yeeeeeeeeeeah | Her eyes were bright and clear

Her eyes were bright and clear

Needless to say, it'd been a rough week for the Capitol and her rebellious children.

Things weren't exactly looking up, but considering two power hungry political minds were out of the way, things were at least looking straight forward again. Except for the fact Katniss was being kept under lock and key until her trial was over. And if the results of her trial weren't favorable...

And for that reason alone, Haymitch was back to the bottle, quite literally. He drank down the bitter liquor, the sting distracting him from heavy thoughts and worries. Worries. Too many damned worries. About Katniss. About Peeta.

And strangely, about a prissy Ms. Trinket. Or used to be prissy. Or what ever.

She hadn't been the same. He wouldn't call her lifeless. Nah, he would have almost called her soulless before all of this started. But it was as if whatever the Capitol had done to her, had drained her of what made Effie...Effie. Even if it was prissy and several layers of annoying.

He looks down at the bottle, frowning. Not enough alcohol to drown these worries apparently.

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His jaw clenched, unsure about this hug. He wasn't touchy feely, only when he drunk, and even then it was inappropriate. And Effie had never allowed it to happen. His hand moved, moving to rub her back some.

"We'll go back to 12 and start over. All of us."

A new start.

True, a new start in 12. Which...was not a place she'd ever wanted a start in. She closed her eyes, trying to imagine living there. Without what she had here.

Which was sort of the point, because she didn't have it here either.

Still, no clothes, no make up, no parties. But maybe that was what she needed right now. As much as she thought she wanted parties, the thought of actually attending one seemed...horrifying.

He gave her the time she needed to process that. Even being the bitter man he was, he knew she'd grown up completely different. She had always lived in this lavish life style.

But that was gone now. The Capitol's rule was over. And she had no where else to go. And ever a bitter man knew when he couldn't abandon someone who'd be torn to pieces if left here.

"Take it or leave it. I know it's not great...but.."

He trailed off, leaving her to come up with the conclusions.

But it was all there was.

"I...should get packed then. When are you going back?"

She lifted her self up, smoothing out her skirt. She would have to do a lot of sorting to decided what to take to 12 and what not to. Most of her things would be...ridiculously out of place there. And maybe it was better to make as clean a cut as possible.

Haymitch shrugged, "When Katniss gets back. Not going to abandon her now."

He'd gotten more attached to her than he'd admit, but it was probably obvious to all of them now. He wasn't leaving the Capitol with out her. And now Effie was going to be coming with him. Living with him. It was slightly surreal.

All of this was surreal though.

She nodded. Poor Katniss. The poor girl needed to be home, and the fact they were punishing her at all made Effie want to...to do something very un-Effie like.

"Do we know, how much longer it will be?"

Haymitch had argued at length with everyone involved, but this was the temporary conclusion that was reached. It made him want to do some very un-Effie things too.

"No clue. We might be stuck here for a bit."

"I think...I might stay here with you."

She had been going home, but home reminded her too much of people who hadn't been found yet. And the way things use to be.

And leaving, moving around the city was terrifying. There was no sympathy for the Capitol, and especially for her.

"Should be plenty of room," Haymitch replied. He still had his room here on the 12th floor, even while everything was going on, "Hell your old room's probably still open."

It was weird not to be bickering with her. Things had changed greatly since the 74th hunger games where Peeta and Katniss had entered together and were the first to leave together. While he and Effie were far from perfect people...they've managed to team up, and even Haymitch had to admit he was glad to see the former escort still alive after everything was said and done.

Her old room. Caught somewhere between home and a very nice hotel. It was not memory free, but it was far closer. And these were memories that, painful or not, she was use to dealing with. She had tools for them, ways to cope and fold her mind around things and not fall apart. Not let them get so deep.

She stared down at the drink, fairly forgotten since her break down.

"Will you be ok going home?"

She had heard whispers about 12 even before being released. But she wanted to know what he had to say on it.

Haymitch knew what had happened there. And also what remained. His house still stood despite the terrible bombings that hit District 12. And even though it was a haunting thought, he had seen what the rebel's cameras saw. Haymitch nodded, "My house is still there. It won't be good. But it's a start."

"A start."

She nodded, heading out to start packing up. Putting her whole life into boxes. Most of them were packed up and put into storage.She knew she'd have less room at Haymitch's house. And less need. Heels, wigs, ball gowns...none of that would be needed in District 12.

Finally she had what she hoped was everything she needed packed up and sent off. With only a small suitcase, she headed back to the District 12 flat. Knowing they'd have a log wait ahead of them.

And it was a long wait. Much too long for Haymitch's liking. After what felt like months, Katniss was released, and the three had begun the long journey back to District 12. Gale and Katniss' mother had for, whatever reason, decided not to come back. And Katniss had shut herself in her train compartment the entire ride back.

When they arrived home, Katniss had all but disappeared immediately. It concerned Haymitch, but he knew she was a big girl now. A big girl that needed checking up on occasion because she was an idiot sometimes, but a big girl none the less.

Haymitch led Effie to his Victor's house, pausing at the door, "...You're probably not going to like what you see."

"I never have."

The few times she had had cause to visit Haymitch's house...well, she had been happy for a shower afterwards.

But he was accepting her into his house as a guest, and she had to midn her manners.

"Ah...sorry. I'm sure...I can help."

Haymitch gives a shrug, indifferent either way. He was inviting her into his home, but it didn't mean he was going to change. He opened the door, shuffling a bit of debris away from their path with his foot, Dust had settled through out the home from lack of use. More so than usual. Probably a mix of dust and ash. "It's a little rougher than I thought."

"I'll get it clean."

It would give her something to do. Which was a good thing. And maybe give her a little bit more ability to settle in here.

Still, she didn't really want to even touch anything.

"How did this much dust get in here?"

"Lack of use," Haymitch wasn't going to stop her if she wanted to clean, "Probably the fire bombs. Ashes and dust get everywhere during fires."

This was home though. Not really home. But the only home he still had. And his chair was still there.

In his nice clean Capitol suit, he walked over to the chair, and collapsed into it, sending dust and ash flying everywhere.

"Haymitch!" She exclaimed, more out of habit than actual shock.

And then her face went white. Ashes. The ashes of the houses, yes, but also...

Pressing a fist to her mouth she closed her eyes. Tried not to be ill.

Tried not to cry.

He turned back to her, and saw her expression. He could even see her pale under the makeup she was wearing. Through out their years together working in the hunger games, he'd always been the more calloused one towards death. And here he was again, forgetting exactly how sensitive she was to this.

"Eff," he started, standing up to go over to her. But then he realized he didn't know what to say. People died in fires. Those fires made their ashes and the winds carried their ashes where ever. And he knew Effie wasn't so naive not to realize that, so lying to her was out, "We can't change it now."

It was true, and not wanting it didn't make it any less true.

And these might not be, factually, her friend and family. But symbolically they might as well be.

She pressed the heels of her palms to her face, nodding.

"I'm...I'm sorry. It just...it hits hard sometimes."

He put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently, "I forget sometimes."

Alcohol had done it's damage to him. Numbed him to the point of no return. There were three people who'd somehow defied the odds, made him remember what emotions were. Beyond them though? He hadn't felt much. Seeing 12 for the first time had angered him, but remembering that people had actually died? Well. It wasn't his three. So there was no use losing it over death.

He doesn't say anything as he moved to dust a chair off for her to sit on.

She follows, keeping close to him. Not touching, not exactly, but shadowing after him like a lost little child.

She felt like a lost little child. In a strange new place, with no home to go to.

Taking a deep breath, she reach out to lay a hand on his arm, just closing her eyes and...reminding herself where she was. And why.

For a moment, he thought she was going to pass out. And while it had happened with them in the past (more him passing out drunk on her than the other way), he wasn't sure he was prepared to deal with that.

"Uh. Eff?"

"I'm ok. Just..."

She shook her head. She didn't have words to describe what she was feeling. And if she tried, she had the sneaking suspicion it would end up in tears. Again.

"I'll clean tomorrow. Everything."

"Everything? You sure?" He was teasing a bit. Trying to get her mind off of the ashes that were everywhere.

Her eyes were bright and clear

I THOUGHT BEING DRUNK MADE YOU MORE TRUTHFUL.............

clearly not, it's just making you delusional.

your face is delusional

my face is made of skittles

that's really offensive to the districts.

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In which, haymitch is about as sensitive as a rock

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