Prompt : You need to continue Bring It On because I'm curious to know who won! If you could that'll be pretty amazing.

Bring It On was chapter 51 =)

It's On

"How long is this going to last exactly?" Chaff snorted in his drink.

Haymitch dragged his eyes away from his escort who was happily chatting with a group of Capitol people a few feet away to look at his friend. The music was loud, the victory party was in full swing, and he had to bend a little over the table to hear Eleven's victor properly.

"What?" he frowned.

Chaff rolled his eyes. "You, pining for your escort." His friend threw an appreciative glance at Effie Trinket. "She does have a very fine ass."

Haymitch poured himself another drink and leaned back on his chair, trying not to let Chaff's comments bother him. What did he care? Effie did have a fine ass, all the more so in that dress. She was all gold and diamonds that night. The golden make-up made her face look sharp. It also made her look cold. Ice beauty.

"Seriously, man." Chaff sighed. "It's been three years of open war. Just admit you're not going to beat her, bang her again and be done with it. All your staring is becoming embarrassing."

Was it? Did he stare that much? As if on cue, his eyes went back to her golden figure. She drew all the attention in that dress, the lights reflected on it and gave her a kind of halo. She was shining. She was like a beacon. And she thrived in all the attention.

"She's not staying." he insisted. "I will get rid of her."

"Yeah, that's for sure." Chaff laughed, downing his drink. "She's the next hot thing. Give her another year and she's up to another District."

She really was the next hot thing and Haymitch knew that much. Everywhere she went, heads turned. Effie Trinket was everything the Capitol loved and desired : she was always happy, she was bubbly, she was beautiful, she had just enough spice to find the occasional clever comeback, she wasn't very bright but that wasn't what people asked of an escort and, above all, she knew how to become whatever people wanted. Of course, she was also very talented at acting and her public behavior had nothing to do with what he had come to learn about her. Effie was actually pretty smart, there was a hardness to her that was far from her pretended perfect happiness and a thirst to prove herself, to become something. Haymitch wasn't sure what that something was and he wasn't sure she knew it either. He was positive she wouldn't find what she was looking for in the fame she was so valiantly pursuing. Fame was a treacherous mistress and he was tempted to conclude that what she was really looking for was meaning.

Not that he would ever tell her that.

He was still trying to get her to quit after all. The "war", as Chaff had dubbed it early enough, had been raging on for three long years now. Everything he could do to embarrass her and basically make her life a living hell, he did. In turn, she did everything she could to annoy him to death including trying to arouse him with dresses – or lack thereof – comments and attitude and then leave him hanging with a laugh. It had been kind of fun in the beginning. Someone to match his wits, she had a wicked mind and she liked proving him wrong. He had risen to the challenge with an energy he hadn't felt in years but… Now, it was just very tiring. He almost regretted refusing her first offer of a bet, the sleeping with each other would have at least made up for her irritating presence in his life. Playing for glory was quickly becoming old.

"She will quit before she gets to another District." Haymitch argued. "I will make her just like I made all the other escorts."

Chaff twirled his glass so the ice cubes would float one way and then another. "She won't quit. And you don't want her to. Do yourself a favor, fuck her again. It's the only way to get her out of your mind."

"I don't want to sleep with her again." he lied. "She wasn't that good."

"She's all you could talk about for three years." Chaff snorted. "She must be some good."

He thought back of creamy skin, entangled legs and blue eyes shining with bliss… He could still remember the throbbing ache to just turn back and take her again when he had exited her room the next morning. She was addictive. They had only slept together once and he already knew she was addictive. He sipped his whiskey slowly. He already had an addiction, a demon was enough.

"I don't do Capitols." he argued and left it at that.

"I'm no fan of Capitols but if they're willing and you're willing, where's the problem?" Chaff rolled his eyes. "Your damned pride, Haymitch, that's the problem. You're not winning this thing, why don't you just admit it?"

"I didn't lose yet." he grumbled.

"Yeah…" Chaff chuckled. "Three years and you didn't win either."

Haymitch waved that away and downed his drink. From the corner of his eyes, he saw the shiny dress walking closer and closer until she stopped next to his table.

"You didn't cause a scene yet, I'm both impressed and concerned." Effie said with her usual fake charming smile.

Chaff burst out laughing and pushed a chair her way with his foot. "Trinket, have a drink with us."

She hesitated. Her eyes darted around the room as if to estimate the damage such a thing could do to her reputation. Being seen drinking with the representatives of the two poorer Districts, imagine the scandal… He was sure she would politely decline and go back to her dancing and flirting with all those men she'd discard after a few minutes. It was all a game to her. Her whole life was. Haymitch thought it must have been exhausting to pretend not to care twenty-four hours a day.

As usual, she proved him wrong.

"Alright." she accepted, sitting down at their table. Lots of head turned, lots of eyes trained on them and hushed whispers flew all around but, after a few seconds, it all died down. Haymitch was her victor after all.

"Great." Chaff grinned. He refilled his glass of whiskey and slid it in front of her before standing up. Haymitch didn't even have time for damage control before Chaff bent above Effie to murmur something in her ear and sauntered away like nothing had happened. Effie's mouth twitched in amusement.

"Whatever he said, he's just messing with you." Haymitch warned. He probably should start thinking of the next thing he could do to ruin her night and embarrass her in front of all her friends but he couldn't muster the energy. That night, he just wanted to drink himself into oblivion.

"So you're not desperate to get into my pants again?" she teased, lifting her golden painted eyebrows in mocked interrogation. "A shame, I looked forward to you trying to seduce me. It's always entertaining."

"I don't do seducing." he said.

She hummed, obviously not committing to anything and then considered the glass in front of her, slid it in front of him and snatched the one he had in his hand. "I don't drink from other people's glass." she explained, before taking a sip of his whiskey. She made a face at the taste.

"Yet, you're drinking from mine, sweetheart." He nodded to his former drink.

"Yes, well… We are about to have sex so I think we can share a glass." She smiled. A real smile, not the ones she was so freely giving out to everyone. Her real smiles were always challenging.

"Are we?" he chuckled. She was so sure of herself sometimes… That was precisely while he liked making her life difficult.

"I always get what I want, remember?" She crossed her legs with deliberate slowness. Her dress rode up high on her thighs and Haymitch almost chocked on his whiskey. Almost. Fortunately, he managed to swallow before he embarrassed himself.

"I remember you saying you would be the next big thing and up to a better District in no time…" he mocked. "Didn't quite happen that way, did it?"

Her mask shattered for a second and he knew he had hit a sore spot. Chaff could think whatever he wanted, he doubted she would get appointed to another District. She might be the darling of the Capitol at that moment in time but it wouldn't last. Escorts stayed under the spotlight for a year or two at most, Effie had lasted longer than most but… It would all die down. She would still be admired and desired and everything but she wouldn't be the latest news.

"Minor setback." she replied casually. He saw the lie for what it was. If she had wanted a promotion, now would have been the year to get it. By next year, another woman would have taken her place : younger, dumber probably and, above all, fresh meat. Haymitch knew the system by heart. It was too late for Effie now, she missed her chance, which was really surprising because the Capitol loved stories like hers… They could have done something with her : the escort who began in Twelve and ended up a living sex-symbol. That would have made people dream for at least two good years before a better story came along…

"I bet." he smirked. "So. Who did you piss off?"

"No one in particular." She took a sip of whiskey and winced. "This is dreadful, how can you drink that all day?"

"Trying to change the subject, sweetheart?" he snorted.

She avoided his eyes and when she spoke, her voice was strained and honest. "What happened doesn't matter, I am not going anywhere for now." When she looked at him again, her smile was cheerful but her eyes were sad. "I am still not quitting by the way but, please, do you worst. Be my guest."

There was something else going on there. He sneaked a look around but they were quite alone and the loud music would prevent any eavesdropping. "Why not quit if you're so sure you won't get promoted?" he insisted, leaning in a little. "I'm sure babysitting me all day isn't the job of your dreams."

"Well, the pay is good." she joked but it sounded flat.

"Disillusioned, are we, Princess?" he laughed. It had taken her longer than he had thought it would. She wasn't the first one he had seen traveling down that road. "A word of advice, quit now and find something else to do. You're better than that anyway."

It was a compliment he hadn't paid any of his former escorts before. He meant it to. She was good at scheduling, bossing people around and figuring things out. She was a capable woman. She could do a lot better than parading around in high heels.

She didn't laugh but she licked her golden lips nervously. He wondered what her lipstick tasted like. Maybe it actually tasted like gold, cold and metallic.

"Should I tell you a little secret, Haymitch?" she lowered her voice so much he had to bring his chair closer to hers, to hear her above the music. "All those girls, Chaff and you think you bullied into resigning…" She smiled bitterly. "They didn't resign. Well… Perhaps they wanted to and they were allowed to but… Where it counts, they were fired because they hadn't done a good enough job at handling you or Chaff, although I was warned you were the most difficult of the two." She drank the rest of the whiskey in one long swallow. "You don't resign from your job as an escort, Haymitch, you get fired. And I am too good at my job to get fired, so, you see… You and me, we are in this together, for better and for worse." She laughed then, it was both bitter and amused. It was a bit strange but she was a strange girl. "As far as our little bet goes, nobody wins or loses. It was never our decision to make."

He stared at her for a long second, trying to make sense of what she was saying. "How do you know?"

"I threatened to resign if they didn't give me Four or Three. Their escorts are old enough to have grandchildren by now." She rolled her eyes and grabbed the mostly empty bottle of whiskey to pour herself another drink. She was exaggerating of course. Haymitch didn't know how old the escorts from Three and Four were but they couldn't be more than thirty-five. "I was made aware that it would be a dangerous move for me and my family." She took a sip and gave him one of her fake smile. "I don't care much about my family to be honest but that doesn't mean I would put them in danger. And I'd rather stay in one piece too."

"They threatened you?" he scowled. He didn't like the sound of that.

"Of course not." she denied. "That would be a show of extreme bad taste and the Capitol is nothing but refined. I was strongly advised to reconsider my decision and that very night my parent's house was burgled and my own apartment was completely ransacked. My mother is still laughing about the coincidence."

Her blue eyes met his. He saw no real fear in there, only a slice of desperation. The same he usually saw in his mirror each time he bothered to shave. "That sucks." he said.

"You have such a way with words." she grinned. "See, you should have accepted the terms of my bet the first time. It wouldn't have made much of a difference but at least we would have had fun. Playing for glory wasn't as satisfying."

"You sleep with me if you quit, I sleep with you for each year you stay." he mused, downing the rest of his whiskey. He didn't pour himself another. "That means I owe you three nights."

"If you had accepted those terms." Her eyes were twinkling as much as the small diamonds woven in her fake eyelashes. "Unfortunately, you didn't."

"That won't stop you from following me to the elevator." he stated with a smirk, scraping his chair back and grabbing the jacket he had discarded earlier.

She leaned against the back of her chair and stared at him with one of her challenging smile. "So sure of yourself…" she clucked her tongue. "Perhaps I want you to convince me."

He stopped in his tracks and put a hand on the back of her chair. "What would that take, sweetheart?" he asked, a bit wary now but also very much interested in the challenge.

"Do try to remember I am not your enemy sometimes." she requested softly and a bit uncertainly. "We could be friends."

"I don't think we're cut out to be friends." he snorted. Friends didn't lust after each other, after all, not in his experience. "But I suppose I can try to work with you. You're not the worst escort."

"Two compliments in one night." she teased. "It must be freezing in hell."

He rolled his eyes and left her there to escape the party. The corridors were empty and there was no one near the elevators, he leaned against the wall and waited. She certainly made him wait and it crossed his mind that she might have been playing him all along, making fun of the drunkard from District Twelve who thought a girl as pretty as she was would be interested in him. He was about to push the button, angry with himself for letting her leading him on when she appeared in all her golden glory.

"You took your time." he grumbled.

"Good things come to those who wait." she retorted with a smile. She pushed the button before he could even think of a reply. She stepped in the elevator like a queen on a red carpet. The light caught her sparkling dress, reflected on her golden wig, it formed a halo around her. Those endless legs, those twinkling blue eyes… "Aren't you coming?" she frowned, she had to put her arm between the doors to stop them from sliding closed.

She wasn't expecting him to march in that elevator and pin her against the wall, he could tell, but she reacted quickly, locking her legs around his waist and pulling him in a breathtaking kiss and it was just as good as he remembered. It wasn't just that she obviously was good at this, it was… them that was good : her kissing him, him pressing his body against hers, him tearing that wig off her head… Her blond hair fell on her shoulder a bit crumpled and stiff from having been kept in place all day but it was okay. There was a spark between them, something that made him ache for her, something he was almost scared about. It was primly attraction and desire that drove them together in the first place but the spark… The spark could be so much more.

She started laughing in the middle of the kiss. Heavy giggles that made him frown. "What?" he snapped. "I swear, Trinket, if you…"

"No, no…" she cut him off, kissing him again firmly. "I just remembered you said you don't sleep with Capitol women and on that account I win." Her hands tangled in his hair and pulled him in for another kiss but he resisted.

"You said you don't fuck rude uncivilized men." he argued. "So I win."

"Yes but as you astutely figured out that night…" she grinned "Proper is a little boring for my tastes sometimes."

"I will give you improper…" he grumbled against her mouth.

It was on.