I didn't like the first chapter so I re-edited it. Hope you enjoy! :)


She remembered the first time she met him. For all the wrong reasons, of course. That was hardly surprising considering he spent ninety percent of his time drunk. Although, their introduction was one of the few occasions that alcohol couldn't be blamed.

They had met inside the Justice building. It was the fifty-fifth Hunger Games.

She had finally landed her dream job as an escort. It might have been for District Twelve, but with time, she hoped to work her way up to one of the better districts. Effie was nothing if not a perfectionist. She accepted the poor reception she'd received with a bright smile.

Of course she already knew of Haymitch. She had watched him in the Quarter Quell. She had cheered him on and had even managed to convince her mother to sponsor him. You had to be over sixteen to sponsor and she had only been eleven. Though her mother hadn't been pleased. She'd tutted and grumbled that Effie always favoured the 'controversial types'.

And then Effie had jumped for joy when he was finally crowned victor of the fiftieth Hunger Games.

She had briefly followed news of him since. He seemed rather popular with those of the opposite sex. Almost every year she read about a new fling he was supposedly having during mentoring in the capital. There had been rumours within her circle of friends that he was quite the brute these days. She didn't believe that. He was smart in his games. He had shown intuitive in teaming up with Maysilee. Up until then, tributes from the same district had kept a distance from each other.

In his interviews, he had been effortlessly charming and confident. Effie could appreciate that. You had to exhume an air of confidence if you wished to do well. It was something her mother had droned into her from an early age. Besides, people didn't change that much after becoming a victor. Right?

She was finally being given the opportunity to meet him. To work with him.

But that definitely wasn't the reason for her wearing her favourite blue dress.

The latest Capital fashion craze was rockabilly. Her dress was cobalt blue, with dark blue spikes. It was a little short but she pulled it off with a pair of fishnet tights, white fur coat and bright red heels to match the wig she was wearing. It was shoulder-length, with victory rolls pinned up on either side. Her make-up was done to perfection. She had crafted her skills by the age of fifteen. She had on bright red lipstick, left her pale skin natural, added a touch of mascara, and the flick of an eye-liner.

She fingered a victory roll delicately, making sure it was still in place, before she begun to strut towards where the familiar figure stood. She recognized his dirty blonde hair from the back.

She cleared her throat delicately. It was rude to tap someone on the shoulder.

He looked mildly irritated as he turned round. But his grey eyes took her breath away as they trailed over her, taking her in slowly.

"You must be Haymitch Abernathy." She said carefully. She didn't want to come off as sounding like one of those intense hunger games fans after all.

"That I am. And who would you be sweetheart?" He drawled, curiosity in his eyes as he took a moment to glance her over again.

She shivered at his endearment. It certainly sounded…appealing. Perhaps it was just the way he said it.

She offered him her most charming smile. "Effie Trinket. I'm the new escort for District Twelve. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Of course, I remember you from your year in the games. You were certainly memorable and of course, brilliant to—"

"Oh joy."

She stopped, surprised at his interruption when she had been so complimentary, but he continued too quickly.

"So basically, I have to work with yet another Hunger Games fanatic. Well isn't that just great?"

She was thrown by his tone. So thrown that for once in her life, she couldn't think of a smooth response.

"Well…I…I wouldn't call myself a fanatic exactly—"

"Oh really? And what would you call yourself, sweetheart?"

He was being rude. And he sounded arrogant. Rather than the charming tone he used for the interviews during his games. He even had the gall to smirk at her. She finally mustered up enough sense to respond. She had been looking forward to meeting him, but she had no time for someone with such a lack of decent manners.

She stepped back a little and raised her head to reply in a firm manner. "My name would be a start, sweetheart."

He almost looked surprised. So he should be. Effie was more than just a pretty face. And she certainly didn't appreciate being treated as such.

"I'm not sure how relaxed the other escorts were that you were forced to work with, but let me make it clear that I have no time for such poor manners. You can expect that things will be different with me as District Twelve's escort."

He looked amused. But she didn't give him a chance to respond. Instead, she forced a polite smile and said; "If you'll excuse me, I have my first reaping to present."

She glanced at her watch, and breathed a relieved sigh. "And thankfully, it's right on schedule."

Then she tottered off towards the two peacekeepers guarding the main door and nodded, letting them know that she was ready to go outside. It was time for the Hunger Games to begin.

Haymitch watched her for another moment before he followed, both in amusement and dread. All three escorts he'd worked with before had despaired him enough to never bother with him. he had a feeling that Trinket had been right about one thing. She was going to be different, alright.

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