prompt : Katniss and Peeta hear Effie Swearing

The Things That Make Effie Curse

"You're sure it was today?" Katniss frowned.

From his position at the window, Peeta stopped peering at the street outside long enough to glance at her over his shoulder.

"She said she would be here today and that we shouldn't worry about greeting her at the station, that she would meet us at home." he confirmed. He was certain, he had asked Effie three times if she was sure because it would have been no troubles for him to go help her with her bags. "I thought maybe she had made plans with Haymitch and didn't want to tell me…"

Katniss rolled her eyes and wrapped her sweater tighter around herself.

"Haymitch?" she scoffed, almost mocking. "They're not really friends, in case your forgot."

"They're friends." Peeta objected.

It was an old argument. One they had started having during Victory Tour and that had never gotten old. Katniss thought Haymitch hated Effie. Peeta thought it was a lot more complicated than that.

Effie often visited them… She stayed in their guestroom but he wasn't oblivious to her coming and going in the middle of the night. There had been more than one 'last drink' over at Haymitch's that went on forever.

"If you say so." she smirked, so clearly humoring him that he was almost tempted to forget about the whole thing and join her on the couch, to see where that would lead…

But Effie had said she would be there by two o'clock and she was the most punctual person on the planet. It wasn't like her to be an hour late.

"I'm starting to worry." he admitted. "I could go check the station… You could stay here in case I miss her on the way…"

Katniss considered that and then shrugged. "Maybe you're right and Haymitch went to get her… We should check with him first, maybe they're having a drink for old times' sakes. If he's drunk or if he doesn't know anything about it, we'll do what you said."

Peeta agreed with a nod and they hastily grabbed their coats and scarves. It was a short walk from their house to Haymitch's but it was winter and the ground was slippery. He had to hold on to Katniss' arm at one point, slowed down by his prosthetic leg.

It was the only reason they heard it before rushing inside: Effie's voice, loud and clear in the winter afternoon, despite the closed windows and doors.

"Fuck!"

Peeta and Katniss shared a surprised look.

"She knows how to curse." she stated – and it needed stating.

Effie Trinket had just cursed.

Curious as to what had caused that extraordinary event, they cut through the backyard to go straight into the kitchen.

They never knocked.

Haymitch's house was an extension of their own, as far as they were concerned.

They never knocked.

And Peeta regretted that fact as soon as he had pushed the door open because the sight of Effie Trinket bent over the kitchen table – on which they ate most of their dinners – was probably more terrible than hearing her cursing. Never mind the fact that Haymitch had a fistful of her hair in his hand or that his pants were down to his ankles. They were still mostly dressed and it was a small mercy. He could deal with seeing Haymitch's butt – he had helped him enough times when he was drunk to have seen everything – but he would never have survived seeing any of Effie's naked parts.

It all happened very fast.

Peeta stood there frozen. So did Haymitch and Effie.

Katniss, on the other hand, didn't. Either she misunderstood or she was really in denial.

"What the fuck are you doing, Haymitch?!" she exclaimed.

The wording had Haymitch smirking. "Well…"

"Don't you dare make that joke!" Effie warned, struggling to pull down on her dress so it would hide… Peeta pointedly didn't think about what it needed to hide. He was simply thankful that she was wearing a puffy dress and that Haymitch didn't just pull out. Because that, he really didn't want to see. In the end, she seemed frustrated with her efforts and batted Haymitch's hand away from her hair. "Do something!"

"Yeah, like what?" Haymitch drawled out. "Give them a show? Maybe they could take a hint and fuck off, don't you think?"

Peeta could take a hint. He mumbled an apology, grabbed Katniss' wrist and dragged her out, making sure to shut the door on their way out. Katniss was still sputtering nonsense as he steered her back toward their house.

"But… But…" she stammered. "He was…"

"I guess that settles the friends or not friends debate." Peeta commented, determined to forget everything he had seen – if he could. He would send Doctor Aurelius' bill to Haymitch, he decided.

"Did you see?" Katniss insisted as he unlocked their door and nudged her inside.

"I'm trying very hard to forget I saw anything." he confessed.

"From behind!" she hissed. Her face was a nice shade of tomato red. "From behind!"

"That's what shocked you the most?" he scoffed. "Because the whole thing pretty much…"

He was interrupted by knocks on the door he had just closed.

Katniss tossed him a horrified look and ran away to the inside depths of their house, leaving him to answer.

"Nice! Thanks!" he called after her. He took a deep breath before opening the door, not really surprised to find an embarrassed Effie Trinket on the doorstep. "Hi."

"Hello." she winced. If Katniss had been red in the face, Effie was crimson. She awkwardly cleared her throat. "About what you saw…"

"I didn't see anything." he denied. "Anything at all."

"Good." Effie sighed in relief. "I do apologize, Peeta. It was not how I wanted you to find out."

He smiled, stepping aside to let her in. "So there's something to find out? Is it serious?"

She laughed a little as if it was a good old joke he wasn't privy to.

"I think it is better if I stay with Haymitch this time around." she suggested. "It will give Katniss some time to recover."

He grinned harder. "Sure. For Katniss."

His teasing had her blushing again.