Surprised...Katniss's Father is alive - but in the future Coriolanus Snow was frustrated that his plan were not coming to fruition.
I do not own the Hunger Games
The Future
Coriolanus Snow was livid.
The crown sat heavily on his head. No one understood the pressure of being a King. No one understood how much he struggled to keep his grip on power.
Snow removed it and stared at the stone of Panem. The stone twinkled in the firelight. The stone like the crown was a symbol of the authority the nation vested in him. Symbols mattered.
This crown was difficult to obtain. The significance behind the bejeweled crown was not lost on Snow. Wearing the crown was a pledge for the advancement of the kingdom and a cry to be the best. It reminded him of his family's personal axiom.
The family motto Snow Saliet Ad Victoriam, which meant Snow leaped to victory, was one he took to heart as a child. Snow and his sister were great competitors as children. When Alma became Queen, he took great offense. It was he who was supposed to leap to victory not his unstable sister.
During these years, Snow questioned what use a general had without an army. For that matter what good was it to be King without a land to rule over or a people who believed in a King's sovereignty? During Alma's last days as ruler, her descent into madness destroyed the belief in her sovereignty by abusing the people. Sending her enemies regardless of age or sex to fight in Roman-like arenas was the last straw.
He took his chance.
When he became King, he finally felt as if the stars were aligned with him. To be the ruler of the land was his ultimate goal in life. He was from the house of Snow and they always were the best. He was no commoner, in his veins ran the blood of noble rulers. Having been defeated so openly was like pouring vinegar over a wound.
It stung like the sting of a bee.
In his great ire, he dismissed Seneca Crane instead of having him drawn and quartered. Coriolanus wanted him dead, but he with-held the order. True the wizard had served him faithfully. When it came time to choose whom to serve Seneca Crane had chosen him. He had helped Snow win the fealty of the army against his sister.
Snow had to admit, even though the wizard was a self-absorbed arrogant coxcomb, he had his uses. Crane did get rid of Eragon of Everdeen and he disposed of the strongest Mellark Princes. King Daniel was not a formidable king, in Snow's opinion he was a weak and incompetent ruler.
Corilanous wanted to attack Daniel and the land of the Olvidados. However, Seneca's insisted on leaving Daniel and his Kingdom for last. It was part of some vision Seneca claimed to have had.
The vision.
Snow wanted to laugh at the thought of a vision. Only the weak-minded believed in mystical forces controlling their lives. He believed in the tangible. He believed in the power of the sword. People responded with fear and respect when confronted with the tip of the blade.
He was tired of hearing about visions and prophecies.
He was tired of superstitions and lore. He had worked hard to rid the land of people who claimed to have supernatural power. Snow knew how much power corrupted people. The root of every war known to man was a result of him gathering power or money.
Snow stood from his chair and walked around the great fire pit in his tent for a bit trying to displace the anger he felt. He'd been made a fool. It was why he wanted to kill Seneca because Snow trusted the egotistical idiot. Regretfully Snow spared his life because he still needed the man.
Seneca was the only man alive who could kill that drunken trickster. With the wave of his hand, Haymitch had made Snow look like he was incapable of leading an army. Snow did not like for others to see him as weak. He was no one's laughing stock.
"Snow Saliet Ad Victoriam," Snow muttered to himself. He paused to look at the fire.
Tonight had been an embarrassment for him and his men and he needed to measure the mood of the army.
Snow stepped outside of the tent. His two guards automatically followed him.
The men bowed and greeted him as he walked amongst them.
There was a line of men in front of the cook's tent. Snow could see the defeat was playing on the minds of the men they were quietly standing in line waiting to be fed. They saw him and bowed nervously as he walked by.
Snow kept moving. His ire toward Seneca Crane returned full force. There was a small group of men sitting around a fire. He walked toward where they were gathered quietly sharpening their weapons.
"Your majesty," one of his men said, standing and bowing when he noticed he was headed toward them. He had no hair.
The other three stood and bowed.
"At ease," Snow said.
"Sire, is there anything we can do for you?" A man with long blond hair asked.
"No, I just wanted to check on my men," Snow responded.
"We're just getting ready for the battle, Sire," the man with the red beard said.
"Our enemy will not be victorious," the one without hair said.
The others agreed.
"Thank you," Snow said, nodding before walking away.
Hearing this group of men caused Snow to know not all was lost. This could work in his favor. He needed to cultivate the idea of revenge.
He entered his tent and went to his map.
The kingdom of the Olvidados was a vast land with untapped potential. The land held riches that had yet to be exploited. It was a vast outlying land and he wanted it, he had plans.
However, in his way stood one obstacle.
A drunkard who tonight proved to still be cunning.
Haymitch.
The man would not be victorious again.
"Snow Saliet Ad Victoriam," he muttered.
Haymitch needed to die.
So this one I had no beta...because after Jrosely edited chapter 17, I realized we hadn't heard from Snow - Just as an FYI there are about 24ish chapters and the last few are going to be double the size of my normal chapters for Fletcha.
So next week we go back to the Past where Katniss deals with her father...