Prompt : In 161 you wrote about a situation where Haymitch had to save Effie from paparazzis who were chasing after Finnick. I would love to read more about that day so I decided to prompt it. :) Thanks!

Odair Mania

"This is madness." Effie whispered, her smile wavering slightly as she took in the size of the crowd, the few Peacekeepers around and the thin rope barring access to the celebrities walking the red carpet.

"Scare of your admirors, Trinket?" Haymitch snorted. "I thought that was your thing."

She glared at him but she still grabbed his hand when he helped her out of the car, waving at the waiting crowd with her bright escort's smile and digging her nails into Haymitch's arm so he would act friendly for the audience. No one would sponsor a brooding victor.

It was obvious that the crowd wasn't there for them though. They couldn't care less about the people walking down the red carpet or giving interviews further down, next to the building's entrance. They were waving their huge signs with Finnick's name on them and chanting the young victor's name. The women sounded hysterical.

Five steps away from the car, it appeared obvious the security team was nervous and that the way the crowd was pressing against the ropes was not good. Effie's smile didn't falter and she nodded at her fans but ignored the repeated pleas for photos and autographs. She wasn't keen on going too close.

Haymitch had either picked up on her nervousness or was sharing her foreboding feeling of impending doom because he was standing straighter, his grey eyes kept darting from left to right and she wasn't so much holding his arm anymore as he was holding hers.

"Stay close." he ordered when another car slowly stopped at the beginning of the red carpeted passage. It was Four's team and she barely had time to lament the fact that Four's escort's dress was prettier than hers before everything dissolved into chaos.

It happened awfully fast.

One second, she was glancing over her shoulder at Della, slightly bitter at how the crowd went wild at the appearance of Four's escort and mentor; the next, the security rope was tumbling down and the crowd closed on them like the jaw of a hungry beast. Peacekeepers immediately moved to protect Finnick and Della, as for the teams closer to the entrance they were ushered inside, but Haymitch and Effie were right in the middle of the carpet and there was no forthcoming help. She closed her eyes a second before someone impacted against her, the movement of the crowd tearing her away from Haymitch's side...

He never let go of her though, he kept a death grip on her wrist, shoving people aside with his shoulder to make his way to her. People were grabbing at them. She didn't know what they wanted, some of them were calling their names, she felt her dress tear at the back and fingers probing at her flesh... She tried to battle the hands reaching for her but it wasn't until Haymitch managed to pull her against him, tucking her against his side and very much shielding her with his own body, that the attacks decreased.

Then he forced them to move and all she could think was don't fall, fall and they will trample you, fall and you're dead... They were moving against the crowd, most people were still trying to reach Finnick. She spared a brief thought for him, hoping he was alright.

"Almost there, sweetheart." Haymitch shouted at her.

He was dragging her so much he was practically carrying her, her feet barely touched the ground.

When a man stopped right in front of them and moved as if to grab her away from him, she thought for sure that was it : she would die, killed by a crazy fan in the middle of a scrum. Haymitch didn't even try to wonder what the guy wanted. His left arm remained around her, his right one gave a nasty punch, and they were moving again.

When they reached the entrance, she realized she was crying. Peacekeepers ushered them inside and closed the doors immediately behind them.

"Oh, my! Effie, are you alright?"

"Effie!"

"Your dress!"

Escorts swarmed around her, falsely sympathetic and very much making her dizzy.

"Get lost!" Haymitch spat, effectively chasing her supposed friends away. Her dress, she realized, was in tatters and she was bruised and scratched. He shrugged off his jacket and placed it on her shoulders. She lost no time in slipping it on properly because she wanted the security of another layer of fabric on her. He dragged her a little further away from the group of mentors and escorts until she couldn't hear the crowd outside or see it. "You're fine." he told her firmly, framing her face with his hands and locking eyes with hers. "Nothing happened. You just got a scare. You're fine. Breathe."

She knew she was fine. It was still good to hear it.

She took a shaky breath. "Thank you."

"It's just shock." he said, dropping his hands from her face. She grabbed one of them and squeezed his fingers.

"I meant for not leaving me out there." she clarified. "For protecting me."

"Yeah, well..." he mumbled, looking away. "Finding a new escort is a hassle."

She cupped his cheek and pressed a kiss at the corner of his mouth all the same, not fooled by his gruff behavior.

It made him grumble even more but there was a pleased smirk on his lips for the rest of the night.