She stood to the left of her father, exactly where she'd always stood. She waved with the hand that wasn't tucked in to the crook of his arm and she smiled as wide as she could without looking deranged. Her mother did the same on her father's right, her smile less forced but her eyes glazed over with pain medication.
This is the third and final event they're attending today, praise the lord! Her cheeks hurt and she was fed up and the thought of being in these shoes a minute longer was unbearable. Her father was running for his second term as president and he pretty much had it in the bag. All they had to do was not fuck up monstrously and they'd continue on as the first family.
The temptation to fuck up was astronomical.
It's not like she wouldn't have the chance. She was going off to college next week and if you could fuck up anywhere it was college.
The very idea got her through the remainder of the event and back home where she could finally dispose of the shoes.
For what felt like the first time in months, Madge didn't have anything to do. No press release, no etiquette lesson, no schoolwork. She'd even gotten everything ready for college, after insisting she did it herself, packing included. Her stomach growled and she decided that needed taking care of so she padded to the kitchen barefoot and let the marble floors cool her aching feet. She was just lifting the first forkful of red velvet sponge cake to her mouth when a voice appeared behind her
"Don't. You. Dare" Madge contemplated grabbing the plate and running but knew she'd never hear the end of it, so reluctantly, she turned
"Effie" she chirped, slapping on another sickly sweet smile
"First things first, put down the fork" Madge looked longingly at the utensil in her hand and wanted more than anything to finish what she'd almost started
"It's just a small piece" she tried
"Don't even bother young lady. You know you're on a strict diet until the campaign is over" Madge neglected to point out she'd been on a strict diet since coming off formula "here" Effie grinned, handing her a sticky bar of mashed up fruit and oats. They were gross, the natural sweetness of the fruit and grain overpowered by whatever powdery vitamins that had been added. Couldn't she just have porridge and a banana?
"I'll skip, thanks"
"They're the best you can get, the only thing you should be snacking on between meals" pfft! They weren't meals anymore. The only meat she was allowed was fish and not the tasty kind she loved. The salty fishy kind. If she was lucky she'd get a tuna steak or a chicken breast but it was always served with a tiny helping of plain rice and a mismatched vegetable. Desert – one of Effie's sticky mush bars. "Now off to bed with you, you've got an early morning tomorrow"
"I what?"
"You have an interview tomorrow, they're doing an article on 'the next step', 'the adventure of college' . You're going on the cover, honestly Madge I told you all this" she sighs and lets her shoulders sag knowing it'll tick Effie off
"What time?"
"Up at 6, so bed you go. Sleep tight".
"Is this a legitimate wardrobe choice? Who approved this?" Effie bites, holding up a tartan skirt that could be a belt "you wouldn't think a publication of this stature would offer something so tasteless"
"Effie it's okay, I just won't wear it"
"Half the garments on the rail are … scraps. You are not some celebrity they can photograph as a stripper or a tarty schoolgirl" she whispers with a grimace as if the words themselves are distasteful "oh my good lord" she cringes, tossing another outfit from the rail "honestly, you think putting a graduation cap on her with that makes it any less tacky?"
"Effie" Madge giggled "why don't you choose which ones you feel are appropriate and we'll go from there?"
There wasn't much left to choose from, three dresses that Madge could barely distinguish between, some blouses and a skirt. If anything she was grateful, less wardrobe changes, less pictures. The questions they asked were mundane, was she excited? Was she ready? What was she studying? They could have googled that for crying out loud.
The day she moved in to her dorm the magazine was released, 'Panem's Princess Poised to Party'. It was sublined with a quote 'the first daughter says she is eager to embrace all aspects of college'. Of course printing about independance and living with a stranger wasn't juicy enough and they'd twisted her words, now she was was 'poised to party and partake'.
"What the fuck is all this? Who are you?" Madge looked up from the article to find a petite woman with spikey hair standing in her doorway, glaring at her assigned SSA agent
"Hello, you must be Johanna?" Madge bounced to her feet, offering her hand to the young woman, scantilly clad in a thin vest top and denim shirt
"Fuck me you're the president's kid" the woman laughed, vigorously shaking Madge's hand "no wonder they were so cagey about you when I asked"
"Sorry, security, you know"
"No, I don't, but shit just got interesting"
"Everyone will be leaving soon, only Ralph will have to stay" Madge explains "hopefully it will only be for a couple of days"
"Don't sweat it, as long as neither of you mind me bringing friends back" she winks "if you know what I mean" Madge swallows, surely not while she was here "kidding Blondie, sort of".