Chapter 8 :

"Beetee really did a good job." Finnick observed. "She's quicker."

The ship's speed was good, probably better than before Beetee had tinkered with her, but Haymitch was content not to push her too much. They had been sailing at random for a while, avoiding every corner Coin's fleet usually sailed in, but they had taken a merchant ship the previous week and it was time to go back to the Hob. Even three weeks later, Heavensbee's warnings were still ringing in his ears though.

His eyes followed his thoughts and fell on the woman leaning against the railing below. She was laughing with Annie. Jo and Katniss had finally prevailed and forced her into a more sea-friendly outfit. The second she had tried on the pants, she had been sold, and now she wandered around in those tight leather pants and a white shirt completed with a leather corset – latest pirate fashion, he had been told very seriously – and it was driving him crazy on a daily basis.

"I need to review maps." he told Finnick, abandoning the helm to him.

The boy snorted, flashing him a wolfish grin. "Sure, Captain. Go... review maps."

He felt neither guilty nor embarrassed about that. Reviewing maps had become his favorite activity of late, he liked it even more than he liked his rum.

He joined the two women on the deck, placed a hand at the small of Effie's back and shot an apologetic smirk at Annie. "I need her to copy maps for me."

Annie wasn't any more fooled than Finnick was but she let them go easily. Effie's lips were pursed but her eyes were twinkling with amusement.

"Which map?" she asked innocently, once he had closed the door of the cabin behind them.

"You're hot." he replied, seeing no point in not going straight to the heart of the matter.

"You say that every day." she laughed.

"'Cause it's true every day." he growled, trailing a hand against the side of her neck before pressing a kiss at the hollow of her throat.

"Smooth." she mocked.

He wanted to keep the banter up but her mouth crashed on his and soon his head was too full of lusty thoughts to come up with something clever. She pushed him on the bed and he couldn't help but chuckle as she straddled him. He never liked it when other women took charge, he didn't trust them, but Effie... He would give her everything he had to give. It was a sobering thought but not as startling as it could have been.

The second she had tried to claw Jo's eyes out that first day, he had known he was lost.

Afterwards, she slumped on his chest and he wrapped his arms around her, happy to close his eyes and make the most of the moment. He petted her hair absentmindedly and she drew circles and strange figures on his left side... She was quiet. Effie never was quiet unless she was upset.

"What's wrong?" he mumbled, a little sleepy.

"Nothing." she hummed, propping her chin on his chest so she could look at him. "I was just thinking..."

"Did you hurt yourself?" he teased. She whacked his side playfully, fighting to keep a grin off her lips. He gently tugged on a strand of her hair. "About what?" he prompted.

"Well..." she sighed. "I am a fallen woman who has gone into piracy, my reputation is in tatters because of you, and I've never been this happy in my life. What does that say about my character?"

He shrugged. "Who cares? Important thing is you're happy. Life's too short to wonder, sweetheart."

"I know." she admitted. "It's just... It was so important to me... Being a lady, following the rules of proper behavior... It was a huge part of me."

"It's still is." he pointed out. "You're still annoying the shit out of everybody with your fucking manners."

"Language." she chided him. "It still is for the most part but you and me... I don't know, I guess I have never pictured myself breaking that particular rule. Society would shame me."

"Society can kiss my ass." He rolled his eyes. "Does it really bother you?"

"Sleeping with a man out of wedlock?" she snorted. "I'm certain my parents are spinning in their grave."

"You know, I'm a captain." he said. "I could marry us right now."

"Would you?" she asked.

"I'm not really the marrying type, sweetheart." he winced.

He might though. If it was really that important to her.

"That's alright then." she declared, pressing a kiss against his mouth. "As long as I'm the only woman for you."

"One and only." he promised, rolling on her and pinning her to the mattress.

It was a while before they were done reviewing maps and Jo lost no time in taunting them crudely as soon as they went back on deck. It ended up in a fight between Effie and the pirate but since those two fought on a daily basis, he left them to it.

They reached the Hob six days later.

He knew at once that there was trouble.

After all, the grey sails were difficult to miss.

He was almost tempted to turn around and flee before Coin could send her ship after them but he couldn't abandon the people on the island.

"We're keeping The Mockingjay in the harbor." Haymitch ordered. "We're taking a boat to the docks." He looked around, studying the expectant faces. "Jo, you're with me. Finnick, keep the ship ready to sail."

He didn't know what they would find, after all.

"I will come too." Katniss offered.

"No." Haymitch shook his head. "You're staying here. If they attack us, we need you in the air to shoot your arrows."

"Haymitch." Effie tried to object but he didn't listen. He pressed a hard kiss on her lips, which made her blush like it always did when he kissed her in public, and joined Jo in the boat.

The trip to shore didn't take too long but it was tense.

"How are we getting out of this one?" Jo asked.

"I don't know." he confessed.

"But you know what they want." she scoffed. "We could trade."

He watched her. "You're serious? You would give Effie up for our freedom? She's one of us."

"One against all of us and the Hob." Jo shrugged, her eyes hardening. "But, yeah. She's one of us. And nobody touch our crew."

That settled it then.

There was a welcoming committee when they reached the dock. He didn't spare a look for Coin and the soldiers flanking her, focusing on Undersee. "Everything's alright here?"

"We've decided to join the revolutionaries, Haymitch." the Hob's leader was quick to explain. "They can offer us advantages that..."

"Advantages?" he scoffed, feeling betrayed. "What about the drawbacks?"

"We took a vote." Undersee insisted. "We're grateful for everything you did for us but..."

"But they saw reason." Coin cut in. "And so should you. Surrender, Haymitch, or we will take The Mockingjay by force."

"Like hell." he spat. "By the time you get your Rebellion over there, she will be long gone."

"Without her Captain?" the woman mocked. "They would never leave you."

"I say we can take them." Jo cackled, toying with the handle of her axe.

Haymitch wasn't as confident. There was only a small group in front of them but more when they came from.

"I gave my orders." he shrugged.

"Is it your ship you're so eager to protect or what you stole from me?" Coin sneered. "You had a whore on board the last time we saw each other. Soldier Hawthorne saw her."

Gale wasn't amongst her little group of friends, he was happy to notice. At least, if it came down to a fight, he wouldn't have to hurt the boy.

"And then what?" he snickered. "If you want to get laid so badly, Alma, there are brothels all over the Caribbean, no need to go after my women."

Coin's face remained blank but the corner of her mouth twitched in anger. "Surrender your ship and Lady Trinket without a fuss and I will let you live."

"There is no Lady Trinket on my ship." he retorted.

"I know she's there, there is no point in lying." the woman insisted. "Rest assured we will find her a good husband. I am not the monster you paint me out to be."

He wasn't so sure about that.

And he could only see one way to protect Effie.

"Too bad she's already married." he replied. "There is no Lady Trinket on my ship but there is an Effie Abernathy. You come anywhere near my wife and I will gut you."

Jo's eyebrows shot up in surprise but he ignored her. Assuming they both managed to get back to the ship in one piece, Jo would tell Effie as soon as she saw her because even though they spent their time arguing they were sort of friends – and then Effie would kill him.

Coin pursed her lips. "It's an easy enough problem to fix. We will have to make her a widow."

He unleashed his cutlass just as Johanna lifted her axe, both of them adopting defensive stances. Undersee looked dismayed and tried to intervene but Haymitch told him to leave. That didn't concern the people of the Hob after all. They didn't need to spill more blood than strictly necessary.

"You really think you can fight us?" Coin asked, almost taunting. "You are surrounded and your ship won't evade us for long. You..."

A canon boomed in the distance and Haymitch looked over his shoulder, alarmed. Why would Finnick give a warning shoot?

The answer came in the form of another ship coming fast toward the Hob. Haymitch felt like laughing. He would have known that ship anywhere.

"It's The Rue." Jo smirked. "Now who's surrounded?"

"Chaff won't attack us." Coin dismissed.

"Wanna bet?" Haymitch scoffed. "So here's what we're going to do. Jo and I will go back to our ship and you will let us leave without giving pursuit."

"Or I could kill you." she objected, her cold eyes calculating.

"Or you kill us and then you will have to deal with two crews of very angry pirates." Haymitch challenged. "But we take vengeance seriously. Ask The Career."

Her eyes darted to the The Rue and to The Mockingjay whose canons were ready to fire and then to her own ship that was sitting down in the dock, nowhere near ready to take off.

He knew he had her.

"We'll take our leave now, Captain." he declared, nudging Jo toward their boat. He didn't let himself look back as they stir the boat away from the Hob. The Rue was closer, they headed there.

"I heard from Heavensbee you might get yourself in trouble." Chaff said, clapping him on the shoulder as soon as they had been hauled on board. "'Told you that woman was your type."

"Let's get out of here." Haymitch muttered, eager to put as much distance as possible between Effie and Coin.

The Rue and The Mockingjay might have been less powerful than The Rebellion but they were quicker and they evaded the rebels easily enough.

There had been some questions as to where they should be headed next. Without the Hob to tie them in the Caribbean, they had discussed going further away. It was Chaff who had suggested Asia, just as eager as Haymitch was to escape Coin and Snow's war for a while. They had decided on China. They would be safer there.

It was an odd feeling to leave everything behind after all this time, he mused as he stood at the helm, enjoying the relative silence of his ship at night. He wasn't exactly surprised when Effie joined him. He had left her asleep in their cabin but she tended to wake up if he left her for too long.

"I had an interesting conversation with Johanna today." she hummed.

"Yeah?" he asked, lifting his eyebrows in open curiosity.

"Apparently we are married." she answered casually. "Which is odd because I don't remember saying any vows."

"Told you." he shrugged. "I'm a captain. I can marry us whenever I want."

He waited, half expecting her to throw a fit in anger, but she simply laughed and wrapped her arms around his chest from behind, pressing her face between his shoulder blades.

"Pirate." she accused with unabashed fondness.

"Always, Princess." he retorted.

And he wasn't simply talking about his pirate ways.

The End

I hope you enjoyed the trip on a pirate ship! Meet me again on two Sundays time for a brand new hayffie story called "Happiness Therapy"!

What did you think of that last chapter? Reviews make my day!