ascendancy [Train; D4]

[*]

Dymas Nyx District 4 Speeding along the tracks never felt slower. The more I gaze outside the window at the blurred out world, the more my mind zips back to my own district; the waves and the sand. My breath escapes me even now as I let my mind wander back into his arms before he was pulled out of the room. My skin tingles with the longing to have that salty air surround my legs and whisper into my ears; singing a lullaby every night. I've yet to meet my district partner face to face, I assume she's terribly upset with the fact that we were driven away from our own district and carried away by the metal on rails. Hands rest between my legs with my feet steady against the ground. I am a statue on the edge of the bed, pacing my mind to wrap around the inevitable. What is to come will surely push me to do the unthinkable but as someone who has been disciplined in so many forms, I shouldn't be worried about what is expected of me. But I am. I fear that I will not make it back to my boyhood love. The silence becomes unbearable finally. My stomach rumbles with the intensity that doesn't impede upon the current situation. I shift my weight and stand with ease and escape into the hallway with curiosity of whom I would soon meet within the dinner cart. The fancy upholstered chairs and dazzling dinner table was well prepared for our visit. The food all laid out to tempt even the fullest of tributes. My fingers dance across the table. My eyes eat everything in sight. "Just a plate or two." I chuckle at myself and gaze around to inspect for any soul that might judge me. Shrugging, I sample the first thing I see. A morsel of pink with a lighter hue of purple sends my taste buds into overdrive. "Never have anything like this at home. What a vacation this will be..." I taunt the world.

[анзие (Anz)]

The annual fanfare of suffering has blared, and Leon - twenty-eight and tired - stands thoughtfully by the clear window in the dining car. It is blessedly quiet in the aftermath of Dymas Nyx and Eva Tidestone, but the tributes have yet to leave their rooms. Leon has a feeling that this quiet will soon come to an end. Outside, trees and fields and trees and fields rush by. 

Resting his elbow on his folded right arm, Leon turns his face into his own fist. His knuckles rest lightly against his cheek like the mockery of a pillar holding him upright today - but the true point of stabilization is the cool band of metal around his fourth finger and its glittering stone pressing lightly against the seam of his lips. For a single moment, Leon lets his eyes slide shut and imagine Glamour and his extravagance, and the fire in his eyes, the eager light as he - like every other Capitolite - watches the Games.

The difference still astounds him, even after all these years. But-- it no longer startles him, doesn't bring back the wrong memory. The dining cart rattles as the train hits a small bump, and, swaying with the motion, Leon opens his eyes.

Trees and fields--
and trees and fields.

Something rattles again by the entrance, but the door remains empty. Leon imagines - for a long, sickening, belly-swooping moment - that the tribute to stumble out is-- 

India. Arie. Leo.

Krigel. He isn't much of a father - he'll be the first to admit that - but somehow just picturing them there-- Ripred, he needs to clean up his act before that happens. Eleven years and no victor to show - people have noticed. His lips tighten into a thin line, thinking that maybe this year--

Maybe.

If.

Perhaps.

Possibly, with a bit of luck and a lot of help. He wouldn't know where to begin again.

The door slides open, then, and Leon raises his head. The center stone of his ring feels like it's left a mark on his lip; his tongue darts over the tingling skin, soothing away the pins and needles. The boy - Dymas - wanders in, murmuring to himself. His gaze slides right over Leon, and a wry smile pulls at his mouth; Dymas starts piling food onto one of the plates at the table, popping food into his mouth as he goes.

Well. At least he seems to be enjoying himself.

"You should try the salmon before you get to dessert," Leon says without moving from his spot. He feels a smile curve at his mouth as he watches the teen try something pink and purple and probably very sweet. "It's very good."

LEON KRIGEL

mieux vaut prévenir que guérir

[Arrows]

Eva
Tidestone 

     Stars shatter sending silver shreds in mutilated madness over her scarcely scarred skin. From above the burning brilliance of Apollo incinerates her white woven figure into instant ash. She falls from the grace of safety and into the shock of shadows with a slam of the Justice Building’s doors. For the final time her brittle back beaten by the words of those who scorned her upbringing as riddled with weakness, turns away from them all. Despite her mind’s magnanimous encouragement that her survival is sustainable, she is well aware of the ship set to sail across the silent river Styx containing her soul. Eva Tidestone, deemed weak at birth, would finally perrish in the wicked way her entire entity had always feared as paramount to all others.

    Beyond the barrier of the window from which she gazes the world winds forth with its typical cruel continuity. Families find themselves interwoven with relief and luxurious love while departing for a fruitful feast back at home. Meanwhile in her sanctioned space, continuity crumbles and mental mists ignite her racing heart. Fingers flick across cold cut wood while terrible trembles torment the surface of her skin. Visions of a beaten body brutally warped by broken bones haunts her head. Her hands move to her neck gripping, scratching, searching for the air which suddenly can no longer pass. Her knees give way and in a spout of exasperation she falls to the floor pressing her head to the cool tiled ground. A droplet of sweat slips off from her forehead.

    Sounds spur from the turning of a knob and shakily she rises to a kneel. Faces plagued by the presence of sorrow swarm around her sunken soul. Her arms still slightly shuddering embrace their familiar familial warmth. Calmness creeps through her voice despite the broken breaths from which its built. She bids her siblings strength despite the things they will see, despite the tragedy they will endure. One after another her lips fall against their cheeks until in a moment of extra love she pauses by Iroh’s little ear and whispers softly for only him to hear. “Take my fiddle. Fill the house with the music I’ve taught you. They need those songs now.” A sob and a sniff from him signifies acceptance before white bodies remove the warmth of her family from their final reunion.

    Silence sits steady over Eva’s thin canyon cracked lips while she accompanies an envoy to the train of shimmering silver. Aboard luxury lavishes every inch of the train car but even her hungering stomach cannot draw her to indulge in their delight. Her figure falls against the sill of a nearby window, her eyes stare softly off to the slow cascading waves against the golden grains of the shore. She remains disattached, alone in her imploding universe. She is going to be devoured by the extensions of the Sun where the boy entering this trial with her might very well posses a high possibility of survival. In the words of Darwin, this truly is survival of the fittest, and her genes were absolutely inferior.

    Golden glory graces the room as one already proven before the eyes of evolution enters the train. He speaks of recommendation for food but still she doesn’t sway from her spot. Instead of turning back to the beach she stares towards him, towards the Siren silencer, towards the survivor of the desert. What does he think of a girl with no physical chance, but a mind as sharp as a sword?

    “What good is it to enjoy niceties? Why give them the satisfaction of plumpening us up like cattle before a slaughter?” She speaks smoothly and with only genuine respect. Eva has no desire for quarrel with Leon Krigel, as for her District Partner, her eyes ignite with soft illumination. “If you think this is a vacation by the way, you’re wrong. If you’re a career good for you, it doesn’t mean anything. How many have we buried simply to have a single survivor? I hope you learn how to check your arrogance before it kills you like its killed so many before you.” She pauses momentarily before turning her eyes again back to the brilliant beaches. “Might as well learn from history.”

[*]

Dymas Nyx District 4 Leon's presence doesn't make himself known to me at first. Instead of noticing him, I notice the food first and formost as a way to battle the unsettling of my nerves. A comfort back at home, here in the capitol its used as a token. A way to show off to everyone that they can afford the best with the most color and tasteful of foods. I'm not about to shy away from something that will only give me comfort. After all, respect is given to those that can cook. I'm not about to be rude. "You should try the salmon before you get to dessert. It's very good." My eyes scurry off to meet with the victor himself, Leon Krigel. The time between his winning games and now has shown in many ways and in a way, I wonder why he doesn't possess a more cheerful disposition. "Hey, I'm the guy who prefers the sweets before the main course. Always have been despite my mothers teaching me your way. I've got plenty of time to eat the main courses later." As someone that comes from my own district, he is probably aware that the taste of fish is a common fanfare for us but to sample the flavors of things beyond the atmosphere is just unheard of. Just like that, the pristine voice of a delicate flower enters the room and I stop in my tracks. A beauty like her comes from our district but for her to automatically diss the food that has been spread for us makes me shift my gaze and my head sways from side to side in a soft effort. "I'm just hungry? Do you dare deny me my ultimate comfort?" A chuckle escapes from my lips and no more than a moment later I feel like this girl thinks I was being serious. I look at Leon and the girl, this Eva - my district partner. "Look Eva, I not about to get off on the wrong foot with you. It was only a jest. This is the furthest away from a vacation that I would want, and you know that. I'm not the capitols little ponyboy. I mean, the food is great and all, but I'd rather eat sand and stay home. While we have no choice in the matter now, dare I stray away from what's given to me and you?" I pop the morsel of something in my mouth and cross the train cart to sit nearest to where the girl was standing. "Come on. Sit and rest before everything unfolds like history repeating itself." I pat the seat beside me. Leon then gains my attention next as I gesture for him to come closer. "So, Leon, anything we need to know? Anything that can help us out?"

[анзие (Anz)]

Do you, Leon wants to say, the words tripping over themselves on the surface of his tongue to fall flat at the tip; he casts his mind towards the Games prior and thinks, When would you ever have time? He forces the smile to stay, instead, and inclines his head towards the newcomer - Eva. "Eva Tidestone," he says, tongue curling around her name. "You can consider yourself cattle all you want, but you're going to want the strength good food will give you." He offers a wink, resting his hip against the cool windowsill and allowing his fist drop from his face. He tries to remain warm, open, friendly; the tension in his shoulders to match the sudden tautness in the air between them makes it hard to project anything else. Clearing his throat, Leon adds, "Keep your fight for the arena, yes?" He shifts his gaze from Eva towards Dymas, raising an eyebrow as he beckons them both into the statement. 

He takes the offered seat opposite them, propping his chin in his hands as he studies the two of them. Repeating, "Anything you need to know," under his breath, Leon takes a moment to look them over, brow furrowing slightly. They were both attractive enough - but the Games seem to find its amusement in tributes of above average looks, so that hardly played a part in the results. Both hold their own charms - Eva with her poetic lilt and Dymas with his dry wit - and neither seem particularly weak in any sense. Eva's gaze is cool and Dymas speaks like he was prepared to fight anyone, anytime. 

Leon traces a short line across the table beneath his empty plate as he considers his next words. Eventually, he says, "Make good friends." He flicks his eyes up to them, searching their faces. "Keep breathing. Do what you need to. Trust your instincts, and," his mouth curls up in a sardonic smile, "Enjoy yourself. For what that's worth, anyway."

LEON KRIGEL

mieux vaut prévenir que guérir