etcircenses: (Default)
Panem Events ([personal profile] etcircenses) wrote in [community profile] thecapitol2013-12-15 06:36 am

The Crowning of Enjolras

WHO| All Tributes and Victor, plus a few Capitol guests
WHAT| The Crowning of Enjolras
WHERE| The Tribute Center
WHEN| A few weeks after the end of the Arena
WARNINGS| Forced medical experimentation, needles.

The atmosphere surrounding the Crowning is both tense and secretive. The style teams flutter around listlessly, having received no information from which to draft their designs. Newspapers take bets on when it will be announced where the Crowning is being held, descending into grousing when no press release is given. Peacekeepers pour in and out of the Tribute Center, accompanied by scientists who occasionally pull Tributes aside and look at the veins in their elbows. Even the Avoxes seem jumpier than usual.

Aside from the Tribute Center's new giant marble statute of a nude Enjolras, posed like the famed David, one could almost forget the party is supposed to be celebratory.

When the day arrives, the Escorts and their assistants don't lead the Tributes to their style teams to be gussied instead. Instead, they hush the Tributes and bring them to their bedrooms, where a Peacekeeper, a white-coated citizen and several Avoxes await them. The Escorts instruct the Tributes to lay down in their bed and close their eyes, and a needle is inserted into their arms that the Escorts insist will 'take them to the party'. It's soon followed by a series of sensors taped to the forehead.

Just relax, the Escorts say, and they do their very best to make sure their Tributes feel minimal anxiety. If the Tributes resist too much, more Peacekeepers are called in, and the Tributes are forced into submission.

The first effect is a sort of paralysis - not the terrifying inability to move, but a signal to the brain that says why move? Moving is so much effort. It's quickly followed by drowsiness, and then a chill that radiates from the needle into the body, and finally, unconsciousness.

And that is when the party begins. The Tributes, now dressed in luxurious 1830's French clothing of a quality beyond even what their Stylists could manage, wake up in the front row of a large stone theater setting reminiscent of, simultaneously, Greek and French architecture. The floor of the theater is filled with buffets of every imaginable sort of food. Rose petals fall from the sky, which displays a sunset worthy of award-winning photography.

For his part, Enjolras sits in a throne made of books on the ring of the amphitheater, flanked by Marius, Cosette, Eponine, and bizarrely enough Venus Dee Milo and Ellie, seated on lush pillows and carpets made of dinosaur skin (with the heads comically attached and eyes lolling).

"Welcome, welcome, our Tributes and Mentors, to the first ever somnofestival, sponsored by Hypnogogia!" Caesar Flickerman, noted talkshow host and Games presenter, appears in a fabulous sequined toga in the center of the amphitheater. He doesn't need a microphone; the acoustics here are flawless. "And congratulations to our Victor! Let us hear it for Enjolras!"

He awaits applause.

"As you may have noticed, you're inside a shared dream, due to the just fantastic technology from the Capitol and certain, ah, biological contributions from our dear favorite Aunamee." He holds a hand out and gestures to Aunamee, anticipating wild applause. "We thought that for our most philosophical Victor yet, we should celebrate in a way that's a little bit…cerebral."

Caesar laughs and gestures at all the food, then puts a cheeky finger to his lips. "By all means, enjoy yourselves. Even the most indulgent desserts here won't show up on your hips tomorrow. The party only last three hours, so you might as well get started!"

He vanishes into thin air, leaving the Tributes to celebrate. Occasionally, the Tributes will hear voices in their heads - chatter from the Peacekeeper and scientist and Escort still in their room, in the waking world. Otherwise, this is a party like any other, if somewhat surreal in nature.

-/-

The party begins the same way for all the Tributes. For an unlucky few, however, it soon diverges as they come under an unfortunate glitch in the system.

They'll look around and find only a handful of their fellow Tributes around them. The sky, rather than being a magnificent splay of color, is now blank white, and yet the lighting in the theater seems dim. A sense of panic, detached from any conscious thoughts, surges forth in them like the tide.

For them, this isn't a shared dream. This is a shared nightmare.
celebrityskinned: (Happy - Hot Shit)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-19 07:06 am (UTC)(link)
"It does. You could spin that in front of a crowd, I'm sure." She loops an arm around his waist. A smile darts around the corners of her lips. "But what would your superpower be?"
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (fakest smile)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-19 08:16 am (UTC)(link)
He stilled very minutely beneath the arm before relaxing again, a little surprised at himself. It'd clearly been too long since he'd been in the ballroom scene if the lack of personal space actually made him react at all. It was a weird thought, and a tribute to the influence of his companions back home, that he actually was starting to feel a little choked by the flirtatious intimacy.

"I don't know, maybe I'm the luckiest guy in the world?" Zelos suggested with a cheesy grin. "I mean, I'd have to be, standing here with a gorgeous woman."

He slipped his arm off her shoulders and retreated a step, before holding his hand out to her with a slight bow. "But I know how to make this even better."
celebrityskinned: (Basic - Oh You)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-19 10:33 pm (UTC)(link)
"That doesn't seem like a superpower so much as good fortune."

She's used to this, to flirting. It's something that feels so natural to her, and while there's a bit of panic in her that it'll go further, she's calmed somewhat by his gesture to dance. Everyone dances.

She does a little mock curtsey. "What kind of dance?"
wronglychosen: ≫ game (heh)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-20 06:21 am (UTC)(link)
"Know how to waltz?" he shrugged lightly, taking her hand and bringing them out onto the dance floor. Dancing was actually just about the one thing he found enjoyable about attending balls and parties, though only if his dance partner was not as crazy as his usual admirers.

Zelos shifted his stance slightly as he rested his arm around her waist, before giving her a raised eyebrow and a grin. "Ready, hunny?"
celebrityskinned: (Happy - Hot Shit)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-20 07:56 am (UTC)(link)
"I think I had a lesson in fifth grade, once." She clasps his hand with hers, fingers twining. "So you just might have to reteach me."

She plays it cool, but she's nervous, and it's only evident through how stiff she is in her motion. She's never flirted with a human body before. She doesn't have her go-to teleportation escape. What if this escalates?
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (listen to me kid)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-20 09:28 am (UTC)(link)
Fortunately for Venus, Zelos was relatively used to dancing with an inexperienced partner. In fact, this kind of reminded him of a particularly fond memory where his partner was... just a tad clumsier than most ladies.

"Good thing you're with me then," he said lowly, chuckling slightly as he took care to avoid getting his feet stepped on. As the music started again with thankfully a slower song, Zelos patiently lead Venus in the dance. "I've been called a master of dancing by some."
celebrityskinned: (Basic - Dat Body)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-21 06:59 am (UTC)(link)
"And what have you been called by the other people?" She's a quick learner, not at the technique but about hiding her incompetence so well that it isn't worth fretting.

You don't have to be good at what you're doing to look effortless, and that's what matters.
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (you trust me huh?)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-22 03:24 am (UTC)(link)
"A god of dancing?" Zelos suggested, finding himself strangely disappointed that she was catching on so quickly. Then he mentally berated himself for trying to find comparisons between the people here and the people he knew at home. Stupid.

"So, Venus, you mentioned you were named after a statue? There must be a story behind that one."
celebrityskinned: (Basic - Oh You)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-22 10:12 am (UTC)(link)
"Well, according to my friend, it was a statue of the Roman goddess of love. Or the Greek one. I'm not sure." She raises her eyebrows. "So that sort of makes us a pair?"
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (go look up there)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-23 04:17 am (UTC)(link)
"Goddess of love, huh?" he grinned, raising an eyebrow. That was almost as bad as the people who named their kids after the heroes of legend, or Martel herself. Kinda pretentious, but whatever, he could work with it. "I can't say I'm familiar with them, but I can't think of a more perfect name for a woman who's captured my heart."
celebrityskinned: (Happy - Grin)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-23 10:51 pm (UTC)(link)
"That fast? You must not have very good defenses." She nearly stumbles in her waltz, but catches herself. She's much more used to club-style dancing. "So, Zelos Wilder, god of the dance, tell me about yourself. Aside from the fact that you're totally crazy about me."
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (i'm just too awesome)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-25 02:21 am (UTC)(link)
"What can I say? I've got a weak heart for a pretty lady," Zelos responded with a wink.

He considered briefly how to answer her question, and the fact that she didn't want to hear more praise about herself raised his guard a little. "I love a good party? As far as welcomes go, could be worse!"
celebrityskinned: (Happy - Slight Smile)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-25 07:33 am (UTC)(link)
"Can't argue with that." Venus notices as, pursuant to this being a dream, the floor seems to recede beneath them - or maybe, they're floating. "You come from a party town?"
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (you trust me huh?)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-27 06:58 am (UTC)(link)
"Capital city of the country," he answered, slightly distracted by the feeling of being suspended in the air. His stomach dropped when he caught a flutter of orange out of the corner of his eye, but when he turned to look, there was nothing there. Closing his eyes, Zelos chided himself slightly for being so stupid. It was a dream, in the end, of course there would be weird crap. Didn't mean any of it was real.

He turned his attention back to Venus, as the song sped up its pace, and gave her a smile. "Your turn to tell me something about yourself."
celebrityskinned: (Default)

let me know if this is infomody!

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-28 08:57 am (UTC)(link)
If Venus were a normal person, she probably wouldn't notice how Zelos turns to look at something in particular, rather than just scouting the room. It's because she has a superhero's eyes, and more than that, those eyes trained from working on a team - she notices when people are catching things from the corners of their eyes.

"I notice when people are paying attention to things besides me."
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (empty grin)

totally fine!

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-29 09:24 am (UTC)(link)
Oops. Busted.

"You have my full attention now," Zelos declared with a wink. He didn't elaborate on his momentary distraction, however, and tried to think up a passable excuse or deflection if she pressed the issue. Instead, he leaned in and said slyly, "My turn. I love a girl who's observant."
celebrityskinned: (Default)

Re: totally fine!

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-29 07:50 pm (UTC)(link)
"What about a girl who's stubborn?" Her shoes start to slip off her feet as they float, leaving her heels to chill in the air. "What if I keep asking what you saw?"
wronglychosen: ≫ anime (hello gorgeous)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-31 02:36 am (UTC)(link)
"Ask me anything you want," he answered easily, adjusting his grip on her for the reversal in gravity. He got the feeling this floating thing should be weirder than it's coming off as right now, but mentally shrugged. "I'm flattered to have such a gorgeous woman curious about little old me."
celebrityskinned: (Default)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-12-31 05:03 am (UTC)(link)
She beelines for the most obvious question, the one she's just about been asking. "What were you watching?"
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (he's not serious)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2013-12-31 07:10 am (UTC)(link)
"Ooh, straight for the hard questions," he gives her a slightly pained expression. "You'll smack me if I tell you."
celebrityskinned: (Happy - Hot Shit)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2014-01-01 02:23 am (UTC)(link)
"Don't worry, if it's another woman? I'm not the jealous type." She winks.
wronglychosen: ≫ game (hey there cutie)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2014-01-03 03:35 am (UTC)(link)
"Hunny, you are really making my top tens right now," Zelos returned her wink with a slightly exaggerated look of relief. As they continued to rise up into the air, he took advantage of it to try some dance moves that would never work on the ground. "Ever been flying?"
celebrityskinned: (Basic - Dat Body)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2014-01-03 09:23 pm (UTC)(link)
"I have. Back home I can teleport. It's pretty much the same thing if you go high enough." Although really, that's more just controlled falling.

"You?"
wronglychosen: ≫ manga (fakest smile)

[personal profile] wronglychosen 2014-01-04 04:39 am (UTC)(link)
Teleporting? Interesting. That could be a pretty damn useful skill. Too bad it didn't work here. Unless they were given their powers back in the Arena, supposedly, but with his luck, what were the chances of that happening?

"Nah," he lied. And then as if in the blink of an eye, they were on the ground again, like they'd never left it. There were only a few people around them still dancing, and he couldn't help but think that most of these tributes (victor included) seemed a sullen bunch. Who could blame them, but they could've at least pretended that this wasn't celebrating something totally messed up. So dull.

As the music faded out, Zelos took a step back, and let his arm slip off of Venus waist to grasp her hand. He smirked as he leaned down to press a kiss against the back of it. "You sure you weren't playing with me when you said you didn't know how to waltz?"
celebrityskinned: (Happy - Slight Smile)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2014-01-04 08:13 am (UTC)(link)
It's almost disappointing to touch ground again. Venus sighs a little and gathers up the train of her gown, which has been hanging past her feet like icicles while in the air, and makes sure nothing's caught under her shoes.

"I've mostly just watched jazzercise videos," she says, giving his hand a squeeze. "I'll see you around, Zelos? This is the most pleasant conversation I've had in ages."

(no subject)

[personal profile] wronglychosen - 2014-01-05 09:21 (UTC) - Expand