thearena | (no subject)

Who: Sandy and anyone interested in her.
What: Spying on others, trying to stay out of trouble and hopefully finding Pruna.
Where: Starting at The Platform Station
when: week two
Warnings/notes: Since Sandy will be using the TVs in the Platform Station, feel free to pop in with a little bit about what she might see you doing wherever you are on the island.

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As far as partners go, Sandy was pretty sure she must be the worst one to have.

As soon as the game had begun she was off like a shot, gathering up supplies and trying to vanish into the forest. Her size was her advantage as once she dove for cover under some bushes more then a few larger tributes had trampled past her not noticing her as she heaved to catch her breath and protect her goodies.

Once things had calmed down, Sandy lay still in her bush for what felt like hours. She wanted to be absolutely sure that everyone was gone. This was rewarded when she heard a few stragglers come back to pick over the area for anything left behind.

Finally, when she was sure the area was clear she rose up out of the leaves and vines, and went over what she had managed to grab in her frantic flight from the starting position. An impressive haul to say the least. Much better then last time.

Slinking along the edge of the clearing she was alert, listening for any signs of trouble. It was in this slow and methodical fashion she traveled until she found the door.

It was on the south side of the platform where the Cornucopia had been. A rusted door that looked like it had been forgotten in the madness that accompanied every arena opening.

Scurrying through the grass Sandy's glances darted all around for other tributes, as well as frequently to the grass to make sure she wasn't about to step into a trap. Just the thought was enough to make Sandy's leg throb with memories of her mangling from the last arena.

It took some effort, alot of effort actually but the pain in her fingers and shoulders from wrestling with the door would be forgotten as she slipped inside and discovered what secrets this station held.

Televisions! So many and they were functional! She could see all around the arena with these things. Nothing behind the scenes but one by one she picked out faces she knew before the screens could flick to another view.

Was this supposed to be here? Had she stumbled across some forgotten gamemaker station on accident?

No...she couldn't possibly be so lucky.

Still she was alone and with all these screens she was likely to see attackers coming before they found her. Time to crack open a can of tuna and see what was on TV.
***************************************

That was a full week ago. Her food supplies dwindling Sandy knows she can't stay here forever. She needs to use the bow and arrows that she won in the cornucopia and try to hunt down some more food.

...or other tributes.

Guilt gnawed at her guts as she scanned the TVs again. Pruna had been hurt...badly. And she hadn't been able to leave to go after her because...much to Sandy's conflicted feelings, the door appeared to lock tight every so often. By the time it was open again Sandy had lost sight of Pruna on the cameras.

And so here she sat, desperate for a plan that didn't involve losing her very easy to defend hiding place but also allowed for her to get food, water, and Pruna. There was no doubt about it. She was going to have to leave soon.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Mindy shrugged. "You start giving people what ifs, they take advantage of it. Code of law is supposed to protect people, and it fails. That's why people like me exist: you see through the bullshit and make a decision. I don't know if I would or wouldn't have killed someone like your dad. What I do know is that one misplaced point of trusting someone killed mine."

And that, really, was all she'd say about that. There was a look in Mindy's eyes that clearly showed how fresh that death had been. What was more, fulfilling their goal had left her stranded in this hell.

Karma was a flea bitten whore.

That all sounded so cold and crass, and when Mindy explained the second part Sandy could see why.

"So you're judge, jury and executioner." She reasoned. "Do you ever get it wrong?" Because Sandy knew herself. She knew that she made plenty of mistakes. And trusting her to figure out who deserved to live and who deserved to die? That was way more then Sandy thought herself capable of.

"Yeah, and not really. People can be more clear cut than you think, at least where I'm from. You watch 'em long enough, you know what they're gonna do, so you make sure that you take care of them, then and there, and you don't have to have dead people on your conscience."

Here might take a little longer though.

"Maybe where you're from." Sandy agreed. "But here? Not so much."

And back home?

"At least you're smart enough to be careful." Especially with all of Sandy's warnings. "Not everyone from the Capitol are bad...some of them are just..." She was grasping for a word she didn't have to describe Effie.

"It's how they were raised."

"We'll see," was Mindy answer. Sandy could be right, she could be wrong. Only time would tell, really.

Mindy shrugged. "It's a way of life. You don't want to die, you make extra special care that you don't. That's the extent of how much you really get to control things."

That would be interesting. She still hadn't met anyone but the people who were drafted to the games. What were actual Capitol citizens like?

Sandy hoped she would. The last thing she wanted was the few people she actually liked from the Capitol at the wrong end of one of Mindy's knives.

"In a world like this, even having that much control is lucky." Sandy muttered gloomily.

"I'll have to see how far that extends for myself," she said. "There's still a lot I have to get used to, not to mention see hwo long I can last out here."

Sandy shrugged her narrow shoulders, now distracting herself by tugging up blades of grass.

"People more skilled then I am have died before I did. So it's really anyone's game I guess so long as you don't just...kill yourself or whatever."

That had happened before and the crowd hated it.

Mindy snickered. "Kill myself? God, I do NOT wanna be at the point where I actually do that! I don't know about you but I want to fucking LIVE."

Yeah, Mindy honestly did not know how to say die, even if it was for her own good.

That at least earned a respectful nod from Sandy.

This girl's life may have sucked a little before, but no where near as bad as this. It sounded to Sandy like in her old world Mindy had at least held some sense of power and control about her fate.

Here...things were different.

But on the flip side clearly she was more capable then most who had come here. More capable then Sandy had been that was for sure. But if Mindy could hold onto hope after being dropped in a poisonous jungle for the first time, how could Sandy ever think about losing it?

She wanted to live just as badly. Didn't she?

The more she talked to this girl, against her better judgement she wanted to at least make sure that someone was training her. It was all well and good to go and kill your competition, but at the very least, there were people here who were just not meant for mindless slaughter, and then there were people like Sandy, who did not want to kill.

Which was why, of course, she killed in the first place. Protecting people like that who couldn't.

"Whatever happens, look me up after this. I can at least teach you how to handle yourself with a weapon. If people are trying to kill you, don't make it easier for them, you know?"

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Annnnd fade to black.

Re: Annnnd fade to black.