Do you have a creative outlet, and are you expressing yourself through it? Or are you using it purely as a distraction?


Magnolia Kuboshi, Gamemaker


Her red heels click and clack on the shiny polished floors of the Gamemaker department. She makes her way to her office, the exhilarating feeling welling up to her face as she turns corners. She flashes the other workers a smile as she turns another corner.

Magnolia Kuboshi had been promoted to Gamemaker at the end of her five year intern program under Theodora Vidia. She had impressed the older woman by suggesting that an abandoned power plant would make a good arena with the potential to add traps that would include explosives.

She had not expected it, of course, but she was more than grateful for the opportunity. Her first job of the day is to attend the briefing, Theodora Vidia had kept to herself the last six months after the Victory Tour in her home planning and conceptualising two to five ideas before presenting it to the larger Gamemaker team.

This would be her first time attending such meetings, interns were never allowed to attend. They weren't needed at that point, in actuality interns were only useful for an extra pair of hands, such as delivering papers or getting coffee, to which Magnolia did without so much as an argument.

Now she can finally call the shots, first impressions count so much for this and the pressure to fail is ever prevalent as she opens the door to the big boardroom and takes a seat. Everyone sits quietly, she recognises all of them, her being the newbie in the whole team makes herself standout.

She's wearing one a white blouse and black pantsuit, keeping it professional. Her bangs cut neat and proper black hair like that of ravens. She wants to standout, but she doesn't want to through appearances, maybe she'll do that when she becomes Head Gamemaker.

She smiles at the idea as she takes out a pen and paper. The moment she does Theodora Vidia bursts into the room, hair in an untidy bun with one or two pens stuck within it. She's wearing a black skirt with similar black heels. Her black blazer with white trims around her shoulder covering her white blouse. Her skin normally fairly tanned is a fair bit paler the last time she saw her, and you can tell that she had not been sleeping.

Nevertheless, the woman hands everyone a beige file and she takes one. She doesn't open it yet, but when she gestures for everyone to open the files they do so fast, everyone scanning the pages and pages of information, graphs, and various pictures.

"This is my concept for this year's Hunger Games ladies and gentlemen." She says as she lets everyone read through the file for a few more minutes before speaking again. "You have a week to pick one of the five concepts and pitch them to me, this year is going to work different, for I will be entrusting my faith to you all, and possibly pass on as Head Gamemaker to the idea I like the best."

Everyone cries out loud all arguing and shouting at Theodora, mainly asking what she thinks she's doing and asking her why she is quitting. She doesn't respond to any of the questions and instead stands up, gestures towards her as she smiles.

"Also, please give a warm welcome to Miss Magnolia Kobushi for becoming a Gamemaker after the five year intern program, the first of its kind since I started that many years ago." She gestures for everyone to leave and Magnolia gathers her things but was stopped by Theodora.

She stops as everyone files out leaving them alone within the four walls of the boardroom. Theodora tucks a stray black hair behind her ear as she looks Magnolia up and down, nodding an approval before looking at her straight in the face.

"Magnolia, I do have one final request." She tells her as she hands her another set of files. "You were by far the best intern I had ever seen, and I know you are capable of achieving great things."

She hands her another file, and she opens it, six faces in different pages all stare back at her. A few brief descriptions of themselves as well as their goals and aspirations. She sees that they all went to the same university she had graduated from five years ago, but she was confused.

"Interns?" She asks looking up from the file.

"Yes," she answers them. "You were the best of the best and therefore I gift you six interns to train and become Gamemakers."

She doesn't understand and before she can ask any more questions Theodora rushes out of the room her own black heels clacking on the quite hallway. Magnolia stands there for a few seconds before closing the file and heading to her own office.

She couldn't believe that she was entrusted with such a job by the Head Gamemaker herself. Does that mean she's already a candidate to replace her boss? She hesitates before opening the door, she can hear voices behind it already, which was impossible because she was not expecting anyone else.

When she opens the office doors, there's a chattering between six different people sitting at her discussion table. They're all younger than her and she looks at each of them individually recognising them briefly from the file she was given moments ago.

Interns.

The don't stop their deep discussion as she stands by the door. Even as an intern she was quiet as a dormouse and she knew, and could sense, when to be quiet but the six of them don't seem to even notice her standing by the door. She fold her arms over the files, her handbag dangling from one of the arms.

"You mean to tell me that renowned businessman, Jovian Basani, has mysteriously disappeared." One of the younger women says as if she doesn't believe them whoever spoke before her as she folds her arms.

"Yes!" A young man says slamming his hand on the table a little too excited. "He was last seen entering one of his apartment littered across the Capitol and then poof gone! His apartment empty and he's nowhere to be found."

"Well I hope they find him soon." Magnolia speaks this time, clearly standing by the door isn't going to catch their attention as she smiles curtly at six heads turning all at once, faces mixed between terrified and shocked. "Well by all means continue your discussion and I'll just stand here."

The interns all scramble to their feet standing in some form of line, Magnolia trying her best not to look impressed as she walks past them all making her way to her mahogany desk. She lays her bag on the floor beside it and the files on the table. She sits on her leather chair and leans back, liking the feeling of it all.

She gestures for her interns to sit and they all go back to where they were sitting seconds before, their heads turn to look at her now. The silence pleasing to her ears as she leans forward from the chair, resting her head on propped up arms.

"Welcome to my office." She says looking at them all individual once more, her brown eyes scanning their faces, committing them to memory. "I see you know how to let yourself in. How about the next time you do you can start brewing some tea or perhaps coffee?"

"It was Leo's idea." The girl that had her arms folded speaks up. "He said that it was okay."

Magnolia looks at the girl, skin like chocolate and hair just as dark as her own. She's wearing black high-waisted skirt with her white blouse. She looks caring enough and yet disinterested, she respects that.

"Only because we had been standing there for thirty minutes and I didn't want to look like we were loitering." The boy named Leo speaks out this time. "I am terribly sorry, Miss?"

"Kuboshi. Magnolia Kuboshi." She says with a frown. "You didn't see the name on the door you broke into?"

His peachy complexion brightens red as he stutters a response, and the other interns laugh at him. She gives a little giggle too as she stands up and make her way to the table. She sits on the remaining seat.

"Why don't we start again and introduce each other?" She asks them all, and she can see them all nod. "Let's start with you Mr. Leo. Who are you and why did you sign up for this program?"

"Hello, I'm Leonardo Lodgepole and I signed up for this program because I intend to be a Head Gamemaker."

"Fascinating." She says at the younger man's ambitiousness, she smiles and looks over to the girl beside him, her auburn hair standing out from her otherwise grey pantsuit. "What about yourself?"

"Easter Lily." She says curtly. "I applied for extra credit, I want to work in politics, and this seems like a great stepping board."

"Many intern do end up working closely with the President, I know of one intern that did end up working for the President actually, but that's a story for another time." She looks at the girl next to her, smiling as she fixes her pale yellow dress as well as her fringe. "And you?"

"Iris Agua and I want to work in fashion, but I'm not so good at speaking, yet." She says, and Magnolia can tell that she's shy about it all as she goes red from speaking, she turns her attention at the girl who had been speaking earlier and she looks back beginning to speak.

"Anisa Cheam, I want to also be a Head Gamemaker." She says staring at Leonardo, who glares back at her. "Healthy competition is good."

"I'm Michael Ironwood." The man beside Anisa speaks the moment Magnolia looks at him. "I want to be a Gamemaker too."

She smiles at that. Out of all the interns in here he's the only one with an outrageous hair colour, much like some of her co-workers. Michael's being a pastel pink or purple in colour. She regards him as he sits back, fiddling with his thumbs again.

"Last one?" She says looking at the stoic looking man beside her.

"Peter Galdiolus. I want to also be a Gamemaker." He says curtly and she smiles at that too.

"Very good." She says looking at all of them once more before standing up. "You all seem to know each other already so I wouldn't need to do any of that ice breakers. Why don't we just get down to business?"

She returns to her desk and takes the first file, the one with concepts made by Theodora Vidia and she goes to the whiteboard on one side of the walls and begins to pin the concepts to the wall. She writes something beside each of the pictures as the interns watch on silently.

She finishes by putting the pen away and she looks at all of them with a small smile.

"Ideas?"


A/N - Hello!

We take a break from introducing victors and instead introducing Magnolia Kuboshi. She's quite pivotal in this subplot story that is continuing to evolve in my head. She's quite headstrong and as you can see she's worked under the Theodora Vidia herself so you know she's going to be quite capable.

What do you think of Magnolia? She has six interns and I've just briefly introduced them all but they should all get at least one POV each as the story progresses. Look forward to it!

Also, this is a reminder that subs close end of April! So you have at least a month left to conceptualise and formulate your tribute for me to torture. The list is pretty updated on my profile and if you're ever stuck about my world building just shoot me a message and I'll answer them!

Cheers!
~Alec