aintyourdad: (Default)
Joel ([personal profile] aintyourdad) wrote in [community profile] thecapitol2014-03-02 01:22 pm

i've seen more places than i can name; OPEN;

Who| Joel and Open!
What| Joel is figuring things out, his first week in the Capitol. Possibly checking in on some people, and bumping into new ones!
Where| Various locations - see the open starters for details.
When| The last week or so of the arena, leading up to the crowning.
Warnings/Notes| Maybe some cussing. The thread with Hawkeye will undoubtedly include descriptions of gore, child death, body horror and general brutality. Also drinking copious amounts of alcohol.

[1. D8 kitchen]

Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, before the world went to hell, Joel had been a pretty normal guy. A hard-working, single dad, even. One who did normal things, like errand running, doctor appointments, soccer games.

He'd even, sometimes, cooked an actual meal. He was never a gourmet chef, of course, but out of necessity - being a single parent - and also partly because he just liked himself a good chili sometimes, he'd picked up a few things here and there. Now, after twenty years of scrounging and scavenging and - if he was lucky - cooking over a campfire, he found himself presented with a large, gleaming, state-of-the-art, fully-stocked kitchen. And plenty of leisure time to mess around with it.

Right now, he was mostly just digging around in drawers and cupboards, seeing what-all they had, matching it up with his memories when he could, and sometimes just pulling something out and staring at it in confusion. What the hell is that even used for?

[2. D8 suite]

Sleeping was never one of Joel's strong suits. Sleeping for eight hours at a time, on a big, soft bed? It just wasn't going to happen. He was too, too used to sleeping on the hard cold ground, in short, bite-sized chunks, plagued with nightmares to even contemplate sleeping through a whole night. Tonight, it was worse even than usual, only his second or third in the Capitol since dying in the arena, anyway, and Joel got up out of the nest of blankets he'd made on the floor to stretch his legs.

On entering the common room, he spotted the eerily familiar blue glow of a television screen - eerie, because it had been so long since such a thing had existed in his world, and familiar because it had been so ubiquitous in his life before the outbreak. On the screen, even this late at night, is coverage of the arena. It takes him a moment to work out what it is - a highlight reel, recapping some of the more dramatic moments of the past several weeks.

When his own face appeared on the screen, he froze, tensing up, unable to look away as Ellie's death was replayed in front of him like a movie. His fists clenched tightly and his face became hard as stone.

[3. A coffee shop]

Joel mostly found the Capitol distasteful. Too many people, on the whole, and all of them dressed ridiculously. And they stared at him, like he was some kind of circus freak. Like he was the weird one. But getting the lay of the land was old habit for him, and he knew at some point he was going to have to leave the main Tribute center again - it was better to know the major landmarks, at least, no matter how nervous the crowds of people made him.

Anyone watching him would just see an older man, shoulders tense and slightly hunched - at least, until he caught a whiff of something he never thought he would smell again. Coffee.

Goddamn, but that was coffee. Words could not describe how much he had missed coffee over the years - one of the few vices he'd had, before the outbreak. And now here it was, a goddamn coffee shop, right on the corner of a bustling intersection, like some kind of miracle, like an oasis in the desert. Joel ducked inside, overwhelmed with the smell. He was going to get him some fucking coffee.

[4. Tribute training center]

Joel never in his life did anything like training. Maybe that was why this place fascinated him - this clean, sterile place for people to just, what? Throw knives at targets for a while? Do workout routines? Oh sure, he remembered gyms, fitness centers, places where people used to go to exercise back when running and hiding and killing wasn't something most people had to do on an everyday basis.

But standing around, practicing different ways of killing people? To be able to do it better the next time? It kind of blew his mind. He ran a rough hand over some of the equipment, like he was trying to figure it out. Figure out how it might be helpful to anyone.
onlyimmune: (watching)

2;

[personal profile] onlyimmune 2014-03-03 06:39 am (UTC)(link)
Ellie had slept the last three nights in Joel's room. The first night she simply hadn't left his side the whole day. The second, she'd turned up extremely late, dragging her blanket with her, and knocked and let herself in wordlessly.

That night she'd simply come as if it were a matter of course.

She knew that others might find it extremely strange, but she'd grown very used to having Joel around, and something about his presence kept the nightmares back.

Plus, she couldn't give two fucks about what other people thought about her.

So she'd built her own little next of blankets and pillows on the floor, curled up, and fell asleep. It wasn't until she heard him close the door that she was roused into wakefulness again. Quietly, she stood up, rubbing her eyes and padding over to the door and out into the suite to find him.

"Joel?" She called out in a rough whisper, not wanting to wake the rest of the suite. "Jo--" She stopped as she turned the corner and found him.

And saw what he was watching.
frozenfractalsallaround: (782_zps41080a67)

3; I am really sorry for how long this turned

[personal profile] frozenfractalsallaround 2014-03-03 11:57 am (UTC)(link)
Today was one of the first days that Elsa had finally grown the courage to leave the suites and actually explore a little. In a way, she had been expecting someone to stop her, to tell her to go back to her room. But it hadn't happened and suddenly she realized she was free to do whatever she wanted to do. It was exciting, thrilling and-

Scary. Elsa hadn't been prepared for the amount of people, tribute and Capitol citizen alike. She also hadn't been prepared for the Capitol fashion. It was strange, though there was... a certain charm to it, she couldn't help it. It made her miss her ice dress from back home.

Elsa avoided the crowds as best she could and slowly walked the streets, marveling at everything around her. There was so much she was unused to, but instead of shying away and wanting to hide, she was just so intrigued and wanted to experience all of it. This was good for her, all of this was enough to distract her from the depressing thoughts that plagued her constantly.

Suddenly, Elsa smelled something that she hadn't in a very long time- since before her parents had passed away. Coffee. Her father had always had a cup in the mornings at breakfast and Elsa would eat quickly before making herself practically invisible again. It brought back fond memories and a longing she hadn't expected. She'd never really had it before- her powers made it hard to enjoy warm drinks. After her parents died, family breakfasts became a thing of the past as Elsa spent her days in her room completely from then on.

Without really thinking, she followed the smell and arrived at the shop just as Joel was ducking into it. She felt her spirits lift a little- the man had been kind to her and helped her, it was nice to see him again outside of the arena. She quickened her pace and made it to the door just as it was closing. She stopped it with her foot and slipped inside behind him.

"Excuse me- Joel?"
onlyimmune: (care.)

[personal profile] onlyimmune 2014-03-03 02:32 pm (UTC)(link)
It was too late, she had seen it, and even with Joel standing in front of the picture, she could still hear it.

"Oh. They're playing it again." The words were casual but the tone wasn't - more tense, more far away, as if commenting on something that had nothing to do with her. It did, though, and the way she held herself was plenty of proof - as still as stone, on hand gripped into her other arm, pulling the fabric of her pajamas tight.

She forced her eyes to his face instead of the screen behind him.
president_evil: (weskerKnife)

4

[personal profile] president_evil 2014-03-03 09:37 pm (UTC)(link)
Wesker was a firm believer in the adage that one's first, and last, weapon was himself; and like any other weapon one needed to oneself probably tended and sharply honed.

That's why, so often, he could be found in the training room. He'd long since deemed the Capitol's trainers as next to worthless for sparing and few tributes were willing to test the mats with him... but that was hardly new.

Today it was the bag, Wesker glad only in a pair of loose training pants, landing blow after blow. Hard, meaty strikes with his hands, legs, and feet.

Not even breaking a sweat as the bag jiggled and danced on its chain.
frozenfractalsallaround: (719_zps834df0de)

<3

[personal profile] frozenfractalsallaround 2014-03-04 01:40 am (UTC)(link)
Elsa, thankfully, wasn't having a post-arena etiquette crisis. All she knew was that she had found a familiar face and was happy to see him- and even more eager to repay him for his kindness in the arena. It might have been a minor thing in the grand scheme of things, but his help had been truly appreciated.

Trying not to think about the implications of his words, she gave him a nod and a small smile. "I did," she said. "As well as I could, anyway." She stepped closer, the smile on her face growing a little more genuine as she pushed away the sad thoughts.

"I was hoping you would let me buy you a coffee," she said. "Actually- it isn't negotiable. I insist!" Because she was very determined to repay him, and she didn't want him to argue with her. She decided not to say that it was for his help- instead, she figured that it was pretty obvious what it was for, so it was best left unsaid. "Consider this putting my royal foot down, even if royalty doesn't mean anything here."

It was a small joke in reference to their first conversation, she figured- or at least hoped- that it might amuse him at the very least.
privilegecheck: (pic#6922009)

NONE OF THE ABOVE because yes;

[personal profile] privilegecheck 2014-03-04 03:20 am (UTC)(link)
Kankri's first venture out into the Capitol had not gone well, to say the least. He was a far more obvious Tribute than many of the others - trolls were not exactly common in the Capitol, after all - and with people crowding around him, petting his hair, even his horns sometimes, saying what a brave little darling he was like he was a pet instead of a person...it reminded him too much of how he'd grown up. He hated every second of it. And he had to put on the same polite face and say the same polite thanks. It made him sick.

The first chance he had, he ducked into a shop that looked far less crowded - hardly anyone frequenting it - and just breathed against one of the shelf-walls after the door closed behind him. It was good to be away from all that.

When he looked up, he realized that he recognized the other person browsing the shelves. It was someone he knew, too. Relief washed over him at not having to handle more public relations.

"Joel?" he asked quietly, not wanting to get the cashier's attention. "I haven't seen you since...well. I hope you've been all right."
Edited 2014-03-04 03:22 (UTC)
iselldrugstothecommunity: (Angry - Standing My Ground)

3

[personal profile] iselldrugstothecommunity 2014-03-04 03:31 am (UTC)(link)
Howard hasn't rewatched the Arena footage yet. He will, at some point, he feels like he should, but right now he's seeing for the first time in a few weeks and it seems wrong, somehow, to shove more horrors in his eyes. He pays attention to updates on Wyatt via radio. He reads articles in the magazines, many of which seem quite eager to speculate on whether he and Ellie are a couple, whether he and Eponine are getting back together, whether he and R are a couple, and so on.

And he drinks coffee. Howard's developed quite the habit, and sitting around in shops relatively safe from prying eyes and gossiping lips has become a way to cope. He has his petition in, and all he can do is wait, which he feels is more a test of endurance than anything. He should be putting weight back onto his skeletal frame, but he can't keep food down. He tells his Escort he's preparing for another Arena when he goes out all day, but that's a plain lie. He doesn't bother to train for the next Arena because he knows if his petition gets denied, there's no way they'll take him into Arena number seven alive.

Which means in a lot of ways he's staring down the barrel of a gun, and that's made him tense. He never looks good when he's revived, but right now he's ashen, hollow-looking, bundled in heavy clothing to keep warm despite the decent temperature, looking like, as he puts it, a fucking Ewok stick figure. He stares at his feet as he walks.

"Hey, watch it!" he says as he bumps into someone much taller than him, an older guy with a beard. Coffee spills on both of their pant legs.
onlyimmune: (disappointed)

[personal profile] onlyimmune 2014-03-04 04:20 am (UTC)(link)
She pulled back before he could touch her - an automatic reaction that she looked a little guilty for after it happened.

"I'm fine, Joel," She said, lowly. "You don't get it, but they- they do that all the time. Make you watch. I'm just glad I've avoided yours so far, but I won't forever. I know that."
onlyimmune: (watching)

[personal profile] onlyimmune 2014-03-04 04:41 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh, don't worry, soon as you do something they think is interesting, they'll replay it." She sounded bitter, but she noted the change in subject.

For once, she agreed.

This really wasn't something she wanted to talk about.

(She could feel it, though. She could still feel it, ripping through her stomach. Ripping back out again. It nearly made her nauseous.)

"Water... yeah. Okay."
privilegecheck: (pic#5806228)

[personal profile] privilegecheck 2014-03-04 04:59 am (UTC)(link)
Kankri hesitated, then shrugged. "Yes, that's right. I've been as well as can be expected, coming back. Is- is Ellie okay?" His voice is a touch shy, and definitely worried. "She came back, right?"

Ellie was very nice, and sensible. He was hoping to see her again.

Realizing that Joel seemed to be looking for something, Kankri glanced around the shop again. He couldn't read the letters on anything, but the thin booklets were definitely familiar to him. "...May I ask what you're here for?"
privilegecheck: (d9 y9u even tag?)

[personal profile] privilegecheck 2014-03-04 05:28 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh, good." Kankri smiled. "Do you know where I could find her sometime? I'd like to say hello."

He turns to look at the rows and rows of comics. Chews on his lip a little. Then: "What kind of comics does she like? I can't read your language, but it seems fairly obvious from the pictures at least. I could help you look for something, if you wanted."

It's a lot better than going out to face the people in the Capitol again.
president_evil: (weskerEdge)

[personal profile] president_evil 2014-03-04 11:08 am (UTC)(link)
Another strike, an open palm thrust that would have broken bones with an easy snap, and then a pause.

"Fortune favors the prepared," Wesker purred in that soft, elegant accent of his as he turned to fix Joel with his serpentine eyes. The slits narrowed so against the light in the room that the gaze appeared to be nothing more than iris - the bloodied gold. "One never never knows what they're going to run into."

Those eyes flicked over Joel in a quick, disinterested scan, then Wesker turned to pick up his towel.

"I would think of all people, you would recognize the truth in that."

(Oh yes, Wesker has heard of you, Joel, and where you're from.)
iselldrugstothecommunity: (Sad - You Aren't Mad?)

[personal profile] iselldrugstothecommunity 2014-03-04 05:57 pm (UTC)(link)
For Howard's part, he very nearly reacts as if they're still in the Arena, all coiled nerves and mapping out the exits. His glassy expression betrays how he's looking for doorways, looking for tight spaces to hide, and the leg covered in coffee shakes inside his pants leg. The warm liquid feels like blood or urine.

He has no reason to trust Joel. He tries to drag himself back to reality. Back into this moment instead of the sinkhole in the past that his mind gets stuck in.

There's a forced stubbornness when he meets Joel's eyes, like he's trying much too hard to look like he isn't scared. "It's the one with all the chocolate and whipped cream. Whole milk."

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