thearena | Jingle bells, Walkers smell [open]

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Jingle bells, Walkers smell [open]

Who| Clementine and OTA
What| Out and about through the mall
Where| Various locations, the Walking Dead store, the escalators etc.
When| Start of week 2
Warnings/Notes| only that which you bring with you

Prompt A: Anywhere, reacting to Christmaaaas

When Clementine had briefly talked about Christmas with Dave at the Cornucopia she hadn't actually expected it to happen. At first she'd been childishly delighted by the fake snow, trees, snowmen and giant inflatable candy canes; then suspicious.

The suspicion turns out to be fruitful as that same stupid song plays over and over again, as if the Capitol had forgotten any other Christmas music existed -- except of course it's all obviously purposeful. "So this is how they drive us all crazy." Clem grumbles, kicking at a pile of fake presents.

Prompt B: The Walking Dead store

The Capitol has been surprisingly creative here. In addition to the expected Walker masks and t-shirts, there are hoodies, posters, dolls, slippers and even mock up survival kits (though all the weapons included in these are made of foam) amongst other things. There's a rather disturbing noisemaker that when tilted produces a realistic Walker groan.

Clementine puts that one down quickly.

She pauses at a table of action figures, full of people she'd known since the outbreak started (and herself, weird) as well as generic survivors and Walkers. Her fingers find one of Lee soon enough, staring at the well-done detail on his face and feels just as disconcerted as she did by the biography in the bookshop.

Prompt C: Bottom of the escalators, going to the food court?

Going down is so much more fun than going up in this place, at least for Clementine.

After squinting downwards for any potential hostile tributes she clambers up onto the bannister of the escalator, and gets a good grip on it as she edges backwards right up until the point gravity starts to take hold. It'd suck to lose her balance and fall into the crushing gears hidden under the innocent looking steps.

With a final inch backwards she starts to slide, grinning as she does and resisting the urge to let out a whoop of enjoyment. It only takes five seconds to get down to the ground floor like this, she almost wishes it was longer (and didn't have to think about the climb back up later).

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"But it do be being supposed to be being cold for Christmas." Pruna is confused. She knows she has lost time with being back on her world but it is not as cold or the same time of year as the last time there was a Christmas.

Even the snow wasn't cold. It made no sense. Pruna saw a girl kicking the fake presents and dodged behind a snowman, gesturing at Sandy to be quiet hide as she readied her ice skate weapon. She didn't know if this girl had anything worth taking but a kill was a kill and the way she saw it it was all part of Sandy's training. The more people she killed the stronger she would become.

Clementine bounces one of the brightly coloured boxes into her hands, it's so light she doesn't need to look inside to know it's empty. She spins it for a moment, turning away from the pile with a frown.

Bright geen with little reindeer on it and a red bow, nice. It'd probably make a good place to hide stuff as no one would think the gifts held anything within them. Still, probably not worth the risk of losing anything.

She glances up, taking in her surroundings for a moment but seeing no one in sight.

Sandy followed Pruna on instinct clutching her pole tightly, but her eyes widened when she saw who it was and she shook her head whispering "She's a friend."

At least she hoped so.

"Clementine." She called from the hiding place. "You OK?" Her own voice was raspy and trembled a bit as she couldn't help but sound anxious.

A friend? Pruna frowned and then hissed as Sandy called out and gave them away. She did not know this girl but she had to admit, on friends and allies Sandy was definitely the expert out of the two of them.

Still she remained hidden, blades in hand just in case things went wrong and this Clementine wasn't as friendly as Sandy claimed.

Clementine starts at the voice, "...Sandy? Sandy!"

She calls out to the other girl, "Where are you? You can come out, there's no one else here." Sandy's voice sounded so anxious, Clementine was immediately moved to be reassuring.

Sandy hesitated but gently slipped out from behind a planter. This was the first time she had met Clementine since her arrest and while the wounds had been healing the signs were still all there. From the bandages wrapped around each finger, to the dark purple bruise under her eye. But most eye catching despite her best efforts was the bottom of a branding that was poking out from under a stocking cap she'd put on to try and hide it. It was still angry, red and irritated right on her forehead.

A little C could be read at the bottom, unmistakable for anyone who had lived in Panem for long.

Her clothes were more common, but in her hand she held a pole she had stolen from the movie theater. It was the kind of heavy pole that had fabric tape inside to create barriers.

"Hey Clementine." She mumbled sounding a little embarrassed to be seen after being arrested for murder, escaping and then being arrested again.

Pruna frowned and stepped out of her hiding place as well, she stood behind Sandy looking threatening. She trusted Sandy to be able to judge people but she couldn't be sure they wouldn't turn on them.

She's also got plenty of not quite faded bruises but no brand. She watched the other girl like a hawk.

Her twisted at the sight of her friend and the condition the peacekeepers had left her in. Clementine wished again that she could have gone with the others to try and save her from the prison, however fruitless it had proven for everyone in the end (because they're all still here in the arena, aren't they?).

Moving with sudden purpose Clem crosses the distance left between them, quick at first and then slower, casting a cautious look at the other girl when she steps out after Sandy, looking less than inviting. She's not about to let that stop her expressing her concern though.

"I was so worried about you!" she exclaims when she's in front of them, biting her lip, "Are you okay?" she'll ask the other girl for her name in a moment, right now she needs to check Sandy.

She flinched as Clementine rushed forward but stood her ground, body tense but slowly relaxing. Clementine wasn't a threat, Clementine was a friend.

Sandy raised her hand in a "So-so" sort of gesture which just punctuated the bandages on her fingertips.

"Prison didn't agree with me...but Pruna keeps me safe." She gestured to Pruna next "She's one of the strongest people know."

Even in her slightly scattered extremely anxious state, Sandy knew praising Pruna was a good way to sooth her agression.

Pruna stiffened as well but when Clementine didn't attack neither did Pruna, she just stood there watching.

She did grin a bit when Sandy called her strong, showing off teeth or rather lack of them, her tongue poked through the gap where her front teeth had been.

"I have a first aid kit, if you need anything." she offered at once. Even if she and Sandy weren't friends she would offer that, Clementine wants to help, somehow in some way. "I'm glad you have someone with you."

At that she turns to look at Pruna, "Hi, I'm Clementine. Nice to meet you." she blinks as Pruna does that, wondering what happened to her teeth and deciding it might not be the best idea to ask.

Sandy's anxious quivering lips twisted into a half smile. As far as she was concerned Clementine was a friend or at least friendship material. It was just the damned paranoia creeping in making her question everything and everyone.

"Thanks, I'm OK for now but I'll remember that if I get in trouble."

She trusted Pruna to be Social, the girl was usually fine in these sorts of situations and Clementine was close enough to their age that Sandy reasoned there was some kind of unspoken bond. All the young girls of the arena seemed to share it. An understanding of a sort.

The offer of a first aid kit made Pruna nod in approval, she wasn't sure about this girl- she wasn't sure about anyone but she was willing to trust Sandy on this until she had reason not to.

"I will be remembering it Clementine, you can be calling me Pruna. It do be being nice to be meeting you."

Sandy looked... not okay, despite what she said. It made Clementine fingers itch because she really, really looked like she needed a hug. "I hope so. Have you been managing alright so far?"

When Pruna speaks it's surprising, Clementine's never heard anyone talk the way she talks before. She politely doesn't call attention to it, she can understand her well enough so there's no need to be rude. "... you're Duck's owner, right?"

She remembers the conversation she and Sandy had had after the last arena. Which... if she's remembering right means Sandy got the friend she was missing so badly back. At least that's one good thing.

"Eh." Sandy held up a hand gesturing with a wiggle that she was doing so-so. "Pruna keeps me from breaking down completely."

She surprised herself with how lightly that came out of her mouth. Perhaps being around more people she trusted allowed her to reclaim some of her bitter sarcasm. A sound echoed from further down the mall and she gave a little jump, but whoever had made it was much too far away to be a real concern.

Pruna would always be slightly surprised that she helped Sandy not break down, she wished she knew how she did it so she could do it better. But she didn't. She was still of the opinion that Sandy needed a feelings doctor and Pruna definitely wasn't one of those.

She nodded, "I do be being, did you be meeting him?" The thought was not without worry, she hoped that Duck was alright and someone was looking after him. She had left him lots of food and water but she hadn't expected to be gone for so long.

She wasn't used to having someone else to look after even if it was just a stupid duck. Pruna turned at the noise, ice skate coming up, there didn't seem to be anyone there though.

"Have you been staying anywhere?" Because the next question she wants to ask is if Sandy and her friend would like to come back with Clementine to the comic book store, as safe a location as any with all the work she and Mindy have put into making it secure. "Me and Mindy have a place..."

At the question from Pruna she nods with a touch of enthusiasm, "Sandy introduced us. He's really cute and friendly."

Her head turns sharply at the sound too. "... maybe we should get out of the open, just in case."

Sandy hesitated. The prospect of sleeping near other people still made the hairs on the back of her hair stand up and her stomach flip...but these were people she trusted right?

"We've kinda been moving around from day to day...where are you guys set up?" Her question was cautious more because she didn't know who else might be listening.

Pruna opened her mouth to tell this girl it was none of her buisness where they were sleeping. But Sandy spoke first and Pruna had to admit her answer was better than Pruna's. More polite whilst still not really giving an answer.

Pruna just nodded along. "Getting somewhere safer would be being smart."

"The comic book store." Clementine says, not loudly, just for the two of them to hear. "If you ever want to come stay there." she's putting the invitation out there, the least she can do for Sandy and her friend. They know they can go there and it's a safe place, at least for now with the barricade and traps they've set up. "But if you do make sure you call in first, okay? We keep watch."

The last thing Clementine wants is to be accidentally responsibly for Sandy's death again.

At Pruna's agreement she hitches her backpack further onto her shoulders, "Come on, we can go in one of the stores near here." that would be a better place to talk.

Sandy nodded "No reason for us to get our heads bashed in by surprising you." She agreed.

She gave a curt not and let the other girl lead them away from the area, her nervous eyes constantly scanning around looking for threats.

"Things have been changing alot lately." She added "This arena feels different from the others."

"There do be being more things to be making our brains go funny. Like they do be thinking just killing us do no be being enough." She sighed dramatically and followed the other girls, eyes looking out for danger.

It was stupid and she didn't like it.

"It is my first instinct." Clementine says, in a light attempt at joking.

The closest place that looks empty and safe is the jewellery store, so in they go. "Well, the Capitol's been watching people die a long time, right? Doing the same thing and over, that's boring, you get used to it. So this stuff, the books and things, it's getting something new for the audience."

"Yeah I guess...but watching us read books can't be that much fun either. It's all about how they present it you know?" Sandy was examining the sparkling gems behind the glass thoughtfully and used her key to unlock the cases.

"If the citizens knew everything we were saying, everything that the Capitol did to us...do you think they'd care?"

"I do be thinking it do be being when people do be getting mad sad about the books that they do be being interested." Pruna told them and shrugged.

"Probably not, why would they be caring? It did no be happening to them."

Jingle bells, Walkers smell [open]

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