dead_black_eyes: "Catapult" (As hollow as the day after a tragedy)
dead_black_eyes ([personal profile] dead_black_eyes) wrote in [community profile] thecapitol2015-04-24 12:20 am

I Know Explosions Make Debris, and Catching it Kind of Suits You [Open]

Who| Linden and Stephen, Linden and OPEN
What| Linden and Stephen do another blindspot conversation about rebellion stuff. Also a catch-all for Linden
Where| Lots of places
When| Before (for Stephen) and after (for everyone else) the Binding!
Warnings/Notes| Bidding mentions/implications, profanity, descriptions of injuries and sad stuff.



[a]. [for Stephen]

Linden is a lot less recognizable than he usually is today. Despite the nice weather, he's bundled up in several sweaters, and doesn't appear to be perspiring. He's got a few books under his arm as he strolls down a busy Capitol street, getting a few glances and murmurs of "is that...?" from curious appreciators of reality television. He's not wearing anything around his neck and his scar gives him away to attentive fans of the Games, and who in this part of Panem isn't?

He's not planning to hang out on Main Street, though. Linden Lockhearst is going into the seedier parts of the Capitol, striding through streets he is seldom if ever seen and ignoring casual midday offers for scantily-clad companionship. Eventually, he makes his way to a dark, isolated and unbugged alley, turning past the rougher edges of an older building than is typical in the Capitol. It's clean enough, unremarkable and nondescript, and when he sees his District's Escort, he approaches. Since Cyrus began cleaning up Stephen's image, he's been wearing clothes that are more subdued than any he's likely ever worn in his entire life. Traces of glitter remain, but ultimately the aesthetic is reminiscent of Cyrus's, sharp, clean-cut and professional.

"It took me long enough to find this place," he says; even with the confidence that they won't be overheard, he keeps his voice low and the movement of his lips minimal.

[b]. [tribute center rooftop]

Linden is off Morphling, clean for weeks and counting. The world is sharper, brighter, and a lot more hateful than the one he remembers cultivating for himself after his Games; that being said, he's found other ways to stimulate and soothe himself when either of those effects are needed. One such method is hanging off the guard rails by the back of his knees, dangling his body over the edge of the tower and gazing down through the forcefield at the street many stories below as blood rushes and sings in his ears.

The Sun's setting soon. From Linden's current vantage point, it'll look like it's levitating and being absorbed into a strange, solid, silver skyline composed of jagged skyscraper teeth. He tries to focus on this instead of the depressing revelation that Panem and especially the Capitol are falling apart, and even if he has to do some pretty shitty things to contribute to a cause that has actually succeeded in lighting a fire under him, he's on thin ice. It would take so little to slip and fall, and the precision of a tightrope walker to succeed; it makes hanging off the edge of a building seem dull and unadventurous by comparison.

The building has a safety net, after all; the rebellion doesn't, and anyone willingly involving himself with it carries the welfare of everyone he cares about on that wire with him.

[c]. [upscale Capitol bar]

The Binding had shaken up a lot, and for good reason, many staff members or people who are otherwise closely affiliated with the Games have been extra careful not to arouse suspicion. In this classy, upscale establishment, Linden actually looks like he (or more likely, 6's stylists) have put some real effort into his appearance tonight. He looks like a caricature of himself, dressed in close-fitting black vinyl with silver accents. It covers every inch of him below the neck, but is skintight on his extremely thin frame. His hair looks artfully tousled rather than slept-in, and his dark makeup accentuates the hollowness in his eyes and cheeks rather than attempting to soften, conceal or apologize for it.

For as little as he really looks like himself, absolutely no one could mistake the strikingly larger-than-life Victor as he currently appears. Even his scar is exaggerated and accented with makeup, and it's not long before a tall Capitolite of indeterminate gender is slipping into the seat next to Linden, ordering a drink and wrapping the man's thin fingers around the frosted glass. They strike up a conversation, appearing to already know each other. From a distance, it appears that the Capitolite is getting close and cozy, and though Linden doesn't reciprocate, he isn't making an effort to distance himself from the situation, either. He sips at his drink as his companion's hand strays to the sharp blade of Linden's hip.


[d]. [d6 suites]

Linden comes in late assisted by two Avoxes, seeming to time it so he isn't seen by anyone. A long bath and approximately 12 hours of sleep later, he reluctantly emerges from his room, appearing... strange. He's had some help from stylists, clearly, but the swelling around his eye is still noticeable. Foundation light enough to match Linden's parchment-pale skin is hard to come by, so the result is a mismatched nightmare that clashes with the cool tones in his complexion and does very little to cover the mottled bruising. The same goes for his neck; what his higher-than-normal collar doesn't cover tells a disquieting story of someone breaking his rule about even touching his neck rather severely.

If he notices someone staring, either at the bruising or the ginger, painful way he moves, he'll offer a tight smile. The tone will vary depending on whether or not they're friendly, but the message is always more or less the same.

"You should see the other guy."

capitolprivilege: (and every cure they gave us)

[personal profile] capitolprivilege 2015-04-28 03:56 am (UTC)(link)
"That was the plan from the beginning," Stephen replies, pressing his lips together. "It'll just be one more medium to convince Cyrus that I'm toeing the line. But I wasn't talking about that. What I'm saying is, if we need to get the Peacekeepers looking one way while something important happens somewhere else..." He taps the pocket with his communicator in it. Stephen means that he could drop information about ~suspicious activity~ or something in a text to someone, which Cyrus would see, and then alert the Peacekeepers to, effectively creating a distraction.

"I could create the same kind of distraction I came here to talk to you about. But, like I said, it would probably only work once or twice before they either decided I wasn't worth getting information from or, worse, realized I was doing it deliberately."
capitolprivilege: (because it's not my fault)

aaand D for later

[personal profile] capitolprivilege 2015-04-28 04:12 am (UTC)(link)
Stephen's face is just as tight, but he's not smiling. It's not easy to tell at first glance -- Stephen Reagan's concealer game is strong -- but if you averaged out how much Linden slept and how much Stephen slept, you'd get two normal nights.

"Linden, I have something to say to you. That thing is no. No, no, nope. Absolutely not. If this is the way it's going to go, this stops right here. This--" Stephen just gestures to all of him, "is never happening again."
voiceinthephone: hollow-art ([Hurt: oh dammit Freddy])

[personal profile] voiceinthephone 2015-04-28 05:49 am (UTC)(link)
Phil got up his chair and went over to the couch, daze gone for that moment. He was slightly relieved that Linden didn't lie to him, and immediately asked an Avox to please get them some water. While not completely accustomed to the concept, Gray started to see Avoxes as the cruel mercies they really were, but manners were manners, they were still people.

"Yeah, I do," he nodded torn between anger, fear, and worry for his Mentor. So Lockhearst had been bid on and this was the end result. "Do you need anything?" Though he hoped it wasn't of a more explicit nature, the fact that someone still treated Victors as property... sickened the Phone Guy to no end.
capitolprivilege: (would you be impressed if I said)

[personal profile] capitolprivilege 2015-04-28 11:37 am (UTC)(link)
"Yes," Stephen says, cheering up at the change of subject. He doesn't like the idea of willfully leading Cyrus into misinformation. Lying to Cyrus at all makes Stephen feel terrible, and lying about something of that magnitude? With those potential repercussions? He had the idea, and he recognized it as a good one, but he didn't like it.

"I do," he says. "Linden, this party isn't just a distraction. Cyrus is going to use it to demonstrate how cleaned up I am. It's going to be huge -- incredibly important figures are going to be there, and it's going to get all kinds of publicity. If you wanted to present an image to the Capitol, this party is going to be your best opportunity."
impaledqueen: (Wake up get outside)

[personal profile] impaledqueen 2015-04-28 01:30 pm (UTC)(link)
He seems a little more... intact than she had expected, but everyone reacts differently. Even so, Linden had hates being bid on, and the bruises around his neck indicate the worst kind of client. "That sounds lovely, thank you."

She quietly sits down on the couch, mostly keeping the confusion from her face. Maybe he's in shock? He hasn't been part of the bidding system for a long time. She really shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, if he's not drinking. "How has your day been so far?" It's a veiled question. He can treat it at face value or talk to her about what happened, either way. She's giving him the choice.

bravelyplucked: (snap)

[personal profile] bravelyplucked 2015-04-28 02:17 pm (UTC)(link)
Torin tilts his head to one side, as though trying to see the difference in the view. "Certainly good for a change of perspective. Sometimes, that's all it can take to work through a difficult problem."
capitolprivilege: (because it's not my fault)

[personal profile] capitolprivilege 2015-04-28 05:39 pm (UTC)(link)
"I don't care how much he paid you," Stephen says, as if it was obviously just about the money, duh. "I know exactly what happened, Linden. And I don't care how good the payout is, it's not worth you coming out of it like this."

Stephen Reagan doesn't get angry easily. He really doesn't. He's a very patient individual, and a very forgiving one, too. He's trying to hide how angry he is about this. He knows anger isn't what Linden needs right now, which is why he's keeping himself contained, but his fists curl tight on the table. He takes a breath, and goes on.

"It's hurting you too much. It's going to take all the cracks you already have and make them worse until you break and go back to the Morphling, go insane, or both." Something that not everybody knows is that when Stephen gets an idea in his head, he can be extraordinarily stubborn about it. It was why Cyrus couldn't keep him away from the Games permanently.

"I'm not going to let that happen to you."
capitolprivilege: (would you be impressed?)

[personal profile] capitolprivilege 2015-04-28 06:31 pm (UTC)(link)
God. Stephen is angry at Claudius for being a sick fuck, angry at Linden for knowing that and doing what he did anyway and leaving him to talk Nill through it, angry at himself for not putting up a bigger fight, and angry with the Capitol for being the machine that this incident was only a cog in and for being made up of countless more. He's wound up, with far too much energy to just let his arm hang loosely over Linden's shoulders.

After what happened last night, initiating any kind of physical contact is something Stephen absolutely would not have done. However, now that Linden's done it, well -- between that, and the fact that Linden's words come at a time when Stephen has been feeling like the worst Escort in the Capitol, and the worry, and having to comfort Nill about it...

Linden is getting arms around him properly, one wrapped around his shoulder and the other around his back. His breathing is quick, shallow, controlled. It's because of that control that the hug isn't tighter -- it would be, if Stephen weren't still treating Linden carefully right now -- it's firm but easy enough to pull away from or out of.

"I'm going to wreck his shit," Stephen promises in an undertone. It's vague enough that it doesn't matter if the cameras pick it up. He could just be talking about pressing charges -- which he'll bring up in a bit. In a minute.
reassures: (cut ☙ that's no way to live)

d! lemme know if you want anything changed

[personal profile] reassures 2015-04-29 01:02 am (UTC)(link)
Though certainly not as long of a day as Linden unfortunately needed to have, Nill's own hadn't exactly been sunshine and rainbows. As it turns out Candi's interference nearly twenty hours ago was almost entirely because she recognized the bidder Linden was with - a fact that she let Nill know as she was dragging her back to the group she was with for the evening. Though the words "you do not want to spend the evening with that man" had probably been said out of kindness, one of the few kinds that Capitolites actually seem to know, they had done next to nothing good for Nill. She had tried to get away, to go back and do something, but the only time Nill managed to look was long enough to see Linden making sure Claudius didn't try to bring her over again, and that was the last she was able to spot him.

So, perhaps understandably, it had been a rough night after that. She finished up her with the people that wanted her time and went home and finished off the stash she had hidden from one of her earlier Arena deaths, and waited until Stephen called to let her know that Linden was back, and that he "would be" okay. Then it was mostly spending the next twelve hours drinking coffee, or trying (and failing) not to doze off on the couch several times. She never drifted off for more than thirty minutes, but at least she didn't try to blame Stephen for the ordeal or try to punch him, which she very well may have done had she found him right away.

It's during one of these periods of dozing off that Linden finally wanders out of his room, and though he's not making much noise Nill starts awake. Thankfully that couch isn't really in easy view of the rooms, so Linden might not notice it, but Nill waits a moment to listen and gets up immediately when she determines the person walking is in fact not Stephen. Nill doesn't get more than a few feet closer before she spots what's been done to his neck and she freezes in place, worried and slightly wide-eyed, horror in almost every line of her features.

Oh, god, that bastard.
voiceinthephone: hollow-art ([Hurt: really did you have to do that])

[personal profile] voiceinthephone 2015-04-29 04:49 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh ha ha, sir," Phillip shot back, taking in the full extent of the injuries his Mentor suffered in the wake of the bidding. Getting the ice was no problem and he'd been refining his first aid skills, applying pressure and cold in specific points to make the feverish skin reduce in siz. He'd been making sure that he would never be caught off guard as he'd been with Venus or anyone. "You're barely walking, are you sure you can't nap first before bathing? That, that make-up's caked on pretty good." Especially around the Victor's neck scar, "May I at least clean that off?"

To have it so hidden, Gray figured he would get a no for an answer; this wasn't something to be proud of. Though there is a lingering sense of secrecy in Lockhearst's behavior, he still asks, "Meeting didn't go so well, right?" The truth would have the former guard now Tribute reeling: that Linden agreed to do something so self-destructive.
voiceinthephone: hollow-art ([Welp we're in trouble])

[personal profile] voiceinthephone 2015-04-29 05:28 am (UTC)(link)
Gray didn't expect a yes but he accepted the invitation, his wipes reduced to dabs around the scar. Unlike Jason's manhandling, Phil understands what post-traumatic stress looks like, he experiences it as panic attacks. The more foundation and concealer he takes away, the more natural colors emerge from Linden's pallor. As soon as he's done with the neck, he hurries up his pace and sighs,

"Unless those stairs are from a B-horror movie, with finger steps, no one's gonna buy it, sir," Phil stated outright, doing his best to use soft wipes around the bruising. "Anywhere else you need ice?"
reassures: (fade ☙ petals soft and torn)

[personal profile] reassures 2015-04-29 06:11 am (UTC)(link)
Though it's likely not a gesture that Linden himself knows, and Nill is fairly certain the only reason she knows it is because what little she remembers of the man that first taught her tells her he was foul-mouthed, she lifts her hands, the way they move through the air almost looking sharp as she signs, {Bullshit.}

Despite the gesture she can't bring herself to summon the kind of fury that seemed to encase her last night, her shoulders hunching forward slightly and wings mostly folded down against her back. She gingerly steps closer, within reach though she doesn't dare try to touch him right now, and takes a few brief seconds to get a closer look at his neck before she has to blink several times to make sure she doesn't start crying.

Then, almost an echo of the last time she really got to see him she lifts a hand to her chest, the gesture nowhere near as casual or accidental as he had made it seem.

{I'm so sorry.}

Even though she had gone over with the intent of maybe getting Linden out of there, or changing the man's mind, or just doing something, the only thing she had accomplished was making it worse. That much was obvious with some of the comments that disgusting man had made, and yet she never just left like she should have.

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