Both of them were rightfully on edge, they had an insurmountable task set out before them and odds were, things wouldn't end well. Stil, they were given some momentary reprieve of solitude before Hell began to rain down on them. Knowing who to trust, and for how long, would be a tricky task but Katniss hoped she could trust outsiders like Beetee and Finnick for as long as possible. But the endless barrage of situations was enough to pull her away from the oasis which she and Haymitch were sharing, and from that, she wished not to leave so she pushed all other thoughts away as he kissed her again. Katniss found a mild shiver run up the side of her body when the man rested his hand against the side of her face.

When the kiss broke, the pair were rather content, cuddled against one another. It was this particular type of warmth which made Katniss remember that she hadn't even been loved like this before. She knew her new-found relationship wouldn't be secret for much longer but she didn't care. She had him by her side and she would proudly defend him when lives were on the line. With some distance built between them, the girl was able to admire Haymitch's face more slowly. She wasn't thinking back to how he may have looked ten year ago, but was instead admiring who he was right now. She liked that person, in fact she loved him. From his hair to those grey eyes of his and even the light stubble that often graced his angular face.

"I love you, everyone else better watch their backs tomorrow because we have plenty to fight for." Giving him a smirk and another kiss, she wiggled deeper into the bed and the two turned out the lights, ready to try and get some sleep before dawn.

Lying to his best friend, wasn't something Gale felt happy about. The two of them hardly kept secrets and had know each other for quite some time. He knew it was hard for Prim to lie to her own sister, but Gale still felt guilty in his own way.

Katniss was a strong person who had been burdened by too much. He wanted to help, as did plenty others. The plan they had was going to work, if they thought otherwise, even for just a second, it would all fall apart. They had to trust Beetee, Wiress, Finnick and Johanna, as well as the others staying back at the Capitol who would help pull strings to the best of their abilities. Gale kissed Prim on the cheek softly as he mentioned that she wasn't fond of lying to her sister. "I know." Gale said with a heavy sigh and used his free arm to massage his neck. "I don't like it either, and I'm sure she won't once it all comes out but it is the right thing." He told Prim, trying to have faith.

The next seven days would be very hard and getting wrapped up in the mental stresses would only tire them out even more. The physical endurance alone, was more than enough to weaken anyone but they had numbers on their side. As did Careers, yes but Gale knew their team was stronger and had everything to prove through making a change and rising up. The more he thought about the end of their plan, the more hopeful and inspired he became. The Capitol was a hateful place but he wanted to believe that with Katniss acting as a mockingjay, the other Districts would also rise up and take back what was theirs. It was all coming clear, bit by bit. "We're part of a bigger picture." Though he didn't know as much as Effie or Haymitch, Gale still could tell from rumors and the interviews, that change was on the horizion and he was not going to be on the sidelines.

He gave Prim another simple kiss and got more comfortable so they could rest. "That picture is brighter than where we are now and you're in it, that's all I need to believe in for all of this crap to be worth it." He said softly. When the next morning finally came, there was a knock on the door and in his groggy state of mind, he allowed entrance without worrying about Effie or Katniss. Instead, their visitor happened to be Peeta. He rubbed his eyes and looked over to Prim who was fast asleep, holding onto him. He leaned down and kissed her temple before gently nudging her awake. "Prim, wake up. Peeta's here." He said and rubbed her side as she soon woke up. The mentor closed and locked the door behind him. "What time is it?" He asked the boy.

"7:25." He replied. "I need to talk to you both about the next seven days." He said, not wanting to wait any longer, they didn't have anymore time for that. "The other four will be looking after you, they've promised to put the alliance before the others from their own Districts." Peeta paused and Gale swallowed, understanding the grave significance of that. "In turn, you will also look after them as if they were from 12. Make sure Katniss and Haymitch have a clear head and remembers who our enemy is." He told them. "I've been told that there will be a long radio tower at the center of the arena, located under the cornucopia. The other mentors have agreed to send extra survival supplies, just in case things get rough. But you'll be on the look out for special wires and other intricate tools which Beetee and Wiress will use to construct a device that can be launched up to the tower's highest point. You'll need Katniss for that, the device will be designed to explode upon impact, thus giving us on the outside, a way to extract you." He told them.

"How?" Gale asked quickly.

"We've been given use of a helicopter. Just be there by noon on the seventh day and we'll be waiting. Finnick, Johanna, Wiress and Beetee have all been given their own instructions. Yours is to keep Katniss and Haymitch alive, along with the other four. The Gamemaster is on our side and has given us enough information about the location of the arena itself, that we can only tell you about the center of it and nothing else." After all, their intel had to be used carefully and Peeta needed more knowledge than those going into fight. "I will be communicating with you through gifts. The events at the Ball have helped us out and even with last night, things are alright." He smiled and stepped back, trying not to let it show, just how uneasy he was about this. He knew he should be going on and he wanted to get everyone out safe.

"Thank you." Gale said softly.

"Good luck, I'll see you at breakfast." He said and headed out.

Meanwhile, Katniss hadn't been able to sleep much but she did manage to get a few hours at least. When she got up, she saw the sun had just risen and she knew from now on, any sunrises or sunsets would have to happen when she in the Games, trying to not die. She sat up and realized she should have done more to wash up the night before. Either way, she spent some time stroking Haymitch's hair before she finally forced herself out of bed to take one last how shower. She got dressed in the clothes the Capitol wanted them to wear: a black skin tight ensemble. She had on a grey tee shirt underneath and then pulled on the long sleeve shirt and pants and found them easy to move in, much to her surprise. She headed out and saw Haymitch had gotten up too. "Why don't you go get dress and come back, I'll teach you how to braid my hair." She grinned, figuring he'd need to know sooner or later.