Gale chuckled slightly at his own words about the place being abandoned as the other two cousins paused a second behind him.  During his drive up, he had been making a list of things to check on at the house and grounds.  He had planned on doing some repair and upkeep.  That would probably give him something to do for a couple weeks.  He leapt up the steps to the porch in one quick move that felt effortless.  He'd always done that as a kid.  Steps were for others.<br/><br/>He slid his key into the lock, but there was resistance.  He turned to mention something to the cousins.  Their feet hit the steps up to the porch as he opened his mouth.  The key spun in the lock with oiled ease.<br/><br/>Gale shut his mouth, a moment of confusion on his face as he turned back to the door.  It opened for him with no further resistance.  In fact, both of the front doors opened inward, not making a sound.<br/><br/>The three of the cousins stepped inside together and with growing surprise and confusion looked around.  It was as if they had left the place yesterday instead of a decade or so ago.<br/><br/>Gale took a deep sniff of the air.<br/><br/>"That's...weird.  Smells like baking?"<br/><br/>He glanced at the others and then shrugged.  He took a further step inward.<br/><br/>"Man, the whole concept of baking is weird for me ever since that movie came out.  That one about the kids fighting in an arena?"<br/><br/>He kept looking around, as if searching for their grandmother.  He couldn't have said if he was or wasn't at that moment in time.  He kept talking, his brain not really concentrating, just filling the empty air.<br/><br/>"You know, there was a character in there with my name in it.  Keep expecting people to ask me about what bread I baked that morning, but that never happened.  Oh well."<br/><br/>Ember and Raine glanced at each other then turned back to Gale.  They spoke at the same time.<br/><br/>"Peeta," they said simultaneously, both with an upturned eyebrow.<br/><br/>He turned back to them.<br/><br/>"Huh?"<br/><br/>Ember took a step forward and patted him on the shoulder as she explained.<br/><br/>"Peeta was the baker.  Gale was a hunter."<br/><br/>Raine chuckled as she patted Gale's other shoulder.<br/><br/>"And he was played by a Hemsworth in the movie, so better luck on the comparison front next time, cousin."<br/><br/>Gale's eyebrows drew together for a moment as he started to open his mouth to argue, but then he realized that they were probably right.  Already they were falling back into their old habits as kids.<br/><br/>"Oh," he said instead.  "Okay, yeah, I kn-...uh, yeah.  Right."<br/><br/>Gale looked along the staircase leading upstairs.  He craned his head to look straight up.<br/><br/>The other two had moved further in.  But all of them were in sight of each other.  They met each other's eyes.  With an unspoken agreement, they all moved toward where the kitchen was.<br/><br/>When they got there, Gale felt a little disappointment that opening the door didn't reveal their grandmother.  Gale moved over to the oven and opened it, bending down to look inside it.  He straightened and closed it.  The faint smell of cookies was already dispersing though by the time he had opened it.  .<br/><br/>"Okay, nothing there.  So, not a trick to make the place feel like a home."<br/><br/>Ember turned to look sharply at Gale.<br/><br/>"No trick is needed to make it feel like a home.  It already is."<br/><br/>She paused, then looked away.<br/><br/>"Well, it was.  Grandma's that is."<br/><br/>Gale felt a sting in the corner of his eyes.<br/><br/>"Yeah," he said softly.  He tried to take a deep breath but it got stuck in his throat.<br/><br/>He suddenly felt Raine and Ember hugging him.  They had moved over to him without a word or sound.  For another few seconds, the cousins held each other, but in comfort instead of joy.<br/><br/>Gale whispered softly to them.<br/><br/>"Damn it, I'm gonna miss her so much.  I already do."<br/><br/>The others didn't say a word, knowing they didn't need to for the agreement to be shared among them.  They merely held each other for a little bit longer.<br/><br/>There was a faint play of air along the shoulders of all of them, and the house seemed to exhale softly, offering its own comfort to the three.  They didn't seem to notice, but they each felt a little bit of the sorrow let loose its grip on them.<br/><br/>The embrace broke apart when Gale shifted to wipe his eyes.  None of them looked at each other for a second, composing themselves before turning back to each other.<br/><br/>"Well," Gale began. "I guess that we are here for at least a couple weeks?  I should get my few things from the bike and then start laundry.  Hadn't planned on staying that long, but what the hell, right?"<br/><br/>He headed back toward the front doors.  "We should also decide who gets what room."<br/><br/>He turned back to them for a moment, eyes glinting with mischief.  Then he suddenly broke into a run.<br/>