THE SIREN'S SONG 𓇼 F. ODAIR

57 ~ the return of marsh rosebloom

Carolina instinctively stepped back the moment she saw him.

There he was, staring at her with dull blue eyes that she hadn't stared back at since she had closed them for good all those years ago. His blond curls were tamed and freshly washed, and he must have grown at least a foot taller since the last time she saw him, but it was Marsh.

"Lina?" Marsh's voice called out again.

She didn't step back that time, though. Instead, she rushed into his arms and held onto him as tightly as she could. The second Marsh's arms wrapped around her, Carolina began to cry.

"You– you're dead," she whispered. "How is this possible?"

"The Capitol," Marsh said. "They saved me."

Carolina froze in his arms. Her arms went loose around his torso, and she slowly backed away from him.

"What?"

"It was District 13 that took me from the arena," Marsh said. He tried to move closer to Carolina, causing her to take another step back. A flash of hurt appeared on his face. "When I woke up, Lina, I thought I was safe. I thought I somehow managed to win the Hunger Games. But then they started to hurt me. They threatened my family."

"No," Carolina shook her head, turning her gaze to the ground. "That's not true."

"It is, Lina," Marsh said. "I wouldn't lie to you."

"No," Carolina repeated, taking another step back.

"I spent years locked up in District 13," Marsh said. "And last year, the Capitol saved me. They told me they would protect my family. They told me I could finally live the rest of my life in peace."

"Peace?" Carolina asked, motioning to the room around them. "This isn't peace. Being trapped in a concrete room isn't peace."

"I'm here to see you," Marsh said. "They told me you were here. Lina, I had to see you."

Carolina took another step back, and Marsh stayed where he was, finally allowing Carolina some space. He lifted his hands up in a surrendering position before slowly sitting down on the ground.

She watched his movement carefully before following him to the ground as well. She hugged her knees into her chest, realizing for the first time since she entered the room that she was shaking uncontrollably.

"Where have you been this whole time?" Carolina asked.

"They gave me a small house right outside of the city," Marsh replied. Carolina tried to ignore his gaze shooting daggers into the side of her head. "They protected me."

"Stop saying that," Carolina snapped. "If the Capitol actually protected you, they wouldn't have put you into the games in the first place."

"The games serve a purpose."

"And that purpose is to provide an inhumane form of entertainment," Carolina stood up, moving as far away from him as she could get. When her back hit the wall, she jumped. "Who are you?"

"Lina..."

"What are you?" Carolina asked, hesitatingly. "Because you are not Marsh."

"Lina, I am," Marsh tried to take a step towards Carolina, but when she flinched, he stopped himself. "Please, you have to believe me."

"Get out," Carolina said. "If you're telling the truth, you should be able to leave, right? The Capitol that has sworn to protect you wouldn't let you rot in this dungeon."

Marsh stared at Carolina with saddened eyes, and as Carolina stared back, she couldn't find even the smallest bit of the child that she had lost in the arena.