Prompt : Love your fanfics your my fav author. I was wondering if you could write one where effies whole family (you can choose how many members) come to district 13 and have a hard time adjusting, and they see effie without her wig, it would be nice to see their reactions, you can throw haymitch in there too ;-)

This one ended up being crack-y

There was a review yesterday for a prompt about a secret hayffie child whose existence would be revealed in 13, I already did something like that. You should check out my story Thirteen Sheep. =)

Refugees

"I put this one aside for you." she said tentatively, pushing a thin folder in front of Haymitch.

The little room next to the shooting studio she and Plutarch had claimed as a makeshift office was silent when he placed his hand on the name that greeted him in front of the folder. She watched his reaction, wondering if it had been a bad idea after all. She had been tasked with organizing Finnick's propos – it consisted on doing short pieces about fallen victors to remind each District why they were fighting – it had been painful for everyone involved to write what were, in essence, eulogies.

"Finnick helped me write it but I thought you might want to add something personal or maybe even do that particular propo yourself…" she ventured.

Haymitch remained perfectly still. He was sitting sideways, a hand on the back on her chair, the other one still hiding Chaff's name from view.

"I'm sure it's great." he mumbled, pushing it back in front of her. "I trust you."

"Are you sure you…" she insisted only to be interrupted by the opening of the door.

Plutarch didn't stroll in like she expected him too, he nodded at Haymitch but kept his eyes on her.

"There is a new arrival." he told them. "Some people are refusing to give their names and are asking for you, Effie. If you could come and clear it up…"

"For me?" she frowned.

It wasn't uncommon for Thirteen to welcome refugees. There were networks all around Panem nowadays but for someone to ask for her?

"Do you have rebel friends, sweetheart?" Haymitch snorted, standing up in a chorus of cracking joints. "You've been holding out on me."

"Don't be absurd, of course I do not have rebel friends…" she huffed, leaving the propos for now and hurrying after Plutarch, curious to see what that was all about. Haymitch remained close to her heels, clearly distrustful about the whole situation.

The familiar voice greeted her half a corridor away, high-pitched and clearly irritated.

"No, I won't give you my name! How many times do I have to repeat myself? Are you daft? Now if you just call…"

"Mother!" she exclaimed, quickening her pace until the big room in which refugees were greeted came into view. She entered without a second thought, flabbergasted and shocked to see her mother in a bright blue traveling pant suit with a matching wig standing up to a clearly fed-up rebel soldier.

"Euphemia!" her mother answered in kind, hurrying to her with open arms.

Her mother had never been overly affectionate but Effie presumed the situation required some dramatic gesture of sort. There was something so comforting in her mother's perfume, she couldn't help but close her eyes and breathe it in. It smelt like home.

"Effie!" another voice called, squeezing her hand.

"Lyssa…" she breathed out in wonder, escaping her mother's arm to hold her sister close. She glimpsed the small child latched on Lyssandra's fashionable pink trousers and she laughed in delight, her eyes burning with tears of joy. She had been worrying herself sick about her family and there they were… It was truly a miracle. She crouched in front of her nephew. "Why, hello, Bryden… Don't you just look dashing today?"

The nine years old stared at her for a few seconds as if he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. "You look ugly, Auntie."

Haymitch's laugher was indelicate and unwelcome. She turned to him with a huff, self-consciously patting the intricate braid on her head. They had taken pictures of Katniss in her Mockingjay outfit earlier and there had been a good deal of waiting… Why she had let Katniss convince her she could braid her hair like she did for Prim, she wasn't sure but it looked alright when she had last checked a mirror – as alright as her plain hair could ever get.

"If you say truth comes out of children's mouth, I will harm you." she warned him with a glare.

Haymitch lifted his hands defensively. "Just thought I liked his manners."

"Ruffian." she muttered under her breath.

"I still need names." the soldier cleared his throat, obviously bored by the whole scene.

"Put them all as Trinkets." Haymitch intervened before she could say anything. His eyes lingered on her sister's wedding band but he didn't comment. Perhaps because he had recalled she was married to a former Gamemaker and didn't think it judicious to mention it.

Being satisfied with that answer, the soldier went to another group of people, followed by Plutarch. There were a few other Capitols in the new group of refugees, they stood out. That was a first, she thought.

"What are you doing here?" she asked at last. "How?"

"Father." Lyssa replied.

"Your dimwit of a father thought it clever to ship us to the other side of the country!" her mother took up before her sister could finish her explanation. "Now I told him you couldn't possibly have gone on purpose! I told him you had probably been abducted ! I told everyone. But did they listen? No… No, obviously they didn't. Who ever listen to me anymore?"

"Seems like you're listening to yourself enough for the whole lot of us, sweetheart." Haymitch cut in.

"Haymitch!" Effie hissed. "Behave, would you?"

Her mother stood straighter, chin jutting in the air, and huffed. "You, sir, are as rude and unbecoming as on TV."

"Why, thank you." he smirked with a mocking bow. "You can't imagine how much that means to me…"

"Haymitch, for the love…" Effie started.

"Don't you dare curse in front of your mother, young lady." her mother warned her sternly, staring at her up and down. "I see you've gone local. What in Panem did you do to your hair? And that thing you're wearing… Since everyone is wearing it I suppose you aren't in a prisoner jumpsuit after all…"

She opened her mouth to explain Thirteen's dress-code but finally turned to her sister, desperate for a better explanation.

"Father knew some people and Rufus did the rest." Lyssa explained, turning her wedding band instinctively at the mention of her husband. "They seemed to think the Capitol wouldn't last. They sent us to you."

"Clever men." Haymitch shrugged.

"Don't you know it is rude to meddle in strangers' private familiar matters?" her mother scowled.

The woman's glaring could have reduced an army to tears but Haymitch only smirked deeper.

"Where are they?" Effie asked before he could reply.

"They stayed behind." Lyssa told her, gathering her son closer to her. "We were under watch… Father… I don't know what happened exactly. Rufus was planning on using his political power but…"

But Lyssa wasn't optimistic, it was written on her sister's face.

Effie turned to Haymitch instinctively, biting her bottom lip. "Could you…"

He tilted his head to the side and let out a long sight that let her know just how annoying she was. "Sure. Not like I have anything better to do than looking for Capitols…"

"Haymitch, they're family." she said softly.

"To you, not to me." he replied harshly. They stared at each other for a while and then he rolled his eyes. "Alright." he grumbled. "As long as you know you're a pain, Princess."

She watched him walk to Plutarch and pull the Gamemaker aside before turning back to her sister. "Under watch, you said… Surely they didn't…"

"They questioned us." her mother bristled. "Marched us to the Presidential Mansion like vulgar criminals and questioned us." Her mother was so obviously distressed Effie reached out but the woman simply jutted her chin higher. "I am fine, Euphemia, do not fret so, it is unbecoming."

"They didn't hurt you, did they?" she whispered, horrified. The thought had entered her mind more than once after they had retrieved the victors but surely… Surely they wouldn't hurt Capitol citizens?

"Oh, no…" Lyssa's eyes were twinkling with mischief. "You see, Mother was adamant you had been abducted and President Snow needed to negotiate your release. She wouldn't accept a word spoken against you…"

Effie's smile was strained. "Mother…"

"Well, of course, I wouldn't! Imagine this… My own daughter tarnishing her reputation with rebels…" her mother scoffed. "Obviously, you were kidnapped, Effie darling, and made to work with them by force!"

Effie winced. "Yes, about that…"

"I told them you had probably run away with your lover and that we knew nothing more about that." Lyssa cut in. "They believed me."

"You told them what?" their mother barked, eyes wide. "What in Panem possessed you to do that, Lyssandra? Didn't you think about your sister's reputation? And what nonsense! A lover! Who could you mean I wonder? Why not that unpleasant scruffy victor while you're at it!"

She was the only one to laugh at her joke.

Effie squirmed under her sudden vigilant gaze and Lyssa quickly herded her son to one of the rebel soldier, to shield him from his grandmother's impending wrath as well as to ask practical questions.

"Tell me it isn't true." her mother demanded.

Effie took a deep breath. "Mother, I really do not think…"

"You didn't come here of your own free will, Euphemia." the woman hissed.

"I wasn't given a choice in the matter, no." Effie cleared her throat. "But I chose to help. I stand with the Mockingjay."

Her mother's eyes softened. "That poor child… You were very fond of her if I recall correctly."

"I am." she smiled, touching the braid absent-mindedly. She was going along with Katniss better than she thought they ever would, better certainly than when she had played the escort for the Capitol.

"So it was for her not for whatever nonsensical reason your sister just ventured." her mother sounded pleased.

It would have been very easy to lie but Effie's gaze darted to Haymitch who was still deep in conversation with a frowning Plutarch and she couldn't quite hide a shrug. "I'm also very fond of Haymitch."

"I can't fancy why you would be." her mother decided. "Now, where can I get some food? I'm starving."

As soon as Effie had finished explaining that there were rules and designed times for meals, her mother was gone in a huff, joining Lyssa and protesting in her no uncertain terms against the barbarian place that was Thirteen.

"That won't end well." Haymitch snorted, shaking his head mockingly at the Capitol woman. "You're alright?"

He didn't touch her or do anything to offer comfort but he was staring at her with all the strength of his grey eyes and that was more than enough for her. She forced a smile on her lips and an oblivious expression on her face.

"Perfectly so!" she declared, linking her arm with his and tugging him back to the shooting studio. "Now about these propos…"