[open] The circus is full from top to ground

[voiceinthephone]

Who| Phil Gray and Open!
What| PG attempts at being a mentor part I
Where| Various locations, see prompts
When| September 1 through 5
Warnings/Notes|To be added but prompts include discussions about torture, Capitol nastiness, Arena nastiness, ect

I - District 6 Floor - Let Them Eat Cake

As much as Phillip wanted to have Linden to guide him through this new job as Mentor, he had to realize that he wouldn't be there forever. The metaphorical training wheels are off and he finds himself in the strangely familiar position of being somewhat behind the scenes again. Phone Guy had been an instructor for the security guards back home and guide them through the difficult five nights at Freddy's, now he was tasked with making sure his former fellow Tributes stayed alive.

He has every Tribute's file and a few more documents on the table, along with a tablet he's been tinkering with to help along with the Mentor tasks.

But it shouldn't be all business and Celebrus did get a few things right: Phil had a knack for cooking and baking. He's been a waiter, he's helped in the kitchen and knows how to read a recipe and anyone passing by District 6 will be treated with the smells of oven-fresh pizza (no, not THAT greasy thank you very much) and a two-story cake decorated with the Capitol's colors. Little shows of patriotism go a long way. "Help yourself, top half's regular vanilla, lower's chocolate," he will greet anyone that comes by in a black suit ensemble, to show his grief over his Mentor's apparent betrayal and his love Venus lost to the Arenas. Foxy's close at hand either following his master or sitting in an empty chair, nibbling on a toy or leftover pepperoni.

I-b Locked to Linden

Phillip didn't mind visiting Linden in his room, it was better this way, to meet behind closed doors under the guise of supervising the recovery. He knows how closely the Capitol is watching their District and the suspicion cast upon them. But even "traitors" deserved a cake slice...or two.

"I didn't know which one you'd like or were allowed to eat, so I brought both," he whispered, checking the medical charts and for any signs of negligence. To the public, Phil showed resentment towards his Mentor, but they were friends for long enough that there were tells. His altruism never faded, especially in this time of need.

II - Training Center

Seeing the Classic Victors in the Arena and knowing that war was all but inevitable, certain changes were put into Phil's training routine. Sure he kept his speed and knife skills up to par...but now he incorporated much more running, strength building, and even how to properly fire a gun. The weight was still foreign in his hands but he had to learn somehow.

Phone Guy isn't the only one training as he too had his pet in a regime. Foxy was being taught how to track scents and find items, as well as burrow into different spots. When asked why, Phil would smile, "Eh, he's as finicky as a cat but as loyal as a dog, and it's fun for him!"

III- The Capitol Streets - Day and Night

There is a lot on Phil's plate as the dust settled and the footage was being dissected by the Capitol media because that's EXACTLY what they do. Karkat's talk was eye-opening to say the least and Gray trusted him to do his best in every interview that may present itself. Phil couldn't say he was ready for this but Lockhearst warned him back at the Crowning. Questions about Phone Guy's own loyalty to Panem would be quickly shot down with a gentle sigh, hand placed on his chest like a stricken man and a very believable "I am indebted to Panem for giving me a chance to serve as a Tribute and now as a Mentor. "

For now, he's shopping for food for his District under the guise of more ingredients to partake in his off-duty hobbies. There's probably a lot of leftovers from his last few days of cooking, surely he can't eat all the meals he makes on a whim! Maybe new clothes and toys for his faithful companion but always within reason.

By all appearances, Phil Gray was taking a page from two Classic Victors: from Temple Stevens in portraying himself as a well-adjusted person fit for the Capitol (to an extent) and like Linden in playing the long game and surviving.

By night, part of those survival skills would be put to the test as Phil came along to every event he could to boost District 6's positive image and profitability for sponsors. He dances...awkwardly, but what he does best is talk about his Tributes in the best light possible.

Comments

[voiceinthephone]

Phil catches the move but more so when he hears the barely restrained excitement in Linden's voice. His wall had a gap he couldn't cover now, and that bishop was a problem. He tries to counter with one of his knights but he finds his playing field cramped...unless he's willing to sacrifice one of his pawns for the move. He knows that Lockhearst is watching, and while it's just a game for Phone Guy, not so much for his Mentor.

Something about this board, and the way it's been set up is causing this reaction. Black's defenses were too high and...he takes a risk and has one of his knights step out just beyond the bishop's path.

"Shoot," he lets out.

[dead_black_eyes]

Linden lets out a deep breath he's been holding. He can see the game clearly now, laid out before them like an offering. All he has to do is break away from the obsessive compulsive rut he's been in for nearly the last decade and a half, reach out, and take the opportunity to finally start healing from his deepest wound. He's ready now, and the hard part is convincing himself.

Because yes, it's so much more than a game.

His moves are quicker and more confident now. He wants a fast end, a result that can allow him some peace following a very painful and difficult battle.

"It's OK," he says, soothing himself just as much as Phillip with the soft words as he moves his queen toward the center of the board, well-guarded and with a long arm. "Check. It's OK."

[voiceinthephone]

The sudden shift in energies was as surprising as the move, and Phil needed a second to realize how screwed he was in the game. But it was...enough because the change was enough to get Linden out of the rut he'd been going through.

Gray tried to reach out and try a move but he'd boxed himself in. Any moves left would just result in prolonging the inevitable.

"Well, I guess checkmate because I'm screwed," he chuckled with no ill will and took it as a chance to learn a new game.

[dead_black_eyes]

Linden glances up furtively, eyes wide. He shakes his head violently back and forth several times.

"No, no, don't guess. Don't forfeit," he begs. "I won't prolong it. I won't toy with you, but we have to finish. Please."

Phillip's skill is the absolute last thing that matters in this strange scenario. What matters is that it's finished, and that it's different from the same game Linden's practically worn grooves into his board compulsively playing over and over again.

[voiceinthephone]

Noting that extreme reaction, Phillip looked at the board once more and moved his other knight to cover his King. "Gotcha, sir," he assured Linden that, now with a more critical mindset, he still had a move or two left in this game.

He can see the mania in Lockhearst's eye, that if this game is beaten by someone giving up, then where's the resolution? Even if every move left is an added sacrifice.

[dead_black_eyes]

It's an extreme reaction, especially from the normally placid and calm Linden. He simply doesn't emote as freely or frequently as others, and it's clear from every indication that he needs this desperately.

He chews at the tip of his finger, worrying and gnawing at it while Phillip moves. He returns it immediately, and within just a few more moves, the game is finished with a softly spoken "checkmate" from Linden.

Standing when it's done, he stands and walks across the room, reaching into his jacket for a carton of cigarettes, hand shaking as he lights one and draws on it silently.

[voiceinthephone]

As satisfying the game was for Phil, even if he lost, it was nothing like the sort of relief his mentor got from the win. It's with this that he joins Linden after studying the board a few times. Though he was basically a toddler in skill level and the victory was probably pyrric, it wasn't the case here.

"Shall I reckon a guess that this was a game that never got completed?" he asked, almost joining in the smoking. From the looks of things, and the lack of an Escort like Stephen, there was need for a healthy set of lungs yet.

[dead_black_eyes]

Linden's in a world all his own, removed and isolated from the situation at hand as he tries to make sense of what he's just permitted to occur.

He thinks it's freedom. But it could also be something lethal that promises to end him. Scorpii might be the only person he's ever seen as a true equal, at least intellectually. It seemed natural that they would die together, because of their respective actions. Is it like spitting on his grave, to change their game?

He twitches and turns his head quickly at Phillip's approach, but he doesn't do more than that, having long ago learned not to interpret him as a threat.

"The same," he replies softly. He offers the carton of cigarettes as if sensing that Phillip might want one. "I don't know what to think yet, I might need a second."

[voiceinthephone]

Phil gently turned the offer down, he already knows he would have to drink some of the Capitol kool-aid if he is to survive. It's very likely that if he could engage in alcohol at the drop of a hat (his liver is still recovering), another vice would not be too far behind.

"I can leave you be," he spoke in a hushed tone before lowering his head slightly (it's a formality that never really went away) and settling over to serve their pastry meal. The chart said nothing about cake so he's setting half from both flavors for Linden.

[dead_black_eyes]

Linden wishes every day that he could deal with quieting his pain in the ways that he used to, the ways he know work. It's not permitted, both medically and by the code of resilience and determination he's trying so hard to adhere to. But the fear and tragedy aren't silenced that easily anymore, and he's left to stare into their deafening horror while faced with the prospect of soothing them in strange, new and untested ways.

"If... you think staying would implicate your image, then you should go," he suggests. "You've humored me enough already."

It's his way of releasing Phillip without having to lie about wanting him gone.

cw: gore

[voiceinthephone]

"If I actually cared about my image-" Phil doesn't complete the sentence because in the end, he really doesn't. He just want things to be all right, even if they won't be the same. "I thought you needed time to recover."

The worst part of all this is the fear. The lingering sense of dread born from Tony's head spilled over the concrete walls and floor...it's a sensation that would beat out an earlier terror. For the first time in Phone Guy's life, there is something worse than dying by animatronics: having to watch one of the people he cared be shot and killed. But he doesn't want to be a bother.

He stands up and gives his superior a nod, but leaves him a quiet statement, "My door is open for you, should you need it." By now those words are less of a statement and more like a truth.

[dead_black_eyes]

So much goes unsaid, but it's true; it's not really like it needs to be, in the end, to be understood anyway. Unbeknownst to both of them, this is one of the last times they will see one another in the Capitol, possibly even in this life.

He glances back Phillip's way, fear fighting with resignation for a place on his pale features. "Thank you. I'll remember while I'm on the mend, and if you're not opposed, I might come to pet Foxy. I like animals. Yours is well-behaved and probably therapeutic to spend time with."

[voiceinthephone]

Phil chuckled at the suggestion and nodded earnestly, "He's taking a shine to you too." He didn't know that their time together as fellow mentors was limited and he's unaware Linden's plan with his pet. "Just snap your fingers twice and Foxy will come, okay?"

As he headed out of the suite, Phone Guy offered Lockhearst a familiar good bye, with that eternal optimistic tone, "See you on the flipside, okay? Rest well a-and I hope you feel better."

[dead_black_eyes]

"Twice... OK, I've got it. I'll do so."

Linden watches him leave. "I already feel better, Phillip," he murmurs as the other man leaves.