Haymitch has to take Katniss and Peeta to the arena the next day. Effie had already bid them goodbye and wished them luck before they left the penthouse. Portia had to take her away before the escort burst into tears. It stunned the two tributes that a Capitol citizen will have that kind of emotion towards them. Cinna and Portia had to be the ones to take them to the underground room so they stopped at the hallway for one last parting advice.
"Run and find water. Do you hear me? Don't go for the Cornucopia. It will only result to your deaths. Career pack will be waiting for you there and they will hoard the supplies so just run into the woods and find water to hydrate yourselves. Get someplace where you will have the advantage, something high maybe or a cave. Don't worry about food or medicine. We will get them to you. Trust us to get you a Sponsor. Do whatever it takes to stay alive. Do you both understand what I just said?" Haymitch advised.
The two nodded, hearts pounding in their chests.
"Don't go crying on us. It does not suit you", Katniss muttered.
"Yeah…I can't picture it either", Peeta added.
It eases the tension a bit but the elephant is still in the room. It could be the last time they will all be seeing each other.
"Humor does not suit the two of you. Now go and show them what people from Twelve can do", Haymitch hugged the two of them with his arms, "Stay alive", he whispered before letting them go.
He looked at both Cinna and Portia and the three of them came into an understanding and parted ways.
By the time he arrived at the penthouse, he found Effie pacing around the living room with cigarette dangling between her fingers. It's obvious from the looks of her ashtray that she has been consistently chain-smoking from the moment they left. The TV is on but the game has not started yet.
"Princess…" he called.
Her eyes are glassy and sore. She had been crying.
"How were they? Were they nervous? Oh, they must have been scared. Did they remember everything you taught them?" she asked one after another.
He took a deep breath and approached, gently placing his hands on her trembling shoulders.
"Of course, they're nervous and scared. It's normal for people who are about to enter the game arena. I reminded them about what they should do inside. They're both smart kids, princess. They're not going to make the same mistake most tributes do each year. Have faith", he answered calmly.
With that, she relaxes. He took the liberty to take the cigarette from her. She already had too much. They both settled on the couch, waiting for the game to start. They cannot go out and hunt for Sponsors yet until they are sure that their tributes have survived the Cornucopia.
"I don't like waiting. It's making me anxious", she muttered.
"I feel you", he seconded.
Then…the game started.
They held hands as they saw the tributes appeared inside the arena. The clock started counting down sixty seconds and they can see how Katniss and Peeta surveyed their surroundings. The boy is already eyeing the path he's going to run into heading to the forest. Meanwhile, Katniss is surveying the Cornucopia and Haymitch felt that dread in his stomach.
"Don't do it, Katniss", he muttered out loud.
Effie turned to him with a frown before she saw where Katniss is looking at. She's looking at the bow and arrow at the Cornucopia.
"Oh for the love of everything holy…" she sighed in panic.
Even Peeta is shaking his head on Katniss, silently telling her not to do whatever it is she's thinking. Can't she be any more stubborn?
The time is up and the game has officially started. It's a bloodbath like any other year. Peeta was quick to run into the woods like what Haymitch had told them while Katniss…well, she did run straight for that orange backpack lying on the ground, near the Cornucopia.
"For fuck's sake!" Haymitch failed to control himself.
Effie can only hold her breath because there's nothing else left to do. They watched as Katniss struggled with another boy in possessing the backpack until blood sprayed on her. It was not hers though. It was the boy's. The male tribute fell on the ground revealing the knife on his back thrown by a Career tribute.
"Run, Katniss. Please do run", Effie prayed under her breath but Haymitch heard it all.
Katniss started running into the woods as the bloodbath continues at the Cornucopia.
With that, Effie and Haymitch was able to breathe a little. They survived the Cornucopia but now, they must have a place to hide away from the Career pack and rest. Peeta is long gone from the center of it all while Katniss chose a tree as her ground. She uses the rope which was inside the backpack to secure herself and rest.
"They made it", Effie breathed out in hope.
"It's too early to celebrate but it's something. It's time for us to do our job", he responded.
"Lead the way", she replied.
Effie forgot the last time she sat on a chair. It must have been hours since she got into the bar. She had lost track of Haymitch but she's sure he's there somewhere. Her hands are itching to light up a cigarette just to help her ease up a little bit but she got a job to do. From time to time, she takes a glance at the TV to check on her tributes and seeing them still breathing renews her energy to keep on going. She got a lot of forms under her belt already but it's not going to be enough. With the Career pack roaming around, they must supply Katniss and Peeta with food and water, if they can't their hands on some. Medicine is expensive too so she needs to hound more Sponsors for them.
She stopped talking when her eyes caught sight of Katniss above the tree while the Career was down below trying to hit her with an arrow. Some tried to climb up but failed. Her heart almost stopped beating especially when she saw Peeta along with the Career pack.
"Your boy is smart", Chaff said beside her.
She had not noticed him but then again, he's a Victor. He knows how to move silently when he wants to.
"I don't understand what's going on", she muttered.
Actually, she's lost. She does not understand why Peeta is with those tributes who are obviously wanting to kill Katniss.
"He's playing them. He wants to find Katniss and he cannot do that when he's worried that the Career will come after his ass so he pretends to be on the hunt for the girl too. He did not give them anything too. Never told them Katniss is good with bow and arrow. He had that girl from District One carrying that weapon since he cannot actually get it for Katniss and your girl cannot go to the Cornucopia without dying. Smart move, if you'll ask me", Chaff explained.
She saw that tribute from One indeed carrying a bow and arrow. It's a dangerous game Peeta is playing but then again, they're already in a dangerous game. It is obvious that Katniss will be the target of the Career pack and she's defenseless considering she did not get anything from the Cornucopia except that backpack. If he can hug the boy, she would.
"Oh, that's good to hear", she breathed out in relief.
Chaff took a good look at her and shook his head.
"You looked ready to collapse, love. Go back to the penthouse and take a shuteye for a moment. You're no use to your tributes if you crashed", he suggested.
She wanted to ask him what he's talking about but the more she thinks about it, the more it made sense. When was the last time she slept anyway? She goes back to the penthouse from time to time but only to take a bath and change. Haymitch rests there sometimes and she even found him passed out on the couch one time too but she cannot recall for the life of her how long was that ago. To her, it just felt like hours. She stared at the date on the TV screen and realized it's been almost 48 hours since the game has started. She's been without sleep for almost two days.
"I appreciate the concern but I still have work to do and the kids still need a lot of support—"
"Trinket, go back to the penthouse or I will drag you back there myself", he warned.
She wanted to argue but she is really tired and arguing with Chaff will only drain what's left of her energy.
"Fine. If this is a strategy to keep me away from Sponsors, it's not going to work though", she yielded.
The Eleven's Victor smirked at her.
"It will work for tonight, love", he replied.
When she got inside the penthouse, the TV is still on and she can see that it's quiet inside the arena. The tributes are getting some rest too. Maybe Chaff was right and she can take the time to rest as well. She removed her heels and discarded them somewhere before putting the Sponsor forms on the table and walked towards her room. Her brain wants to force her to go to the bathroom and clean up her face from the makeup she's wearing…god knows how long but she's too tired. The moment she saw her bed, the fight is over.
"Princess, you just got in?" Haymitch asked from the door.
It's been…hours since she saw him last and judging from his state of undress and messy hair, he just woke up.
"Yes…didn't mean to wake you but I am beat. I'll take a short nap if you don't mind. Please do keep an eye for our kids or better yet, go hunt for more Sponsors. The forms are on the table. Kindly sign them on your way out", she answered and was about to dive onto the comfort of her soft mattress when strong arms pulled her back.
"You wouldn't want to do that, sweetheart, unless you wanted to be lobotomized by the pins attached to your head, yeah?" he reminded her.
Right…she still got her wig on and the many pins attached underneath it. She lousily tried to remove them one by one but her eyes are closing on their own.
"I want to sleep…too tired", she yawned.
"Hold on a sec", he said and took over with the removal of the pins.
He knows she's been working but he has no idea that she's been working since they left the penthouse after both Katniss and Peeta survived the Cornucopia. That was almost two days ago. He thought she's been taking a break and taking naps at the penthouse because when he checked her room, he saw the clothes she worn a day before. He has been busy doing his part and charming other Sponsors that he lost track of her.
"Bed. Now", she barked still in a haze of sleepiness.
Once all the pins are out, he allowed her to lie on the bed before entering her bathroom to browse her beauty product. He had seen her do her nightly ritual many times already to memorize each steps. He took the bottle of her makeup remover and put some on a cotton pad. It's one of his favorite things to do, watching her remove her makeup at the end of the day because he gets to see the real her after that.
He carefully wiped the pad on her face to remove the makeup on her skin. He knows she will freak out when she wakes up still having those chemicals on her face. She's big on hygiene so he thought of sparing her the hysterics come morning. She's so out of it that she did not even stir while he's going through her ritual. Once finished, he removed her killer shoes and did his best to loosen up her dress. It's a complicated one and he couldn't find the zipper. She will definitely have his head if he tries to rip it off so he did the best he can to make her comfortable.
When all of that was done, he let her have her rest and went to the living room where he saw the pile of forms on the table. It's quite a lot. She's been working her ass off. He spared a glance onto the TV screen and saw Peeta and Katniss both sleeping peacefully, one on the ground and the other on the tree. Those two have no idea how lucky they are to have Effie on their team but he will let them know, somehow.