thecapitol | Choose your own Azuladventure

Entry tags:

Choose your own Azuladventure

Who: Azula and you
What: Azula's in a great mood, last call to train with her, get advice or just have some lunch before the next arena.
Where: Around the Capitol and Tribute Tower.
When: After Enjolras Expose
Notes: It's Azula, she's in a good mood. That can't be good.

There were few things in life she liked better then watching those she hated suffer.

And knowing that Enjolras was no longer going to be comfortable in the Capitol while their tributes were fighting and dying in the arena made her so happy she was practically glowing.

And so she went about her business in this joyful and buzzing manner, a nice healthy and balanced breakfast, followed by the training hall.

Lunch in a trendy cafe where she could take meetings, followed by a casual stroll through a botanical garden.

Today would be a good day.

And hopefully the start of many good days to come.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Perhaps Starkiller was well hidden, meditating within the garden, or perhaps Azula was so fixated on the flowers that she hadn't noticed him. He was inclined to try ignoring her, so that he could focus on meditating. The roof had proven to be a fairly decent place to meditate and clear his thoughts, even though it got more foot traffic than he would like. It was better than a few of the alternatives, at any rate.

He was doing well ignoring her general presence, until she decided to speak to the flowers. He opened his eyes, looking her way with a mixed expression of annoyed and amused.

"And do they usually talk back?" he asked, brow raising slightly.

"Not yet." She disgused her surprise with a chuckle. "But if they do I think it would be an indication that I need to make some serious adjustments in my life."

The idea that she might lose her mind was a very real possibility and one she was constantly keeping vigilant for in case she needed to make adjustments to her medications.

"I hope I didn't disturb you."

If Starkiller were a more lighthearted person, he might've laughed at her reply. "That's very true." The last thing he needed was to associate with someone who had conversations with flowers. That would ruin his image. Except he wasn't really concerned with his image, he just didn't want to associate with crazy people, dammit.

At her latter remark, he shrugged. "You did." He was blunt, you had to appreciate it. "But it's you, so I'm less inclined to feel annoyed by it." She was one of the more tolerable people, he'd found. "Did you come up here specifically to talk to the flowers?"

"Then I will take pride in knowing I am less irritating to you." She only cared a little. It did show she wasn't losing sight of who she was if other more serious people found her tolerable.

"I did not, I was having lunch at the restaurant and thought a nice stroll through the flowers would be an additional pleasant memory to this lovely day. I was given some very good news and am making the most of it you see."

Starkiller gave a small chuckle in the back of his throat at her reply. He didn't think it was worthy of much pride, but if she wanted to consider it as such then he wasn't going to stop her.

At her next statement, he raised a brow. "Really? What good news could make you so happy?"

"Well..." She began having happily shared the new with anyone who asked "Lately I have been dealing with a troublemaker in my district. A mentor who refuses to do his job properly. Who is constantly speaking out against the capitol and has apparently decided to make my every waking moment more stressful for his being involved." She explained.

"Finally the Capitol has seen fit to punish him for his foolishness and he has had his mentor privileges revoked and he is a tribute once more."

She would of course be furious later to find out he still retained his status as a mentor, but at least she had a small victory over all.

Brows raised at her, for a few different reasons. He'd had a feeling that mentor or not, people weren't really safe from the Capitol. But to see it happen was another thing entirely, and it was hard not to be a little annoyed. He was also a little surprised that she would take pleasure in someone being sent back into the arena, though he wasn't judging her too harshly.

"You must hate this person a lot, for it to make you so happy," he commented lightly. "What's he done, exactly?"

"You can't even imagine." She sighed still buzzing with relief.

"As for his crimes, well I was pleased to find the first arena I was mentoring for he won and I felt a rush of pride for my District. That pride was crushed when I discovered he had only won by hiding and remaining as inactive as possible. Worse still he openly, and loudly speaks out against the Games and The Capitol." The indignation on her face is mixed with confusion that anyone could be so stupid.

"We're all entitled to our opinions of course, but when you are on a widely visible public stage and everything you say or do could effect those around you...well you would hope that would teach you to be more discreet and think before you speak. Instead he would see us all die so that he can make sure his thoughts and opinions are heard. And up till now his blatant disregard for the powers that be has gone unchecked. How does that make me look as a mentor for his district I ask you?"

Starkiller listened, mulling her words over for a moment or two after she finished. He wasn't entirely sure how he felt about what she said- there were bits he disagreed with, though he should have realized as a mentor that she would have a lot of pride for this place, though he didn't expect her to feel quite so strongly about it.

"Well, I'm not sure how it really effects you. Or rather, I don't see how it should. Of course people will have their opinions and whatnot, but it isn't as if you can actually control him," he said slowly, trying to work out his thoughts on it without saying something that might offend her. It wasn't that he was afraid to offend her, but he liked having her on his good side too much to alienate her. "He's from a different world. He doesn't see things the way you do. You can't be held accountable for the thoughts of what's essentially an alien here, and his thoughts shouldn't reflect badly on you."

"Exactly." She sighed and looked upon him like he was understanding more then he realized "That is exactly my problem. I shouldn't be responsible for him. In any other situation I wouldn't be expected to. I came back to the Capitol right before the arena where he became a mentor. I barely had any time with him at all before he won. But they expect me to always be his mentor even when we stand on the same level. The Capitol frowns upon mentors who cannot impress the importance of discretion on their tributes."

"And even less reasonable is the public. Those who I am supposed to be charming in exchange for gifts that are sent to my tributes. They see his rebellion as weakness in our district. If he is allowed to say things that make them uncomfortable then what's to stop the rest of the district from becoming weak? And the answer to that is me. So if they lose faith in me they lose faith in the district even more and it's down to the fans of individual tributes to support them."

Starkiller was one of the first people to ever ask her about these things and it was somewhat of a relief to try and explain her worldview to someone in hopes they would understand where she was coming from.

The more that Azula talked, the more Starkiller realized something. They were more similar than he had actually thought. Azula's beliefs were a part of her upbringing, as were his own. For so long he had believed he was- or would be- better than everyone when he and Vader took over the galaxy. He'd been raised to believe what he believed. Azula was the same way, and while initially he had started to judge her for her beliefs, he felt... sympathy for her. She was as much of a victim here as anyone else. It wasn't really her fault that she was raised the way she was, in an environment like this. Punished for things out of her control, just like everyone else.

With that realization, it was hard to hold anything truly against her. He could only hope that she would come to realize that the people she was serving were awful and that her talents would be better suited trying to stop it.

"Then I would say don't offer him help any longer," he said after a moment of thought. "Don't make his time in the arena any easier. Don't try getting him any gifts. If you really have to, make a public statement distancing yourself from his remarks and actions. Let them know you don't approve. Focus on your other tributes."

It wouldn't solve the problem completely, but the less she had to do with him, then the better. "I'm sure if he gets too out of hand, the Capitol will intervene."

"Already working on it." She took a deep cleansing breath and let it out, shoulders and back straightening to proper posture once more.

"Surely his being sent back to the arena will be glorious punishment and if he fails to learn from that maybe they will finally turn him into an Avox. That would probably be the only way to cease his constant yammering." She chuckled as if the cruel act was amusing to her. Or perhaps it was only amusing when applied in the context of her hate for this man.

While he sympathised with her, he had to wonder if avoxing the guy was really the way to go. It seemed like an unnecessarily cruel punishment- but it also wasn't really his place to say anything on the matter. So after a moment, he nodded. "If you think it's best."

He really didn't agree, but perhaps it wouldn't come to that.

"In this situation yes." She confirmed, "Though I wouldn't wish it on most tributes. But this one has pushed me too far to care anymore about his humanity."

She had given him a chance and he had wasted it.

"But his punishment has been chosen so all is well. I can continue my work in peace and hopefully provide some sort of comfort and strength to my tributes."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Choose your own Azuladventure

Re: Being zen in the garden

Re: Being zen in the garden

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject