The story's not done yet! In case anyone is reading, I'll certainly be writing more chapters, about the future and such. I'm not sure how far I'll go, but I really am enjoying writing this story. (: But yes.. I love writing about romance so it'll probably focus on Annie and Finnick's relationship and the rebellion.

Annie POV

I'm traveling through the seemingly never-ending forest when two cannons go off. Did the district 1 girl get them? I shiver as I realize we're down to the final two. I'll have to fight her. A week ago, I never would've imagined this. I thought I'd die before the final ten or so, and if not I thought I'd make that happen after Dorien's death. But now I'm holding on because of Finnick. I don't know if he still loves me, but I still love him. It'd be so easy for him to let go of me, but it's not the same for me.. I allow myself to imagine winning. Is it really worth winning, without Finnick? I know he killed in his Games but I don't know if he'll be able to cope with the fact that I killed almost effortlessly. That's not me… it was in the heat of the movement. But if he thinks otherwise…

Suddenly, the memories hit me. I clutch my head and wince, cursing internally. This has been happening ever since I finally got up from my constant nightmares. One moment I'll be fine, and the next moment Dorien's lifeless body will fill my head. Other times, it's the pretty District 2 girl. Or the District 9 girl, a knife wedged in her spine. Or the… I shake myself and continue moving. I'm moving slowly, making my life last as long as I can, when the loudest noise I have ever heard in my life fills my brain. It sounds like a clap of thunder over the ocean, but multiplied by a hundred. No, multiplied by a thousand. A rushing, loud burst follows. What is that? It sounds vaguely familiar.. but yet..

Water. It sounds like the ocean. My scrambled brain finally puts two and two together. The volcano. It must have erupted. It wasn't filled with lava, thankfully. It was filled with water. Water! My weapon. The one thing I knew better than anyone else. The one thing I could not be beaten in. Suddenly, a massive wave explodes on me. I'm not sure if even I can handle such rough water. Trees are coming down all around me, and I can see rocks and bushes and animals floating past me. I throw off most of my clothes besides a tank top and rip off the lower part of my worn, already torn pants. The less weight, the more of a chance you have in the water. The water is familiar to me, and soon there is nothing but me in the waves. I'm swimming perfectly, avoiding objects tearing past me skillfully. I'm cut a few times but the water helps to numb any stinging pain. I wonder how District 1 is faring, and I hope she's already drowned. It'd be easy to miss a cannon in this…

But I realize if she were dead then I wouldn't be swimming anymore and I'd already be crowned victor. Hopefully this is the end. Whether she dies or I die, it'd be cruel to lock us into a fight while both of us have surely lost our weapons due to the flood; and it wouldn't be an entertaining fight anyway, if she's as soaked and as exhausted as I am. Though I love the water, I'm about to give up and just let the blue waves overcome me when I see a bit of salvation. A tree. It's tall and not quite knocked over nor submerged from the flood. I push myself as furiously as I can manage, and as I'm about to float past, grab one of the branches. This is the only tree in sight, and if I had missed it, I'd surely be already dead. I wonder, has the District 1 girl found a spot above water, or a tree like I have?

But I'm proven wrong as a flash of blonde hurtles my way. Her face is blue, and she's barely above water. She reaches the branch, and lifts a shaky hand up. Her face is horrible scarred, and blood stains the water where she floats. She's wounded. She's asking for my help. For my mercy. As I glance at her, I make the hardest decision I've ever made in my life. I think of Dorien's untimely end, I think of Finnick and I. I think of the life I deserve. The life she deserves. But I will not give up Finnick for this girl, this girl I don't even know. This girl that killed Dorien and many others. I've already won. I can't imagine dying now. "I'm so sorry," I mutter, and all hope leaves her eyes. I know her face will haunt me for the rest of my life. But I gently push her fingers off, and watch as a few feet away her injured body falls under water. Her last breaths are futile wheezes, and there's only a few seconds before lack of oxygen takes her life. A cannon rings out, and the words I thought I'd never hear ring out.

"I present to you Annie Cresta, victor of the 70th annual Hunger Games!"

I start to cry, tears of sadness and relief. As long as I live, I will never forget the other 23. I will make sure they always reside deep in my heart … especially Dorien. They died so I could win. They were young, and all of them had their lives ahead of them. They didn't deserve to die this way. As the hover-craft comes to gather me, I take one last glance at the arena that will forever hold part of my soul. Could it have only been a few days ago that Dorien and I were discussing strategy and our tokens? I gasp as I realize I've forgotten the token. I slipped it from him before I fled… the scene. I hopefully search for something in my soaked back-pocket, and find it. Dorien's token. I'm so overwhelmingly glad that I have this little piece of him, this little piece of his sister. I slip it around my wrist, unclip my charm bracelet and slide my wedding ring onto my finger. As I'm lifted, I take as many mental shots as I can of the arena. It's shockingly sad how badly I want to hold onto a place that was hell for me. I turn away from the arena and suddenly I'm engulfed into Capitol employees. A syringe is stuffed into my arm, and my thoughts are of Finnick before I black out.

I wake up. I think I'm allowed to go, as no white-masked people poke a needle into my arm and no tubes are running out of my body. There's a full-size mirror in my room, and I examine myself in it. Thankfully, nothing has really been changed. My hair, skin, and eyes look incredibly shiny and flawless; but it's nothing I can take pride in as it was done by fancy Capitol doctors. I'm not surgically altered, which is a shock. Some past victors have been altered so extremely that they look like different people, and it has never went over well with the Districts. Suddenly, everything comes rushing back to me. I'm a victor. I'm alive. I'm free.. for the rest of my life. Finnick and I will be together for the rest of our lives if he still… wants to be with me. A wave of memories suddenly floods me and I clutch my abdomen and cry out. District 1. I could've saved her.. but I killed her so I could win… I remember her blue eyes suddenly becoming blank and horrified as she realized she was dead. I wasn't saving her..

The rush of memories moves on and I bitterly realize that though the Capitol may fix any physical flaws you have, there's absolutely nothing they can do about your mental flaws. I'll have to live with this.. this pain. I step into the hallway and hesitantly head down it's long stretch. I'm thinking I'll have to go back to my room and wait when a door opens. It's Finnick. His eyes widen and we head towards each other, slowly. Before he can say anything, I interrupt. "Finnick, if you need some space.. I understand," I mutter, trying to hide my building emotions. I expect him to agree, to pat me on the back, say congratulations, and leave. But he scoops me up in his arms and lifts me up off the ground. "Are you crazy? I love you. Nothing will change that," We kiss and I start to cry, tears unmasking my relief, pain and uncertainty. He strokes my hair, choking up himself. "Annie… I know. I know. It's okay, now we both understand," His eyes are sad but we continue to embrace. I know both of us are thinking of our Games, those other 23 that died. Some of which we killed.

"Whatever happens, remember that I will always be there to guide you through it," Finnick murmurs, I agree, saying the same thing. As we walk down the hallway, he takes his hand in mine, and we grip each other as tightly as possible. Both of us are wearing our wedding rings, and we share a secret smile. I'm also wearing my mother's bracelet and Dorien's token.

My life will surely be filled with suffering, pain, and hardship. Always acting pretty and unbothered in front of the cameras. Acting like I don't care about the 23 that died so I didn't. Acting like no memories haunt me. But as the warmth of Finnick's hand tingles through my body, I know I'll never be alone. And it makes being a victor just a bit easier.