"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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"Run! Run! The fog is poison!" Katniss' screams startle everyone awake, leaving little time to process what is happening before they are jumping to their feet. Finnick immediately ushers Mags onto his back as Katniss and Peeta sprint past, Dahlia lingering behind to ensure the District Four tributes leave quickly.
Weaving through the hanging vines, the group has to scramble carefully down the steep slopes until they reach flat ground. Dahlia feels the dry earth shifting unsteadily beneath her feet but refuses to slow down. Her legs fly faster than her body can comprehend, occasionally glancing behind at the menacing smoke chasing them.
Peeta swings his sword madly at the undergrowth, desperately trying to clear a path for the group. The fog seems to be creeping in on them from every angle, monstrous waves clouding their vision and swallowing up everything in sight. They have to swerve slightly, dodging around the edge of the fog bank to avoid contact.
Continuing through an avenue of trees, Peeta skids on the ground but keeps pushing forward. The rest follow behind, starting to pant from exhaustion in the humid jungle. The fog closes in on them rapidly, nipping at Dahlia's heels as she hurdles over tree roots. The group is then split in two as the toxic mist herds them in different directions. Finnick and Dahlia are forced away from Katniss and Peeta, darting blindly through the treeline as they focus on outrunning the fog.
As Dahlia spots the District Twelve tributes across the murky haze, her worries spike once she notices the way they stumble tiredly and grip onto each other for support. "Katniss!" She calls out, overtaking Finnick as she tries to reach the pair. They were the priority, the hope for the Rebellion.
But then, Dahlia's ears are hit with the agonised screams of Finnick causing her to halt in her advance. Suddenly her priorities are conflicted. Her head urges her to stick to the plan. Get Katniss and Peeta out of danger, no matter the personal cost. It's her purpose in these Games, her ticket to freedom. Yet, her heart yearns to go back for Finnick and Mags, her family. They are her reason to keep fighting, her motive for survival.
What would Alaric tell her?
"Get the job done."
Dahlia knows who she must go to.
Forgive me, Finn... Forgive me, heart.
Turning on her heel, Dahlia bounds across the exotic plants towards Katniss and Peeta, feeling the guilt of betrayal pinch at her heart. Finnick's anguished pleas for Mags to get back up haunt her all the way as she reaches the star-crossed lovers. She arrives just as Peeta tumbles to the ground, dragging Katniss down with him. Both tributes are in a bad shape, painful boils bubbling all over their skin and fiery burns spreading like wildfire. Neither are able to get back on their feet.
"Peeta." Katniss whimpers, using all her strength to force the boy onto his back. Dahlia kneels down to help but both girls find themselves taken aback by the severe blisters decorating his face. Peeta struggles for air as Katniss gasps in horror at the sight, turning to Dahlia in desperation. "I can't carry him."
