thearena | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Who| Cuthbert and Kain, Cuthbert and Marius, Cuthbert and YOU
What| Violence, violence and possibly violence
Where| Mostly fourth floor
When| Week 4
Warnings/Notes| Violence!

Cuthbert stalked on his own looking for fresh prey. He hadn't been in a good mood for a bit, hunger and a lack of anything productive to do had started to get to him. He was just full of the impotent anger of youth and stress all rolled up into six feet of Gunslinger minus the gun. It won't take much to get him riled up and by the time he ran across Kain he was already itching for some action.

After his run in with Kain earlier, Cuthbert was less in the mood for action, but still more aware of his surroundings than he really wanted to be. This time the edge was more of the short fused sort and he was jumping at shadows. He had stopped to catch his breath and his bearings in the dark shadowy corners of one of the halls and that was where he caught sight of Marius.

He had seen the other man in passing, but didn't know his name or anything more about him. Still, after a round of fighting that accomplished little and may have cost him energy and tactical advantage, Cuthbert was eager to make up for it. He waited until he could control the quick beating of his heart and snuck closer. If he wasn't careful, however, the glint from the edge of his knife would catch one of the display lights and he would be a lot less stealthy than he thought.

Everywhere Cuthbert went (with or without his two sidekicks) he moved carefully and quietly. He had died so badly in the last arena and he swore to himself he wouldn't let the same thing happen again. More than wanting to hunt down and kill everything in his path, Cuthbert was attempting to gather information and maybe scare a few people away from their supplies.

This was primarily accomplished by getting as close as he could and shining his flashlight into their eyes before running toward them and attempting to knock the wind out of them. It might not be the most successful strategy he'd ever come up with.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"So," Karkat says one night while the two of them stand guard while Susannah takes her turn sleeping. "Is she your lusus?" He jabs a thumb in the direction of the lady he's referring to.

Cuthbert raises an eyebrow at Karkat.

"You mean, is she a monster who I have to take care of even as she takes care of me? I don't know if I would put it that way."

He really hoped Susannah was sleeping through this conversation, it was probably going to get worse before it got better.

"I meant--" Karkat sighs and rubs his forehead with his good hand. No. He's not going to avoid the subject with inanities, he's going to troll up and just tell Bert about what happened with Kankri. Before either of them die and he finds out the hard way. "Never mind that. Look," Karkat says, "I need... I need to tell you about something. And before I tell you, you need to know that I didn't ask for it to happen."

"Did your bug testicles finally descend?" Bert knew Karkat wouldn't know what it meant, but it felt good to say anyway. "Or is this more unnecessary information about you obtaining someone's useless rubbery circles?"

Karkat makes a face. "What the fuck's a testicle? And... fine, it sort of is, but only tangentially, because it wouldn't have happened if I hadn't mugged that kid." Shit. How does he say this. Maybe he should just say it. "Kankri kissed me. Like, hatekissed me. We were yelling at each other. But I pushed him away!" he adds hurriedly.

Cuthbert raises an eyebrow at Karkat and this new information.

"So you're telling me I have a rival for your hatred? And he's someone with whom I could not ever hope to compete? That certainly brightens this arena! I'm so glad you couldn't have kept this to yourself until we returned."

Bert is mostly mad that this conversation has to be broadcast to everyone in the Capitol. He looks like a fool, and it makes him look weak, at least by his standards. Not to mention it makes him jealous, he never would have though Kankri was the type. Bert really just wants to try and get out of the Arena alive, but he knows that they won't be able to do anything until Karkat gets this out of his system.

"No!" Karkat says. "I mean, fuck, I don't know! I had no idea he was pitch for me until he grabbed me by the shirt and started kissing me! And maybe I didn't want you to have to find out from the fucking television, all right? You know how they love stupid relationship drama! They'll be airing replays of it until the next arena! I just-- fuck, Bert, despite everything you're my best fucking friend and maybe I didn't want them to shove that shit in your face unprepared."

Fuck, this is terrible. Why did he think this was a good plan?

"Fine, since we simply must talk about this now. You said he kissed thee, but made no mention to whether or not you liked it. Mayhap you're as pitch for him as he is for thee. If you're my closest friend, then you can tell me that much."

He's trying to not be too harsh with Karkat, he's beating himself up quite a bit as it is. But this isn't the most welcome news, and it's not being delivered at the most welcome time.

Karkat looks away. "It-- okay, fine, I did like it, but I pushed him away because I'm not a two-timer, Bert." Not on purpose. "And-- maybe he is a horrible little shit who I can't believe hadn't been culled--really culled--for being an annoying braybeast before he was four. But I'm not going to cheat on you."

Bert is actually feeling bad for Karkat now. "Honestly I'm surprised that hate kissing others isn't some form of flirtation for you. I mean, how better to get at someone you hate than to cross teeth with someone equally as annoying?"

He punches Karkat in the arm, lightly, since he doesn't want to do anything to hurt the troll's good arm.

"You'll still be my friend, even if you're a terrible fool. We idiots should stick together, aye? And as for your seething hatred toward me, mayhap we can talk about that later, when I can flick your horns and mock your height without the whole gods damned Capitol spying on it."

Karkat turns his head and actually smiles at Cuthbert. It's not a very big smile. In fact, it barely qualifies as the expression. But it is a smile. "Yeah, okay. I can go for that."

Bert leans in to give him a quick kiss before shoving him back again. He can't let Kankri show him up too much, even if he doesn't want to think about that right now.

"Good. Now show me your ill-begotten spheres, I had an idea on how they might yet be of use."

Bert turns away for a bit to fish his slingshot out of his pack, careful to be quiet so he doesn't wake Susannah.

Karkat pulls the bag out of his jacket pocket and nudges Bert with it. There aren't as many as there used to be, not since the showdown with Sigma and Donatello. "Oh really?"

Bert takes one and bounces it lightly.

"They're like toys. I suppose we could just play with them."

He clearly doesn't know what their actual purpose is.

Karkat isn't entirely sure himself. "We could try throwing them at the display wall," he points to a nearby one, "so that they'll just come back into our hands. I figure we'd be about evenly matched. You've got a way better eye for this stuff--but I can see in the dark."

"Such a show off. Is there nothing else you can fall back on?"

But he does throw one at the display wall, just to see if it would come back as easily as he expected. It was a good way to kill some time, and a good way to unwind.

"I'm a little fucked for proper sickle fighting," Karkat points out. "And you can't read either Troll or Human so it's not like any of my plans or charts will mean any-fucking-thing to you. You couldn't even see them until daytime hours."

He throws his own ball and he only has to lean a bit to the side to get it on the rebound.

"Don't be so proud, caterpillar. We all have talents and not all of them can be of use at one time. I'm good with jokes and riddles but you're not likely to see me kill an enemy with a well timed pun."

He threw his a little harder and had to stretch out in front of Karkat to catch it again.

"You probably would if you could," Karkat argues for the sake of arguing. He waits until Bert's no longer stretched in front of him to throw his ball.

"Of course I would! Can you imagine how beautiful that would be?"

He reaches out to try and grab Karkat's ball. Keep Away sounds like a much more fun game right now.

Fuck.

Karkat attempts to grab his ball back. "No, because it sounds completely stupid. And I'm pretty sure the laughsassins have done it once already."

Now he's going to try throwing both balls and catching them both before Karkat can. It's not easy.

"We don't have laughsassins where I'm from. I would be the first."

"You're going to need to work on your juggling," Karkat points out, although since he still hasn't reclaimed his ball Bert must not be as shitty as all that. "And learn how to wield clubs."

"And just how do you know I'm bad at juggling, hmm? I could be an expert and you wouldn't know it."

He's bouncing both balls against the wall and being more physical with Karkat every time he catches them, pushing against him and practically landing in his lap.

"You'd still need clubs!" Karkat argues. "It's the traditional--fuck!--weapon."

This is a very unfair turn of events. Only one of them has two functional arms and it's not Karkat