Trigger Warning: There are a few upsetting themes in this chapter. I won't reveal them up here because they're a little spoilery but you can always PM me. If you've read The Bride and The Widow, you'll probably know a lot of what's coming. There are also a lot of spoilers for The Bride and The Widow. There are still a couple of plot twists that earlier chapters haven't revealed yet and this chapter will probably give everything away. This is your final warning.


Ramona Hirose, District 3

"Don't lie, I want him to know

God's loves die young. Are you ready to go?

It's the last time running through snow

'Cause the fire can't last and the winter's cold."

Vampire Weekend, Don't Lie


19 People that Ramona Hirose Lied To (And 1 Person who Lied to Her)

1. Yoji Hirose

Ramona Hirose sat in front of the TV, studying the reaping recap intently. So far, she'd only seen districts One and Two. She's not one to bet, especially since she's twelve years old and that would be very illegal, but her money would be on the boy from One. He looked down on his non-volunteer district partner like she was an easy target.

There was something selfish in his eyes that reminded Ramona of Silver Oberst from two years ago. He'd been so popular with the Capitol and, for once, Ramona could see why. He hadn't been arrogant or aggressive like most Careers, just quiet, mysterious and ruthlessly efficient.

By the end, Ramona had been rooting for him to win. She'd wanted an explanation behind Silver. Then he'd died and all his mysteries had been lost forever. She knew that the Capitol must've wanted to know the same things.

It would make it easier for them to control him.

There was a pattern to the Hunger Games every year. Usually, there were six powerful Careers and eighteen outliers. Different characters emerged. The angry one. The sexy one. The serial killer. The tragic victim. The innocent kid who never stood a chance.

Ramona wondered where she fit into the pattern.

Her father - a doctor - had taught her about the human body. He'd told her about the appendix, an organ that served no purpose, and was removed when it got infected. Everything else in the body helped to maintain the delicate balance that kept a human being alive. Every cell was adapted to its purpose.

Except for the appendix. It was the exception to the rule. The break in the pattern.

The outlier in the Careers.

Ramona knew that there was probably no point in wondering. She knew where she fit.

But she hated it.

Then the District 3 reapings came onto the screen. Ramona watched as Marcus Folkstone read out a name from the girls' reaping bowl.

"Ramona Hirose!"

I look so weak, Ramona thought, as she watched her past self mount the stage. They'd think I'm an easy target. That could be a good thing.

They'll never see me coming.

"Ramona, honey," her father sat beside her on the sofa and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Are you watching the reaping recap?"

"Yeah..." Ramona said, quietly.

"Aww, you don't have to watch that. You had such a scare today."

"It's okay," Ramona said. "I'm okay. I got reaped. Someone volunteered. I'm over it now."

That was a lie. She wasn't okay.

She wasn't sure she'd ever be okay again.

Her parents tried. They were smart people. But Ramona couldn't find the courage or the words to explain how being reaped had made her feel.

She'd never been good with feelings.


2. Lupa Hirose

"Ramona, what are you doing?"

Ramona heard her mother's voice outside her door and flipped through her notebook to the right page.

"I'm studying," she said, innocently. "There's a big test coming up."

"Well, dinner's in five minutes," her mother poked her head around the door. "Can I help you with anything?"

Ramona had learned the hard way how to negotiate this sort of situation. If she claimed to be doing anything to do with hardware, her mother would come in and help her and she wouldn't be able to get back to what she was really doing.

"No, I'm doing coding," she said.

"Ah, my weakness," Ramona's mother said, sounding disappointed. "They're always setting tests these days. Maybe I should call the school about it. That's a lot of pressure."

"Nothing I can't handle," Ramona said.

Her mother left and Ramona flipped back to the right page of her notebook.

It was true that Ramona was studying. It was true that she had a coding test next week. But she'd finished studying for that coding test two hours ago, confident in her ability to pass.

Ramona Hirose was studying for the Hunger Games.

She hadn't been able to stop thinking about it for the last four years. Her parents had been worried at first. They'd even booked her a therapy session. But now they realised that Ramona had already thought of a coping mechanism.

If she learned as much as she could about the Hunger Games, she'd be more likely to win it if she were ever reaped again.

Recently, though, Ramona had been wondering whether she should volunteer.

Last year's victor, Mercedes Matthews, had only been a year older than her. Finnick Odair, from the year before, had been a month younger than her. She was getting to the right age.

Now she focused on the task at hand. Her predictions for this year's games. How could she predict the actions of her opponents in the arena if she couldn't predict the actions of the tributes in this year's games?

The bloodbath had taken out several tributes, most of whom had been near the bottom of Ramona's table of predictions. The big surprise was Symmetry Laurent, the girl from District 1. Even more surprising, she'd been killed by Lumas Taffeta, the boy from District 8. He'd strangled her with one of his own shoelaces.

Nobody had thought of that before.

Ramona felt a little disappointed that the gamemakers probably wouldn't let that happen again. They'd definitely give tributes velcro or buckled shoes in the future.

Symmetry's death had turned Ramona's table of predictions on its head. She'd thought that Symmetry would win. She'd been the second favourite after Ageis Sacro, the victor's niece from Two, and Ramona had thought that Ageis was too obvious a choice. She was sure to be everyone's first target. Maybe it was just because Ramona rooted for the underdog, despite herself.

As for Lumas Taffeta, she'd expected him to come dead last. If his interview was anything to go by, he was rash and impulsive, a rebel who thought he was invulnerable. His training score of three had shown that he didn't have the skills to match his confidence. Ramona had been certain that he'd charge into the bloodbath and get killed.

But, of course, it was possible to hide your skills from the gamemakers.

Now that he'd managed to kill a Career, Lumas Taffeta seemed to be a lot more intelligent than Ramona had first thought.

Ramona started trying to put the remaining tributes in order of how likely they were to win. Most of them were easy. Outliers like Titus Ford at the bottom, Careers like Gold Meingutted at the top. But there was just one tribute she couldn't place.

Lumas Taffeta.

"What kind of game are you playing, Taffeta?" She whispered to herself, well aware that there hadn't been a tribute who'd broken the patterns so much since Silver Oberst.

There hadn't been a tribute she'd found so fascinating either.

Then her mother called her down to dinner.

"Coming!" Ramona called.

Maybe this was a test. After all, Ramona definitely wouldn't have time to think every decision through in the arena. Sometimes she'd need to act on instincts.

So she hurriedly scrawled Lumas Taffeta's name at the very top of the list.

She'd always had a soft spot for an underdog.


3. Dorian D'Arcy

Ramona had spent years studying Careers. She knew what kind of acts they put on, the painted masks that they wore. She'd used that to perfect her own mask.

Now she was in the Careers, she got to know her allies, how they worked.

Some she knew better than others.

Dorian D'Arcy, the boy from One, was the smart one. Ramona probably would've found it easy to get along with him had they not both been going into a fight to the death. Now they were in competition.

Over the first day in the arena, Ramona had watched Dorian grow quieter and quieter. It was clear that she'd become the smart one. She'd beaten him.

Unless he'd let her win.

Ramona knew that she had to keep an eye on Dorian. He'd never done anything directly against her but it was clear that she'd usurped his role by joining the pack. At some point, he'd want it back.

"What are you drinking?" He asked her, by the campfire on the first night.

"Tea," she replied, wrapping her hands tighter around the flask.

It wasn't tea. It was poison. She'd been building up an immunity since the first day of training.

"How'd you find tea in this arena?" He asked, glancing around at the snow surrounding them.

"The gamemakers develop muttations for plants so they can survive in harsher conditions. That's why you can't predict the arena from the edible plants station. The chances are that all the plants there will be in the arena but they won't be in their natural habitat."

"You actually went to the edible plants station?" Rake sneered. "Ugh, you're such a nerd, Hirose."

Ramona was tempted to say something smart but realised that it might tip her allies off that she was too smart for them.

"I like tea. It reminds me of home," Dorian said. "Can I have some?"

Ramona hesitated.

"I couldn't get any milk," she said. "Or sugar."

"Tea with no sugar?" Dorian asked, shocked. "How are you drinking that?"

Ramona shrugged. "It's how we like it in Three."

"What was that disgusting thing that Mink said on the train?" Régine asked, from across the campfire.

"I don't know," Dorian said. "There were several."

Régine laughed, darkly. "The one about tea. Apparently it was supposed to be..."

"As sweet as a virgin's lips," Dorian finished. "Now I remember."

"If I'd lost my virginity to Mink, I'd want my tea to be as sweet as the sweet release of death," Régine said.

The other Careers gathered around the campfire began to laugh. Ramona saw this as her cue to join in the laughter. Only Andesite remained silent.

"Remember how you made that kid beg for the sweet release of death?" The girl from Two asked Régine. "That was absolutely hilarious."

Régine glared at Andesite. "I don't see you on any kills, Andesite."

"That's cold," Diocletian, the only other Career with no kills, said.

"You have an excuse, babe," Régine leaned in to kiss him and the other Careers all whooped.

Ramona tried not to think about "that kid". "That kid" had once been a boy named Dellon Takeda. Ramona's district partner. Now he was a ruined corpse.

Ramona had been very lucky. She'd missed a dose yesterday, which had caused her to vomit earlier today. Had Régine not been disembowelling her district partner, it would've been very hard to explain.

She'd need to be more careful from now on.


4. Andesite Capaldi

Andesite Capaldi was the one Career who didn't have an act.

She was angry. She hated the other Careers, especially Régine. She had a strange respect for outliers. She probably hated the Capitol as well.

Tributes didn't put on an act like that. Not if they wanted to live.

By day three, Ramona was well aware that the Careers weren't doing as well as they usually did. The icy terrain had slowed them down in the bloodbath, causing Diocletian to be injured by the girl from Seven. They only had five kills between the seven of them and the freezing temperatures had killed off a good chunk of cannon fodder and kept them all huddled around a campfire, unable to hunt at night.

Diocletian, who'd been guarding their supplies since the bloodbath kept saying that he'd recovered enough from his injury to hunt. Rake, who'd become the alliance's unofficial leader, allowed him to join the hunt. The only question was, who would guard the supplies now?

"Can I do it?" Andesite stepped forwards.

"Anyone else?" Régine surveyed the group. She didn't want to leave Andesite alone with the supplies. Nobody did.

There was a short, tense silence. None of the Careers wanted to let Andesite be the guard but none of them wanted to take her place.

"I'll do it," Ramona offered.

"Are you sure?" Andesite asked. "Eli and Colin are pretty big."

"Eli Stonewall has the brains of a bull. I think I can take him," Ramona tried to mimic the confidence of the careers she'd seen in previous years. "As for Colin Birch, I killed his district partner. Maybe I'll make it a matching set."

The truth was that Ramona didn't stand a chance in a fair fight with the hulking volunteer from Ten or the tall lumberjack from Seven. She'd scored a nine in training mainly by lighting fires and showing off her poisons. She had two weapons at her disposal - fire and poison - and she could use them both expertly, which had been enough for her to get a high score.

But combat was Ramona's biggest weakness. It was something she hadn't been able to prepare for before the games. She hadn't needed any particular skills to sneak up behind the girl from Seven in the bloodbath and knife her in the back. Sylvia had been too focused on trying to kill Diocletian to notice that she was vulnerable to attacks from behind.

Ramona doubted that Eli or Colin would give her such an easy opportunity to kill them.

She also doubted that either of them would try to raid the camp this early in the games. Eli was too disorganised. Colin was too cautious.

The other Careers left Ramona alone with the supplies. Most of the pile was firewood. The gamemakers seemed to have anticipated that it would be vital. It would burn easily. Ramona had been sponsored a can of hairspray the night before, which she could easily turn into a flamethrower.

Now she just needed a way to burn the supplies without making her allies suspicious.


5. Philomena Petherell

Ramona didn't just study the Careers.

Philomena Petherell, the girl from District 12, had a similar background to Ramona. She came from a rich family. But their minds worked differently. Philomena seemed to believe that everything in life was handed to her on a silver platter. Ramona had never been complacent or lazy, even before she'd been reaped. After that, she'd always felt like she'd never been able to sit still. Except instead of her body being in perpetual motion, it was her mind. She'd constantly needed something to focus on.

Ramona had known that winning wouldn't be easy when she'd volunteered. If Philomena had known it, she'd been in denial for all of training.

Philomena stumbled up to the Cornucopia while Ramona was guarding the supplies. The moment Ramona saw the ragged figure on the horizon, she knew she had it.

The spark she'd need to start a fire.

"Ramona!" Philomena called, "I want to make an alliance with you."

"Really?" Ramona asked. This was perfect for her. "What are you offering?"

"My daddy's really rich," Philomena said. "Your daddy's really rich. Everyone else is a dirty savage. I can offer you money and cake and pretty, shiny things."

Ramona studied the girl. It looked like she'd lost her mind. Her blonde hair was a mess and her eyes were wild and staring. She'd lost her goggles. Snow blindness seemed to be setting in.

If she was just pretending to be useless, it was definitely a good enough pretence to put her at a disadvantage.

Ramona glanced around. No sign of the others.

"Okay," she said. "I was going to betray the others anyway. Come closer and I'll tell you a secret."

It was only a half-lie. She was going to betray the Careers. And she was going to tell Philomena something.

But the heiress from Twelve was more useful to Ramona dead than alive.

So when Philomena came close, Ramona stuck her knife into the other girl's chest.

"Here's my secret, Philomena," Ramona hissed. "When I was twelve, I was reaped for the Sixty-Third Hunger Games..."

It wasn't really a secret. Anyone who'd paid attention to the Sixty-Third Hunger Games would remember her.

But nobody paid attention to the little rich girls in pink dresses until they grew up.

Philomena would learn that the hard way. She'd never grow up.


6. Diocletian di Angelo

Ramona had expected Diocletian to volunteer for this games.

She'd first seen him three years ago, a smiling, skinny fifteen-year-old with unruly, black curls, being interviewed because his older sister was doing so well in the Sixty-Fifth Hunger Games. The Diocletian di Angelo who'd volunteered for Ramona's games had looked like a completely different person. He'd shaved his head and built up some impressive muscles.

He still smiled a lot but there was a sadness behind it. His sister had come second. So close and yet so far.

Diocletian - or Dio, as he preferred to be called - was deadly serious on the battlefield but became a joker the moment the fighting came to an end. He gave everyone ridiculous nicknames - apart from Rake, whose name couldn't really be shortened to anything - and flirted at every opportunity. Since Régine was the only one who flirted back, they'd formed a couple of sorts.

Ramona didn't really understand why. Feelings had always confused her.

Once Ramona had set the supplies alight, she set about messing up her clothes so it looked like she'd been in a fight. On the first day, it'd been so cold that showing any skin for more than a few minutes would be inviting frostbite. Now the temperature had risen so it was a little uncomfortable but not damaging.

Maybe the Capitol hadn't liked watching twenty-four tributes hidden in their clothes.

Ramona also took Philomena's district token - a silver silk purse - stained it with a little blood and pocketed it.

She'd need evidence, after all.

The other Careers came back after a second cannon. They looked a little torn up as well.

Andesite was gone.

"What happened?" Diocletian took in the burning pile of supplies. His eyes looked hard and serious.

"A mutt," Ramona said, trying to sound exhausted.

"A polar bear?" Dorian asked. "One of them got Andesite."

"Don't talk about Andesite," Diocletian growled. "Why are the supplies on fire?"

"While I was fighting off the mutt, Philomena set the supplies on fire," Ramona explained. "So I killed her."

She held out the bloodstained purse. Dorian took it and examined it.

"Seems plausible," he said.

Ramona felt relieved that the most logical and level-headed of her allies believed her. Now she just had to hope that the others wouldn't let their emotions rule them.

"Never mind if it's plausible," Rake muttered. "I don't see why we're keeping Three around. She let he girl who scored a one in training get the better of us."

Ramona tried not to show any of the fear she felt over the leader of the alliance referring to her as a number.

"Maybe she was lulling us into a false sense of security," Ramona said. "Look at Lumas Taffeta. He only scored a three."

"I didn't volunteer for a history lesson," Rake raised his spear. "You're a coward, Three. You didn't even have the guts to kill your district partner and you lost your lunch into the snow when Régine did your job for you. Give me one good reason why we should keep you around.

"I know how to find food in the arena," Ramona said.

That why she'd burn the supplies. The Careers would need to keep her around or they'd run the risk of starving. And when she controlled the food supply, it would be so much easier to poison everyone.

"We have sponsors," Diocletian said, with a laugh. "They'll feed us."

"Will they?" Ramona asked. "What have we done that makes us so sponsor-worthy? We've only managed to kill six tributes, most of our supplies are gone, you're injured and we've lost Ande-"

Suddenly, Diocletian lunged forwards and wrapped his hands around Ramona's throat, lifting her off the ground.

"You talk too much," he said.

Ramona realised that she'd made a mistake. She hadn't been able to predict Diocletian's emotions.

She'd never understood grief.

I'm going to die, Ramona thought, as she began to feel light-headed from lack of oxygen. I'm going to die. I'm going to die.

"Dio!" Régine cried. "Let her go."

"Guys, can we, maybe, have a vote?" Arethusa said, uncertainly.

"Okay," Rake said. "I vote kill her."

"Yeah!" Diocletian added.

"No!" Régine and Arethusa cried, pretty much in unison.

That just left Dorian.

He hesitated...

Dorian, Ramona thought, as her body begun to shut down. I don't know what he wants.

I don't know the answer.

Then Diocletian let go.

Ramona could breathe again. She fell to the ice, gasping for breath. Régine rushed over and help her up to a seated position.

"Mona," she whispered, using the nickname that Diocletian had invented. It was the only one she used. "Are you okay?"

She nodded, shocked.

"You're on thin ice, Hirose," Diocletian said, gravely.

"Literally... or... figuratively..." Ramona croaked. Her throat felt awful but she could still force the words out.

Régine chuckled.

As Ramona begun to recover from the shock of almost being strangled by her ally, she realised that she now had an advantage. She knew exactly who would turn on her first.

Diocletian and Rake.


7. Rake Slievenamon

Rake Slievenamon, the boy from Four, was Ramona's biggest rival.

She'd seen him before, giving an interview during the Sixty-Fifth games. She'd been hoping that he and Diocletian would clash, since he'd been best friends with Finnick Odair, who'd killed Diocletian's sister. But, if anything, the opposite was true. Rake hated Finnick Odair. He hated that his friend had stolen the spotlight and would do anything to steal it back.

It was unfortunate for Rake that his district partner and both the Ones had chosen to follow Ramona. Dorian and Arethusa were both cautious, more willing to follow the leader who could get them food. As for Régine...

Ramona had no idea why Régine would follow her. She was just grateful.

Rake was angry. Over the first week of the games, he drifted away from his allies. Diocletian was pulled along in his wake. Soon it felt like there were two alliances within the Careers. One between Rake and Diocletian and one between Dorian and the girls. Even Diocletian's relationship with Régine fell apart.

Neither of them seemed to mind.

On day eight, the one thing that could make Rake even angrier happened.

Diocletian was killed by Colin Birch, the boy from Seven. Even though Rake managed to injure the lumberjack and Dorian managed to finish him off, Rake was now alone in the alliance.

Colin's death also meant that the Careers were running out of outliers to kill. Ramona was running out of time. If all the outliers died, there'd be nothing stopping the Careers from turning on each other.

Any of them could easily beat Ramona in a fight. She needed more time.

There were two outliers remaining - Eli Stonewall, the brutish volunteer from District 10, and Renault Flint, the gangly boy with a stutter from District 6. The Careers had agreed that they'd band together to kill Eli but Ramona wanted to keep the alliance together for longer.

She wanted to guarantee that she'd be the first to strike.

"Do you think that Renault Flint is a threat?" Ramona asked, innocently.

"Six? He's cannon fodder. Simple as that," Rake shut her down.

"Is it?" Ramona asked. "What do you know about Renault Flint?"

"He scored a six in training," Rake said.

"He could barely string a sentence together in his interview," Régine added.

"His district partner scored a ten but she's dead," Arethusa said. "And we don't know how."

"It was probably mutts," Rake grumbled.

"He's from the same district..." Dorian began to say, before trailing off.

"What's that?" Régine asked.

"Titus!" Dorian cried, his voice full of fear and anger. "He's from the same district as Titus. Maybe they were friends!"

"That's a bad sign," Régine said, voice serious.

"Now, how do you think he's been able to survive so long?" Ramona asked.

"Sponsors," Régine said. "But not from his interview."

"From killing someone," Dorian whispered.

Ramona nodded. In reality, she was pretty sure that Renault was being kept alive by residual sponsors for his popular district partner, who'd been killed on the fourth night in the arena. There was every possibility that Renault had been responsible for one or more of the six deaths on the first night but that wouldn't have taken a lot of skill or effort. All those tributes had been young and weak.

Rake seemed to have the same idea.

"What if he got his sponsors from killing a twelve-year-old in their sleep. He can't be that dangerous."

"Do you think he would've got enough sponsors from that to keep him alive for ten days?" Ramona asked. "Think about it. There have been seven tributes who've died of causes unknown to us. Six of them scored lower than a six and probably wouldn't have earned Renault many sponsors. But one of them scored a ten, didn't she?"

"No..." Arethusa whispered.

"Put yourself in his shoes," Ramona continued. "You're an outlier with a speech impediment and perhaps the toughest act to follow in Hunger Games history. With giving a good interview out of the question, how are you going to make an impression. Are you just going to give up, fade into the background and wait to die or are you going to do the one shocking, despicable thing that Titus never got to do?"

"I'd kill my district partner," Régine said, quietly.

Dorian shuddered. "Outliers never kill their district partners."

"You couldn't," Rake sneered.

"I don't think we should underestimate outliers," Ramona said. "Just look at last year's games."

"Maybe we should wait to kill Six before we split up," Régine mused.

"I'd rather take him out than take my chances," Arethusa agreed.

"You're all cowards!" Rake snapped. "Back me up, Dorian. Or are you scared as well?"

Dorian hesitated again. Ramona knew that she needed him on her side. Rake, Régine and Dorian were the three best fighters in the alliance. Whichever side that Dorian chose would overpower the other.

"I..." Dorian looked conflicted but then glanced at Régine. "I don't want another Titus. Does that make me a coward?"

"Yes," Rake said, before thinking.

"So do you want another Titus or are you a coward, Rake?" Dorian asked, coldly.

Rake was speechless. He'd lost any control he'd had over the alliance. All because Ramona had told her allies about a theory she suspected was false.

She had no idea how Mazda Bakara, the girl from Six, had died but she suspected that Eli had something to do with it. Boys like that didn't get sponsors unless they delivered.

Girls like that didn't either. It was a good thing that Ramona delivered.

As the Careers hunted for opponents, Rake inched further and further away from the group. Ramona was a little worried that he'd run away.

But he never got the chance.

When Eli Stonewall burst out of a snowdrift, he targeted the one Career on the edge of the pack.

It was a stroke of luck.

As Eli held his knife to Rake's throat, Ramona's allies looked to her. The strategist. The leader.

She nodded to Régine, who fired an arrow at Eli. It hit him in the shoulder. The boy bellowed in pain and slit Rake's throat.

A cannon fired. Eli lunged straight at Ramona. She tried to jump backwards but his fingers caught on the front of her coat.

Then Régine threw herself at them. The three tributes toppled into the snow. Régine's knife went straight into Eli's wrist.

Ramona pulled free from the fight just as Régine started to cut Eli to pieces.


8. Arethusa Levinn

Arethusa Levinn, the girl from Four, was the weakest link.

She was the youngest of the Careers. She didn't have Ramona's intelligence, Diocletian's strength, Rake's speed, Régine's bloodlust or Dorian's skill.

What she had was enthusiasm. Lots of it.

She was in over her head. Out of her depth. And desperate to hide it.

Arethusa had latched onto Ramona from the very beginning. Ramona knew why. Arethusa had hoped that Ramona would be weaker than her. And, maybe in a more hospitable arena, she would've been.

But Arethusa had no survival skills. Unlike her illustrious mentor, she couldn't tie a knot to save her life. She was forced to watch the girl she'd brought into the alliance as a safety net take over. But she was still nice to Ramona. Maybe she thought that, if she was nice to her, she'd get something in return.

After Eli's death Renault became the only thing keeping the alliance together. Ramona decided that the time was right and put a handful of poison into the Careers' food. Nobody questioned her as she did it. She'd been sure to put harmless herbs into their food for the last few days.

Ramona woke up with a churning stomach and walked a small distance away from camp to vomit in a snowdrift. She tried to reassure herself that she hadn't accidentally killed herself. This was just a bigger dose than her body was used to. Her vomit looked like it'd done on the first day of the games - a pale, greenish colour.

No blood.

"What's up?" Arethusa asked, from where she was keeping watch.

"Stress," Ramona said. "I didn't expect to make it this far."

"Neither did-"

A cannon boomed.

Ramona turned to look at Régine and Dorian. Both asleep. Both alive.

Renault Flint had just died.

"Crap!" Arethusa squeaked, as she launched herself at Ramona. "Crap! Crap! Crap! Crap! Crap!"

Ramona landed on her back, Arethusa on top of her.

"Don't kill me!" She gasped. "I'll scream. We don't want Régine waking up, do we?"

Ramona didn't know if Régine would wake up if she screamed. She hadn't heard Renault's cannon. Clearly the poison was beginning to take effect. Ramona wondered what would happen if she was forced to scream for Régine. If the Ones managed to kill Arethusa before she killed Ramona, maybe she'd be able to convince them that Renault was still alive for long enough to kill them both.

But there was also a chance that Régine found out the truth and turned her knife on Ramona...

"Okay," Arethusa whispered. "Okay, okay, okay... Do everything I tell you and I won't gut you like a fish. Clear."

Ramona nodded. Arethusa hauled her to her feet and started tying her hands behind her back with the rope she'd grabbed in the bloodbath. Her knots were clumsy. Ramona allowed herself a small smile.

She knew how to untie a knot.

Arethusa pushed Ramona along in front of her. Ramona wasn't sure if the other girl had any kind of plan. It was a little scary. Both of them had taken off their goggles for the night and, once the sun rose, they'd both go blind.

Ramona was relieved when they both found a cave in the ice to shelter in. Arethusa had at least had the foresight to bring a flashlight, which she turned on as they ventured into the gloom.

A safe distance into the cave, Arethusa sat Ramona down against a wall.

"The Ones won't last a day without you," Arethusa said, kneeling down to face Ramona. "It'll be just us left, and then-"

Suddenly, she twisted around like she'd been struck and vomited all over the cave floor. There were dark red gobbets of blood swimming there.

"Why?" Arethusa asked. "What's happening to me?"

She looked terrified. Easy to control. Easy to manipulate.

"I think you might've eaten something poisonous. Did you eat anything that no-one else has had?"

Arethusa shook her head.

"Maybe we've all been poisoned," Ramona said. "Remember when I was sick earlier? And the Ones both slept through a cannon..."

"Am I going to die?" Arethusa asked, getting agitated.

"Probably," Ramona said. "You're the smallest of us so you'll be the least likely to withstand the poison. Unless... no, that's a stupid idea."

"Tell me!" Arethusa sobbed.

"Wiress sent me a medical kit on the first day. It'll probably contain an antidote. I buried it in the snow about a metre away from the tail of the Cornucopia. If you let me go-"

Arethusa laughed, hysterically. Blood dribbled down her chin

"I'm not falling for that. I can find it myself. I'll bring it back here for you. Don't worry."

"Okay," Ramona called, as Arethusa rushed out of the cave. "Hurry! I feel sick."

The moment Arethusa was gone, Ramona breathed a sigh of relief. She was alone and safe and all her opponents were dying from the poison. All she needed to do was wait.

But she couldn't wait.

Arethusa's puddle of bloodied vomit lay on the cave's floor, a reminder of the weapon that Ramona had just used. The smell of it was overwhelming.

Ramona could've sworn it was spreading towards her.


9. Régine Maurin

Régine Maurin, the girl from District 1 was Ramona's closest ally.

She was also the most terrifying.

If Careers existed on a spectrum, Régine was at the opposite end of the spectrum to Ramona. She was strong, wild and ruled by her emotions. She cared less about the politics of the alliance and more about the act of killing people.

Régine was everything that was terrible about Careers. She itched for the opportunity to kill and she tortured every outlier she could get her hands on. She was a warrior and a sadist.

Even the other Careers were scared of her. Especially Dorian, her district partner.

But that wasn't the worst part.

The worst part was that Régine wanted to be friends with Ramona.

And, even after everything she'd done, Ramona wanted to be friends with Régine.

It'd started on the second day of the games. Régine had sat down beside Ramona as she'd been building a campfire and started a conversation. It'd been shocking, how casual Régine had been around Ramona after she'd killed her district partner so brutally.

It was even more shocking how Ramona felt herself warming to the other girl. Régine had a softer side. She could be kind and loyal and gentle but she was only those things for Ramona.

For everyone else, she was a psychopath. Ramona couldn't stop her.

It wasn't worth risking her life to stop her.

Two cannons fired in fairly quick succession. Ramona had no idea which two of her former allies had died until about an hour later, when she heard the shriek outside her cave.

"Ramona!"

Régine was still alive. She sounded like she was terrified and in a lot of pain.

Ramona came up with a plan. She was going to put Régine out of her misery.

The poison was likely to be affecting Régine's vision and reflexes. Ramona covered Arethusa's discarded flashlight with her scarf, to dim the light in the cave. She kicked at one of the small icicles sticking up from the cave's floor and took the shards in her hand.

She was only going to get one shot at this.

"Régine..." she called. "Help..."

"Ramona!" Régine called back. "Where are you?"

"I'm in a cave," Ramona answered. "I'm trapped. Please... help me..."

As Régine stumbled into the cave, Ramona threw the shards of ice into her face. Régine screamed and fell backwards, feet skidding on the icy floor. Ramona darted forwards, snatched the knife from her hand and stabbed her.

Ramona looked her dying friend in the eye and knew that she'd given up.

"Oh, Ramona," Régine gasped. "I always knew you'd be the one. You'd kill me."

"Why did you save me?" Ramona asked. "You saved me from Diocletian and then you saved me from Eli. You could've just let them kill me."

"I couldn't," Régine said. "I'm in love with you."

Ramona had never understood love. She knew that she loved her parents and her parents loved her but that was just basic human instincts. Romantic love... It defied logic and patterns and everything that Ramona believed in.

She couldn't see why Régine had fallen for her. Maybe she could ask Gajin about it.

Part of her wondered if she loved Régine back. She'd been the one warm and comforting thing in the arena. But Ramona wasn't sure. All she was sure of was that she loved life more than she loved Régine.

All she could do was tell the truth.

"That's... a terrible strategy," she said.

"I know," Régine sobbed. "I couldn't change it. I tried, Mona. I tried. I can't change who I am."

Ramona thought of how easily Régine had drifted away from Diocletian. Had their relationship been a lie?

"Nobody can," Ramona whispered.

"You're not disgusted?" Régine asked. "You don't think I'm a monster?"

"You're only a monster when you kill," Ramona said. "You're not one because you love me."

Régine smiled. Her skin was almost grey from the poison, especially pale due to the blood that streaked her face and matted her blonde hair. That couldn't just be her blood. She must've killed one of the others, most likely Dorian. Last time Ramona had checked, they'd been together.

But even with all the blood and sickness, Régine's smile was the most beautiful smile Ramona had ever seen.

"Can you take me out of here?" Régine asked. "I don't want to die in the dark."

"Okay," Ramona whispered. She helped Régine stagger out of the cave and into the sunlight. The sun was setting over the horizon. The snow drifted down, gently.

"I feel like I've been blind my entire life," Régine said, sadly. "Why couldn't I see it sooner?"

Ramona didn't have time to answer. Régine's body went limp in her arms.

The trumpets blared and Ramona let all the emotions that she'd been hiding for the entire games - all the joy and anger and guilt - overwhelm her.

She'd won.

But she'd never felt more lost.


10. Caesar Flickerman

"Now, last time I interviewed you," Caesar Flickerman said. "You told me you'd explain why you'd volunteered next time we met. I must admit I was hoping you'd win just so I'd find out."

Ramona exhaled, trying to steel herself as the audience cheered.

"I suppose you all deserve to know," she said. "I volunteered because I knew I'd win."

The truth was that Ramona couldn't admit why she'd volunteered to anyone. Not even to herself.

She'd been so obsessed, so desperate to unravel the mystery of the games. And when the younger sister of the girl who'd saved her life by volunteering had been reaped...

There'd been nothing stopping her.

Ramona wasn't sure when she'd first realised that her obsession was costing real people their lives. It'd really hit her somewhere between that long, long wait in the cave with Arethusa's vomit and Régine's death. It scared her.

She was the real monster.


11. Alexander Snow

Ramona Hirose woke up beside her boyfriend and wondered how she'd managed to get a boyfriend so quickly. She knew, of course.

It had started with a letter from President Snow, the words Your duty as victor is to spend a night with my grandson, Alexander. Then one night had led to a second date, a second date had led to a third, and a fourth. Now she'd moved into his house.

Ramona would've said no to everything if Snow hadn't been threatening her parents.

Sometimes she wondered if Alexander knew that his grandfather was forcing her into this relationship. He acted like he didn't. He acted like they were just a normal, happy pair of people falling in love. It was pretty clear that he didn't want to hurt her.

One night, she'd had a nightmare about her games and Alexander had gone out of his way to comfort her. He'd wrapped her up in blankets and made her a cup of peppermint tea and she'd felt happy and safe.

Ramona watched the morning light spill into the room through the curtains. She felt Alexander pull her closer as he woke up.

"Ramona," he murmured, sleepily. "I love you. Do you love me back?"

"Yes," Ramona said. "I do."

She didn't.

She liked Alexander. He didn't love him.

She didn't know if she was capable of loving someone.

But Alexander was nice to her. She'd eased into this relationship with him and she knew that she could do a lot worse.

She didn't believe she could do any better.


12. Fawkes Chau

It was rare that District 3 got a tribute who had a shot at victory. This was the first time since Ramona's victory, four years ago, that District 3 had two.

The male tribute this year was named Fawkes Chau. He'd turn nineteen on the first day of the games. He was tall, handsome, intelligent and very competitive.

Ramona wished that he was the tribute she was supposed to keep alive. But he wasn't. Fawkes had a plan and, since she was mentoring one of his opponents, he didn't trust her to know it.

The only time she saw the boy behind the mask was after the interview.

Fawkes had stepped onto the stage for his interview and lit up like a firework. He'd had the audience in the palm of his hand, despite only scoring a six and being stuck between two girls who'd scored a ten and an eleven respectively. He'd charmed the Capitol with wide eyes and clever words.

Fawkes Chau had a shot at victory, not because he was a fighter or a survivalist. He was a showman. He knew how to play the crowd.

He came back to the District 3 floor, glowing with pride over his success. Ramona barely had time to greet her tribute, Binah, before she stalked off to the shower to wash away all the makeup. She didn't expect Fawkes to talk to her, since he'd been sticking to just polite greetings for the last few days. But he did.

"Did you like my interview?" He asked her.

"Yes," Ramona said. "You couldn't have done anything better."

Fawkes' interview had made Ramona really uncomfortable. It wasn't just because it had distracted the Capitol from Binah's interview. It was because Fawkes had set himself up. Ramona knew what the Capitol did to good-looking victors. What some victors went through on a yearly basis made Ramona's arranged marriage to Alexander Snow seem tame.

She'd never figured out why President Snow had singled her out. Maybe it was just because her games had been on the fiftieth anniversary of his presidency.

Fawkes smiled. "Thanks. That means a lot to me. I hope we can be friends after I win."

Ramona smiled back, trying to hide her shock that the boy had just casually used the words "after I win".

Fawkes Chau was definitely up to something.


13. Manel Lobos

Manel Lobos was the boy who'd won the year after Ramona. Ramona didn't know him that well, only because he made friends with Finnick pretty quickly. But she knew enough about him to know that he was upset and she owed it to him to apologise.

After all, her tribute had killed the boy that Manel had fallen for.

Nobody was quite sure when Manel Lobos had met Fawkes Chau. Finnick suspected that it was the night before the games. All that everyone was sure of was that Manel Lobos had fallen in love with a tribute from another district, who'd gone on to die in second place with Binah Katayanagi's knife in his throat.

After what that mutt had done to him, nobody could really blame Binah for putting the poor boy out of his misery.

Ramona knocked on the door of Manel's room only to find it unlocked. She walked in to find Manel sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a syringe in his hand. She knew what was happening.

"Manel," she said, gently.

The boy looked up from the needle in his hands. His eyes were full of a great, dark emptiness, the kind usually only found in the eyes of older victors. Manel was only nineteen, just about old enough to not be a tribute. He was too young to look so broken.

"It's okay, Ramona," he said. "This isn't your fault. This is my fault."

Ramona was about to say that Fawkes' death was all her fault. The games had been rigged this year. For years, President Snow had been trying to murder his grandson. He'd married Ramona off to Alexander in the hope that she'd kill him. Then he'd taken matters into his own hands and poisoned Alexander himself. But he'd needed to keep Ramona out of the way and that was where the Seventy-Second Hunger Games came in.

Fawkes had been rigged into the games because the gamemakers had wanted to keep Ramona occupied while her husband had been killed. They'd known that he'd do well. The same applied to Binah but Ramona didn't feel so much guilt over her since she'd survived.

But Ramona didn't have the courage to tell Manel the truth.

"I... I can help you," she said. "I know what it's like to lose someone."

Manel shook his head. "You've lost someone, Ramona. I've lost everyone."

"I can make you better," Ramona said. "Like I did with Lumas."

She knew that she couldn't.

Manel knew as well.

"Go ahead," Manel said. "Bring Fawkes back. While you're at it, bring my father and my brother back as well. Put my mother's tongue back in her mouth. Undo all the times that I was forced to have sex with a Capitolite. You don't know what it's like being used like that every year, like you're an object or an animal. Neither does Lumas."

"What about Fawkes?" Ramona asked. "What do you think they would've done to him if he'd won."

"I would've protected him!" Manel cried. "We could've escaped it all together. Now there's no escape, except for one."

He looked down at the needle in his hands.

"Manel, it'll destroy you," Ramona warned.

"Maybe I want to be destroyed," Manel muttered.

Ramona knew that she couldn't save him. Lumas had never wanted to destroy himself like that. He'd always fought his addiction. Manel seemed to be giving up before the fight had even begun.

Ramona left him and began her long walk to the Remake Centre. She wanted to see Binah - one of the two people she'd been able to save. Maybe she'd find Lumas and ask her to come with her, just for support.


14. Coriolanus Snow

Ramona Hirose sat before the president in his office. He'd one been her grandfather-in-law but now Alexander was dead they were cutting all ties with each other.

"Ms Hirose," Snow said, just using her maiden name. She'd never really been part of the family. "I hope you understand that, when it comes to the lives of my family, your status as a victor means nothing. It would be easy for me to stage another suicide attempt, this time a successful one."

"I understand," Ramona said.

"Did you know that you were pregnant with my great-grandchild," Snow asked. "When you took poison?"

"No," Ramona said, her voice hollow and detached. "I just wanted to die."

The real question hung in the air, unspoken.

Why did you kill your baby?

And, if Ramona had no choice but to answer, she'd have said that it was because that was more merciful than whatever Snow would have done to her child. Snow would've taken them away from her, twisted them into whatever he wanted them to be.

And if they hadn't been what he'd wanted them to be, he'd have had them killed, just like Alexander.

But Snow had no evidence. Ramona's father had disposed of all the evidence. And there'd been plenty of evidence backing up Ramona's suicide attempt. After all, her husband had just died.

"I trust that you'll never make an attempt on your own life again," Snow said, menacingly. "I imagine it'll take a great emotional toll on your friends and family. I wouldn't want any of them to suffer, especially given that some of them have a long history of self-destructive behaviour. Wouldn't it be awful if Lumas Taffeta fell back into his old habits?"

"It would be," Ramona agreed. "It won't happen again. I promise."

Ramona kept her promise. She never faked a suicide attempt again.

But she faked other things.


15. Lumas Taffeta

Ramona felt a shiver of excitement as the train pulled into District 8's station. Four years ago, she'd come here on her victory tour. She'd met Lumas Taffeta, the boy who'd won the year before her, and she'd promised herself that she'd help him recover from his morphling addiction.

Even then, she hadn't been able to predict how close they'd become.

Now she'd promised herself that she wouldn't tell him the truth.

Lumas was waiting for her on the platform. As Ramona stepped out of the train, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. Ramona wondered what the Capitol would see when they saw them both together. Would they see a romance where there wasn't supposed to be one?

Ramona also knew that she had a bit of leeway since she'd almost killed herself a few months ago. She could afford to be a little closer to Lumas than she usually was in public. Most people knew that they were friends. Their tributes had allied every year since Ramona's victory.

But some of the things they'd done in the Control Centre, when Lumas had been an addict and he'd needed someone to support him, might've shocked the Capitol, especially since Ramona had started dating Alexander Snow on her victory tour. Sometimes, when Lumas was overwhelmed by trauma, the only way to help him was to hold him close and whisper to him that he was safe, that he'd won, that he was strong and brave and honest and he deserved to get better.

Now Ramona felt closer to District 8's most recent victor than she'd ever done with her husband.

"Ramona," Lumas whispered. "I thought I'd lost you. I thought..."

"I'm sorry," Ramona said. "I made a mistake. I won't do it again."

Ramona was sure that she hadn't made a mistake. She'd made the right choice. Even if it had cost her her child. Even if it had cost her her parents.

She'd survived and Snow would never be able to threaten her child.

"Do you want to tell me why?" He asked.

"No," Ramona said. "I don't."

She wanted to tell him why she'd taken poison. She really did. She knew that Lumas really cared about her and the fact that it looked like she'd tried to kill herself must really hurt him. She wished that she could tell Lumas that she'd planned everything out so she wouldn't die. She'd diluted the poison and made sure that her parents were nearby to make sure she got taken to a hospital.

But if she told Lumas that she'd faked a suicide attempt so she could get away with poisoning her unborn child, it'd make him angry. Not at her but at the people who'd forced her into that position. The Capitol. The President. And when Lumas was angry, he acted rashly. He'd get hurt. Maybe he'd even give her secret away. Then they'd punish her and he'd be left to face his guilt.

"It's okay, you don't have to tell me," Lumas said, gently. "I was just wondering if there was any way I could protect you."

"Lumas..." Ramona looked up into his eyes. They were sky-blue and full of pain and hope. "When I blacked out... I thought about you and I decided I didn't want to die. I wanted to see you again."

She couldn't stop a sob from escaping.

That wasn't a lie.

Lumas let Ramona cry on his shoulder. Binah left with Cecelia to start her tour of the District and the cameras followed them. Ramona knew that she should probably go with Binah for her tour. She also knew that District 8's victors all liked Binah. She didn't need her mentor to support her like she'd done in Nine and Ten.

Ramona was only going to get one day with Lumas before they were separated for another six months. She was going to make the most of it.

"Where should we go?" Lumas asked.

"I don't mind," Ramona whispered. "As long as I'm with you."

They walked away from the station together, hand in hand.


16. Finnick Odair

Ramona watched Binah's tribute die in the bloodbath. She didn't react. She was used to death by now.

Binah was a lot more vocal, screaming a string of curses.

"Damn!" Finnick Odair cried from the seat next to Ramona's. "What's wrong with Eleven?"

"His name's Thresh," Ramona said, quietly. "There's nothing wrong with him."

"He just killed Argo," Finnick said. "In the bloodbath. There's definitely something wrong with him."

Binah stopped swearing and turned to glare at Finnick.

"Well," she said. "The same can be said for Severine because she just killed Envie. In the bloodbath."

"Yeah, but she's..." Finnick trailed off. He was well aware that Binah didn't believe in Career privileges. He turned to Ramona. "Did your girl ally with the boy from Eight again?"

"Yeah," Ramona said, glancing at the boy who was rushing towards his fallen ally. "Well, Envie's technically Binah's tribute. I'm just her backup mentor."

"Yet still the urban alliance continues," Finnick let out a low whistle. "What's going on between you and Taffeta."

Ramona shrugged. "Gajin and Woof were friends. We're just carrying it on, I guess."

"Okay," Finnick said, with a wink. "I'll leave you two city slickers to it."

Finnick must've known that there was more to Ramona's friendship with Lumas than just urban districts. But he kept it to himself.

One of the first things Ramona had learned as a District 3 tribute was not to punch above her weight. Not to take on someone tougher than her. Not to bite off more than she could chew. She'd followed that rule during her games, sticking to easy fights whenever possible.

Trying to explain to Finnick just how complicated her feelings for Lumas Taffeta had grown would be punching above her weight.


17. Beetee Latier

"Right," Beetee said. "Here's the plan. I'm going into the arena. Wiress is going to volunteer to come in with me unless she's reaped."

"I could do it," Binah offered.

"You'll be needed in the Control Centre," Beetee said. "Where the computers are."

"Ah," Binah said. "I get you."

"Wiress and I are going to try to break out of the arena. We don't know exactly who'll be in the alliance yet but we have the support of Four, Six, Seven, Eight, Eleven and Twelve. We're going to need you both to keep at least one of us alive. It shouldn't be too hard since Johanna and her district partner will be assigned to protect us."

"Cool," Binah nodded. Out of all the other victors in the Control Centre, Johanna was probably her best friend. They were both twenty-one and angry at the world.

"Binah will be in charge of disabling the Capitol's security systems - and any system she can, really. Wreak havoc."

"Yes!" Binah pumped her fist in the air.

"Ramona will be in charge of disabling the pro-Capitol mentors," Beetee continued. "All the mentors from One, Two, Five, Nine and Ten could be a potential threat. They'll need to be taken out non-lethally with poison."

"Okay," Ramona said, quietly.

"Now, I know that Granitte Sacro and Coco Montclaire are both highly likely to be there," Beetee said, his tone level. "We all know what they did. If they find out that we know, our entire plan could be in jeopardy. Don't talk to them. Don't confront them. Just act normal."

Ramona and Binah both nodded.

"Are we all okay with the plan?" Beetee asked.

"Yes," Wiress said.

"Yeah," Binah said.

"Okay," Ramona whispered.

But there was one word that bothered her.

Non-lethally.

Coco Montclaire had tortured her parents to death. Snow had forced Ramona to watch a video of it as a punishment for her suicide attempt. But Coco had been wearing a mask, her voice digitally altered. It was only through Binah doing some digging that Ramona learned the true identity of her parents' killer.

What Granitte Sacro had done had been even worse. Ramona had been expecting her parents to die for her actions. They'd both agreed that they would willingly sacrifice their lives for her. But Granitte Sacro had murdered Lumas Taffeta. That was what had really turned Ramona to the side of the rebellion. She wanted revenge. She wanted to tear the Capitol down, brick by brick. She wanted to make Granitte Sacro suffer.

Ramona is pretty sure that she was in love with Lumas.

Now she'd never know for sure.

She'd put non-lethal poison in the other pro-Capitol mentors' drinks. Enough to make them weak. Enough to make them sick.

But, if Granitte Sacro and Coco Montclaire were still in the Control Centre, they'd get a little something extra.


18. Wiress Plummer

Ramona stood before her mentor - her tribute - on the last night before the games.

"I'm... scared..." Wiress said.

"Don't be scared," Ramona said. "I'll get you and Beetee out of there. I'll give you everything I have."

Wiress smiled. She knew how much effort Ramona usually put into mentoring.

But Ramona wasn't going to put the effort in this year.

Her mind was full of revenge...


19. Binah Katayanagi

Wiress was dead. Gloss had slit her throat open before being killed by Katniss Everdeen. Beetee was still alive but he was in Binah's capable hands.

Ramona had no reason to stay.

She'd mentored her tribute and her tribute had died. She'd spiked the pro-Capitol mentors' drinks. She'd done her job.

Apart from one part. Coco Montclaire had been away when Ramona had spiked the drinks and, now that Cashmere was dead, she knew that Coco wouldn't come back.

Ramona looked across at Binah, the girl she'd mentored to victory. A ray of hope in the year that'd cost her so much. She was crying.

"I need to go outside," Ramona said. "I need some space. I'll come back."

Ramona Hirose never came back.

She drifted around the Capitol like a ghost, poisoning whoever she thought deserved to die. She was never caught. Ramona was too clever to be caught. And she'd been planning something like this for years.

Ramona didn't let herself rest until the Capitol had fallen and President Snow had choked to death on his own blood. Then she wondered what to do. She couldn't go back to District 3 to face all those ghosts.

So she fled to the north. To the frozen wilds that were so much like her arena.

Ramona Hirose lived the rest of her life without telling another lie.

How could she? There was nobody left to lie to.


1. Lumas Taffeta

Lumas Taffeta walked to the station with Ramona Hirose every year. He hated this walk. Even though it was great having Ramona with him, at the end of this walk, they'd be separated for another year.

This year had given Lumas hope for a better future, though. There'd been two victors, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark. Times were changing.

Maybe they'd change enough for Lumas to be able to live with Ramona. Maybe they'd change enough for him to be able to tell her how he feels about her without being afraid that someone would hurt her.

"Did you enjoy the games this year?" Lumas asked Ramona.

"I spent the whole time beating myself up over Gideon," Ramona said. "He should've known that the Careers don't trust us to join the pack. Not after what I did."

"What about the victors?" Lumas asked.

"I think it's a little early to discuss the victors," Ramona said, carefully. "Especially here."

Lumas chuckled. Before he'd met Ramona, he hadn't been able to laugh without hearing Titus. Now his laugh was his and his alone.

"Nobody's around," he said.

The street was deserted. Most of the people had flocked to the city centre, to celebrate the new victors. They were alone. It was true that Lumas felt the Capitol breathing down his neck, wherever he was, but they couldn't do anything to him that they hadn't done already.

The only person he had left was Ramona and she was a victor. She was safe. They couldn't hurt her.

"I still don't feel safe here," Ramona said, quietly. She played with her wedding ring, the one that she still wore. "I don't know how you can stand being here so long, after what happened..."

She knew what they'd done to him. Lumas couldn't keep a secret from Ramona. He'd told her through tears about how he'd spent her games high, how he'd woken up in a stranger's bed after being used and he didn't even know the names of the people who'd used him.

"Why do you force yourself to stay?" Ramona asked, eyes wide.

To be with you, Ramona. Because I love you. Because you're kind and smart and you saved me from myself.

And I'm scared that every time I see you will be the last time.

"The air's cleaner," Lumas said. "I love my district but it's a bit of a dump."

He knew Ramona. He knew that, in her mind, logic conquered all, not love. So he gave her something she wouldn't question.

They passed through the train station and onto the platform. Lumas took in the sight of Ramona next to him - the tilt of her chin and the dark waves of her hair, how pale her walnut-brown skin looked when she dressed in black. She always wore black, these days. People avoided her because she was still mourning her husband. She said that that was how she liked it but Lumas worried about how desperate Ramona was to shut out the world.

Ever since she'd poisoned herself, he'd been scared that she'd try again and that she'd succeed. It couldn't have been because of her husband because she'd never loved him. It couldn't have been because of Binah because she'd survived the games. Lumas didn't want to force Ramona to tell him the truth but it hurt him that she wouldn't tell him why she'd tried to kill herself.

He'd always felt like he'd owed her everything. If she died, if there was no way for him to save her, he'd never forgive himself.

Lumas stood before the train doors. He'd always been awful at goodbyes.

"See you next year," he said.

"The Third Quarter Quell," Ramona said, awestruck. "See you there."

She gave Lumas a quick kiss on the cheek. A goodbye kiss. She'd done it the year before, out of politeness, probably.

Some selfish part of Lumas wanted more. They stood, frozen on the train platform.

I don't want to leave you, Lumas thought. I want to see you every day for the rest of my life. You don't have to love me, Ramona. I just want to be there. So if you ever need me, you can find me.

"May the odds be ever in your favour, Ramona," the train doors opened and Lumas climbed on. The gap between the train and the platform always caught him off guard. He turned before the doors closed and took in the image of Ramona on the platform, looking so small in her black dress. This would be all he'd see of her for the next year, before the games reunited them again.

If he'd known that it was the last time he'd ever see her, he would've told her everything.

But he didn't know.

Lumas Taffeta died a couple of hours later, wishing that he hadn't lied.


I'd made a lot of plans for Ramona. Instead of just focusing on her games or her life after The Bride and The Widow, I decided to do everything which is why this chapter is so long. It's kind of split into two parts - Ramona's games and the aftermath.

Ramona starts out as a cold and calculating Career and then develops a conscience as her kills become more and more horrific. I had fun developing all the other Careers in Ramona's games. They're some of the first characters I've ever written, which is probably reflected by how many references I put in their names. They're all tragic villains, especially Régine. There's something about her that reminds me of Killmonger from Black Panther (which would make Ramona T'Challa). She does bad things because she's lost her way. It doesn't excuse all the bad things she's not the only one responsible for how villainous she became. I think there's a possibility that Ramona might have returned Régine's feelings. Ramona's demisexual and she definitely developed a bond of sorts with Régine but the Hunger Games got in the way of any relationship they could've had. The only character that Ramona really ends up falling for is Lumas.

As for Ramona's life after her victory, this sheds some light on her suicide attempt for all of you who haven't read The Bride and The Widow. Ramona becomes the centre of a great big political conspiracy, which ends up killing most of her loved-ones. Then Lumas is murdered, just as he and Ramona are starting to figure out their feelings for each other. The biggest downfall of their relationship is that both of them are uncomfortable with feelings, mostly because of how the Capitol treated them. It's kind of a sad ending but at least Ramona gets her revenge and she actually survives the rebellion. She's the only victor who I'm confirming survived. She's perfectly equipped to survive in the northern wilds.

Also, there's a sign of what's to come next chapter. Manel was a hard character for me to fit into The Bride and The Widow since he's pretty important to Fawkes, who only has one POV and spends the rest of the story just hiding everything from everyone. Next chapter will give Manel the moment in the spotlight he deserves. It probably won't be as long as this chapter but it might be quite long.