InsaneJournal

Who: Katniss and Haymitch
Where: Haymitch’s house
When Mid November
What Meeting Haymitch for the first time
Status: Complete
Rating:



Katniss had been nervous about this meeting for a long time. Had been putting it off if she were honest and making excuses as to why then was a bad time. But now she’d decided to bite the bullet and just do it. She’d used the number Effie had given her and text him to see if he wanted to meet. Swallowing thickly, she raised her hand and knocked on the front door.

Haymitch had known Katniss was around, knew Effie had met with her but hadn’t pushed the girl for a meeting. Their relationship in the dreams wasn’t the easiest and depending on where she was in them could affect her opinion about him. When she had reached out he’d responded and was now waiting for her to arrive.

When the knock at the door came he took a deep breath before answering it, “Katniss, please come in”

“Thanks,” Katniss replied, stepping in through the door and then turning to face him and waiting for him to take the lead. She stood there, feeling a little awkward. “Well, this is weird. It’s the first time we’ve met each other but we kind of already know each other already,” she remarked.

“Yeah, not the most usual of situations” Haymitch agreed, “Come on in properly. You want a drink? Then you can tell me more about yourself here” he added moving towards the kitchen.

Katniss quirked a nervous smile in his direction and followed him to the kitchen. “You got any lemonade? ...or something stronger?” she asked, the second bit more to herself.

Haymitch heard her though and smiled a wry smile, “Lemonade will have to do, there’s no alcohol in this house” he informed her.

“So it is true,” Katniss said, watching him as he moved through the kitchen. “You’re completely sober? Not one drink?”

“It’s true. Hard to believe after the dreams I know” he told her, “But it’s been twenty years now since I last touched a drink”

“Incredible,” Katniss said to herself, shaking her head. “How does it feel? To be t-total in your waking life but...a drunk in you Dreams? It can’t be easy,” she asked curiously. Katniss was always interested in how people dealt with who they were in the Dreams versus who they were in real life.

Honestly, it wasn’t easy and Haymitch sometimes felt like he was going through withdrawal again but he tried not to let it show. Especially right now when Effie needed him most. “It’s not” he said but shrugged, “Takes two coffees sometimes to shake myself out of it but they are just dreams. I may have downed a few bottles in them but my blood alcohol is zero when I wake up so just the feelings I need to shake off”

Katniss paused for a second. "You don't ever...get confused or anything?" She asked quietly, keeping her eyes down. It happened to Katniss after all.

“Not really” he said with a shrug, “I mean most mornings I wake up next to Effie so that kind of helps remind me I guess. But this place, well it’s nothing like Panem or District 12”

Katniss smiled at that. “It must be nice to have that as a constant reminder,” she said softly. She dreamed of Peeta and Gale, of talking to them, relying on them and taking comfort from them. She was struggling without that here. Each new Dream brought a new challenge for her. A new nightmare to wake up screaming from. She set her jaw against those precious memories. “So I hear you’re doing really well here. What is it exactly you do?” she asked, changing topic.

“Yeah it definitely helps” Haymitch admitted, he figured Katniss might be struggling more with everything. She did there so it made sense that she would here too. “I do okay. I run my own PR company. Assisting when needed” he smiled, “What about you? What is it you do Katniss?”

“Not much to report on my end,” Katniss shrugged. “I’m still in school. Waiting to get out really, but even then I’m not sure what I’ll do with myself. I don’t have any real skills apart from shooting things,” she sighed and took a sip from her drink as she moved over to look out a window.

“Isn’t school supposed to help you with that?” Haymitch said, though his hadn’t really helped career wise either. “I’d offer you an internship but I’m not sure PR is the right line for you, if you’re like your dream self that is”

Katniss shrugged. “It is but...I’m not much of the sit down and learn things from a book kind of girl. Much more pick it up and do it,” she told him. “But you’re probably right, PR might not be the gig for me. Who knows, maybe I can find a way to make a living shooting things,” she half-joked.

“Well they look for people like that for films and stuff right? And there’s always archery teaching. It seems like a pretty popular sport nowadays” And if she was as good here as in the dreams she’d do well.

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Katniss replied as she gazed out the window. “Teaching could be quite rewarding I imagine, although you’d have to have a lot of patience. Stunts and body doubling could be kind of fun though,” she considered.

“A couple of things to consider and look into at least” he said with a small smile, watching her as she considered what he’d said.

Katniss looked across at Haymitch and gave him a little appreciative smile and she had a thought. “Have you met Portia here?”

“I have. Effie knows her better but we know each other and get along well” Haymitch responded, “Ah but of course she may well be of assistance for you, being in the industry as she is”

Katniss gave a little shrug. It didn’t mean that she would abuse Portia’s position, but she could ask her about it when they next met up. “She’s been a big help to me. When the Dreams started she was amazing. Put up with listening to me ramble on about the Games and try and make sense of it all,” she told him.

Haymitch didn’t think Portia would see it as abusing her position, in fact he thought she’d be delighted to help. “Yeah? She’s a good girl. Sounds like she was just what you needed too. I’m not really the tea and sympathy sort. Not even here” his smile was somewhat wry.

“So not much has changed then,” Katniss joked, looking over at him from over the rim of her glass as she took a sip. She didn’t make jokes often and when she did it was usually quite a dry sense of humour.

“Not much no” He smirked, in fact apart from the drinking and open affection with Effie he was fairly similar to his dream counterpart. “What about you? How similar to dream Katniss are you then?”

Katniss paused at that, her mouth agape as she tried to think of a response. “I’m still my charming self, making friends wherever I go,” she half-joked. She wasn’t popular at school. She only really had Portia and Arya as friends. Mostly because there wasn’t much filter between her brain and her mouth. If she thought someone was being an idiot she usually called them on it. “And I can hunt.”

“Pretty similar then” he nodded knowingly, “Well Effie and me, we’re here if you need us. Anytime. Might help to talk to someone who knows your dreams” he shrugged casually, though he would always be there should she need him.

“Yeah...um, I may have upset Effie the other day,” Katniss winced a little.

Haymitch looked at her sharply and frowned, “What did you do?” he asked her.

“Left,” Katniss said straight back. She turned to see Haymitch’s reaction, half-expecting him to be appalled with her. “She mentioned Panem loving me and I kind of...freaked out,” she told him, eyes dropping from what she expected to be a judging gaze.

Haymitch sighed, “She wouldn’t have meant anything bad by it you know” he told her, not judging but instead understanding.

"I know," Katniss replied. "I just..panicked I guess," she shrugged. "I'll make it up to her."

“Just explain it to her. She’ll understand” Haymitch told her, “She struggles with the dreams too you know. It’s hard for her to get why she doesn’t do anything about the games when they’re so obviously wrong”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Katniss sighed. “I didn’t mean to. I’ll call her and apologise. I know it’s not easy for any of us...sometimes I get...consumed by it,” she told him.

“It’s okay. We understand kiddo, it’s a hard thing to dream about all the time” Haymitch told her, reaching out to ruffle her hair a little, “Just remember you aren’t alone okay?”

Katniss ducked away from his hand in her hair with a little laugh. Meeting Haymitch hadn’t been as bad as she thought it would be.