Prompt : I would love to prompt this: Some time before the 74th Games, Effie is wearing a fabulous dress but in the evening, she can't get out of it on her own (buttons on her back or something). It's really embarrassing but she has to ask Haymitch for help who makes fun of her to no end but somehow they end up closer to the line between friends and lovers then ever before. Thank you so much of you decide to do it. (:

I wrote this when I was in London… This is cracky I guess. =)

Also to the reviewer who lives in hong kong and who asked about translation… how am I supposed to answer you if you leave a guest review? So until you come talk to me by private messages my answer is no.

Temptation

Effie pondered the problem with a sleepy mind. She was used to keeping late hours but the Victory Tour was taxing and did nothing for her brain. The solution though was obvious and she gave a last regretful glance at her red dress in the mirror before slipping out of her room.

Unlike her, the rest of the train was asleep, the only ray of light came from underneath Haymitch's door. She knocked softly and then stepped in without waiting to be invited, knowing the chances of him having gotten drunk in the last twenty minutes since she had left him were high.

He was splayed on the bed, still dressed, an arm tossed over his eyes, an apparently still full bottle dangling from his fingers.

He lifted his arm to look at her with unhidden annoyance. "What do you want now? Thought we were good with the speeches for Three."

It sometimes felt like all they did nowadays was reviewing speeches, coaching the children to act more in love and generally bullying Katniss into remembering the plan. They didn't even have time to truly fight. Anyway, there was no point beating around the bush.

"How drunk are you?" she asked.

"Not nearly enough." he sighed, sitting up and placing his bottle next to the bed. "What's the latest disaster, sweetheart? What did the girl do now?"

"Nothing that I know of." she answered, studying him attentively. "How delicate can you be?"

She wasn't exactly surprised by the smirk that appeared on his lips. "Wouldn't you like to know, Trinket."

She rolled her eyes - a very unladylike habit she had picked up from him over the years - walked closer to where he was sitting and turned around, showing him her back.

"Cinna and Portia are both asleep and I can't get out of this dress by myself." she told him.

The row of buttons at the back was intricate and too difficult to undo on her own.

"You're desperate for me to get you naked, aren't you, princess?" he taunted. He tugged on her thigh until she stepped back between his legs and then she felt his fingers clumsily fumbling with the buttons.

"Please, be careful." she requested, ignoring his gibes. "This dress is expensive and it's only a loan from Portia's new collection. It doesn't belong to me."

Maybe it was the almost sobriety or the exhaustion but he actually slowed down and paid attention to what he was doing. She could feel his fingers occasionally brushing against the skin of her back and she pretended really hard it didn't affect her.

"I like it when Portia dresses you." he commented when he reached the middle of her back. "You look less ridiculous than usual."

"Careful, Haymitch." she laughed. "That's almost a compliment."

She could practically hear him roll his eyes. "You know you're beautiful, you don't need me to tell you."

"Why, now it is really a compliment." she grinned, tossing him an amused glance over her shoulder.

He scoffed and focused on the dress, grumbling about the ridiculous amount of tiny buttons.

"Are you even wearing anything under this thing?" he snorted, brushing his knuckles along her spine.

"Haymitch!" she gasped, not knowing if it was against the touch or the words she was protesting. "How improper!"

"More improper than coming here to tempt me with all this flesh?" he snorted, finally reaching the last button at the small of her back. His hands stilled on her waist but she didn't move, clutching the dress to her chest to avoid an incident.

"Am I?" she asked softly, not daring to look at him. "Tempting you?"

"Like you don't know." he scowled. She could feel his breath rolling against the small of her back and she was unable to suppress a shiver.

"Being tempted and letting yourself be tempted are two different things." she pointed out. "You never were ready for the latter."

His hands slid up and down her waist in what probably aimed at being a soothing gesture. "It's more complicated than that, sweetheart. I can't afford complicated right now. It would be the wrong choice."

"And you're so good at not making those, right?" she snapped before she could stop herself.

She knew what he was talking about, she was neither blind nor stupid, she had seen the state the Districts were in, she understood the troubles they and the children were in... She also knew the tension between them was reaching an impossible peak ever since Katniss and Peeta's victory.

She also didn't see how she could be much of a distraction to him. If they ever got involved, she would get attached, that was a given, but Haymitch... Haymitch wouldn't care so much.

"Effie..." he sighed.

Anger deserted her as soon as it had appeared, leaving her worn out.

"No, you are right, of course." she apologized at once. "I never was the right choice for you. Thank you for your help."

His fingers briefly tightened on her waist but then he let her go. He didn't try to stop her when she fled in the corridor either, clutching the loose dress to her chest like a rejected mistress.

It was only in the safety of her room that she dropped the mask of the perfectly happy bubbly escort. She carefully slipped the dress over her head and hanged it in her wardrobe, putting on her silk dressing gown before sitting at her dressing table to remove her wig. It gave easily. She distractedly ran her fingers through her blond curls a few times and then grabbed her make-up remover. Her hand had barely closed on the little bottle when her door opened to immediately slam shut.

For a second, they stared at each other.

Haymitch looked flustered and Effie was seriously considering telling him off for coming in without knocking and making enough noises to wake up the whole train. She stood up but before she could decide between starting to yell and asking what it was he wanted, they were kissing.

His hand coiled around her nape and didn't leave her any choice but to move with him. Not that she would have tried to move away anyway.

"I thought..." She managed to mumble between two of his forceful kisses.

"You've got a point, alright?" he grumbled. "Never was one for the right choices."

She stopped asking questions or tried objecting because all she wanted to do was melt against him and see how well their bodies would fit.

They fitted extremely well.

They were always in synch when they fought and this was just another kind of fighting.

She expected him to run away as soon as the deed was done but he remained in her bed, his arms wrapped around her, a hand curved possessively over her hipbone.

She fell asleep to bliss.