thecapitol | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

Who| De, Lottie, Elias, Effie and open!
What| Choose your own adventure! Each character is cruising around the city.
Where| Around the Capitol. Check each character for details.
When| Over the course of the week.
Warnings/Notes| Just lemme know who, and if relevant where and when in the subject.

She already hated this city.

It was everything De loathed about being in a big city, rolled up and amped up. If she thought preppy hipsters were bad...well, she'd take an army of Hipsters over these soul less assholes. Everywhere she turned, there were primped, phony looking people. She wasn't even sure most of them counted as human anymore. And there was no escape.

She sought out what she could find. The roof. Bars. The hot springs. The arcade. Places that on some levels felt normal for her. She knew she should be sucking up hard to sponsors, but she just couldn't bring herself to grovel to the people doing this too her. It wasn't happening.

The one things she did do was watch the videos. Study her competition. If she was going to win this, it wasn't going to be because some rich dick bought her out of it.

---

Lottie was sucking up. She wanted out. Momoko has lit a fire under her fluffy butt, and she was sucking up to every sponsor she could find.

She knew she was good at it, too. The entertaining part. She just also knew they all realized what a hopeless bet she was. Still, after Momoko's win, maybe...maybe they'd take a chance on her.

It was exhausting though, going from party, to performances, to things that bordered too close to dates for Lottie's comfort. And in between, she took in the sights on her own, or tempted out a friend. Indulgent spa days, shopping trips, museums. Busy, busy, busy. Busy enough she fell asleep quickly, deeply, and hopefully, with minimal night mares.

Of course, keeping herself always running till exhaustion, sometimes that exhaustion struck at terrible times. Like in the common room. Or District 8's dining room. Or a bench in the training center. She would take it where she could get it these days.

---

This was getting ridiculous.

Every day, new information for the Escorts to deal with. Longer hours. Effie hadn't seen her own bed in what felt like months.

The Training Center, of course, had exemplary lodging. But she wanted her own bed in her own room in her own house. And a day off. Oh, when was her last day off? Of course now she was helping Cinna with this history fashion show, and that was more work...but in a way it was nice to have a break. To be doing something else.

Work took up her days. Work and getting sponsors, sweet talking the rich of the city took up her nights. It use to be her favorite part of this job, entertaining and rubbing elbows with the elite...now it was just another few hours of work, work, work.

She took her free moments where she could get them, setting work to the side and just enjoying a quiet moment.

---

Elias was using his mentor position to watch and study everyone around him. No one question a mentor sizing up the competition.

Of course he wasn't really sizing them up for competition. He took those notes as well, too. He wanted his Tributes to win. But he was also looking for other things in the Training room, the Commons, pouring over the tapes.

It was nice that he could obsess over this completely legitimately. Nights he left his work behind, roaming the city. Often to court sponsors, but just as often to tend his own mind, letting the things he'd seen shift through and find their places. Finding quite places to wander.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"The arena isn't just about strength. Skill, intelligence...for example, hiding until the stronger tributes kill each other off has been a very successful method in the past."

She would have to get Sandy some videos. Johanna Mason's game, for sure.

"I'll try to dig up some research for you."

Sandy looked unsure, "But has there ever been a Tribute who won without killing anyone?" Because the thought of ending a life made her stomach churn. Even knowing these people were willing to kill her.

"Oh, yes. For example, Annie Cresta from District 4. The whole arena flooded, and she was the only Tribute who knew how to swim."

And had lost her mind. But that didn't seem relevant right now.

Sandy groaned and hung her head in defeat.

"Great, I'm lousy at swimming." The best she could manage was a dog paddle, barely enough to keep her head above water. She always assumed the nature of her powers was a sign that she should avoid deep water or risk sinking like a stone.

"What about that food and stuff that was falling out of the sky?" She sat up again and leaned back in the chair. "Without that stuff I woulda starved or froze or both."

Effie felt like Sandy was missing the forest for the trees, but luckily her second question lead to another area of conversation.

"Those are gifts, from Sponsors. You get them by being appealing, by getting their attention. It's how girls like you make it through."

'Girl's like you' clearly wasn't meant to meant to be an insult. Effie just wasn't good at not being insulting.

That seemed to stun Sandy and she met Effie's gaze leaning forward in her seat.

"Wait so...people sent me those gifts? Like...to help me? Why would they send me anything? Was it the people from that district I'm supposed to represent?" It baffled her that anyone would even bother sending her gifts. It's not like she had much of a chance unless one of those gifts was a tank.

"Sometimes, thought rarely."

Really, Katniss's gift had been extraordinary.

"But it's because they like you. That's why...all these parties, the interviews, the outing...they are to impress sponsors."

This was alot for Sandy to wrap her head around. People liked her?!

"But...I just got here! And I'm one of the least likely to win. Why would anyone waste their time on me?"

Not to mention all she had done since she'd gotten here was complain about how unfair the world was and how sick and wrong the games were.

"Well, you've got to show them why!"

Effie smiled, big.

"That's what your team is here for!"

Team...right.

"You mean those ladies who put me in dresses and make me wear makeup and stuff?"

That had been irritating, and uncomfortable but the women would not take no for an answer.

"Yes. Those were your stylist assistance. Are you assigned to Cinna or Portia?"

Before it use to be so much easier. But they couldn't just go with boys and girls now.

Sandy's face burned red suddenly and she looked at her feet, "Portia...but I thought she was Cinna's assistant the first couple times she dressed me up."

Something that Portia had not appreciated when she found out.

"Oh dear."

Opps. Effie pursed her lips, pulling on her knowledge of Portia.

"Perhaps we'll get her something nice. Something thoughtful to show you are sorry. i'm sure she'll understand."

Sandy smirked ruefully, "Thanks...and thanks for trying to help. But this whole situation is still totally messed up." No amount of kindness could change what the truth of this world was in Sandy's eyes.

Effie pressed her lips together, trying to find a tactful way to express what she was looking for.

"It is a very different way, yes."

It could have ended there. It probably should have. But this woman seemed dedicated to helping Sandy even if Sandy didn't believe in her way of living.

So what was the harm in trying to get to know her?

"Have you always lived in the Capital?"

Effie nodded. "My whole life. I have traveled more than some, but I was born and raised here."

Th extensive travel, both from when she was a child and her mother was an escort, and from her own travels as an escort, was a point of pride for Effie. She felt she understood Panem better than many in the Capitol.

"What was it like? Growing up here?" She had already asked the stylists, and Cinna was notably vague but it was more about what he didn't say really.

Somehow she didn't imagine Effie's story would be the same.

(Did you wanna continue or handwave this?))

(( Maybe just this last tag, since I'm curious about your Effie headcanon. Then we can handwave the rest if that's ok with you? :) ))

"Oh, wonderful! My mother was an escort as well, so I always was very involved with the Districts of course. They were always a concern, and made me value my life here very much. And due to my father's position, even after my parents..." She shrugged, still not entirely comfortable with something in this tale, but smoothing over it quickly. "Separated, we still we're always in the upper levels of society here."

She preened a little though, glad to be showing off the good side of the Capitol. "It's not all parties of course. I had strict schooling, especially to be come an Escort...it is a very competitive career path"

((Sounds good! We can let this bit of conversation play out, if there's more than one tag in there, and then let it wander away))

"People still get divorced here?" She sounded amused "Wow, I thought Capitol people were always just happy and partying." It honestly surprised her.

Effie sighed, before shrugging. It wasn't a subject she wanted to linger too much on.

"No one has found a way to solve human nature yet, I suppose."

She paused, in a moment of self awareness that she might have just said something deeper than she meant to. And quickly set that to the side and smiled brightly at Sandy.

Sandy screwed up her face trying to comprehend such a complicated subjects.

"You think it's nature to be a jerk?" It wasn't the first time she'd considered human nature in her short life, but life in the Capitol had changed her views somewhat.

And this conversation kept teetering on very deep, for the two of them at least.

"I think there is something to that at least. Look at what we do to each other."

Her voice was soft. Effie knew when she wasn't toeing the party line. But...it wasn't just Panem. She was a history buff, wasn't she? The human race was a rather destructive sort.