Prompt from Guest "Can you please do one when Elle finds out that Effie's pregnant and she gets mad? PLEASE!"

Well, yes I can, and I have written this up. I hope you like this. Now, the reason this didn't go up in the last week or so, which you'll know if you follow my Twitter, is I've been horribly sick these past two weeks, and I've been unable to see straight, which makes writing hard. I am so sorry for keeping you waiting. I hope this makes up for my absence. Enjoy. xxx

Sibling?

"Where's your mother, Elle?" Haymitch asks, looking over to his ten year old daughter from the stove.

"Bathroom," Elle replies, then bounds over to hug her father. "Hi."

"Hey, Peanut," Haymitch chuckles, bending down to hug her back. He cuddles her close and gets out a small spoon. "Want to taste the soup?"

Elle nods eagerly, and Haymitch grins, dipping the spoon into the soup and bringing out a little bit on the spoon. He allows it to cool before putting it to his daughter's lips. She takes it eagerly, then says "Salt."

"Salt?" Haymitch asks, kissing his daughter's cheek. "You want salt in there?"

"Mm hmm," Elle hums, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Effie walks in as Haymitch adds salt and smiles at her husband and daughter. "You two are so cute," she sighs happily.

"Mommy!" Elle squeals.

"Well, hello there, baby girl," Effie giggles.

"Hey, Bug," Haymitch says, smirking a little at her. "What's made you so happy this morning?"

"Well, I just got some excellent news," Effie tells him, grinning proudly.

"Don't leave me in suspense, Bug, what is it?" he asks, stirring the soup distractedly.

Effie beams and squeaks "We're going to have another baby!"

"What?!" both Haymitch and Elle shout, each with a very different tone of voice.

"I'm pregnant," Effie giggles delightedly.

Haymitch reaches over and tugs Effie close to give her a kiss. "That's great news, Eff," he tells her between kisses.

"No, it isn't!" Elle huffs. "That's awful news."

"Why is it awful, baby?" Effie asks. "You wanted a sibling last month."

"Willow has a sibling," Elle grumbles in a very isn't-it-obvious tone. The fight with Willow the previous month has still not settled down. "Why would I want something she has?"

"Elle, darling, I fail to see the issue here," Effie says gently. "Don't you want a little brother or sister to play with? He or she is going to be your best friend, after all. You can help us look after him or her."

"I don't want a baby in the house, Mommy," Elle says firmly. "Take it back."

Haymitch stifles a laugh, and Effie fights off a smile. "I can't take it back, darling. Baby is here to stay now. Why don't you tell me what's really bothering you?" she suggests, reaching to pet her daughter.

"I just did," Elle huffs, dodging her mother's touch. "If Willow has one, I don't want one. I won't have any other little parasites in here. I'm the only parasite allowed in here."

"Did you just call yourself and your little sibling parasites?" Effie asks, confusion and anger battling for domination in her mind. "Why would you say that you're parasites?"

"Parasites live inside people or animals or on them, and they take their blood and other nutrients, and they make people sick," Elle says. "That's what babies do to people, and that makes babies parasites. Since that's a baby, and I was a baby, we're parasites, and I'm your only parasite. No more parasites allowed."

Haymitch has to grip onto the counter to hold himself upright, unable to prevent himself laughing now. Effie's confusion and anger have disappeared, leaving her to fight off her own laughter. "My precious girl," Effie murmurs, trying her hardest not to laugh. "You're too cute, darling. Come here."

Elle wriggles and fights her mother's hug, squeaking "Put me down! I'm mad at you for getting a new parasite!"

The laughter escapes at Elle's words, and Effie giggles "My precious baby girl, you're not a parasite, and nor is the baby. You'll love the baby when it arrives. You shouldn't be upset by getting a little sibling."

"How did you learn about parasites, Elle?" Haymitch wheezes, wiping tears from his eyes.

"We were learning about them in biology," Elle says, trying to squirm away from her mother, making tiny, squeaking grunts. "Mommy, put me down! I'm mad at you!"

"Stop fighting the hugs, little baby," Effie chuckles, kissing Elle's face gently. "I still love you just as much. There's no need to be jealous of the baby."

"I'm not worried about that!" Elle shouts, squirming. "Put me down!"

"What are you worried about, then?" Effie asks, clinging on.

Elle's eyes flicker to her father and back to the ceiling, but it's enough for Effie to get what she means. "Put me down," Elle grumbles.

"No," Effie replies. "Your daddy will still love you just as much as he does now. You're his little Peanut. Nobody can replace you."

Elle goes limp in her mother's arms and softly mumbles "But what if the baby's a girl? She'll be Daddy's Peanut then."

Effie clutches her little girl close. "Darling, you'll always be your daddy's Peanut," she murmurs. "Nobody can take your place as your daddy's Peanut."

"Your mom was afraid that you'd take her place as my Bug," Haymitch offers, taking the soup off the stove to cuddle his wife and daughter. "Even if the baby's a girl, she's not going to be my Bug or my Peanut, because I've already got you both. She'll get her name when she's born, just like you did."

"I still don't want it," Elle huffs. "It's not fair. Why should we have to have a baby?"

"Well, darling, we did such a good job with you, we wanted two," Effie says gently. "And you never know, darling, the baby might be another little girl for you to play with. Wouldn't you like that?"

"I might if it's a boy," Elle says. "I hope it is."

Haymitch grins. "Then I'll finally have a guy to side with me when you two want to cover the house in pink glitter," he chuckles. "I'm kind of outnumbered at the minute."

Effie laughs and says "This child will know that Mommy's always right, honey. Just like our little Peanut here does."

"I'm doomed," Haymitch chuckles, then takes Elle. "I'm keeping this. Come on, Peanut, we'll go out today and get ice cream, yeah?"

"Okay," Elle agrees, cuddling up to her father. "As long as you don't ever let the new baby take my place."

"Nobody could ever replace you, Peanut," he promises. "Not even your little brother or sister."

Effie grins and kisses them both. "If you two are quite done, I'm going to go and sit down. I like getting the house to myself," she says.

"You're not coming?" Haymitch asks.

"Not a chance," Effie chuckles. "I'm staying right here. I'd like to get this house tidied up."

"You're going to sit down and have tea," Elle giggles. "You always do when Daddy and I go out."

"Prove it," Effie laughs. "If you can, then I'll admit defeat."

As Effie goes to sit down, Elle looks at her father and asks "Daddy, will you still play with me when the baby comes?"

"I'll always play with you, Peanut. You don't need to worry about that," he tells her. "The baby won't take us away from you."


A/N 2: There we go. I don't know whether this is exactly what you meant by "mad" but I hope this works for you. As always, if you have constructive criticism, prompts, or thoughts to share, please feel free to post them to me in a review or a private message. Much love and happiness to you all. Cat xxx