadow to hide his presents from game. When his face is close enough to see, a heavy lump drops into the pit of my stomach and my face falls at the fear etched on his face.

"Katniss! The fence is still on but we have to put the fire out quick!" he says reaching me, short of breath.

"What happened?" I ask standing, suddenly terrified. He doesn't say anything and we both start to throw dirt onto the fire. When the fire goes out, he stamps on the hot embers trying to stop them from glowing. When we finish his head whips around as if he's searching for something. Or someone! I think to myself.

"Gale is someone coming?" I ask sternly. He shakes his head and starts throwing our gear back into our game bags. When he's finished he hands me back my own and starts pulling me roughly back into the forest saying we need to hide. I keep trying to get him to tell me what happened but he refuses to say anything until we are hidden. Once we are back under the treetops he quickly looks around a spots a large bush surrounded by trees. We slide underneath, soon we are hidden, laying flat on our stomachs, our hips, and shoulders touching, we are silent apart from Gale heavy breathing. I see his eyes darting looking for something.

I slip a hand from underneath my chest and firmly grab his shoulder; he jumps and looks straight at me. "What happened Gale? Did someone see you?" I hiss at him.

He takes an annoyingly long moment to catch his breath. "No" he whispers back. "I'm sure no one saw me or the glow from the fire but I saw two Peacekeepers patrolling near where we entered. They kept glancing beyond the fence and I could see the smoke coming from our fire. So I ran back here before they started to look a little to long".

"But Gale, most of the Peacekeepers know we hunt illegal remember? So why would they care?" I asked annoyed.

"Katniss" he sighs sounding just as exasperated as I did, "Think about it. The fence is on, we don't know why but that doesn't matter because they only turn the power on for Capitol business, who's to say they aren't shipping a new batch of Peacekeepers in or someone important will be making an inspection of the District."

I think about his reasoning. It's true all the Districts are inspected from time to time with little warning but usually its during the day. Two or three people from the Capitol walk around the District, stopping and speaking to people at the mine entrances, the school and the square before getting back on the train. But they do inspect parts of the fence, checking for damage or any sign of tampering.

"Either way if Peacekeepers saw us walking around tonight with loaded bags it would be the end of us." he whisper darkly to the wet leaves and dirt.

"You could right" I admit, "Guess we should stay here for now then. Fence probably won't be off for a while." Gale chuckles deeply, as he removes his jacket and slides it under us so we are a little more comfortable, I get a sudden idea. I remove my jacket, Lay it over Gale's shoulders before sliding closer to him so both are torso's are somewhat covered. I feel Gale's arm wrap around my back and feel his fingers rubbing small circles around my side. His touch sends another jolt through my body and yet again, I'm thankful my hood is up and hiding the fire in my cheeks.

For a long while, we lay in silence as the forest comes alive around us. Insects chirping in the underbrush, small drops of rainwater drop from the branches above as birds flit through the treetops. I hear an owls echoing 'Hoot' somewhere behind us in the distances. A small animal's rustling halts and flees when Gale yawns too loudly. Looking closely at him I can see dark circles around his eyes, his lids close for a few long seconds before opening again. He shakes his head a few times fighting off his exhaustion. I take pity on him, telling him to get some sleep, that I feel wide-awake and will keep watch for predators. He tries to protest but after another long yawn, he gives in, turns over and lies on his back using his hands as a pillow.

"Maybe I can finish that dream," he mutters with a grin as he pulls his hood up. His eyes drift close and in a matter of minutes, he's asleep.

I turn to try to see his face; my eyes have adjusted again so I can make out his closed lids and the smirk that's still etched on his face. I roll my eyes and grin. Through the bush and tree limbs above me, I see the clouds thin and part slightly again to expose the silvery moon behind.

After maybe twenty minutes of hearing only forest dwellers and the occasional chirp of a bird, I hear soft murmuring coming from Gale. Turning my head to face him again, I see his face twitching; his soft lips are turned up to make a smirking grin. I wonder briefly, what he was dreaming about before and if he's having the same dream now or if it's a new one. Leaning my ear closer to his mouth, I listen very carefully to his murmurings. Most of it is nonsense or unintelligible mumblings apart for one thing he keeps repeating. 'caa'

'Caa?' I think to myself completely confused, what the hell is he dreaming about? Is he trying to say 'car?' is he dreaming about cars? No that's ridicules. Gale's never been in a car before. Does he want a ride in one? I want to shake him to find out what's going on in his head but he starts mumbling again 'Caa…Cat…Cat…Katniss'. The realization catches me off guard but fills my heart; the smile comes to my face without any thought.

The loud snap of a branch grabs my attention and my face whips to look in the general direction. I peer through the branches of the bush that hide us and scan the area in front of me. I can only make out tree trunks, leaves, sticks and other bushes. Then I see something silvery white move in the distance, moving from the place were our fire was. I've never seen any animal with bright white fur in the woods before. The horror comes over me and I know it's a Peacekeeper.

I nudge Gale hard and feel him jerk awake; he turns towards me and hisses low "what is it?"

I point to the area where I saw it and whisper "something white just like a Peacekeepers uniform. You were right Gale, you were right". My whole body shakes and I feel my throat starting to tighten, suddenly I can't breathe, and I want to run back home but my body refuses to move. Gale wraps my hand in his and I can feel his other hand rubbing my back again. He whispers in my ear trying to sooth me, telling me we will be ok, that were well hidden but I remember our tracks will be easily spotted in the fresh mud. The next branch that snaps in much closer and I almost let out a squeak in panic. My breathing returns but it's too heavy and certainly loud enough for anyone to hear; I try to not cry out but can't stop myself from wheezing. Gale is still holding my hand but he realizes that it's not working so he turns my head to face him and seemingly without thinking clamps his mouth to mine.

My panic at the possibility of being caught by a Peacekeeper roaming around, so close to us is assaulted by the shock of Gale lips on mine. My frantic thoughts are bouncing all around my head so I can't think straight. I try to think back to previous moments of panic, like when I was treed by a pack of wild dogs or when Prim came down with a fever and I didn't know what to do. My mother had taken care of Prim and the dogs had grown board and left. Feeling Gales mouth coax mine open all thoughts of Prim, my mother, dogs and Peacekeepers vanish.

My muscles tense then relax as I respond instinctively. My hand wraps around the back of his neck as I pull him closer to me, deepening the kiss. Gales hand snakes around my back as he draws my body closer to his, the nails of my free hand slide up and down his arms, scratching the hard muscle of his forearm, the throbbing between my legs is back and pulsating wonderfully and when Gale's thigh accidentally brushes close to it, I let out a small gasp in surprise. I feel Gale jump then still and his touch becomes gentle, his kiss now feel less chased and more sensual. I'm confused at this shift and then I remember I've never touched a boy before like this let alone kissed one. Gale must guess this and I understand he's holding himself back for my sake. His caring caress fills my heart like food and I take control. Lying on my back, I pull him down to me returning our kiss back to when it was deeper, full of passion.

Gale responds and soon his tongue slowly, experimentally probes my mouth, my jaw drops as I allow him entrance. Gale takes the lead again. Rolling his tongue around my mouth, brushing it against my own in invitation, I respond and soon our tongues roll around within each others mouths. Lost in the moment I slip my hand under his shirt. My fingertips find and stroke the hard muscles of his chest. I run my nails up and down the smooth lines of his stomach muscles a few times and when my finger rubs his nipple, I feel a rush of air come from Gale's nostrils. He momentarily stops our kiss and gazes down at me, breathing heavily to catch his breath. I can just make out the devilish grin of warmth and desires in his stormy gray eyes mix with concern. I run my hand across his chin, up his jaw line and let it rest on his cheek. He closes his eyes, leans his head into my palm for a second before kissing each of my fingertips.

He leans back down and plants small kisses around my face. I shut my eyes, losing myself in his touch as I feel his lips close around my lower lip giving it a gentle suck and nip. When I feel his mouth move to my neck I squirm slightly, my hand rests on top of his head as I gently push him down my body. I hear him chuckle quietly but soon feel his warm hand slip under my shirt. He softy rubs my belly; his fingers slide up and over my ribcage before they find my bra. He stops kissing my collarbone, looks up at me under heavy lids and I nod my permission. He continues his kisses and soon his hands slips behind my back and after a few tries; he unhooks my bra and lifts it up.

I find this somewhat strange and amusing; Gale has always been so skilful with his hands. After all, he's been setting delicate snares for years now, so why would his fingers fumble now? If what I've overheard from some of the girls at school are true, this is not the first bra he has removed. The thought of Gale with other girls, removing their bras fills me with envy and I push my now freed breasts into his eager hand. He lifts my shirt higher, revealing them to him and while his fingertips brush over one of my already harden nipple his mouth closes around the other. I'm squirming again lost in his skilful hand and mouth as he gently sucks on my nipple. I try my best to not cry out in pleasure as my breasts tingle and instead a whispered moan of Gales name escapes from between my teeth.

His hand leaves my breast and his fingers begin to make a long slow trail down my stomach to the where the throbbing ache lies. I feel the want for him to move his hand into the wetness pooling in my underwear battle with my pleasure as he flicks my hard nipple with the tip of his tongue. I grab a handful of his dark and push his face harder into my breast as he counties to lick and suck on my nipple. Using my other hand I push his hand down my belly. He soon figures out my want and his fingers slide under the waistband of my trousers, then my underwear.

His hard fingers brush through my pubic hair as his head comes back up and claps his mouth against mine again. When his finger slides up and down my wet folds, my muscles shudder and I gasp into his mouth at the contact. I relax again and open my legs wider giving him better access to me. He adds a little more pressure and rubs the aching spot harder, a rush of air come from between my teeth and I moan into his mouth. His rubbing becomes quicker and more wanting as he feels my own want growing wetter. I feel the evidence of his own arousal pressing up against my thigh, feeling proud and frankly flattered that I can have this effect on him I slide my free hands down over the bulge. He gasps and his hand momentarily stops rubbing me. His eyes close as my fingers slide up and down the rough fabric of his trousers, I feel him inhale deeply and groan quietly. Enjoying the moment of him almost at my mercy I roll my tongue over his lips and give him a squeeze, his eyes open again and I see a sexy smirk slide over his face. His lips wrap around my nipple again as he goes back to rolling his fingertips around me, rubbing my clit harder causes me to lose my rhythmical stroking of him. Frustratingly slow, he slides a finger inside me and holds it there. My back arches as our mouths break apart and I gasp much louder than I should.

A soft footfall makes us still instantly, our heads turn in unison. Panic returns to both of our eyes and from between branches I look expecting to see the white boot of a Peacekeeper but instead I'm staring at a pair of muscular silver white legs with paws instead of feet. Glancing up I see the long white muzzle, pointed ears and intelligent eyes of a huge wolf. I see its head turn from left to right, searching for something. The creature lowers its head, nose twitching as it sniffs the ground painfully close to us. The beast growls deeply in its chest and its muzzle draws back exposing huge dagger-like teeth. From the comer of my eye I see Gales hand pick up a rock and throw it behind us. The thud draws the beast's eyes as they lock onto a tree the rock bounced off and after a heartbeat, the creature turns and bolts.

Hearing the wolf's retreating sounds I release the breath I didn't know I was holding in as Gale slides out from our hiding place. I know he's gone to check the creature has really gone. I relax and notice that I am half-naked. Feeling embarrassed I quickly hook my bra back into place and lower my shirt that Gale had so expertly lifted.

I few moments later, I hear Gales soft voice coming from nearby my head. "It's safe to come out now" I look out and see his outline looking down into the bush. I am speechless from both what we just did and the sight of the huge beast so close to us. I'm suddenly glad at the lack of light and that the branches obscuring Gales view of my burning face.

"Catnip?" he asks gently pushing a hand through the bush to me. Slowly I reach out and take his hand in mine as he helps me out of the bush. Sliding out and getting to my feet, I remember to pull both our jackets out with me. Gale is silent as I hand his back, slipping my own back on I zip up the front starting to feel much more exposed than I am so I pull up my hood aswell. My eyes still haven't lifted to meet his but his finger touches under my chin and I feel him trying to lift it. I shy away still feeling embarrassed.

"Catnip, its ok. It's just me" he whispers softy as he pulls me into his chest for a gentle embrace. My hand settles on his chest and I start to think about pushing him away but his steady heartbeat and strong arms helps to calm me. I inhale deeply taking in his scent of pine needles and something else I can only describe as Gale.

As my thudding heartbeat slows and returns to normal, my thoughts calm and I can start think clearly. The more immediate thought I have is what happened beneath that bush but I know I'm not ready to address those thoughts and feelings just yet. I can tell Gale knows not to try and press me on the issue maybe he doesn't know how he feels either. The next thought I have is just as confusing as the first but it's something we can talk about without feeling awkward.

"What was that thing?" I ask into Gale's chest.

"No idea" he shrugs, "could be a Capitol mutt?"

Gale could be right, the only mutts we sometimes encounter are Tracker Jackers but we are always careful enough to spot them and move away slowly. "I can't see what use release a huge white wolf would be though" I say into his chest, "maybe it came down from the mountains."

"Well hopefully it's gone back to wherever it came from," Gale says breaking our embrace. A rush of wind pulls my attention to the east and in the distance; I see the inky black sky starting to fade and grow lighter. All of a sudden I think how long we've been out here my mother and Prim would have gone to sleep worried about me. Gale follows my eyes, must come to the same conclusion because he holds his hand out to me, and nods in the direction back to District 12.

I think for a second that feels like an hour before gladly taking his hand in mine and we begin the short walk back to the fence. After a few minutes of scanning and we are sure there are no Peacekeepers in sight, we emerge from the trees, moving silently towards the chain links. Taking an extra long moment to be absolutely sure that there is no hum coming from it we quickly slip under and both let out a huge sigh of relief. I feel the last of my muscles un-knot and relax once we are back in the District, I grin to myself stupidly, Gale chuckles low and plants a small kiss to my temple.

The Seam is silent and deserted as we walk hand in hand back to my house, passing only a few lights from within houses, probably belonging to those miners who have early shifts. We are soon within sight of my front door and Gale leans against a nearby tree. In the glow of a nearby porch light, I see him smirking at me. I've never really noticed until now just how handsome he is. His confident smirk, stormy gray eyes full of mischief. I can't help but roll my eyes and smirk back at him warmly. He slips his hands into his pockets and steps towards me.

"So Catnip, it's the harvest festival tomorrow, well technically tonight," he says with a smile as he glances up at the sky. "How'd you like an escort?" he adds with a wink.

I laugh low in my throat at his question. He knows very well that our families go to the festival together but I decide to play along by stepping towards him. "That would be wonderful, thank you," I say in the mocking Capitol accent. He laughs as he takes my hand and plants a tender kiss to my knuckles.

His head tilts up to gaze at me through heavy eyelashes as his lips continue to brush over the small scars on the back of my hand, looking into his eyes and can almost feel the warm glow emanating from within them mix with a lustful desire. I move my hand from his grasp, wrapping it around his neck and pulling him to me in a long deep kiss, flooding it with passion. As our mouth connect and open for each other, Gale snakes a hands around my waist, pulling our hips together before cupping my butt and giving it a slight squeeze. I hum happily at the pressure and slide my tongue along his bottom lip.

Our lips brake apart at the distance sound of a dark barking and he, looking reluctant suggests we should both get some rest, I pout disgruntled at the idea. After that last kiss, I feel hungry for another and one more after that, and even more after that. I'm on the verge of acting on the thought when I remember Prim inside. She will have gone to sleep hours ago, probably curled up with my mother worrying about where I am. It takes a huge amount of will power to take the first step towards my house and not back into Gale arms. He walks me all the way to my door and plants one last gentle kiss to my lips before whispering "Goodnight, Katniss."

"Goodnight, Gale" I whisper, my lips brushing against his one final time before I reluctantly withdraw my hand from he's cheek and disappearing inside my house. Leaning against the door, I sigh happy to be safe and home. I hear Gales soft retreating footsteps as he walks away from the other side of the door. Peering through the nearest window, I see his retreating back as he turns the corner and disappears from my sight.

Five minutes later, I crawl under the sheets. Id moved silently through the house and after checking to see Prim sleeping soundly in my mother's room. My mom's arms wrapped around her and Buttercup lying at the end of the bed. His ears prick up at the doors creak and he turned to glare at me. I return the look and imagine drowning him and using his fur to line my boots. True, id never do it, but the thought makes me smile.

I climb onto my rough mattress, dressed in only my underwear pulling the thin sheet up to my shoulders. I close my eyes and let my thoughts wonder. My mind drifts over thoughts of huge white wolves, the smells and sounds of the forest and finally settle on Gale's hands and mouth on me, roaming over my skin. As I reach between my legs, I replicate my actions from when I was alone at the campfire. After a long, enjoyable time, I finally release the low breath I held in to stop myself crying out, feeling utterly spent and muscles twitching wonderful I pull the sheet back over me as I roll onto my side and drift off smirking to myself.

A/N: Well, i dunno about you guys but I'm really happy with this. i was a little unsure in parts but overall I'm pretty pleased with it. Now sadly i need some help, id really like to continue this but im unsure of future story lines and such, there are one or two things i could expand on but i'm just not sure if you guys would find it boring. so if you have any suggestions at all as to where i can take this, please feel free to PM me. Don't forget to leave a review and hopefully (Fingers crossed) ill see you next time.

Wolfskin