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AFTER ELEVEN LONG DAYS OF TOURING PANEM, Avalon was more than thrilled to finally be done with the tour. While there was a small riot in District Five, most of the tour went well. Now she was back in District Four with her family preparing for the final stop on the Victory Tour, the celebration in the Capitol.
The minute she arrived to her house, Xanth was waiting for her with the prep team. "Good morning, Avalon. Good morning, Avalon's family. I'm going to steal her from you for a little while, okay?" When her family nodded, he immediately stood up and dragged her upstairs in the bathroom.
"It's a big day, sweetie," he said, opening a small closet in the bathroom and handing the girl a teal dress. "Put this on. I'll go get the makeup crew ready," he said, leaving the room for Avalon to change. As she put the dress on, she noticed how well it fit her body, like it was made just for her. It was made just for her.
The dress hit just above her knee, and only one of the sleeves sat on her shoulder. It fit pretty snug around her waist, but draped out as it got lower.
She heard a knock at the door. "You all done?"
"Yes," she replied, and the door opened to reveal Xanth and the makeup team. He clapped his hands together, telling her she looked beautiful, then proceeded to lay all the hair and makeup tools on the counter.
"We're going to be doing a lot to your hair today, I hope you don't mind." Of course Avalon said she didn't mind. Anything to make her look better than she had when she walked in. He went to work, curling every piece of hair and tying her hair up, then taking it down because he didn't like it. When he was done, her hair was in a bun, with strands braided back into it.
"I like that. I really like that," Xanth started, smiling at her. "Do you?"
Avalon nodded rapidly. "It's beautiful," she said. Xanth nodded happily, going to work on her makeup with the other two on the team. Makeup somehow took more time than hair, which Avalon didn't even think was possible, but she was thankful that they spent so long when she looked in the mirror and saw her reflection. Somehow, every time they managed to make her look gorgeous.
After repeatedly thanking Xanth for making her look so pretty, she was headed off to the train that would take them to the Capitol. It was decorated extremely nicely, and there were more Capitol citizens than she'd ever seen in one place. She was greeted by Sadira and Finnick, who were both dressed for the occasion.
Once on the train, Sadira explained briefly that she would enter the area, and she was to be on her best behavior. She had to have eldest etiquette, she had to be polite, and she had to keep a smile on her face (for the most part). As soon as her little "pep speech" was over, they had arrived in the Capitol and it was time for the celebration.
