A/N: The last chapter, but not the end! To keep reading where this road goes, my next story, "Empire of Bones," will continue Samantha Parker's journey as District 10's victor of the 98th Hunger Games as she struggles against disturbances in the Capitol's undercurrents and her own fears and memories. Hope to have you on board! I'd like to give a thanks to everyone who's read and stuck with "From Dust to Dust" through all these chapters, reading what is my first completed fic for the last month. You guys have been great. Special thanks to my reviewers; every bit you guys give me helps me grow as a writer and produce better work. Thank you for it all!
As a side note, this epilogue will be written specially in Sam's first-person voice.
I'm still haunted by President Octavian's words.
His black beady eyes see through my sleep and prowl around the dark shadows of District 10 when I'm awake. What will he do? I was a perfect little victor – followed every rule I could, obeyed the unwritten laws of the Games, gave a good show. Yet I can't help but feel as if my journey hasn't come to an end; it's just beginning.
Everyone in District 10 tells me I'll be okay. They're there for me when I can't control myself. Clay and Clara see me daily after they work, helping me to stay sane enough to keep on going. I swore to Storm I'd fight on and live, but all I can think about are regrets and nightmares. Laredo was right. Coming home isn't a victory; it's just an ease of the pain that will never go away.
That's not saying it's all bad. I am finally home.
Jake kept his promise. As I stepped off the train and onto the platform in District 10, he caught me in the biggest hug I'd ever gotten. I immediately fell into a wreck; wracked by the happy kind of tears that don't stop once they've started. For a moment I didn't care about the cameras that broadcasted that to all of Panem. My brother and I had found each other again. I had been strong enough to get out of the killing ground that had eaten twenty-three tributes alive and returned to the only people who still loved me.
Well, that's not really all true. Agrippa says he'll call me in my new house in the Victor's Village, but he hasn't in the week I've been home. Augusta's still back in the Capitol as well, and for all the annoyances and grimaces she made me wear, I know she was looking out for me. It's weird to think back now. For all the times I thought I was alone in the arena, so many people were watching me and invested in my success. Clara's family had started a collection that had brought in modest sponsorship. It hadn't done great, but it had paid for that meal after Laredo's death.
Still, I can't get the little things out of my mind. The big things, either.
Clay hates to leave me, but I feel like a traitor every minute I spend with him. We've always had a good relationship, but Storm made me feel whole and warm inside. I told the boy from District 12 I loved him and gave him my first kiss. Now he's dead; now I can't even think about loving again without a burning seed of resentment gnawing at me. I don't know what to do.
Dallas tells me most of these things go away. Cheyenne laughs and tells me to get drunk and it'll pass; she's already traded in her smoking habit for drink. I don't really know what to think, however. Jake's there for me every time I need a shoulder to cry on; a person to vent to. He's there with a hug and a caress as my rock, my older brother who won't let me down. I know between him, my friends, my mentors, and my future, I'm not alone. I can honor my promise to Storm – I can remember how to live again.
Because as much as I want to deny it, my journey's just beginning.