The Heiress {Finnick Odair}

The Aftermath

"Yes," he said. "As a victor, you now have power. Use it wisely. What you say matters, and if they think you are rebelling in any way, they will kill the people you love."

"Why does it sound like you're threatening me?" Adrien chuckled, but it died when he saw the look on Finnick's face.

"I'm not threatening you; I'm warning you," he said. "You're in the spotlight. Say or do the wrong thing and they will come after your parents, your brother, and even me and Annie."

"Jacks is a child," Adrien protested. "They're not that cruel."

"They host a game where they toss twenty-four children in an arena to fight to the death and you think they won't attack your eleven-year-old brother?" Finnick asked. "They will. He's eligible for the games for the next seven years, and they will take advantage of that. Don't step out of line."

"I always thought there was freedom in being a victor," Adrien said, and Finnick just shook his head.

"Freedom is in death. There's no escaping the games; you've just entered into a new one."

"Any advice?" Adrien asked, already starting to toy with the ropes in the box.

"Wear a Capitol persona so that you know when you're you and when you're not."

"Is that why everyone in the Capitol thinks you're a flirtatious ladies' man?" Adrien joked, and Finnick was glad he had no idea how right he was.

**

Adrien could hear the screams of the District before he even got off the train. They were waving signs and banners with his name on them. Flowers were thrown on the platform, and everyone was crying out his name as the train stopped. Finnick and Mags were the first ones off. They grinned and waved at the crowd as Iris stepped off the train and trotted over to the microphone.

All eyes and camera turned to the escort.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the winner of the 68th Hunger Games!"

Adrien stepped out, and the crowd went wild. He smirked and waved to the crowd, grabbing a bouquet of flowers thrown on the stage.

Everyone was cheering, and chanting his name. Adrien scanned the crowd. He saw his family first: his mother and father clapping, tears streaming down their faces. On his father's shoulders was the small form of his little brother.

Adrien wanted to sprint to them. He wanted to pull his family in a tight hug. He had barely spared them a thought when he was in the Capitol. He didn't mention his brother or his mother. He talked about his father when asked, and he regretted all of that now. His original goal had been to keep them out of the public eye. Now, if he messed up, the Capitol had no attachment to them. They could all die and no one in the Capitol would blink.

Annie, however, was protected by the Capitol. He scanned the crowd for her. Over and over again, his eyes scanned each row, looking for her.

The crowd seemed to realize who he was looking for and quieted down. Adrien only took his eyes off the crowd when Finnick coughed. He turned around, and there was Annie. She had climbed on the stage and was running toward him. The peacekeepers stepped forward, but Finnick raised a hand to stop them and immediately halted.

Annie threw herself into Adrien's arms, and the crowd cheered. He spun her around, holding her as tightly as he could. He knew all of Panem was watching, but he didn't care. He took her face in his hands and kissed her so thoroughly that he was sure his mother covered his brother's eyes.

The crowd, however, ate it up. When he pulled away, Annie was red and breathless.

"I love you," he said before pulling her into his arms.

This. This is what he had been fighting for.

**

"Are you sure about this?" Mackabee asked for the tenth time that day as he unloaded another round of boxes into the house.

"Yes, dad."

"We just don't want you to be lonely here," Adrien's mother protested.

"I'm moving in with Mags and Finnick," Adrien laughed. "It can't get any less lonely."

"And you don't want me banging down your door before dawn for daily workouts," Finnick added, dropping another box in the room. "How much stuff do you have?"

"Enough to keep me occupied unpacking for the whole day," Adrien groaned as he looked around the room. He was right next to Finnick, and they were all suddenly regretting the design of the house. No one wants to carry fourteen boxes upstairs.

The room had been nicely decorated as a guest room, and it was the last bedroom. If there were any more District Four champions, they would explode.

"You know, there are more houses," Annie said as she lugged in the last box.

"Yes, but where's the fun in that when we can all live together?" Adrien asked.

"Mags, on behalf of everyone, I want to apologize for these two," Annie said. Finnick and Adrien exchanged a shocked look.

"I don't get it."

"Why is she apologzing?"

"We're delightful?"

"The light of Mags' life."

"Her reason for living."

"Alright!" Adrien's mother cut in.

"I'll be just fine," Mags said, smiling fondly at her two boys. And they really were her boys. Mags saw Finnick and Adrien as her sons. She's never had the opportunity to have her own children because of her husband's early death, but here she was with two idiot teenagers that still needed love.

"We'll let you settle," Adrien's mother said. She leaned in and kissed Adrien's cheek. "Annie, do you need a ride back into town?"

"She's going to stay and help me unpack," Adrien said. He grabbed onto Annie's hand and they all understood. Almost dying has a way of re-shifting someone's priorities. Finnick wondered how soon Adrien would be proposing.

"And I am going to start on lunch," Mags said. "You kids want anything specific?"

There was a chorus of no's, and Finnick and Annie each grabbed a box. Mackabee, his wife, and Mags all stepped into the hall.

"When he's feeling up to it, can you send Adrien over to the academy? I want to discuss his role as a mentor with him."

Mags nodded. "I'll monitor his progress and make sure he's settling in okay, and I'll keep both of you posted on how he's doing. No one his age should endure what he just went through. The child you knew isn't the same one that came out of the games."

"I know it's why he doesn't want to move back home," Mackabee said. "When I got back from my games, I needed the change of pace. I needed new scenery. My home felt constricting. It was like I was trying to fit back into the mold of who I was before the games."

"Adrien will need time to figure out who he is and what he wants. For now, we'll take care of him."

"You and Finnick have both done an amazing job supporting him. I'm grateful he has you both to look up to."

Mackabee turned to thank Finnick just in time to Annie jump on Finnick's back and shove a pair of Adrien's boxers on his head. Finnick let out a shrill scream and began running in circles. Annie and Adrien were laughing so hard that none of them seemed to notice the attention was on them.

"I'm grateful he has you to look up to," Mackabee revised.