"Dahlia Blossom. Don't let the name fool you. She's better known as the Black Dahlia. And she didn't earn that nickname by smiling and looking pretty."
"She sure knows how to perform for the camera."
"Because she knows how to play the game. She alwa...
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Night fell quickly but the climate remained relentlessly humid, providing the dehydrated group with little to distract from their thirst. Sweat drips uncomfortably down their skin as Dahlia and Katniss sit in silence. Their postures stiffened, arms crossed and shoulders tensed. A far cry from the relaxed bodies of the boys sleeping peacefully not too far away.
Dahlia is the first one to put her pride aside and break the awkward silence, "How's Peeta?"
Katniss lifts her head, surprised by the softness in the woman's voice. It takes her a few seconds to muster up a reply, "He's okay, I think. Just dehydrated like the rest of us."
The Panem anthem interrupts their civil conversation, the dark arena lighting up with the faces of the fallen Tributes. The booming music startled the rest of their group awake, all their attention turned to the sky to assess who was left and who was dead. Katniss notices the relief on Dahlia's face as the presentation skips past her district.
Once the music comes to an end, Katniss doesn't hesitate to question the girl, "You looking for someone up there?"
"My district partner, Alaric." Dahlia replies wistfully, missing Alaric's guidance more than ever. "First time I've been grateful not to see his face. Means he's still alive out there."
"You two are close then?" Katniss asks curiously, unaware of how close some of the Victors can be.
"He's the father figure I never had." Dahlia answers with a small smile on her lips. When Katniss doesn't speak again, Dahlia looks up to find the girl staring at her with inquisitive eyes. "My father died in a work accident when I was young. Alaric's been the only father I can remember."
Katniss stays quiet for a moment, digesting the new information she'd learned. "My dad died in a work accident too." She reveals lowly, recalling how broken her family was after the incident. "I had to grow up quickly, to look after my sister, Prim."
"Curse of being the older sister, I guess." Dahlia mutters, knowing the burdens they face as both females and older siblings. They tend to take on the roles of mother to the younger children and carer to their parents. There's no rest for them. "I had two sisters to take care of. Lavender and Rosie."
"I remember one of them died in the Games... Lavender, right?" Katniss questions as delicately as she can, not wanting to cause the woman any pain. The image of Lavender's decapitated body flashes in her mind briefly, but Dahlia forces a nod of confirmation. "What was she like?"
A melancholic smile tugs at her lips as she remembers Lavender before the Games destroyed their lives. Childish giggles ring in her ears like the haunting melody of a song she can no longer hear. The carefree laughter of sisters who didn't know how cruel the world could be.
"Happy." She finally managed to respond, her throat tightened by suppressed emotions and unshed tears. "She was happy. Not all the time, even less once she got older... But that's how I choose to remember her." Dahlia refused to remember Lavender for how she died, deciding to remember her for how she lived. Even when the memory of her sister has been plagued by heartbreak and strife, Lavender's beautiful smile would always outshine the darkest moments. "She could've changed the world if she was given the chance."
