15.

Chaff laughed for a whole hour when Haymitch told him everything but, to be fair, it might have had to do with Effie's and Katniss' dedication to turning the house into some sort of Santa Village. In the space of a couple of days, Christmas was suddenly everywhere. Katniss was a little frightened at first and valiantly resisted the whirlwind like he did, only watching while Effie brought over box upon box of decorations from her place.

It didn't take much for Effie to win the child over.

A tree – that he was forced to carry and set up – a few Christmas carols that she loved to sing as loud as possible and Katniss was sold to the game that consisted in throwing tinsels everywhere. Even Buttercup didn't escape unscathed and was now sentenced to walking around with a red and green piece of tinsel around his neck for a collar. His porch was covered with fairy lights, so was the banister and some doorframes – he drew the line at the pen, arguing the geese might mistake the lights for birds and try to swallow them. There was mistletoe hanging in hidden places – something he wasn't actually against because it was an excuse to kiss Effie as often as he wanted – and paper snowflakes plastered on the windows.

Haymitch tried to remain uninvolved but with a four years old in the house, it was impossible. He lost count of the number of times he found himself dragged from his hiding place to help hang up some garland or decorative bows.

The last days before school break were hectic. Effie was swamped at the shop and he had to leave Katniss there sometimes to make sure there would be presents under the trees. The girl still disliked being separated from him but she loved spending time with Cinna, following him around and playing the assistant, so it wasn't that much of an issue – for him, for the stylist it might have been another matter entirely but Effie had picked up some gifts for Christmas as a thank you since, apparently, they were doing joined gifts.

Still, he managed the impossible and by the time the last day of school rolled around, Haymitch was ready for the looming Christmas day.

What he wasn't ready for, on the other hand, was getting assaulted by a crying five years old.

Peeta was the first out the gates that afternoon but instead of running toward his brother, he dashed straight to Haymitch, hopping slightly in his hurry. The boy flung himself at him and it was all he could to do to grab him and hold him close.

Peeta had been at the heart of so many discussions, he had spent so much time comforting Effie and Katniss from his absence, that he hadn't realized justhow much he had missed the kid.

"Hey, buddy…" he said uncertainly as the boy locked his tiny but strong arms around his neck. He held him tight. "What's wrong?"

"I miss you." Peeta sobbed. "And I miss Auntie. I want Auntie."

The child pressed his face in his shoulder and Haymitch frowned. "You're warm. Are you sick? Do you feel okay?"

"I want Auntie." Peeta repeated between two sobs.

The brother who was there to pick him up more often than not approached with some hesitation. He was in his twenties and if Haymitch remembered correctly, his name was Rye. He had a pastry wrapped in brown paper in his hand and didn't seem overly surprised by what was happening.

"You're Effie's boyfriend, right?" the young man asked. "Katniss' uncle. Peeta told me all about her."

"He's feverish." Haymitch snapped, pressing his check against the boy's forehead.

"Mom gave him some aspirin this morning. She says it's just a cold." the brother shrugged, peering at Peeta with some worry. "You're okay, Bread Boy? Look, I got you brownies. Your favorites…"

Peeta wouldn't look at his brother or at the offered brownies. He pushed his face in Haymitch's woolen scarf and kept on crying. The guy reached out, now clearly concerned, but Haymitch instinctively stepped back. He was protective with people he loved and, for better or worse, Peeta was now family too.

"Look, he wants his aunt." Haymitch growled, rubbing comforting circles on the boy's back.

"Yeah, I know." Rye sighed, reaching out again to adjust Peeta's scarf that had come loose. "Trust me, if I could… I tried to talk to Mom. This is stupid. Dad's finally getting somewhere with her, I think, so… Tell Effie to hang on a little more."

"Uncle Haymitch?" Katniss called, appearing at his side. Finnick, Jo and Annie were standing a few feet away with Mags, watching the scene unfold. From the way the old woman was holding Finnick's and Jo's shoulders, Haymitch figured the kids were ready to attack at the slightest order from his niece. The girl's grey eyes darted from the kid in his arms to the Mellark brother standing in front of him. "Can we take Peeta with us?"

She sounded incredibly hopeful and it killed him to have to crush her heart.

"Soon, kiddo." Rye answered with a small sad smile before he could. "I promise."

"Don't make promises you don't know you can keep." Haymitch warned, angry because of the hot tears he could feel rolling down his neck.

He expected the guy to get angry but he looked too understanding for his tastes. It made it hard to resent him.

"I thought about it, you know." the brother said. "Taking him to see her. He asks me every day and it's breaking my heart to say no. I almost took him… I can't tell you how many times. I thought it would make things worse if Mom learned about it."

"Your Mommy is nasty." Katniss spat. "And Peeta is going with us because I'm going to marry him so he's mine and you can't ever take him again."

"Doesn't work quite that way, sweetheart." Haymitch sighed with some regret.

"I'm really sorry." Rye insisted and he looked sorry. "I don't like it either. He begs for her all the way to school and all the way back and every other time I see him. I love my Mom but… She's not great with Peeta. She's old, you know? A grandmother already and…"

"That's no excuse." Haymitch scorned. "And that's no excuse to exclude Effie either after all she's done."

"I'm not saying it is." the guy shrugged. "I'm saying nobody agrees with Mom but she's a stubborn old mule and Effie overruled her one too many times 'cause she's a stubborn old mule too."

"Effie is the bestest." Katniss growled, her little fist clenched at her sides. "You don't call her names or… or… Or I shoot you with my bow!"

If Effie had been there, she would probably have told the girl it was rude to threaten to kill people with your bow. Haymitch simply adjusted his grip on Peeta.

"The kid is sick." he repeated, knowing he needed to hand him back and not liking it one bit. At least the young man seemed to genuinely care about his brother. That was always something.

"I'll make sure he sees a doctor." Rye promised, carefully grabbing the boy from his arms. "Come on, Bread Boy."

Peeta wailed – there was no other term for it. He clung to Haymitch's neck and kicked his brother when he tried to tear him away, to the point Katniss jumped in between them and kicked the guy in the shin very hard. Haymitch was thankful for the firm hold Mags had on the other kids because it was already chaos as it was.

"You don't love me anymore!" Peeta accused with glassy eyes.

"Don't be stupid, boy." Haymitch grumbled. "Of course, I do. We all do."

It was an ugly scene when Rye finally managed to pry his brother from him with a pained face as if he truly would have preferred to entrust the boy to Haymitch so he could be reunited with Effie. Bystanders were staring and he had to grab Katniss to make sure she wouldn't follow in pursuit. Annie was crying softly, clinging to Finnick's arm, and Jo was glaring at him so hard he couldn't meet her brown eyes.

It was nothing compared to Katniss though.

She struggled until he placed her down and when she turned to him, there was pure betrayal in her eyes.

"You let him take Peeta." she scowled. "I hate you. I hate you!"

Jo escaped Mags' grip to run to her and the both of them stood there, defiant, and furious.

"You suck!" Johanna declared, tugging on Katniss' hand. "Come sleep at my house."

"Nobody is sleeping at anybody's house." Haymitch snapped. "Cut the theatrics. We're going home."

He didn't listen to any more protests. Despite his best efforts at reconciliation though, Katniss wouldn't talk to him. She walked a few feet in front of him, with a sulk stuck on her face and her lips pursed, and she behaved as if he was invisible.

He was in a foul mood by the time they reached their house and it only grew worse once she ran upstairs, grabbing Buttercup on the way, completely ignoring the cat's angry hisses. The door to her room was slammed shut.

Haymitch thought four was too early for teenage rebellion but he refused to give in to her tantrum and thus dropped on the couch with a book, focused on the story and not on the craving for liquor that always surged up when he was upset – and he was upset at having been forced to leave Peeta behind.

When the front door opened a while later and Effie's sing-song voice announced her presence home, he heard the stomping of little feet on the stairs. If her gasp of surprise was to be believed, Effie hadn't expected the upset little girl who jumped in her arms.

"I hate Uncle Haymitch!" Katniss shrieked, loud enough to be heard three houses down the street he was sure. "I hate him!"

"Now, Katniss, don't say things like that." Effie rebuked her firmly. "What on Earth happened? Everything was fine this morning…"

"He left Peeta behind!" the girl shouted. "He left him! And Peeta was crying!"

Haymitch rolled his eyes, pushed himself off the couch and walked to the hall where they were apparently having a family reunion. "You're done with this tune, girl?"

"What was wrong with Peeta?" Effie frowned, holding Katniss closer. She looked displeased.

"Feverish." Haymitch shrugged. "His brother said it was a cold."

"Oh, my!" Effie gasped, placing Katniss down to rummage in her purse. "I better call and…"

"You're sure that's a good idea?" he hesitated. "That brother of his… He said his father was finally making progress with his mom. Maybe…"

"Peeta's brother called you a mule." Katniss cut him off, stomping her little foot in annoyance. "I kicked him."

Effie froze, opening and closing her mouth several times. "Katniss… Violence should never be an answer, even to defend someone you love."

"He called you a name." the girl insisted. "I'm not sorry."

"Not quite what he said, though, was it?" Haymitch growled. "He said she was stubborn as a mule. Which isn't exactly wrong."

"He still called her a mule." Katniss insisted, folding her arms over her chest and turning her back on him. "I'm not talking to you anymore. I hate you."

He wished it didn't hurt that much.

"Stop saying that." Effie scolded her in a no-nonsense voice and the girl defiantly jutted her chin in the air before looking down with a pout after a few seconds. "He was sick and you left him there?"

That question was directed at him and Haymitch rolled his eyes. "What was I supposed to do? Kidnap him?"

Effie granted him the point with a tilt of the head but he could tell she was just as annoyed with him as Katniss was, even though she knew there was nothing he could have done. He rolled his eyes again and decided to start dinner, leaving the two of them to commiserate over how useless he was.

Katniss still hadn't forgiven him by the time she went to bed – she even refused to kiss him goodnight, she wanted Effie and only Effie. He tried not to resent it. He failed.

He was already in bed when Effie joined him, still toying with her phone.

"It's too late to call." he grumbled. "Look, we can send Chaff to the bakery tomorrow. He's good at undercover work."

"Because a black man with a missing hand showing up and asking after their youngest child when Peeta has been talking about him non-stop won't be suspicious at all." Effie scoffed.

"Point taken." he sighed. "Well, I don't know… We'll figure something out, alright?"

"I will call Dylan in the morning." she replied. "You are right, calling now would simply be bad manners and it is most likely a simple cold. A phone call is the middle of the night is never a good thing."

A phone call in the middle of the night was never a good thing.

Which was why Haymitch startled badly, looking for a knife that wasn't there, when the latest fashionable pop song blazed out of her phone at two in the morning. She was slower in waking up and he grabbed it before she even opened her eyes.

Dylan Mellark, the screen claimed.

He shook her shoulder. She woke up quickly once she saw the name and pressed the phone to her ear, sitting up and mumbling a hello. He watched her, the sheets and blankets pooling on her lap as her fingers started to shake and her face crumpled in worry. She didn't say a word aside for a flat "I'm coming". Her hands were shaking too much and she dropped the phone.

"Peeta is in the hospital." she said.


Only one chapter left and a niiiiiice little cliffhanger! ;) Let me know your thoughts!