This moment should have been a celebration.
Kanizah should be sitting in the President's Box in the Sunedrion, beaming as the newly chosen leader stood tall and proud in front of those whom they were now to lead. She should have had months to prepare, to research the preferences and positions of her new supervisor so that she could best support them as they turned their focus to the nation – and to the upcoming Games.
Instead, Kanizah sits in the President's Office, waiting anxiously for the woman who was everyone's last choice.
Xandrie Atteneri. Thirty-three years old. Born to a pair of middle-class Capitol citizens. As far as most were concerned, a political nobody. She'd admittedly worked her way up the ranks of the Sunedrion rather quickly, but her highest appointment was still just that of a mid-level committee member. Kanizah knew that Xandrie was planning to run for the vacant seat in the Sunedrion that would have opened up once the new President was chosen – and that Xandrie was expected to lose.
Of course, nobody could have predicted that it would take the Sunedrion eight full months to choose a new president, nor how disastrous the selection period would be. Sure, the process was expected to take longer than normal – President Emeritus Serota did an exceptional job of alienating every party in the Sunedrion from everyone else, to the point where compromise became an ideal at best.
Over the course of eight months, nearly every delegate to the Sunedrion was proposed as a presidential candidate. And every time, the majority of the Sunedrion would reject the proposal, for reasons ranging from relatively legitimate to entirely banal. Xandrie Atteneri was the only candidate about whom nobody had anything bad to say - because they had nothing to say about her at all.
The only reason Xandrie's name was even proposed was so that the country would have someone serving as president for the duration of the Games.
What a fucking embarrassment: to the institution of the Sunedrion, to the office of the President, and to the entire city of the Capitol.
Kanizah's heard the murmurings; it's part of her job, after all. In every district, whispers of rebellion have grown steadily louder with every passing month. They see cracks forming in the Capitol's polished façade, in the all-powerful image that persisted for 120-odd years. And even though they've no way to talk to each other, they've all realized the same thing.
All it will take is one well-placed hit and the entire structure will come tumbling down.
Panem needs a strong leader. Panem needs a figurehead who can bring the districts back together under its golden, shining banner.
Panem has Xandrie Atteneri.
Kanizah takes a deep breath, releasing her anger and frustration as she exhales as best she can. She's sure that Xandrie has heard from her fair share of detractors since her selection last week; the worst thing that Kanizah could do for Xandrie is join their ranks.
Not every President has been perfect. But Kanizah Ilari still firmly believes in the institutions that keep Panem running.
And it is her job to make sure that Xandrie Atteneri can do just that.
So as the door opens, Kanizah stands with a respectful smile on her face to welcome Xandrie Atteneri to her new office.
Kanizah Ilari has her work cut out for her. And Panem cannot afford for her to fail.
As far as Kanizah is concerned, it's for the best that Xandrie's reign begins the day before the Reaping.
She still remembers how enraged President Serota was in his first year in office, when he learned that the Sunedrion took recess during the Games. Kanizah had tried to explain that there was no point in passing any laws during the Games anyway, that they'd be better off planning together for the return of the Sunedrion after the Games were over. But Serota paid her no heed; instead, he screamed in her face and threw her out of his office.
(Kanizah should have known from that moment just how bad of a leader President Serota would be. But Serota was the choice of the Sunedrion. And it was not her place to speak out against the choice of the Sunedrion.)
(How naïve Kanizah was to tamp her instincts. How stupid she was to put her own ego, her own job security, over the needs of the country.
Kanizah Ilari will never be so short-sighted again.)
As is her duty, Kanizah spends every waking moment that Xandrie can spare in and around the Games festivities in the president's office. They spend their time alternating between an overview of the current state of the country and a deep dive into the secrets of Panem's past that only Kanizah knows. Though apprehensive at first, Kanizah comes to find their time together tolerable, mostly because of how vastly different Xandrie is from her predecessor.
For one thing, Xandrie admits how much she does not know. She is willing – eager, in fact – to listen to the person whose job it is to help her. It doesn't matter how much Kanizah gives Xandrie to review overnight or how busy Xandrie's day might be; the president always comes to their next meeting with a list of detailed questions for Kanizah to answer.
For another, Xandrie has one of the sharpest minds Kanizah has ever seen. Her ability to absorb, retain, and synthesize information is unlike anyone else that Kanizah has worked this closely with. Furthermore, Xandrie is incredibly skilled at drawing connections between entirely disparate facts or data points. In her eyes, Panem's history is simply a series of patterns to be discovered; Kanizah even finds herself learning new things, in turn, from Xandrie.
Most importantly of all, Kanizah actually finds herself looking forward to her time with Xandrie. There's something endearing about Xandrie, about her eagerness to learn and serve and her seemingly boundless idealism. Despite her inexperience, Xandrie has a charming confidence in herself; there's something comforting for Kanizah about working with someone who at least seems to truly believe in her own abilities.
Only once in their time together does Kanizah see Xandrie Atteneri's façade crack.
"Is there a record anywhere of approval ratings?"
"Hm?"
It's the beginning of the second week of Xandrie Atteneri's term. Kanizah spent the first week reviewing various protocols and procedures that Xandrie might have learned had she spent more time in the Sunedrion. Today, they've shifted gears, reviewing in broad strokes the policy accomplishments of Xandrie's four predecessors before diving deeper into each of their reigns in the coming days.
"Like. A record of how much the different groups in the country liked each president. So they could make sure they were doing a good job."
Kanizah pauses; Xandrie's asked a plethora of questions thus far, but this is the first time that Kanizah's been forced to think this hard to find an answer. And after Serota, Kanizah can only hope that it won't be the last.
After a moment, she replies, "Nothing comes to mind, unfortunately. At least nothing like a formal, regular report. The closest thing I can think of would be the collections of espionage reports, particularly the one from Coriolanus's term, which admittedly were used for a wide variety of purposes. I do not think any president was specifically asking for approval reports from their contacts."
"Huh." Xandrie's brow furrowed. "I can't imagine why none of them wanted to know."
"It might be more that they didn't feel the need to know."
"Oh…"
Kanizah watches for a moment, allowing the wheels to turn in Xandrie's mind, before she continues, "Let's talk through your predecessors together. It'll be good to review what we talked about today, and I think it'll give you some good context as we dive into things more deeply this week."
Xandrie nods, opening her notebook to the next clean page and clicking open her pen. "Good plan. Menaeus?"
"Menaeus." Kanizah motions towards Xandrie. "Floor is yours."
"Well…" Xandrie flips back through her notebook for a moment. "Menaeus spent a lot of his term trying to balance the opinions of literally everyone else in his cabinet, while trying to get the rest of the country to some sort of functional place. He probably was so busy keeping his inner circle from exploding that he couldn't even start to think about what the people in the districts were thinking."
"And?"
"And most of his advisors probably didn't let him even consider the prospect that the districts might have opinions."
"Very good."
"Coriolanus eliminated any sort of inner circle – he had advisors, sure, but every choice he made was his and his alone. He took basically nobody's opinion into consideration when he made policy choices, and established many systems of Panem to ensure that he wouldn't have to. Coriolanus turned the Games into such a spectacle that, as long as the Capitolites were focused on them, they wouldn't care about anything else. He also established a far stricter and more militarized Peacekeeper corps to keep the districts in line and deployed a whole network of undercover agents to monitor who in the country – districts or Capitol - dared to dissent. So I guess he sorta did have approval reports, but more to try to figure out who disapproved. Which meant people got sneakier, and well… Mockingjay Rebellion."
Kanizah nods, a hint of a smile forming on her face. "Good logic. Keep going," Kanizah encourages; this has proven to be a good way to assess Xandrie's information retention, and thus far, she's passed with flying colors.
Xandrie flips her page over, reads it over for a moment, then sighs. "Honestly, this is the one that confuses me. Rosalyn Snow."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. She was by far the president who made the most changes to Panem: ending Avoxing, ending Victor prostitution and establishing stronger supports for Victors, reestablishing Twelve as the medical district, establishing the Sunedrion and developing protocols for electing a president… and that's not even everything. She made so many big changes, and so many that were specifically designed to improve the districts' lives, that I can't imagine she didn't want to know what the people thought of her and her choices."
"Well," Kanizah begins, "remember that Rosalyn did a lot of work before she made any policy decisions to gain the trust of the country, the districts and the Capitol alike. Most of the citizens of Panem knew no president besides her grandfather; she needed to prove to the districts that she was nothing like Coriolanus, and she needed to show the Capitol that that was not a bad thing. She didn't do anything significant until five years into her reign, and when she did, she started with the things that would cause the least amount of pushback and worked her way up through her agenda."
"Aha!" Xandrie exclaims, scribbling furiously. "So by going slowly, she gained the confidence to make the choices she wanted."
"Yes," Kanizah replies, "but you're also forgetting the single most important thing Rosalyn Snow did."
"Hm?"
"She died childless."
Kanizah watches as a wave of confusion crashes over Xandrie's face. She gives Xandrie a moment to think and process – to see if Xandrie can put the pieces together herself – before continuing. "When she took office, Rosalyn was the only living Snow; she was an only child, and her father, who passed when she was a teenager, had no siblings. Rosalyn planned long before she became president never to have children so that the Snow dynasty – including its reputation and its baggage – would die with her.
"As president, Coriolanus was motivated by a desire to keep his family in power; the tighter his grip on the country, the more likely, he thought, that Panem would remain his children's and grandchildren's through the years to come. Rosalyn didn't care about her grip on the country – in fact, she almost wanted to loosen it, so that her successor would have an easier time gaining Panem's trust than she did. For all of her grandfather's fear, Rosalyn was fearless."
Xandrie's eyes dart up to Kanizah for a moment before falling back to her notebook. This time, though, her writing is less emphatic; after a moment, it devolves into little more than loose doodles in the margins of the page.
It doesn't take much to figure out that Xandrie's upset. Kanizah just… well, she's never been much of a maternal type. The best she can think to do is gently place a hand on Xandrie's shoulder. Kanizah debates for a moment whether or not to say something – not that she has any idea what to say.
Fortunately, Xandrie speaks up. "So the key… is to be fearless?"
Kanizah chooses her words carefully. "It worked for Rosalyn, at least. Fear can be healthy, though – as long as it's not so debilitating that it holds you back."
Xandrie's eyes trace the lines that her pen makes on the page. When she speaks up, her voice is soft, innocent… childlike.
"How can you make it… not do that?"
"Well, that depends on what you're afraid of."
The pen clatters to the paper. Xandrie buries her head in her hands, scrunching her face as her body starts to shake. Kanizah gently rubs her hand in a circle on Xandrie's back, fighting the urge to say something to comfort the girl; she does not know Xandrie nearly well enough to know the right thing to say yet, and so it is better not to say anything at all.
After a moment, Xandrie looks up to Kanizah, her eyes those of a young girl begging for help. Barely, she manages to choke out, "I just want them to like me."
Kanizah finds herself taken aback; she does not know what she expected Xandrie to say, but it certainly wasn't that. "Oh, Xandrie-"
"I know that I wasn't anyone's first choice for president," Xandrie cuts in, a fire of passion and pain lacing her words. "I was there, in the Sunedrion, every single day of the seven months and three weeks before someone even thought to bring my name into the picture. I heard the whisperings and the murmurings, the mud and insults slung back and forth as the Sunedrion practically crumbled. I know that I am only here because people tolerated me, not because they wanted or liked me. How can I rule over a country that doesn't even like me?"
It occurs to Kanizah just how shielded Xandrie has been from the ire of the Sunedrion's members. She was not allowed to sit in on most of the presidential deliberations – she was too low of a rank to do so even before her name was brought forth – and the time the women have spent together thus far has kept Xandrie far away from prying eyes. And yet…
(Kanizah is suddenly reminded of the way that children seem to know far more about the world around them than the adults who raise them realize.)
(She's reminded of herself.)
Kanizah knows she could respond objectively. She could remind Xandrie that literally nobody could do a worse job than Serota, and that she's bound to create a better impression than him just by being herself. But the words that come out of her mouth are more genuine, more heartfelt… more real than anything Kanizah has said in a long time.
"That's a really valid fear, Xandrie. The position you're in is not an easy one. But your drive and intelligence and the passion you have for your work will carry you far. Regardless of the circumstances surrounding the presidential appointment, your name would not have been brought up if your nominator did not believe you would be able to do the job well. And I believe you will, too."
Xandrie's face softens, but does not relax. "I know I can do a good job. But that means nothing if I do not have their support."
"If anyone can garner it, it's you."
"From the whole Sunedrion?"
Kanizah nods. "It may take time. But I do believe you'll be able to turn them all around."
(Someday, when Kanizah Ilari looks back on this moment, she'll realize that this was the most important thing she ever said to Xandrie. And while she'll still hold by its sentiment, she'll wonder if she could have phrased it differently.)
The Convening of the Sunedrion has three parts.
The first is an address from the newly crowned Victor of the Hunger Games, on behalf of their district and all of the district citizens. While the majority of the speech remains the same year after year – one of the few things Serota never dreamed of touching – the Victor is encouraged to add a few lines about their own experiences. They remind the officers of government of their responsibilities towards the people they govern – all of the people they govern.
The second is the swearing-in. Beginning with the chair of the Sunedrion, selected by their peers at the end of the previous term, each member of the Sunedrion steps up individually to take their Oath of Office. The process is lengthy, but valuable, a reminder to each member of the government that the responsibility to govern is theirs.
The third is the president's address.
Two hours after the Hunger Games conclude, as celebrations kick off all across the Capitol, Kanizah and Xandrie retreat to the president's office to begin writing the most important speech Xandrie Atteneri will ever deliver. They pore over notes and drafts for hours and hours, desperate to make the most out of the five minutes Xandrie will have. They debate the merit of including or excluding every idea. They carefully select every word and construct every sentence so that not a moment is wasted.
They only have time to practice it once before the day of the Convening.
"Honored guests. Distinguished Gamemakers. Madam Secretary. Our newest Victor. And esteemed delegates to this, the eighteenth convening of the Sunedrion. It is truly a privilege to be here, holding the office of president of this great nation, and therefore addressing you all today.
"What does it mean to be a successor?
"The dictionary definition is relatively simple: A person or thing that succeeds another. But to reduce a successor to any position to that dictionary definition strips that person of the inherent complexity of stepping into another person's role – the complexity of contradiction.
"On the one hand, any successor inherits the work that their predecessor labored over for years. They inherit their predecessor's initiatives and achievements, the strides of progress and the calls for change that, in many cases, defined an era. It is only natural for a successor to want to preserve the legacy of their predecessor.
"But it is equally natural for a successor to strive to carve out their own legacy, one independent of their predecessor. How often does a child strain against the reputation of their parents? How often does a student hope to best their teacher? The desire to make a name for oneself in the world is so deeply entrenched in each of us; the legacy of our predecessors becomes immaterial when considering our own reputations.
"So how, then, can one move forward? Is it possible to hold both of these things at once, the desire to carry on the legacy of our predecessors and the desire to forge a legacy all of our own?
"I believe that, to answer this question, we must turn to the person most constant in each of our lives, whose motivations drive us more than anyone else.
"We must turn to ourselves.
"Every year, each of us in this room is sworn into our office anew. We stand, one by one, and take our oaths; we promise anew to serve and protect Panem to the best of our ability, and to strive to be the best versions of ourselves. Some do so with pride and confidence, proud of the way that they have governed in the past; they hope to maintain their record and their legacy in the year (or years) to come. Others, however, may feel as though they have room to improve, that they did not act in the best interest of their constituents. They commit themselves to making better and stronger choices, to reframing and reforming the legacies they leave behind.
"When we take our oaths, we carry our past actions with us – how could we not? – as we challenge ourselves to make stronger choices for our people and to serve them with kinder hearts. And yet, our Convening year after year blesses us with a fresh start, the opportunity to renew our commitment to the country we hold so dear.
"In a way, therefore, we are all our own successors, grappling with the actions of the version of us who came before. We are torn between wanting to honor our past selves, to respect the choices they made and the beliefs they held, and wanting to move beyond our past selves, to make the choices that we believe now to be right even if they contradict those we may have made in the past.
"As complex as it is to grapple with this contradiction, it is also somehow refreshing. Because if we allow ourselves to constantly reevaluate and renew our relationships to our own pasts, how much the more so should we be allowed to reassess our relationships to our predecessors, whose past actions have no direct bearing on our choices? Just as our own legacies are impermanent, so too may our relationships to our predecessors be fluid, ever-growing as we grow and ever-changing as we change.
"And I believe that to be a good thing. Because if we constantly model ourselves in the image of another, we stand no chance of establishing a legacy for ourselves.
"So today, as we convene the Sunedrion for the eighteenth time, I charge each one of us to consider our legacies, even for just a moment. To consider our relationships with our past selves, as well as our relationships for those who held office before us in these hallowed halls, and to commit to building the future that each citizen of our country – that each one of us – deserves.
"I, Xandrie Atteneri, fifth President of the glorious Republic of Panem, do hereby officially convene the eighteenth session of the Sunedrion. Panem today, Panem tomorrow, Panem forever."
Xandrie's speech is not perfect. Nothing can be perfect. But as Kanizah perches in the president's box, watching Xandrie speak, she can't help but glow with pride. No longer is Xandrie a scared girl or an eager pupil. This Xandrie is confident, assertive, bold, and passionate, with more care and more heart than anyone to whom she speaks.
For the first time, Xandrie Atteneri sounds – and looks – like a president.
But as proud as Kanizah feels, she knows that her opinion matters very little now. Xandrie does not need to win Kanizah over with her words; she needs to win over the seventy people who did little more than settle for her as their leader.
So as the last words of Xandrie's speech ring out across the room, Kanizah finds herself holding her breath, heartbeat pounding in her ears as sweat coats her palms. She rubs her hands on her skirt, eyes darting across the assembled crowds as she waits for their response.
A second passes.
(What if they didn't like it?)
Two.
(She must have won them over a little, right?)
Three, four.
(Were they just setting her up to fail?)
The room breaks into amiable applause.
And Kanizah breathes a sigh of relief.
That night, after the Sunedrion adjourns, Kanizah and Xandrie return to the President's Office to debrief.
"How do you feel?" Kanizah asks, for once not even opening her notebook.
"Good," Xandrie replies, a tired smile on her face. "I think that went about as well as it could have."
"I think so too. The aggregate impression report indicated a positive-leaning neutral impression on the Sunedrion delegates."
"Not bad at all." Kanizah pauses for a moment. "What are your next steps looking like?"
"I want to get some work done," Xandrie asserts. "My first round of one-on-ones are tomorrow, and we didn't have the chance to review their caucus portfolios. If you're tired, though, you should feel free to-"
"Don't worry," Kanizah chuckles. "I've stayed up later than this. Let's get some work done."
And there's plenty of work to be done. The task of uniting the Sunedrion is daunting at best; even an experienced politician would balk at the chaos Xandrie inherited. But there is nobody more willing to try – more committed to trying – than Xandrie Atteneri. That alone is enough for Kanizah to believe, against all odds, that she can do it.
Perhaps Panem needs Xandrie Atteneri after all.
Well, hello everyone! I'm sure some of you might be confused, given that I have two stories with basically the same title but with very very different summaries and contents. I want to give a little bit of context as I explain my newest endeavor.
For those who have been following me for a long time, you might know that I've written most of my work with the same group of characters: Ruby Emerald and her family. The work I've done in that verse has fulfilled me for a long time, but recently, I've been feeling increasingly constrained by the choices I made as a far lesser author, particularly as far as worldbuilding is concerned. In order for me to write in a way that's more cohesive - and more fulfilling for me - I needed to get a fresh start.
This fic is a closed SYOT. All of the tributes were submitted to me for the previous iteration of this story. If SYOTs are not your speed, feel free to check out my fic, Lost and Found, which is a single-POV OC fic as part of SYOT Verses' Victor Exchange! But if you are interested, particularly in subplots with political intrigue, I would love to have you along for the ride.
I'd also love to hear what you all think about our first two characters, President Xandrie and Secretary Kanizah! We do have a third strong powerful woman to complete this trifecta, but we've got some legislating to do before we get to meet her.
Thank you, so much, for all of your support. I'm excited for you all to see what I have up my sleeves!
xoxo, xxxi
