Deleted Scenes: Journey's End

Setting: After Chapter 25

 For how busy the bunker was, everyone seemed to be dragging their feet. Each of them had their reasons, of course, but the same was true for all of them: nobody was ready to say goodbye. The small little dwelling had been turned into a full-fledged assembly line. 

 

“Hey.” Kat grabbed Stellan’s wrist and pulled him back from where he was going to go check on Anakyn cutting Jace’s hair for the fifth time. “I know it’s hard, but you need to relax.” 

 

Stellan let out a quiet groan and put his face in his hands. He wasn’t ready for all of them to go their own ways, out into the world where he couldn’t protect them anymore. 

 

Kat’s eyes filled with tears. She could see how hard this was for him and she wished she could make it better. But right now… She couldn’t. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed her eyes to blink back tears at how tightly he hugged her back. He was just trying so hard to hold on for all of them… Including her, she was sure. “You have to be safe,” she said quietly. “I can’t lose you, Stellan…” 

 

He shook his head a little bit. “Shhhh,” he said quietly. He couldn’t listen to her talk about that possibility. Not with the pain in her voice… “No matter what happens, you have to protect them.” 

 

“I will,” Kat said, and she was fully prepared to do that, with her life. But she grabbed onto him so tightly. She didn’t want to even think that this could be their last night together. But it was very possible that it could be. “I will, Stellan.” 

 

“I know you will. There’s nobody else I trust more to march with my baby sister into battle.” The first tear broke out of his eye. “Fuck.” 

 

“Sh,” she said quietly. “I know it’s hard, but Jill is an adult now and nothing you could have done would have kept her from doing this.” 

 

“I know,” Stellan whispered. “Not after Elliot.” 

Kat smiled sadly, pulling back a little bit to rub his arms. “We did everything so carefully,” she said quietly. “You have too many people on your side for this to fail.” She tried to be optimistic. 

 

“We do,” Stellan corrected her. “I couldn’t have done any of this without you.” He leaned down to kiss her forehead, even as a tear dripped onto her off of his face. He quickly wiped it away, but he was sure that it wasn’t only his tears that were making her cheeks wet. “We’ll be together again soon, okay? There’s still so much we haven’t done…” 

 

Kat let out a quiet sob as she pulled him in again, holding onto him as tightly as she could. “You update me frequently, do you understand Stellan? Don’t scare me…” 

 

“I will,” he said. “We know the plan.” But at this point, having a plan wasn’t enough. 

 

“Stellan?” He looked up at the small voice that called his name. He noticed a small pile of letters on his nightstand. How did those get there? But he knew who wrote them. No matter. 

 

“How can I help you, Maggie?” 

 

“Tessa is ready.” She put out her arm and Stellan exchanged another pained look with Kat before he looped his arm through hers and was taken to the girls’ room. When they entered, Stellan closed his eyes again when he saw how Tessa was curled up with Camellia, who still looked like Rose. She had to keep her alias and stay here. 

 

“Well, hello there stranger,” Stellan said, but it took all of his willpower to not start crying. 

 

“I thought I would be happy to be Tessa again,” she said quietly. “But… I’m not Tessa again. I’m a completely different person than I was before I adopted my persona…” 

 

Camellia hugged her a little tighter at that, able to hear the ever-so-slight waver in her voice. 

 

“I just hope that I convinced Bonnie to burn all that evidence.” 

 

“It won’t matter after tomorrow,” Kat told her, coming over to sit down next to her and make a girl sandwich. “You did all you could. That’s all any of us could do.” 

 

Tessa let out a small sob and Camellia had a pained look on her face as she gently rubbed circles on her back. 

 

“Mr. Stellan?” 

Stellan tensed up at hearing his name, but he turned around to face the little bassist. He was still so off-put by her newly short hair. Stellan said to get information to Ryder, not become them! 

 

“Yes ma’am.” 

 

“Has anyone laid eyes on Lizzie?” 

 

Stellan took a deep breath. “No,” he said. “But it’s possible that Jun found her and just hasn’t communicated it to me because he’s acting for the other side.” 

 

“Okay,” she said quietly, but her hands balled into tight fists at the thought of the Capitol finding her first. “Wow. You really are Montessori,” she commented at the small girl in the middle of the others. She wasn’t so small anymore, though. 

 

“Surprise,” she said quietly, before frowning again. “Bonnie was so right.” 

 

“Well, it doesn’t matter, we’re beating that damn blueberry to the punch,” Camellia told her. “He snoozed, now he’s gonna lose. Really, props to Jace for acting like Elliot to throw him off of his trail.” 

 

“He’s a perfectionist,” Mari said, shaking her head. “He wasn’t going to send out those reports until he was absolutely sure they were perfect.” 

 

“Like me,” Tessa said quietly. “Or, at least, the old me. The new me, I don’t even know, she’s so… Different.” 

 

“Well, you’ll have plenty of time to figure that out,” Stellan said. He really hoped that was true. 

 

“Why wasn’t I invited to the vagina party!?” Jill asked from the doorway, blowing a raspberry. “Nobody better have acted like a lesbian without me!” She tried to lighten the mood, but frowned at how troubled everyone looked. Especially her brother. “No testosterone allowed in here,” she said, taking his hand. “Come on, Jo is done with Malloy, and I’m done with Coda. They’re waiting together...” 

 

“Can I come too?” Maggie asked quickly, glancing back at the others. She was still in total shock at what she witnessed on the TV. Why would her brother do that…? Surely it had to be fake. It couldn’t be real. 

 

“Of course,” Jill said quietly, her eyes tearing up at that look of denial on her face. That was exactly how she felt when she saw the report that Tuck was dead… She refused to believe that the government would do anything so blatantly cruel. Now… Now, she learned that they would never draw the line. She held out her hand to her. She was going to need support just as much as Maggie did… It was never easy for her to go back into the room where Elliot died....

 

Stellan came over quickly at the pain in her voice and put his hands on her shoulders. He wanted to protect her and keep her safe… He ushered her forward and Maggie hung on Jill’s arm as he entered the room. It was so weird to see Malloy and Coda together… And it hurt even more to see how tightly they were clinging to each other. As soon as Maggie saw Jo, she ran over to her and quickly took her arm. They were only fake girlfriends, true, but through the course of the past year… They’d become sisters. There was nobody else that Maggie could rely on in the absence of her brother - and permanent absence of her future brother-in-law…  Jo squeezed her hand tightly. Why did this have to happen tonight of all nights? And… While she was proud that Maggie managed to dry her tears and be strong for the rest of tonight… She was worried at how quickly the switch flipped. 

 

“Too bad I can’t grow a beard in one night,” Malloy commented, feeling up his bare cheeks. “How is anyone going to reconize me?” 

 

“I still vote for the spray-on beard,” Jill said, but she pressed closer to Stellan’s side. She could still see the bed there, she could still hear the beeping of the machines… 

 

“Hard veto,” Jo said. “Camellia will just have to deal with it, I like him like this.” She smiled at him, but she couldn’t leave Maggie’s side right now. Not when they were about to say goodbye to each other for what could be the final time… She knew that he would understand. 

 

“Camellia,” Malloy said, looking at the doorway. “Where’s my flower?” 

 

“She’s comforting Tessa right now,” Stellan commented quietly. “But… You should go to her.” 

 

Jo gave Maggie another slightly pained look. She knew that she needed her. But Jo needed her real girlfriend. 

 

Maggie pulled her hand away first. “It’s okay,” she said quietly. “Go.” 

 

Jo’s eyes filled with tears. “I’ll be back,” she said. This wasn’t their goodbye yet. “Thank you.” She didn’t want to have to choose between them. She would always choose the love of her life. Either, both, she didn’t know, but they always came first. She and Malloy hurried across the hall.

 

“Come on little tike,” Jill said, coming over to Coda who closed his eyes and turned away from her. She looked over at Stellan. “Go check on the others,” she said quietly. I’ll be okay here.

 

Stellan gave her a small, teary smile as he turned to walk out the door, but before he could, he was shoved aside by Kat, who ran in the room and threw her arms around Coda, who grabbed onto her tightly and let out a quiet sob. Stellan watched them for a moment. He knew that Coda was a good kid…

 

He turned and walked out of the room, stopping a little bit when he saw the three District Seven kids hugging each other and could hear all three of them crying while Tessa and Mari were curled up against each other on the bed.  But before they could get to work on the plan, there were still two more band members that were needed. Stellan knocked on the door before he entered. 

 

“I’m sorry, I’m trying, there is just so much hair here,” Anakyn commented, from where he was practically swimming in white hair on the ground. 

 

“It’s okay,” Stellan said. “Take your time.” But he smiled at how still Jace was sitting for his former escort. But he had one question that he almost never wanted to know the answer to, even if he needed to. “Where’s Trap?” 

 

“I…” Anakyn had a flash of pain on his face. “He’s in the bathroom.” 

 

Stellan looked over, and was about to go over there when Ani grabbed his arm to stop him from going. “He’s with NumiMouse.” 

 

“Oh.” But he was still immensely worried as he looked towards the bathroom. 

 

Trap Principato refused to look at his own reflection. How could he go back to being the boy that scared them all after all the ways he grew when he was wearing that fake mouthpiece? 

 

It was the last thing that he had to alter about himself. And it was also the most painful. 

 

When he saw the figure slip into the bathroom, he looked away from him right away. “Squirt. I love you. But you need to leave me alone.” 

 

Numitor sat up on the counter and looked at where he was sitting, fully clothed, in the dry bathtub and pulled out the shower curtain to hide himself from view. 

 

“No,” Numitor said, looking at the closed curtain. “I won’t. I refuse.” 

 

Trap closed his eyes. “This is different from when I followed you into the bathroom, you know.” 

 

“Is it?” Numi asked quietly. 

 

Trap stared at his hands. He respected the Victor of his Games too much to lie. “In practice, yes. But in theory… Not really.” 

 

“What are you so afraid of?” 

 

Trap closed his eyes. He liked it so much better when his nails had a little bit of polish on them. “What isn’t there to be afraid of? How is Boss gonna feel when I walk out there and I… I look like… This?!” 

 

“She’ll understand,” Numitor said quietly. “We were all different people back then than we are now. Appearances don’t matter.” 

 

“I don’t want to go back to being me. I’ve had nightmares about going back to being me, Squirt. Every damn night I had nightmares about it.” 

 

“You’re going back to a different version of yourself. One that has learned and grown. Everyone sees that. I do. I mean, I’m sitting here in the bathroom with you. If I thought you were a crazy bastard like I did when we first met here...  I don’t know about you, but I personally would probably not be doing that.” 

 

“I don’t want to show my face to them if it’s going to bring them pain…” 

 

“Why not start with Jace then? He doesn’t know what you looked like before. He doesn’t care about any of that, he fell in love with you because of who you became and who you are.” 

 

“I know,” Trap said quietly. “I just… I don’t want to take out this mouthguard. But I have to, otherwise people will think it’s not me, and they have to know it’s me if we want to rally them…” 

 

“Well, a wise old man once told me… There is no such thing as strength without weakness. You are a good person Trap, whether you have the teeth in or not. I understand having a remnant of the times you’re not proud of on your body forever, trust me I have so many scars and every time Anakyn sees them, he tears up. I can always see the moment he notices. But even though it’s a part I’m not proud of… They’re part of me. Part of my story, part of who I am. Maybe someday I’ll get them removed, but they’ll always be there.” 

 

Trap stared at him for a moment. “Old man?” he asked finally. “I’m not old!” 

 

“Deflection. Back to the topic at hand.” 

 

Trap just sighed a little bit at him. “I don’t want this to be part of who I am. It’s who I was. I never want to be that person again.” 

 

“Did that person have a loving boyfriend, a ride-or-die that he always gets into trouble, and a family that all have ridiculous nicknames because of him and fully embrace those nicknames from him?” Numitor asked him. 

 

“No,” Trap said, squeezing his eyes shut. “He didn’t.” 

 

“Then… It’s not who you are anymore. We all changed, and now we can decide who we want to be together.” He turned around with a pained expression on his face, that Trap didn’t see through the shower curtain. 

 

“You’re right,” Trap said quietly, pulling open the shower curtain. Numitor smiled at seeing those navy eyes looking at him. “I’m just scared…” 

 

“It’s okay to be scared,” Numitor said quietly. “I’m scared too,” he said quietly as he came over and sat on the corner of the tub. “But we’re going to get through this. All of us. Together.” 

 

“Thanks Squirt,” Trap said, gently running his fingers across the prosthetic in his mouth. 

 

Numitor smiled a little bit. He put a hand under his chin to tilt up his face. Sometimes… Even when you knew that it was something you had to do… It was easier if someone else helped. He took a small breath. He wasn’t good at it like Trap, but… He started singing quietly to take Trap’s mind off of the fear. “Why are there so many songs about rainbows… And what’s on the other side?”

 

Trap let out a small sob-laugh at hearing him sing that song to him again. But while he was busy thinking about that - and thinking about washing out his cuts in the bathroom, and all of the good things they shared together while they were all here together… Numitor popped the top retainer off of his teeth and pushed it off. “Someday, we’ll find it, the rainbow connection… The lovers, the dreamers… And me,” he sang, but Numi’s voice broke at the memories of singing that song with his siblings and his newly found family and he had to stop. 

 

Trap pushed his hand away. Just hearing the song was enough for him to have the courage to pop out the bottom prosthetic and put them both down on the rim of the tub. “Thank you, Squirt.” 

 

“That’s what family does for each other,” Numitor, standing up and holding his hand down to him. “For the sake of Jace’s dick, I’m real glad that you’re both some brand of ace.” 

 

Trap laughed quietly at that. “Go figure, nobody ever asked to receive oral from me,” he said as he took his hand and stood up. 

 

“Yeah, I’m not surprised,” Numitor said, laughing a little bit as he put an arm around Trap - tall enough now that he didn’t have to reach too much as the two of them squeezed through the door. 

 

“Oh,” Trap said quietly when he saw Jace’s hair - still white, but so much shorter. Anakyn made quick work of putting color on it to match his old tone while Stellan smiled sadly at the two of them and Trap squeezed Numi one more time before hurrying over to hug Cap. 

 

“You have to be so careful,” Stellan told him. “I will never forgive myself if I let you go rogue and you didn’t come back.” 

 

“Even if I don’t, it’s not your fault, Cap,” Trap told him quietly. Stellan hugged him just as tightly as he did when he looked like Theodore, and that was what he needed, but he quickly let go when he heard a small sob from the chair. 

 

“Chief…” He hurried over to kneel by him, grabbing his hand.

 

“I’m blind, not deaf,” Jace said, tears dripping down the side of his face from how it was held back to get the color in it. 

 

“If I die out there, it’s my own damn fault,” Trap told him. “But I'm not gonna do that.” 

 

“You’d better fucking not,” Jace sobbed quietly. “If you do, I’ll… I’ll send Bec over and he’ll kill you again for breaking my heart.” 

 

Trap laughed a little bit, but his eyes teared up at seeing him so upset. “I will be in constant contact while I kick this guy’s ass. I might be with the rest of the family, but I won’t be alone. Just like Boss.” 

 

“If you scare me and don’t contact me as soon as you possibly can, I’m not cuddling you for… three months after you get back - and that’s only if you don’t misbehave again.” Jace hugged himself with the hand that wasn’t holding Trap’s. 

 

“I will make contact as soon as my gun fires, I promise.” 

 

Jace had a pained look on his face. “Okay,” he whispered, letting go of Trap’s hand to gently touch his face. “You’re a crazy bastard.” 

 

“I mean, he’s dating you, so he sure is a crazy bastard, honey,” Numi piped up from where he was sitting on the top bunk. 

 

“Rude!” 

 

“Takes one to know one, Squirt,” Trap fired back putting his hand on top of Jace’s and pressing his face into his palm. 

 

The door opened again to reveal Jill on the other side, Maggie grabbing her arm again. “We’re done filming the three of them. Malloy did great, Tessa can’t act and Coda is loud. Next?” She leaned backwards into Maggie when she saw Trap, but she relaxed again at the gentle look that was on his face. “Come with me, Big Guy. We gotchu.” 

 

“Just a little bit more, Darling,” Trap said quietly, squeezing Jace’s hand. “I’ll be back soon, I’m gonna be a one-take wonder.” 

 

“You’d better be,” Jace said quietly. Tessa came in to be with him while Trap went out the door with Jill. 

 

“Oh my God. This is actually happening.” Stellan shook his head. “Fuck.” 

 

“Fuck indeed,” Ani commented as he pushed the color through Jace’s hair. “But this is the only way forward and you have a small army at your disposal already.” 

 

Wolf came over to him and gently put his arm around his shoulders. “It’s more than just a small army,” he said quietly. “It’s a family.” And he couldn’t stand to think about anything bad happening to any of them… “We have to show my brother Phil and my brother Tuck that they did not die in vain.” 

 

Anakyn looked down at the mention of Phil. “I’m gonna suit up and look for Lizzie. But only if you’re really sure that she’s not wrapped up with that little piece of shit Bunsen.” 

 

“Don’t you think that if she was, she would have just gone with them?” Stellan asked quietly. “Don’t tell Mari you’re going. I can’t have her get distracted right now, she’s already worried enough that they took Freddy and could take Ryder at any time if they wanted. Not to mention Lester.”

 

“Stellan. You offered him shelter here. If he would rather spend the night with the enemy, that’s not your fault. And it’s for the better that you didn’t tell him everything.” 

 

Stellan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Dammit. He should be with us desperately trying to get Kodiak out of this and not with… Someone that is technically taken right now and is a fucking advisor to that piece of shit. I just have to trust that it’s because they have extra eyes on him right now and he wants to show them his innocence.” 

 

“You don’t have to trust him at all anymore. He did his job.” Anakyn sighed a little bit. “ But we still haven’t heard from Lux, have we? There might be a reason he doesn’t want to show us his face.” 

 

Stellan didn’t want to believe that about Lester. He wouldn’t sabotage Lux on purpose, not after Lux gave him so much, and Alice too. But he conveniently left out just how close he was with Bonnie, and that worried Stellan. What was this kid doing? He couldn’t believe that Lester was innocent until Lux came back. And Lux was pushing an hour and a half later than usual. “How did such an empath end up at the head of a fucking coup?” Wolf asked, rubbing his temples. He was so glad when Trap came back. 

 

“Guess who was a one-take wonder?” he asked proudly, coming back to sit next to Jace, who was listening to the conversation with a blank expression on his face. 

 

“Good job. Excuse me.” Stellan left the room quickly. He needed a moment alone. He… He couldn’t afford to break now. Not with so much else left to do. 

 

“Where’s Champ!?” Stellan looked up at the frantic voice, and smiled a little bit at Camellia. “I know I heard him.” 

 

“He’s in the other room with Jace,” Stellan said. 

 

Camellia hesitated in the doorway for a second. “Stellan? Thank you.” She came over to give him a hug. “You were kind to my brother. You saved the love of my life. And you saved me, and gave me a new family…” she sniffled a little bit. “Thank God I don’t have to send you off on that fucking train… I don’t know what I would have done if I had to tell you goodbye tonight.” 

 

Stellan held her tightly, another tear breaking out of his eyes at the mention of Syca. “No problem. Now… Go. Spend time with the people that you will have to send off tonight…” 

 

Camellia let out another sob as she let go of him. She gave him a little nod and took off running to the boys’ room, not even knocking before she burst into the door and fell to her knees on the floor where Trap was to hug him from behind. Trap squeezed Jace’s hand before he turned around so that he could hug her back. 

 

“A little warning would have been nice, Boss.” 

 

“Shut up, you’d better be in and out there faster than Malloy lasts when I wear that thong - you know which one I’m talking about.” 

 

“I don’t want to know that,” Jace commented. 

 

“So two minutes and forty-eight seconds. Got it.” 

 

“How do you even know that?!” Anakyn asked him. 

 

“Two and a half minutes, okay, that’s all you get,” Camellia told him as she hugged him. “I don’t want to go any longer than that without hearing your voice.” 

 

“I have to get this talk thrice!?” Trap asked. “Yes. I will keep in contact with all of you. Honestly, the threat that’s scared me most thusfar is Coach’s.” He did a bad impersonation of Kat’s voice. “If you scare me, you will be doing crunches into oblivion.” 

 

“You’d rather be starved of cuddles than crunch?” Jace asked, putting a hand on his chest in offense. “God.”

 

“Aw, Chief, you know I love you,” Trap said, but frowned when Camellia sobbed a little bit. 

 

“I love you,” she told him. 

 

“I love you too, Sis. I’m gonna be so careful out there.” 

 

“Promise me you’ll come home.” She let go of him to hold her pinky out to him. 

 

Trap smiled at her through his tears. “Alright. I’m comin’ home to you.” He linked pinkies with her. “Pinky Promise.” 

 

“I’m serious,” she said. “I can’t stand to have another of my brothers pinky promise me he’s going to come home and not come home…”

 

Trap hugged her again. “I won’t. I can’t do that to you, Boss.” 

 

“You’d better not.” She said, sniffling a little bit. “Fuck.”

 

“Don’t worry about me,” he told her, gently reaching over to gently wipe her tears away. “Worry about yourself and your partners.” 

 

“I’m worrying about my entire damn family tonight,” she said quietly, sniffling a little bit. “Including you, Sir,” she said to Jace, reaching over to pat his leg. 

 

“I’ll be good,” Jace said. “I have a whole squad behind me to protect me. And y’know, I’m not gonna be doing much except for showing them all that I lived, bitch.” 

 

“Well, make sure you keep living,” Trap told him. He wasn’t willing to think of the possibility of losing Jace. 

 

“No bees,” Camellia told him. “Stay away from all bees.” 

 

“Bzzzzzz,” Numi said from the bed, causing her to whip around to give him a look, but softening at the knowledge that the bunker is about to become so much quieter for him. 

 

“Very funny,” Jace said. 

 

“That was not very funny when it happened,” Anakyn told them, shaking his head. “Good thing I knew what was going on, because I was gonna throw fists if a sponsor gift actually just killed my tribute.” 

 

“No fists necessary,” Jace said, shaking his head. 

 

Camellia looked up and saw Malloy and Jo lingering in the doorway, obviously waiting for her again, and patted Trap’s shoulder and Jace’s knee. “I’ll be there to see you out the door,” she told them quietly. She couldn’t resist giving Trap one more hug. She didn’t care what the fuck he looked like. He was her brother and she was worried sick about him. Trap smiled sadly as he watched her go to her partners, who were holding each other for support and let Camellia into their arms as soon as she approached. 

 

“This isn’t goodbye,” Camellia told them, fire in her voice. Trap made her feel stronger, and she had to be strong for both of them. “Come on, I’m not going to get the chance to date both of my best friends and favorite people again after so long and let anyone take that from me. I love you.” 

 

They both returned the love quietly as they held her tightly. Jo played with her hair and Malloy leaned forward to take in her scent as they all held onto each other. 

 

“Hey.” Camellia pulled back from a little bit, trying to manage a smile. “Tell Jacky boy I said hey.” 

 

“I will,” Malloy said with a small laugh through his sobs. “If he doesn’t pass out.” 

 

“He will probably pass out,” Jo said quietly, but she had a small smile on her face as she thought about the brothers that got to reunite after so long. They were so lucky. What she wouldn’t fucking give to be able to reunite with her brother. 

 

“Move! Blind person coming through!” Jace proclaimed proudly as he was holding Trap’s hand and pushed a little bit on Camellia. She just laughed a little bit and backed her ass into him a little bit. 

 

“Stop, that's my boyfriend!” Trap protested. 

 

“I’m used to it,” Jace said, rolling his eyes as the three of them shuffled down the hall, refusing to let go of each other as Trap took Jace down the hall and Stellan followed them to check up on the others. 

 

“Alright, I think my work here is done,” Anakyn said, taking a nervous breath. 

 

“Thank you for this,” Stellan said, smiling and patting his shoulder. “Keep me in the loop.” 

 

“I will.” Anakyn held up a hand. 

 

“Ani,” Numi said, hopping down from the bunk where he’d been quietly watching this. He went down the ladder and wrapped his arms around him. “Be safe out there.” 

 

Ani smiled a little bit as he hugged him and ruffled his hair. “I will. Wow, look at you,” he said, pulling Numi back a little bit. “Where has the time gone? I remember when you were this big.” He crouched down to hold his hand down by his legs. “And now you’re here, a full-grown man that’s lived through so much. I’m proud of you.” 

 

“Thank you,” he said, hugging him again. “I love you.” 

 

“Love you too.” He ruffled his hair. “Alright, now I’m out for real.” He pat Wolf’s back a couple times. “See you on the other side.” 

 

“See ya later, Mockingjay,” Wolf said, waving at him. “Alright, everyone gather in the living room!” he called to them. Everyone would be gathering in the living room for the last time…. 

Everyone obediently filled in. The last of them all was Jill, waving a card in her hand. 

 

“One extremely dangerous rebellion commercial, piping hot off the grill.” 

 

“Already? You’re a menace,” Stellan said, ruffling her already messy space buns. 

 

“I was editing it all while you were doing your sappy thing,” she said with a shrug. 

 

“How’d these two gays do? Were they up to your high standard?” 

 

“Trap was great. Jace. Meh. Nobody can be worse than Tessa.” 

 

“Thanks,” Jace deadpanned. “You’re a gem.” 

 

“Alright. Now all we need is fucking Lux,” Stellan said. He couldn’t believe that Lester would sabotage them on purpose.

“He’ll get here,” Kat said. And if not, at least Alice was with her grandma and away from it all… 

 

“Alright, then it’s time to get all y’all on the midnight train,” Stellan said. But he didn’t want to. He winced when she grabbed his arm tightly, a lump forming in her throat at just the thought of letting him go. But she knew it had to happen.

“I’m going to the train with you,” Camellia said quickly. 

 

“Alright,” Stellan said with a sigh. He knew that nothing he could have said would have stopped it. “Well then?” He turned to the other three that were staying. 

 

“I just want to say… Thank you.” Maggie put her arms behind her back as she looked at them all. “I was really scared of rebels when I first met you all. But now I know that we’re all on the same side. We want what’s right. I’m honored to have even been a small part of it all. Safe travels.” She sniffled a little bit and reached up to wipe her nose. Kat and Jo both stepped forward at the same time, but Kat stopped, gesturing for her to go forward. Jo came forward the rest of the distance to hug her. 

 

“I’m proud of you. Please. Please. Be safe.”

“I will be,” she said. “But after what happened tonight… I’m all fucking in. That bastard is going to pay.” 

 

“He sure is,” Jo said with a small sob, not even able to act surprised to hear her swearing. “This is a see you later.” 

 

“Alligator,” Malloy added, smiling a little bit behind her. 

 

Jo finally let go of her to let Kat have a turn hugging her. 

 

“Ms. Valentine, if something bad happens to Lux… Will you please make sure my daughter is in good hands?” 

 

“I absolutely will,” Kat said, squeezing her again, and then pulling back a little bit to give her a smile. “Make him pay for it.” 

 

“Oh, I didn’t know that I had to plan a speech,” Mari said, pushing her hands through her hair. “I don’t have much to say except for… Please be safe out there. One of my brothers was already taken and one of my sisters is already gone. Don’t do that to me, please…  I don’t care who you all really are. You really are my family. You helped me kick anorexia’s ass. And now… I’m going to help all of you. Thank you.” She opened her arms, waiting for who would come for the first hug, when Trap picked her up from behind and spun her around a little bit as she let out a little shriek of surprise. 

 

“I’m gonna miss you Peanut.” 

 

“Me too,” Mari said, when the shock wore off and she hugged him tightly. “You too.” she hugged Jace tightly and smiled a little bit. 

 

Malloy broke forward to hug her after. “Keep her safe,” he said quietly. “Please.” 

 

“We’ll keep each other safe,” Mari said, looking at Camellia over his shoulder.

 

“And Ryyyyyyyyyyyder,” Tessa teased her, smiling a little bit as she came in to hug her next. “Am I right or am I right?” 

 

“I concede,” Mari said, pulling back a little bit to look into her face for a second before letting her go. 

 

“Alright, let’s get outta here for the last time-” Coda said, but he was cut off by everyone shouting, “NO!” And all eyes were on Numi. 

 

“I don’t have much to say - but for real, unlike her who said that and went on a soliloquy,” Numitor said. “You’re my family and I love you all. I want a hug from everyone before you leave.” That was all he really had to say. He could talk about how each of them changed his life, but then they’d be there all night. He went to the start of the line to hug Stellan and Kat. He hugged Camellia, not sure if she was staying the night or not after dropping off the others. He hugged Jo first, then Malloy, who held him tightly for an extra second. I know. He hugged Tessa, who was once his District partner, ally, and friend, and was now his sister, and punched Coda’s shoulder for almost forgetting about him and leaving without telling him goodbye. He hugged Jace, his mentee, and Trap, his fellow lover of cookies and a good book. 

 

Numi smiled a little bit at all of them as he came back to stand with Maggie and Mari. “Safe travels.” 

 

“I’ll be back,” Stellan told them all, before he turned to the others. “Alright. The streets are quiet right now. There’s only one road that we have to cross that might be under surveillance, so we’re going to go based on where everyone is going. And that means… Trap is first. And I’m going with him.” 

 

“Fuck,” Camellia said quietly. 

 

“Don’t worry Boss,” Trap said, smiling over at her from where Jace was clutching him. “I’m fine. Remember, two and a half minutes then I’ll be back to chattering your ear off.” 

 

“You never do shut up,” Jace said quietly, but it was to hide the tears that were streaking down his face and covering his cheeks. “I love you, I love you so much.” 

 

“I love you too Chief,” he said quietly, hugging him tightly. “Jace.” 

 

Jace sobbed quietly and Camellia grabbed her partners, squeezing her eyes shut. She just had such an awful feeling about him going out by himself like this. 

 

“Please, I need to hug him,” Camellia told Jace. She hated the thought of getting between them, but she needed him to help her be strong right now. 

 

Jace reluctantly let go of him but stayed close as Camellia ran and jumped into his arms with a small sob. 

 

“This isn’t goodbye,” Trap told her. “Remember, the pinky promise.” 

 

Camellia nodded a little bit, but she was just having trouble believing it. That was what Syca told her too… But that promise couldn’t have possibly saved his life. “You’re my best friend and my ride-or-die and my brother. I need you to help me be strong for them, Trap, you hear me?” 

 

Trap nodded a little bit, unable to keep that happy face when she was crying like this in his arms. “I will. Even if it’s by being your guardian angel, Camellia, I will always help you be strong. Even when I think you’re strong and don’t need my help… I’ll still be with you.” 

 

“Don’t give me guardian angel bullshit, you’re going to live!” she said, lightly bumping her fist on his chest a couple of times. 

 

“Camellia,” said Stellan, pain crossing his face. “We don’t have a lot of time.” 

 

“I’ll see ya soon, Boss.” Trap kissed the top of her head and held out his pinky. “One more for the road.” 

 

“I’ll see you soon, Champ,” Camellia said quietly, squeezing his pinky tightly in hers. 

 

She stepped back, for Tessa to run across the room and jump into his arms. 

 

“You got this, Shrink.” 

 

Tessa sniffled a little bit and let go - knowing that many others would like to hug him goodbye. “You too,” she said quietly. 

 

“Be safe out there,” Malloy said quietly, approaching him when Tessa left. “When we first met and looked like this, I hated you… But… Now, we’re family, blood be damned, and I need you. Don’t play games out there, brother.” 

 

“I won’t, Ace,” Trap said with a small laugh as he hugged him tightly. “You keep the Sheriff safe out there.” 

 

“I will do everything I can to do that.” 

 

Jo waited until Malloy was back to hold Camellia to come hug Trap. “I’m not going to echo what they all said. You’re a crazy bastard and you’re going to get out of this.” She patted his arms a few times. “Please. She needs you.” 

 

Trap smiled at her and nodded. “Sure thing, Sheriff.” When Jo moved to the side, Coda was standing behind her. 

 

“You’re… Alright,” he said. 

 

Trap stared at him for a second before he started to laugh. “Oh, Twerp, I love you too!” Trap said, coming over to pick him up in a hug and ruffle his hair. “Be a good boy out there.” 

 

“Stop!” Coda protested, but when Trap tried to let go, he clutched to him tightly. “Don’t die.” 

 

“Duly noted.” Coda finally let go of him, and Trap looked over to where Kat was staring at her fingers and focused on picking her nail polish under Stellan’s arm. 

 

“Coach?” 

 

Kat looked up at him, her face already covered in tears at saying goodbye to both of her boys at once. “Fuck.” Trap looked over at Wolf and he nodded a little bit, letting go of Kat and going to hug each of his band members goodbye as she ran over to Trap and hugged him tighter than ever before. “Fuck, I need you to come home.”  

 

“That seems to be the consensus,” Trap said, but he hugged her tightly as the tears started coming out of his eyes again. “Don’t worry Coach, I was trained by the best in the business. Both… on how to fight and be a badass rebel… And how to be a human being.” He hugged her again with a quiet sob. “Thank you.” 

 

“I’m so proud of you, Trap,” Kat said quietly, grabbing the back of his shirt. “I’ll see you soon.” She couldn’t even speak the alternative out loud. 

 

“Exactly. See you soon.” 

 

He looked over to where the three District Seven kids were surrounding Stellan and hugging him. “You saved my life. This time… If I die, it’s going to be for the right reason.” 

 

Kat grabbed his shirt tighter. That couldn’t happen. “No dying. Only living. Crunches.” 

 

Trap laughed a little at that. “Yes ma’am.” 

 

“Ekaterina.” She looked up at Stellan, who was holding a gun to his chest and looking at Trap. “It’s time.” 

 

“NO!” Jace cried out. “Where is he?!” 

 

Trap squeezed his eyes shut as he looked over at him. “I love you Coach,” he said, squeezing Kat one more time before he ran over into Jace’s arms again and held him tightly. 

 

Stellan came over and was there to hold her one more time. Kat grabbed him tightly and pressed her face into his chest. “I love you so much Stellan.” 

 

He smiled and gently pushed her hair away from her teary face, which was sticking to her cheek. “I love you so much, Ekaterina. I choose you and I will always choose you. And I'll see you soon.” 

 

“You’d better,” Kat said, her voice shaking as she jabbed a finger into his chest. “You’d better get back here and when I come home there’d better be a steaming hot pepperoni pizza waiting for me.” 

 

Stellan laughed a little bit at that as more tears poured out of his eyes at that memory. “No sausage?” he asked quietly. 

 

Kat laughed quietly, trying to lighten her mood. After all… Once Stellan left to drop off Trap, everyone would be looking to her. “Sausage is overrated.” 

 

“Alright, we really do have to go,” Stellan said. He knew that he would like to stay here forever with them all, but… He would just have to trust that everything would be okay. 

 

“I love you Stellan!” Jill shouted, quickly reaching up to rub her eyes and coming over to hug her brother again. “I love you so much…” 

 

“I know you do, and I love you too.” He hugged her for just a second. “But you have to go with Kat now. She’s going to keep you safe.” He had a pained expression on his face as he gently pushed her away from him and towards Kat. “For Tuck.” 

 

Jill wiped at her teary cheeks again as Kat put an arm around her. She needed Jill just as much as Jill needed her right now… “For Tuck,” she said, grabbing Kat as Wolf nodded to Trap. 

 

“It’s time.” 

 

“I love you,” he said quietly to Jace. “I love you all. Don’t have too much fun without me, fam.” 

 

Jace had to be ripped off of Trap by Mari and Tessa, who held him there as Trap waved at them all one last time. 

 

“Let’s go, Cap. It’s time for me to go home.” 

 

The room was full of small cries as they left. Kat hated to see them all like this. But it was time for her to be strong. For them. 

 

“District Seven crew is next,” she said. “Start the goodbyes now, we have to give them some time before you go.” 

 

“I’m with you, this isn’t goodbye yet,” Camellia told them both, her voice shaking as she held onto them. 

 

“Well… This is goodbye for now.” 

 

Tessa looked over, letting go of Jace to smile at Coda and opening her arms to him. “You’re gonna keep those two in check?” she asked him, looking back at Malloy and Jo. 

 

“Nobody can control that group,” he said, shaking his head as he closed the distance between them to hug her goodbye. “Fuck, I’m gonna miss you.” 

 

Tessa smiled a little bit, hugging him tightly. “Henley would be so proud of you.” 

 

Coda let out a small sob and hugged her even tighter at that. 

 

“Jace,” Malloy said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “He’s going to be okay.” 

 

“You need to be okay too,” Jace said, hugging him tightly. 

 

“We will be,” Jo said, putting a hand on his shoulder while she was holding Camellia who was crying quietly. 

 

Malloy let go of him and took Jo so that Camellia could go hug her ally, her best friend, her brother. 

 

“Be careful,” she said quietly. 

 

“Are you going to hit me in the head again?” Jace asked, sniffling a little bit and wiping his tears. 

 

“Only if you scare me,” Camellia said, hugging him again as she was already starting to miss Trap. Both of them were. 

 

“I’ll try not to,” he said as he let her go. “For Elliot. “

 

“For Elliot,” Camellia said quietly. “Bec too. And Syca, and Raoul.” 

 

“Of course.” Jace smiled a little bit as his tears were finally starting to slow and Camellia turned to where Tessa was hugging Malloy. 

 

“Go get ‘em girlie,” he said quietly, rubbing her back. “Hopefully you shoot better than you act.” 

 

“I think I do,” she said with a giggle. “It’s hard for me to do much worse.” 

 

Tessa smiled and kissed his cheek before opening her arms to Camellia. Camellia picked her up a little bit, hugging her so tightly. 

 

“Tessa, fuck, I love you. You’re like my little sister, I can’t see anything bad happen to you…” 

 

“I’ll be careful,” she said. “You be careful too.” That was all she could do. “Your brother would be so proud of you, Camellia. I… I just know it.” 

 

“He would be proud of you too,” Camellia told her, trying to swallow down her tears but failing. “And how much you’ve grown.” 

 

“Thanks,” Tessa said, wiping her nose again on her sleeve but it was already so wet that it did nothing to dry anything off. “I love you too.” 

 

Camellia let her go, taking another deep breath. She had to go to Kat, but Coda was there already, and she knew that he wasn’t letting go of her anytime soon. So instead, she went to the girl that was standing next to her. “Come here, sister,” she said quietly. Jill sobbed a little bit and hugged her tightly, pushing her face into Camellia’s neck as her body shook with sobs. 

 

“Shh,” Camellia said gently, pulling back to look at her. She wanted to cry like that too, but they all had to get it together and whether Champ was with her or not, she had to be strong. “You already know that Ziggy would be so proud of his Jill,” she told her quietly. 

 

Jill swallowed down another sob as Camellia wiped at her eyes and just gave a nod. 

 

“You made it. You got away from District Six, just like you and Stellan always wanted. You’re chasing your friend Tuck’s dream for your District. To make life better for kids like Elliot,” she said, but speaking his name to her made another sob come out of Camellia as she pressed Jill closer to her. “You helped create two epic thirst traps for the cause and you also got our friends laid. Jill, I am so glad that I got to meet you. And I’ll see you soon.” 

 

“I love you,” Jill said quietly, hugging her again. “I’m doing this for Elliot and for you and everyone else that still has nightmares about this…” 

 

“That’s it,” Camellia said with an encouraging smile. “You know that your brother would be so infinitely proud of you.” 

 

She noticed Jill let out a small sob at that right away, but she tried to make a face. “Gross!” she sobbed out, but she wasn’t fooling anyone. 

 

Coda finally let go of Kat with one last I love you, and Malloy latched on right away. 

 

“Dammit, apparently I have to get in line to hug Kat,” Camellia commented, smiling when Jill managed a small laugh through her tears. 

 

Malloy heard her but chose to ignore it. “Thank you Kat,” he said quietly. “You got me in shape to do it with my girls again,” he teased. 

 

“Oh, it was my pleasure,” Kat teased back, laughing a little bit and wiping her eyes. “It truly was.” 

 

“I was so depressed after ending up here in the bunker,” he confessed. “But now I consider it my home, because of everyone that was in it. I know we’ll meet again, but if we don’t, I have to tell you…” He closed his eyes. “I lost my Mom when I was young. But I know that she really appreciates you being here to act as a mentor to me - and yes, whip me into shape. She loved me just as fiercely as you love me and everyone else that lives here. Thank you.” 

 

Kat sobbed a little bit and squeezed him again. “It’s my honor and pleasure to know you. I never intended to be a mother to anyone but now I have six weird and wonderful kids that I would do anything for. More than six,” she said quietly as she looked over at Numi, Mari, and Maggie. But she knew that there wasn’t much time left. “Take care of Coda, please. All of them, but… He needs his favorite big brother right now.” 

 

“I will,” Malloy said, looking over to where he was talking quietly with Mari. He went to pick Coda up. 

 

“I’m sorry, I wish I had more time to say goodbye to you,” Kat told Camellia when she saw how she was lingering and hugged her right away. “I’m proud of you and I appreciate you so much. You know what you have to do, even if it isn’t easy…” 

 

“I know,” Camellia said quietly. “Are you okay?” She knew how Kat felt. She still did have to say goodbye to her partners and stay here in the Capitol. At least Stellan would be at the station to walk her home… But she couldn't go home to Numi, Mari, and Maggie here in the bunker. She had to go back to the Complex and do her job as an escort. Fuck. 

 

“No,” Kat said as she looked over to where Mari had Coda, Malloy, and Numi distracted playing rock paper scissors while Malloy held both of the boys under his arms. One tighter than the other. I know. “But I will find it in me to do it. For them.” 

 

Camellia felt that so deeply, letting out a small sob. “Me too.” She took a deep breath. “I love you, Kat. Thank you.” 

 

“I love you too,” she said, smiling and squeezing her shoulder. She was worried sick about her, but she had to focus on the task at hand. “Alright, District Seven crew, head out. Then District Three crew, we’ll follow them. 

 

“I need you Kat!” Coda said, staying by Malloy’s side even when he let go of Numi and ushered him towards Jo and Camellia who were waiting for them. 

 

Kat took a deep breath. It was taking everything in her to not grab him and bring him with her so that she could keep him safe. She just had to trust Malloy. Camellia led them outside, looking back behind her shoulder one more time at them all. She had a terrible feeling that it would be the last time she saw them. “I love you all,” she said quietly, and just like that, she was gone. 

 

Kat took a deep breath, taking Jill and leading her over to Tessa and Jace while picking up a box of tissues on the way. “Here,” she said, offering it to them and smiling when Tessa took one and passed it to Jace, who soon grabbed the second himself. 

 

Once they were all wiping their faces, Kat hesitated a little bit and then turned back to where the three that were staying in the Capitol resided. She hurried over with the tissues when she saw Numi start to cry again, picking him up in a hug even though he was taller than her and holding him tightly. Numi hugged her back and then took a tissue to wipe his nose. 

 

“I’m okay.” 

 

She wasn’t. “Be safe out there,” she said quietly, before she turned to Maggie, and hugged her next. 

 

“See you later,” Kat told her quietly. “Stellan is going to keep you safe. You can trust him.” 

 

Maggie nodded a little bit. “Of course,” she said quietly. 

 

Mari was nervously playing an air-violin as she waited for Kat to come over to her. She took a tissue and patted at her eyes. “Miss Kat?” she said quietly. “There’s no place I’d rather be than here.” 

 

Kat patted at her own eyes and gave her another hug. “You’re going to protect them,” she said. “I know it. And we’re going to find your friends.”

 

“Thank you,” she said quietly, taking another tissue as Kat sighed one last time, looking over her shoulder at the three one last time before she approached Jill, Tessa, and Jace. “It’s time,” she said quietly. “Let’s get out of here.” 

 

“Bye guys,” Tessa said, putting up a hand and frowning at the one that didn’t make eye contact with her. “I love you.” 

 

“You too,” the others echoed as Kat took Jill’s hand. She was going to keep them all safe. 

 

She looked both ways before she ushered them out the door, leaving the others behind… For now. Stellan and Camellia would be going back to them soon enough, even if the latter didn’t stay because she had to play her part. 

 

As they made the three trips that would take the members of Out of Spite back to the Districts, everyone had tears in their eyes. Each of them had their reasons, of course, but the same was true for all of them; that tiny underground bunker had become their home, not because of the space around them, but because of the people surrounding them. And, while nobody was ready to say goodbye to the big, dysfunctional, ragtag family of outcasts they’d created there, they each knew that they were leaving that bunker a much different person than they were when they entered. Whether they spent two years there like Trap or a few months like Mari, they left with fond memories and a new family.

 

That place where they were forced to make macaroni art. The first place that Trap cried. The place that Malloy had the honor of falling in love with his girlfriend’s girlfriend. The place that Tessa and Coda had the most awkward first kiss ever recorded in history. The place where Jace learned how to pretend to see. The place where Camellia went from a quiet, resigned girl to the leader of her friend group.  

 

The place where Ekaterina Valentine learned to love herself. 

 

The place where Stellan Jansing learned to trust himself. 

 

They left it changed in so many different ways. 

 

For good.