stillplaying | 2nd Game [action + voice]

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2nd Game [action + voice]

[The rain has finally stopped. It comes as such a relief to Katniss, that she slips out of the treehouse village with her bow and arrows and hunting bag so very early in the morning - earlier than she's been awake in days.

It's been a whole day of exploring the woods. Gathering edible plants and resetting snares that were damaged by the storm. And just wandering. Wandering amongst the trees, sometimes climbing up one to get a better look of the area. Here, by the edge of the lake, she feels far enough from the town that she might actually be safe.

Safer, at least, than in those past few days. Maybe she spent too much time in the treehouse after that gathering. Too much time alone with memories and thoughts that made her heartsick. Nightmares that here, something will happen to Rue, something she won't be able to stop - just like she couldn't stop that District 1 boy from spearing her in arena. Lost days that she tried to hide so she wouldn't worry Rue.

But today? Today she almost feels like herself. Especially after a whole morning's and afternoon's worth of hunting and gathering. If you've been in the forest near the western lake today, there's a chance you might have run into her.

Maybe she hasn't been as successful as she's been in the past, but her bag still speaks of some results. A wild turkey she shot early afternoon, herbs and roots gathered not too far from the lake, and a couple of small squirrels from her snares. They weigh her down and she considers returning to the treehouses, but she doesn't want to leave the sanctuary of the forest. Not yet.

A flash of yellow catches her eye and she turns, arrow notched in it's string. And then it meows, indignant, and her arrow flies to land in the dirt right next to the beast.

She stares. And scowls.

A while later, she's back in her treehouse room and glaring at the stupid creature that followed her home. Of everyone to find here from District 12, of course it has to be Buttercup.

She reaches for the journal to ask a question.]

Has anyone else here found a pet from home?

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Yep. Rest in peace. Anything that dies should at least be allowed that much, since life isn't always so restful.

[He doesn't watch her skin that animal, because blood and flesh isn't his type of thing to look at, job occupation be damned. He slowly draws the line, stopping, drawing again at the faintest sign of a possible fish. ]

Trout? Here?

[Huh... He looks along the surface of the lake, thoughtful.]

Maybe I'm in for some better catches then.

...

Especially if this place poofs in some giant man-eating fish.

[POSSIBILITIES.]

It looked like trout.

[It's said defensively. She knows some fish, memories of time spent with her dad at the lake. But it's been so long and the most she didn't pay that much attention to the fish she caught as she scaled and gutted it.

And it's easier to talk about fish than discuss his first comment. Because life isn't easy. It's something she knows too well.]

Tasted like it, too. And I've never heard of man-eating fish.

[Except, maybe there had been something like that in a Hunger Games once? Some time ago, some sort of muttation that the Gamemakers used against the Tributes. She's not sure. And she doesn't think she wants to be sure.]

[He smiles distantly at that.]

I remember, my old man pulled a trick on me on the beach when I was little. Always had a thing against sharks thanks to him. [He glances at her.] Ever heard of the movie 'Jaws'?

[She's never even heard of a movie. Her work on the squirrel is paused for a moment as she looks at him and cocks an eyebrow just a little bit.]

No.

Well, it was basically a movie about a giant killer shark that kept chomping into people while they were swimming in the ocean. [He shrugs.] Sure, nowadays people don't think it's scary; the shark didn't exactly look as real as it could've, but I was an impressionable 8-year-old when it came out, and after that I flat-out refused to go any further than a few feet into the water.

Y'know, in case any really giant man-eating sharks decided to stop by California shores.

Edited 2012-03-26 21:24 (UTC)

[Shark. California. Growing up in Appalachia, in District 12, those words are foreign. But she does grasp some part of his explanation. Some animal killing people.

Like something the Gamemakers would use in the Games. And so she glowers.]

I don't think it sounds enjoyable at all.

Well, I can't imagine it would be. I mean, sure, Jaws wasn't a real shark, but I'm sure people'll've had their scary moments around real ones.

[He feels like there's a tug at the other end of the line and reels it in, but alas, his bait is gone and the fish gains a victory.]

Little bastard's tricky. [He huffs it under his breath, before throwing the line back, newly supplied and ready for catchin'. And then he's back on topic.]

Yep, Jaws wasn't much of a real shark at all. In fact, when they were filming the movie? He used to--[He spirals a finger downward before mimicking a splash with his mouth.]--sink, right to the bottom of the ocean. Used to call him 'Flaws'. Metal and all that doesn't really float all that well, if you get what I mean.

[It is, in Katniss' opinion, more interesting to watch the man struggle with catching the fish than it is talking about this moving thing. She's still not sure what a shark is or why it wouldn't be real.

But the fishing? That's fascinating. That's worth staying. He's one of the first people she's seen not relying solely on the town for food.

And that alone makes him worth her time.

So she gives a small, thoughtful nod as she cuts off the squirrel's tail.]

Why didn't they use a real one?

[Hmm. :|a

He scratches behind his ear.]

Well... because a real shark would probably eat their actors. Too many big teeth to deal with, right? [and he glances at her, because she wouldn't be the first here, he figures--] ... Never seen a movie before, have you?

[She shakes her head, grinning just a little because he's finally caught on. And somehow, that turned it into a game. A silly sort of game girls her age should be playing.]

No. Not like that.

[Pffft. He drops his arm and fishing pole to his side, laughing; so you're not as intensely serious as he first read. But he's not sure if trolling is better or not.]

Aww, what?? You owe me at least two minutes of my life now!

[... Oh there goes his fishing pole, moving down the bank...

DOUBLE-TAKE.]

Whoawhoawhoa, hey! [He slides down on his butt a few feet, splashing down halfway in the water as he pulls back on the line.] Get your scaly ass back here-!

[The line whines and creaks in his grip as he looks over his shoulder.]

You're a double-agent working for the fish, huh?? Trying to get my attention so they can steal my shit!

Edited 2012-03-27 20:21 (UTC)

[The laughing's not so bad even if it does surprise her at first. It even gets her to smile a little bit more as she watches him.

She'd argue that she doesn't owe him anything. At least, not like that. Because a story doesn't hold the same weight as bread. Or a life. It does deserve a story in return. But before she has a chance...]

[And he's yelling and without even thinking about it, the squirrel and knife drop from her hands. She stands and in one fluid motion, has her bow out and an arrow strung.

And it's aimed directly at his heart. Because she's suddenly back in the arena. Remembering that allies can turn on you without a second thought. Seeing Finnick train his trident on her just as she aims her bow. Coin, waiting for her Mockingjay to assassinate Snow, only to find herself at the end of the arrow's shaft instead.

And she's yelling:]

I didn't do anything!

[sdakdd--

He puts his hands up, letting the fish take his line, reel and all. Not what he expected. Not at all what he expected, all things considered. But he's not budging, not showing any signs of ill will. Because there's none to give.]

Whoa, wait, wait--I was joking!

[He breathes out a sigh, hands still raised, but shoulders slumping in either forfeit or regret. Or both.]

... It was just a joke. I was being a smartass.

[... and he looks wistfully back over his shoulder at where his fishing rod disappeared to, into the lake.

Doyle's life.

Can't win for losing.]

[A joke. A joke. She remembers those. She and Finnick on the beach, all covered in that horrible medicine and scabs, waking up Peeta only to scare him. She and Gale, laughing in the woods.

And Prim. Silly little jokes to make her sister smile.

But it's been so, so long.

The bow shakes in her grasp.]

[Another second and she glances at the lake, where she sees his fishing rod bobbing on the surface. The fish must be staying towards the surface.

Temper gets the better of her and she lets the arrow fly in the direction of the fish. Whether it hits or not isn't the point. It's all about reciprocating.]

[And then finally, she lowers the blow. Her gaze isn't exactly apologetic, but she nods in the direction of the rod.]

I can get that for you.

[He looks from her to the lake, neutral and quiet for a moment, there half-submerged in mud and water. And he has a dozen unspoken thoughts and theories.]

Edited 2012-04-25 23:19 (UTC)

[A smile, faint, as he pulls off the jacket he was wearing, dogtags jingling at his neck.] I'll get it; after all, Jaws might be out there. I have more experience with him than you do.

[He looks at her, hands on his hips. As if he wasn't just nearly shot with an arrow. Because he's pretty much used to sudden fear or danger... it comes in and out, like a wave.]

Think you can remind me how to properly skin a fish?

[A sheepish shrug.]

I'm pretty shitty at it, personally.

[The dogtags catch her attention and she glances down at them. She's never seen jewelry like that before.

And he's not questioning her. Just taking her reaction calmly in stride. It makes her wonder what he's seen, that he can act like this. And if he fetches her arrow along with her bow?

She can remind him how to skin a fish. Teach him like her father taught her long ago. It's only a fair return.]

Yeah. Thank you.

[Alright then, swimmin' time. He dives and glides through the water without hesitation, because honestly? If this lake has giant man-eating fish, his 'give a fuck' levels will drop immediately anyway. He feels this strange disconnection from himself lately, now that he's here in Luceti. Like... he's just a really sophisticated hologram. Because where he's from, he no longer exists on Earth. Or at least, what does exist is all but ash.

When he finally gets everything back and sloshes back onto land, he crouches down and offers her the arrow, feather side facing the air, the (rather large) fish gripped in the other hand and hanging off the line even still. And for good measure, he flicks his head like a wet dog, in the hopes he can extract vengeance on her with flying water.]

Alrighty, master, show me your sage ways in the art of fish-peeling.

[He holds up the twitching fish with a hand on his hip, raising his brow at it. Fish smell. But god, they taste so good.]

Edited 2012-03-29 00:55 (UTC)

2nd Game [action + voice]

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