Prompt: Ohhhh I love your fics with katniss's family and Effie but what about tiger mama Effie with Peeta's parents and brothers?!

A New Home

The silence was awkward as they all loitered outside the house Katniss had picked for herself and her family. They had all toured it together in front of the cameras, his hand locked in Katniss' because that was the game they were expected to play.

The moment the camera had shut down, Peeta had rushed outside. His family had followed him, probably feeling just as out of place inside with the Everdeens, Haymitch and Effie as he felt.

He watched each of them now and he wasn't sure what to say, how to bridge the gap. What did you say to people who hadn't bothered to care if you came back or not? Who had chosen to support the competition more than their own flesh and blood?

Rye, only one year older and now definitely safe from Reapings, had kept his hands in his pockets ever since they had greeted him at the train station, unable to meet his eyes. Peeta knew why, of course, for the same reason he hadn't been able to come into that room at the Justice Building all those weeks earlier and say his goodbyes. With Katniss having volunteered for her younger sister and him not having raised a finger. Well…

Peeta wasn't angry with him. He got it. He wasn't sure he would have stepped forward if it was Rye's name that had been called.

Their older brother Sal was the less awkward of the lot. He had hugged him with genuine affection earlier, had congratulated him on winning the Games and the girl… But he looked impatient now, glancing at the old watch with the chipped leather that was an extravagance in Twelve. Eager to return to his young wife and escape the always tense family reunions, Peeta supposed.

His father had his hands in his pockets too but he was watching the sky more than he was looking at the surrounding houses, distant and uncomfortable like always.

And his mother…

His mother kept a deadly hold on her handbag, her mouth pursed, her other hand self-consciously smoothing the creases on her Sunday-best clothes… She wouldn't look at him.

"We should pick a house." he said at last, when he couldn't bear the silence anymore.

After the clamors of the Capitol, silence felt oppressive more than soothing. And the Village… No wonder Haymitch was so depressed. The Village was deadly silent. Like a tomb. Peeta wasn't used to that. In town, there were always all kinds of noises: merchants setting up their wares for market days, the little bell ringing in the bakery, people talking somewhere in the house…

His parents exchanged a long complicated look. His father seemed hesitant but his mother's face was set in that determined expression that meant a decision had been reached and she wouldn't come back on it. Sal hung back, wincing a little. Rye still wouldn't look at him.

"We're not moving here." Lydia Mellark finally declared.

And the Village got that little bit more silent.

He felt the weight of it settle on his shoulders, crushing him to the ground.

"Here you are!" Effie Trinket exclaimed, sweeping out of Katniss' newly acquired house with her usual restless energy.

His family all shuffled on their feet, clearly uncomfortable in the escort's presence. There was no camera in her wake though and the smile she bestowed upon him wasn't manic or huge, it was fond and genuine. He had become used to differentiating the smiles she put on her lips during the days she had sat at his bedside after they had been recovered from the arena. It was Effie who had told him about the leg. Effie who had wiped his tears. Effie who had held him when he crumbled after they had fitted him with a prosthetic. Effie who had helped him take his first steps. Haymitch had been around, of course, in and out of the room, helping as much as he could but unable to meet his eyes. He knew why now. The whole fake love story thing had been weighting on his mentor's mind, no doubt.

Had Effie been lying too? Or was she as convinced as he had been that the whole thing was real? It was hard to tell with her.

And, right then, he felt like she was his only true ally so he didn't want to think about it for too long.

"Have you picked a house yet?" she asked, resting a hand on his shoulder as soon as she was close enough and flashing a dazzling smile to the rest of his family. "I am sure you must be in a hurry to get settled! We won't film it, unfortunately, however on the bright side it will give you some privacy. You must all be so happy to be reunited!"

His brothers exchanged glances.

Peeta would have loved to believe it was because Effie was hyper and it got a while to get used to her personality, to the way she talked, to the way she acted.

"As I was saying…" his mother said, after clearing her throat. "We won't be moving here. We have the bakery to take care of."

Effie blinked and her smiled hardened. Just a tiny bit at the corners of her mouth. "It is only a fifteen minutes walk to the center of town. I am quite certain you can live here and still admirably manage your shop."

It was the way she said shop. A bit dismissive. A bit haughty. Every bit the Capitol.

It ruffled all of his mother's feathers the wrong way.

"It's a family business." she hissed, her temper close to exploding. It was so obvious to all of them that his father and his brothers closed ranks around her, stepping closer, touching her arm, her shoulder… Reminding her who she was talking to.

"It's alright, Effie." he said quietly. There was a hurt in his voice and disappointment but no real surprise. He had known all along, hadn't he? He had known all along that winning wouldn't be enough to make his family accept him, love him, but he had hoped.

Unfortunately, Effie heard everything he wasn't saying and it seemed to ruffle her feathers.

Neither he nor Katniss had any love for the Capitol and they both agreed Effie Trinket was often ridiculous but there was one other thing they also agreed on: their escort was protective – and one hundred percent in their corner.

"It seems to me a family business should be handled by all the family." she gritted through her teeth. "And since your son will be living in the Village…"

"Our son's almost of age and has no interest in the bakery." his mother snapped. "He's a dreamer, that one. No good head on his shoulder." She shook her head. "Can't keep the boys in the nest too long. He's gonna be just fine on his own. Ain't like he needs the work anymore either…"

Effie didn't gape, of course, because it would probably have been rude or something. But her eyes narrowed. "I happen to think there is nothing wrong with being a dreamer. Dreamers go just as far, if not further, as pragmatic people."

Her voice raised a little at the end and her fingers, her long nails, dug in his shoulder almost painfully.

Ruffled feathers, alright…

Selfishly, Peeta was a bit glad she flew to his defense like that.

"It's alright." he whispered again.

"He just won the Hunger Games." Effie insisted, ignoring him. "He has been badly hurt. He will need help."

"I'm fine." he snapped, a bit annoyed now. He had accepted the loss of his leg, the prosthesis was really almost as good as the original. Almost. He didn't want to discuss it and certainly not in the middle of the street with people who wouldn't look at him in the eye.

"He didn't win the Hunger Games." his mother scoffed.

"Lydia." his father tried to cut in.

"I beg your pardon?" Effie hissed.

"Mom." Sal said, tugging on their mother's arm. "We should go…"

"He didn't win the Hunger Games." Lydia repeated, shrugging her eldest's hand off with a glare that promised repercussions if he touched her again. "That good-for nothing girl he's been sniffing after for years won the Hunger Games. He just rode on her back. It was cheating. And it shouldn't have been allowed."

"What did you say?" Effie was gaping for real now.

"Don't call Katniss names!" Peeta growled, taking a step forward.

His mother lifted a hand and he hastily stepped back.

Weird how reflexes could be.

She wasn't close enough to touch him, she had just been reaching for her hair. And yet…

And yet in a flash Effie was one step in front of him, shielding him, glaring daggers with her eyes, looking for all the world like she wanted nothing more than to tackle his mother and…

He couldn't picture her punching but…

"What's all this racket now?" Haymitch asked, stepping out of the brand new Everdeen's house and closing the front door behind him. He calmly made his way to them, his grey eyes assessing the situation, and coming to a stop right next to Effie, not quite hiding Peeta from view but very much in the way. "Sweetheart, we can hear you screeching from the first floor. What's got your expensive knickers in a twist now?"

"We should go." Sal said again with an apologetic look for Peeta.

"Go?" Haymitch repeated uncertainly.

"Yes." Effie hissed. "Peeta's family feels like he cheated his way to victory."

"Ah." Haymitch said flatly. "Well… If that's the way you feel, Mellark, maybe you should go cause, my escort here, she gets miffed easily. You know… Capitols."

Haymitch didn't put any particular inflection in his voice. It didn't sound particularly threatening. But the subtext was clear and Peeta watched, almost with disinterest, as his family hurried down the street toward the Village's gates.

"She's a Capitol loyalist." he heard himself say, almost defensively. Then he realized how that could be interpreted by someone not only from the Capitol but who worked for the Games and he cleared his throat. "I mean… We all think the Capitol is great and all but my mom she… really believes in it."

She wasn't the only one around town who bought the Capitol propaganda and who believed they were somehow better than the people in the Seam because of it. They were the riff-raff in their mind and the Peacekeepers were there to protect the town from them.

"She is an atrocious woman and I hope to never see her again." Effie declared. Haymitch accidentally elbowed her in the side and she suddenly became all cheerful again. "Now, dear, let's pick a house for you, shall we? Do you want one next to Katniss? I do not think you wish to settle next to Haymitch. Why he had to choose a house at the very top of the Village, I do not know! I swear he does those things to irk me! It is quite a walk on heels, you know."

"Didn't even know you when I picked a house." Haymitch grumbled. "And nobody invited you anyway. Never said you were welcome at my place. Ain't my fault you're rude."

Effie pursed her lips. "Rude. Rude! Why, if you just showed up on time at Reapings and didn't insist on drinking yourself to a stupor I would not be forced to check on you, now, would I? Who would make sure you were wearing a clean shirt if I didn't? Who?"

They herded Peeta toward a house down the street while they bickered and Peeta allowed it, smiling a little at their antics. Katniss swore they hated each other but Peeta detected fondness in there, even when they were really annoyed at each other.

"What do you think of this one?" she asked, stopping in front of a house that looked like all the others. "I will have to request people check all your roofs and plumbing and everything…" She sighed. "It must be an oversight but the Village looks sadly not properly looked after."

"Might be 'cause they didn't expect any more victors." Haymitch snorted, nudging him toward the door. "Come on, take a look. See if you like it. Layout's pretty much standard in every house but it's reversed in some of them. Depends if you want your kitchen to face north or south or whatever."

Peeta didn't really care which way the kitchen faced but he walked in anyway, his mentor and his escort on his heels. They remained in the would-be living-room coated with dust though. Effie's loud exclamations that it wouldn't do, that the furniture needed to be replaced and someone sent to do the cleaning accompanied him during his exploration of the ground floor.

He figured they had only bothered to clean and ready one house – Katniss' – for the cameras.

The house was huge.

Far too huge for a single person.

They could have settled comfortably, all of them, even Sal and his wife and maybe eventual nephews and nieces. There were so many bedrooms upstairs…

He selected the master for himself just because it had an en-suite bathroom and if he was going to live in this gigantic house by himself he might as well be comfortable. Another bedroom faced south and had so much light coming through the dirty glass of the window, he thought maybe he could set up a sort of studio to paint… He wanted to try real paint, not just cake icing or sketches with leftover pieces of charcoal stolen from the hearth when his mother wasn't looking… If he could find an easel, maybe some pigments… He didn't think they had anything like that in the shops in town but he could order from the city now, couldn't he? That was one of the perks of being a victor…

He was quiet as he came back downstairs.

Katniss would have said he was loud, of course, but trying to be quiet was now instinctive. He couldn't hear Effie's loud exclamations anymore but there were murmurs coming from the living-room still.

He didn't mean to spy.

He was about to walk in when he realized they were talking about him and so he stopped.

"He is going to need help with his leg." Effie was saying. She sounded weird. Not hyper or cheerful or bubbly… She almost sounded like a regular person. "I do not like the thought of him being alone…"

"Ain't gonna turn the kids to the wolves, you know." Haymitch grumbled. "I'm gonna keep an eye on them. Have to, don't I? That girl's trouble."

"You will make sure he does not forget to take the pills at fixed times and remind him to apply the cream on the stump and check he is not overdoing it?" Effie mocked, clucking her tongue once in irritation. "Please. In two days, you will be wasted and you won't remember what your name is, never mind what pill he is supposed to take and at which time."

He was about to step in, to remind them his mother had a point when she said he was almost of age and that he had survived a Hunger Game, he could manage his treatment by himself, when Haymitch sighed.

"Come here." his mentor said. He couldn't see what was going on but there was the rustling of fabric and he thought they might be hugging. Even though the thought was… odd. He knew they were more friendly than they let on but he hadn't figured they were the hugging type of friends. "Look, sweetheart, his family's shitty but the boy's gonna be fine. He's got a sound head. If I trust one of them to be responsible, it's that one."

"I suppose." Effie sighed, mollified.

"And I will keep an eye on them." Haymitch insisted. "Hell… Won't even have to move my ass from my house to do it. You know those kids. Wanna bet they're gonna pester me every day?" He sounded almost joyful at the prospect and Peeta made a note to actually check on Haymitch regularly. He owed him, after all, despite everything. "Plus, Aster Everdeen's next door now and she's a good healer. She's gonna look out for him too. He's not gonna be alone, princess, I promise."

"When I send someone over to clean and fix everything that might be broken in your houses, I will ask them to fix your phone and make sure the children's are functional." she warned, still in that weird voice Peeta had never heard from her. Her Capitol accent was still thick and the pitch was still high but the tone was all… It made him wonder how much of an act the cheerful behavior was. Like the smiles. A smile for every occasion.

"Don't call me too much." Haymitch grumbled. "That's gonna be suspicious. And now really ain't the time to be reckless."

"I won't call you at all." she huffed. "I will call the children. Yours is simply in case of an emergency."

"Sure." Haymitch snorted. "Don't mind the kind of emergency when you talk dirty to me…"

There was a giggle.

And Peeta's eyes widened in understanding.

He hastily stepped back, eager to escape that, but accidentally bumped into the stairs and failed to regain his balance in time. He landed hard on his ass.

Of course, they rushed out of the living-room.

"Oh, dear, Peeta!" Effie exclaimed, alarmed.

"I'm fine, I'm fine…" he muttered, accepting the hand Haymitch outstretched to pull him up. "I just tripped."

Effie shot Haymitch a look from under her eyelashes that clearly said it was exactly what she was scared about : him tripping down the stairs and breaking his neck.

Peeta appreciated her worrying about him but also resented it a little.

He was fine. Missing a leg and, apparently, a girlfriend but otherwise he was just fine.

"So what do you think? You want this one?" Haymitch asked before their escort could start ranting. "It does need some repairs… You can crash at mine until it's ready, if you want. How long do you think, sweetheart?"

"Oh, I will have it done by tonight, I hope." she hummed, back to her upbeat self. "It is just a matter of talking to Mayor Undersee. I will catch him on my way back to the train station." She glanced at the delicate gold and diamond watch on her wrist. "Speaking of… I should go. The train certainly won't leave without me but schedules are important!" She looked almost sad when she hugged him. "I will call you every day, darling, and if you have the smallest problem or question about… You know… Feel free to drop me a call. I will get in touch with your doctors." She drew back and studied him for a long time. "This is the easiest part, now. You just have to enjoy life."

Haymitch made a noise low in his throat and Peeta felt something dark stir in him because he didn't think he would ever be able to enjoy life. Not the same way. Not anymore.

But Effie was smiling and she was her hurricane self again. She kissed his cheek in a cloud of perfume and then wrapped both arms around Haymitch's elbow. "Walk me back, won't you?"

She batted her eyelashes in a ridiculous way.

Peeta was so sure Haymitch was going to send her packing but he rolled his eyes and humored her instead, telling him he would be back soon and they could see about tossing out the garbage he didn't want to keep.

Peeta supposed he meant the ugly vases and paintings.

He toured the house again after they were gone.

It was sad and lonely, that house.

Not unlike the one above the bakery.

Home sweet home…

You know what, maybe one of the reasons Effie loves Peeta so much is because she recognizes something in him... Anyway, finders keepers. She found a perfectly good son and decided to adopt him XD

I hope you liked the story! Please, do let me know!