{A/N: This is the finale! It doesn't seem real that I started this story in May 2012, and now it's 2013! Ahh! I am so thankful for everyone who read this story. Without you guys, I probably wouldn't have had the determination to finish this story. I had so much fun with it, and I hope everyone was pleased with the results. I put a lot of time and effort into this last chapter. I wanted to make it special. I hope you enjoy it. So, for the last time, happy reading!}

District 9 – Alby Blossom

"How does it feel to win the Hunger Games, the most prestigious and powerful competition game in all of Panem? How does it feel that you, Alby Blossom from Distrct 9, survived the entire course of the Games, beat all of the competitive enemies and finally won and will return to your loved ones in District 9? Tell us. How do you feel right now?" Caesar Flickerman asks me as I sit in the comfortable stage. The stage lights beat down on my face and I gaze out into the crowd.

How do I feel? How would anyone feel right now? Glad, happy, blessed? I wish I didn't have to answer so many questions. It's like I'm a celebrity. Well, I guess, in a way, I sort of am a superstar, but I don't feel glamorous. I'm still the same old Alby. I'm not handsome. I'm not ultra-tough with muscles. Sure, I know how to fight now because of the Games, but the girls back home won't want to date me. I'm still the same old dork I was when I left District 9.

"Alby? When someone asks you a question in an interview, the polite thing to do is answer it," Caesar says with a laugh. He looks out into the audience and they laugh along with him. I shift my posture in the chair and nod my head.

"You're right, sir. I guess I abandoned my polite manner a long time ago in the arena. You don't win the Hunger Games being polite," I say, attempting to be joking and playful. It must have worked because Caesar is laughing, causing the audience to mirror his actions.

"Very nice response. So, how about you answer the questions now?" he asks me.

"Well, I guess I feel like anyone would feel. I'm happy and blessed I made it out alive. It was kind of weird. I never thought I would beat Jolie. She was a tough competitive, but I'm here now. I get to go home. I get to see my family and friends again. Life is good right now," I tell him. The audience claps and I smile at them. This isn't so bad.

"Well, that is a very nice answer, Alby. Now, you've been bullied all your life, am I correst?" he asks. I sigh and nod my head. Yes, he's right about that.

"Yeah, that's right," I answer.

"The bullies won't be able to beat you now. You're the victor of the Hunger Games!" he shouts. The audience applauds and stands up in admiration. I smile and nod my head.

"I hope you're right about that," I say. Caesar looks over to his right at President Snow. He smiles and nods his head. He turns and looks at me.

"It is now time to crown our beloved victor," he says.

I stand up from my chair and walk to center stage. President Snow walks over to me with a beautiful crown. Jewels cover the gold lining of it. I smile and look at him. I've never been this close to President Snow. I don't know if I should be afraid of him or not. He is intimidating. With one snap of his fingers, he can have someone killed. Just like that.

He places the crown on my head and steps aside. He stares into my eyes and nods his head. The audience applauds and screams my name.

"You're a very lucky man," he whispers to me. I smile and nod my head. I can't disagree on that. I am lucky, lucky to be alive.

Before I know, I am on the train heading back to District 9. I don't know why, but my hands are shaking with fear. Deep down, I know the reason why I am hesitant to return to my home. I just can't bring myself to say it.

"What's wrong, Alby?" the district escort, Sven, asks as I slouch in my chair. I shake my head and run my hands through my hair.

"I'm okay," I tell him.

"Excited about going home?" he asks. I sigh and nod my head.

"Yeah, I am."

I sit back and close my eyes. There is one person on my mind. I know I should be thinking about my family, but Ritneli is the one person I can think about right now. Ritneli, my beautiful best friend, might be dead. I don't know who she is right now. I don't know what happened with those bullies. Whatever it was, I know it wasn't good.

If Ritneli isn't there when I get home, I don't know what I will do. She is my best friend. She always used to be stronger than me. She beat the bullies. She stood up for me when I was being beaten to death in the school hallways. She comforted me when I had a bloody nose. She would pat my hand and tell me everything would be okay. She did it all. The one time she needed me, I wasn't there. I wasn't there to help her. I wasn't there to tell the bullies to mess with someone else. I wasn't there. I was in an arena, fighting for my life. I fought for her, but if she died, I fought for no reason. I need my best friend.

The train slowly comes to a stop. I sigh and stand up from my seat. Sven grabs my hand and stares at me. He squeezes it and nods his head. I smile and step over to the door. This is it. This is the moment I hoped for throughout the entire Hunger Games. I never thought it would actually happen to me.

The doors open and I step down the stairs to the recognizable ground below. I step out and instantly hear a crowd cheer my name. I glance up and see the entire district standing in a huge group, just like Reaping day. It seems so long ago I was here, but I know it was only a few weeks.

I walk over to them and search for my family. When I spot Ilow, my older brother, standing above the crowd, a huge smile spreads across my face. I raise my hand and wave at him. I'm shocked to see him wipe away the tears flowing down his face. Ilow is crying? He never thought I would win. He said I didn't stand a chance because I was too shy. He was wrong, wasn't he?

He leans down and picks up my younger sister, Camrose. He holds her up and she sees me. A smile spreads across her face and she frantically waves at him, causing me to smile and giggle at her cute charm.

I move through the crowd toward my family. People reach up and hug me as I walk past them. I politely say hello to them, but I'm still too shy to share a normal conversation with strangers. Once I approach my family, my mother throws her arms around my neck and pulls me tightly to her chest.

"Oh! Alby! My little Alby!" she exclaims, crying as she embraces me in her arms. I pull away from her and smile.

"I did it, Mom," I say.

"I knew you were going to win. I just knew it," she says.

"I did too," Ilow says. I roll my eyes and shake my head.

"No, you didn't. You had no confidence in me at all," I tell him. He shrugs his shoulders.

"Who cares? You won! That's the most important thing," he says. Camrose runs over to me and jumps into my arms. I laugh and run my hands through her light red hair.

"I watched you on the big screen, Alby," she whispers. I place her on the ground and smile.

"I kind of wish you didn't," I say. She smiles and shakes her head.

"You're my hero!"

With that, she skips off to talk to her friends. I raise my eyebrows and stare at my mother and father. I'm a hero? Yes, I won the Hunger Games. Sure, I know how to defend myself, but am I a hero? I killed people. Heroes don't kill people. They save them.

"What's wrong, Alby?" my dad asks, clearly aware that something is wrong with me. I shake my head and look around the crowd of people.

"Nothing. Have you guys seen Ritneli?" I ask. My mom glances up to look at my dad. They share a silent conversation. I know what this means. Something happened. Something happened and they don't want to tell me about it. It's okay. I just fought for my life in a world that involved lava, trees and a girl who was the Devil. I can handle anything now.

"She didn't come," my mom says.

"Why not? Is she okay? I saw a video of her during the Games. She was being bullied. She's okay, right? Answer me," I demand. Ilow steps up and places his hand on my shoulder.

"She's okay. She just didn't want to come, alright? Get over it," he says.

"Why not?" I ask. What the heck is going on?

"Ritneli didn't want to come see you because she was afraid," he answers. How does he know this? Has he been talking to her?

"Why is she afraid?" I ask. He sighs and looks down at me. I don't like that look. It's scaring me. What the heck is going on? Why won't people give me a definite answer?!

"Maybe it's better if you go see her," he says.

"Where is she? Is she at her house?" I ask. He shrugs his shoulders and looks down at the ground.

"Stop asking me so many questions. It's like you've been gone for a month...oh..." he says after he realizes what he just said.

"Ilow, be nice to your brother. He just went through something very traumatic. He's bound to be a little worried about his best friend," my mom says. Thank you, Mom. You always step up to scold the trouble maker.

"Fine! If you want to go see Ritneli, she's probably at your special place. You know, the place you always go with her," he says.

I step back and stare at him. He's right. If she didn't want to come here, she would have gone to our place. We discovered it when we were ten years old. We went there every single day, even when we were both busy. It was our place.

"Thanks," I whisper. I turn around and walk out of the main part of District 9. I travel along the road until I reach the grain field. I keep walking until I see it.

Our tree.

I walk over to it and stare up at its high branches. Sitting on the top branch is my special friend, Ritneli. I pick up a rock and throw it up into the air. It hits her shoe and she glances down at the ground below her. When she sees me, she gasps and almost loses her balance on the branch.

"Alby! You're back!" she shouts. She begins to climb down the tree, but I hold up my hands in protest.

"No! I'm climbing up! I've missed this tree," I say.

I grab the rough bark and quickly climbed up the tree. Thanks to the Hunger Games, I can climb up a tree faster than I did before. I knew the Games helped me in some way.

When I finally arrive at the top branch, Ritneli quickly pulls me into a tight hug. I press her closely against me, never really wanting to let go of her.

"You're really here. I was too scared to go the town square. I thought you wouldn't really arrive," she whispers.

"Why did you think that?" I ask. She pulls away from me and wipes the tears away from her eyes.

"I thought it was just a big joke that you won. I thought President Snow was just playing with us. He wanted us to believe someone from District 9 actually won. I thought he was tricking us because that is the man he is, you know. He likes that kind of thing. I was so scared. I thought if I did go down to see you, and you never arrived, which meant you died, I just...I just...I don't know. I guess I just knew that...I don't know. I can't...I don't know," she says, not making any sense because she is rambling on. I smile and wipe the tears away from her cheek with my thumbs. She's still the same old Ritneli I left behind.

"I'm here. You don't have to worry about it now. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere," I say.

"What about next year? The Games will happen again," she says. I smile and shake my head.

"I'm a victor though. I won't be a part of the reapings," I say. She shakes her head and looks down at the ground beneath us.

"What about me? I'll be in the drawing. I might get reaped. I might go to the Hunger Games and die. The odds aren't in our favor, Alby," she says. I shrug my shoulders.

"You're tougher than anyone I know," I say. She blushes and looks into my eyes.

"I've missed you, Alby," she whispers. I reach across and place my hand over hers.

"I've missed you too. Do you want to know something?" I ask. She nods her head and smiles.

"Yeah?"

"Do you know why I fought so hard to win?" I ask her. She shakes her head and stares at me, but I think she already knows the answer. She has that glint in her eye. "I fought for you. I wanted to come home to be with you."

She blushes and stares at me. She opens her mouth to say something, but no words escape it. She closes it and shakes her head. Tears trickle down her face and I wipe them away for her. She chuckles and leans forward.

Before I know it, her lips are on mine. It takes me a moment to realize what we are doing. We're kissing. We've never done this before. Ever. I'm not complaining. I wouldn't want this moment to be with anyone else besides her.

I wrap my arms around her waist and she pulls away. She blushes and looks down at the ground. Why did she stop? Can we keep doing that?

"Sorry. I kind of got caught up in the moment," she apologizes. I shake my head and smile. Same old Ritneli.

"Don't apologize for something that was great," I tell her. She smiles and looks at me.

"Alby, you know something?" she asks.

"What?"

"You're a pretty amazing guy," she says.

"You just realized that?"

She smiles and shakes her head. She leans forward and kisses me quickly on the lips. She pulls away and taps my nose with her finger.

"No, I just never had the courage to tell you that," she says. She turns around and starts to climb down the tree.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" I call down to her. She smiles and I hear her giggle in excitement.

"I'll tell you, but you'll have to catch me first!" she shouts.

I scurry down the tree and chase her through the grain fields, just like we used to do when we were younger. I have to admit that even though I'm the Hunger Games victor, some things in life never change. The Hunger Games don't change your personality. They don't change your family or friends. They just make you own a nice, beautiful house. You get prizes. You get fame. Other than that, it's not that glamorous. I just survived a tough competition. I'm alive. That's the most important thing.

The odds were in my favor after all.

A/N: Thanks again for your faithful reading and reviews. I appreciate each and every single one of you. Also, thank you to everyone who submitted the tributes. Without you guys, this story wouldn't have been possible. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Also, I will do another SYOT story, but not until the far future when I am ready to tackle the challenge again. This story was tough, I have to admit. I am ready to focus on my other stories that I have to finish and the other stories I have planned underneath my sleeves. Thanks again for your countless support. I appreciate it so very much.

As always,

Fiddlegirl

P.S. This story is dedicated to my very own Alby. You know who you are. I'll always be your Ritneli.