Chapter One-Hundred-and-One; Home for Dinner

(Haymitch's POV)

"Come on Abernathy, I have nothing against her. It's just…business," Dan slouched back against the wall, drawing deeply from his cigarette.

Haymitch leaned against the wall facing him. "Looking out for your own personal business," Haymitch clarified in a dangerous tone.

Dan took a long, contemplative drag on his cigarette as he eyed Haymitch warily.

"And what of it?" he finally conceded.

Haymitch's eyes narrowed and Dan licked his lips nervously, shifting from foot to foot.

"What personal business?" Haymitch demanded.

Dan's eyes flickered to the exit of the alley and then back to Haymitch. He casually dropped his cigarette to the ground, taking a moment to squash it beneath the heel of his shoe. He glanced once more towards the smooth pavements of the street and then his view was blocked, as Haymitch deliberately stepped in front of his field of vision and blocked his path.

Dan swallowed nervously, subconsciously taking a step back from Haymitch.

"Look, I don't know what you think I know! I could h-have you arrested for intimidation!" Dan suddenly said.

Haymitch's expression never faltered for a moment and Dan backed up another step.

"What personal business?" Haymitch repeated.

There was a heartbeat of a moment before Dan started speaking, almost so fast he was incoherent.

"Look, now just look – Caesar out of the blue rings me and tells me what I have to do; I have to go be this Capitol Lover of the fainting tribute girl." Dan babbled on, "I didn't want to do it! Believe me! But…well – I…I've been having an affair with this…married woman and Caesar…well Caesar says that if I want to keep it a secret I have to do this. He never said who told him to do this, just that I got to do it…" Dan trailed off, his calm composure from earlier that day in front of the cameras truly forgotten.

"Who's wife?" Haymitch queried.

Dan gulped and then with a bitter smile that more resembled a grimace he answered, "Sharpe's."

Haymitch raised one brow. "Snow's personal assassin – Do you have a death wish?"

Dan gave a hollow chuckle as he ran a shaky hand through his hair. "Yea – I know right…so you can appreciate my position all the better, yea? I kinda would like to stay alive."

"You think I'm going to let you use Stephanie as a shield to protect yourself?" Haymitch intoned dangerously.

Dan balked immediately. "No! But no – you don't understand. He said that she will be safe!"

"He? – Who's he?"

Dan shrugged helplessly. "I don't know! The guy who told Caesar what to do. He said that she would be safe, to make sure you knew that."

"Make sure I knew?" Haymitch repeated, his expression only darkening with the passing seconds.

Dan physically winced. "Look I don't know, Caesar said that the guy said he knew you would come prying and to assure you that she would be safe."

Haymitch made sure to not let his confusion show on his face.

"Caesar said the guy said something about contacting you himself," Dan raised his hands, his tone almost pleading.

"Contact me?!" Haymitch repeated incredulous, his expression slipping for a brief moment.

Dan practically jumped on the spot as he cringed down, realising that with every word that passed his lips he was making the situation worse.

"Where is your brother now?" Haymitch snarled. If he wanted any answers it seemed he had come to the wrong Flickerman brother.

"Caesar?" Dan repeated dumbly.

Haymitch gave him a hard look and Dan nodded vigorously.

"The restaurant on Harrell's Street," Dan answered.

"Are you sure?" Haymitch stressed, inspiring another bout of vigorous head bobbing from a wide-eyed Dan.

"Yes always on this night once a week – same table and everything," Dan managed to add after a moment.

…

The streets were just beginning to swarm with people at this time, as afternoon slowly crept into evening and people put on their finest to come out and parade with the guise that they were going out to eat or attend some other form of entertainment.

Haymitch kept his head low and moved along in the shadows as best he could.

He reached Harrell's Street easily enough and paused at the corner, pressing himself close to the display windows of the shop beside him.

Caesar Flickerman was there alright. He could see him clearly through the window having a grand time. The only problem was he was at a table full of people all engaged in raucous chatter with one another.

Haymitch cursed silently under his breath as he propped himself up against the shop window, keeping a clear view of the restaurant with its tacky, flashing sign and Flickerman's jet. black hair streaked with silver, bobbing animatedly with his speech in the window.

Knowing Flickerman, infamous throughout Panem for his talking skills; Haymitch groaned imagining how he would most likely be here for hours. He took a quick check of the time. Looks like I won't be home for dinner after all sweetheart, he noted mentally.

…

(Stephanie's POV)

"Stephanie pet…Stephanie…Stephanie!"

Frenkin nudged her under the table and Stephanie snapped her head around to be met with a pair of glaring, emerald eyes.

"Sorry Isa – off in a world of my own," Stephanie mumbled distractedly, her gaze once more drawn to the main hall that led to the lift as her stomach flipped uneasily.

Frenkin shot her a sympathetic look as Stephanie dropped her gaze frowning to her plate of food, and began the mundane task of pushing half it around her plate and managing to chew the rest of it, even if she didn't feel like it.

She supposed it was a District thing. Years of always having to struggle for food and being constantly hungry meant that when food was set in front of you, whether you felt like it or not, you tried to eat as much as you could of it – who knew when your next meal would be.

Isa's displeased pout softened slightly as she took note of Stephanie's demeanour and…completely misread the situation.

"Oh don't worry dear – you'll get to see Dan tomorrow," Isa soothed.

It had the adverse effect of reminding Stephanie of the exact reason why Haymitch had had to leave in the first place as she stabbed a piece of food on her plate with her fork and shoving into her mouth, chewed on it viciously.

Isa grimaced slightly, clearly thinking how Stephanie was eating like an animal or some other similar thought.

Isa daintily cut the food up on her plate, sorting it into colour coordinated little spaces before she spoke again.

"Now Stephanie and Frenkin, my pets – tomorrow an event has been scheduled."

Stephanie looked up half-interested and Frenkin swallowed nervously as they waited for Isa to stop complaining about how much effort and trouble it had caused to do it in such a short space of time.

"Really! I don't know what got into Seneca to postpone the training like that," Isa trailed off and with a huge effort Stephanie forced herself to swallow the food in her mouth, though she barely tasted it.

Isa unwittingly seemed set to touch on every sore nerve of Stephanie's during their meal.

Isa frowned suddenly as she glanced around the penthouse. "Where's Haymitch? I was hoping to be able to discuss the event with him; you know opportunities for some spectacular photo shoots I have envisioned…" Isa trailed off, nodding at them eagerly with a bright smile.

Stephanie closed her eyes for a brief respite as her knife and fork clattered noisily to her plate. If she didn't know any better, she would say Isa was deliberately trying to push her over the edge.

"Oh Stephanie pet – not again!" Isa bemoaned. "I was almost sure you would have fainted when Dan turned up and it would have made such romantic footage but you didn't! And now you're just going to faint into your salad – not romantic at all!" Isa whined bitterly as though it were the most unfair injustice in the world. Stephanie might have smirked if she didn't genuinely feel ill down to her stomach.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up at the soft call of her name and Frenkin pressed a cool glass of water into her hand that she forced herself to drink.

After a few moments of sitting still and trying to steady her breathing while blocking out Isa's wailing of Stephanie fainting at inappropriate times, and her own mind's frantic thoughts of where Haymitch currently was…she was able to gain her composure enough and felt slightly better.

Frenkin offered her a small smile as she looked up, releasing her breath in one huge steadying rush, and she gave him a brief, grateful one back.

"The event Isa?" Stephanie cut across Isa in as much an attempt to stop Isa's complaining and to provide herself with a distraction. She could only retain her calm as long as her thoughts couldn't dwell on the more worrying topics.

Isa was suitably waylaid, her sour complaining forgotten immediately in favour of gushing praises and commentary of tomorrow's event.

"Well…it's all tributes there," Isa began. "And your sponsors will be there as well."

Stephanie shuddered and her calm façade threatened to crash again as before her mind's eyes swam an image of a smug Dess. Not him, Stephanie thought desperately, though she need not have worried.

"Stephanie pet, you'll be with Dan," Isa grinned. Stephanie barely retained a neutral expression, never mind grin in agreement with her, as Isa expected.

"Oh I know pet, you would have preferred something more private with Dan – a nice candlelight dinner or the such." Isa reached across the table and sympathetically patted Stephanie's hand.

Stephanie couldn't contain the eye roll though she was grateful Isa didn't see it. Although Frenkin did and while he looked mildly amused, he also looked confused.

For a brief moment Stephanie realised how while she and Haymitch were discussing enemies and Capitol plots etcetera, that Frenkin had absolutely no idea except beyond what the Capitol wanted him to have.

As far as he knew Dan was Stephanie's Capitol lover. Stephanie didn't like the idea of that being the person Frenkin would see her as, that the Capitol created image was what he would think of her. In a way it made her feel distanced from him. However… she disliked even more the idea of telling Frenkin everything for numerous reasons, including his own safety and what purpose would Frenkin knowing anything do him, only to impress upon him more fear and despair.

She sighed concluding Frenkin believing the Capitol spiel about her was a small price to pay in comparison.

"What is the actual event Isa?" Stephanie asked as with grim determination she speared another forkful of food and raised it to her lips.

"The Races!" Isa announced gleefully.

Stephanie and Frenkin exchanged confused glances.

"The Races?" Stephanie repeated.

"Oh it's going to be fabulous!" Isa exclaimed, just before the shrill demanding ring of Isa's mobile phone tore through the air and eardrums alike.

Isa leapt to her feet and after excusing herself numerous times she raced from the room to take the call.

Stephanie arched a brow as she looked across the table to Frenkin.

"The Races?"