A/N: Hello lovelies! Thanks to everyone reading this, & much love to those of you who have reviewed & added this your alerts. Really motivates me to update faster. Hope you enjoy! :D

Chapter 4

The train pulled into the capital, and the crowds were already swarming. Haymitch was always surprised by the tributes interest and excitement of being here. When he had been in their place, he had decided the capital was a terrible place long before he could see it through the windows. He stood behind them, completely tuned out to the cameras and millions of people pointing at them. Most of them were there for the tributes anyway, but there had been a few stories run on his first year as mentor, so he knew they'd be watching him as well. A closed mouth smile, slight wave, and he ushered the tributes into the car that would be taking them to the training center. A car behind them was waiting for Harley and Haymitch, and they all headed through the crowd and into the capital.

Passing the millions of faces, and soon buildings and crowded streets, Haymitch found himself reflecting on Effie's complete indifference to him. She had busied herself the moment he came out to join the group, and hadn't so much as sniffed in his direction. He supposed he deserved that. A tall tower was rising in front of them in the spot the old training center had been. The car in front Effie & the tributes turned left, while Haymitch's car continued straight.

"What happened to the training center? Wasn't it right here?" Haymitch scanned the buildings around them, sure he recognized the statues and other buildings from the last 9 years he'd been here.

"They built a huge new complex. The center is down underground, the ballroom and conference rooms are on the floor with the lobby, and then there is a floor for each of the districts. I hear they're top of the line, and we get the penthouse" Harley beamed, probably thinking of breaking in the brand new rooms. Haymitch stared up at the top floor, miles above the ground. He'd never been in a building this tall, and the thought terrified and thrilled him.

After setting their suitcases down, Harley and Haymitch got a brief tour of the new Tribute towers. The place was styled in the latest Capital fashions, yet both men found the place appealing. There was one whole wing for the stylists, one wing for the tributes and their mentors, and the living spaces in between. A huge dining room was the focal point when first stepping out of the elevator, followed by a giant open living area. Several seating arrangements were set up, with one big projector pointed at a big stone wall. While Harley was exploring the channels, Haymitch wandered down the hallway with their rooms. He had his own room on the end, a nice corner one next to the rooftop patio. The room across the hall had a several pink suitcases set at the end of the bed. Effie's stuff, no doubt. This could be interesting.

Arriving at the ceremony, Haymitch and Harley had time to wander and chat with the fellow victors. Chaffe, a victor from District 11, was one of Haymitch's only real friends. The two spent the night drinking, eating, and trash talking all of the people from the capital. When it came time to watch the procession, the two headed to their seats in the victor box. Harley was off flirting with a female victor from district four, leaving an empty seat on one side of Haymitch. An odd feeling filled his stomach, thinking of how nice it would be to have a certain girl beside him in the dark box cheering on the tributes. Of course, he knew this was impossible, seeing as she was down in the entrance working with the tributes and their stylists.

The ceremony went as expected, and Haymitch was ready to return to the district 12 penthouse. There was a huge crowd outside the tribute tower, but the cars were able to make their way into the underground parking structure. Effie effectively ignored Haymitch through dinner, and through the replay of the night. Haymitch sat himself moodily at the end of the couch, accepting the constant refills of the drink in his hand the avoxes were supplying. Harley was actually working with the tributes, explaining what they were to expect the next few days, recanting stories of his favorite years. Haymitch wondered if he'd ever be able to joke around about the games this way.

XxXxXxXxXxX

Lying awake in bed, Haymitch could hear the crowds outside partying in the streets. It was just disgusting how much the capital loved these games. Grabbing a pack of cloves from his coat, he wandered out of his room and onto the porch. The view of the city lights was amazing, he had to admit. He was just searching the sky for signs of stars when he heard the door close behind him. A side eye glance let him see her wander to the railing, failing to look around her. She hadn't noticed him sitting on his side way in the corner. He took a long drag on his cigarette before alerting her to his presence, watching her curls blow in the hot summer breeze.

"Couldn't sleep through all the noise either?" His voice came out low and husky, rough from the alcohol and smoking all night. If she was startled, she didn't show it.

"Oh, Haymitch, hello there. Yes and no. I am still too wound up from all the excitement of the day. Wasn't the ceremony just brilliant? That stylist from five sure was bold, don't you think?" She had a falsely pleasant smile on, her hands tightening the belt on her robe. She remained standing sideways a moment, as if expecting him to come over to the railing with her. He debated it, and decided not to let her know how much the height scared him.

"Why does everyone in the capital love the games so much? I mean, listen to all of them down there. Its…you know what, no, don't tell me. Why don't you come over here a moment, sit and chat with me" He patted the spot next to him on the bench, blowing out a long line of smoke. Effie crinkled her nose and made an extinguishing motion with her hands. Haymitch stared at her a moment, then squashed the clove out on the ashtray next to him, patting the spot next to him once more. Glancing out over the railing, she reluctantly took the seat next to him. Her heart was pounding, and she hoped he wouldn't be able to hear it.

"I'm still upset with you about this morning, you know. You were very rude"

"Yeah, about that…you didn't catch me at my best moment. I don't handle surprises well" A bitter laugh escaped his lips, and he leaned back on the bench, an arm casually laying behind her shoulders.

"It was Harley's idea. He has this crazy idea that we…um…he just thought it would really shock you awake" Effie's cheeks were burning, and she was so thankful there were no lights on the porch aside from the lights of the surrounding buildings and streets below. She had been replaying the morning in her head all day. The peaceful expression on Haymitch's face as he slept, his long hair fanned around his head on the pillow, his tan arms, shoulders, chest, and stomach exposed. As Harley had pushed her into the room, she couldn't help but notice a raised area under the covers…she wasn't so innocent as to be unaware of what happened to men in the mornings. She knew this was what Haymitch had been alluding to with his question. Truth was, he was the first guy she'd ever seen in bed. Ever since she'd watched him win the games, she hadn't been able to pay attention to any other guys. She'd had a few boyfriends, but those relationships were basic and doomed by her insatiable attraction to the dirty, broken victor from district 12. Somehow here she sat, by his side, on the rooftop porch of the tribute towers. She couldn't help but feel like his antics were his way of bringing her to him.

"He thought we were what?" Even in the dark, she could see his huge smirk. She slapped his chest playfully, and leaned her head on his shoulder. He took in a quick breath, clearly surprised, but wasted no time in wrapping his arm around her. He let out a long sigh, and both of them let their bodies relax. Effie sat there with her eyes wide open in disbelief. She couldn't believe how bold she'd been, but she was glad she'd done it. He hadn't pushed her away or made fun of her, and had instead drawn her to him. So she had been right about what she felt last night.

Haymitch stared up at the starless sky, Effie's weight and warmth a soothing surprise. Clearly, she wasn't too mad at him if she had curled up against him. Moving only his eyes so as not to alert her, he peeked down at her. Her legs were crossed politely, her knobby knee pointing in towards him. The split in her robe was off-center, exposing almost all of her milky thigh. He gulped down the saliva that had formed suddenly in his mouth. One of her arms was crossed tightly across her body clutching her robe, but the other arm lay resting on his leg. He could feel a heat spreading and himself growing, and he just hoped she wouldn't mind. As if reading his mind, she started lazily tracing her fingers around his knee. His body let out another sigh, and she turned those big green eyes up to him. He stared into them a moment, trying to read her thoughts. Taking her chin gently in his hand, he tipped her chin up towards him, his thumb running over her lips. She could see his eyes moving between her eyes and her lips, and she closed the gap between them, pressing her lips to his.

He pulled back a little just to look at her. Her eyes were closed, her lips partially open, a collection of freckles sweeping across her sweet little face turned up to him. He let his mouth crack into a wide, true smile, memorizing this moment. She was so beautiful under all that makeup, he would never understand why these capital girls painted themselves up so much. Taking her shoulders in his hands, he turned her whole body towards him. Her eyes popped open, glanced down at her robe already splitting open, and pulled her leg up onto the bench to allow her to sit sideways. Haymitch shamelessly looked down, and was disappointed to find she was wearing some little polka dot shorts as pajamas, not a nightgown. He grew harder at the material stretching tight against her, and felt a strong urge to touch all of her at once. She smiled shyly up at him, not sure about what he was thinking, and came up to his mouth once again. Setting her arms on his shoulders, Haymitch guided her to a kneeling position. Effie could feel him trying to set her on his lap, and let a little giggle burst out. His eyes popped open, and looked at her confused. Sitting back on her feet, she rubbed at her lips that felt numb.

"I think we should probably go inside" She said, clearing her throat and wrapping her robe back around her. Haymitch sat there a moment, trying to read into her statement.

"Yeah, um, that works" His eyes darted between hers, still unsure of what she meant. "Its getting kind of windy out here anyway" Once standing, he lifted her to her feet, one hand resting on her lower back. In her bare feet, she stared up at how he towered over her. This was the first time she was standing next to him without being in her platform heels, and it made him look like a giant. He was staring down at her hungrily, and she had to force herself to walk forward to the porch doors. Haymitch held the door for her, and then lingered in her doorway as she fumbled for the key she'd attached to a long chain around her neck. "So, are we going in your room or you wanna come see mine? I have a pretty nice view in there, different from the rooftop" He tried to keep his voice neutral, staring at her standing there before him in the darkness. Images of Effie were zooming through his mind, and he couldn't stand this moment of indecision. He wanted her now. Effie finally got her door open, and stood in the doorway a minute. She wanted so badly to find out just what was going through his mind, what those lustful stares would lead to. She had thought about this moment for so long, and now that it was actually happening, it didn't feel real. She stared up at him, one hand reaching up behind his neck. Bouncing to her tiptoes, she gave him a long, hard kiss. His arms slid down her back, one arm circling her waist, the other gripping her robe just above her tailbone. He let out a grunt when she pulled her face back, and her heart just about burst thinking how frustrated he sounded.

"As much as I'd love to see your room tonight…I think we should just call it a night" She finished cautiously, her hands pushing him away gently. He glared down at her a moment, not releasing his grip, and then pushed her away to turn in frustration. A low growl was coming from his throat, and he paced a few times in front of her door. Running his hands through his hair, he regained composure.

"Yeah, no, that's fine. You're right, we should just go to bed" A severe look at her, and he turned to enter his room across the hall.

He paced in front of his bed a moment, trying to get himself under control. He had never been turned down before, but then again he had never had to try before. Maybe girls in the capital had weird rules about this sort of situation. Oddly, he felt up for a challenge. And she was right, he needed to try to get some sleep and focus on tomorrow. He threw his clothes on the floor in a pile and crawled into bed. The view of the capital suddenly seemed nice, and he let himself replay the events on the roof. Effie definitely liked him, had laid her head on his shoulder without any sort of prompt, and had let him kiss her. She had also seemed willing to make out with him, until what…what had he done to make her laugh? Maybe it was all too much for her in one night. Yes, he was sure that was what it was. His mind focused on her long nails stroking his inner thigh, intentionally turning him on. For the second night in a row, Haymitch satisfied himself to images of Effie Trinket.

Effie closed the door to her room, and slowly slid her robe off and onto the chair at her vanity. She sat down, and looked at her face in the mirror. She had kissed Haymitch Abernathy. Actually, he had kissed her, and she had let him. He'd clearly wanted more, and was frustrated when she'd stopped them from going further. The burning lust in his eyes set her body on fire, and she crossed quickly to her bed. Burying herself under the fluffy comforter, Effie couldn't believe her night. After all these years, it didn't seem real. All she knew, was that she couldn't wait to see him again tomorrow.