Living in ruins of the palace within my dreams

[libertin]

Who| Courfeyrac, Cosette, & Marius
What| Camping out in the Arena
Where| 4th floor and surrounding areas
When| Week 1
Warnings/Notes| N/A

With his bounty from the Cornucopia, Courfeyrac immediately set out in search of Marius before even bothering to check what was inside the bag. Once he'd located his friend, he took a second or two to catch his breath before suggesting that they look for Cosette. He knew full well that locating his wife would be his friend's top priority and he wasn't going to get in between the two of them. He'd just tag along.

"Where do you think she's gone to?" He asked Marius, though he did not expect an actual answer. Their surroundings were mystifying to him, he'd never seen anything like it in his life and it was taking everything he had inside of him not to get distracted and gawk. The strangeness of the museum was alarming enough to put him on edge all over again.

Comments

[saisamour]

Marius brows furrowed, lips pressed into a thin line as his eyes swept across their section of the scarcely-lit, pillared floor, the ridiculousness of his nightwear forgotten in his preoccupation and worry. Earlier on, he and Cosette had agreed on a signal: a rhythmic series of taps should the need arise to locate each other without attracting too much attention. But with the low-ceilinged, enclosed space, any sound was an echo off the walls. He would have to think of something better—but then the assumption was that they would be participating in the next arena, and he couldn't bear the thought of Cosette in yet another one.

He forced the thought away. Later on, when all this is over, he will succumb to the harrowing visions that plague his mind, the events of the past and the what-ifs of the morrow. But he will not allow that of himself now. Now, they had to find her.

"She would have taken this direction, I believe." He made for the direction he signalled her to earlier, before he made a run for the Cornucopia. The few seconds spent catching her eye amongst the initial rush of tributes and jerking his head towards the direction of a distant metal carriage—a car, it was called in this world—almost entirely concealed behind a pillar, was a few seconds too late for him to emerge from the bloodbath with a considerable haul.

But a folding knife has its uses. At least, when used correctly, the suffering will be non-existent compared to ingesting poison.

He turned his head to search the area once more. He could see no other tributes in his line of vision, yet he should not relax his guard. The last time he did, a poisoned blade killed Cosette.

He rapped his knuckles against the nearest pillar, hoping she would respond, praying no one had hunted her down this early in the games.

[alonelikeme]

Cosette had dashed in the general direction that Marius had canted his head towards when they had locked eyes on their platforms. She was thankful her pajamas were easy to maneuver in and get around in, though she would have had to make do any way possible.

The museum was frightening in a way, she wasn't sure what everything really was, but she didn't want to take the chance to figure it out. Ducking out of the way of the frenzied rush to the cornucopia, she found her way to a hiding spot as soon as should. Simply hiding behind the carriage-- car... That wouldn't be enough. She'd still be out in the open.

Glancing every which way to make certain that no one was immediately near her, she crouched and shimmied her way underneath the car, eyes locked where she felt Marius would be coming from after the dash. She could only hope that he and Courfeyrac made it out alright, but she refused to dally on the idea that either of them had become injured. She heard the sound, their agreed method of finding each other. Hesitantly, she knocked on the floor. Just a few knocks that would alert them she was okay and the vague idea of where she was.

[libertin]

Courfeyrac strained to listen for the knocks, not entirely sure of what the sounds meant to communicate to them, but confident that Marius knew what he was doing by banging on various surfaces. While he waited for the knocking to be translated, he kept watch over Marius, just in case they were being followed. With their bounty of supplies, the pair of them could be prime targets to pick off early.

"Is that her wrapping back?" He asked, peeking around the pillars cautiously, just in case someone more menacing was lurking around.

[saisamour]

Marius didn't respond for a moment, creases forming on his forehead as he strained his ears, mentally counting off the knocks. When he was very certain it was the same pattern he and Cosette had agreed upon, he let out a soft sigh of relief. "Yes."

He wanted nothing more than to run to her and wrap her in his arms and stay there, hiding from the rest of the arena, creating their own little world in the silence of the parking lot. But he knew they could not stay, and he had Courfeyrac to concern himself with now, too. He glanced over his shoulder at his friend. "Watch my back."

Without waiting for a response, he advanced half-crouched towards the car, glancing to both sides occasionally, in case someone was hiding in the shadows. Once he had reached the vehicle, he circled it once, peered inside, and then pressed himself to the ground.

A knot seemed to loosen in his gut, and the tiniest of smiles formed on his face. He reached out a hand, palm upwards, underneath the car for her to hold on to when he assisted her out. "Come, it is safe now."

[alonelikeme]

Cosette couldn't tell if the feet near the car were his or someone else's. Holding her breath, she kept as still as possible. She nearly cried out when she saw his face, more by the uncertainty of whether it was him or not. She didn't, however, and smiled slightly when she saw it was him.

Relieved, she accepted his hand and help out from under the vehicle before hugging him tightly. "I am glad you are alright..."

She paused and glanced back, her expression softening more as she saw Courfeyrac. She pulled from hugging her husband and gave his (their?) friend a brief hug as well. "It is good to know you are well also, monsieur."

[libertin]

He let out a soft sigh of relief, quickly squeezing Cosette before turning his eyes back to their surroundings. He looked toward each of the possible exits, breath catching in his throat. He was certain they needed to get going. The longer they stayed in the garage, the more likely it was that someone would happen upon them.

"We need to find a place to hide. A base camp." His mouth formed an unbecoming frown as he considered this. "Wherever we go, we stick together. Cosette should stay between us so that we might defend her as needed."

[saisamour]

Marius's embrace was equally tight, borne of fear and desperation, his eyes falling closed for a moment before he reminded himself that he must always stay on-guard. He waited until Cosette had released herself from Courfeyrac's embrace and reached for her hand, an almost impulsive gesture, and cling tightly to it.

He nodded his agreement to Courfeyrac, shifting so that Cosette was in between them, and followed his lead in scrutinizing the area. "Should we head towards the exits?"

[alonelikeme]

Cosette laced her fingers with Marius's as soon as she was able to and glanced at Courfeyrac. "A base camp is the wisest idea. We cannot stay down here, we must head toward the exits."

She may not know much, but she knows that well enough to be certain of it. She would follow them wherever they led the way to.

[libertin]

"Yes, let's go." He nodded in agreement, leading the charge toward the clearly marked doors. "Perhaps this will lead us out and into the Arena proper."

He was imagining it would be some great outdoor setting, as Enjolras had described to him. He was not expecting to find that the doors led them further into the caverns of an even larger building.

"This is peculiar." His statement came out more as a question. Looking back to Marius and Cosette, he asked, "It would appear we are to be kept indoors."

[saisamour]

Marius's grip on Cosette's hand tightened just a fraction, and he took a step closer to her. He peered through the opening of the door, trying to assess what's inside, but in the dim lighting he could only see angular shadows.

"Is it a building, perhaps?" But he knows well enough that they do not have any other choice. He holds his breath and takes a step forward, taking care to position Cosette slightly behind him, in case someone was waiting to attack them behind the doors.