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THE NIGHT SLOWLY PASSED and the next day came all too soon. Avalon and Finnick were both practically dragged out of their bed and into separate bathrooms, where the makeup teams went to work.
Tonight was the parade. Avalon had already done this once, so she knew it wouldn't be too bad but she also knew it was important to get on the good side of the Capitol, so no crazy gestures.
This time around, Xanth dressed her in a short teal dress with a net that came up to one of her shoulders and was loosely draped around the rest of the dress. She was confused about the whole net situation, but figured that it was because District Four was known for fishing.
Her hair was tied up in a bun, with small pearls pinned in throughout. He pulled out two pieces of hair to frame her slim face, and braided a piece back into the bun. Overall, it was a nice beach look.
She thanked him, not as enthusiastic about having to be dressed up in the Capitol this time. She met Sadira and Finnick in the living room of their hotel, shocked to see what they had Finnick dressed in.
"Got enough clothes on there, Fin?" she said, gesturing to his bare chest and bottoms that barely covered anything. He laughed, brushing her comment off. "I guess the net makes sense now."
Sadira chuckled and motioned for the two to follow her. They walked out of the room and into the hallway, entering the glass elevator. The Capitol had made the place nicer while she was in District Four.
"You know the drill," Sadira said. "Make them love you. Won't be too hard to do since you're already Capitol favorites, but make it work." The two nodded, taking a deep breath before exiting the elevators and finding their carriage.
Avalon looked around at all the tributes, and immediately felt the sense that she wasn't going to make it come back again. She shook her head, but nothing made it go away, so she decided it would be best to distract herself.
"Hey, Fin," she said, getting the boy's attention. "You said you wanted twelve as allies?" He nodded. "Well, they're right over there. Might as well make some conversation," she said. He smiled, nodding as he walked over to Katniss. Avalon made her way to Peeta.
"Hi," she greeted, getting his attention.
Peeta turned around, smiling at the girl. "Hi. Peeta," he said, extending his hand.
Avalon took his hand and shook it. "Avalon. Nice to meet you," she said with a smile. "You and Katniss put on quite the show last year. It's sad to see you back in the Games again."
