Sky Levings POV

I learned one thing from the others right away. We all wonder who would have lived if we had died. The Careers just don't care, but the rest of us never forget.

Pray and Hyden were all set to take me for a night on the town as my initiation, but cooler heads prevailed. It was Mars who knew what I needed most. I had no idea a Victor so hulking and stoic could be so poetic. He took us all out to a river deep in the gardens behind the Games center and showed me how to fold a delicate paper crane. He guided my hands as I clumsily imitated him, and he worked patiently with me until I mastered the skill.

"That's one," he said. "Twenty-two more." I knew where he was going, and I named each crane as I continued. They seemed to change and take on the personality of the Tribute they embodied. Mars had brought thin paper in dozens of patterns, and I chose according to the Tribute they symbolized- purple for Yasmine. Bright bunches of cherries for Priscilla. Fish for Castiel and the same frenetic splatter pattern for Vera and Whyte. While I worked, Mars was lighting candles and putting them on wooden boats. He set them down on the water and they lit the scene magically.

"Ready?" he asked as I set the last one down. I tried to speak, but tears stopped me. The others pressed around me protectively.

"It's all right. Start with yours," Mars said. I took out Rapture's crane and held it in my hand.

"I'm sorry," I said. I set it on the water and it drifted lazily in the current. Next was Margo's, its fire pattern reflecting the candlelight. Then came Alex, and then Priscilla's. Four apologies for four debts I could never repay but couldn't heal by holding forever. After them, I let out all the others, one at a time. The current bunched them together and they floated away like a group of sailors. It wasn't my place to let them go, but I was the only one left. One by one, the candles flickered out, and the other Tributes faded into the distance.


I spent a lot of time with the Victors after that. Mostly the ones with the most damage: Mars, Drone, and, to my surprise, Soleil. I'd never heard the full story behind the fire she set. She and I were closer than I ever guessed.

The Victors all told me the same thing. We all made mistakes. Some of us, mostly Careers, chose to be here. Others were chosen. None of us knew what we were getting into, and we couldn't keep blaming ourselves for what happened. We weren't the enemy. The ones who made us play were. I knew I was going to live with guilt forever, but they gave me the strength to go on. The consequences of our mistakes were forever, but so was whatever we did with our new lives. I could be sure to share my new riches and use my influence for the betterment of my District. I could tell anyone who might follow my example what it meant and maybe stop them from taking their own lives. I was a Victor now, for better or for worse. I got what I wanted and I was determined to make the best of it. I had a lot to make up for, but I had a long life ahead of me.


I didn't intend to make an elaborate initiation for Sky, but the crane idea came up from an old Asian tradition I knew and it just fit. So ends another Hunger Games. Honestly, I wasn't feeling this one at first. The Tributes weren't inspiring me, and I thought it was going to be flat. Then they all just exploded in development and character. The Games took off like a shot and never stopped surprising me. Sky will be a dynamic and developing addition to the other Victors, and it will be wonderful to see her again next year. Thanks for reading, thanks for participating, and thanks in advance for coming next time.

SPEAKING of next time, stay tuned for details, which I am writing even as you read.