Dagan Starche

Dagan Starche was the male tribute for District 9 in the 61st Hunger Games. He is an important character in *The 61st Annual Hunger Games* and allied with Barley Mayes. The day he was reaped for the Hunger Games was the day before his nineteenth birthday.

## Appearance

Dagan was a tall (6') young man with dark hair and dark brown eyes. He had almond skin and was very hairy. Prior his remake in the Remake Center, he had flowing navel-length hair and a long beard. This was all shaved away, and he was described as looking naked without it.

## Personality

Dagan was dedicated to giving Barley the protection she needed to survive. When he was reaped, it was startling how he didn't seem to show any emotion whatsoever. He repressed his emotions because he was so in shock that he got reaped the day before his nineteenth birthday. The Career Pack considered him a threat to them.

He felt the need to hide his emotions and was very reclusive around everyone except for Barley, Sylva, Fallow, Martin, Delila, and the prep teams. When he was interviewed by Caesar Flickerman, he was charismatic and funny, but when asked about missed opportunities back home, his face went blank and he didn't say a word, becoming immersed in his own world.

## Biography

Dagan was born on July 5th, 42 ATT in the Rye Village of District 9. Dagan was reaped for the 61st Hunger Games alongside Barley Mayes. Dagan's escort to the Games was Priscilla Happith and his mentor was Fallow O'Leary, who did almost nothing to prepare him for the Games due to his crippling addictions. Dagan allied with Barley and the tributes from District 12, Rhonda and Milo.

During his interview with Caesar Flickerman, he was doing an excellent job being funny and answering Caesar's questions. He was charismatic and addressed the crowd with charm. This all changed when Caesar asked him what things he was looking forward to at home that he wouldn't get to experience due to the Games. This question caused Dagan to completely blank out, replacing his smile with a monotonous, robotic expression. Caesar desperately attempted to get Dagan to talk to him again, but he was quiet the whole time. The buzzer went off and Caesar ushered him off the stage, panicking.

Priscilla escorted Dagan and Barley to the hovercrafts that took them to the arena. Dagan's stylist, Delila Cella, gave him his arena clothes. During the Cornucopia Bloodbath, Dagan ran for a cluster of shields at the Cornucopia. He urged Barley not to attend the bloodbath. He got a shield, a machete, a flashlight, a loaf of bread, and a blanket from the Bloodbath.

After he ran away with his supplies, he started looking for Barley in the forest. He ran into the corpse of the girl from District 7, Cacia, who was killed by Volta, and thought it was Barley's. On the second night, he searched on the boardwalk for Barley, and once she recognized him, she hopped out from under the boardwalk, and they talked about the Games. Dagan slept underneath sand the second night. The next morning, Barley shared her half of a loaf of bread with him because he was starving.

## Relationships

* Barley Mayes (ally, friend)
* Rhonda, Milo (allies)
* Fallow O'Leary (mentor)
* Delila Cella (stylist)
* Priscilla Happith (escort)

## Trivia

* Dagan's first name comes from the name of an important semitic grain deity. His surname, Starche, comes from starch, a powdery substance that is both extracted from and used in making grain produce.