[closed] you say you'll sew me good as new

[fintastic]

Who| Dave and Feferi
What| sad Strider in snow Dave is upset by Tony's death; Feferi wants to help
Where| the aquarium
When| sometime shortly after the broadcast
Warnings/Notes| talk of death and maybe other sensitive topics

It's not that Feferi didn't like the guy, but when she sees the broadcast and what happens to Tony, her first thoughts aren't really for herself or if she's upset, because she's not, not like the humans here might be. To her, culling just seemed like a standard affair and nothing to raise a fuss over because what was done was done. Even if she abhors it and it makes her angry, it almost feels... expected. Like it was bound to happen eventually, and she'd be content to just shake her head sadly and move on with her day, but it's not just about her. For how little she knew of Tony, she knows that Dave was fond of him, and between that and other disappearances as of late...

She doesn't even stop to think about it or whether she's making a brazen assumption. She hopes she knows him well enough to take a guess at his mood at that exact moment. Calm and methodical, she gets washed up, does her hair up in loose braids, and gets dressed in something cute, then makes her way up to Dave's new District 3 digs. She knocks softly on his door, leaning into it as if that might make it open.

"Dave? Are you there?" It's hard to keep the pity out of her voice, but she tries her best to just sound sweet and gentle instead. "I thought I'd come see how you're doing! And make sure that you are not working too hard."

...would he even be in his room? She hopes he's in his room, or else she'll feel kind of silly talking at his door. Twenty minutes too late she stops to think that maybe she should have sent word ahead that she was coming, but it's too late now.

Comments

[shenunigans]

Dave is in his room. He's glad to be in his room. He's glad he happened to be conveniently isolated when the news flashed up over the video game he'd been indulging in. He'd have a pretty hard time salvaging his reputation if his Tributes saw him shed a goddamn tear. The insolent little bead of water was halfway down his cheek before he noticed it trying to make an escape. It isn't followed by others, fortunately, and it's all too easy to make it look less like a tear of sorrow and more like a tear of anger.

Of course he's angry. He's so fucking angry. He had no idea that Tony had been behind the newer phase of the hacking. He'd exchanged playful banter with him, but not once had the man he held so much respect for considered him helpful or useful enough to be worth asking for help. Maybe it's for the better, given the outcome, but it feeds the ugly part of Dave that feels more and more pathetic as more people die.

God, he did not ask to be in this troubled and gritty remake of some daytime drama. It's full of expendable characters you find yourself attached to, knowing each and every one of them will probably die or suffer in ways your tiny brain cannot even comprehend. It's only worsened by the fact that there's always a chance they could be back.

So he's frowning at his TV for a long time, even when it flips back to his video game. It's enough to make him slide his controller across the floor and grunt out an insult in loving memory to Tony.

"Fucking asshole."

That's all he really needs to say, right? There's no mistaking that as anything but disdain. Even so, he's relieved for the interruption when it comes, though the sweetness of her voice makes him just a little less confident in his facade. He wipes desperately at his eye just to be sure and steps up to open the door for her.

"More like hardly working." Kill him for that joke. "I'm fine. What's up?" His voice falters just enough to remind him why he was always cast as a tree.