Ramona

"Is he okay?" I ask Silver, as he ties an unconscious Lumas to a chair.

"Yeah," Silver says. "I just knocked him out. He should wake up in a few minutes."

Régine and I came to Silver's house because we needed somewhere for me to hide before I left Panem forever. Régine and Silver were close allies in the Quell so I knew he'd want to help. We both hid in his basement when Lumas came.

I didn't want to see him again. I knew he'd convince me to stay.

Now I wonder if I've made a mistake. Lumas looks so peaceful now he's asleep. All the anger is gone. He looks different. His hair is dyed black and he's shaved his beard. He looks more like himself than he did last time I saw him. Maybe we do have a chance of starting again.

But I have to go. I have to get out of this country while I still had a chance. I have started so many new lives, tried so hard to adjust. I've been a victor. I've been Alexander Snow's wife and then his widow. I've been a rebel. I've been a prisoner.

If I've learned one thing, it's that nothing lasts long in Panem. And I'm sick of all the change. I just want a life that lasts. I want to live without fear of being uprooted again.

That's why I need to leave.

"I should go before he wakes up," I say.

Régine engulfs me in a hug. I asked her if she wanted to come with me. She said she'd rather stay. She doesn't want to give up on finding a girlfriend. She was worried I'd be lonely, living in the frozen wilds. I told her I'd be fine.

"I'm going to miss you, Mona," she says. "Have a good life."

"You too, Régine," I say. "I hope you find someone who loves you."

She pulls away. There are tears in her eyes.

I walk out of Silver's house and into the world. The snow begins to fall as I walk through the streets of District 7. Nobody I walk past recognises me. I'm buried under too many winter clothes. I feel weightless.

The shed I'm looking for is just on the edge of the forest, far enough in for nobody to see me. My feet crunch in the snow as I walk towards it. I unlock the door with numb fingers.

Inside is a sledge loaded with supplies - warm clothes, firewood, preserved food. It should be easy for me to survive in the frozen wilds. They'll be just like my arena, except I won't have to kill anyone. I might never see another human being ever again.

But it hits me that I packed for two.

My original plan was to run away with Lumas, not to run away from him. This was my backup plan if the rebellion failed, my way of ensuring we would always be together.

I feel tears in my eyes and realise that I'm making a mistake.

Lumas and I may never be able to recover our relationship but I can't just abandon him without saying goodbye. I loved him. More than I could ever love anyone. We had something precious for years and I can't just throw it all away.

I rush to lock the door and find myself running through the snow, back the way I came. I need to find him.


Lumas

I wake up tied to a chair and remember exactly what happened. Silver drugged me. Just before I lost consciousness, I realised that Ramona was in his house.

"Where is she?" I ask.

"She's gone," Silver says.

Anger flares up within me. If he's hurt her in any way, I'll destroy him.

"What did you do to her?"

"Nothing. She left because she wanted to leave."

"Let me go," I cry. If Ramona's gone, it must be because she's trying to leave Panem and, if she gets far enough away, I might never find her again.

"No," Silver says. "Ramona told me to keep you here while she got a head start. She said she didn't want you following her."

I realise in that moment that I am never going to get her back. If I let her go, she'll run away. If I follow her, she'll run even faster. As much as I want things to go back to how they were before the war, they never will. Ramona will never believe in me.

I should just accept that she's leaving. Not because she's being snatched away by some villain but because this is her choice. If I don't let her have a choice, I'll be the bad guy.

"Okay," I say, trying to fight the tears. "I… I understand. You can untie me. I won't go after her."

"Where will you go?" Silver asks.

I don't know. The only things that mattered to me were Ramona and the rebellion. Ramona's gone. Ever since Fawkes was taken, I've lost hope in ever freeing my country. I have nowhere to go, nothing to do. I've failed at everything.

I start crying. I cry so much I can't breathe.

I don't notice Ramona until I hear her voice.

"Silver," she says. "Untie him. I want to talk to him."

I look up, blinking away my tears. She's standing in the doorway, flakes of snow in her hair. She looks so beautiful.

"You came back," I say, as Silver starts untying me.

"I wanted to say goodbye," she says.

"So that's it?" I ask. "You're leaving?"

Ramona opens her mouth to speak but no words come out.

"I don't know," she says. "I don't know what I'm doing. Lumas, I just want you to be happy."

"Then stay."

"What if I can't?" She asks. "What if I just don't feel safe in this country anymore?"

The last of the ropes fall to the floor. Sliver backs away. "I'll give you two some space."

I stand up and take a step towards Ramona. She doesn't back away. She wraps her arms around me. For a second, we both just hold each other, crying silently. I'm so glad to be close to her again. Then Ramona pulls away.

"What are we doing, Lumas?" She asks. "What's the plan."

"I don't know," I say. "I don't know if I'll be able to protect you anymore. I let Coin bomb the Capitol. She told me to kill Fawkes and I couldn't. I tried to protect him but… he's gone. I'm sorry."

"I should be sorry," Ramona says. "I dumped you. I gave up on us. I just really wanted you to be happy and I knew you couldn't be happy with me. That's why I started dating again. But…" she sighs. "I didn't feel anything for Monita. We went on one date. We're not going to miss each other much. I… I still feel something for you. I'll always feel something."

Hope sparks within me.

"Even though I asked Cashmere out?" I ask.

Ramona's eyes widen with surprise but she composes herself. "I told you to move on. You did."

"Even though I let Fawkes down?"

"You tried to save him."

"Even after the war?"

Ramona takes a deep breath. "I want to believe you've changed. I want to love you. I just can't stay."

I sigh. I reach into my pocket and pull out the necklace.

"I went to your house," I say. "I'd watched you escape the bombing. I wanted to find you and Binah told me that was where to look. Part of me knew… you'd never come back. So, I took this. I told myself that, if I ever found you, I'd give it to you. So… when you're gone, you'll have something to remember me by."

I hand her the necklace. She uncorks the bottle and sniffs it.

"Mint," she says, softly. "My favourite. Even after everything, you still know me."

Ramona smiles at me. My heart flutters. Something inside me wakes up, a connection that I thought was destroyed by the war.

"Run away with me," she says. "I don't want to leave you behind. We don't belong in Panem, Lumas."

"Do you still love me?" I ask.

She looks me in the eye, hesitant. "I… don't know. You've changed. We've both changed. Everything is changing. But you're still… wonderful. I don't know. I just don't know anymore."

I'd know that look in her eyes anywhere. She's overthinking it. That's her weakness. She's obsessive. I'm impulsive. She holds me back from doing stupid things. I help her move forwards when she's stuck in one place. That's how we've always worked together. That's how we've been able to stop each other from falling apart over the years.

That's why we belong together.

I know what I have to do. I'll give her an opinion and let her agree or disagree.

"Fine," I say. "You don't love me-"

"I do!" Ramona blurts out. She grabs me by the shoulders and kisses me. The world disappears. There's only us.

We break apart, breathless. There are tears in her eyes.

"You fixed everything," she gasps. "How did you do it so fast?"

I press a hand to her cheek. "I know what went wrong. I got caught up in my desire for revenge and I destroyed everything. But I don't want to destroy things anymore. I want to make you my entire world. It would be an honour to run away with you."

Ramona smiles the most beautiful smile I've ever seen. "There's just one thing I want you to do before we go. I always wanted a real wedding. I never thought it was fair that I had to marry Alexander Snow but never got to marry you. I've wanted to marry you since the first time we kissed. I knew, if we'd known each other for so long and we loved each other, through the good times and the bad times, it would last forever. I was going to ask you when the Capitol was defeated but I might as well do it now."

I gasp. I've been dreaming of marrying her for years. I didn't think it would ever happen, especially not today.

But it's happening.

"Do you really want that?"

Ramona nods. "I'm never going to love anyone like I love you. I want everything I had with Alex but… real."

"How do we do it?" I ask. "If we go down to the Justice Building and get a certificate, people will know we're still alive."

"I don't need it to be official," she says. "There won't be anyone to say we're not married. I just want something."

"Okay," I say. "Here's what we're going to do. I'll say the District 8 vows and you can say the District 3 vows. Then we'll be married."

I pick up one of the ropes that Silver left on the floor.

"Give me your hand," I say.

Ramona gives me her left hand. I give her mine. Carefully, I wrap the rope around our wrists. I try to remember the vows. It feels like forever since I've been to a wedding.

"Ramona," I say. "I love you and I will always love you. Our lives are woven together. I will do everything I can to make you happy, even if it is just keeping you warm every winter. Normally, this is the part where I'd say I'll look after you but I know where we're going and I know you'll be the one looking after me."

I hesitate. The next part of the vows don't quite fit what I want to say.

"I bind you to me in marriage," I say. "But I don't want you to feel bound to me. I know how much your freedom matters to you and I never want to be the one holding you back. I don't want our love to be a tether. I want it to be a lifeline. So you can walk as far away from me as you want and still be able to find your way back if you want to. Do you take me to be your husband?"

"I do," Ramona says. "My district doesn't really have a traditional set of vows. We value science more than romance. But what I feel for you can't be explained by chemistry or biology. I love you and my love keeps me from being a machine. So I promise I will always love you. Do you take me to be your wife?"

"I do," I say. "I now pronounce us married. May I kiss you?"

"You may."

I lean forwards and press my lips to hers. The rope slips from our wrists. I've never felt so close to her in my life. I've never been happier. We're married. She's my wife.

"Rings!" Ramona cries, suddenly. "We need rings."

"We can get rings," I say. "You don't want anything too expensive, right?"

She nods. "As long as you're my husband, I don't care what the ring looks like. Can I take your last name?"

I understand what she wants. Ramona never chose to marry Alexander Snow. She was forced to take his last name and add it to hers, like she was only half married. Now she's chosen to be fully married. She's chosen to give herself to me completely.

But I have a better idea.

"Why don't I take yours?" I ask.

Ramona's eyes widen. "Lumas Hirose…" she whispers. "That's perfect."

We kiss again and I give up on Panem. There's no use clinging to this doomed country anymore. I don't care if I have to run away.

If I'm free and I have Ramona by my side, I'll never look back.


This chapter was a rollercoaster. This AU started with Ramona and Lumas falling in love. Even though their relationship was tested by the war, they never completely fell out of love with each other. They just lost connection with each other and, now they're reunited, their connection is reforged stronger than ever.

So, this is the end of the story for Ramona and Lumas Hirose. I'll probably give them an epilogue and end this AU with the love story that started it but this is when they leave Panem forever. Ramona will never be reunited with Binah but, if Binah manages to escape Coin alive, it's likely that Régine will tell her that her friend is safe. This isn't the ending I originally had planned. I considered letting Lumas convince Ramona to stay. I also considered killing them both off. But I thought this would be best. Ramona's abandoning Panem just like she did in the main universe but, this time, she's not leaving alone.