Mass murder was the last straw [OPEN]

[formersurgeon]

Who| Joan Watson and OPEN
What| Joan is talking to friends, and to people she hasn't met yet, looking for allies to help her bring down the Capitol.
Where| The Speakeasy, the Training Center, the park
When| After the revelation of District 3's destruction and Penny's predictable lies.
Warnings/Notes| If you would like Joan to approach your character in one of these places, tag in with what your character is doing and I'll have her initiate contact.


I. The Speakeasy

"The Speakeasy's theirs."

That's what Wyatt had told her when they had only moments to speak freely to each other while the Capitol was unable to look in on their thoughts. So when Joan goes looking for potential allies, she starts there. The dive is, as always, dark and loud, perfect for hiding lips and faces and drowning words. She goes to the bar, orders what passes for beer in Panem, and carries to a booth in the corner where she can see the whole room, as well as the door. She looks for people she knows, people she recognizes.

II. The Training Center

Joan has met a number of people in the training center. It's one place where she knows she can find Tributes without going floor by floor, which would be both time consuming and suspicious.

She walks into the gymnasium and surveys the stations. If she sees no one, she makes her way to the shelter-making station, and looks over the different supplies.

III. The park

Joan isn't exactly looking for anyone in the park. Instead, she's looking (without looking like she's looking) for spots that might be sufficiently free of cameras and microphones to make good meeting place for sensitive conversation.

Of course, that doesn't mean she isn't also aware of the people around her. Sitting on benches, passing her by...following her...

Comments

[formersurgeon]

She can understand that he's probably tired of being grilled about Cecil, by breathless fans that squeal over their relationship, probably even by Capitol people wanting to know what Carlos knew and when. Joan knows she's not exactly doing him any favors about the second. She's giving him information and then asking for his help.

That's exactly what she did with Cecil, and he lost his tongue for it.

"I'm the one who asked him to look into what was going on in District 3. I had some evidence that bad things were happening, but I needed his connections to find out what. I'm sure you already know that what the Capitol said about him are lies, but I can confirm that for you."

[youbarium]

Carlos's eyes went wide, and he drew in a breath. He looks at Joan with new eyes -- not literally new eyes, his eyes don't need replacing, but with new understanding behind those eyes.

He's silent for a moment.

"I'm glad you told me."

He doesn't blame Joan for what happened. Not at all -- there's no anger or resentment of any kind.

[formersurgeon]

"I thought you should know. I know that you care about him."

She has no delusions that Carlos necessarily meant what he said when he confessed his love for Cecil. She's far too familiar with that game, with saying things in front of the cameras to further a narrative. Sherlock had done basically the same thing with John. Joan would have done it with her own Sherlock.

She swallows.

"He didn't tell me what he found out before he went on air with it. I wish he had. I would have tried to help him go underground, get out of the city, something."

She sighs a little. It really bothers her that she couldn't do anything for him, her annoyance more at herself than at Cecil.

[youbarium]

Joan has surprised him again. It just goes to show that you never knew who was involved in the rebellion until they casually mentioned seditious contacts in a bar. "I feel that way, too," Carlos says. "If he had only told me what he was doing, I might have been able to help him plan his escape." He hesitates, and looks away -- looks guilty. "I should have trusted him," he admits. "If he had known who to ask for help, maybe he would have made his own escape plan, instead of...well, what happened."

[formersurgeon]

"It's hard to know who to trust. Don't beat yourself up over it."

So, it looked like Carlos was connected. Good.

"Cecil is still alive. What they've done to him...what they're doing to him...it's horrible, but he can recover. I have a friend who went through something similar here."

[youbarium]

Another twist of guilt in Carlos's stomach: while he is here, Cecil is being tortured. Carlos is not yet able to compartmentalize as well as he could -- he's bothered by this. Carlos knows the Cecil from Night Vale can handle municipal re-education, but he doesn't know if this one can.

But Joan's mention of someone who has been an Avox makes something occur to Carlos.

"She said that Cecil would be a Tribute," says Carlos, assuming that Joan got her information from Penny's post, as well. "If Cecil goes into the Arena, dies, and then comes back -- will that undo an Avox procedure?"

[formersurgeon]

"It has before. My friend is a Tribute, and he was un-Avoxed when he came back. Physically, at least. The mental conditioning...that took a little more time."

But Punchy was strong. Joan didn't really know Cecil well enough to know if and how he could be broken.

"I wouldn't put it past that woman to have it redone whenever he came back, though."

[youbarium]

Mental conditioning? Joan will see the horror in Carlos's eyes, but he doesn't say anything. It can be undone, and that's good news.

"Then we'll have to get him out," says Carlos, as though it's the most obvious solution in the world. "Before the next Arena if we can."

[formersurgeon]

She isn't at all surprised to see the horror there. It's a horrifying situation.

"It might be better to get him out after the Arena, right after he's been brought back but before he's handed over to that woman. That way he'd be physically restored."

He'd have his tongue being the phrase she's dancing around.

[youbarium]

"Is that possible?" asks Carlos, hardly daring to hope. "I don't know much about the revival process, but it seems most likely that the scientists responsible for it would hand him right over to the Peacekeepers. We would have to get him just as the procedure was ending."

[formersurgeon]

"I know for a fact that there are people who are involved with that process who are in with the rebellion. I don't know who they are, but maybe we can find out."

It will doubtless be difficult, but Joan is confident enough in her abilities as a detective to be sure of herself here.

[youbarium]

Yep, that's hope on Carlos's face. "I didn't know that," he replies, eyes wide behind his clunky glasses. "There are a lot of impossible things in the world, in all the worlds, but I think this might not be one of them."

His mind is racing. "I don't have direct contact with anyone in the Rebellion, but I know someone who does. When we tried to rescue Ian Gallagher, he worked with us to plan Ian's escape. It didn't work out, of course, but we have more time to plan, this time. What've you got?"

[formersurgeon]

"I have someone who managed to get out. I can try to contact him."

Joan isn't at all sure if it's possible to get word to Sherlock, but she's more than willing to try.

"I also have a couple friends with more contacts than me. People who know people who know people."

[youbarium]

A slow nod.

"I've asked Lonestar for a piece of technology," Carlos informs her. "Something that would mute microphones and loop camera footage. I was going to use it to try to rescue Cecil, but..." He shakes his head. "I don't know when it'll be ready, and I won't go in without a plan. But it might be useful."

[formersurgeon]

"My friend used something like that to escape the Capitol."

She nodded as well, just as slow.

"I'll help you. We'll come up with a plan together."

[youbarium]

"Thank you," he said, and sounded truly grateful. "I can't leave him there, Joan. The Cecil Palmer I knew back in Night Vale went through municipal reeducation at least once after I arrived, but...they've never taken his voice before." Carlos knows how much Cecil's job means to him, how much speaking means to him, and the prospect is absolutely miserable.

"Let me know what you hear from your friend. Is there anything I can do in the meantime?"