if there was any tribute who could spin losing a telescope for a plush parrot into a positive, it was finley, allegra knew that for sure. as soon as it was revealed that finley made it out of the bloodbath alive, allegra immediately went to her laptop. talking to sponsors in person was more difficult for her, but she was a whiz online, and she began scouring the forums and blogs online in order to see what the reaction to finley was.
it wasn’t until she saw the reflection of a person in her computer screen that she even realized someone was standing behind her. her attention snapped to them, she smiled, and then moved her computer bag from its place on the bar to the floor so that they could come sit next to her if they wanted. // @ttwstarters
ember hadn’t meant to get distracted. isn’t that always the way these things go? we never mean for things to end up the way that they do, no one wants to take responsibility for the choices they make and the actions they take that lead to them being in an unfortunate situation.
he had been trying to find royce and dem again, if he could find them, then everything would be okay, if he could find them, then he could ground himself once more in a real life purpose, protecting them from the dangers that lurked in the arena.
and then music played, and it was the sweetest song ember had ever heard.
it had been the first time ember had heard music since entering the arena, and it beckoned him to walk further away from where he suspected his two allies were, to walk closer and closer to the source of the sound.
he was captivated, hypnotized, overtaken by the melody, that he lost complete sense of where he was and what he was doing. all that existed was him, and the music, and nothing else. // @laurelscrowned
watching finley die was one of the hardest things allegra had to do. in fact, she didn’t, she could barely keep her eyes on the viewing screen when it was happening, so she didn’t really count that as watching it at all. the people around her in the viewing room all directed their attention towards her while it was happening, all wanted to watch the reaction of the new escort from ten as she watched the last of her first tributes die.
allegra didn’t give them a reaction, she gave them a stone cold face and a quivering lip, as she walked calm and collected out of the room.
she did not talk to anyone else for the day after that, stayed in her room to collect her thoughts and emotions, but in hour twenty seven of sulking, she realized there was someone else nearby who may need some support more than her.
so, she rallied temporarily, enough to make some hot chocolate in their kitchen, plopped about ten mini marshmallows in the mug, and walked over to birch’s room, lightly tapping on the door. as she finished knocking, she slid a handwritten note under the door, with the words it’s allegra, i have hot chocolate and a really soft blanket. let me know if you want some company right now.
with that, she waited outside for a bit to see if he’d open the door. // @birchpembrooke
his back was pressed against a tree that overlooked the lagoon. he watched the sun rise into the sky at an unnatural speed -- his thoughts instantly went to a lustful high as the culprit, but they corrected themselves once his body reminded them that their master was skin, bones, and sickly. because of this, royce watched as the first of three bottles fell out of the sky. "um, guys? a bottle just fell from the sky."
ember
ember was constantly on lookout, even when it wasn't his specified job to be. and so when he missed the bottle falling, he was surprised at himself and his inability to notice the fact that projectiles fell right in front of them. that being said, he hadn't always been the most observant person. "what do you think is inside?" he asked cautiously.
royce
cocking his head to the side, royce slowly got up and moved -- or, rather, crawled -- forth to get a better look at it. for a moment, he thought it was some sort of trap. but, then again, the chapstick and insect repellant hadn't been. "it... it looks like a key? like, it's so sparkly. dude, it makes the map besides it look a little--"
demelza oberon
Demelza attempted to distract from their current predicament by pretending the arena was a tropical resort. The three tributes were simply in a remote part of the island, and they had a small shelter they could return to. She could hear the two others speaking behind her but hadn't paid much mind. That was until the second parachute descended toward them. "What's going on?" She finally asked. "A sparkly key's in there? I hope whatever it opens is just as sparkly."
ember
he raised an eyebrows, slowly removing his sword from its home at his side in case there was something dangerous in the bottle. "what do you think it opens? i haven't seen anything locked anywhere on this island..."
royce
royce had stopped when demelza talked over him. instead of being offended -- which another royce carter a few weeks younger would have been obligated to be -- he continued staring at the bottle's key. slowly, surely, and completely unaware of any danger, he grabbed it, popped open the top, and poured out the contents. "it's a key and a map," he said blandly and softly to himself more to anyone else. head tilted towards the sun, royce looked for ember with squinted eyes and opened up a rather dry and parched mouth -- "maybe its for like, y'know, buried booty... or whatever they say in those storybooks."
demelza oberon
While her previous statement had been quite senseless, Demelza hardly noticed. Her brow furrowed in deep concentration, as if she was trying to unlock the rational portion of her brain. She stood from her place by the lagoon's edge and moved closer to get a better look at the bottle. "Is there any other writing on there? Like clues of where it leads?" She asked, craning her neck to get a glimpse of the map.
ember
ember braced for impact as royce opened the bottle, and once he saw that the coast was clear, wandered over to look at his map. "hey, that looks kind of like what you got from the boat, remember? maybe it's a map of this island telling us where to go."ember refrained from making a butt joke, as much as he wanted to. the games had changed him already.
royce
nodding slowly, royce pretended to understand and remember the map he had gotten in the bloodbath. truly, the boy had already succumbed to his whimsy and forgotten all about it. "yeah... and, uh, demelza come over here. i can't hear you. you sound like a ghost."allowing his neck to tilt back, royce closed his eyes and allowed the warmth of the sun to take him to a place of uninhibited freedom.
demelza oberon
After the third bottle descended close by, Demelza scurried toward it and looked at her own map. "Well, whatever it's a map of, the artist needs to go to some serious drawing classes." She remarked, staring at the map with confusion then heading back toward Royce and Ember. "My map looks pretty similar to yours, don't you think?" She squinted one eye to get a good look, holding hers closer to the others.
ember
ember gingerly opened his bottle, pouring the contents into his hand and observing the images on his piece of paper. "i'd say they're damn near identical. you'd think they'd want to try and split us up if they were looking for more action, right?"
royce
eyes still closed, royce muttered to himself the following unhelpful anecdote -- "haaaa... sounds like something my sister would draw. she's a terrible artist."then, suddenly, at the mention of splitting up, royce's eyes popped open and his head whirled towards his lover. "god, dude, shit... do you think they're trying to get us to fight for booty?"
ember
ember rolled his eyes, looking towards royce with a smile. "the only booty i'd fight anyone over is yours."
demelza oberon
Demelza clicked her tongue at Royce and shook her head. "Your sister can hear you, you know." It sounded silly, but she couldn't stop it from escaping her mouth. "Maybe that's the point. Maybe they want to draw us together and make us fight each other." She hypothesized, wrinkling her nose with a smile at Royce and Ember's comments toward each other. "If we weren't probably going to die, I'd say you two are cute together."
royce
"i know, dude. but that's a shame, because my ass is pretty flat. look at it," he said as he stood and scattered sand everywhere, "it's like a piece of paper."in the same breath, he turned to demelza and stared at her with his usual bloodshot eyes. "i want her to hear me. it's better she hear me insulting her before i die."
ember
"do you think everyone's got something there, waiting for them? and if we go, we could be walking into this huge elaborate trap?" he asked nervously, his hand instinctively moving towards royce's. he chuckled at dem's words. "hey, even if we are dying, i like to think we're still cute."
royce
grasping at it like it was the blood of a forgotten religious deity, royce enveloped ember's hand in his as he moved his stare to the waters before them. he said nothing, but instead allowed his thoughts to run wild with the thought of the three of them walking into a trap.
demelza oberon
Demelza resisted the urge to make a butt joke, knowing it wouldn't be becoming of lady -- even one forced into a haphazard and humid jungle area. "I really hope it isn't a trap. I want whatever this map leads to." It already felt like going on one of her infamous scavenger hunts back home in Three. "If they wanted to draw us all to one place, why would they make us work so hard to find it?"(edited)
royce
"because it's a game," royce said seriously. his voice cut through the brief silence like a hot knife through butter. he allowed his gaze to linger on the waters for a few more seconds before wrapping an arm around ember to stabilize himself. "and it's fun, fun, fun, dude. didn't you know that?" he ended sarcastically.
ember
ember rolled his eyes with a shake of his head. "well, what do you think's waiting at the location on this map? it could be something incredible, and it could be a bomb, or more of those weird birds, or something worse."
royce
"a bird bomb..."
demelza oberon
"I liked it a lot better, when we weren't the ones playing." Demelza huffed and puffed out her cheeks in frustration. She hadn't liked the Hunger Games before, but the so-called entertainment became even worse with her own participation. "I-I don't know. I'd hope it'd be something great, considering how fancy this key is. It looks like real gold!" The female tribute gushed, bringing the key up inches in front of her face.
ember
he shuddered at the image of a bird bomb. now that was terrifying.
royce
while ember shuddered at the thought of a bird bomb, royce shuddered simultaneously at demelza's egocentrism.
ember
"do we think it's worth checking out?"
demelza oberon
Bird bombs sounded horrific, but she pushed that thought away by focusing on the shiny nature of the key. "I think it's worth a shot. There's three of us working together, even if we run into other tributes, right?"
ember
ember didn't want to say that he was the one tasked with protecting the both of them, he didn't want to think like that, but really he was the one with the weapon, when it came down to it, he would be the one stepping into danger for them both. "what do you think, love?" he asked royce
royce
the thought of getting into a fight made royce's bones shake, his muscles ache, and his mind vibrate at the thought of taking another life. thinking again of those red tufts of hair, royce felt his grip on ember's shoulder increase as he lurched forward and did what he thought would be a big batch of vomitas the heavy belch left his mouth and floated in the air, royce audibly made an "oh" sound. so, it was just a burp after all."i think that demelza should lead the charge, dude-who-i-love."
demelza oberon
The somewhat familiar belch erupting from Royce's mouth instantly made her scrunch up her nose. If vomit expelled from his system again, Demelza trusted Ember would help Royce recover. She rose her brow and stared at the maps again, as if she understood them fully. "I think that's an excellent idea." She chirped, always loving to be the leader in most situations.
royce
"see?"
ember
he wanted to be kind and nice, but the idea of dem leading the pack made him a little concerned. however, she seemed excited about the idea, so who was he to rob her of the opportunity? "okay, sounds good to me."
royce
"onward, then, demelza," royce said as energetically as he could muster. he had become accustomed to his overall lack of strength. the withdrawals were still kicking his ass, and the boy wondered if he'd ever know peace anytime soon. as he stole a glance at ember, royce decided that that wasn't a likely scenario.
ember
ember stood up, gathering his backpack and his items and holding them out to both. "anyone wanna store anything in here? i don't mind carrying things."
demelza oberon
"Great, it's settled then." Demelza grinned. She deposited her hand sanitizer, bottle, and half packet of fried fruit in Ember's backpack for later. The young woman pocketed her small retractable knife in her boot once more, just in case they needed it. "Okay, follow me!" She remarked with gusto, holding up her map with purpose. With a spring in her step, she lead the charge in what she believed might be the right direction.
when the boat finally docked, ember ran off it as fast as he could, holding his sword out to try and keep the other tributes away from him. he wanted to be alone, want to get some place he could be by himself, and so he ran as far as he could into the jungle, veering off of the path to find a place where he could throw up in peace.
he hated this feeling, this feeling of being alone and unfamiliar with his surroundings and still nauseous even though he he didn’t think there was anything left in him to come back up. he made his way towards the trail, hoping he wouldn’t run into anyone, but then he ran into the only person that he wanted to run into.
royce.
he began to tear up. “i-. i thought you might have been gone.” // starter for @vxctxrx
ember felt like he was going to throw up. the feeling of the ground beneath him rocking instantly made him dizzy, made his legs shake, made him feel his breakfast moving around in his stomach.
he looked around him, trying to distract himself from that awful feeling. he saw royce, demelza, finley, the people he had interacted with in the tribute tower now supposed to be his foes instead of his friends. he didn’t like that, he didn’t want to hurt someone he liked.
when the countdown stopped, he ran for something that happened to be right in front of him. it was a small sword, sort of like the one that cashmere had shown him how to use in training, not as small as a dagger but not big enough for him to feel uncomfortable. it was perfect, but there was someone else’s hands on it too.
“excuse me,” he asked, yelling over the sound of fighting. “could i have this, please?” // starter for @swntiwnt
A medium capsule attached to a parachute floats down from above and lands beside Ember Lowell. Inside is an empty water canteen. Attached is a note from mentor Pixel Delaroux that reads: "Hi! Everyone says you’re doing well. So… keep doing what you’re doing! This is my first sponsor gift so I hope I’m doing this right."
as the third parachute floated down, ember stared it down incredulously. really? there were that many people who wanted to send him gifts? that concept was hard for him to wrap his head around, but as the new capsule landed near him, he smiled.
he looked to the sky, hoping that there was a camera watching him so that pixel could hear what he was saying and see his reaction to her gift. “thank you, pixel, i’m honored to be the recipient of your first gift!” he said, taking the canteen out of the bag. this was the best gift he could have received in this moment. “keep doing what you’re doing,” he said with a grin, as he walked closer to the water to fill it.
A medium capsule attached to a parachute floats down from above and lands beside Ember Lowell. Inside is a cheese sandwich. Attached is a note from mentor Wiress Neville that reads: "I hope you like cheese!"
ember would have been content with just the backpack. knowing that someone, anyone was rooting for him and hoping that he would make it out of the arena alive was the encouragement he needed to remember what he was capable of.
and then another parachute came.
his eyes floated up to the sky again, this time with a sort of confidence that he didn’t have before. this time, he knew that was whatever in that capsule was something meant for him, and the thought made him grin from ear to ear.
the note made him chuckle. “thank you, miss wiress, i love cheese,” he said, taking a small bite of the sandwich and then putting the rest in his bag for later. this was the first food he had been able to have in days, and it was the best tasting thing he had ever eaten. if he got out of here, he’d have to give wiress a special thank you. that hit the spot.
