Head Gamemaker Flavia Mirage

The letter had come only a few days after she had sent hers.

Dear Head Gamemaker Mirage,

It would be my honour to assist you in carrying out the wishes of my late husband. I am certain he would want me to do so with enthusiasm and care.

Regards,

First Lady Gosselin

A short letter, but it had been a confirmation. A meeting had been arranged, and now the two would soon meet. Flavia had wanted to go to her apartment and talk, but the Head Peacekeeper Octavian had bugged the whole place as soon as the speech occurred. But here, in her own office, the only one with recording devices was Flavia. Having access to the tech that made the Capitol run was just one of the perks of being Head Gamemaker.

"Ms. Mirage? Mrs. Gosselin is here." Venera, her assistant, called from the hallway. Flavia rose from her chair, and found Mrs. Gosselin waiting in the hallway.

"Do come in. Venera, take these to Gamemaker Callent's office." She handed Venera a folder, and her assistant disappeared down the hallway.

Flavia and the former First Lady sat opposite each other in silence, considering each other. It was Flavia who spoke first.

"It surprises me that Dr. Caeso would lie about something that important."

Her shock was visible for half a second, and then it was gone. "What makes you think he lied?"

"You see, Mrs. Gosselin, I met your husband many times. Those would not have been his last words."

"Are you saying you know my husband better than me? Were you there when he died?"

"I knew him well enough to know his last words would have been personal, not for all of Panem."

Gosselin paused for a moment. "And you would accuse me, Dr. Ceaso and Miss Reyes of lying about something that important?"

"I'm only asking you. I would not, of course, seek to damage your reputation." Confusion, now. That was good to see.

"So why bother asking if you have no intention of informing others of your discovery?" she asked Flavia.

"Because, Mrs. Gosselin, I admire your courage. Lying to us like that took guts. And I need someone with guts to work on these games if we're going to make your husband's last wish happen." Flavia met her eyes. "Well?"

Gosselin nodded. "Of course, Head Gamemaker."

Over the past few months, Janan Gosselin had turned out to be very useful to Flavia, what with her links to people and places all around the Capitol. It wasn't as if Flavia couldn't access those places herself, but Janan's input made it personal. Having her on the team would be good for publicity too, what with Panem's apparently all-encompassing love for her, even in the districts. Maybe they'd love her even more if they knew everything about her.

This morning, she and the rest of the Gamemakers had gathered in a large meeting room to discuss a particularly tricky possibility and their startegy for if it occurred. Everyone had their own ideas of course, but eventually an agreement was reached. Flavia had found that this team worked much better than the one the previous year, after the departure of one of the more hostile members.

Janan had been talking to a florist all morning. Something about giving the Victor flowers her husband had liked. She certainly knew how to remember her husband, the thing Flavia had asked her to do.

"Head Gamemaker? I need to talk to you." Flavia turned to find Glint Octavian marching across the floor of the Gamemaking Centre.

"Oh?"

"What with the...unconventional nature of this years games, we are worried more districts may train their tributes."

"That sounds like an issue for you to solve without needing my input."

"We are worried that this may cause issues regarding safety during the reapings. We predict higher chances of escape attempts than at any other games." This, Flavia considered for a moment.

"Thank you for informing me of this, I shall keep it in mind in planning. I'll contact you with details closer to the day." She turned away, an obvious dismissal. In theory, she had more influence than him, but Durante would probably choose him over her if it came down to it. In that way, her public appearances with Janan were worth keeping up.

Just then, Venera arrived with a stack of papers.

"Gamemaker Callent asked if I'd bring you these, she needs them approved so she can have them finished."

"Thanks, Venera. Let her know I'll have them done soon."

Flavia looked over the papers. Confirmation of the final muttation they had designed a few weeks ago. As her eyes scanned over the pages, she decided Callent was worth keeping for as long as possible.

The final page meant she was finally done. From now until the reaping, the only focus needed was on the ceremony planning. Which meant that she had a few days to relax before the excessively busy weeks that would occur after that. With that thought, Flavia set her pen on the desk and walked through the building and out into the summer afternoon.

A/N

Hi all! So this chapter is a little late. Given the number of tributes that have been submitted up to this point, I am considering making this a partial, with somewhere between 6 - 12 tributes, however this is not fully decided yet, and depends on the number of tributes submitted by the time the final prologue is out. The cast list will go up in early May.

SnowSymphony