"Anything, you say? Well, Peeta, that is a truly tempting offer." She raises an eyebrow as she sips leisurely at champagne.

"And you promise you'll help my father?"

"A deal is a deal."

I take a deep breath. "Ok, then he needs water, some kind of shelter, food… Ummm..."

"Hold on, loverboy. I need to know you'll hold up your end of our little arrangement first."

My voice sticks in my throat as the implications of what I have promised hit me. "Of course I will."

"Sorry, Peeta. Words aren't enough, considering your actions so far have been, well, a little less than enthused." She pauses to run a taloned finger down my sleeve. "As you leave this bar you'll notice a corridor to your right. Go to the end of the corridor and turn right again. The third door on the left is a storage room that is very rarely used. Meet me there in fifteen minutes. We'll see if you are able to keep to your word."

Without a backwards glance she leaves and rejoins the Capitol citizens in the bar. Beyond her I see Katniss; she has been watching me with a look of deep concern on her face. As the realisation of the deal I am making washes over me I am almost overcome with a sense of vertigo. I refuse to make eye contact with Katniss; it feels that if she looks into my eyes she'll know exactly what is going on, and the mixture of sympathy and disgust will destroy me.

She is heading out to the balcony. I gather my focus as she approaches. "Is he ok?" I ask her before she can ask the same of me. I'm uncertain how I would answer such a question.

"He's fine. They're all fine. Not much going on at the moment." I nod. My mouth has gone exceptionally dry. "What was that all about?"

"She, ummmm-" I can't bring myself to talk.

"Again?"

I nod, grateful that she isn't pressing me for further explanation.

"When?" She is looking inside, possibly trying to seek Briar out amongst the throng of people.

"Pretty much now."

Her head snaps back to me, her mouth agape. "Now?" she hisses. My eyes drop to the floor and I indicate yes with a jerk of my head. Her hand touches the side of my face and I struggle to fight back the tears that start to prick behind my eyes. "I'm so sorry, Peeta."

"Me too," I reply quietly.

Her hand has remained on my face and I reach up to touch it, closing my eyes as I do. I become aware of her proximity as I feel her warm breath on my lips just a split second before her own soft lips are pressing upon me. The kiss is sweet and delicate yet insistent and leaves me breathless. "Remember, she doesn't own you."

I wish there was truth to what Katniss was saying. I offer a tight smile and tell her I will see her later, and make my way back through the bar, pausing to check on my father on the screens and his position on the map. He is resting amidst a thick clump of trees, with no tributes heading towards him. Seeing that he is in relative safety at the moment causes me to seriously question my actions. No. His respite is surely only temporary.

I push forward through the bar and out the other exit, following the directions given to me. Immediate right, down to the end of the corridor. Right again. Third door on the left. I pause outside, not wanting to make another move. Steeling myself and taking a deep breath, I knock on the door.

No answer. Tentatively I try the door, easing it open. An automatic light flickers on bathing the room in bright, artificial fluorescent lighting. Briar clearly isn't here yet. I look around the room at my surroundings. This is little more than a box room. I take a peek inside a box and am met with nothing more innocuous than old office supplies.

I am stood alone for a few more minutes and am just beginning to wonder if I am in the wrong room when the door opens again. Briar closes the door behind her with a soft click. "Well," she says. "Aren't we keen today?"

Now I am alone with her I feel almost paralysed with fear again. How did I possibly think I would be able to go through with this? I try to lick my dry lips, but my mouth is entirely devoid of moisture. "What do you want me to do?" I say in a flat tone, trying to keep my voice free from emotion, free from the turmoil raging within me.

She cocks her head to one side as if sizing me up. "I want you to kiss me like you kiss her."

I look at her incredulously. "I'm sorry?"

"It's a very simple request, Peeta. Kiss me like you would kiss her. If you want me to help daddy dearest, that is my price. A kiss. That's all I require for now."

"For now?" I repeat.

"Of course. There will be other….costs….involved. But for now nothing more than a kiss will be required."

She takes a step towards me and looks expectantly in to my eyes. I exhale slowly, try to swallow my nervousness and step forward to meet her.

"Remember, Peeta. Exactly like you would kiss her. If I'm not convinced then I'm afraid you won't be receiving any help."

What choice do I have? I close my eyes and try to imagine how I am with Katniss; everything with her feels so natural. The very opposite of how I feel now with Briar. She brings her arms around my waist and runs her hands over my back. I draw her close to me and do my very best to ignore the sound of my heart pounding in my ears.

She's a little shorter than Katniss so I have to bend my neck further to reach her. Does she want gentle sensuousness or unbridled passion? I have a feeling I'm only going to get one chance to get this right, and I doubt she'll give me the luxury of leading me.

I place a hand at the back of her head and press my lips in to hers, while my other hand rests on the small of her back. I gently probe her mouth with my tongue, imagining it be Katniss in my arms. She makes a small contented noise deep within her throat, and I find it off putting. Her strangely high pitched voice sounds like nails on a chalkboard compared to the dulcet registers of Katniss's voice. I push into her further to try and suffocate those sounds and as I do she tightens her grip on me. Her nails scratch my back through my clothes before she slips a hand inside my shirt and claws at my flesh directly.

Involuntarily I gasp in pain, but thankfully Briar seems to think I am merely coming up for air. She too is breathless , her face flushed and clothes dishevelled. "I knew there had to be a real man in there somewhere," she says as she grabs at my crotch.

I push her hand away from me and her eyes flash warningly, so I try to say in as jovial tone as possible, "Just a kiss, remember."

She pouts in what I can only assume she believes to be a playful manner. "Maybe I changed the terms of our agreement."

Don't protest. Just…get through this.

I swallow my apprehension before I allow myself to speak and I try to sound flirtatious rather than plain terrified. "That's hardly fair, a kiss was agreed upon. What would the new terms be?"

She appears to think about it. "I think a kiss is a fair exchange for a bottle of water. But a bottle of water won't last long. If you want him to have the means to get his own it will cost a lot more."

"How much more?"

She raises an eyebrow at my question. Of course I didn't really need to ask. She begins unbuttoning the front of my shirt, licking her lips as she does so. "You are going to take me, right here and now. No protests, no arguments." Her hand cups my crotch again as I close my eyes. I doubt she'll be carrying around a vial of the elixir she gave me before. I'm going to have to get it up without that kind of help, and that means having to switch off my brain, detach myself from the reality of this terrible situation.

As she massages the front of my trousers I lean down and capture her lips once again. Images from a few nights ago spring to the forefront of my mind. Katniss, my shirt hanging off her slender frame, sitting on top of me, the gentle swell of her breasts just visible in the moonlight. I picture her calling my name, gripping tightly to the sheets as I brought her to orgasm.

I feel a stirring that starts deep in my stomach. Briar continues her ministrations and I imagine it is Katniss touching me. I soon start to grow hard under her touch and deepen the kiss, all the time picturing Katniss. She pushes me backwards until we are leaning against the closed door, then pulls away for a moment. "Fuck me, Peeta."

Her words bring me back to reality for a moment, and for a moment my erection threatens to wane. I picture Katniss's mouth around my cock to keep the blood pumping. To keep her from speaking again I spin us around so she is the one pressed up against the door. I push her skirt up around her hips and pull her underwear down. She tries to undo my belt and trousers but I push her hands away. From out of nowhere anger wells up inside me such as I have never known, a torrent of rage at the Capitol for putting us through this; the Games, the intimidation, the brutal treatment and ridiculous laws that keep the masses so downtrodden. And that anger is directed towards Briar. She wants me to fuck her? Fine.

I quickly undo my trousers allowing them to fall to the floor, and I release my hardened cock from my boxers. Briar anticipates my intentions with a slight smile and opens her legs. I bend slightly to position myself at her core and push into her in a single thrust.

My name escapes her lips as I pick her up and pin her to the wall. She wraps her legs around me as I thrust furiously in to her. Part of me wants this to hurt her. I want her to feel a fraction of the pain and anguish that she and the rest of her kind have put me through.

She starts to squeal louder and louder with each thrust, and I am convinced someone will hear us so I clamp a hand over her mouth, holding her up with the other. Her screams, even under the pressure of my hand, reach a fever pitch and before long I feel her walls clamp around me. It is just the extra sensation I need to send me spiralling over the edge. I climax with a soft grunt, and as the pitiful orgasm I managed to achieve subsides the feelings of outrage and anger that I felt only moments ago are replaced by an overwhelming feeling of guilt and shame.

I lower Briar to the ground, my already flaccid dick sliding out of her as I do. I redress myself as quickly as I am able, the only sounds I can hear that of Briar trying to catch her breath.

"I think you may have finally earned your keep," she says to me at last.

"You'll help him then?"

"Yes, Peeta," she replies. "When he needs help, he will receive it."

"But not now?" I ask. Panic wells in me. I don't want to have put myself in this situation for no reason. What if she backs out on me? Changes her mind?

"He's only been there a few hours, boy, he's hardly likely to die of thirst yet. He may figure it out by himself. I'd consider this a down-payment on some different help if that were to be the case."

I nod, keeping my eyes on the floor. The feelings of guilt within me have been growing. How would my father react if he knew this was how I was getting him help? I don't think I could cope with the look of disappointment.

"You know," she says, interrupting my chain of thought, "This arena has a few deadly secrets that even the most trained Career couldn't survive against. But… I may have enough influence to put a halt to certain….proceedings. If you understand my meaning?"

I nod once again, terrified of what I may be letting myself in for.

"I'm glad we have an accord, Peeta." She smooths the creases in her dress away. "I'm going to return to the bar. You will stay here for ten minutes before returning. Come back any sooner and our deal is off, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes," I answer quietly.

She reaches up to touch the side of my face, and licks along my jawline before leaving me alone in this storage room. As the door clicks shut I slide to the floor. I take several deep breaths to try and quell the nausea rising within me. The guilt is utterly unbearable.

I start to count slowly and quietly, one to sixty, repeating myself again and again. After everything I have been through I couldn't bear it to return early and ruin everything. After reaching sixty eleven times, just to be on the safe side, I slip outside and make my way back through the training centre. The raucous noise reaches me first; from the sound of it another Tribute may have just met their end. I jog the final few paces, dreading what I am about to witness. The relief of watching the woman from Eleven being strangled by one of the Careers is immense.

I seek out Katniss amongst the crowd. As soon as she sees me she hurries to join me and kisses me. The memories of my most recent encounter with Briar are too fresh and I struggle to return it. She looks hurt.

"I'm sorry," I mumble.

"It's ok," she shrugs but the pain she clearly feels is heartbreaking.

The last thing I want to do now is push her away from me. I pull her in to an embrace, noticing as I do that Briar is watching us once again, a smirk on her face. I turn away from her, not wanting to see her hated face, not wanting to see her witnessing my anguish.

"He's still ok, by the way," she whispers to me.

"Thank you," I whisper back.

Haymitch approaches us, his usual glass of spirits in hand. He looks awkward and unsure of what to say. "Look, kid, you ain't gonna like this. I've had people approach me to offer to sponsor Rafe."

"You can't," I say bluntly.

"S'not up to me. He's giving them the kind of show they like, and they want to help him."

"Then refuse."

Haymitch is getting frustrated. "It doesn't work that way, Peeta. I'm sorry. I'll try and get your old man all the help I can but I can't refuse Rafe help when it's being so freely offered."

I want to hit him. Everything I've put myself through, and it's going to be undermined. "Fine," I say, struggling to keep my anger in check. "Fine. I don't need your support anyway. I'll get him everything he needs myself."

Haymitch's eyes narrow. "Where were you just now?"

Katniss steps in. "Leave him alone," she says warningly.

Understanding seems to wash over him. He looks over my shoulder. I quickly glance behind me and see Briar still watching me. "Baxwall again? Just… be careful, ok kid? I know you don't have much of a choice, but… jeez kid, don't let her get her claws in, ok? She's dangerous."

If it was possible to feel worse, I now do. Haymitch must have some clue about the deal I've made given his warning, but surely he must also understand why. I just hope that putting myself through this hell proves to be worth it.

A/N - I had a few requests for more Briar (evil bitch that she is!) There will be more coming up, as I'm sure you can tell. Poor Peeta ;)