thecapitol | [open]

Entry tags:

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Who| Tiffany Doggett AND YOU
What| A smalltown jailbird arrives in the Capitol and immediately decides that it's the best place ever
Where| Various places; scenarios under cuts
When| Some vague nebulous time after the latest plot; can take place over a few days if needed
Warnings/Notes| If you haven't already, please take a look at her permissions post before tagging her so I know what you are and aren't comfortable with! Other than that, nothing (yet - it's always yet with her)

A: District 1 suite, Part I

If you're going to be unceremoniously pulled from your prison block with no warning and not much explanation, there are definitely worse places you could be landed. This place is insane - everything in it is more lavish and luxurious than anything she's seen in pictures or on TV, let alone in real life. It's at least a couple hours before she even considers leaving her suite - she's too busy trying everything out. She tests out her big, soft bed (which she can't resist bouncing on like a child for a minute or two), she takes a shower followed by a long, hot bath, she raids the fridge, she checks out the view from the deck. If something is available to be examined, turned on, or tried out, she does it.

Honestly, she had kind of glossed over the whole "battle to the death" thing. Forced death matches simply aren't a part of reality as she knows it, and until the idea is shoved in her face a little more, it's just not something she's going to think about at all. As far as she's concerned, this place is heaven. The Capitol has already begun to win her allegiance.

B: The streets of the Capitol

Tiffany finally leaves the Training Center, after being reassured (more than once) that this is her home now and she'll be able to come back whenever she wants. There's nowhere in particular that she's looking to go, but that's fine with her - she'll wander. She's bound to come across something or someone interesting eventually.

C: The Districts shopping center

Handed a credit card and set loose in a city, it's unsurprising that Tiffany finds her way to a mall. Not really one for thinking ahead that much, she immediately starts buying things - clothes mostly, but also earrings, bracelets, and makeup. It's only after an hour or two that she starts wondering if she's going to hit a credit limit, or be dealing with bills later. She looks around for people with similar-looking cards; when she finds someone, she stops them and holds up her own.

"Hey. How much is on this thing?"

D: Various clubs and bars (The Speakeasy, .infinity, Anomaly, The Cave, or Tesserae)

After gussying herself up at the shopping center, Tiffany eventually discovers the Capitol nightlife, and the rest is history. She bounces from place to place, skipping the sit-down restaurants but hitting all the clubs and bars, sometimes more than once. Affiliation means nothing to her at this point; any rebellion-minded talk at places like The Speakeasy mostly just goes over her head. She's shed her prison clothes and dressed herself to the nines (though she still looks pretty tame in comparison to most Capitol fashion), accessorizing with jewelry, shimmery makeup, and lightly-styled hair (nothing too fancy, but infinitely better than the untreated, unbrushed 'do she often sported in prison). She's a little underdressed for the fancier places and a little overdressed for the dive bars, but she doesn't seem to care. She'll have the time of her life - dancing, drinking, and occasionally chatting up men. She's not used to looking good, or feeling good about her appearance. The fact that she does now puts her in an amazing mood.

E: District 1 suite, Part II

Somewhere along the line, someone had slipped her some tapes of past Games - either out of a genuine desire to help, or because they'd pegged her as someone who'd be easily spooked and wanted to psych her out. She should familiarize herself with these, they'd said, because she'd be going into the arena herself soon enough. So later, tired out from her night on the town, she remembers the tapes and pulls them out, flopping down on the common room couch to watch.

And it's... terrifying. She watches intently, leaning forward, eyes wide. It's like a horror movie she can't look away from. She's killed before, and she's threatened, and she's gotten into her fair share of fights - but this is a whole new ball game. Can she really do this? Is she really going to be expected to do this? She doesn't want to die, but looking at the fighting skills of some of these people... there's no way, she thinks, that she would stand a chance.

She'll have to ask someone about it later; someone in charge. They've been helpful so far. Surely they'll continue to be.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Um..." Sandy had to consider that one for a moment, and also consider that this girl seemed focused on entirely the wrong things. Then again she might just be in denial.

"Well I mean, you're new so not as many people in the Capitol will know who you are yet. They may still show you on TV and stuff. After your first arena everyone will know you though. They'll watch you from the minute you arrive in the arena to the minute you die." She explained trying to put a little more emphasis on the dire part of their situation.

The discomfort at hearing that is clear on her face, and so is the fact that she's trying to forcibly push it from her mind. Nope, don't want to think about dying. It's too unbelievable right now.

"Can I get known in other ways instead?"

Sandy had to think about that one.

"I guess sometimes if tributes are making waves in one way or another the news picks up on it. Making a scene in public, showing up at places where lots of other famous people show up." She was struggling a bit with this one.

"When they do events and stuff if you participate people notice you too. Like there was this big bike race last year and because I participated and one the kids race lots of people came to talk to me and try to get me to work with them on commercials and stuff."

Tiffany nods, making mental notes. That sounds a lot more reasonable and appealing than getting killed.

"Okay. So maybe I'll do that instead."

Sandy's eyebrow rose in interest and she folded her arms wondering how much she should press the issue.

"You should make time to train too. You're going to need to learn to defend yourself you know? I mean your mentor should be going out of their way to train you but if they don't you might be on your own." And some of Sandy's best training sessions had been on her own.

"I can defend myself. Do I look like a weakling or something? I'm not."

Sandy's head tilted looking entirely unconvinced.

"Well...even if that's true have you seen some of the other tributes? There are trained assassins, soldiers, and people with muscles bigger then my head. What sort of practice do you have when it comes to fights?"

It was the first time she'd met someone in such a deep degree of denial and she wasn't sure if it was OK, that she was pressing the issue.

Tiffany hesitates before answering, not wanting to admit that her experience with actual fights is kind of lacking. She's gotten into her fair share of brawls, but nothing where death (or even serious injury) was the main goal.

"... Killed someone once." She eyes Sandy, curious about what her reaction to that will be.

Barely batting an eyelash. That is the reaction.

It may seem tough for a child but almost all of Sandy's closest friends had killed people before they arrived in the arena. The difference was why they'd done it.

"And why did you do that?" She pressed hoping desperately that there was a perfectly reasonable explanation. Self defense, and accident, let this girl be secretly a navy seal or something.

She narrows her eyes suspiciously. "Kind of a personal question, ain't it. Why do you want to know?"

Tilting her head to the side finding the response a little strange she answered matter of factly, "Because it makes all the difference between how you're going fit in around here."

What went unspoken was it would also depend on if she was going to be a Capitol favorite or another tribute forced to fight against their will.

"Even if you don't tell me, sooner or later your true nature will be revealed to everyone. The Capitol and the tributes. Secrets are hard to keep around here."

"Okay. She... she was doing awful things." That, Tiffany thinks, is vague enough that it could apply to either scenario - the real one that had actually happened and that she tried not to think about, or the fake one that her lawyer had come up with and that she desperately wished had been the real one.

"She was doing awful things, so I got pissed off and I shot her."

Unfortunately for Tiffany, this was not enough for Sandy. She squared her shoulders and tried to draw herself to her full height...which unfortunately was not much given she was still in the body of an eleven year old body.

"What sort of awful things?"

Because awful was subjective. She had done awful things in an attempt to do the right thing.

"You saying you gonna find that out, too? That's something most people don't know."

Her eyes narrowed in defiance.

"Maybe not. But if it's something important to you odds are the Capitol already knows. They'll use it against you, or twist the truth to entertain people more."

Maybe she needed an example. A show of trust?

"My dad was a criminal. But he wasn't a monster. He stole things and fought people but he still loved me and did his best to take care of me. He gave up his crimes to do that and he still was arrested and taken away. Whenever the Capitol talks about him though they make sure to talk about how horrible he was. You see what I mean?"

It was dangerous being so honest in the open, but it wasn't the stupidest thing Sandy had said in a public place.

Why was she taking the risk? Why was she trying so hard? Was it because she just wanted another ally that badly? Was it her faith in humanity that had been shaken time and time again?

"My whole family's criminals." That's a bit of an exaggeration, but the Doggetts are a clan for whom trouble with the law isn't exactly uncommon.

"I shot her 'cause she was killing babies. That's why." It's not why, but it's been the story for so long that Tiffany almost halfway believes that that's exactly how it had happened. "I was saving unborn lives. I been called a hero for it."

Sandy's eyes hardened as they finally got to the meat of the matter. Defending children was about as good a reason as any to take another life.

But after a moment the words rang back in her ears and her expression melted looking confused.

"Wait...what do you mean unborn? She was killing pregnant women?" The look of disgust on Sandy's face was fresh. That was a level even the Hunger Games hadn't reached.

"No, like... abortions. She was doing those." Tiffany shifts uncomfortably; awkwardly. This is the first time in years - the first time since her trial - that she's been put on the spot and asked to explain and justify what she did.

"Ab...what?"

Sandy hated not knowing what words were. She read a lot and tried to educate herself, but there were simply some words that didn't make their way into her books even when she was studying for survival.

"What does that mean?" Her stance shifted relaxing more, it's not like this woman was threatening her...just confusing her.

Tiffany looks her up and down. "How old are you?" She's clearly a kid - a younger kid than Tiffany has seen in a while.

"I'm probably like twice your fucking age, right; I probably shouldn't even be talking about this to you. And you shouldn't be trying to boss me around."

Her stare hardened and she braced herself again.

"I'm thirteen years old. But I've died more times then most people around here. I'm not bossing you around I'm trying to help."

Though...OK maybe she was being a little bossy about it. Commander Shepard might be rubbing off on her.

Well, she's a little older than she looks, anyway.

"... Abortion's killing babies when they're still in their moms. Making it so they ain't gonna be born at all."

It sounds horrible, the sort of stuff even Sandy has never had a nightmare about.

"But...why?" She bursts. "Why would she do that? And how do you do that without killing the mom?"

Her raised voice draws some more stares, but the locals are giving them a wide path for now.

"It's just something people do." Her tone is snappish; defensive, almost. "Doctors can do it; it ain't hard. You go into a clinic for a couple hours and you come out, bam, not pregnant no more."

"Wait...wait doctors?" Sandy's confusion twists her expression as she struggles with the idea. Doctors are good people usually. Doctors are supposed to help and heal. So why would a doctor do that?

"I don't understand...is something wrong with the pregnancy?"

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cw: religious extremism

Re: cw: religious extremism

cw: religious extremism

Re: cw: religious extremism

cw: religious extremism

Re: cw: religious extremism

cw: religious extremism

Re: cw: religious extremism

cw: religious extremism

Re: cw: religious extremism