Effie reaped a sixteen-year-old girl and seventeen-year-old boy. Both looked like have a chance to survive the game but she kept her distance and maintained her escort mask on her face. She sticks to the schedule and once on board, she ordered the children to clean up and rest so she can work on other matters. She intends to keep her word this season in hope that Haymitch will keep his as well.
He is already nursing the flask she had given him but she can see that he's pacing himself even though he acted like a drunk during the ceremony. It's all for show. She knows that for sure. Meanwhile, she proceeded to the last cart to nurse her own vice. The train ride to Capitol is long and she thought she might give Haymitch the pass to properly drink before he starts pacing himself again for her. She inhaled smoke one after the other. Maybe she will not make the effort to get to know the children this season to avoid getting attached. It will be a dilemma in finding something about them to sell to the audience but the alternative can be very dangerous.
She's on her way to her fourth stick when she heard the door closed. She sighed and put back the cigarette inside the pack.
"Are you drunk?" she asked without looking at him.
She can smell the alcohol radiating off of him but it's not a tell-tale sign when it comes to Haymitch.
"…not nearly enough but everyone thinks that I am", he answered as he wrapped his arms around her waist.
She automatically leaned against his chest and relaxed. He has that calming effect on her which is much better than her cigarette.
"I like your friend back in Twelve, Greasy Sae", she muttered.
He snorted.
"That's new. Sae is not easy to like but then again, so are you, princess", he commented which earned him a slap on his arm.
"She reminds me of Mags. Did you know that she had chosen to retire as Four's Mentor?" he shook his head, "Finnick is taking over. I called her during the break. I apologized for my rudeness after last year's games and she told me that news. She will be taking care of Annie Cresta for Finnick while the season is on-going. Apparently, the poor girl is not doing well. Her game took a toll on her", she informed him.
It's not a surprise for Haymitch that a Victor will come out damaged after his or her game but he knows as soon as he saw Annie Cresta during the Victory Tour that something was not right with the girl. She's beyond traumatized and quite unstable. It's a smart move for Mags to keep her out of the spotlight because that instability will definitely cost her of her life. She's bound to break in front of everyone to see and they will have her head for it or her family's.
"Mags will take great care of that girl and Finnick will manage on his own. He's a grown up now and we taught him well on how to navigate this world. He'll be fine", he said.
She nodded.
"You're right. Well, we can't stay in this cart forever, Haymitch. Dinner is almost ready and we need to talk to the kids", she responded and tried to step out of his embrace.
He did not let her. He held her tighter and it made her giggled. Did he just hear Effie Trinket giggled?
"We have time", he whispered and started kissing her neck.
"Haymitch, seriously…we can't be late. We're already in the train to be late, not to mention that it's rude and improper", she chided but it came out softer than intended.
He knows just where to touch her, where to kiss her, and her resolve is quickly dissolving. She pushed back on his growing desire for her which made him smirked.
"Giving me mixed signals here, sweetheart", he muttered against that spot on her neck that made her whimpered.
"You're driving me crazy, Haymitch Abernathy", she breathed out and pulled him closer to her.
It was enough for him to back her against the wall and ravish her thoroughly.
Effie was beyond exhausted by the time they actually reached the Capitol. They couldn't get enough of each other and Haymitch kept pulling her whenever he got the chance. The two tributes were either unaware or pretending to be oblivious because they weren't exactly subtle or Haymitch was rather the unsubtle one and she's the loud one.
Press waited for their arrival at the station and she did her best to appear pleased to have that many crowd waiting for them. She encouraged the tributes to smile and work the camera and to her surprise, the two seemed to be cooperative. They know how to charm the Capitol and for a few seconds, she dared hope they have a chance up until she met Haymitch's eyes who were watching her keenly. That killed that little hope.
He knows she thought that maybe the two tributes will be different than the rest but despite them knowing how to smile to in front of the camera and fans, it will not help them inside the arena. It's not a guarantee and he does not want Effie to get any ideas or she will break her heart again.
Once in the penthouse, Effie went over the schedule she already polished a couple of times in the train. There's nothing really to do. That's the problem with working in advance. It leaves her more time during the actual season and she does not do well being idle. She needs to keep busy. Since pretending to fix the schedule is not working for her, she decided to train the kids in working the media. It's proven to be useful in occupying her time. The two tributes are willing to learn. They are eager to make it out of the arena. Effie still make it a point to never know their names or anything that will remind her of them. She held herself to be all business with them.
Meanwhile, Haymitch watched on the sideline as Effie interacts with the children. He can see the change in her demeanor when she's with them. She's cautious, stiff, distant. She's using her escort tone with them and she's extra strict with their every move. The two tributes don't seem to notice that because they haven't seen Effie with other tributes before but he has. Though Effie was strict when it comes to her lessons, she's also lenient and more patient with the kids but not this season. It showed when the boy messed up his line for the nth time.
"How hard is it to say delectable? We've been over this since we finished lunch and we're still here, struggling with that one word. How are you expecting the Sponsors to line up for you when you can't even say one word properly without eating the vowels?!" she snapped.
That's when he decided it's time to step in before she totally loses it.
"Alright, school's over. Get to your rooms. Now", he ordered and the two scattered like flies.
Effie shot him a glare before tossing the cards across the room. She clearly did not aim to land those on the table. Her gravitated towards her cigarette and lit it up.
"People are not going to take that boy seriously if he can't get the words out right. He will make a fool of himself on stage and everyone will see and it will be hell for us finding someone who will be kind enough to spend money for his survival inside the arena", she complained as she huff and puff smoke.
Her words are punctuated heavily with her Capitol accent which informed Haymitch how bad her mood is.
"It's one word, princess. If the boy can't manage to perfect it, change it. You probably memorized the entire dictionary. Surely, you can come up with something else. No need to stress yourself over one word", he said.
That made her scoff.
"Of course, you will not understand. When one is describing the Capitol, you can't just use simple words, Haymitch. We are selling their newfound adoration to the Capitol, a whole new world they have not seen before…" he looks practically clueless for her which irritated her more, "Why do I even bother explaining this to you? I am preaching to the choir. Never mind. I'll just change it like you suggested", she responded with disdain.
She's clearly in a mood and it's frankly pissing her off. She knows how to deal with her sassy version but the bitchy version? He's not really used to that especially when she's being bitchy towards the kids.
"Okay, what got your panty all twisted? You've been all cranky since we got here in the Capitol", he asked.
"Language, Haymitch", she chided before lighting up another stick, "I am trying to work here and get them a chance to have Sponsors that will help them survive out there and so far, I don't see any progress", she answered.
"Never caused you before to be a bitch to the kids though", he remarked.
She looked offended by that, almost like she's been physically slapped by him. She didn't mean to be like that with the kids but how else would she act around them if she cannot care for them? It's hard enough to remain detached so she opted to treat them like it's all business for her and that side of her comes out when dealing with associates who couldn't do their jobs right in front of her. She does not know how else to be as escort to their tributes.
"I'm trying to keep my word, Haymitch. Don't get attached. You have no idea how hard it is to keep my distance but unlike you, I can't just go and ignore them altogether and nurse a drink or in my case, a pack of cigarette. Someone has to prep them for the events that will lead to the actual game. Someone has to ensure they will be presentable and ready enough to face the camera and the audience waiting for their appearances and hope that it will be enough to attract Sponsors to get them the money they will need while inside the arena. That someone is me, Haymitch. That is my job so I still need to deal with them, talk to them. If I can't be like how I was with the previous tributes, the only way I know how to work is to treat them like people I work with. I don't know how else to treat them while keeping my end of the deal with you", she explained.
He knows how she works with her colleagues in the Capitol. She's a perfectionist. The reason why she's the best in what she does is because she pushes everyone around her to do their jobs correctly. She tossed stylists every single year for failing to capture Twelve's essence or for slacking on their job because they didn't care enough. He watched her stared down Caesar's staff for not getting the proper angle correctly of their tributes during the interview. Hell, she even scolded a Peacekeeper for causing a delay that made them late for an appearance. Effie has a good heart but when it comes to work, she can be pretty brutal.
"How about taking it easy with the kids a little? They're not your usual crowd, princess. They're not used to doing PR and despite their eagerness to learn how to face everyone, they're not going to be perfect. I don't think the Capitol really expect two tributes from Twelve knowing beautiful words like that. Keep it simple and let them work their own charms into it. Don't you think it's better to sell them as themselves?" he suggested.
There's school in Twelve but it's not as lavish as the ones in the Capitol. They are scarce with educational books and most of the kids couldn't afford to go there because they are helping their parents with finding some food to eat.
"We did that a lot in the previous years, Haymitch. It's not going to work", she muttered in resign.
"It may not or it may work. It's better than forcing them to say big words that will struggle with their mouths", he pointed out.
She debated about it and realized his point. It will be a humiliation if they messed up proper words on stage in front of Capitol people who spoke those every single day.
"Fine. I'll change it up", she put out her cigarette and breathed out, "I'm sorry. It's just…this is odd for me, to act as if I don't really care about them and continue to do my job to give them a chance to survive. I don't know how to do it without getting to know them", she said.
He grabbed her hands before she can think of smoking another cigarette and brought her closer to him.
"I know it's hard but you're doing great. Just take it easy and if it gets too much, throw them at me. I'll take over. I am not as good as you with the whole PR stuff but I can take the load from you for a few hours until you recover and then you can nag at me how I'm doing your job wrong", he responded.
That made her smile finally.
"You're just going to teach them ruffian manners and it will not do, Haymitch. You're not a good example", she teased.
He made a face but did not let her go.
"Well, I am just offering my help. It's your loss", he teased back before pulling her into an embrace.