never let me fall from hopes so high / mj, vf, hr [day 2]

[andromache s. ⚔️ [d1b] sucy]

Marceline spent most of her first day stretching her legs — to walk off her injury, to clear her head, to get her bearings. Forests are fairyland to her; finding landmarks, and finding them again, is nearly impossible for Marceline. But she’d come across, a ways off, a gaping black maw in the snow. Some kind of entrance. She’d left it at that, and managed to find her way back to her allies, who she told about it. Who knew how expansive it might be down there? It could be the perfect place to hole up.

The mines may be pitch black in every direction, but Marceline still prefers it, with its low ceilings and tight squeezes, to the vast spreads of snowy trees outside. Even the odd sounds that prick up their ears from time to time don’t scare her too bad — most of the time, it sounds like a building settling, or pins scattering across a metal floor, or like rats in a cupboard. Sounds that she knows. There are others she doesn’t; chittering and squeaking that definitely couldn’t be rats, weighty steps that could only belong to a human (or maybe something worse).

But they don’t bother Marceline as much as she thought they would. She gets used to them quickly, finding the drips and drops of whatever hadn’t been turned to ice oddly comforting. Her new friend’s fuzzy little feet curl up on Marceline’s spiky shoulder, camouflaged by her hair. His fistful of warmth is much appreciated.

So is the press of Vali’s gloved hand in Marceline’s, though she’s never admit it. Vali’s the kind of person whose presence Marceline doesn’t think she could describe as comforting, but she’s certainly happy to have her on her side, and knowing she won’t lose her in the dark somehow wraps back around to comforting.

“Hal,” she hisses, uselessly glancing to the back of their little procession. “You okay back there?“ At the same time, Marceline gives Vali’s hand a squeeze, asking the same question.

Walking like this reminds her so much of being home, even more than the dusty, cough inducing mine shafts do. As the youngest of her sisters, Marceline used to always be at the back of their little lines, dragging her feet behind her sisters with their dressage trots, slowing them down. Then, when they started having kids, Marceline was promoted — now it was her job to lead the little ones along. She’d hated it at home, hates it here too, but had still been the one to suggest it. Needs must.

Here, she’s the baby again, but Marceline is the one feeling around for their next steps. Age doesn’t matter here beyond calculating their odds after all.

table credit to napoleon, d2m ₊⊹ 🐁 ɢʀɪғғɪɴ. !

[Kingston Cesaire D3A [Tom]]

❦

The tension seems to leave her skin in a wrapped attention; carrying herself above once more with two devotees by her side. An ice bear and the ice mouse staying close to her for the evening. The sun dipping over the horizon as the chill settles into the bones where it stays ever stuck in her flesh. The redness coming over her cheeks as she waits with Marceline and Hal for the morning to come. The first night is cold; a chill settling to the bones as she curls up with Hvítabiôrn surrounding her. The gods dance through the sky; ever so present as the single face flickers to light for just a simple moment. Vali's hands reaching up to caress the poor dead girl who'd been the first to be sent to Valhalla by cute Marceline's careful hands.

Gentle and yet so deadly, Vali could feel her eyes linger on Marceline's form. Hal is much more of a comfort surrounding them. The way his touch is still gentle on her shoulder where he'd helped her out of the cabin in the first place. A shiver of memory setting in as Vali watches the two of them breath ever so gently. The world seems to spin for a moment longer as she looks out to the moon where the sound of howling rings out. Fenrir's pups seemingly hiding away from the cold; she smiles out to sky for a moment, letting her stare stay for moments too long.

"Rest now. The moon watches over us." It's gentle as she caresses Hvítabiôrn's fur. The night turns into morning; a chill settling in as she wakes with a cold along her nose. The snow having finally gotten through her as she shivers ever so slightly. The chattering of teeth settling in as she wakes up. It's a slow roll into the the day where Vali grows interestingly annoyed at the quiet of day. There's nothing. Snow. Nature. Emptiness. It's quiet, as if everything's holding it's breath. Vali Forrester had seen what happens in quiet forests. When there's problems, the natural world knows.

Except, the mines before them are vast and empty in a way Vali felt unsafe about. There's nothingness before her as if the gods were throwing a wrench into plans. Upon entering, there's a silence in the way the cave only leaves the gentle sounds around them. Settling beams, the drip of water somewhere, and the scurrying of creatures around them. Her eyes adapt to the dark, but it's hard to see where they're going. The darkness of the cave settling in as Vali takes a deep breath. The dark's never scared her before. The endless silence settling in as she takes a step behind Marceline; trusting the instincts of her ally.

Oddly comforting, their hands are gripped together as if in a line to make sure they'll never lose one another. Hands clasping together as she can feel Marceline's and Hal's gloved hands. Different in many ways. Vali can feel the control Marceline has beneath the gloves as if she could tell her ally would be gentle with a point of deadly precision due to her district's nature. Whereas Hal carries a gentleness that shares a roughness of a guy who's always relied on thoroughly. It's a comfort to be in the middle where she's got the weight of them both with her. The ability to make a choice if something dire comes forth.

Marceline asks Hal if he's okay; into the darkness the voice just echoes ever so slightly along the walls. Vali can feel a rocky surface to her back, but there's not much else. Just the occasional brush of stone on fabric. There's a brief comfort to feeling Marceline squeeze her hand in the dark; almost asking the same question she'd asked Hal. Vali stays silent for a moment, lets the squeeze linger to the bone where she hums to the air a confirmation. Squeezing back to let Marceline know she's fine.

Except it's at that moment that Vali feels something brush against her, there's a slight worry that sets in as she can't tell what it was. There's a silence as if the mines are settling into place now. Her voice is careful as she speaks out loud. "Did you feel that?" Uncertainty in her voice as if she'd just imagined whatever it had been. There's a silence settling in before she squeezes Hal's hand with comfort. The mines seem to clamber on more and more. She whispers with a calmness to the two of them.

"Must've been nothing." She squeezes once more almost for something to do as she feels a bit of that comfortable silence starting to bleed away. Her eyes seeming to scan around only seeing eyes staring back at them. Her voice is gentle as she continues. "This is already turning to be quite the adventure. Where do you think we'll end up once we're through here?"

[d9 kristof parks {ems}]

It's cold, and even the warmest of garments are failing to keep him warm. Most of the evening is spent tossing and turning, rubbing his hands together, doing anything and everything to try to protect himself. Hypothermia isn't the best way to go, and Hal wonders if that's what will happen to him in just a few short hours. Sometimes getting up and moving around heats up the body for only a tiny bit, yet it still isn't enough. Maybe this is why the elderly hate the cold so much. Aching bones make it near impossible to get some rest, and all he wants is a chance to focus on everything that's happening in attempt to zen out his mind for a while.

Perhaps, it's the only way to even sleep.

WIP will finish this post when I am home from work, but here's some dialogue and actions.

Hal nods his head for holding hands, and he stands behind Vali. He leaves his mount at the entrance of the mine - "Don't worry, I'll be back for you, and if I need you, I'll whistle really loud."

To Marceline: "Yeah, I'm okay back here."

To Vali: "Yeah, must've been nothing. At least, it's best to hope that's the case."

To both of them, he mutters very quietly: "I guess this is a bad time to mention that I'm absolutely terrified of the dark."

Credit to Pogue <3

[andromache s. ⚔️ [d1b] sucy]

The other good thing about the mines is the lack of sky above them – Marceline was barely able to sleep in the first place, and being roused by the anthem, and the face of Azure Delphine hadn’t helped. There’s cameras in here, she knows, probably equipped with night vision or something that mean that the audience at home can see better than they can, but Marceline still feels somewhat protected from the overlooking Gamemakers. How intentional was it, that they framed themselves like omnipresent gods here? She hadn’t understood the extent of it until now, until they were her gods. Bad thing about the mines – if she gets any more sponsorship packages, how the hell will they get in? Will they strap the box to some little creature, some fox thing like the guy following around Hal, and send it in? Maybe her big owl will come in, bullying its way through the walls like a battering ram. The image almost makes her laugh.

"Did you feel that?"

Any rising mirth dies in her throat. At the same time as Vali, Marceline feels something skirt by her. She abruptly stops in her tracks, feet digging into the ground to secure herself. She’s glad her allies are okay – but who knows how long that will last? Marceline mumbles an apology and continues on. Maybe it’s being at the front of the line, maybe it’s her one kill, but Marceline feels protective of Hal and Vali. It doesn’t matter to her that they’re older. It’s not that she’s been emboldened by killing Azure. Marceline regrets it, as much as anyone can regret anything in the arena, but nonetheless she feels protected by it. No cannons have gone off today. As far as anyone knows, she’s the most dangerous person in here.

Remember that. Act like you meant it. Marceline thinks of Isolde, from Six, and of the way she looked at her outside of the cabin. She didn’t believe she didn’t mean it, Marceline understood that much. In the haze of post-Bloodbath confusion, that much had gotten through. She thinks of Marguerite, from Two, who’d shaken her head at her before disappearing past the treeline later on. By then, Marceline was thinking more clearly. A career, a career who’d stabbed her no less, shaking her head in disapproval. That encounter had hardened Marceline more than anything else on Day One. She still wanted to decry her innocence, but by that point, Marceline knew there was no point. There’s no point to anything in here.

"Where do you think we’ll end up once we’re through here?" says Vali. "I guess this is a bad time to mention that I’m absolutely terrified of the dark," says Hal, so quietly that it’s nearly lost in the cavernous mines.

"Somewhere bright then," Marceline answers, rather definitively. "There’s light ahead, somewhere."

She nearly laughs again. And would that be the light of day, or the bright, white light of the beyond? Who knows.

table credit to napoleon, d2m ₊⊹ 🐁 ɢʀɪғғɪɴ. !

[Kingston Cesaire D3A [Tom]]

❦

The stagnant air whispers secrets into her ears. The silence of the mines where rock echoes with faded memories as if begging to share their hidden secrets with every brush of her back. A hum of air that comes from what has to be lanterns up ahead somewhere; Vali Forrester could sense the earth beneath her feet. The darkness starting to wane in her vision as she grew more and more accustomed to the darkness around them. It's quiet. Their breaths. The sound of their footsteps. It's too quiet on this day. Vali didn't like the way the chill rises; a dance of some unknown coming. The hairs on her neck standing on edge as she thinks about the past. The other Forresters who've traveled to Valhalla all the same; she could feel their spirits almost begging to warn her, but she doesn't listen to the dead nor the past.

Hal's words are a comfort; drifting between the two of them. Her hand gripping his own as she gently tightens it almost in an affirmation, but also affection for the comfort. Her voice catching in response as she laughs out loud. "Perhaps. Maybe it was another friendly creature like the ones we have." Looking back ahead, there's a silence she lets sit. The comfort of knowing she's picked correctly in who to surround herself in. In the end, they won't matter. Everyone will be a sacrifice to the gods; another image of children rising above their ranks. Eventually, it'll be her own hands dragging the blade through their chest as she sends them off to the gods. Her eyes focus on Marceline as she continues.

"Speaking of which, íssmús is comfortable in my pocket. I have to admit, your little friend is fitting, Marceline. Terrifying on the outside, but soft on the inside." There's a smile pulling on her lips as she turns to Hal, focusing on staying in line, but also letting her voice travel to him. "And Hal, yours seems... curious. Do you think the gamemakers choose them for us?" Either way, they'd make simple enough sacrifices to the gods, but she kept that part close to herself. A smile still pulling on her lips as they continue. Vali keeps her focus on the path ahead, squeezing both of their hands comfortingly. Her thumb on both of her hands rubs soothingly against Marceline and Hal's gloved hands almost in a bit of a curious boredom. There's a warmth running down her spine, but she swallows the pitiful thing.

It's only as the mines shake around Vali does she react, almost instantly moving a step or two away from the wall. Her voice wants to warn of it, but almost instinctively, she holds on tight. If she's going to be trapped in the mines, she was going to be trapped with others. Almost as if the shaking had come and gone, she swears under her breath tightening her hands before she can hear Marceline. "Somewhere bright then," It's confident and defined. "There’s light ahead, somewhere." A laugh falls from Vali's throat as she looks ahead to see some light. It's clear enough to her that they're old lanterns filled with burning oil. Except, that's not what catches her eyes. Instead, she looks to see the wall that's crumbled nearby and lights seeming to come on.

"Oh there's a room over there. Seems like there's some light there too. We could rest there for a moment." Stepping with a little more force, she walks in tandem with Marceline for a moment, letting the two of them decide if they want to let go of hands. It felt comforting to have someone else's energy running through her fingertips and into herself. A sort of grounding energy that Vali hadn't expected to have. Her eyes scan the room for a second, noticing the map and other things in there. Her voice is calm as she speaks. "Seems like a miner's work area perhaps. The Weavers of Fate must've led us here."

[d9 kristof parks {ems}]

It's dark and creepy. Every hair stands on end, and even when Hal closes his eyes, nothing changes. Being in the dark, not knowing where he's going, he's terrified that one wrong step could send him toppling over into some strange and crazy abyss. Yet he holds on to Vali hoping and praying nothing comes up beside them and latches onto his arm.

Vali talks about the creatures they have, and Hal smiles thinking of the tiny partner he has. It's amazing, and it gives him company when all hope seems lost. Right now, it all seems pointless.

Hopefully whatever it is, it's friendly.

"Yeah, maybe it is a creature like we have. Maybe it just needs a friend."

Talking helps distract him, it helps him to feel more comfortable and at ease, yet it's terrifying knowing his voice can carry, everything can come crumbling down. But for now, he stays focused and stays close. It's all he can do. It's all anyone can ever do.

"Yeah, maybe the gamemakers picked them out just for us. They may know us better than we know ourselves." It's a truth he's not sure he's ready to swallow.

"Somewhere bright then."

He breathes a sigh of relief, and maybe they understand, maybe they actually care, yet his mind is racing with so many thoughts. It's dark and scary, and it's easy for paranoia to set in. Tiny sounds are loud, pebbles echo when kicked, and all he wants is a chance to run away and figure everything out on his own in the daylight.

Hal moves closer and tries to hold it all together while they move into this room, and in this moment, he's grateful to see some sort of light.

"I don't know about you all, but I'm thankful your gods, Vali, gave us some light."

He doesn't believe in any sort of higher power or being, but if it offers him some comfort, he'll decide if it's best to hold on or to just let it all go.

Credit to Pogue <3

[andromache s. ⚔️ [d1b] sucy]

“Terrifying on the outside, but soft on the inside.”

Marceline whips her head around to look back at Vali when she says that, aghast expression wasted in the dark. She can’t exactly disagree, not now when her face is hastily stitched up and her eyes have marked her out as the instigator of death — but she wonders, did Vali think that description applied to her back at the training center? Marceline didn’t believe in god, or spirits, or divination. Nothing like that even registered on her radar. But Vali did, and since entering the arena, Marceline had found herself repeatedly wondering, what if she’s right?

Terrifying isn’t the word she’d have chosen a few days ago. Cold, standoffish, self-protective, maybe. There were lots of ways to describe Marceline’s self imposed isolation, but terrifying just wasn’t them. She’s operating under a certain level of cognitive dissonance, doing her best to accept, take responsibility, and use what she’s done to her advantage in the games, while refusing to take on the negative. She’s aware of this herself, which makes it all the more difficult.

Reality isn’t a thing anymore. Every step they take is a part of a larger orchestration — so why should she take responsibility for Azure’s death? It’s the Gamemakers. They killed her. They’re killing them all, as intimately and ironically as they can manage. Maybe Marceline’s little weaver will be her untangling after all.

Marceline is coping; majorly coping, talking so confidently while the walls around her shake. She squeezes her eyes shut until the rumbling stops, doesn’t take a single breath for the whole duration. They won’t die here. Not with all three of them. How boring would that be for the people at home?

When she pries her eyes back open, her prophesied light is indeed there. Mellow torches on the wall almost make the newly revealed room seem like a sanctuary. She gives Vali’s hand one last squeeze as she steps forward, content to let the other girl step ahead of her.

“Yeah,” she whispers, crouching down to look at the debris covering the floor. She’s agreeing with them both. It sounds like Hal, like her, is becoming half convinced by Vali’s mystic maybes. “Let’s take a look around. There could be, like, helmets, or pick axes.” Or dynamite. Now that would be much more entertaining than a natural collapse. With all the far off shuffling sounds they’ve been hearing, Marceline figures there must be other tributes in here somewhere.

table credit to napoleon, d2m ₊⊹ 🐁 ɢʀɪғғɪɴ. !

[Kingston Cesaire D3A [Tom]]

❦

The chill still lingers; breath visible in the darkness where she can still feel her fingertips freeze against leather. Her words seem to strike some sort of a chord with Hal; almost as if she could feel the presence of his new creature's warmth from somewhere. His voice catches almost like a drifting thought across the howling winds from the edges of the cave's entrances. "Yeah, maybe the gamemakers picked them out just for us. They may know us better than we know ourselves."

Perhaps. Only, Vali could see the gamemakers must've misjudged her. Clumsily making her way through the world with curiosity was not who she was. Deep down, she was a goddess among mortals. Grasping snow through her hands, letting the chill of life settle through her bones. It's an interesting thought. A hypothetical she could hold onto in order to surprise the gamemakers. She smiles ever so gently as if she's a snowflake drifting in the wind. Pristine and cold; a piece of art to be admired. Voice clear with interest as she responds.

"Perhaps."

Unclear on if she wants Hal to be correct, but she is cut off by the rumbling. The shifting of walls in front of her. Attached by hands, she could feel Hal and Marceline's reactions reverberating through her skin. Almost as if they're attached by fingertips and palms for a single moment. Their energies swirling together as she feels that calmness settle in her skin; her eyes staring coldly forward. The wall giving way to the room she's noticed. A sort of blessing to keep her footing despite all the rumbling close to her. There's a pause as the cavern seems to shift back into place.

The quiet settles back in once more. "I don't know about you all, but I'm thankful your gods, Vali, gave us some light." She looks back at him with a smile, dripping with amusement as she takes in his features in the light of the oil lamps. A flickering flame for a moment; darkness surrounding Hal as if his face is glittering in the sky. Eventually, that'll be all her ends up being. Another face among the stars where the gods will pull him to Valhalla. A soft flip of her hair as she turns back to the room, voice almost lifting, but being stopped by Marceline's.

"Yeah," A squeezed hand before Marceline let's her go. The warmth disappearing where fingers gripped together. Disappointing. The fading feeling of someone being near; another body nearby as if she could allow someone else to warm her. The cold is where she feels at home, but she felt the gravitational pull of another. Her hands drop as she listens, focusing on stepping towards the room itself. "Let’s take a look around. There could be, like, helmets, or pick axes." Helmets. The vague memory of the helmet she pulled from the pit of bones and ooze in the strange darkened area settles into her mind. Hands gently move as she brushes some hair away from her forehead.

Only, there's something to be more focused on than the room. Her voice is gentle as she turns around, letting the shadows dance along her skin. Her voice is calm; melting with all the enjoyment of her gods around them. Nature itself was at their whims. The gods old and new loved her in a way no one else did. Vali always had a powerful connection to the world around her. While some good fortune was upon them, she couldn't help the feeling of the calm surrounding them. Almost threatening to break at any moment, she speaks. "I, too, am thankful for the gifts they provide us. Do not worry, Hal. There's nothing to fear in the dark, but your own self." A gentle look before she crosses her arms trying to keep some of that warmth before to her.

"Call it divine instinct or not, but I feel we'll find a helmet." Without looking, she steps backwards into the room with a soft smile, turning around she lets the light caress her cheeks. It's a little warmer than the surface, but not by much. A chill settling in as she could hear the sounds of other rocks skittering. The cave was as alive as they were, just not in the same way they were. A hum on her lips as she starts to look around the place. The gods certainly lead her life to here. Chosen for this, she could feel her heart hammering at the lack of warmth. Too close. Too real.

Vali Forrester didn't need any mortals.

She was a goddess among them.

Except, she can't shake it.

Was she growing fond?

Impossible.

[d9 kristof parks {ems}]

"I, too, am thankful for the gifts they provide us. Do not worry, Hal. There's nothing to fear in the dark, but your own self."

Hal can't help but roll his eyes. Everything he's ever been taught contradicts there being any form of a god, but ruining it for her, knocking her off the ledge into a different reality isn't ideal. Instead, he wonders if meeting her where she is will work better than anything else. She can play along with what he thinks is a fairytale since it does seem so real to her. But everything is fake, at least in his opinion.

Yet he breathes out a sigh trying to understand what's happening. Marceline says to look around they may find some things, and he's happy to oblige. He's happy to look for anything to assist this journey that feels so far away. Home is far away, and it crushes his soul every step of the way.

I just want to go back and see my family again.

It's best to apologize from the get go, to own up to mistakes, and all he wants is a chance to right himself. A chance to show that he's worth more than anything else. It's disheartening, but maybe it's for the best. And now that he's here, he wants nothing more than to run away before hurting the two he cares about.

Do they even care about me?

"I wonder if they have one of those things we can search through?"

That's where he desires to go, to find something to help him stay warm, or maybe even something to calm his racing mind.

The dark is terrifying, and maybe they don't understand because it feels as though they don't, yet he pushes those thoughts away and worries about himself.

I know me, and that's all that matters.

Credit to Pogue <3