105AN: This chapter introduces a new character's POV. Hope you like it.
CHAPTER 23. The 75th Reaping.
On the morning of the 75th reaping, Katniss stayed home.
The previous year, she had woken up early to rush out into the woods for an early hunt before meeting Gale for their traditional breakfast on the rock ledge overlooking the valley.
She remembered being worried about Prim's first reaping, and anxious about her own, but life had seemed somehow easier then. The fence was off; Gale hadn't started working in the mines yet; Peeta was just the baker's son.
Peeta. Her heart hurt just at the thought of him.
Groaning like a wounded animal, Katniss turned over in bed and pressed her pillow to her face.
All she wanted to do was rush over to Peeta's house. To slam the kitchen door open and jump into his arms. To bury her face in the crook of his neck and breathe him in. She yearned to be enveloped in the sweet and spicy cinnamon scent that clung to him wherever he went.
But she couldn't do that —not anymore— not since she'd promised she'd stay away.
Besides, a swarm of Capitol reporters had descended in Victors' Village and taken over his home. Caesar Flickerman had already shown some of the images on TV the previous night.
"Last night as a victor," the lavender-haired anchor had called the segment, which included shots of victors' homes all over Panem.
Katniss shuddered at the memory. No, there was no way she was going anywhere near that.
A little after noon, Katniss's thin mattress sagged under Prim's weight. "Time to get up," Prim whispered, running her fingers through her sister's silky hair.
With a hollow sigh, Katniss sat up.
Prim was already wearing her reaping clothes. After months of regular meals from Peeta's greenhouse, the blouse and shirt fitted her perfectly. She gestured to the bathroom. "There's a warm bath waiting for you."
"Thanks, Little Duck." Pushing the thin blanket away, Katniss dragged her feet to the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
One hour later, she was ready. Her mother had braided her hair into a beautiful crown and given her the blue silk dress form the previous year.
As she looked at herself in the mirror, Katniss realized that, much like Prim, she had benefitted from her diet. The dress from Mrs. Everdeen's merchant days hugged her slim frame in all the right places.
It was odd, wearing these fancy clothes just to be a spectator, but it was tradition. Everyone dressed up for reaping day.
The Everdeens had just reached the Main Square when Katniss saw Rory waving them over. "We saved you a spot," he said once they were within hearing distance.
"Thanks, Rory!" Plastering a smile on her face, Katniss said hello to the rest of the Hawthorne clan.
"Hey, Katniss!" five-year-old Posy piped in. "Do you like my dress?"
Katniss's eyes widened. In a sea of white shirts and gray slacks, Posy's bright pink dress immediately stood out.
"It's beautiful, Posy!" Prim exclaimed, quickly covering up for her sister's shocked silence. "You look as pretty as a fairy."
"It's a loan from Mrs. Undersee," Hazelle explained while Posy twirled happily in place. "She still has many of her daughter's old clothes, so she sent some with Gale the other day. We're giving it back as soon as it's washed."
"That's a lovely dress, Miss Posy," Katniss said, trying to cover up the tightness growing in her chest with a smile. "You're very a lucky girl."
Posy giggled in delight. Dropping the conversation, she turned to say something to Mrs. Everdeen.
Gale's voice was as gentle as the murmur of the lake. "You OK, Catnip?"
Katniss shrugged. There wasn't much she wanted to say. "You?"
A tight smile curved Gale's lips. "Yeah, the same."
Nodding, Katniss turned to face the reaping stage.
There were four chairs this year, two on one side for the victors —who were also the male candidates— and two more at either side of the podium. The usual glass bowls had been replaced with smaller versions —more appropriate to hold the limited amount of paper slips.
The area reserved for the female candidates was right in front of the stage. It was already full. For the first time ever, the merchants outnumbered the girls from the Seam.
"How many are there?" Katniss asked Gale.
"I counted 19."
Katniss analyzed the group. She could only see their backs. But, even from a distance, she still recognized a few of her classmates among the crowd.
Delly, Clara, Gemma, she counted before moving on to the group from the Seam. Cora, Doris, Amber.
Her eyes reached the end of the line. There, standing next to the rope cordoning the girls in, she found Madge.
The mayor's daughter stood tall, chin up, hands clasped behind her back. Katniss would have recognized her anywhere.
Squinting under the sun's blinding glare, Katniss searched the crowd for Peeta's family, but it was no use. The Square was tightly packed, and -with so many spectators- everyone had mingled.
Somewhere, over the chatter of the throng, Thread's Peacekeepers directed latecomers to the adjacent streets.
The two large screens over the Justice Building flickered to life.
Pushing her shoulders back, Katniss reached for her sister's hand. "Here we go, Little Duck," she whispered.
Prim laced their fingers together and squeezed tightly in response.
The clock on the Justice Building struck two. The Square grew quiet.
Behind her, Gale let out a long sigh.
The reaping was about to start.
XXXXX
"Ladies first!" Effie Trinket announced from the stage. Her dress was covered in silk butterflies this year. Her wig —golden as Peeta's pin— reflected warm sunbeams into the square.
Under different circumstances, Katniss might have even liked the outfit.
Reaching deep into the bottom of one of the bowls, Effie pulled out a piece of paper. Keeping it firmly in her grasp, she walked over to the podium.
Grateful to have her sister by her side, Katniss brought Prim's hand over to her breast. Not Madge. Not Madge. Not Madge, her mind chanted.
"Leevy Thompson!" Effie called out.
Surrounded by her family and friends, Katniss went limp with relief. Not Madge, she repeated once more before the inevitable guilt crept in.
Leevy wasn't her friend —not exactly— but she knew her. The Thompsons lived a few doors down from the Everdeen's. The father was one of the foremen at the mines.
Probably why Leevy hasn't taken any tesserae, Katniss thought.
As Leevy walked towards the nearest aisle, Katniss chanced a quick look at Gale. His face was ashen, but the ghost of a smile on his lips didn't lie. This was a result he could live with.
Before Katniss could say anything, Leevy reached the stage. Shoulders pushed back, chin raised high. The nineteen-year-old looked almost bored as she greeted Mayor Undersee.
"It's time to choose our male tribute," Effie said.
Her long fingers reached into the bowl. Reflected on the screens, Katniss saw them hover over the two slips of paper for an instant before finally plucking one.
Not Peeta. Not Peeta. Not Peeta.
Effie Trinket turned to look at the victors standing on the stage. Even with the Capitol accent, her voice was almost flat as she read, "Peeta Mellark."
NO! Katniss's mind cried.
Hunching forward, she covered her ears with her hands and closed her eyes. Not Peeta. Not Peeta. Not Peeta, she chanted again, stubbornly refusing to accept the truth.
Prim snuck an arm around her sister's waist and held her tight. "Katniss, open your eyes."
Sagging limply against her sister's frame, Katniss shook her head.
Gale's touch on her shoulder steadied her. "Come on, Catnip, he needs to see you," he whispered in her ear.
Katniss stopped fighting. Gale was right, this wasn't about her. Peeta still needed her.
Wiping the tears from her eyes, she straightened up and stared straight ahead.
Back on the stage, Mayor Undersee was reading the long, dull Treaty of Treason.
Peeta stood next to Effie. His face gave nothing away as he slowly scanned the crowd. When he found was he was looking for, he blinked twice.
Pushing through her grief, Katniss smiled.
As the mayor's speech faded into the background, Katniss brought the memories of her time with Peeta back into her mind.
Remember, she thought, looking straight into Peeta's eyes, all the days we spent in the greenhouse. The afternoons with Prim and Madge. The time when he found me in the woods. His hugs. His laughter. The kisses we shared last night.
"And, now," Mayor Undersee's voice cut through Katniss's thoughts. "Tributes, please shake hands."
Peeta and Leevy did as they were told, sharing a brief smile before turning back to face their audience.
"People of District 12," Effie Trinket said from the podium. "I give you Leevy Thomson and Peeta Mellark, your tributes for the third Quarter Quell."
There was no applause.
Somewhere near the front of the stage, one person, then another, then every member of the crowd touched the three middle fingers of their left hand to their lips and held them out to the tributes.
Fighting to keep her tears from spilling, Katniss raised her three fingers to the air.
We're with you, she thought as everyone around her -Prim, Gale, Hazelle, even Mrs. Everdeen— proudly saluted their victor.
Peeta clenched his jaw. Hope and fury shone in his eyes as he brought his fingers to his lips and raised his hand to return the crowd's salute.
Next to him, Leevy did the same.
Slowly, Peeta lowered his hand. The district followed.
The Capitol's camera focused on Effie Trinket. Smiling tightly, District 12's escort reminded everyone to tune in to the national broadcast scheduled for later that evening.
Haymitch and Mayor Undersee stood up from their chairs to join Effie Trinket and the tributes at the front of the stage.
Katniss reached for Prim's hand and squeezed tight. Her heart wanted her to run, to sprint through the aisle and reach Peeta's side, but she didn't move an inch.
Swallowing her sorrow, she bit her lip and kept her eyes trained on Peeta's face.
If she hadn't been looking so intently at him, she would have missed the way his eyes flitted away just for an instant before landing back on hers. She wouldn't have seen the color draining from his face or his lips parting to mouth one word.
"Run!"
Madge's POV
Madge Undersee covered her face with the crook of her arm and ran.
A thick cloud of smoke followed her, swelling over the square, and the stage and hiding them from view.
Madge reached the side of the Justice Building and slowed down to catch her breath. Despite the weeks of training, her heart was pounding like a battle drum in her ears. Ta-dum, ta-dum, ta-dum it went, mimicking the blast of the smoke bomb she had detonated just a few minutes before.
"Go faster!" a commanding voice whispered harshly in her ear.
"Are we even going the right way?" she asked around a cough. The damn smoke had gotten in her lungs, and she couldn't breathe properly.
"Yes," the voice assured her, "but we need to go faster."
Easy for you to say, Madge thought, you're wearing a helmet with a visor. Instead of arguing, she picked up her pace.
Somewhere behind the cloud of smoke, people shuffled in panic as they tried to escape the square. Their frightened screams reached her ears.
The thought of her friends getting trampled by the crowd made her falter, but the firm pressure of the Peacekeeper's hand on her back kept her steady.
"We're almost there," he said.
A few yards away, she saw an official transport idling by the side of the road.
Two Peacekeepers sat on the front cabin, their faces covered by protective gear.
Madge stopped short.
"What now?" the Peacekeeper grumbled.
"Are we sure it's them?"
"Yes. Let's go!"
Madge nodded. Even if this was a trap, it was too late to back down now. With one last sprint, she reached the vehicle and jumped inside.
The Peacekeeper who had been escorting her followed. The door slid shut behind him.
XXXXX
"Let's do a headcount." The Peacekeeper sitting at the wheel turned to face the three rows of passengers behind him. He pointed to himself. "One."
On the seat next to him, the second Peacekeeper said, "Two."
Madge sagged in her seat and smiled, relieved to recognize the Peacekeepers' voices. Closing her eyes, she took a deep, soothing breath. The cold air from the air-conditioned vehicle was a welcome respite from the smoke.
Feeling a little calmer, she took a moment to look around the transport, nodding at the other passengers as they counted themselves.
Mom. Dad. Effie Trinket.
Haymitch. Peeta. Leevy.
"Nine," Madge called out when her turn came up.
"Ten," the Peacekeeper who had escorted her said.
"Alright!" The driver faced the road. "We're set. Hang on tight, it's going to be a bumpy ride."
With a shudder, the vehicle snapped in motion.
Madge dug her fingernails in the fabric of her seat and braced herself. The first part of their plan was behind them, but they weren't out of the woods yet.
On the seat in front of her, Peeta looked at Leevy. At some point in the shuffle, she had fallen and scraped her knee. The cut was superficial, but a purple bruise was already blooming around it. "You OK?" he asked.
"I'm fine." Leevy stretched out her leg to take a better look at her wound. "It's not that bad. It won't get in the way of what's coming next."
Peeta's eyes immediately went dark. Straightening up, he clenched his jaw and spun round to face Haymitch. "Am I the only idiot who doesn't know what the hell is happening here?"
"Peeta, language!" Effie promptly piped in, her golden wig dangerously close to falling off her head. "I'm not in the know either, but you don't hear me using profanity. Do you?"
Peeta glared at the escort but, before he could add a biting retort, Haymitch began to laugh —a full belly chuckle that defused the tension in the small space.
"See, Kid?" The mentor patted the young victor's knee. "You're not the only one."
With an exasperated eye-roll, Peeta crossed his arms and twisted his body to look at his cousin. "Alright, Madge, what's going on?"
Madge shrugged. "I don't really know that much. Nobody does. The plan was to create a diversion to interrupt the ceremony so that you and Haymitch could be extracted from the district."
"A diversion?" Peeta repeated. "That was you, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. I was in charge of sneaking the smoke bomb into the pen and detonating it."
"But, what if your name had been called?"
"I would have given it to Lynn, the girl standing next to me." Pointing at the different people in the transport, Madge explained, "My dad, Effie, and whoever was chosen as your district partner were always going to be here. They were going to be on the stage with you, so we couldn't leave them behind, the same as the person who detonated the bomb and my mom. District 12 wouldn't have been safe for them with us gone."
Peeta glanced at Leevy. "So, you're here by chance, but you still knew what was going to happen?"
"Yeah," Leevy said, "most of us did."
Peeta nodded. His eyes darted to the man sitting next to Madge, and he raised his eyebrows.
"That's Felix," Madge said. Anticipating his next question, she added, "Our driver is Darius, and the navigator is Purnia. They're with us."
With a soft chuckle, Peeta shook his head. "With us?"
Madge gifted her cousin with a sly smile. "Yeah. You'll get to meet them properly once we've passed the checkpoint."
Peeta sighed. Now that the rush of adrenaline was gone, his thoughts began to settle. Before the worry over what they had left behind could start creeping in, he asked, "Where are they taking us?"
Madge looked past Peeta. "Darius, where are you taking us?"
"To our meeting point," the driver said. "It's not far from here, just a few miles out of the district. We'll have to change transports there."
Peeta faced the front again to address Darius, "And from there?"
It was the Peacekeeper's turn to shrug. "I don't really know. It depends on the transport. We'll just have to wait and see what we find when we get there."
Leaning forward, Madge rested her elbows on the back of Peeta's seat and whispered, "Welcome to the rebel side, Mockingjay."
And now... back to our story...
"Run!"
Run? With her heart throbbing in her throat, Katniss glanced around. How? We're trapped here.
Gale's urgent whisper answered her questions. "Tell Prim to grab your mom and follow me."
The group had barely begun to move when a resounding blast came from the stage and shattered the silence.
XXXXX
"Keep moving!" Gale called back as he ran.
He was still in the lead. Hazelle was next to him with Posy in her arms. Vick, Rory, Katniss, Prim, and Mrs. Everdeen were just a couple of steps behind.
The group reached the narrow alleyway that ran behind the merchant homes. Hidden by the cool shade of the buildings, they slowed down.
A few merchants ran past them, scuttling away as they rushed back into their homes.
Winded after her long sprint, Katniss stopped short.
She immediately regretted it. The grisly sounds of distress and mayhem leaking through the adjacent side streets made her blood curdle.
She hadn't seen much. A thick cloud of smoke expanding over the stage and the Justice Building. People crying in panic as they ran away from the blast. Peacekeepers charging into the Main Square and instructing people to disperse.
It was enough to know that the streets weren't safe anymore.
Prim pulled at her sister's hand to get her walking again. Judging by her grim expression, she wasn't enjoying the soundtrack either.
"Stop!" Vick said, raising up his arms and gasping for air."Where are we going?"
"We're going home," Gale said, taking Posy from his mother's arms and lifting her up to sit on his shoulders. "We need to change our clothes, pack a few essentials, and wait for tonight's transmission."
Vick nodded. His flushed cheeks betrayed his exhaustion, but -just like everyone else- he was desperate to find cover.
Gale turned to Mrs. Everdeen. "Mrs. E, do you know any shortcuts from here to the Seam? I'm not sure my route will be the best one today."
Still holding Prim's hand, Mrs. Everdeen stepped at the front of the group and pointed straight ahead. "We need to go past the bakery. There's a path there that goes across town and reaches the main road."
The group started moving again but, this time, they didn't run. Walking as a tight unit, they kept close to the buildings, silently weaving their way through the paths that connected the Merchant Quarter with the Seam.
XXXXX
The streets of the Seam were busy with people walking in small hurried clusters as they made for the safety of their homes.
Katniss knew it wasn't the best place to talk, but her house was just a few blocks down, and she was bursting with questions. "What happened back there?" she asked Gale.
"There was a commotion," Gale stated matter-of-factly. "We ran away."
A commotion? Katniss scowled at the rehearsed answer. "Did you know about it?"
Gale stopped. He lifted Posy over his head and gently deposited her on the floor. "Go with mom."
With a little nod, Gale's sister rushed over to Hazelles's side.
"So?" Katniss insisted once they started walking again.
"I knew there was going to be a diversion, an attempt to take Peeta and Haymitch and whisk them away."
Katniss pressed a hand to her chest. A warm beam of hope lit up her heart and filled her with joy.
Peeta and Haymitch, safe with the rebels —away from President Snow's hands.
"Whisk them where?"
"I don't know," Gale said. "All I know is that they wanted to take the victors, anyone else who was on the stage, and the person who detonated the smoke bomb. Three Peacekeepers were in charge of escorting them into a transport and driving them to a meeting point where the rebels will be waiting. I know the meeting point is not far away from here. But, what happens once they get there is anybody's guess."
Katniss chewed on her lip as she digested the information. Although she knew the answer, she still asked, "Darius?"
"Mm-hmm."
"Who detonated the bomb?"
Gale smiled. Something that looked a lot like pride shone in his eyes. "Your friend Madge."
Stumped, Katniss stopped short. "What?"
Reaching for her elbow, Gale got her walking again. "Listen, Catnip. That's all I know. From what I could gather, the plan was successful, but…" At a loss for words, he shrugged.
Katniss's heart dropped to the floor. Her earlier joy replaced by a cold sweat that drenched her limbs and chilled her soul.
Peeta and Haymitch caught trying to escape but ending up in President Snow's hands.
Would the punishment for that be worst than being sent to an arena, she wondered.
"There's nothing left to do but wait," Gale whispered as her house came into view. "Tonight's transmission will probably tell us something more."
Katniss nodded. Numb.
"One more thing, you need to pack a small bag with a few essentials and tell your family to be ready. We might have to make a run for it at some point."
Like in a dream, Peeta's words came back to her. Find Gale. Head for the woods. Run!
"Did he know?" she asked, clutching the sleeve of his shirt to get his attention. "Did Peeta know what was going on?"
Gale shook his head. "I don't think so. They didn't want to tell him in case…"
"In case something went wrong," she finished for him.
Pressing his lips in a thin line, Gale nodded. "It's better this way."
Glowering, Katniss released her friend, they were practically at her doorstep, and he needed to keep walking and get his family to safety.
A dark cloud settled over her as she watched Gale catch up with his siblings. She wasn't surprised that he was so deep into the rebellion, but she couldn't believe how easy it was for him to throw Peeta in harm's way.
As she closed the front door behind her, Katniss wondered if the Gale she knew —the boy who set traps for rabbits and smiled in the woods— was still there, lurking beneath the surface, or if the rebellion and the mines had already taken him away.
XXXXX
Katniss sat on her couch, anxiously twisting her braid around her finger as she waited for the mandatory transmission to start.
Outside, the world seemed almost normal.
After the initial frenzy, people had reached their homes and locked themselves in.
The rhythmic sound of coordinated footfalls had followed. Katniss didn't have to look out the window to know what that meant: Peacekeeper patrols.
Sometime after four, two of Thread's Peacekeepers had knocked on Katniss's door.
Mrs. Everdeen had rushed to answer.
Katniss and Prim stood back, holding tightly to one another as the men explained they were there to conduct a headcount and to inform residents that the curfew had been extended.
"It's a temporary measure," one of the Peacekeepers added in a clipped, detached voice, "tomorrow will be business as usual."
With a nod, Mrs. Everdeen had thanked them for their visit and closed the door.
At precisely eight o'clock, Katniss's TV flickered to life.
Katniss held her breath as the faces of Claudius Templesmith, and Caesar Flickerman filled her screen.
The anchors were wearing matching outfits in complementary colors this year. Caesar's lavender wig was tolerable, but yellow was not a good look for Claudius.
"What an extraordinary year this is!" Caesar began. "Our third Quarter Quell is finally here! Welcome, everyone!"
"It's such an honor to be here," Claudius enthused, "surrounded by nothing but the best of the best!"
As the two presenters continued with their usual banter, Katniss glanced at her companions. The look on their faces reflected her own bewilderment.
Leaning into her sister's side, Prim whispered, "What do you think?"
Katniss shrugged. "I don't understand what they're doing. It's like nothing's happened, but… How are they going to show the footage from Twelve?"
"Well," Prim chewed on her lip as she organized her thoughts. "The reaping was already over when the bomb went off. They just need to cut the feed right before it happens."
Like a lump of lead, Prim's words settled on Katniss's chest, pressing down and leaving her breathless.
If Prim was right -and the Capitol was about to show an edited version of the reaping- what did that mean for Peeta, and Haymitch, and Madge?
Katniss covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a scream. Had they been captured?
Prim scooted closer to her sister. Just as her arm wrapped around Katniss's shoulders, the lights went off.
The small shack in the Seam was engulfed in darkness.
AN: Hello, Everyone!
Can't wait to see what you think about this one! A lot of stuff happened!
I know that some of you like this story because I have -mostly- managed to keep things in line with canon. This chapter here is the first time I've introduced any significant changes (besides keeping Katniss away from the Game, of course), and I hope you'll forgive me for that.
Anyway... two more things:
1. The next chapter is already in the works. With all the time I have on my hands lately, you'll probably receive an update soon.
2. Only five more chapters to go! We're almost done!
Thanks for reading. Stay safe.
