District 12's First Victor

Epilogue - Six Months Later

This is it. I have finished District 12's First Victor! Wow... I've been writing this for over a year now and to finally have finished it is just crazy... Thanks to all of you who have been reading this and have put up with my super duper irregular updates! I have a couple of fanfics I want to get out of the way (that I have started) before I write the sequel, Victor's Punishment' but I will get there. For now, enjoy this final chapter and feel free to read a few of my other stories in the mean time (no harm in a tiny bit of self advertising, right?). Thanks again and enjoy :)

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"See you in a few weeks," I tell Thorne and give him one last kiss.

It's the day of the victory tour. For the next twelve or so days I will be travelling around the country, giving speeches, going to parties in my honour, etcetera, etcetera. Sounds pretty boring, if you ask me, though I do get to see the other districts.

"You have to tell me all about it when you get back!" he says as we pull away.

"I will," I promise him and we go our separate ways: he heads to the town square to sell some of our game and I head back home to the victors village.

I push my way inside to see Lavendar and my prep team have already arrived. They are early.

"Anya" Lavendar calls and hurries over. "How are you?"

"Good," I reply with a smile.

"Are you ready for the tour?" she asks and my smile fades slightly. I don’t really want to go but I don’t exactly have a choice.

"Yeah, I guess," I reply, hoping I sound more excited than I feel.

"Great!" she exclaims before her gaze turns serious. "Before we start, you have a visitor waiting for you in the study."

"Oh, okay," I say. Who would be visiting me before the tour. And what for?

I push the door of the study open and am faced with the president. There is a small boy there, too. That must be the president's son. I freeze in the doorway, not entirely sure what I should do. Are they supposed to be here? Is it normal for the president to visit on the day of the tour? Or is something wrong?

"Miss Hart." the president says as he notices me standing in the doorway. "Come, take a seat."

He gestures to the seat opposite him so I walk slowly towards it. I have a feeling this isn't a friendly, 'good luck on your tour' visit.

"I just wanted to talk to you about your recent victory in the hunger games," he tells me after I have taken a seat.

Great. I know now where this is going. He must have found out about my leaving the arena. This is going to end really badly.

"I think you should know, that I am aware of your escaping the arena and your use of a pre-made shelter and items which were unknown to our gamemakers,"

I was right. He has been told. Or maybe he just worked it out himself.

"You do realise, Miss Hart, that this cannot go without punishment?"

"Yes, Sir," I reply.

The little boy looks up at me as I speak and I give him a small smile. To my surprise, he scowls back at me.

"Cheater!" he calls loudly.

The president turns to him and looks at him sternly.

"Coriolanus. Don't be rude to our victor," he instructs and the young boy squirms under his father's gaze.

"If you want to punish me," I say, bringing their attention back to me, "why don't you just get it over and done with and kill me now. It seems to me that that's what you want: to kill me. I should be dead, after all. I should have been killed in the games but I cheated."

He looks at me with a smirk on his face.

"Oh no, Miss Hart," he replies, "that would be too… Obvious. Too easy. No, I have found a better way to punish you as a mentor in the next games. Good luck on your tour."

"What do you mean?" I ask but he  has already left the room, Coriolanus in tow.

"Cheater!" Coriolanus calls again and I hear the president outside the room call to his son angrily before the little boy leaves me alone in the room.

I stay seated long after they have left. What does he mean about punishing me as a mentor in the next games? How can he punish me by making me a mentor? Isn't it compulsory for me to be one anyway?

As I head back out to join Lavendar and the prep team, I can't stop worrying about what president Snow said. Really, there are no limits as to what he can do. Anything to punish breaking the rules.

Victor's Punishment. Coming Soon.