The morning sickness was not over; as Effie discovered a few days after they had arrived in district thirteen. She had woken up in the bed she and Haymitch shared in their small apartment. At first, she'd been a bit disoriented, not recognizing the room. It was definitely not the penthouse they shared every year. A few seconds later, she remembered moving in after they left the capitol.

Effie sat up, feeling very nauseated and hurried into the bathroom. Haymitch was asleep until the sounds of her retching woke him up. He shuffled into the small room, and knelt next to her. He pulled her hair out of her face; this had become a fairly routine occurrence. He made a mental note to ask one of the doctors, or Lily how long this nausea was supposed to last. When Effie had finished, he handed her a glass of water.

They showered together, before getting into the lovely gray jumpsuits that are the norm in their new home. Effie looked at her schedule; they had her getting breakfast in five minutes, and then having a checkup in the hospital. Haymitch's morning was the same, luckily. Their afternoons are separate, though. Haymitch was going to be in command for the rest of the day, trying to figure out how to get Katniss to agree to be the mockingjay. Effie did not envy Haymitch his position. Katniss was still very angry with him for leaving Peeta behind.

Effie sat next to Haymitch during breakfast, which was not appealing. But she choked it down anyway, knowing the nutrition was important for their baby. For now at least it felt like it might stay down. She hoped it will. As did Haymitch, he hated seeing her get sick so much.

Before the meal is over, they are joined by Gale, his family and Madge Undersee, the mayor of twelve's daughter. Madge had been lucky enough to be watching with Gale, when twelve was firebombed. She was the only survivor in her family. So many people in twelve were dead, with no chance to get out. The group made amiable chit chat, before Effie and Haymitch needed to leave for her appointment.

Effie lay on the bed in the infirmary, waiting for Dr. Mackall to come in. Haymitch sat in the chair next to her, holding her hand. They were not kept waiting for too long, as the people in thirteen were nothing if not efficient. The doctor came in, looking at Effie's chart,

"Good to see you again, Miss Trinket. According to your records, you haven't been gaining weight. The nausea is not improving?" It was more of a statement than a question,

"I woke up this morning and threw up." Everett nodded, he was not unfamiliar with morning sickness. Even though thirteen had had a low birthrate since the epidemic, there was still an occasional pregnancy to keep all the doctors up to speed on obstetrical procedures.

"I'm putting in your schedule extra meal times, you need to be gaining weight. Hopefully, if you eat smaller meals and snacks during the day, you'll be able to keep food down." Everett fiddled with a machine for a few moments. When he was finished, Lily knocked on the door, and entered with crackers and juice. Effie was a little reluctant, but she thanked Lily and tried to eat the crackers and drink the juice. Her stomach accepted the snack, for the time being. Dr. Everett had Effie reprint her daily schedule on her arm, and the new changes showed up.

Haymitch looked at his arm, and then the clock. Shit. He was going to be late for his meeting. He kissed Effie,

"Sorry, sweetheart, I've gotta go." And he left, heading off to another frustrating and utterly unproductive meeting. Effie got dressed, and checked her new schedule. She was to be helping Coin with paperwork until her next meal break in a few hours. She went down a few floors to the office, and started sorting paperwork. It was not exciting work, but it was something Effie excelled at.

For the next several weeks, Haymitch and Effie started a routine. Their days were filled with work, but the nights belonged to them. They were able to eat meals together, and were able to hold hands when they weren't busy with other things. During reflection, they'd spend the time comparing notes and cuddling; Effie was pleased with how her job was going. She was able to sit down, and President Coin seemed happy with her work. In fact, Coin had mentioned once that sometimes, she almost forgot that Effie was from the capitol. Which felt a little creepy, in Effie's mind.

Haymitch was not as lucky. Katniss had no inclination to be their mockingjay, and he had no idea how to make her understand how important it was. Effie didn't mention that part of the problem was how alike he and Katniss were. That path would lead to arguing, and she didn't want to start a fight.

The morning sickness finally went away, and Effie began to show more. She'd gained weight, and was feeling better. Haymitch started to give Effie a massage, beginning at her neck and working his way down from there. He kissed her neck as his hands moved down to her shoulders. Effie moaned and leaned back against him, her hormones were going crazy.

According to Lily, it was very normal for a woman entering her second trimester to have an increased sex drive. Effie had not wanted to ask Dr. Mackall about that particular issue. Haymitch was not complaining about it, he was enjoying her increased libido. And the whole not having to hide that they are together any more added to the pleasure for both of them. They shed their coveralls, and Effie leaned in to kiss Haymitch deeply. His hands moved to unhook her bra, as she reached to push down his boxers.

They were a bit late to dinner that night. No one said anything, but Gale, Katniss and Madge looked amused when the couple sat down at the table. Lily and Hazelle just smiled, they remembered their own pregnancies well enough to know exactly why Haymitch and Effie were late. And why Effie was glowing. Not just the 'pregnant woman glow' either. Haymitch looked at Katniss with a raised eyebrow, almost daring her to comment.

"So, Katniss, I talked to Plutarch, and he's agreed to let you go to twelve. There's only one catch, I have to go with you." Haymitch didn't expect much argument but it wouldn't have surprised him if she'd objected to him going along. And Katniss was obstinate at times as Effie, Haymitch, Lily, Prim, and just about anyone who knew her could attest. There were a few things he wanted to pick up from his house, which according to what they'd seen, was untouched by the bombs. One item in particular was a going to be a surprise for Effie. If he could remember where he'd hidden it. To his great relief Katniss agreed quietly. Of course, that didn't mean it would all be so easy, but Haymitch could hope.

They got back from what remained of district twelve just before reflection the next day. That was perfect, since that was what Haymitch and Effie called 'our' time. Haymitch had enough time for a quick shower, and time to tell Effie about his time in twelve. His house had been just as he'd left it and he'd found what he was looking for easily. He told Effie about Katniss, bringing home Prim's cat, Buttercup. And even though he wanted more time alone with Effie, he needed to be on time for dinner tonight.

When they reached the cafeteria, arm in arm, Haymitch waited until they were at the front of the line. Then he stopped, ignoring complaints from the people behind them. He got down on one knee and pulled the one thing he'd gone back for from his pocket. It was his mother's wedding ring, the only jewelry she'd owned.

He opened his mouth, the proposal he'd thought through for several days now had fled from his mind. He'd had it all planned out, how much he loved Effie, their child. How he wanted to be with her, only her for the rest of his life. But all that came out was a strangled sounding,

"Marry me?"

And here we are with chapter 10. I hope everyone enjoyed it. If you are looking for a more erotic version of this chapter, I will have that uploaded to AO3. Cheers!