One week after the 100th Hunger Games:


The President and the Head Gamemaker sat alone.

Now that the 100th Hunger Games had ended and marked an entire century since The Treaty of Treason, there was a lot of work left to be done. A new era was on the horizon, whether anybody wanted it or not, and the 101st Hunger Games would be the symbolic start. Which meant the bar had been set pretty high and it was their job to cross it.

They were in the centre of it all. They had always been the centre of it all.

Done browsing the news and showing the President what he wanted her to see, Head Gamemaker Athos Leigh-Snow switched off his tablet. "There we go. Approval for the Quell is surprisingly vast. At the same time, many loved it. Haven't seen ratings this high in years."
"Indeed," President Rosalina Snow mused. "It was quite the spectacle. I couldn't have asked for anything better."

"And you once doubted me."

"That's not true. I always knew you'd be my wild card. Why do you think you haven't been replaced yet?"
"Because you'll never find anyone better. Well, you can't replace me now. My brothers won't be coming back for another year. They're both done for good."
"I know. I got their resignation letters yesterday."

Rosalina wasn't going to bother pretending she wasn't pissed. Besides, even if she did mask everything, Athos would just see right through her. That's what scared her about her dear older cousin; his amazing ability to read people. By just a look of one's face, Athos could weave an entire story, to the point where he knew exactly how the tribute would fall to their demise. It intimated fellow Gamemakers to the point where they'd bend over backwards to fulfill any of his commands. If Athos wanted milk for his coffee, half a dozen people would be scrambling to find him some.

But it was also what made him an excellent Head Gamemaker and the President's secret ace. He knew people's fears long before they even realized it themselves. His triplet brothers, Porthos and Aramis, were both conventionally talented in their own ways. Porthos had a surprising taste for blood and tons of ideas for wicked mutts while Aramis knew how to properly portray each tribute to the right angle in the camera lenses, creating a satisfying Victor. But the delicacy and complexity of the work they did could occasionally evade them. Not Athos.

They wouldn't be punished, though. Rosalina Snow, powerful and vengeful as she was, would never turn her back on family for simply moving forward to greener pastures. She liked her cousins a lot. And besides, it was inevitable; they didn't have the chops Athos did. At least he'd be sticking around a little longer because the Gamemakers would be total chaos without him.

"Porthos has at least five kids, so he's just taking the paycheck and running with it," Athos explained. "Got enough dollars to get all of them into the best schools in the Capitol, at least. Aramis opened up a soup kitchen. Wants to give back to the community."

Not like Rosalina Snow cared much about soup kitchens or ever visited one, but she nodded along, to seem respectful. "Are you ready to shoulder the opportunity? I'll be blunt with you, Athos. I believe wholeheartedly you were made for this job. Your brothers weren't. We've done a lot of accommodations to create enough responsibilities for three people and now they all belong to you. You've become irreplaceable, far more valuable. Not that you weren't to begin with."

"Ain't that such a high compliment, coming from you." Athos smiled sweetly. "Now you don't need to worry about a thing, my dear. Remember, you're the President here and you have a country to run, so no wasting time babysitting me. After all, I'm not the one in charge of an entire country, am I. I'll take care of things. This is my specialty and I hope you don't mind me asking you to leave it be. It's...beneath a President like you, after all."

Really? Was Athos still bitter that their grandfather's will handed Rosalina the position of President and not him? Even after all these years of doing their jobs and carrying on like family, regardless of that small hiccup in their relationship?

Rosalina wouldn't lie, she sometimes wished she and Athos could switch places. Because every time something happened in Panem, all eyes would be on her. Critics sneering at her every move, rebels practically begging for her to hunt them down, the Hunger Games to keep all the districts in order...it was a lot. At least her reputation was much better than her grandfather's and she had been able to reserve some of his more extreme practices.

But she was a Snow. She was born a Snow and she'd die a Snow. Sometimes, the last name and its associations preceded her. Sometimes, she wished she could strip herself clean of her identity and the heavy weight of balancing it on her shoulders, when all she wished for was to just be normal. That being said, she never knew normal. All her life she had been trained and taught how to become the perfect successor.

"Am I allowed to see your plans?"
"Classified."
"As your leader, I demand to see them."

"And as your cousin, I gently remind my lovely relative that good things come to those who wait." Athos tapped her nose with his pointer finger, something he had been doing ever since they were kids. "Rosie, I love you, but I think you sometimes forget not everything has to be in your control. You have to have faith in me. Since when have I let you down?"

Rosalina sighed. She decided to drop the subject because yes, she trusted Athos. They never would have worked together this long otherwise. And she figured this really wasn't worth any argument. He'd take care of things.

They were both quiet for a few moments.

"How are your mothers, Athos?"
"They're doing alright. How about your father? Uncle Nero?"

The topic of Nero Zachariah Snow, the former President's eldest child, was always a touchy subject. Nero Snow, who gave up his rightful spot as the future leader to pursue life as a dancer. Who crashed after his star fell and crashed hard. Who had his own children ripped from him by his own father to be groomed into everything he was not. Nero may have been Rosalina's dad, but she was never close to him, nor did she desire to be. She didn't even love the man; just pitied him, really. It was unfortunate, but he dug his own grave. He ruined his own life. He had the same opportunities her grandfather had given her, but unlike her, he failed to make anything out of it.

"Maximus is looking after him," she said quietly, referring to her older brother. Maximus had never liked his grandfather that much; took after Nero quite a lot in both looks and character, in her opinion. So he moved into a modest house near their father instead to get away from the bustling life of politics and Gamemaking. And to make sure that Nero hadn't drunken himself to death yet.

"But I haven't visited in a while." The truth tasted like salt on her tongue. She hated admitting this one weakness of hers.

"You should. My mother and I went yesterday. You know he misses you, Rosie? Wants to see you again? And you can't even be bothered to give him a call?"
"You said it yourself. I have a country to run."
"That's a terrible excuse and you know it. If you're going to lie to me of all people, lie convincingly."

Had it been anybody else who dared to talk back to her like that, Rosalina would've turned them into an Avox. But she knew he was right. "Sorry, Athos. I know, I really ought to. But he has Maximus, so he isn't completely alone. I'll arrange something. Maybe a lunch on-"

"Mr. Leigh-Snow!" A young Gamemaker burst into the room. It was Iovita, Athos's assistant. "The mutts broke containment!"
"They did what!?" Athos yelled. "For fuck's sake, I leave you morons alone for one minuteā€¦"
"I'm sorry, sir. Please don't fire me!"

"I guess I got to make my leave now," Athos sighed, standing up from his chair. "Sorry, Rosie. I forgot I have to basically parent my entire team. Alright Iovita, show me where the mutts are. And who's the idiot responsible for this fuck-up."

The President was now left alone. She crossed her legs, then folded her hands over her knee, staring out the window beside her. She took in the sights of the bustling Capitol, her bustling Capitol. Yes, this had all been hers for twenty years, and hopefully many more to come.

She had done plenty, fixed up some laws from her grandfather she didn't agree with, boosted the economy, and cleaned up her family name as much as possible. The Snow family was the most powerful line in Panem, and people needed to know that. They were lenient, but not soft. And not worth messing with.

She never did feel as powerful as she looked.

Rosalina Snow was thrown into the position of President at the age of 17, still a child. How could any child be expected lead a country to greatness?

At least Athos could throw in the towel whenever he wanted. Nobody would whisper about him. He was just her cousin, the second most powerful Snow, but she was still leaps and bounds ahead of him in authority. Her brother, Rosalina occasionally thought, did the smart thing. Maximus purposefully let himself fade away. He opted for a quiet position where he could dabble in family affairs to suit his needs, but let his baby sister handle the rest of it.

She hid these insecurities from everyone, because they were a sign of flaws and she couldn't leave any cracks exposed for someone else to target. She, as a Snow, was flawless.

Just another day in the life of a President.

She was done sitting around here, though. Athos was busy and she ought to be as well. She had work to take care of; she always had work to take care of. Rosalina left the room and strutted down the hall, her heels making a sharp clack with each step. Back straight, head up, eyes forward.

Confident.

Assertive.

Powerful.

Controlling.

The star of the room.

The star of the show.

The star of Panem.

The President.

The Snow.


Yeah. I'm doing another SYOT. A partial this time. New first, a few important things you should know. Please read this AN carefully because there's a lot of info in here.

This is a partial. It will be told from the POV of twelve tributes I've created. For the most part, this story is going to be entirely narrated by them and there's a good chance one of them is probably going to win. Only non-POV spots are open for submissions.

I apologize for how lackluster that may sound, but I just feel too mentally drained to do another full SYOT. I can't bring myself to write 24 tributes, especially if I can't be sure I'll ever hear from the half the cast after they send me their submissions. It sounds a bit selfish, but I'm tired of writing tributes whose submitters I know will never see them. This may be my last SYOT, and I want it to be a fun experience.

I want this story to be something I'll enjoy writing, not a slog I find myself struggling to get through. This story is something I'm more than happy to share with everyone else. This story is supposed to be a fun experience and I will do my best to keep it that way. But above all, this story is something I'm writing for me.

This SYOT is also going to have a theme. Each tribute will be based on a constellation. Yep, you submit a tribute, and they will have their own unique constellation. My twelve tributes are based on the zodiac signs, but there's tons of constellations out there, so no two tributes will have to share. You can see a full list of all available constellations on the Google Form. Link to the form is in my profile. Also, I purposefully left out Ophiuchus. It will come into play later.

You are more than welcome to submit non-cisgender tributes. I use a F/M slot format for organizational purposes, and it does not necessarily reflect what the tribute identifies as. Please, feel free to create diverse tributes in terms of sexuality, race, and gender!

This story takes place in the same verse as Rebellious Fate, Our Last Summer, Too Much Heaven, but decades in the future instead.

Sponsorship for all readers is open for this story and I'll provide more detail once we get closer to the Games.

Escort subs are open too. Escorts do not have to be constellation-based. Have fun with them.

Maximum three tribute submissions and three escort submissions per person. We don't have as many spots open this time, so I want to be able to accommodate as many people as possible. You can see on my profile which spots are open. I will do my best to keep things as updated as possible.

This isn't first come first serve, so submissions will be held open for a certain amount of time. I will provide a date for when they will close in a later chapter. Escort subs will be FCFS-ish, but I'll be trying to accommodate people there as well, so you may not get in all three of your subs.

Also, if you're going to submit, please don't just send me the forms and dip. At the very least, just complete the submitter check-ins when I post them. You're not required to review every single chapter either, so don't feel pressured to write these really long essays every time I update the story. Just tell me something you liked about the chapter! Don't worry, I will not be a review cop. All I need is some kind of sign you're still participating and I understand we all have lives outside of FanFiction. I just don't want to have a majority of this story's submitters be completely absent.

TLDR; Partial SYOT. Constellation-themed. Don't worry about having to review every single chapter. Just at least complete the check-ins when I announce them.

That's the gist of it. You can find the links to the forms and some additional worldbuilding notes on my profile. If you have any additional questions, send me a PM here or a DM on Discord. Also, a quick plug-in about my Discord server, hehehe. PM me to get a link if you'd like to join!

Happy submitting, have fun and I'll see you in the next prologue,

-Vr