"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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Dahlia's first year as a Mentor was difficult as she tried to cope with the loss of her mother and sister. Tripp and Astrid were her first tributes, both younger than she was. At twelve and thirteen, their chances of survival were slim and Alaric told her repeatedly to not get her hopes up. But she didn't listen. She poured all her energy into helping them, as he had once done for her. She taught them everything she knew, passed on all the information she was given, guided them through each stage with military precision... Only to watch their horrific demise in the bloodbath. It was a disheartening eye-opener but a necessary one. Suddenly it made sense to Dahlia why Alaric was so opposed to helping her in the beginning.
Her second year as a mentor didn't yield much results either with an unfortunate reaping of a brother and sister duo. They were separated in the bloodbath and died alone, far away from each other. Dahlia felt a little piece of herself wither away with each tribute she sent to their deaths, so she closed herself up like a flower that refused to bloom and led with her head, not her heart.
The only reason she endured the torture of mentoring was the rare joy of seeing Finnick in the Capitol. It is certainly true for the pair that absence makes the heart grow fonder. Seeing them together became a familiar sight for the returning Victors, who knew the two of them shared a connection that no one could begin to understand. She was the anchor in his storm and he was the light in her darkness.
However, Finnick was keeping certain aspects of his life from her. They openly shared their trauma with each other, often discussing their time in the Games late into the evening. But he would never tell her about the things Snow made him do. The women he was sold to. Dahlia was one of the people Snow used to manipulate Finnick as well as Mags and Annie (who he'd come to view as a little sister). He refused to let them be harmed and he knew better than to test Snow, so he complied with the President's every demand. His only hope was that Dahlia would be spared the same fate.
But Snow had been receiving a lot of interest in the young girl from many high-ranking Capitol citizens. Who was he to deny them what they wanted? Dahlia hadn't acted out after her family's murder but he could never be too sure of what was swirling in her mind. She was a firecracker waiting to explode. If she got too confident, she could cause him some infuriating problems. Best to remind her who had the real power, like tightening the reins on his prized horse.
"Ah, Miss Blossom." He greeted her politely as she entered the room. "Please, take a seat." Dahlia did her best to disguise the terror she felt at seeing the man this close. She had managed to avoid interaction with him since her Victory Tour, but her luck had obviously run out. "Commiserations for the loss of your tributes. I thought District Five might've had another winner on their hands."
"They showed potential." Dahlia nodded in agreement, willing her hands to stop shaking so much. "But the odds weren't in their favour this time."
"Indeed." Snow hummed, analysing the girl with beady eyes. "What a shame considering the talent of their mentor."
