Linden would be lying if he claimed that he couldn't commiserate. Expectations are a bitch, and living up to them is even harder; as the guy who has spent over a decade getting systematically wasted to deal with difficult realities, he can attest to the fact that giving others no reason to rely on you is a gentler and kinder way to fail.
"'Handling it' is kind of the bare minimum," he mumbles against the mouth of his bottle. "Unfortunately, more tends to be expected of Mentors. Certainly of Escorts, since they got their jobs through politics and personality and not because they won a reality TV competition."
He thinks he was trying to make a point, and wonders if it's slipped away from him as he tilts the bottle back again. A couple passing people look interested; Avoxes don't drink, but ah-- a closer look reveals that he's not one, just dressed unnervingly similarly.
"I've seen a lot of Games," Linden says in an undertone. "I mean, a lot. I think I've become pretty decent at learning to tell when a person does what he has to in order to survive in the Arena, and when the Games just give him an opportunity to be who is really is with immunity. What I'm saying is... I truly understand your frustration with this man. If he gives you trouble, any trouble, come to me with it and I'll sort it out. That's part of my job. Your job is just to look as viable and as good to sponsors as possible, so even if you're sure you're coming up short, do your very best."
no subject
"'Handling it' is kind of the bare minimum," he mumbles against the mouth of his bottle. "Unfortunately, more tends to be expected of Mentors. Certainly of Escorts, since they got their jobs through politics and personality and not because they won a reality TV competition."
He thinks he was trying to make a point, and wonders if it's slipped away from him as he tilts the bottle back again. A couple passing people look interested; Avoxes don't drink, but ah-- a closer look reveals that he's not one, just dressed unnervingly similarly.
"I've seen a lot of Games," Linden says in an undertone. "I mean, a lot. I think I've become pretty decent at learning to tell when a person does what he has to in order to survive in the Arena, and when the Games just give him an opportunity to be who is really is with immunity. What I'm saying is... I truly understand your frustration with this man. If he gives you trouble, any trouble, come to me with it and I'll sort it out. That's part of my job. Your job is just to look as viable and as good to sponsors as possible, so even if you're sure you're coming up short, do your very best."