"And finally, Katniss Everdeen, with a score of... eleven."

Everyone's faces are shocked. The square is quiet. Eleven. That's one of the highest scores to ever be received, let alone to a girl from District 12. There were loads of high scores this year, but Katniss's stands out. The district looks at each other with wide eyes. Or most of us, at least. I've scanned the place for Gale multiple times, but I don't see him. A few whoops of joy scatter around the crowd. I spot Mrs. Everdeen quickly wiping tears of what I'm assuming is happiness from her eyes, while Prim jumps around in joy. I grin in their direction.

"Outstanding," Caesar says over the large screen. He starts to say something else, but the screen goes black. The little light that we got from the coal coated streetlights goes out. Our power has been cut off.

"Guess they didn't like our girl gettin' an eleven, huh," someone says gruffly.

"Everdeen has done it again. I knew those squirrels would come in handy one day."

Noises of agreement come from all around me. Girls who Katniss used to go to school with smile, and proclaim, "Katniss is my best friend". Everyone seems to have forgotten about Peeta, who put up a respectable eight. It doesn't matter though. It's not like he has a chance. A new realization hits me: Katniss might be the one to finally wake up District 12. She already has woken us up.

Gale's absence concerns me. I know he was trying to get Katniss to run away with him before all this happened. Maybe now that she's gone, he did just that. She was- no, is- his best friend, and probably most of his instinct control if we're being honest. If he's still in 12, I should probably make up with him anyways, now that it seems Katniss might be coming home after all.

"No, he's not here," Hazelle, Gale's mother, whispers. She doesn't look worried. "Sometimes he stays in the woods for a few nights during the Games. Don't worry about him; he'll miss his siblings eventually." Her hushed words don't help me though- my stomach still feels uneasy.

"Let me know when he returns, alright? I've got to talk to him."

"Sounds good, dear. Remember, you're always welcome here."

"Thanks," I say with a pained smile. I wonder why everyone is being so kind to me all of a sudden. I mean, it's not like I'm shunned by the district or anything, but people have been going out of their way to offer me a place to stay, or watch the games. Maybe after almost 25 years people have remembered my mother, mentally paralyzed in bed. Or maybe the facade that Katniss might win is a lie, just to make everyone feel better. I doubt that, though. With all the sponsor donations, which I'm sure there will be more of after tonight, and the district support, it feels genuine. It feels... hopeful.

---

"Hey, you wanted to talk to me?" it's Gale.

"You can't just walk in here," I say, startled.

"Well, I knocked, and yelled your name through the door for 10 minutes, but you didn't seem to notice." He's right, I didn't notice. I was immersed in the piano, focusing on hitting the right keys, driving the bad thoughts out of my head.

"Well, sit down I guess." I gesture at one of the nearby chairs. He brushes it off before he sits, and I stare at him.

"Sorry," he says. "Everything in my house is covered in coal dust, so it's a habit. Where's your dad?"

"You don't know?" I say with a bitter edge in my voice. Gale shakes his head. "Every Games he has to go to the Capitol and report on the district."

"Oh."

I nod. Just another reason on my list of why I dislike the Hunger Games. It wasn't so bad when I was little. Mom was in better shape then, and when she wasn't, we had enough money to hire a sitter. Now, money is stretched thin with all of the medicine and stuff. We don't show it, but trust me, it is. It's not even a quarter as bad as some of the other people here, though. Adults going hungry just to feed their kids. In the winter, tree bark is a blessing.

Gale speaks again, his deep voice pushing my brain from it's thoughts.

"Sorry, what did you say?" I ask.

"I was asking what you wanted me for? Because I always have better things to do."

"Sorry," I say, taken aback at his tone. "I just wanted to try and make up. Can we be friends?"

"Sure," he says. That's clearly not what he thought I was going to ask. "But only for Katniss."

"For Katniss," I mumble. For Katniss.

Sorry for the short chapter, but that was a good place to end it. How are you guys liking this so far? Is there anything you think could be improved, or anything canonically incorrect? Please please let me know. Have a great day!

-YourLocalSwimmer