[SEMI-OPEN] Winter come, winter crush

[futilecycle]

Who | Sigma and Hans; Sigma and You!
What | Sigma has been stabbed by Eponine and seeks help.
When | Immediately after the Arena ends and following this network post.
Where | Tribute Tower lobby, and District 10 common room.
Notes/Warnings | Blood, mentions of violence, stabbing injury. Saving Sigma is reserved for Hans, but others are welcome to notice him beforehand or mention it when he gets back.


Closed to Hans:

He left the bent knife on his bedroom floor as he waded into the District 10 common room, clutching his side.

It was shame that drew him towards the elevator and Sigma left behind a path of blood. He wished not to draw the attention of anyone in his District nor to create a scene. Thinking of revealing his injury to the kindhearted Sabriel, Carlos or Susannah hurt the Doctor's pride - he feared being mocked for what he had done or told that he had received his just desserts. He wished to see Wyatt least of all, lest Sigma speak the words he dreaded to admit: you were right.

Or perhaps Wyatt respected him so little, now, he would not look in his direction.

Sigma slammed his hands down on the elevator buttons, smearing a bloody fingerprint across the panel. By the time the elevator sinks to the lobby, so much blood has seeped into his hands and his clothes that Sigma can barely stand.

He stumbles out of the elevator and tries to make eye contact with whomever will look at him. He has alienated himself among the Tributes, and now he expected someone to help save his life.... What a joke.

OPEN:

There was a great elephant in the room.

Once Sigma returned to his home floor, patched up but painkillers beginning to wear off, he decided to find a quiet place to heal. The Doctor stared at a book in the common room without reading the contents, frozen perpetually on a single page as he considered the day's events. Each time he moved, Sigma gasped in pain, and the Doctor resolved to spend as much time seated as he could manage. He wondered if he would have company, or if he would spend the remainder of his life here alone. Only one of the people he knew on his floor had addressed his network post, and Sigma wondered if perhaps his districtmates preferred to speak of "Zero" in person, or of he had lost all of what little respect he had garnered for himself.

He was prepared to discover which it was.

Comments

[hanssome]

Like most of the tower, Hans had seen the post. Unlike most of the tower, he didn't have any strong feelings toward it. Mild curiosity, perhaps, a small urge to fall into alliance with Sigma. It was something he would have to look into later, but for now he's a little too distracted to scheme. Anna is back with a whole new set of memories that she will undoubtedly share, Starkiller is still an Avox and his corner is looking lonelier. He has the intentions to strike up more friendships and relationships with people, but he needs to be delicate about it. If he's too eager about it, it might look obvious and desperate.

No, best not to rush into these things. He'll observe Sigma for a while and make a slower approach, appearing as someone who has taken the time to consider what he's said. He does so enjoy it when he agrees with himself, and after a long day of Capitol affairs he's about ready to head up to the District Five suites so he can rest. The last thing he expects is for someone to stumble out covered in blood. He almost wants to chide himself for not expecting it, once he realises just who it is.

He's in character instantly, hazel eyes widening in surprise as he darts toward the man to support him. He has a small frame, but he's sturdy enough to take some of Sigma's weight. "Oh my goodness, what happened?" It's natural to ask questions with ill priorities at a time like this, but he's also glancing around and trying to wave down some sort of help. "Just hold tight, sir. I'll get you a doctor." He's using his best and most authoritative calm voice as he gets the attention of Avoxes in the distance.

[futilecycle]

Nearly collapsing against the man who had come to meet him, Sigma recognized his rescuer from the Training Center, and was immediately grateful he had found someone he knew to be kind. "Prince Hans," Sigma cringes, barely conscious but wary of his formalities. My God, he was getting old - he had suffered so much worse in his life, but now the Doctor could barely stand the pain. Had she hit an organ? Clutching his lower stomach, he speaks in broken gasps and cringes. "I was stabbed. If I don't remain conscious, the wounds on my arms aren't important." Indeed, his forearms were sliced clean open - but instead of red blood, a thick, white oil-like substance poured from them. There were also three shallow cuts running across his chest from when Eponine had flailed at him, but they were hardly a threat by themselves.

Then Sigma sighs, eyes shut. This was an injury to his dignity, for certain. "I would prefer if you didn't make a lecture of it." He says it without malice, but it's a warning. The last thing he needed to hear before he died was a bleeding-heart lecture on how he'd reaped what he'd sown. Then again, Sigma reminded himself, Hans was royalty - perhaps he of all people would understand that sacrifices had to be made on occasion.

[hanssome]

Hans braces himself as Sigma collapses, trying to guide him backward so he can sit or lie on one of the many waiting lounges in the lobby. He's not sure how comfortable it will be, but surely it's better than standing for him right now. When the avoxes approach, he turns to them and orders them to find a doctor immediately, there's no hesitation in his voice.

With that aside, he's dropping to Sigma's side so he can hear him better, nodding along when he speaks. "I understand." He confirms, and it prevents him from initiating any comforting contact with his hands. Instead, he moves to put a hand on Sigma's shoulder so he can give it a soft squeeze as a means of keeping Sigma awake and proving that he's here for him.

"I have no intention of doing so, sir. You have my word." His voice has softened considerably, though it's still not without a commanding sort of undertone. He weaves the scarf out from around his neck and moves to compress it against the wound, hoping to stop some of the bleeding for the moment. "Just stay with me, alright? No dozing off."

[futilecycle]

Blood loss has made the Doctor lightheaded, and he gratefully accepts a guide to the sofa, easing himself down with a groan. His head and arms, enhanced with titanium, feel unbearably heavy and he's never once felt so old. He had bounced back after serious injury easily enough in his youth - now, from just one wound, life seems to leach out of him exponentially. Only Hans' touch on his shoulder, as well as his promise, gives Sigma the strength to keep his eyes open.

He searches for a topic to keep himself awake and arrives too quickly at one in particular. "It was Eponine Thenardier," Sigma gasps. Shock had been keeping him stable until now, but as Hans compresses his wound the pain is electric and spreads through his entire body. Gasping, he speaks in syllables: "I underestimated her. I could have broken her arms had I tried to defend myself..."

A moment passes before he realize what a foolish thing he has admitted to, and grasps for Hans' sleeve despite the agony changing positions puts him in. "Please! Do not have her arrested. I will speak with her later." He does his best to look Hans dead in the eye, begging him, wearing away the last of his dignity.

[hanssome]

As a survivor of at least two Arenas, the blood isn't disturbing Hans as much as it might have some time ago. The fact that it's easily soaking through his scarf and getting on his hands and clothing is merely an annoyance that he can ignore for the moment.

"Eponine.." He repeats almost breathlessly, as if he's hurt to hear it despite not being overly familiar with the older man. "I won't ask why she did it." Because they both know and he's sure of it. "She's my friend. I would never betray her." He can sense that the old man is foolish enough to protect her despite her behavior. He's curious, given the way he acted on the network, but he'll question it later.

"I'll leave it in your hands, then." He says with great timing as the medics finally arrive and intervene in the situation. All he can do is step back and allow them to do their jobs.