6/19/17

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Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or anything else I may mention

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The Manipulation Games 2: No One Left

Epilogue

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My eyes flutter open as pain surges through every inch of my body. My gaze flickers around the room, taking it all in. The extravagant wall decor, silk curtains, and an unreasonably plushy bedspread scream Capitol, but that can't be right. This is District 13, isn't it?

I look down at my bandage covered arm, and slowly begin to unwrap the bandaging. A lump forms in my throat when I'm finished. Instead of simply seeing an open, self inflicted stab wound, I see my tracker in the midst of it.

So. That settles it. I really am in the Capitol.

I have to force myself not to cry as I realize the implications of my discovery. I'm the victor, the sole remaining tribute . All the others are dead. Finnick, Volts, the Mockingjay- all of them are gone, and they took our chance at freedom with them.

I have to get out of here. When President Snow realizes what we've been up to, if he hasn't already, the repercussions for my actions will be severe. And even though my family is long dead, I don't want to sit around waiting long enough to see if that vicious snake can manage to find anyone else to blackmail me with. Annie and Ava come to mind. People I care about but don't quite love. I wouldn't put it past him. If I leave before we can have any "little chats", he won't technically have anything to hurt them over. Sure, my disappearance could be seen as rebellion, but Snow knows by now that it's better for him if I stick to the shadows rather than the spotlight a Quarter Quell victory would give me. There's going to be a risk involved either way, so I may as well take the option that benefits me the most.

I pry out my tracker with my bare hands, stopping to wince in pain only twice. I strip a pillow of its dark blue and gold pillowcase and wrap it around the wound before flinging my tracker across the room. There's a good chance that my arm might get infected or worse, but District 13 can most likely patch me up. Maybe if I make it there in time, we can see what we can salvage of the rebellion.

Looking around the room, I begin to notice subtle details I hadn't before. The pictures on the nightstand, the room's aquatic theme, the trident hanging proudly on the wall- all of it points to Finnick. This must be the room he stayed in during his visits to the Capitol. Which means I'm most likely in the Training Center.

I force myself away from the cheesy group photo of District 4's victors and begin to plan my escape. I can find the room for the female tributes and change into something less conspicuous, but disguising myself won't be the hard part. Getting out of the building is going to present an infinite number of challenges. Peacekeepers must be crawling all over the hecking place, though I'm sure I can pretend to be a hyper Capitolite fangirl who snuck in here wanting to meet myself. I'm sure I can pull it off too- if my first Games taught me anything, it's that I'm one heck of an actress.

As I open the door and walk down the hallway, it soon becomes very apparent that sneaking away will be harder than originally thought. The moment I reach the living room, Annie spots me and immediately jumps up from her chair, wrapping her arms around me and sobbing. Guilt floods my conscience, and why shouldn't it after I killed her best friend and survived instead of the love of her life?

"Oh you're safe," she whimpers, pressing her forehead against my shoulder.

"I couldn't save him."

It's all I can say.

"There was nothing more any of us could've done," she says. The way her voice falters and cracks shows just how little she believes her own words. They're a mantra, one she has repeatedly told herself over the years, hoping that maybe if she says it enough she'll believe it.

"Why? Why aren't you angry at me?" I snap. "I lived! And they didn't!"

Annie lets go of me and awkwardly looks me in the eyes.

"You've been out cold for awhile. I've had time to work out my feelings. Do you know where you are?"

I sigh, gesturing to the extravagance we find ourselves surrounded with. "I think anyone with half a brain cell would know. What happened to District 13? They chicken out or something?"

Annie frowns. "No, they did everything they could. It's just that after Cashmere... died..." Annie's eyes get a distant look in them, but she manages to pull herself back. "Things got complicated. Finnick's there. Beetee and Katniss too. I don't know where the other mentors are, but they're not here. It's just Peeta and-"

"Johanna?"

I turn around slowly, eyes narrowing at the woman in front of me.

"Enobaria."

The silence in the air hangs heavy as I lock eyes with my former friend.

"We need to talk."

The regret in her voice is obvious, and against my better judgement I follow her into her room, leaving Annie behind. I'm like a grenade, ready for my wrath to explode at any given moment, and I don't want Annie to have to see it. Enobaria closes the door behind us awkwardly. Tears leak from her eyes, but she doesn't have my sympathy.

"Just who do you think you are!" I snap, shoving her into the nearest wall. "You took everyone I had left from me! It's because of you that they're dead! What did the rebellion ever do to you? Huh?"

"Johanna I-"

"No, don't give me that… that crap! You betrayed us! This is your fault!"

Enobaria pushes me off of her, taking a fighting stance. "You don't understand."

"Don't understand what? The life of a victor in a spoiled district?"

Her next words change everything.

"The night before the Quell… Plutarch told us the rebellion was cancelled."

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Dun dun duuuuuuuuuuuuun!

First of all, I'm really sorry for how long it took me to finish this fanfiction. It was pretty irresponsible of me to put off updating for this long, especially since I knew exactly how it was going to end. I also want to thank everyone who's stuck with me for this long, whether you've followed, reviewed, liked, or just read it. It means a lot to me to know there are people out there who actually enjoy my writing, and every time I've gotten a notification from this website I can't describe how happy it makes me. I love you guys so much!

The first chapter of the sequel is already finished, and my intent is to post it at roughly the same time as I post this so it's easier to find.

I've spent the past two and a half years working on this story, and I'm pretty sad that I'll never update it again, but at the same time I'm ready to move on to the sequel. I have it outlined so maybe that will help with updates.

Last quote of the day!

"Years from now your grandchildren will look back on your camp notebook and read what grandma wrote on day three. I can't wait. I'll be dead." -my camp pastor on taking notes

May the odds be ever in your favor,

~Spectrobes Princess