I've Got the Darkness, Baby [Open]

[vissernone]

Who| Eva, open
What| The 9th District Mentor hits the town.
Where| Throughout the Capitol
When| After the most recent death announcements
Warnings| Baron Bartlett in one of the subthreads, and everything he entails.

Only one Tribute down from her District: the blonde man, she hasn't met him yet. Some Mentors would take this as a positive sign, but Eva finds it hard to feel very enthused by this. At the very best, she's still going to lose two more before this awful Arena's over.

She'd like to throttle whomever decided that a giant ice rink was a good idea. Back in her day, they were in a canyon. The resources were, of course, at the bottom, which only encouraged the people who took higher ground - like her - to pick people off faster. An entertainingly bloody bonanza of falling bodies and flying arrows, and most importantly, it was quick.

To get away from the images of people huddled up in indistinguishable, shivering balls, Eva goes out for the evening. If anyone asks, she'll claim boredom with the proceedings. She visits a the Training Center, then a restaurant and the performing arts district. All the while she taps her lower lip thoughtfully, as if considering something complex and far-off that requires some metronomic habit to keep straight.

[OOC: Come meet her at one of the subthreads below or just run into her in the street.]

Comments

Noire Restaurant [Closed]

[vissernone]

Certain persons don't need a reservation at the restaurant - Sponsors, of course, don't, and generally Mentors are assumed to be going there to meet them. Eva's beyond the age where people figure she'll be bid on and passed around like she was in her youth, but the perk seems to have remained, and as such she makes her way to the VIP entrance.

A blackout restaurant - perfect for someone who always feels as if they're being watched. Regardless, she dressed up for it, in a sleek black dress and a spray of white and red sequins and paint on her face in accords with one of the current trends. A glittery pin of a red bird clips her hair up - but it's a cardinal, nothing that could possibly be mistaken for a rebellious gesture.

She looks at home in the ordering room, a plush and dimly-lit chamber that feels like velvet all over. The menu is faintly glow in the dark, to get visitors into the mood.

She sees other people entering the room, another Victor and a Sponsor. Her stomach turns a bit as she sees the Sponsor, but it doesn't show for even a moment on her face. Perhaps she can chit-chat with them for a while, spare the Victor at least half an hour of being alone in Bartlett's company. She pats at the seat of the booth next to her and gestures that they should join her.

"Come on now, let's make it a party. Baron Bartlett, let an old lady pretend she's still pretty enough to bid on." She smiles. "And you're Ariadne, aren't you?"

[thebiddingbaron]

Baron's body is supported by these metal contraptions that almost levitate him. The spendors, as he calls them, ease some of it tension on his knees from his massive, round body weighing down on them. It means that they're almost always a weird mechanical smell around him, masking whatever body order he would have.

He hadn't been touching Aridane until then, just pleasantly telling her how the restaurant worked and suggesting things for her to taste while they could see their menus. He was very, very good at having the air of a man who only wanted to treat a beautiful woman... as if he wasn't thinking of her as nothing more than an object.

At the sound of his name though, a fat fingered hand moved to Aridane's back. It was almost a possessive gesture, as he worried that whoever was addressing him would try to take the attention of the new Victor. When he saw Eva he only laughed.

"I haven't the faintest idea what you mean, my dear, you're still well in your prime," he said, laughing it off, playing 'bidding' as if it was only a date, not what it really meant. Never what it really meant in front of others.

[buildingreality]

Ariadne had opted to let her Stylists do her up however they saw fit for the evening out - she refused to call it a 'date', as that would simply sully the word. It resulted in an outfit almost as outrageous as Eva's: a deep blue dress that clung in all the right places, and embellishments of gold, her hair curled and pinned up with a gold pin that - if you looked closely - was almost reminiscent of the Mockingjay. Of course, if asked, she thought it was pretty, and nothing more. However, one would have to be close enough to smell the perfume dabbed behind her ears in order to really see it properly, as a few well-placed curls fell over it.

Small blessings, really. The last thing she wanted was unnecessary questions.

She managed to school her reactions a while back, when she started doing this sort of thing with the odd sponsor, trying to woo and charm them into supporting her District. The Tributes needed something, and the Morphlings just weren't providing. And so, when Baron touched her back, there was no sign of a wince, no outward change to the smile she had carefully plastered onto her face. Brown eyes flitted to Eva, taking in the other woman's appearance. She recognised her vaguely, but Baron's comments were what clued her in: the woman before her was another Victor.

"I am," Ariadne replied mildly, forcing her smile to expand slightly, unsure if she should offer her hand for a shake or if Baron might give her a look at that. "It's nice to meet you."

[vissernone]

Eva laughs as if she's flattered by the Baron's comment. "Modern technology can keep my face looking pretty, at least, but you'd shudder to see the rest of me. That's a pretty interesting piece you have yourself, there."

She makes the decision for Ariadne and reaches out for a handshake. "See, kids these days, they don't even know who I am. Of course, I only have about thirty Victors to memorize when I played. A pleasure to meet you too. Your spear-throwing in your last arena was something to behold. If I had an arm like that I wouldn't have had to give that poor boy an involuntary nosejob."

She drums her fingers on her thigh and then reaches and fiddles with the small red bird in her hair. In a way, she's talking to fill the space, feel out the situation. "Baron, look at how nicely she's dressed. She's not a first-date kisser, I don't think."

[thebiddingbaron]

"Oh, these new Tributes rarely are," Baron commented. "And the new Victors come from that pool, don't they?" He smiled at them both, looking from one to the other. He had mastered that 'kindly rich man' look, but there was something dark and hungry in his eyes. "It's to do with no being raised with our history, I'd imagine."

He commented on this lightly, as if it was no bother at all that they were pulling people from other worlds. Of course he didn't care about that, as long as they were entertaining.

"I hope that you haven't felt too much at a disadvantage, my dear," he said Ariadne. "Eva would be able to help you if you feel too overwhelmed."

[buildingreality]

Ariadne's smile didn't even falter when Baron looked her over; she felt like she was being sized up like a slab of meat, and even so, simply turned her smile on him for a moment. It slipped into the realm of being almost sheepish for a moment; she hated herself for creating such a persona so easily. For going along with any of this. It felt like it was leeching away at her very soul.

She leaned forward, accepting the handshake firmly, her smile twitching into the genuine at the compliments. "Thank you. I think it helped that it wasn't my first time in the Arena; I had time to practice," Ariadne replied mildly, playing up the modest qualities she'd been told went over well. Not that it was much of a stretch for her. There were just enough flickers of herself in the act that it went over well.

Lightly, she brushed one curl away from her face, smile fading a little bit, "Not too overwhelmed. I do wish it were easier to learn about the past Victors; right now, I'm going off of word of mouth. I'm sorry for not recognising you immediately." The last comment directed towards Eva, naturally.

[vissernone]

"Well, you'll have to treat her like a lady, then. Court her, get her father's permission, all that good stuff."

Eva doubts there's anything she can do to keep the Baron from planning awful things for Ariadne tonight, if that's his intent, but she can plant the seed of an idea there. And do nothing more, because she's traded her voice for her facade and delusion that there will be justice someday. Someday, there will be a revolution, and she'll find that her voice has only been dormant, not erased. She hopes.

She waves a hand. "There's video footage of the old matches around, if you ever wanted to watch those outdated things, but I don't think they'll be that useful to you. The circumstances were different there, and people acted accordingly. Far fewer alliances and far scarcer trust when killing people was actually murder for good."

She examines her nails and twitches one hand. The side of her mouth pulls into an off-kilter grin, as if she just made a joke that fell flat. It's not a very good cover for the way the deaths at her hands still bother her, but she hopes it gets lost in the dim light.

"And of course I'd be willing to impart any wisdom to you about...adjusting to all the attention after the fact." Navigating Sponsors, she means, but she isn't about to say that in front of the Baron.

[thebiddingbaron]

"Why yes, that's a brilliant idea," Baron said. "You should stay with us Eva, help teach her a bit more."

His voice is so pleasant that it's borders are too sweet. There's a glint of something in his eyes, like a hungry man who just had a nice steak placed in front of him.

Whatever he's thinking, it can't be good.

[buildingreality]

"They're interesting enough," she offered up with a mild smile, "I sort of enjoy digging into the past like that. It's no good if I just ignore all the Victors that came before me."

Ariadne was managing to ignore not only that pleasant - saccharine - tone of voice Baron was using with them both, but also the look in his eyes. It didn't bode well in the slightest for her or Eva, though more likely just her. She was barely containing her repulsion to begin with; every time he opened his mouth, she only felt it more.

She tipped her head a little at Eva's comment, the pause, the meanings hidden between the lines, and finally nodded a little, "I'd like that. If not tonight, then maybe another day."

Training Center

[vissernone]

It's probably a good thing that the District Nine suite is empty at the moment - that means her district is doing well. Since the conversion to bringing in foreigners and endlessly reviving them rather than routinely slaughtering their own children, District Nine hasn't won anything, although Donatello's rampage certainly got attention, at the least.

The suites weren't as fancy in her year, but she remembers them still being luxury beyond what she could comprehend. Two tributes, instead of four. The boy had proposed an alliance with her, and she'd pretended to take it before shoving him off a ledge thirty minutes into the competition.

Eva helps herself to some of the food in the suite, picking apart tiny pieces of a roll of bread with her fingernails. She sits on the couch and bounces her foot a bit to see if anyone's going to come by or if she's just revisiting memories nearly four decades old.

Re: Training Center

[pursuitofcappiness]

Of course he's there, blowing off steam, punching the living daylights out of some poor bag. His hook isn't as strong as it was; he hasn't destroyed anything yet. That might be a bad sign.

Eventually, he gives up, and even after he's hit the showers he's still hot, so he's sweating a little by the time he gets to the suite, finds that he's not alone, even though he's pretty sure his districtmates are alive. He could've been wrong. He didn't really put his heart into playing this stupid game.

"Steve Rogers," he says, holding out a hand for her to shake.

Re: Training Center

[vissernone]

"Eva Salazar."

She stands up, puts the rest of her roll down on the table, and shakes, looking him over. He's so much older than the tributes were when she played, but that's typical here - one of the benefits of the conversion to using foreigners is that they no longer use children. It's only nauseatingly abominable now, instead of soul-chillingly.

"I'm your Mentor. I'm sorry I haven't been around. I'd like to say it was for a good reason and I've netted you plenty of Sponsors, but that would be dishonest. I've simply been out of commission."

She bites the tip of your tongue. "They must have stacked the deck pretty hard against you, that a strong young man like yourself only lasted this long."

Re: Training Center

[pursuitofcappiness]

"Oh! Well, it's nice to meet you. And um, thank you, I guess." It's not like he really wanted to play this game, but in all honesty, he couldn't even defend himself when it came down to it. Him, or his friends. That's a damn shame, and he knows it.

"Gotta say, wasn't expecting more magic. Those little girls really pack a punch." Hell, she killed Bruce. He didn't even think that was possible... the Hulk is impossible to even dent, even by magic or what have you. "Are you going to advise me on how to play better, ma'am?"

He'll have to cut that conversation short.

Re: Training Center

[vissernone]

"A pleasure." Her smile is genuine, but sad. She would prefer different circumstances than these anytime.

"Not necessarily. Since it seems like your survival is pretty guaranteed these days, I don't like to think of it so much as about winning as about navigating the aftermath." She sits back down and picks at her lips with her fingernails, then stops and tears more bits off the bread again. "You weren't drop straight in, were you?"

Re: Training Center

[pursuitofcappiness]

"No," he says, and he's glad that she's not trying to advise him to win. He's more relieved from hearing that than from anything else anyone's said to him since he's gotten here.

"But what do you mean, navigating the aftermath?" Isn't this the aftermath?

Re: Training Center

[vissernone]

"Well, unless you decide to hide in the training center the entire time you're here - and that's a perfectly valid decision - you'll have to adjust to the Capitol. Schmooze a little. Keep your seething resentment under wraps in front of the right people."

It's not a matter of keeping them happy for their sake, but Eva's invested in keeping her Tributes out of too much trouble. Besides, she'll want to divert any Sponsors who want to put a bid on a strapping young blond lad.

"People are going to want things from you, and it's my job to make sure they don't get much more than what you're willing to give." She pats the seat next to her. "You can sit down. I don't bite."

Re: Training Center

[pursuitofcappiness]

He does so, and it... well, it at least seems like she has his best interests at heart, like she knows exactly what's happening. He doesn't know if he wants to trust her, but so far she's been the only one with any sort of helpful advice.

"Don't they already get what they want from me for the games? I can't lie to anyone... I don't enjoy the situation. I don't see how anyone could." He can't bring himself to do any of the schmoozing. But he doesn't know exactly what she means what they want out of him... more than what he's willing to give? He's already unwilling to give himself up for these stupid games.

Performing Arts Complex

[vissernone]

As the topper to her night, she heads out to the Performing Arts Complex to see a new dance performance. It's nothing she has much interest in - the Capitol's sense of art has long become too avant-garde for her to take its artisanship seriously - but she likes to think that even with things as they are now, the performers here are living better lives than they were back in districts ten and twelve.

Lives away from their loved ones, but we can't always get what we want.

She settles into one of the box seats and gets her glasses for distance out. The seat next to her is empty. She keeps glancing at it, hoping someone will come to fill it so it doesn't feel so symbolic.

[nofunandgames]

Elias was out with a potential sponsor, but they had meet someone whom they were talking intense business with at the bar that served the balconies, and, as often happened, he had become invisible.

Not something he particularly minded.

The curtain was still gathered up, with a few minutes till people needed to be in their seats, and he caught sight of Eva in her box.

"Evening." He said, leaning against the marble column, giving the fellow mentor a smile.

[vissernone]

"Evening, Elias. Here for the performance?" She gives a little wave and gestures to the seat, seemingly quite pleased at the idea of sitting next to someone she doesn't find outright sociopathic. She feels as if she needs a full week to recover from running unto the Baron.

[nofunandgames]

He sinks down, with long limbed grace, glancing over at the stage.

"A sponsor invited me out, and it seemed like an enjoyable evening."

Especially since the sponsor was a chatty, if harmless old man who just wanted someone to listen to him ramble endlessly. It would be an easy night.

"Your self?"

[vissernone]

"Enjoyable for everyone, I hope?" She folds her legs like a lady and stares out at the stage. Some of the Sponsors are genuinely harmless, but she's run afoul of enough of the ones who aren't to be concerned whenever they're in the picture - not that she let such agitation show on her face.

"Decided to take a break from watching television to see some entertainment in person. Just looking at the new arena was making me want to put on a sweater."

[nofunandgames]

"Yes, for everyone. Tonight, at least."

He smiled, looking towards the stage. Although it was rare to openly discuss such things, he was sure Eva knew. Anyone around long enough knew.

"I don't envy them." Not that he ever did. But the cold reminded him of his own turn in the arena. The cold was, of course, not the worst part of it. But it brought back the most vivid memories.

[vissernone]

"I don't either. At least deaths in my arena were quick. And the bodies didn't come back blue-lipped." She frowns and drums her fingers on the arm of her seat. "Great, now I want a drink."

[nofunandgames]

"Here, I've got it...what would you like."

Because he could use a drink as well. A strong one. And he should probably check on his date for the night, anyway.