THE SIREN'S SONG 𓇼 F. ODAIR

6 | THE INTERVIEW

On her final night in the Capitol, Carolina was escorted to the same room she was brought to on her first day to get groomed and styled. Affron was already waiting for her there with a dress bag in hand.

When Carolina saw herself in the mirror after putting it on, she wanted to scream.

"You look gorgeous!" Lotus screeched, circling her tribute. "Affron, you have done it again!"

"I know! I think this is some of my best work!" Affron replied. The stylist had dressed Carolina in a blue sleeveless gown with a long, flowy scarf tied around her neck. However, the waistline was too tight, once again forcing her to have an hourglass figure, and the neck of the dress was nearly cutting off her oxygen. Her face was covered with pearls and glitter, and her headpiece was a crown of seashells. Most importantly, the dress was completely see-through. "I wanted it to look like she was gliding through the ocean."

"What a genius," a member of Affron's entourage cooed.

"It's a masterpiece," another member said.

Carolina tried her hardest not to roll her eyes.

"Now, let's get you backstage," Lotus clapped. She turned to leave the dressing room with Carolina following closely behind her. "Oh, I just can't wait for the Capitol to see you in this! You look just marvelous, my dear, absolutely marvelous! Don't you think so?"

"Yeah," Carolina shrugged, causing Lotus to pause and turn around.

"Attitude," Lotus said. "You must have a pretty tone to match your pretty face."

Districts 1 and 2 were already backstage when Lotus and Carolina arrived. Sicily was talking to the group enthusiastically while Ryker and Nessa listened with crossed arms. Their faces were scrunched up in distaste, but it looked like something near them smelled horribly. When Sicily noticed that Carolina arrived, she waved her over.

"Oh my," she said with a twisted smile once Carolina was in earshot. "You look... cold."

Sicily was wearing a simple silver gown that matched Savour's coat. It was basic compared to what Carolina had seen in past years. 

"And you look... effortless."

The District 1 girl turned her head to the side and tightened her smile. 

"Thanks," she said, her voice nearly increasing an octave. "We were just talking about how excited we were to meet Caesar Flickerman. This has been a dream of mine since I watched the Hunger Games for the first time."

That's insane, Carolina thought. 

She knew Districts 1 and 2 loved to volunteer for the Hunger Games, but seeing it in person was different. District 4 may have been a career district as well, but they didn't volunteer. They trained at the academy mostly as a means of preparation in case someone was reaped.

"Yes, I am so excited as well," Carolina lied.

She turned to look at the other tributes. Most of the outfits were what Carolina expected, like sparkly ball gowns and perfectly fitted tuxes. However, some were outrageous, like the 12-year-old from District 6 being put in makeup that made her look older.

Carolina caught Marsh's eye the second he arrived backstage and immediately went to meet him, despite Sicily being mid-sentence. The District 1 girl kept asking where she was going, but Carolina just waved her off.

"You look so handsome," she greeted him, fixing his partially crooked bow tie.

Marsh was wearing a suit that was the same color as Carolina's dress, though it was not as transparent, with a sea green bow tie.