𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒉𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒕𝒖𝒔; 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒊𝒓

𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝑻𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝑩𝒂𝒄𝒌

Lilith's hand has gotten worse. It's bruised and hurts badly. Melinda doesn't know what to do. Another guard has stopped by their cell. This time, he unlocks the door.

"What's going on?" Lilith quickly says. She knows she won't receive an answer, but she can't help it.

The guard forcefully grabs Lilith by the arm and brings her to her feet. He drags her down the hall. As she passes cell by cell, she sees some familiar faces.

"Johanna?" Lilith says. She sees her friend with a shaved head and beat up. Johanna opens her eyes slightly and looks at Lilith. "Johanna!"

"Quiet!" The guard growls in Lilith's ear.

Her heart breaks at the sight of her friend. Peeta and Johanna are here with her. They must've been left behind in the arena.

Lilith is brought to a room and thrown in a chair. It looks like in interrogation room. The only thing on the table in front of her are three buttons. One has Peeta's picture above it, one with Johanna's picture above it, and a third with Melinda's picture.

"Choose," A mechanical voice comes over the intercom.

"What?" Lilith breathes.

"Choose," It says again.

Lilith glances at the buttons in front of her. No. They can't do this. They can't. Is she choosing one to save? Or one to hurt? She doesn't know. She doesn't move, and the voice repeats itself. She takes a deep breath, and slowly reaches to Johanna's button, and presses it softly.

Suddenly, Johanna's painful screams fill the room. Lilith flinches and covers her ears.

"I'm sorry!" She yells. The screaming stops. Lilith slowly removes her hands from her ears, and stares at the buttons.

They expect her to pick? Pick who to hurt? She can't do that. She doesn't want to do that.

"No," Her voice echos through the room. "I won't."

"Choose," The mechanical voice says.

Lilith feels tears welling in her eyes. She hovers her hand over Peeta's button. She closes her eyes and pushes it. Peeta's screams fill her ears. She begins to cry. This is horrible. Inhumane. This is the Capitol.

She is forced to do this for what feels like hours. She mostly picks Peeta, not wanting to harm her long term friend or a little girl. She feels horrible every time she pushes any of the buttons. The screams echo in her mind. She doesn't want any of them to hurt. She feels like this is all her fault. She sits with her knees to her chest. Her face is red and tear stained. Her breaths are shallow and shaky.

The door opens, and a guard grabs her by the arm. She is dragged back to her cell. This time, she doesn't see Johanna or Peeta. She really hurt them. She is thrown back in her cell, and sees a wounded Melinda.

"Melinda?" Lilith gasps out.

"Why'd you do this?" Melinda chokes out.

"I didn't— I didn't want to," Lilith says. She rushes to Melinda and places a hand on her shoulder. Melinda flinches and looks at her. "Melinda, I'm sorry."

"I thought you outgrew your Career ways," Melinda says softly.

Her Career ways. Hurting people without a second thought. That's what Melinda thinks this is.

"No, I didn't have a choice," Lilith reasons.

"Everyone has a choice," Melinda spits out.

Is she really turning back? Is that why she was left behind? Because she was a Career? Is this what they would have done with Silas? The old Lilith is gone. She isn't a Career anymore. Or, at least she thought so.

Lilith has nothing more to say. She resides in a corner of the cell, curled up in a ball. She rocks back and forth like a crazy person. She doesn't want to be here. She would rather be dead than have to deal with this.

Melinda stops speaking to her. Just another person Lilith has been abandoned by. This is what happens to Lilith. Everyone leaves her. Maybe she's better off alone. Better off without people. Maybe she's better off being her old self. The Career. Maybe that's what for the best. Maybe it's the only way she doesn't get hurt.