Song inspiration for this chapter: Chemicals React – Aly & AJ

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Chemicals React

We decide that we have enough sponsors for today and climb the stairs to the roof terrace. I'm a little annoyed with my dress because Haymitch has to help me up the stairs again.

But as soon as I lift my head, the thought is already gone. The sun is on the horizon. Not long until it goes down. People are dancing and there is a relaxed atmosphere that puts a smile on my face.

We're at the landing and I slowly pull away from Haymitch as I survey the terrace.

The terrace is round and has two floors. On the lower level, there are sofas at regular intervals along the parapet, from which one can enjoy the panorama. There is a bar a few meters away from us. The city stretches straight ahead to the right, and a staircase to the left leads to the upper floor. Music can be heard from there, which seems to bring the entire terrace to life. Colorful lights seem to come from everywhere and I almost miss the little flowerpots.

I pull Haymitch on, past the bar to the stairs and as we stand at the top of the stairs, I turn to face him. "Dance with me," I demand.

Haymitch immediately balks and shakes his head. "Sweetheart, find yourself a decent partner to dance with." He's about to turn and stand to the side of the dance floor, but I grab his arm.

"You realize people need to see us together anyway," I remind him. "We're the team for District Twelve and we need to get some attention. Maybe sponsors will talk to us afterwards." I glance at him.

He meets my gaze and sighs. Then he takes a step towards me and extends his arm in an appropriate manner. With a smile, I link myself with him and we walk side by side onto the floor. He lets go of me and turns completely to me. For a moment we face and look at each other.

"Can you even dance in that thing?" he asks, grinning in amusement.

"Naturally. Please don't step on my toes, okay?" I say and stand up straight.

His grin widens and he grabs my waist and pulls me towards him. Too surprised to react, I stagger forward, but Haymitch's grip stabilizes me and doesn't relax for a second. One hand rests on his shoulder and I grab his hand with the other. He catches my eye briefly before beginning to lead as a new rhythm begins.

We move quickly across the parquet and our feet hardly seem to touch the floor. Haymitch leads surprisingly well, better than I would have given him credit for after all these years. As we get a little more secure, he lets go of me with one hand and turns me with the other. The longer we dance, the bigger the smile gets on my lips. Our eyes meet and Haymitch returns my smile with a smirk as he turns me one more time and then gently pulls me towards him. His gray eyes sparkle in the setting sun.

The song is over way too soon. I break away from him with flushed cheeks and he leads me off the dance floor, down to the first floor of the terrace. The silence between us is anything but uncomfortable. One hand rests on my back and the other barely touches my elbow. He navigates me past the bar towards a lonely sofa. We sit and quietly watch the Capitol as the sun transforms it into an unearthly city. It has almost disappeared behind the many buildings and bathes the city in an orange light, which is reflected again by the many windows.

We're both stick to our own thoughts. I look into the distance without really seeing the distance and wonder what happened to us. All I see is him and I wonder what has changed. I wonder what he thinks about that. Does he always act like this when he's sober or is it something special for him too?

After a while, long after the sun has set and the night has already sucked up the last bit of warmth, Haymitch suggests going back to the penthouse. Katniss and Peeta are already asleep, a glance at the screen tells me, and we can do any sponsorship business from there as well. I slowly nod. Haymitch gets up, looks at the city indecisively for a moment and then offers me a hand.

oOo

I watch Haymitch from my chair as he pours himself a drink at the bar. His eyes dart to the screen every few seconds. I can see how nervous he is. Not because of Katniss and Peeta, they're fine, but because of Chaff.

Chaff has set up camp not far from Katniss, Peeta, Finnick and Mags. One sector further. He doesn't sleep but watches the sky while sharpening the knife he looted from the cornucopia after everyone else had already left.

Seeder didn't survive the first day. I didn't know her well enough to grieve for her, but she seemed like a halfway sane woman.

Haymitch throws himself into his chair next to me and hands me a glass. It's not the same as what he poured himself, but I trust he's giving me something not too strong. We stare at the television in silence. Katniss and Finnick take turns on guard duty.

They briefly show Chaff leaning against a tree but showing no sign of falling asleep.

"Are you worried about him?" I ask him. It's only now that I've broken the silence that I realize it wasn't a comfortable one.

Haymitch is deep in thought and takes a moment to realize I've said something. He slowly tilts his head in my direction. "He should've gone with Finnick like I told him," he murmurs under his breath, then turns back to the screen without meeting my eyes.

I understand what's going through Haymitch's mind. Chaff would be safer in a group. If he falls asleep now, he risks one of the other tributes finding him and taking him out. However, it's a mystery to me why he sets his camp so close to the others, because I don't think he would harm them.

I'm silent. After a while I sit up. Nothing exciting happened and I know Haymitch won't be going to sleep anyway. "I'm going to bed," I say, putting the glass on the table and getting up. "Good night."

"Good night, sweetheart."

oOo

I haven't fully fallen into deep sleep when someone grabs my shoulders and shakes me. My heart skips a beat for a second. I wince. Adrenaline is rushing through my blood and my first instinct is not to move. Then his voice reaches my ear. "Effie, wake up." He must have noticed my twitch and he strokes my cheek soothingly.

I breathe a sigh of relief, roll over and blink. "Haymitch." It sounds more like a question than a statement.

He nods softly, but his face is tense. He's crouching on the edge of my bed like he's about to jump up. "Something has happened," he carefully says, so as not to frighten me. "Hurry up."

Then he gets up and disappears through the door. The last bit of tiredness is gone. I jump out of bed in no time and rush to the bathroom. As fast as I can, I slip into my pink bathrobe and then run into the living room so as not to miss anything.

Haymitch doesn't hear me coming because I'm not wearing high heels that would draw attention to me. No time for that. "What happened?" I ask instead and he turns his head in my direction.

Haymitch looks me up and down and then smiles. "Nice bathrobe, but was the one with glitter sold out?" I give him a look and he laughs. "Everything's still okay, but I wanted to wake you up earlier because I have the feeling that things are about to get going."

I sit next to him on the long sofa and draw my legs up. At that moment, Katniss suddenly moves. Our heads snap to the screen.

A fog slowly creeps through the undergrowth of the dark jungle. Katniss pauses for a moment, leaning forward and stretching out her fingertips. She holds her breath. We hold our breath. The mist rolls in, scorching her fingers.

Although we were prepared, her scream makes us flinch. I push myself against the back of the sofa and rest my chin on my knee. Now everything happens lightning fast. Katniss, realizing the danger, jumps up, turns to the others who are still asleep and yells.

"Run! Run!" Finnick immediately jumps up and defensively yanks his trident forward. Registering the fog, he grabs Mags and runs. Peeta takes longer, but Katniss drags him through the woods. She calls out to him and he staggers to the side. His leg.

"Oh no, Haymitch, his leg!" I blurt out as he stumbles again. "We have to do something, we still have sponsorship money, we have to–"

"Do what?" he interrupts me almost harshly, but I don't take my wide eyes off the screen. "There's nothing we can do, Effie."

I watch helplessly as Peeta falls to the ground and Katniss with him. See the smokescreen building up behind them. See Katniss pleading with Peeta, whispering something to him. Tears are brewing. They mustn't die. They have to make it. And I know that somehow there is a way. It can't just end like this, can it? It must be a trick, a dream my brain is playing to me.

They gasp. I pant. I feel like I'm falling forward even though I'm leaning back.

Then comes the point I've been waiting for all this time. It's just not going the way I expected.

Finnick comes back, grabs Peeta and hoists him onto his shoulders. His hands twitch uncontrollably. Mags climbs onto Katniss's back. But they don't get far. Katniss can't take her weight because her leg is twitching like crazy. She falls three times but only comes up twice.

"What ... What is she doing?" I ask, but my voice is so distorted that the words are barely audible. I didn't even realize I started crying.

A second ago Mags was still sitting on Katniss's back, when she suddenly jumps down, turns to Finnick and kisses him on the lips. Then, before either of them can stop it, Mags turns on her heel and runs straight into the fog.

I turn my head abruptly and close my eyes. I can't believe their cameras can film through the fog. My stomach makes an uncomfortable jump and I'm thankful that I hardly had anything to eat in the evening.

Then I remember Haymitch sitting beside me on the sofa, still as a grave. Mags played a big role for him. She was like a mother to them all.

I know I couldn't do anything to comfort him, and yet I lay my trembling hand on his. I expected him to pull his away, but his whole body flinches from my touch. I raise my head, startled. Blind rage sparkles in his eyes. And then I see the accusation. Capitol. The Capitol is responsible for this.

And I am the Capitol.

Without saying anything, I withdraw my hand and just stare at him for a second. He meets my gaze, but his expression doesn't change. Then I turn my head forward and bite my lip.

Katniss, Peeta and Finnick have left the fog and I sigh with relief, even though the monkeys make my stomach queasy. They reach the water and drop exhausted onto the sand. Chaff made it out of the sector before the fog got too close. He sits in the distance, watching the group who have settled needily on the beach, eating some nuts.

My half-empty drink from earlier is still on the table. I grab the glass and head to the bar to pour myself another one. I drink the rest on the way and pour myself the same one Haymitch drank a few hours ago. I pour him a glass too.

I know he won't drink it because he's mad at me. But it's amusing to watch him resist alcohol just to get his stubbornness through.

I put the glass in front of him and sit down again. As expected, he doesn't look at it. I turn away with a thin smile on my lips.

Meanwhile, Katniss and Peeta have started to rid themselves of the toxin on their skin by slowly moving into the water. Finnick is still lying on the beach looking like he's dead. Once the two have regained enough control over their bodies, they pull Finnick piece by piece into the salt water. I'm relieved that the fog's poison doesn't seem to leave long-lasting consequences.

My glass is quickly emptied and I wonder that I can suddenly tolerate so much. The alcohol was strong, but my head barely feels foggy. I sigh and glance sideways at Haymitch. He eyes the television skeptically. His expression relaxed a little, but he still didn't touch the glass.

Peeta leaves the beach and begins drilling a hole for the spigot. The camera zooms back, and the monkeys move into the frame, crowding around him like a huge pack and watching him in silence. Peeta doesn't seem to notice them.

I inhale sharply and hold my breath. Katniss and Finnick follow him. They notice the monkeys immediately. Katniss reaches for her arrows and Finnick holds the trident protectively in front of his chest. Ready to attack. Slowly they approach Peeta, but they don't dare take a frantic or noisy step.

"Peeta," Katniss says calmly. "I need your help here."

"Okay, just a minute. I'll have it in a minute," he mumbles, too busy with the tree. He really doesn't notice anything. "Do you have the spigot?"

"I have but we found something you should definitely check out. Move quietly in our direction so you don't startle it."

"Okay," Peeta replies cluelessly, turning around. His expression is wary and he moves slowly like Katniss told him to. His eyes slide up, it doesn't take a second. The next thing I see is a herd of monkeys rushing towards Peeta, claws out.

Katniss lets her arrows fly. Finnick lunges forward and stabs the monkeys' bodies indiscriminately with his trident. They fight side by side. Peeta scrambles to his feet and they turn their backs to each other to face the rampaging mutant pack.

"Couldn't you have fucking warned him?" Haymitch hisses next to me. His voice sounds angry.

It's like for every fallen monkey, two new ones advance. It doesn't take long for Katniss to run out of arrows. She turns to Peeta, who is carrying a second quiver, as she sees the mutation arcing toward Peeta. She runs towards Peeta with no weapon in her hands and the only option she has is to throw herself in front of him and shield him with her body.

But Katniss is too far away. She doesn't make it to Peeta in time. Unlike the morphine-addicted woman from District 6. Nobody noticed her, not even the monkeys. She was in no danger and yet she jumps into the arms of the monkey with a scream, whose claws immediately pierce her chest.

It takes me a moment to realize what just happened. The woman is lying on the ground. Her chest is soaked in blood and she is breathing shallowly. They killed the monkey instantly. Katniss and Peeta carry her back to the beach and gently lay her down on the sand.

The woman's eyes are wide and staring at the sky. She whimpers to herself. Katniss gently strokes her cheek and Peeta begins to talk. One doesn't hear anything, they cut out his voice, but you can see the victor raise her hand and draw a flower on his cheek with a slight smile on her lips.

The scene looks so peaceful, so completely out of context, yet beautiful. As if nothing, not even the arena, could banish the fundamental value of togetherness from their hearts. Then the cannon sounds and sets everything back to the beginning.

A tear runs down my cheek. I raise my hand to wipe it away, only to be replaced by a flood of more. A sob escapes my throat. I discreetly turn my head to the side. I don't want to see it anymore. I can not see it anymore. This pointlessness. Katniss and Peeta are meant to live, but how do you live when every death kills you a little more? Don't you kill yourself trying to survive? At what price?

I leave the notepad on the table as I get up and flee to my room. If anything happens, Haymitch has the means to get in touch with the sponsors, which would have been his job from the start anyway.

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Hi and welcome back!

What do you think about this chapter? There's some Hayffie in it, so I hope you enjoyed it! Let me know. If you want to see how I imagined them and the other characters in the fanfiction, take a look at my Pinterest. You'll find the link in my bio. There, I have a folder for the fanfiction! :)

See you in two weeks,

Skyllen