DOUBLE UPDATE! – 1ST

Chapter One-Hundred-and-Fifty-Six; Chest Pains

"She needs a hospital."

"No!" Electra hissed.

"Ellen she isn't damn well breathing!"

Electra threw a heated glare at Haymitch before she refocused her attention. Electra held slightly trembling fingers before Stephanie's parted lips and waited…

A cold sweat was just beginning to break out over Electra when a stuttering gasp of relief left the blue-haired woman. "She's breathing – barely. But still," Electra said, feeling the weak puffs of warm breath brush her fingertips.

Haymitch's ashen complexion immediately lessened slightly. The immeasurable relief was almost radiating off him in palpable waves as he pressed a firm kiss to Stephanie's cold brow.

Electra jolted slightly when she heard the gurgled sob and turned to see Frenkin standing there with misted up glasses, biting his fist to keep from crying.

"Hey Tiny Tim – it's alright, she's alive," Electra said quickly. She had forgotten the kid was there at all.

Frenkin seemed to hesitate for a moment before he moved unexpectedly. The small little bundle of tears and blonde hair darted over and plonked himself down beside Stephanie, taking one of her pale hands between his smaller ones.

"I thought you were…" Frenkin's tearful voice was interrupted by a hiccup, "gone…" he finished meekly looking to Stephanie as though expecting a reply.

Electra blew out a long breath as she exchanged a look with a still grim-faced Haymitch.

You really did play families this year instead Electra thought, glancing back down at Stephanie.

It was then that Haymitch moved, scooping Stephanie up effortlessly.

"What are you doing?" Electra demanded.

Haymitch barely spared her a glance as he strode past her. Stephanie's brunette hair tumbled over Haymitch's shoulder where her head rested.

"To the hospital, where else?" Haymitch replied.

Electra's eyes widened in alarm as she recalled Wirin's earlier words over the phone.

For if that district tramp faints, Seneca will take out his anger on me, and believe me if he does I will make sure you suffer…!

"Haymitch!" Electra skidded to a halt in front of him, spreading her arms wide to prevent him from going any further. Sorry Stephanie…but I always did say I'd put myself first if it came to it.

Even Frenkin was stopped looking at her expectantly as to what Electra planned to do next.

That was until the sharp rap of approaching footsteps on the metal mesh walkway sounded clearly, approaching.

"Damn!" Electra cursed under her breath, whipping around to see the person just as they rounded the curve.

Amethyst eyes assessed the scene with barely suppressed malevolent glee.

A perfect ivory brow shot upwards coolly. "Fainted again, has she?" Ficen drawled sarcastically.

There was a split second where no one moved as nobody knew what to say or do.

Then Electra took note of Ficen's appearance; the fact that the stylist had her coat draped around her narrow shoulders and her jewelled clutch in her hand.

"And where are you off to Ficen? Leaving so soon?" Electra countered, tilting her head to the side slightly.

Ficen's vaguely pleased look at seeing Stephanie unconscious faded as she glowered at Electra in stony silence.

"It's none of your concern where I'm going," Ficen spat. But the stylist shifted uncomfortably under Electra's piercing gaze.

"I have a headache," Ficen blurted out unconvincingly and Electra saw that Haymitch's patience was gone. He was no longer going to stall, not with Stephanie still unconscious in his arms.

Electra thought quickly. "Ficen do you carry those needles – you know the ones that – "

Ficen interrupted her with a droll eye roll. "The ones that wake her after a dead faint," she sneered contemptuously. The stylist clicked her clutch open, rifling through its contents. "I've had to carry the stupid things with me for every event because of her fainting spells," Ficen finished as she extracted her hand from her clutch and tossed the needle to the ground carelessly.

Electra bent to scoop it up quickly, breathing a sigh of relief. She straightened, looking to Haymitch desperately as she clutched the needle in her hand.

She could tell that Haymitch wasn't pleased with her proposal but he reluctantly conceded to it. Haymitch barely spared a look of thanks to the hateful stylist though. And Ficen clearly didn't expect any as she stalked by them, coat tails designed to dramatically flare behind her as she walked. Frenkin practically leapt out of the stylist's way.

But Electra halted Ficen at the last moment as an inkling suspicion had been building in Electra's mind. A dreaded hunch.

"Ficen why are you leaving now?" Electra called.

Ficen stood stiffly, sending a burning glare over her shoulder.

"I don't like the company," Ficen seethed before she strode off.

Electra gritted her teeth; she could decipher that clue easily enough.

There was only one person in the entire Capitol Ficen would want to avoid badly enough now out of fear, to leave a party for them.

And turning to face Haymitch Electra knew he had figured it out as well.

The arrival of one blue-eyed Gamemaker was imminent.

Electra moved quickly then, removing the cap protecting the needle with her teeth. Her fingers skimmed across the skin of Stephanie's upper arm. Damn she was cold!

"If this doesn't work, I don't care what your protests – she goes to hospital. No compromises," Haymitch said sternly then.

Electra threw him a distracted glower. Couldn't he see she was damn well nervous enough about this working without added threats?!

Electra felt Frenkin standing at her shoulder and she lowered the needle for a moment.

"Why don't you get back to the party?" Electra encouraged the meek, bespeckled boy. But Frenkin planted himself firmly, "not until Stephanie wakes up!" he protested fiercely.

"Argh!" Electra cried, "what happened to bloodthirsty competition between tributes?!" she exclaimed.

"Ellen!" Haymitch called.

"Damn it all!" Electra muttered under her breath as she raised the needle high then. Even Frenkin cried out in distress as Electra brought her arm down.

Haymitch's hand shot out to stop her but his fingers clamped uselessly around her wrist too late as Electra had already plunged the needle directly into Stephanie's chest where her heart was.

"What the hell are you doing?" Haymitch demanded, wide-eyed.

Electra shook off his hold, pulling free the empty needle. "This isn't just another normal fainting spell. I thought desperate measures were needed," she replied grimly.

Haymitch seemed set to make a retort when Frenkin's eager cry cut across him.

"Stephanie!"

Both Haymitch and Electra looked down and sure enough Stephanie seemed to be coming to.

Electra breathed an audible sigh of relief as Stephanie's eyes shot open wide. In the next moment though Stephanie had twisted in Haymitch's arms, uttering a pained curse as she clutched a hand to her chest.

"What the hell was that?" Stephanie managed to pant out eventually, raising a hand to wipe at the now dried blood streaking her chin.

Stephanie sat up with the help of Haymitch, wincing as she did so.

"You fainted," Haymitch replied quietly, cupping Stephanie's cheek gently.

Stephanie's unfocused gaze swivelled up to him. "Is that all?" she rasped, "I feel like I've been hit by a train," she grumbled, rubbing at the spot on her chest.

Electra gave a relieved, breathless chuckle. "Not quite," she replied dryly as Haymitch helped Stephanie stand.

Stephanie had no sooner regained her upright balance though when she was almost bowled over by Frenkin launching himself at her and throwing his arms around her middle.

"Hey, hey darling," Stephanie cooed, sinking her fingers into the ruffled honey head of hair.

There was a muffled sniffle and Stephanie bent slightly to press a firm kiss to Frenkin's head as she grasped his small shoulders.

Frenkin reluctantly released his grip around Stephanie, looking up at her with tears still shining in his blue eyes.

"I thought you were gone," Frenkin whispered solemnly, "you just wouldn't wake for ages and ages and then…"

Stephanie smiled gently as she shushed the young boy, pulling him towards her again, "don't worry Frenkin, you won't get rid of me that easy," she assured him.

As Frenkin buried his face once more against Stephanie, Stephanie turned to look at Haymitch.

They didn't say anything to one another though it was as if they had had a whole conversation. Stephanie gave a watery smile and Haymitch shook his head almost hopelessly with a fond half-smirk. He slipped his arm with a comforting ease around her waist and Stephanie with responding familiarity tilted her body slightly so it was angled against Haymitch's almost for leaning support.

Electra swallowed thickly as she looked away. She wondered if that pain Stephanie had experienced in her chest was contagious, because it suddenly sure felt like something was burrowing a hole somewhere in her.

"We gotta get out there," Electra prompted them gruffly, nodding her head in the direction of the party on the other side of the roaring wall of water. The party that had carried on obliviously while Stephanie had her near-death experience. Electra doubted Stephanie herself knew how serious things had been and Electra wasn't about to be the one to enlighten them all. Stephanie would probably faint if she learnt she was dying. Haymitch would be choleric and Electra doubted anyone would be able to console Frenkin.

Haymitch disengaged himself from Stephanie and Stephanie busied herself with cleaning up Frenkin's tear-stained face with gentle fingers and words.

Haymitch caught Electra's gaze meaningfully just as Stephanie and Frenkin turned, ready to face the party. Stephanie's arm was draped maternally around Frenkin's shoulders, his own arm wrapped around her waist.

"Right we behave as if nothing out of the ordinary happened," Electra began taking the lead. "We are all just so amazed by water we stood here staring for ages, okay? We don't need the reporters spinning another story about you fainting."

Stephanie nodded with a wry smirk, more interested in the smaller boy tucked securely against her side. She had fainted so many times now, it had simply became the norm. She hasn't a clue Electra thought grimly. Stephanie did look her usual ruffled self after fainting and a little paler than usual but…dying?! Electra couldn't blame the girl for carrying on as usual.

They stepped out from the walkway; metal mesh giving way to smooth marble. Stephanie innately slipped her arm from around Frenkin and vice versa. Some sense afterall Electra thought fleetingly.

However they had barely stepped into the flow of people when another official was shoved into their faces. The woman this time had ridiculously large eyes that made her look like the reflected version of herself in the back of a spoon.

When Electra had seen her though a spike of fear had shot through her.

Did Wirin know about Stephanie fainting just then? Was he having her followed, watching her every move to make sure she stayed loyal?

Electra had waited for the official to speak the dreaded words that a phone call was waiting in the lobby for her, but they never came.

Instead the dreaded message was for Stephanie.

"Miss Trindlesworth if you would come with me, Mr King is ready to conduct the standard Gamemaker-Tribute interview with you."

Stephanie barely managed to conceal her grimace, her shoulders slumping with defeat.

"I suppose you can't run forever," Stephanie muttered wryly under her breath and Electra sent her an almost sympathetic smile.