I wrote this as a one-shot with the possibility of it being a multi-chapter so here it is now. the multi-chapter xmen hayffie au! Even if you don't watch x-men, i don't think you'll be lost reading this bc basically the hunger games character have abilities and is trying to deal with it.


Chapter 1

Haymitch was fifteen years old when he realised something was wrong. His mind was buzzing and there was a constant dull ache at the front of his skull which was becoming a new normal for him. The words coming out from his mother's mouth was not the same as what he was hearing. And it wasn't only her. It was his brother. It was his girl, his neighbours, his friends.

"You're not doing as well as expected, Haymitch," a teacher once said. "This isn't the kind of grades I expect coming from you."

You're lazy. A lazy boy is hopeless even if he is smart.

With a jolt, he realise that it was his teacher's thoughts that he heard, thoughts that his teacher kept to herself and would never say out loud.

He began to pay careful attention to people, the things they say and the things he heard in his head.

He was sixteen years old when Capitol Corporation came for him, took him away from his family and placed him in a room with forty-eight other children to test their abilities. This one's a telepath, he was told and that was the first time he learnt the name for it.

Haymitch knew everything those people meant to do to him and the other children. He could hear their thoughts.

He remembered those kids that were with him dying. He remembered some of them succumbing to the tests and he would too if it wasn't for a boy his age who left the door unlocked at night. Plutarch Heavensbee with his ability to manipulate people's perception had let him escape. Haymitch would never forget that name.

He escaped and collapsed with his guts in his hands. He spent two weeks recuperating in Mag's house, a woman who Plutarch had manipulated into helping him. She was kind and gentle, and Haymitch left in the dead of the night as soon as he could stand because he didn't want Mags to be in danger. When he got home, his mother was dead as was his brother.

Snow's soldiers were waiting for him. He was the example. That was Snow's message. There were other children taken in year after year, and only the strongest of them survive the experiments. Haymitch was helpless to do anything but each time he found a kid with abilities just like his, he send them Plutarch's way before Snow could get to them.

That was until Katniss Everdeen.

She wouldn't leave her mother or her sister behind and her powers were volatile, but there was something fierce in her, something that reminded Haymitch of himself.

He fell back into his old ways, the easy way to make money. He had done it countless time to get food on the table for his mother and brother, and it was something he was still good at. It nagged at him to cheat people off their money but he always made sure those people had more money than they knew what to do with it.

Haymitch never asked to be born with this telepathic ability. He never wanted to be able know what people are thinking because it was both a blessing and a curse but his mutation was a part of him and he might as well use it.

So here he was sitting in the café, bidding his time and keeping a close watch on the couple seated across from him.

The moment the man excused himself to go to the washroom, Haymitch stood up and dropped on the recently vacated seat. Startled, the woman who was his target raised her head.

She was beautiful; blue sparkling eyes, plump red lips and smooth pale skin that he was itching to run his finger across. Her hair fell in curls around her shoulders and his eyes were drawn to the pearl necklace adorning her neck.

"That seat is occupied. Can I help you?"

"He's cheatin' on you," Haymitch said without preamble.

The woman frowned. "Excuse me? I believe you have the wrong person."

"I said he's cheatin' on you and I ain't wrong. I know."

"Who are you?" the frown deepened and he detected a hint of irritation in her voice. "It is extremely rude to sit without being invited and ruder still to make such accusation about someone you hardly know."

Haymitch tilted his head to the side, studied her and shrugged. "Just tellin' you somethin' I thought was in your best interest to know. Could tell you more but information don't come cheap, you get what I mean, yeah?"

"I'm sorry?" the woman sputtered.

Effie Trinket. That was her name.

"I'm beginning to think you're a bit hard on hearin', sweetheart. How much money you got on you?"

"That is none of your concern how much money I carry! You are an odd sort of robber," she remarked, surprisingly calm.

He smirked. "Give me somethin' and I'll tell you the woman's name."

"Why would I do that?"

"Come on," he drawled. "Aren't you the least bit curious? Your man's cheatin' on you and I'm here tellin' you I know the woman's name and that he's in the washroom right now answerin' a call from her," he said and she gasped, her eyes drifting to where Seneca Crane had just disappeared to.

Haymitch cocked his head, concentrating and the dull ache which had magnified into a throbbing pain. He hated crowded place because of this reason. Everyone's thoughts are in his head.

"He's planning to meet her tonight after he's dropped you off. Hell, sweetheart, I know where she stays."

"What are you? How do you know all that? Are you a spy?"

He couldn't help the laughter and she looked mildly offended. A spy… That was a first.

"Me? I'm a hypnotist," he lied, sliding his name card that he had made himself as a cover. "So, what's it going to be? Time's runnin' out and he's gonna be back soon."

She looked torn between her distrust for him and the need to know. She cast a glance towards the direction of the restroom again before asking, "Who is she?"

Haymitch leaned back, a slow grin spreading across his face. He got her.

"Pandora Flickerman, she's - "

"Caesar Flickerman's daughter. I know who she is," she interrupted with a scowl. "Tonight you said? At her place?"

"Yeah," Haymitch nodded, "so..."

Without a word, the woman took off a wad of bills and handed it to him. Haymitch grinned and winked.

"What else can you tell me?"

"He's gonna propose to you, but he's not willing to let her go. Talk about having a cake and eating it, too," he chuckled. "Word of advice, sweetheart, drop him. I think you can find someone better, yeah?"

"You never told me how you knew," Effie bit her lip.

"Hypnotized him on his way over here," Haymitch lied and his stomach clenched. He didn't want to lie to this woman whose heart was breaking right in front of his eyes. "Pretty easy to get the information outta him. Sorry, sweetheart, but I got people relyin' on me and I gotta feed 'em."

He didn't know why he was explaining it to her but he just needed her to understand that he didn't mean any malice by his actions.

"Don't mess up that pretty face of yours in a cat fight," he gave her a mock salute and disappeared.

Haymitch left the restaurant and crossed the street where Katniss was waiting. Her hands were jammed inside the pockets of her leather jacket and he knew they were clenched tight in a fist to quell the fire dancing on her fingertips.

"So?" Katniss asked.

"Got it - hustled three hundred dollars from her," Haymitch grinned and gave Katniss half of her share. "Go on, take it home. Feed you family."

That should last them both a few weeks before they had to find another victim to swindle his or her money.

Alone at home, the scene in the restaurant played like a broken record in his mind. He couldn't shake the image of Effie's face. He clenched his jaws. He could have tried to sell her some other information. It didn't have to be about her boyfriend cheating on her.

Better she find out now than when they're married.

Haymitch grabbed a bottle of whiskey and collapsed on his sofa. He drank until the chorus of voices in his head dulled and his eyelids grew heavy. He must have only just fallen asleep when he felt a presence. Opening his eyes, he saw someone standing in front of him.

He jumped out of the sofa but his movements were sluggish, and the bottle slipped from his fingers onto the floor.

"Hello, Haymitch. Did I startle you? My apologies," Effie said but the gleam in her eyes told him that she was enjoying it.

"What are you – how did you get in here?"

"Oh," she waved her hand nonchalantly, "the same way you sold me that information."

"I don't fuckin' know what you mean."

"Don't you?" she raised a dubious eyebrow. "You're not a hypnotist the same way that I am not just me. We are so much more than that."

"What's that supposed to mean? How did you find me, woman?"

Effie glanced around, taking in the condition of his house.

It's in disrepair, she thought quietly to herself but Haymitch heard her just fine. It's a mess.

"Plutarch Heavensbee helped me to locate you so here I am. I don't think we've introduced ourselves. I'm Effie Trinket," she extended her hand.

"I know who you are. It still doesn't explain how – my doors and windows are locked."

"Yes," Effie nodded. "You are a little paranoid if I must say so myself. Everything is double locked."

He had a good reason for doing so. Snow's soldiers had been in his house years ago.

Snow.

Haymitch pulled his knife from the waistband of his trousers and took a threatening step forward.

"How did you get in?" he growled. "Answer me or - "

He sucked in a breath when her hand fluttered up to his cheek and passed right through him. She grinned at him the same way he had after he hustled her.

"Plutarch calls this 'Quantum Tunnelling'," Effie explained. "Simply put, I can move through solid objects. A locked door has never stopped me before."

"You're one – You're..."

"Just like you," she smiled. "Special."

"Mutant," he retorted.

"Special," Effie insisted. "You have a kid with ability, too. Why did you not send Katniss Everdeen to Plutarch?"

"What do you want with her?"

"We have a school and - "

"Yeah I've heard 'bout that school. Plutarch tried to recruit me into that school ten years ago. I told Plutarch he's crazy putting them all in one place together. That's what Snow did to us. If he finds out those children are together, it makes 'em an easy target."

"Those children need to learn to control their abilities. That's what that school does. That's what those children you sent to him are doing – they're learning so they won't be a danger to society."

"Katniss ain't going there. She doesn't want to. I'm teachin' her. Everything's under control here – you can go back and tell Plutarch that. I've got it under control."

"Do you? Plutarch told me that he's has been keeping an eye on you and on Katniss and she doesn't have her power under control, Haymitch. She accidentally set fire to her district. That's why you moved her out here in this abandoned ranch. What about you? You spent days in bed nursing a headache because it's becoming unbearable for you as the days went by to hear people's thoughts all the time."

"Maybe it's all the liquor I'm drinking," he said, refusing to admit the truth to her.

Stubborn, he heard her think. Why did Plutarch think I can convince him is beyond me…

He narrowed his eyes at her, suddenly suspicious.

"When I sat across from you this evening and told you that your boyfriend is cheating on you, do you already know about me?"

"No," Effie answered truthfully. "I didn't know who you are but I suspected that you couldn't be a hypnotist. No one could possibly be that good because your information checked out. After Seneca sent me home, I waited for half an hour then I took a taxi to her house. I walked in on them. I gave them quite a fright. After that was over, I went to Plutarch. Imagine my surprise when I told him what happened and he easily narrowed it down to you."

"Good for you," he said, bored. "Look, I ain't interested. Turn around and leave."

"We can help you," she implored. He crossed his arm stubbornly. "Haymitch, when my abilities first started showing, there were times when I walked and I fell right through the floor, half of my body buried. The school has helped me tremendously and I'm teaching there now."

"Like I said, sweetheart, good for you."

"Please refrain from calling me by pet names."

Haymitch tossed her a look.

"Why's that? At some point, you thought I have very beautiful, metallic grey eyes. Your words, not mine. So I'm feeling a certain attraction on your part building up," and mine, he thought which he wisely kept to himself because hot or not, he refused to step into the school for gifted people.

Effie pursed her lips.

"I see that this conversation is getting nowhere but I thought you should know that if you are able to control your abilities, you'll be able to hone in on a particular's person thoughts effortlessly. You can read their thoughts instead of just hearing them."

"What? Like there's a difference?"

"You would know if you let the people in the school teach you how. Right at this second, you're hearing mine in a jumble mess with others. You don't have to tell me I'm wrong because I'm not. Don't you want to know what else I've been thinking about you?"

If the look on his face was anything to go by, she had him where she wanted him.

"Goodnight, Haymitch," she said triumphantly and walked right through the walls of his living room and into the cold night.

He had a feeling this would not be the last he see of her and if he was honest, Katniss needed help.


I hope you like it. :)

A/N: I'll post chapter 2 tonight or tomorrow.