The Capitals Flower

Chapter 2

Dahlia's Pov:

The torture is worse than any pain I've ever felt. They take us to the room with all the torture devices at different times.

The dark haired boy never got me, but when he passed me he would give me a pitiful look. Which was valid, I did everything I could to look decent but no matter how many times I combed through my hair with me hands I was still being tortured and haven't had a shower in half a life time.

Peeta screamed a lot, Johanna cursed at the guards but for the most part her tears were shed in silence. There were no more tears for me to shed after the first three days of he'll.

My body was scarred and my brain was all over the place. Just stay sane for Finnick, I thought to myself. I knew the end would come soon but pretending he was still there brought me an unimaginable amount of comfort.

We've been here for a month. I'm no longer forced to do interviews as Peeta has been. They don't trust me after the last time.

I've been subconsciously tearing away at my arms with my nails. The blood drips down my already scarred arms. The habit adapted sometime during torture.

"Dahlia" Peeta whispered.

I look at him, his body is bruised but he looks better than me, but when I look into his eyes I see how broken his soul is.

"Peeta?"

"Where is Finnick?

I take a sharp breath in. How I would like to know for sure, dead? Safe? Torn into pieces by the capital's stupid games?

"Home" was the only answer I could come up with.

"District 4?"

"No, he's with Katniss." A lie? Close enough to one.

He visibly flinchs when I say her name.

"Well where is he." He asks again

"Home." I repeat taking a deep breath in.

Before he can ask again the dark haired boy comes over and opens my cell.

"Come on." He says

He's always been particularly kind to us. He doesn't shove me as we walk down the hall to the torture room, instead he mutters a warning to me.

"They're bombing district 13 tomorrow."

I don't acknowledge his words, there are cameras. This will get him killed. But when we get to the torture room he passes by it as if it was nothing.

My heart rate increases but I have to seem calm, collected. I mastered this after my first games. I had to keep a straight face for so many awful capital citizens when they called me from home for their favors.

We climb a few flights of stairs before the boy finally stops in front of a door. His posture changes to that of a well-seasoned soldier.

"Good luck, I'll be back for you when you're done." He says barely audible, then he knocks.

We stand awkwardly for a few moments before the door swings open. President Snow sits tall at his desk.

"Come in my flower!" He says, dread fills me. I haven't heard the sick nickname leave his mouth since he last sent me away to please his citizens.

The dark haired boy places his hand on the small of my back, in just the way so Snow couldn't see. I quickly take the cue to enter, so I do.

"Thank you Dmitry." He dismisses him

So he leaves, and I'm alone. President Snow looks at me patiently. It takes me a moment to realize I haven't sat down.

I take a seat, now that I've gotten closer I notice the way he holds his head is slightly different. He holds it as if he is in pain. I remember Finnick told me something about him poisoning himself, prehaps this was the affect.

"You've become quiet a problem, haven't you flower?" He says condescendingly

"I like to think I've been helpful."

He smiles, it makes my blood boil. He presses a button on his remote and a riot is shown on the screen. It takes me a moment to hear what they chant.

"RELEASE DAHLIA!"

I feel a surge of pride then immediately a surge of embarrassment. I've never been too prideful but I hate to know that everyone knows that I'm at my weakest.

President Snow shuts it off and says, "Now that you've become such a problem I've decided to have you join Peeta in a new trail with a substance I'm sure you're very familiar with. I believe you've experienced the phanonomon of tracker jacker vemon."

I don't answer, I've been stung by tracker jackers before. I had hallucinations and Finnick found me in his house. I still remember how he screamed my name and begged for the district 4 doctor to come.

"How?" I ask

"The little scene you made the other day on, national television seems to have made the people think you are not here willingly."

"I'm not." I answer

"So I suggest you fix this, or you accept your fate with the tracker jackers."

"I'd rather die." I snarl

"Well, if thats what you want." He says with a sick smile on his face, "DMITRY!"

The dark haired boy comes back in. He looks like a soldier and I hope it is an act. I can't handle if everything he's helped me with was all fake.

"Take our flower to the torture room."

"Yes sir" He says and takes my arm.

He leads me to the torture room and sits me down in front of a screen. It looks like a few videos of me and finnick from the past few hunger games where we mentored.

"I'm sorry." The dark haired boy apologized.

Then I feel a needle enter my skin, the pain exploads in just a moment. The video starts, it's one of my favorite times in the capital with Finnick.

It was when me and Finnick were mentoring. Normally we despised it, we came up here not only to watch children die but also to have our services called on every night. But this one night by some miracle we were aloud to stay.

Finnick had put on one of our songs and we danced in the dim lights of the lamp on his bedside table. But something about the video was off, it was no longer kind. It felt cruel and wrong.

I screamed in pain. What sick person would do this? The videos continue, once happy memories stolen by the capital and turned awful. By the time the dark haired boy turned off the video I wasn't sure what memories were real or just made up.

But even as my mind tried to convince me otherwise I knew Finnick loved me and he would never hurt me. At least I think I'm sure.