Prompt : I literally spent a week straight binge reading these one-shots so that I could make sure the ones I wanted to prompt hadn't been done already. I love you Hayffie stories so much! I've noticed in a lot of one-shots you mention Effie's escort mask and I found it really intriguing. I would love a one shot where Effie finally drops the escort mask in front of Katniss and Peeta and they see that she is a real person and not just a Capitol drone. Thank you !

And

Prompt : I kind of imagine that even if Effie moved to 12 after the war and was completely broken, she would still try to act as if everything was fine in front of the kids. Could you do something where she eventually has a really bad day and she kids realize that she's not really doing very well

Mask Off

"We should eat while it's still warm." Peeta declared, putting down the pot of stew in the middle of Haymitch's kitchen table, swiftly avoiding colliding with Katniss who was placing plates and cutlery. Haymitch simply nodded and sat down, his mind elsewhere like it had been all day every time Peeta had crossed path with him. The younger man glanced at Katniss who shrugged her ignorance. "Where's Effie?" he insisted. "We can't start without her."

"I don't fancy getting lectured about manners tonight." Katniss joked, flopping down at her usual place at the table. "It's not like her to be late. She's gone to town or something?"

"I hope she didn't get lost." Peeta frowned, stirring the steaming stew with a wooden spoon.

It had happened a few times since Effie had moved in – she insisted she was simply visiting but after three months, Peeta considered that they couldn't talk about a visit anymore – some parts of the District were still in rebuilding and it was confusing even for people who were born there.

"I hope she didn't get in trouble." Katniss added with a frown of her own. She fingered the tablecloth Effie always insisted they used, her lips pursed in a worried line. "Maybe I should go look for her."

"She's fine." Haymitch grumbled. "We don't need to wait. Go on, boy."

"You don't know if she's fine." Katniss countered angrily. "It's not because you don't care for her that…"

Haymitch's fist hit the table with such brutality a glass was knocked over.

Peeta and Katniss froze, not completely strangers to Haymitch's aggressive side but unused to seeing it directed at them in such a fashion.

"Don't ever say that again." he growled in warning.

Katniss scowled and folded her arms over her chest like a petulant child. Peeta glanced at her with some fondness and then cleared his throat. "That's not what she meant. We know you care for her, she meant…"

"I don't know what she meant and I'm not interested." Haymitch cut him off. "What I feel or not for Effie is none of your fucking business and it will stay that way. She doesn't need anyone to go looking for her, she's upstairs."

"Upstairs?" Katniss repeated. "But I didn't see her come back…"

"'Cause you saw her leave?" Haymitch scoffed. "She's been upstairs all day."

Peeta and Katniss exchanged another look, surprised. They hadn't seen Effie all day which usually meant she had been up and about all around the District since dawn – she always found things to occupy her time with: be it helping at the newly built Justice Building or shopping at the few shops or hunting down fabrics for new dresses – it hadn't occurred to either of them that she had been cooped up in the house all day. That wasn't like her.

"Is she ill?" Peeta hesitated.

He slowly started filling their plates but he was too worried to focus properly and some drops of sauce ended up on the white tablecloth.

"She has a headache." Haymitch said.

Peeta could almost taste the lie.

"All day? That's not normal. She needs a doctor." Katniss declared.

"She needs peace." their mentor retorted. "Something she will never get with the two of you around."

Peeta filled the fourth plate and grabbed it. "I will take it to her."

"She won't be hungry." Haymitch said. "I will fix her something when you're gone."

"Chicken soup!" Katniss exclaimed, pushing her plate of stew away from her and rushing out the door.

Haymitch eyed his own plate – that was quickly cooling down – and rubbed a hand against his face. "You're never going to let go, are you?"

"We're worried about her." Peeta countered. "She's… She should be here with us. It feels wrong without her and if she's ill we're going to take care of her."

"Maybe she doesn't want you to take care of her, ever thought of that?" he shot back. "Look, I know you love her, boy, but she's peculiar about that kind of things. She doesn't want you or the girl to see her when she's not… well."

"That's stupid." he judged, just as Katniss came running back with a covered pot of chicken soup. It didn't take long to warm it up on Haymitch's stove.

"Kids, she won't like it." he frowned, looking really concerned now. "Let me carry it. Stay here. Eat your stew."

Peeta and Katniss wouldn't be deterred. If Effie was sick, they would take care of her themselves. It wasn't that Peeta didn't trust Haymitch to do it but rather that he trusted himself to do a better job. He kept sharing triumphal looks with Katniss on the stairs, finding an odd sort of pride in carrying a simple bowl of chicken soup. He had never done that for his mother because his mother didn't care for him and he hadn't cared much more for her either. Katniss, on the other hand, had probably done it too many times before but never for Effie – Effie who never hesitated to sit down with one of them when they were unwell or hug them when they needed comfort and were reluctant to ask for it.

"Kids…" Haymitch warned one last time, following at a slower pace, unable to manage the stairs at the same speed they were.

Katniss knocked but opened the door before Effie could tell them to come in and Peeta followed her in, a smile on his lips, ready to ask their former escort how she felt. He had expected her to be in bed, the curtains closed and maybe a wet cloth on her eyes to fight the headache. The curtains were wide open, all the possible sources of light in the room were on –she had more lamps in her bedroom than there were in the whole house probably – and as for Effie… The bed was unmade but…

"She's not here." Katniss said, turning back to look at Haymitch who was leaning against the doorframe. Their mentor's grey eyes swooped around the room and paused briefly on the large wardrobe. Peeta had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Out." Haymitch ordered.

"But she's missing!" Katniss insisted with growing hysteria. That was her biggest fear ever since the war, loosing someone else. "She could be anywhere! She could be hurt! She could be…" She stopped suddenly and turned around, her own eyes riveted to the wardrobe, her huntress ears probably picking up something Peeta couldn't hear.

"Don't." Haymitch warned, reaching for her, but Katniss was already gone. She opened the doors wide and Peeta could only stand there, holding to the bowl of soup with both hands like a lifeline.

For a second there was silence.

Katniss remained there, staring at the woman they could hardly recognize – a woman with untamed wild curls that formed a mane around her head, wearing a shapeless shirt that probably belonged to Haymitch and bright blue panties that made Peeta uncomfortable because he never wanted to know what kind of underwear Effie wore; a woman who was huddled against the far end of the wardrobe, partially hidden behind the dresses hanging in there, curled up in the small space left between shoes and a vanity case that must have been digging in her hip.

They had seen Haymitch at his lowest so many times it had stopped shocking them.

But Effie…

"Out!" she shrieked suddenly, trying to snatched the doors from Katniss, to close them again. "Out! Out! Out!"

It wasn't as much the panic on her face that made Peeta react than the deep shame he glimpsed in her eyes. He forced the bowl of soup in Haymitch's hands who was standing there, helpless, and nudged Katniss aside. His girlfriend still looked thunderstruck, shocked to see the bright and cheerful Effie Trinket defeated, scared and almost mad with terror.

"We brought you soup." Peeta declared, as if everything was completely natural. Katniss stared at him like he had grown a second head but he ignored her, outstretching a hand to Effie. "Haymitch said you had a headache so we brought you soup." Effie watched him warily but he never dropped his arm. "Sitting in a wardrobe is a drastic solution against headaches though." he continued, careful to sound light, as if it was a good joke. "You should just have turned off some of those lamps."

Effie's blue eyes darted to Haymitch's behind his shoulder, her lips were wobbling but, finally, she placed her hand on Peeta's.

"A headache. Yes." she lied. She wasn't all there yet, but he thought she understood what he was trying to do : save face, pretend it was less than it was, allow her her dignity. Effie wasn't someone who would appreciate being caught in a moment of weakness by people she considered her children.

"The soup will help." he declared with confidence, helping her out of the tiny closed space.

"I did it myself." Katniss offered, finally picking up on what he was doing. "It's good against… headaches."

The two of them settled her back into bed, fussed over her, joked and laughed and told her all about Haymitch's latest mishaps of the day while she ate her soup. Slowly, she started to get her colors back and she looked better. Haymitch remained in a corner, leaning against the wall with his arms folded, watching like a hawk. He didn't say anything even when Peeta put the stains on the tablecloth on him. Effie tutted and clicked her tongue and eventually handed the empty bowl of soup back to Katniss.

"It is just a headache." she insisted as they were saying their goodnight.

"Of course." Katniss smiled, and dropped an unprecedented kiss on her cheek. "Get some rest. You're safe from… headaches here."

Haymitch and Peeta rolled their eyes in synch. He loved Katniss but she wasn't made for subtlety. Still, he hugged Effie and whispered in her ear that he would make a batch of those strawberry cupcakes she loved the following day.

He and Katniss stopped in the corridor when they realized Haymitch hadn't followed them out of her bedroom. They could hear a low exchange in the room but they couldn't understand the words, they glanced at each other, quietly walking back and then peeking inside.

Haymitch was sitting on her bed, right at the place Peeta had vacated.

"Are you coming to bed?" Effie asked, grabbing his wrist. "Is it time for bed yet? I'm so sorry, Haymitch… Today was… Today…"

"It's fine, Princess." Haymitch promised. He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and pressed a kiss on her forehead. "Let me kick the kids out and then I'm coming, yeah?"

"They saw." she cringed, her face set in obvious despair.

"They think you had a headache, that's it." he placated her. "I will tell them hiding in wardrobe is a Capitol remedy or something. It's fine."

"I'm sorry." she said again.

Haymitch sighed and pressed another kiss on her head.

Without consulting each other, Peeta and Katniss quickly made their way downstairs before their mentor realized they had seen everything.

"Why didn't you tell us it was this bad?" Katniss rounded up on Haymitch as soon as he reappeared.

Haymitch glared. "It's not that bad. It doesn't happen every day and she doesn't want you to worry about her. I'm handling it."

"Are you?" Katniss scoffed. "Because…"

"If you go and make her feel like she needs you to take care of her, it will be much worse." Haymitch cut her off. "Playing the escort with you is all she has left. Leave her be. I'm handling it."

"But…" she insisted.

Peeta placed a hand on her shoulder and she fell silent.

"You wouldn't like it if Haymitch told you how to take care of me and I wouldn't like it if he told me how to care for you." he pointed out.

"It's different." she argued.

Peeta's eyes sought Haymitch's.

"I don't think so." he said softly.

Haymitch looked embarrassed but didn't deny the point.

Peeta nodded briefly and then steered Katniss toward the door. He was certain they weren't done debating about that but they could do it elsewhere, where Haymitch wouldn't be forced to attend to them when Effie was obviously needing him.