Epilogue

       I felt alive in the woods. The birds were singing merrily, the sky looked peppy which made me feel the same. In light of everything that went on three months ago, things had definitely improved. The Peacekeepers were learning to be a little more lenient here in District 12 after the President of Panem had heard about what had happened.

Apparently, what happened to Katniss and I was not authorized at all by anyone. The Peacekeepers who had captured us were rogues within the Capitol, going against the President, because they still felt like they had to serve under President Snow’s rule even after he was deceased. They were punished most severely for their actions.

            “Stop frolicking and keep up, would you?” Katniss called ahead of me. I snapped out of my loving daze for nature and went back to focusing on the task at hand. Katniss stood on a log, watching impatiently for me. “Game isn’t going to kill itself.”

            Sometimes I wished for once I could venture over the district boundary alone and enjoy nature. However, I really didn’t like going into the woods alone, so that wish would hardly come true in time.

I followed Katniss, leaping over the log, trying not to drop my bow or arrows. Katniss managed to have a spare set with her and let me have it. Her hijacking had ceased, so she was back to her old self, hunting even though she didn’t really need to do it anymore. Some habits were just too hard to break.

 We were stalking quietly, hoping to find something to snag today. Since Gale was working in what was left of the mines, Katniss stopped by the house to take me hunting. We had been doing this since last month.

            I caught up to Katniss, walking side by side with her. I scanned the woods, looking for any animal to kill. The walk was quiet, being that we both saw there to be no reason to talk when I couldn’t really, and if I tried saying anything, Katniss most likely wouldn’t be paying attention to me.

            After an hour of an unsuccessful hunt, Katniss and I took a rest at a place I was familiar with: twenty trees formed a circle around us, the targets still drawn on them from when I was trained that one day by Gale and Peeta. I sat on the ground, fiddling with the grass, Katniss sat opposite me.

            “We’ve had better days,” she sighed. I nodded as I pulled a few blades of grass out of the earth.

            “How’re you and Peeta?” I mouthed.

            “Good. Things are changing for us.”

            “In what way?”

            “I don’t just hunt anymore. He’s teaching me how to draw a little bit. It’s therapeutic to me somehow, I don’t know why. Are things going well at home?”

            “Yup,” I confirmed. I looked down at the blade of grass I twisted through my fingers. “Life just feels so…different now.”

            “But in a good way,” Katniss mused. “Do you want to head back? I don’t think there’s any game to go looking for today, it’s been pretty quiet except for the birds.”

            I rose, indicating that I did want to leave. Katniss understood, and we hitchhiked back through the woods to the district fence. Along the way, I thought of the crazy times I had in those two weeks that all the chaos erupted in. The first day I went into the woods was the first day I ever met Katniss in person.

            Katniss and I stored our things in her little hiding place to ensure they would be safe. I was sure nobody except for me, her, and Gale ever crossed the fence. Peeta was the only exception there because he had slipped through once when Gale and he had to train me in the woods.

That day I remembered well, all the good and bad of it.

            I slipped through the fence first, nearly getting my blonde hair caught in it. We were lucky we had just slipped through, because not too long after Katniss got through, the fence hummed loud, indicating it was on and ready to shock anyone who touched it.  Katniss and I walked casually back into town, looking as if we hadn’t ventured off to the forbidden side of the fence.

            I was the first to reach my house, and Katniss went on to the Victors’ Village to reunite with Peeta. I actually kind of missed him. Peeta was pushed from my mind when I stepped into the Hawthorne house. Hazelle noticed me coming back and smiled. Posy peeked from behind her mother’s legs, ran to me, and jumped into my arms.

            “How did it go today?” Hazelle asked me. I shook my head. “Oh well, we all have our bad days.”

            I scanned around the house for Gale. He probably wasn’t home yet. I saw Rory and Vick come to the kitchen to greet me. We three were all on better terms ever since they promised to make life easier on me. So far they were keeping true to their word.

            “Goodness, he’s back already,” Hazelle murmured. I set Posy down and turned only to have Gale take me into his arms. I sighed quietly in content. “What happened at work?”

            “Oh, nothing,” Gale said. Gale looked down at me; I could tell he was lying. Whatever he wanted to say he wanted to say only to me and not to his family just yet. “I left early; nobody really noticed that I left.”

            “You shouldn’t cut work like that. If someone notices, you’ll probably get whipped again.”

            “I promise I won’t do it again, Mom. Today is the only day.”

            Gale dragged me into his bedroom and shut the door, locking it. My head tilted to the side.

            “You better sit down, Kat,” he said. A little nervous, I sat on the edge of the bed. I had a notepad and pencil right beside me just in case. Gale sat beside me.

            “Is something wrong?” I asked.

            “No—actually, something great has come up.” He grabbed both my hands gently. “Kat, I think it’s time I left home. I want to go work in the military in District Two.”

            My mouth dropped. How long had Gale been thinking of this? He never told me anything about leaving the house. Well, he was nineteen, so really, how much longer could he really stay here in this house?

            “And you’re telling me this why?”

            “I want you to come with me. I wouldn’t leave you here unless I asked you to come with me and you didn’t want to go.” I looked at him uneasily. “This is a good chance for us to begin a new life together. We can find a new house; you can probably find a job while we’re there.”

            “How long were you thinking about this?”

            “A month or two.”

            “And you’re sure you want to do it?”

            “Yes, and I want you to come with me.”

            I wasn’t sure if I could do that. I had lived in District 12 all my life. True, I had always wanted to leave this place because of how much I hated it, but now that I actually could…the thought frightened me. I always wanted to stay at home, where I felt safe. Moving to some place foreign intimidated me to no end.

            Unable to form words, I scribbled on the notepad.

            I don’t know if I can, Gale. I mean—I can—it’s just…the idea of moving kind of scares me. And I don’t know if I’d want to leave here. I’ve been here all my life; I don’t think I can leave everybody here behind.

      “I know the idea of moving scares you,” he said gently, tilting my chin up so I could meet his eyes. “It kind of scares me too, because I have no idea what I’ll get into when I’m there, but that’s the part that excites me. Who knows what’ll happen when I’m there?”

            When are you going to tell the rest of the family?

      “I was hoping to soon, actually,” he confessed. “Are you with me on this, Kat?”

            I sighed quietly and shook my head. As much as I wanted to be with Gale, I couldn’t find it in myself to leave District 12 and go to District 2 with him. I wasn’t really accustomed to change.

            “Somehow I knew you were going to say no. Don’t worry; I’m not mad at you. I’m at fault for springing this up on you so quickly. I won’t force you to come with me if you feel that you should stay here. I know you respect my choice, so I’ll respect yours.”

            A faint clicking noise made Gale and I look to the door. Someone had picked the lock because the door swung open, revealing Rory and Vick. I looked to Gale nervously.

            “You’re leaving us?” Rory whimpered.

            “And you weren’t going to tell us?” Vick piped.

            “You were eavesdropping,” Gale snarled. He sighed. “For the record, I was going to tell you soon if you didn’t overhear everything.”

            “But you can’t leave,” Rory whined. “How’re we going to eat now?”

            “You two can hunt, and don’t worry—Katniss will still stop by. I asked that of her a month ago,” Gale added when I stared at him. Katniss never told me that. She was good at keeping secrets.

            “What’s this I’m hearing?” Hazelle chirped as she came with Posy in her arms. This just got even better.

            “Mom, Gale’s going to leave us,” Vick said.

Hazelle looked to her son. She sighed and shifted Posy in her arms. “I always wondered when the time would come,” she said softly. “Where will you go?”

            “District Two,” Gale said.

            “Surely Katrina is going with you.”

            I shook my head.

            “You’re staying here with us?” Posy sang. I nodded. “Oh…” She didn’t sound happy.

            “When are you leaving?” Hazelle asked.

            “In an hour since everybody knows now,” Gale decided. I looked at him nervously. “Well, I can’t delay it, can I?”

            “Do you want me to help you pack?” I offered.

            “We’ll help you, too,” Vick volunteered.

            “Yeah,” Posy agreed.

            “There’s not much to pack,” Gale reminded them.

            “Let’s leave them alone, you two,” Hazelle said, guiding her boys away from the doorway. Posy looked over her mom’s shoulder as she left, her little eyes sad. She made me almost want to cry.

            I sat on the bed while Gale paced around the room, figuring out what to take with him. I couldn’t believe this. Gale had decided this in just a few months, and he was just telling us now? He had to have banked on me going with him. But I couldn’t, I couldn’t find it in myself to leave my district.

            In all actuality, Gale was ready to head out in a half hour. We all stood just outside the door, saying our goodbyes to him. Posy almost didn’t want to let him go when he hugged her, Rory and Vick looked almost teary-eyed, Hazelle blinked back her tears and kissed her eldest son on the cheek.

            It seemed Gale’s goodbye with me was the longest. My lower lip quivered. I tried not to sob.

            “Are you sure you want to stay here?” he whispered. I looked up at him and nodded. “I just want to make sure.”

            He grabbed my waist as he and I shared a long, deep kiss. Our foreheads rested against each others’, eyes closed. I felt immediately alone when I didn’t feel Gale’s forehead on mine. I opened my eyes to see him slowly disappear from his home, from District 12, from me…

            I rubbed my eyes and sniffled.

            “Why aren’t you going with him?” Vick asked me.

            “I’m sure she feels that she’s not ready,” Hazelle said softly. I looked at her and nodded.

            “But, Trina,” Posy whimpered, “he’s leaving. Aren’t you going to chase after him?” I shook my head.

            “I think you should,” Rory piped. I looked at him. “Kat, he loves you—and you love him. Why should you let your fear hold you back from being with him?”

            “Rory’s right,” Vick sided. “Don’t be afraid to leave. It’s going to have to happen sometime. If Gale can do it, so can you. Go after him.”

            “But what about all of you?” I mouthed.

            “We’ll be fine,” Hazelle murmured, putting a hand on my shoulder. “We can take care of ourselves. Go with him, Katrina.”

            “Even though I’ll miss you, Trina, I still want you with Gale,” Posy chimed. I grinned.

I would have thought Posy would have been overjoyed that I was staying with the family. Now I understood why she had looked so upset earlier: she wanted Gale and me together. For a five-year-old, Posy could see that I was happy with Gale, and that he was happy with me. I had a feeling Posy would grow up to be a smart girl.

            “Go after him,” Vick pushed. “You better hurry too, because once you’ve lost sight of him, who knows when you’ll see him again.”

            Vick made a very good point. Maybe it is time to fly the coop, I considered. I mean, if Mom and Dad did it when they were young, why can’t I?

            I hugged Hazelle, Rory, Vick, and Posy in a group hug one last time. I would never forget any of them. I made a note to myself in the future to definitely revisit District 12 just to see how things were going.

            I turned my back to them and ran after Gale. I hoped he could hear me run, because I couldn’t scream for him.

Once again, Gale’s sharpened hearing came through. He stopped and turned around just in time before I collided with him. He chuckled as he embraced me.

            “I thought you weren’t going to come with me?” he asked.

            “I changed my mind,” I mouthed. “And I got a little encouragement. I want to be with you every step of the way, Gale.”

            “You aren’t forcing yourself to do this, are you?”

            “No, because I know I’ll have to do it sometime soon if not now. I would be an idiot if I decided to stay back here and not go with you. What kind of girlfriend would I be?” I grinned.

            He kissed me sweetly, I smiled into the kiss.

            “I have a feeling the life that awaits us is going to be full of adventure,” he crooned.

 I grabbed his hand. “Whatever this has to throw at us, I’m ready. As long as I have you with me, I can take on anything.”

            “Let’s see what District Two has to offer, then.”

            We never looked back as we marched farther from home. This was the start of a new chapter in our lives, one that we both would embark on together.

**Another Hunger Games fan fiction has come to an end. All the feedback, reads, and votes I've appreciated greatly. And, I am sad to say that this book will not have a sequel. I had considered a sequel when I first wrote this years ago, but reading it over now, I don't think one is necessary.

I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**