When President Cain walked into his office there was a woman sat behind his desk. Her feet were tucked up under her and all her concentration was focussed on the book in front of her as she lounged, perfectly relaxed, in his chair. As he entered she made no move to acknowledge him but simply carried on reading, her dark eyes flicking across each page.
The President stepped forward, a smile forming on his face. It was not a pleasant smile. It was the kind of smile that said "Get out of my chair now or I'll make you an Avox. Oh and quite probably have you executed as well. So move." It was a look that spoke volumes. He cleared his throat.
Amazingly, she still didn't look up. Instead she raised a hand in an unmistakable 'wait a minute' gesture, still staring down at the page. The President moved to the centre of the room and waited, deadly smile still in place.
The silence seemed to stretch on for an eternity but in fact it was just over a minute before the woman shut the book with a snap. She grinned.
'What did you want?' she asked, raising her eyes to the President.
Who was stood in front of her, a knife hovering less than a centimetre from her right eye.
'Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just kill you now,' he asked softly.
To her credit, she didn't even blink. 'Oh you don't want to do that,' she answered lightly. 'After all, I'm Phaidra Lyce.'
The knife didn't move.
'I'm your new Head Gamemaker.'
There was a pause. Then the President stepped back, seating himself opposite her, the knife still toying with the knife held loosely held in his hand.
'There are still many candidates to consider for such a coveted position. Tell me, why should I choose you?'
At that, Phaidra smiled. 'Because I have an idea that no one else will have.'
She slid a piece of paper across the desk towards him. He read it. Quietly he was impressed but nothing showed on his face as he placed the paper back down on the desk.
'Very well then. It looks like you've got yourself a job.'
She smiled again and slid another stack of paper to him.
'Here are the other Gamemakers I propose.'
He flicked through and then nodded. 'Very well. I hope for your sake that you do not fail.'
She stood up to leave. Halfway to the door she turned.
'I was serious about that idea you know.'
Cain nodded and turned back to the files in his hand. Smiling, Phaidra strode out of the room.
A/N: So, I'm writing a SYOT. I'm quite excited about this. Details to submit are on my profile.