thecapitol | (no subject)

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Who| Enjolras, Joly, Others!
What| Reactions to a certain conversation between Venus and Courfeyrac in the arena.
Where| at a public viewing
When| Week 5, I do believe
Warnings/Notes| I don't think there are any yet!

Thus far, Joly's first of the public viewing parties as the guest of Enjolras had been...interesting...if he had to pick a polite word to toss at the cameras, the viewers, and anyone else who dared to ask him in public about his impressions of the entire thing. If asked privately, he would have had quite a different thing to say, but such thoughts were a luxury that he could not afford, even as the spectacle of death treated so callously made him want to be sick.

Enjolras's advice during the dream scenario they'd shared had served as a reminder though, and he had played his part well enough thus far, having decided, for the cameras, on an image to sell himself with (playing up the cadence of his mother's speech, dropping puns more frequently than at home, fussing with his clothing more than strictly necessary), which so far seemed to be working well enough, and was managing, with the help of a decent amount of alcohol, to get through everything so far. That was until Venus's mention of Enjolras as her Prince Charming,which set him to snort, which he quickly turned into a giggle, let them think he was a bit of an idiot if they wanted, and then Courfeyrac's question, which was enough to silence him as he glanced toward Enjolras, leaning forward a little, frankly rather curious as to what his friend was liable to do now.

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"Courfeyrac, of all people has said something alike to that?" Joly's mouth dropped a little, for an instance, as he gaped at Enjolras. "I would not say you are too soft, my friend. This is a different world, and one needs adapt, as any being would. Courfeyrac of all of us suggesting that would point to Panem being odd indeed. He's been here longer than I have, yes, but even so. I do not see that you are too soft, or that you need soften too much entirely. Open your mind a little more, perhaps, if I were offering advice, but that is no different from what I had thought may help at home."

Perhaps it was not fair at that, to speak of what had been, instead of what might be, and speaking of home might easily become too painful if they dwelled too much on it, so Joly took the silence for what it was, studying Enjolras's face, rather than the screen in that moment. He did look old, and over-tired and he wished that he might prescribe rest and have Enjolras listen to him now, though he doubted that would happen with the games still on. Joly himself did not want to get much of it himself, now knowing he was safe for the time being.

"Hmm?" He asked, his friend's voice pulling him back to the moment. "Ah the pair of them? I do not know the lady well, or at all beyond what I've seen, but they certainly would look well together, on the town. If they appear at any tribute events, they'll certainly catch someone's attentions."

"Good." He said resolutely, appearing to have made up his mind about something or another. In actuality, the gears were still twisting themselves, still trying to look for the best opportunity, the best way to play all of this. For the first time in over nine months he had trustworthy, viable allies. The opportunity couldn't be waisted, but then again, time was also of the essence. If they sensed something was afoot, the Capitol could easily take his friends from him, or simply fail to return them from the Arena. If something were to be done, and it had to be done, it would need to be done carefully.

Enjolras looked to Joly, studying his friend in the low light of the party. The image of flighty socialite suited him well enough, in spite of it all. Perhaps there was more to be done with that, perhaps they hadn't worked it to the greatest of its potential. "And what of you? Have you been making friends here? If so I would have you tell me of them."

Behind them the images of their allies danced, projected on the screen by dozens of tiny lights Enjolras would never pretend to understand. What mattered is that they needed to protect them. And when the were all together again, and could afford the indulgence, they would plan.

Hmm? Enjolras had lost Joly somewhere with the declaration, and he was not quite certain what was final for the moment. Was anything? It seemed as though it meant more than just a sense of satisfaction with Joly's answer, but this did not, entirely, feel like a time to ask for clarification. Too much could go wrong.

"Some of them, even tonight." He pointed out, a little smile crossing his face. "Fee...Mademoiselle Felicity is particularly singular, I must say. And she seems to loathe this much as we do. Among others, well, I've tried to meet a few. The longer I am here, the easier that shall become."

Felicity's name caught him a bit of guard. Of course, with her curious intensity it would only be natural that she should gravitate herself toward Joly. The logic of it did nothing to ease his mind.

"Singular sums her up rather well. Mademoiselle Worthington and I are acquainted, though not particularly well. I am--" He paused, searching for a suitably benign word that would aptly describe the profound indifference, colored by a hazy unease that felt toward her. "Unsurprised to hear that she has improved in spirits from our last meeting."

After all, she'd been pretty terribly off. Death didn't do much for anyone's mood, but she had taken it to a fascinating level of melodrama.

Joly, for his part,did not quite see a problem, even if it appeared, somewhat, that Enjolras was having something of one in the moment. Then again, who knew what may have passed there. Felicity herself seemed to have little love for Enjolras at that.

"Ah that does give me a sense of timing to place that in." He mused, shuddering a little, considering the return from the arena. "I can imagine well, what sort of a state that must have been."

"I suppose we all can." It wasn't a lack of sympathy for her condition, but rather the way in which she had expressed it. In a certain sense, Felicity reminded him of Eponine. Brave, but lacking in proper judgment, and bold, but with a sort of entitlement that reduced its usefulness. "We are granted a unique perspective on death, here, the lot of us. I don't suppose it is something anyone was ever truly intended to know."

There were existential questions raised by the act of dying and being revived every few weeks. One could spend ages mulling them over, if he were only to let himself. However, in Enjolras' opinion, their true problems lay less in the metaphysical dilemmas of life and death, and far more in their perpetual civil death as essential slaves of an a tyrannical government. "Nevertheless, it is good to know that you are making the rounds, my friend. The more you are known to these people, the easier a time you will have within the Arena."

"Oh certainly so. The first especially, for myself at least, has induced, well, a few different things. " Joly had, personally, sulked around a bit at first, not so much because of his fate, but from an unwillingness to deal with more of it. He did not think Enjolras unsympathetic so much as he might have missed something perhaps, or that Felicity in that moment, might have been a bit crazy as well. If anything could make one such, it was this place.

There were indeed. At which point, if any, did this become real? Was there a return to Paris to ever consider, and what would they do then, prepared as they would have become to fight harder? It was almost an opportunity if they managed to see home again and...

Thinking like this was so odd that one could not do it for so long, truly. At which point did a man lose himself? Well, something to think of another time, perhaps when all were gathered together again. Not that it mattered, so much, he supposed, but it was interesting all the same.

"So I have heard. Well, I can certainly use that."

Enjolras, at least, knew the broad strokes of their fate and the aftermath of their lives. He knew that their rebellion had a name, and that it was remember by history not fondly, but with a sort of disappointed inevitability. Their efforts were the precursor to revolution, but not the thing in itself. A precipitous event, the culmination of a kind would result in something, but never amount to much on its own.

Because of that, he couldn't really consider returning to Paris, even if the option were available to him. It would require a redressing of his beliefs almost more than Panem did already. And moreover, what was the point of returning to an earlier point in history if, presumably, it all amounted to this anyway? They could build their republic in the 19th Century, only to have it demolished in the 21st by something even worse. Correcting the past to ensure the future was a nice idea, but testing its practicality seemed to great a risk.

He sighed heavily, pushing all of that away for now. It wasn't productive to dwell on what could and couldn't be accomplished in the abstract sense, even if he would have liked to. Better to focus on the here and now, better to understand the present and how it could be used to keep them alive to see the future he always seemed to anticipate so eagerly.

"You did well for a first attempt. Better, I should say, than I managed." Joly also had the benefit of allies who weren't twelve year olds, invalids, or both, but that was beside the point. "There is a peculiar sort of strategy involved in these things. I do wonder how entertaining it was for them to watch children fight when adults struggle to manage even given several opportunities."

Such a knowledge as that would have been hard hitting indeed, and it would, likely, have tested Joly's consideration of whether he went or stayed, should he have the choice as well. If they could truly be of no more solid good in Paris, then why not attempt to do it here? The idea of staying then, would have been reasonable.

As it was, unknowing as he remained, Joly had the thought that, perhaps things might be different, indeed. They might come back, even with more powerful tools to be used, or new skills to inspire at least another July Revolution in terms of scale, if not success. As time went on, of course, that may well change.

"My first attempt consisted of attempting to claw the tracking device out of my skin, clinging to Venus during a storm, attempting not to slap Marius and being menaced by a demented lobster who then attempted to put me back together, though he was obviously, not much of a sturgeon. I can hardly think that I might have done worse."

This was accompanied with a little grin, sheepish though it was. "I must do more next time, to make myself valuable." He'd certainly felt that the first time after all, and while he had been unprepared, now that he had time to handle things in a better way, he did intend to do that.

At least they took the place of those children, he thought, finding the idea of that to be much worse than the idea of themselves here, somehow, though that point was true.

"It hardly seems as though it would be entertaining at that, no. There is spectacle, which is not so bad in and of itself, provided it is spectacle for the right reasons, and there is..." He did not finish, shaking his head. "Well. I think that we do provide a stronger one." He decided on, with a glance around, to be sure that was not all overheard.

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Oh my god I'm so sorry. I just keep doing this to you.

Finally getting back to YOU!

Yeah see but you're way more timely than me on the reg.

Except the times Joly goes quiet on me

welp sometimes I get too sick to tag so /kanyeshrug

<3!