It had been surreal to be part of the parade, and the procession had happened so fast that Prim had barely been able to take it all in. She had been holding Katniss's hand under the chariot, and did her best not to look surprised as her sister's dress caught fire and harmlessly burned as they rode along. From then on, not showing any kind of emotion to the public was vital and both Haymitch and Peeta had made a point to remind them that they could only show personality during the interviews. That was something else to be nervous about—all of those people and answering such invasive questions in order to receive gifts in the arena? It was a foreign process to Prim, and she hoped that she wouldn't let anyone down.

As President Snow concluded his telling speech, the line of horse-driven chariots proceeded back where they had come from. Putting on a show for the public was finally over for the night, and Prim was looking forward to going upstairs and getting changed. She was tired from all of the activity, but she also hadn't slept well on the train the night before and ready to crawl into bed for the night. Katniss had mentioned sometime earlier that the Capitol offered the best of everything during their stay, and the beds were no exception. She couldn't wait to find out for herself.

Effie and Peeta were coming toward them, and the woman was talking about how gorgeous the parade had looked, and how, of course, district 12 had looked the best. Prim was happy for the approval and followed along toward the elevator as she talked with Gale. He really did look handsome in his suit, even if the shiny fabric wasn't his thing but Prim couldn't ignore how good he looked. “That's something to use against him later,” she joked about Haymitch, surprised that he was so attached to his hair. It really did need to be cut, and it was a shame that Portia hadn't been able to convince him of such. Gale's compliment about her hair fell a little short, and Prim was used to being mentioned in the same breath as Katniss when it came to their friend. She smiled, though, glad that he liked it.

In the elevator, Prim leaned back against the glass, taking some of the pressure off of her feet. The height of the heels wasn't something she was used to, and Prim's feet were aching and sore. She really couldn't wait to get upstairs. Suddenly, someone was delaying the elevator with their arm and there stood Johanna Mason. Prim recognized her from the tapes on the train, but she thought it was a little odd that she was complaining to a group of strangers—with the exception of Effie and Haymitch—about her stylist. Prim had tried to be polite until Johanna started stripping down with Peeta's assistance, and she quickly averted her eyes, shocked by Johanna's boldness. 

The heavy flirting was something that Prim could have done without, and the way Gale's eyes seemed to linger on Johanna's nearly naked form made her angry and jealous. She looked to Katniss and saw that her sister was as unamused as she was, which made her feel a bit better. Haymitch was trying to hide his smile, and Effie looked mildly displeased.

“That is [i]not[/i] how ladies should act,” said Effie once Johanna had left the elevator at her floor. Her bark-like dress was still on the floor, along with her accessories. “If you two ever did something like that,” she went on, looking to both Katniss and Prim, “well. There would just be...no dessert.”

Prim found herself rolling her eyes and leaving the elevator as they entered the penthouse suite. It was large and expensive looking, decorated with different sculptures and paintings, and all different types of brightly colored, but still matching furniture that all looked very comfortable. She took a seat on the arm of a chair and pulled off her high heels as Peeta announced how the next few days would go, but she wasn't paying much attention and was still angry from what had transpired just minutes before. “Thanks, Peeta,” she said, truly happy that they had some kind of schedule. She too picked up her shoes and disappeared down the hall on the other side of the room. She just wanted some time alone, a chance to decompress and bury that ugly spark of jealousy.

Once in her room, she set her shoes down in the closet that had been provided and reached back to unzip her dress without the help of a man. Johanna had just been showing off and Prim frowned as she looked through the clothes, wanting to find something comfortable. Tucked into the fold out wardrobe was a full-length mirror and Prim turned to it, inspecting herself. She didn't look anything like Johanna and actually thought she was fairly scrawny. She turned a few times, looking at herself from different angles before giving up with a defeated sigh and grabbing some clothes. The black cotton pants had been fitted for her, as had the t-shirt she had slipped on. After, Prim went to wash off her make up, but she left her hair down, remembering what Gale had said earlier before his eyes had been all over Johanna. 

Finally, she was starting to settle down, but Prim didn't go back out into the living area. Instead, she continued to explore the suite they had been given, feeling that she might as well enjoy the place while she was there. Slowly, she walked along the hallway and peeked into a few other rooms before coming to an opening in the floor plan. It seemed to overlook the rest of the Capitol and as Prim stepped closer to the window, she noticed a ledge that was tucked away behind the heavy wall accents. Gale was down there too, changed out of his suit by now. “It's beautiful from up here,” she said, blue eyes focused on the buildings in the distance, all lit up and stretching for miles into the sky. Back home, it was pitch black by now, but there in the Capitol, the night was young and the people were decadent.

The room had cleared out incredibly fast after the group had come into the Capitol-provided housing. Haymitch knew that Katniss was angry with what Johanna had done in the elevator, and it was obvious that Prim hadn't been impressed either. Neither of them knew that was just how she was, though, brash and abrasive, opinionated. Johanna was an incredibly strong person, and the fact that she had even thought to try and rile up 12 said something. He hoped that the Everdeen's anger wouldn't put a damper on the alliance they would desperately need with the former Victor from district 7. Inwardly, Haymitch made a note to talk with Johanna during training the next day.

For the moment, Haymitch was by himself. Effie had gone to check on dinner and Peeta had left the room soon after Gale, more than likely to change out of the parade outfits. Haymitch took off his jacket and tie and rolled up his shirt sleeves to his elbows before making himself a drink. For now, he was comfortable with everything and wanted to relax further until the real work began. Off to the side of the dining room, there was a drink cart filled with various liquors, juices and sparkling waters, along with copious amounts of ice. Haymitch had made a promise to Katniss, and everyone else by association, and he intended to keep his word.

He reached for a bottle of amber-colored juice and gave it a sniff before pouring some of it over the ice in his glass. He took a sip, pleased with the sweetness, but he still thought it could have used something else. Before becoming even further tempted, Katniss had returned to the room and Haymitch could practically feel her seething from where he stood. Every once in a while, she would let her guard down and Haymitch could read her like a book. It was those times when they seemed to get along the best, when she would laugh and share pieces of herself that he had never been able to deduce from simply looking at her. She was more than just a poor girl from 12, more than a symbol for the inevitable uprising and as she sat there and ruined her make up with her hand, it was as though Haymitch was seeing her for the very first time.

Guilt didn't even begin to describe it.

It was now blindingly clear why Haymitch had agreed to take Peeta's place in the games. It was more than concern for the baker, and more than just doing the right thing by both tributes. Katniss had been the reason all along, she was his motivation, the reason for being sober and the one person he had always wanted to be there for. She had changed his life when they had met the year before—angry and difficult, she was a challenge, a pain in the ass that brought out the best in him, qualities that had been buried for years. She deserved more than this.

“You alright over there?” he asked, clearing his throat. Quickly, he finished off his drink and felt silly for pouring himself another out of habit. He moved closer to Katniss, coming around the side of the couch and taking a seat. Her mascara was smeared around her eyes, making her look like an angry raccoon and he couldn't help but chuckle softly, a noise that he knew she wouldn't appreciate. He took another sip from his glass and was instantly annoyed by the taste of only juice. After what was going on in his head, Haymitch could have used a whole bottle of whatever was over there, let alone one drink. Later, he would have to tell Effie or one of the Avoxes to do away with the hospitality if he was going to be of any use to anyone later on.

Setting his half-full glass down on the steel and crystal coffee table in front of them, Haymitch turned to face Katniss. “What happened back there,” he said, referring to the elevator. “That was just Johanna being herself. You can't let her get to you.” It didn't occur to him that Katniss was angry that he and the other men had looked, or even approved of what the other woman had done. If anything, Haymitch assumed that Katniss was upset over Peeta's role in it. Jealousy was a strange thing, hard to understand and difficult to let go. 

Although he had enjoyed the free show, behavior like that wasn't something that Haymitch respected. If Katniss had pulled the same stunt, he would have been livid with her. Shaking his head, Haymitch realized he didn't even want to think of her that way. “At least she doesn't get dessert,” he said, attempting to joke with her. It was hard telling whether or not Katniss would have it, but Haymitch was just glad that she wasn't armed with her high heels anymore. The last thing he needed was the pointy end of a shoe coming at his face.