A/N: 127 days it has been since I released the prologue.

Vidia Ciele

Victor of The 149th Hunger Games, 17, Female

I groan as I sit up in a hospital bed. I hear some noises and turn my head to see Powder and Mahria, making out, they stop as they see me and Mahria stands up, leaving the room.
"Vidia! You're awake." Powder cries and rushes over to me. Powder had been transferred from District 1 as a kid and volunteered to represent 2, I don't know why this pops into my head but it just does. "Don't feel like talking? Save it for the coronation." She replies, not waiting for a response.

A few minutes later, Mahria comes rushing back in with a doctor. She flips her dirty blonde hair and wears a smile that goes from ear-to-ear.
"We're so proud!" She laughs and kisses Powder on the cheek. The doctor pulls out some wires and I look to see that they were attached to some kind of plastic arm. I'm reminded that my arm had been cut off, I try to move the mechanical arm and it's easier than I expected, but it'll still take some time to get used to.

I'm informed that we're on a hovercraft, hovering over The Capitol, and we'll be landing shortly for the coronation. Oh boy, that'll be great, I think. I feel a prick in my other arm and see a needle come from it, probably some extra anesthetic. Suddenly, I feel a jolt and realize that we've landed, Powder and Mahria enter the room and tears start to run down my cheeks and into my mouth.
"No, please, don't take me!" I cry out to them. Their faces are filled with sadness but they pick me up anyway.

An Hour Later

My prep team finishes up my make-up, gushing and congratulating me. I don't care anymore, I have to go out there whether I like it or not and I may as well make a good impression. Mahria and Powder come to take me to the stage and I shrug them off, I can do this myself.

I am greeted by the horrific faces of The Capitolites as I enter through some velvet curtains, I see a green-skinned woman ushering me over and I take a seat beside her.
"Why, look who it is. The Victor of The 149th Hunger Games, Vidia Ciele!" Applause deafens me and stops just as quickly as it had started.
"H-hi Medea," I answer and the crowd stays silent. "I can't believe I won," I add and the applause starts again, I just need to please them.
"Hi, Vidia. Now, first off, we're going to ask you some questions, then, we'll watch the replays, and, finally, you'll be crowned. Is that okay with you?" No, no it isn't.
"Yes," I say.
"Amazing! The first question, do you regret killing Kliar?" The crowd erupts in chants, like, tell us! tell us! I let myself take a moment to breathe, how could she ask me something like this.
"Of course, I regret it. As long as Loren was telling the truth."
"Oh, so you're using names? Don't hear careers do that often, are you a career, Vidia?" Am I a career? 4 kills isn't a bad amount, right?
"Yes, I'm a career. Can we ask some sensible questions now?" I blurt out and The Capitol laugh, at least I'm pleasing them, that's all that matters.
"How about we move onto the replays?" She asks and the crowd answers for me with their shouts and screams.

My chair automatically turns around to a humongous screen behind me. I take a deep breath as the video starts at the bloodbath. Xavier stabs the boy from 3 and is then wiped out by Lex, blood splatters everywhere and I feel horrible as I see Lex's face. He falters for a second before running, leaving a lifeless boy on the floor. Next, I see my own face, throwing a knife at the honorable boy from 11. If he hadn't gone back in, he would've made it out alive. It's heartbreaking to watch the girl from 12's head roll across the ground and a smiling Brooke, staring at it. The 10 girl is, unexpectedly, murdered by the high placing 12 boy. The next thing I see on the screen is the nervous face of Kliar, murdering the girl from 9. I know now that he didn't want to do that.

On the first day, the boy from 9 drops a sword into the girl from 8's head and grabs it, running off. Then, I watch the moment I had been dreading. They had purposefully, made it a longer clip than the rest. Kliar asks Loren for advice and he says...he loves me. I feel tears dripping into my mouth and I almost stop breathing as the knife plunges into his heart. I want to scream, I want to shout, and I want to run but I know I can't. Instead, I whisper,
"I love you too."

I wipe the tears from my eyes and cheeks, making myself look barely presentable. I only just see the district 6 girl get stabbed in the back by Dylan, and the silence as the careers stare down at her dead body. I had wished I was there, but I'm glad I wasn't. The boy from 9 is mercifully killed by the girl from 3, I see that it hurts her to do it.

It skips right to day 3, where I see my former ally -Caesar- get eaten alive. It's horrific and, although I hated him, I wouldn't wish such death on anyone. The girl from 3 is, unluckily, in the wrong place at the wrong time. Fortunately, they had enough sense to let her die quicker than suffer. I wish I could've known better, having death almost put on me has really changed my mind about things. The sky is dark but the Capitol tech makes it so I'm able to see the girl from 7 sink into the sand and hear the cries of her lover, as she is engulfed.

Another, death and this one hits quite hard. I liked the company that Dylan and Brooke provided and it was terrifying to watch as Lex stabbed her in the stomach, luckily Dylan has enough brains to get out of there. What had become of Dylan? The eventful night explains it's self. The boy from 6 is, blindly, shot in the neck by an arrow and the boy from 8 makes the mistake of revenge and charges but is quickly stabbed by Sapphire, these girls were really slaying it. Maybe if I had allied with them...No, I can't think of maybes now. My question is answered as Dylan stabs the girl from 11 in the chest by a sword and then shot in the head by Loren. The girl from 11 dies about 30 seconds after. Maybe, Loren deserved the death I gave her? Having killed one of the closest friends I had had in the arena. No, no one deserved the deaths they got, Loren didn't have a choice. But I did, I think, as I watch myself stab her and try to revive her, the tears start to gain back into my eyes but I hold them back.

Finally, the last day and then this horrific video will end. I wince as the boy from 12's neck is cracked and I take a deep breath. The boy from 7 is then stabbed in the waist, after stabbing Sapphire in the hip. The boy from 7 died not long after and then Sapphire followed, not making a sound. My eyes sting as I watch the whole fight between me and Lex, I just contain a scream as I watch my arm gets cut off. I close my eyes and hear my sword get sliced into his neck.

The crowd erupts into screaming and shouting, I can't even hear myself think. Medea gets up from her seat and quickly rushes off the stage, I stand. I knew what to do, I had seen it done many times before. The crowd begins to stop their celebration, as Remus comes out. He gives me a warm smile and I look at both of his hands, one holds a green, spiked crown (probably made from cacti) and the other, a box of chocolates. I had never seen a box of chocolates given to a victor before.
"Congratulations, Vidia Ciele, at your victory of The 149th Hunger Games!" He places the crown on my head, it fits perfectly. I had always dreamt of this moment. He whispers in my ear as he hands over the chocolates, "from the head gamemaker, she wishes you the best." I nod in thanks and look at the box.

Congratulations Vidia Ciele,

Felcia Tyla

"Go on, eat one! You must be starving." He's right, I am starving, but something seems off.

I open the box, anyway, and take out a bar of small chocolate, in the shape of a crown.
"To my victory!" I cry and put the chocolate into my mouth. It's dark chocolate, or something of the sort, not my favorite. It actually tastes rather disgusting. Suddenly, my head starts to spin and I spit the chocolate out, but it's too late. The crowd goes silent (at least it does in my ears) and I fall to the floor. My eyes are forced closed.

I had been poisoned.

A/N: That was a fun chapter to write! I hope it was fun to read, as well. Just to be clear, the next chapter/epilogue, will be set after the first few prologues of The Hardest Choice.

I don't really have any questions.

See you in the final epilogue, and then the obituaries.

-James