74th Hunger Games Mentors After Party

There were times when Haymitch might be grateful for Effie Trinket's psychotic organizational skills. Like the party the mentor of the victor is expected to host immediately following the games. Had it not been for Effie, there wouldn't have been a party.

Normally, Haymitch showed up to these things for the alcohol since they provide the very best, particularly if Districts 1 or 2 won. They always roll out a spread even larger than what the Capital allots the victors. He would sit in the corner and get drunk with some of the other mentors who's kids didn't make it past the first day or two and stayed well away from the breast beating of the winner. As well as the conversations weighing on the pros and cons of decisions made by the last few plays in the game. They weren't his kids and even if they were he just did not have it in him to analyze how they could have at least died taking another kid with them.

So, after 23 years of mentoring and never even coming close to hosting to a victor's party, Haymitch was standing in the middle of a room full of food and booze and not knowing what to do with himself. And, considering that for the past 2 weeks he had been as sober as he had ever been in 23 years he really wasn't looking forward to hosting this shindig. Particularly since he knew it was it was in his kids' best interests if he managed to continue to stay fairly sober for the rest of the night. If he had had his way, he would have simply gotten drunk in his room and gotten up just before the kids had their final interviews. Everyone would have written it off as "well, that's Haymitch for you," except Effie had taken care of everything. Damn her. Or bless her. He wasn't sure which. If those kids only knew how he had suffered for them these past 2 weeks.

Haymitch couldn't have been more grateful when the first to walk through the door were District 11's Chaff and Seeder. There were painful, respectful hugs and handshakes all around and an understanding that conversations would be held, later, in private. Haymitch was never more grateful that these two helped him, along with Effie, play host to the incoming current mentors and past victors. The room filled quickly and while Haymitch tried to stay above the fray by making sure everyone had a drink, etc. conversations began to heat up. For a time he was able side step discussions regarding who should have won and how could the game maker allow 2 winners, did anyone really believe in the star-crossed lovers bullshit? And why hadn't the game maker just forced allowed the game to continue to play particularly as the boy was bleeding out, etc.

As expected Haymitch was eventually called onto the carpet to answer questions. He knew he could tell them all to go to hell, but he also knew that wouldn't be in his kids' best interest. The situation was touchy all the way around, particularly as he already knew the Capital was upset with how the Games turned out. So he tried to keep his temper while he answered some of the first questions thrown his way.

"Haymitch you can't really tell us that this star-crossed lover thing was for real. That was a gimmick you came up with, right? Which I have to give you credit for old man. It was brilliant," Finnack Odiar started in, rolling his eyes as his sipped his champagne.

"Well, not everyone is as jade as you are when it comes to love Finnack," Haymitch snapped.

"The boy has loved that girl since they were kids. No way around it, and believe me I tried to talk him down. He went in planning to do anything to get her out alive," Haymitch said, with a shrug, trying to pass it off as something he had no control over.

While the murmurs went through the crowd spread about him Haymitch sat back and took a slow sip of his whiskey.

"So you're saying there wasn't a plan? You didn't tell the boy, Peeta? Was it? To talk about his crush during his interview?" Enobaria one of the mentors from District 2 demanded.

Haymitch admitted with a sigh, "We talked about it. His crush on the girl. Whether it would help Katniss. I'll give you that. I warned it could throw all the sponsors her way. I told him not to do it. At the end I wasn't sure what he was going to say it until he did."

"The berries Haywitch?" Another voice jumped in. "How much of that was planned?" Someone over in District 1 added.

"I had no idea that was happening until It happened," He emphasized, leaning back as he shook his head in disbelief. "When Katniss pulled out that bag I wasn't sure what she was doing. It took me a second or two to even get on the same page with those kids – I was so - When I figured it out - well - I'm sure you all heard me screaming at my screens," Haymitch finished with a bit of a mortified chuckle, throwing back what remained of his whiskey.

An amused laugh went through the room. Haymitch loosing his temper was one thing, but to see or even hear the genuine fear that emanated from his screening room the day before had been surprising.

Before more star-crossed lovers questions could come up an old ally intervened with a more interesting question.

"What I find compelling is that District 12 hasn't had a victor since you were a victor 24 years ago in the last quart quell I belief? Suddenly it has two in the same year. What makes this year so different from the past 23?" Bette asked from the corner.

Haymitch smirked. "Now that's a question, I'd like to answer."

"Almost all your other districts have skills that you teach your children at an early age. Fishing, Lumber, Grains, even utilities," he began, raising his glass to each mentor from that specific district.

"District 12? Well, we mine coal. And, no one goes into the mine until after they're 18. Hell, no one can get a job topside until after they're 18 because jobs are so hard to come by. Half the district is almost starving and if its a hard winter a quarter of them do. There are few legally sanctioned skills for us to teach our children."

It was a rarity that such a silence settled on a victor's party but it did then and they all watched as Haymitch took another deep breath and continued, "Every year for the past 23 years you've seen nothing but half starved miners kids reaped because they've got their names in the reaping more times than the merchant kids. Like most districts, we have something called tessera, any kid, 12 to 18 can get a year's supply of grain and oil for each person in their family, but the catch is each time they do this their name goes into the reaping system and it stays in. Katniss had her name in 20 times, which is actually pretty low for a miner's kid, while Peeta was only in 4.

"For the first time in 24 years, since I was reaped, a merchant kid had the bad the luck to be reaped. But Peeta's not just any merchant kid. Because he's the baker's son, he's been well fed, knows how to work and can throw a 100 lb bag of flour over his head. He can also take a blow and shake it off because he's got 2 older brothers and a mother who are all just darn right mean. Yet, he takes after his old man, who is known around town as one of the nicest man you'll ever meet.

Now on the other side of this you have Katniss," Haymitch snorts. "She's a breed onto herself. You won't find anything like her in the Merchant side or in the Seem. Seem? Miner's side of town," he explains when there is confusion on some faces. "Most of you probably don't quite know what to make of her. Well, there haven't been any ribbons or dresses for her," Haymitch said in a contemplative tone before adding with a bit of a laugh, "One of the best parts of this trip was hearing Effie teaching her how to walk in heals!" Haymitch laughed, adding, "Never heard so much swearing from two women!" Which got the crowd laughing. Effie broke in, "Oh come Haymitch we weren't swearing. There were—disagreements," with an emphasis that led everyone to understand there was a lot of swearing. Effie recovered quickly saying, "We just have to remember Katniss just hasn't had the advantages some of us have had. And, look at how wonderful she was in her interview, didn't it go wonderfully?!"

As the crowd continued to chuckle about high heels and the interview, one of victors in District 1 wouldn't let Katniss and her particular background go asking in condemnation, "Yeah, but Haymitch, what make's your girl so special, besides her new clothes? If anything she seemed pretty brainless."

He stopped drinking. Immediately. Haymitch didn't want to do or say something he would regret. But he wanted to make it perfectly clear that his kids were to be respected.

"Beetee? How we doing over there?" Haymitch asked casually. He got a thumbs up and Beetee added, "We're partying hard."

"Good," Haymitch said with a nod.

Turning to address the rest of room, "I'm going to take it on faith that the standard rule that what is said in here stays in here and is NOT relayed to other parties," Haymitch said pointedly, eyebrow arched squarely toward the corner dominated by Districts 1 and 2. Most of them took a second and then nodded in recognition that there were some things that only victors shared among themselves, that did not need to go to 'official parities'.

"Ok. Good. Now that we have an understanding," Haymitch began.

"That girl's father died in a mining accident when she was 11 years old and her mother, from what I hear - well, couldn't make a living. This girl has been feeding and clothing her family since she was 11 years old. Which in District 12 is unheard of. Generally, the adults starve and the kids go into the home in situations like this." Haymitch cut off, stopping when he realized that while most of his audience was in the palm of his hand, few of them had an understanding as to what he was talking about.

With a deep sigh Haymitch began, "You people have no idea what it takes to keep a family feed, dressed and warm year around. If you don't have a man bringing home a weekly paycheck it's a death sentence, unless you get creative. Well, Katniss did. She went out into the the woods and collected every wild fruit, nut, root, leaf and berry to eat or sell. Every morning she set snares and went hunting and brough back hares and squirrels to sell to the merchant families. From what I hear she spent an incredible amount of time tracking and shooting turkeys and deer on good days, spending days on end outside when geese and ducks were migrating. Which, let me tell you, all of this is hard work," Haymitch said as he put his feet up on the table.

"But that isn't all." Haymitch took a sip of his whiskey relishing what he was going to say next, "She also is known to bring not only bucks, but a few bear, cougars, wild dogs and boars which she traded on the black market."

He let this sink in as he looked around, enjoying the hubbub this new information was stirring up amongst the crowd. Just as he expected, someone from the Careers Corner of the room asked, "You expect us to believe she's gone outside the fences and hunted like this, since she's been, what – 11?"

Haymitch, sipped his whiskey and nodded, knowing that few would believe this.

Adding after a moment, "Keep in mind, she worked up to some of the larger game. And, from what I've seen of all of the districts, 12 has the least amount of coverage. But poaching on Capital land is still a whiping offense, followed by execution, no matter your age or what district you live in."

The crowd quieted down for a moment considering what that might mean for a child, no matter which district they lived in.

"Please, if she was that experienced of a hunter why didn't she join our kids or at least head out and track down her own quarry? Why bother her allies?" again a sneer came from the Career Corner, clearly implying she hadn't made good choices.

"That girl has been risking her life for the past 7 years to feed her family. Avoiding Peacekeepers and dealing with animals more dangerous than children playing at killing one another." Haymitch snapped back angerly.

"Do you really think she would do anything as stupid as relying on a human being who plans to kill her as soon as her back is turned or waste energy tracking down prey when she knows someone else will take care of it for her?"

It was silent as the room contemplated this. Haymitch was right, they had never had this sort of victor before.

"But that doesn't follow. What about that little girl from 11 or Lover-boy? They both slowed her down and almost got her killed," again the snide voice from the corner spoke up.

Chaff stiffened on the coach, Haymitch glanced at him with a look as if to say, I got this.

Nodding slowly, Haymitch swirled his drink a time or two before he said, "Maybe you missed the part about Katniss taking care of her family. That's what you do in District 12. For her, that little girl – Rue and the boy – Peeta, were family. If there is anything I know about Katniss is that if she has something to fight for, it won't slow her down, it will give her something to fight for. If anything it will make her more lethal."

Those confronting him let the conversation go and Haymitch relaxed back into the couch again, glancing back over to the corner Beetee was sitting and slightly raised his glass, thanking him for redirecting the questioning. Chaff, next to him, began a boisterous conversation with Johanna that Haymitch wasn't following and he was actually privately enjoying hearing Effie gushing over both their kids. He was just beginning to slide into a nice relaxed buzz when he heard a snide comment, "- boy isn't really a victor. The girl did all the work. He just laid in the mud for 3 days and didn't even kill anyone. You call that a victor?!"

Haymitch jerked up, catching both Chaff and Johanna by surprise as he stood to face the group standing just behind the couch he had been sitting on.

"Now let me tell you something," Haymitch snarled. Chaff stood slowly, and carefully took Haymitch's drink from his hand. "That boy, got himself into the career pack to protect that girl, fought one of them off and survived it. Without years of special training, I might add," glancing over at the Districts 1 and 2 corner of the room.

"And, he is more of a man than you or I or any of the rest us in here will ever be. Do you know why?" Haymitch swung around looking at the crowd that suddenly became quiet again. "He went into the Game fully prepared to protect that girl at all costs. Misguided as it sounds. At 16, he was ready to die for that girl. He is the only one of us. The only victor, who ever got out and is still a decent person. Some of us might have survived. But you can't tell me any of us here are decent human beings. All of us are too selfish to even begin to think of doing what he did," Haymitch said, shaming some as his eyes swept the crowd before him.

"So, before you say he's not a victor by your so called standards, I suggest you take a good hard look in the mirror. Could you have done what that boy did. Could you have continued through with your plan? Or, would you have looked for a way out? Laying in the mud for 3 days was a way to give Katniss as much time as she needed. As a teenager or even now could you have died for the person you love the most? Ask yourself, now that you're done with your game who's better off, you or him?" Haymitch took his drink from Chaff slammed it back, looked around at the gathering before him and then pushed his way past those surrounding the couch and marched out of the room, clearly disgusted and done with the conversation.

It was almost a year later Haymitch would greatly regret everything he said about his victors during the 74th game after party. His pride would be their deaths. By revealing his kid's strengths and weaknesses he had setup the likelihood of their getting killed all the sooner in the 3rd Quarter Quell.