A/N from Fin: Soooo sorry about the delay for some of you who reviewed/PMed us. It's my fault, but I won't let that happen again. We're still going and hoping for a few more spots to be filled!

The man sits in his furnished little apartment complex, sitting by the light of a single lamp and reading from a worn little book about the history of Panem. Not the recent stuff, everyone knows about the most recent Victors. Some have gone out of style, and some remain a crowd favorite even to this day.

But, no, as interesting as the present is, the man was studying the past. The Dark Days, words that were never spoken for fear that they would find disfavor with the government. The times back when the Districts were so close to taking down their lovely Capitol… It hurts the loving Capitolites to even think about.

But, one thing did come out of those days, so long ago… The Hunger Games. Since the very First Games, the yearly spectacle has become extraordinary. Each coming year brings more lights, more drama, more extravagance. The vanity of the Capitol is never satisfied, it seems. Every year the tributes are praised more, the knockoffs are more, and the children imagine spectacular scenarios… The Arenas become craftier, the outfits bigger and brighter and better… The Hunger Games have become something special.

And now, the man finds that he is going to be a part of them!

He will be the interviewer this tear. He will get to know the tributes by asking them all questions and having laidback, simple conversations with them. He's so friendly, surely he will be able to give a great show of the interviews this year. Surely that's why President Wester had put him in the position straight out of his internship.

Lexus Romero, at the young age of 24, would have been stupid to deny such an honor. The Games have become bigger and better exponentially through these years since the cursed attempt at rebellion was extinguished.

Now Lexus would be immortalized in history books, just like the one that was sitting open on his lap. He reads the page about Enobaria Murray, the only Victor from the old times that is still alive. She really was vicious in her day, tearing other tributes' throats out with her teeth… The young man was sure to be careful around her this year when she comes to mentor. He flips the pages back to one of his favorites, covering the Victor of the 20th Games. The first and only second-generation Victor, his father won the very first Hunger Games, all the way back, almost 100 years ago.

He betrayed his ally to win, the girl from District 4. Lexus glances at the picture of the girl on the page. The first thing he notices is how… Flat she is.

He scolds himself for being so shallow. It's hard to be anything but shallow in the Capitol, and it's all thanks to conditioning. Expanding your horizons is bad, education is something to scoff at, the only things that matter are vanity and greed. Buying love is more important than searching for it. Everything is artificial.

Don't feel, put on your happy mask, take some pills, buy a whore, enjoy your life. Everyone else is doing the same. There are few exceptions to this 100% happiness philosophy, and Lexus is one of them. Though, the way he's been conditioned to live in that mindset gives him thoughts such as that. He really wants to avoid their way of thinking.

For once, he's allowed his royal purple bangs to be shaggy and fall into his eyes. Nobody's watching, after all. He's considered simple by his collegues, considering royal purple hair and eyes to match are the only altercations he has besides a couple metallic tattoos. No piercings, no skin dyes, not even any altercations or plastic surgery, which is all the rage nowadays! Lexus has never seen the need for such things as those. Another thing that separates from the greedy people that surround him.

He reads some more about the 20th Games, thinking about such a betrayal of two teens that were… Friends. Or, so it seemed. Maybe they could've been friends, if they weren't where they were. Betrayal must hurt. The Capitol justifies it by reminding the crowds of "how the Capitol felt when we were betrayed by our Districts who we nurtured." Lexus can't forget that, especially now that he's in charge.

Looking through the history of Games past, Lexus is taken back to the old videos he's seen, and feels incredibly sentimental. The Games past were full of sacrifice and love, of tragic stories of tributes that were close and failed to be. They've become so artificial…

Lexus sighs looking at the pictures of the star-crossed lovers from District 12. How dramatic were the Games past?! So woeful, simply divine to revel in… That magic seems to have disappeared, and been replaced by a thirst for savage, vicious killers…

Lexus suddenly shuts the book. He knows what he has to do to make the 97th Games stand out. He has to bring back the humanity, create tributes that the Capitolites can root for reasons other than looks…

Maybe he can bring humanity back to the Capitol by bringing some of it back to the Hunger Games.

Instead of bold, savage, violent heroes, Lexus could show the Capitol: and the nation: a batch of troubled souls.

A/N: 24/24 still open! Review, go on our forum, or PM CelticGames4, The Tributes From Two, or InfiniteFinity to get details.

Submitters, review the story please to get more interest generated for the story! :)

~Celtic