[Open]

[glaives]

Who; Hotaru and open!
What; One little girl enters the arena
Where; Around the cornicopia, around the mall?
When; End of the first week
Warnings/Notes; N/A will add if needed

Hotaru enters the arena scared and uncertain. Sure some things had been explained to her, but in turn the explanations hadn't really helped. A death arena? That's not a comforting thought, and her first thought is try and work out if there has been any signs of a new enemy. And even then, what sort of enemy would plan this. This seems beyond them.

She had tried to transform, a whispered plea that got not response. She couldn't even feel Saturn in her, and she felt almost like a normal girl again. A feeling she hasn't had since Saturn first came to her and reminded her who she was. And there's little else she can do, the pedestal she's placed on rising to the arena and Hotaru stares out in horrified shock, her outfit catching the light and making it impossible for her to hide.

There's blood on the ice still, soaked in and frozen over and that in the end is what gets Hotaru to move. It's not very brave but she slips off the pedestal to skate to edge of the ring where she sheds her boots. Keeping them in hand she runs, feet bare, searching for somewhere that she can hide. Hide and hopefully figure this all out.

This has to be a dream.

Comments

[givingtree]

Groot had been placed in the arena only moments before the young terran, woven into a ridiculous look that is just degrading. The bloody ice didn't phase him, he supposes it would most people, but if what they say is true and this is a battle to the death, then it's nothing to blink at. Without a second glance, he exits the area and into the main corridor. He needed to find his friends, he needed to find Rocket.

It seems rather quiet, some noise in the distance, but no immediate threats. Or so he thought. Not a minute off the ice, he hears someone come running up from behind him. He turns to face the possible threat, but his expression immediately shifts into one of kindness when he sees what it is.

It was a little one, innocent and scared looking. Groot couldn't kill her (not yet at least), he much rather help the little creature.

[glaives]

It's hard to stay calm, Hotaru feeling her youth more than ever. There's blood in the ice and they expect her to kill and she can't transform. She wonders if she can even heal herself, but she's not going to risk injury to find out she can't. And without all that she's just a little girl.

She's trying her best to think of a plan as she runs, wishing for longer legs and she only just registers Groot turning to face her and it's instincts that make her stop, sudden and sharp, her breathing a little heavier than normal as she looks up and it's not a tree, it has a face, she can see the expressions change and really this is the least terrifying thing here.

Still, she stays wary, even as she speaks up. "Hello? Are you... did they bring you here too?"

[givingtree]

Such a tiny, young Terran, seeing her so terrified doesn't sit well with him. He might not be the most morally upstanding being, but he doesn't kill or harm without reason. Innocents were worth protecting, not deserving of captivity and certain death.

Groot bends over some, so he's only mostly looming over her, but he seems to not mean it in a negative way, his expression still kind.

He gives a long slow nod at her question, a deep hum of noise that seems to accompany the confirmation of his nod.

"I am Groot," an introduction softly said, like she's a skittish animal.

[glaives]

He is tall, and that does invoke some fear in her. But there's something in his expression, something she can see closer when he bends that makes her feel he's gentle.

That doesn't mean she isn't ready to run if she needs to, all her muscles coiled and her sense on high alert.

"Groot?" She echoes carefully, head tilting. She assumes it's his name and she is a polite girl. "I'm Hotaru. Hotaru Tomoe."

[givingtree]

Ah, he likes the polite creatures. Well, he likes the rude ones too or he wouldn't have the friends he does, but it's refreshing to meet a a creature so polite. Rude was more common.

"Hrmmm," a nice enough sound, one that rises and falls much like a hum of greeting.

He holds out his hand, palm up, looking at it like he expects something to happen, then looking very confused at it. Like it's broken toy or something, because he wanted to ease little Hotaru with a flower and nothing is happening. He pulls it back to poke at his palm with his other hand. Sure, his body seemed to be working differently, but why would such a simple thing change?

[glaives]

She's still uncertain about this giant, but there's something comforting about him all the same. There's something gentle about the way he moves, and the hum he makes is soothing all the same. And when he turns his palm up to her she stares, waiting like him, because there must be something he wanted to show her.

"Is something wrong?" she asks, as he pokes his hand and it only takes a second to click. She knows she doesn't have powers here, that she can't transform. Maybe he has has something similar happen to him. "Did they take your powers too?"

[givingtree]

He looks at her when she asks the question, his brow lowering like he's considering what she's saying. Powers? How is a natural bodily function a power? It's a flower, he's not about to use flowers to win this. They're harmless.

Terrans. He'd thought Quill was unique in his lack of intelligence, but it seems a common trait. At least the little one here seems free of this unfortunate quality of her kind.

"I. Am Groot," his tone is still soft and kind as it has been, but there's a conversational quality, like he's responding. A small nod accompanying his words. Though, what he's actually saying is: Seems so. Though it seems your species was unable to tell the difference in a power and a bodily function.

[glaives]

She's silent, considering him while he considers her, trying to read him as best she can. It's hard, of course, and it feels odd, conversing with what looks to be a tree. But all things considering, it's not that strange. After all, she was once a cyborg and she's grown up with cats that talk. Far from ordinary.

Her brow crinkles when he repeats himself, Hotaru tilting her head slightly.. "Yes?" Is that... all he can say? The inflection in the words is different but his nod helps but all the same Hotaru finds her curiosity besting her. "Did something happen to your voice?"

[givingtree]

It was exceedingly common to run into species who couldn't catch the subtle nuances of his speech and body language. Makes things harder, but so long as he mimes enough, they usually get the gist of his intentions.

She catches on fast enough though. Quill needed Rocket to spell it out. But then again, he already figured she's different from her kind.

He gives another nod, putting one hand to his throat after, giving it a small pat. "I am... Groot," it's explanatory in cadence, perfectly fine with answering. It's a part of it, but yes, my larynx is hardened, though it's a natural occurrence.

hope this is okay?

[biomechatronic]

His outfit had probably matched hers in color, but in his opinion, exceeded hers in Wrongness. Men his age shouldn't wear purple and feathers.

And he's not a master of stealth, but he's good at being anonymous, the guy you look right at but don't register. He's found, in an act of athleticism that surprised even him, the top of one of those displays malls had, that showed advertisements and the mall's map. On top of it, he looks like a nerd in a nest, peeping his head out warily when he hears footsteps, clutching one of the blades Alex had snapped off his skates.

But it's...a little girl? Who looks about as lost as he feels. Should he?

Well, he figures, she can't stab him from down there.

"Hello! Young lady!" It's a stagewhisper, trying to be heard but not very far.

[glaives]

There is a wisdom in Hotaru that's rare for children her age, rare for adults even. No one's been sure if it's just her nature from dying so young even with the rebirth the came, or if it's Saturn's touch. But for someone whose the soldier of destruction, the messiah of silence she's a gentle, sweet thing, until the time calls for more.

But she feels no threat from this creature, just a gentleness that she doesn't even get from some humans. So she watches with interest as he pats what one could call his throat, assuming his anatomy is as human like in layout as his shape is and the puzzle pieces click together easily. She can't catch all that he means in the words, but the miming helps and so she nods in response. "Can you right? Ah..."

She realises with a slight blush that even if he can, she may not understand it. They're... She understands the words they're speaking, but something in her mind is telling her it's not exactly as she thinks it. "Maybe not... I think I can understand you even without it. You may just have to patient with me, sorry."

Excellent! Sorry in the delay.

[glaives]

She keeps a tight grip on her boots, mindful of her steps with her bare feet. Mindful of her surroundings, and never forgetting that blood frozen in the ice. It had been an eye opener, this all was, and were Hotaru not who she was, a girl who has already been through so much, who already knows death, she thinks she'd cry.

That's not to say she wants to die, wants to be injured. She just knows crying is useless here, that it'll only be a distraction.

She jerks at the whisper, chin lifting a touch as she looks around quickly for the speaker. She scans the mall with little result and Hotaru frowns, on edge.

"...Yes?" she finally calls back, in her own stage whisper and she's ready this time, ready to spot who's talking to her.

[biomechatronic]

"Up here," he says, as she looks around, risking a wave of a hand. "Please, I won't hurt you." Of course, someone saying that could be lying, but he's not. Joel had told him his first skill should be just to learn ways to survive, and he was taking it seriously.

"I have food." Well, some food. M&Ms and they're not the most nutritious thing, but it's all he can offer.

Because there's nothing creepy about a man offering a strange girl candy, obviously.

[givingtree]

He gives her a kind, understanding smile, seeming completely unbothered by the idea of having to be patient with her. Patience is something he has in abundance for those he cares to spare it give it to. He's incredibly used to people not understanding him or needed time, so this is nothing new for him.

To support this, he plucks one of the flowers they adorned his head with and offers it to her. He might not be able to grow any, but this much he can offer.

[glaives]

She smiles when he seems to understand her, and it only grows when he hands her the flower, Hotaru taking it carefully with one hand. The other keeps her skates clutched to her chest, even as she pauses to consider where to place the flower.

Finally she slips it behind one ear, woven slightly in her hair and she looks up to Groot with another smile before glancing around the space there in. There's no blood, not that she can see, but something is still unsettling about this all.

"I... do you know if anyone you know is here? I don't think it's smart to stay out in the open to long, not if what they said was true."

[glaives]

The second time he speaks she sees him in seconds, whirling around with her quick reflexes to spot him up on one of the displays. And he's a stranger, and Hotaru is already on the defensive, clutching her skates a little tighter. He could be lying, he really could, and her parents warnings about strangers, warnings all children get ring in her ears.

"Who are you?" she asks first, ignoring his offer of food. She doesn't recognise him, sure, but maybe a name will be familiar.

[biomechatronic]

Ironically, Dennett is all about warning helpless looking young girls about strangers. He just doesn't consider himself in that category. He's about as harmless as a roll of bathroom tissue.

It's something he's still getting used to, that people think he's capable of being one of....one of these killers!

"Dennett Norton. Doctor. I'm a doctor. I don't want to hurt anyone." That...sort of goes along with the 'doctor' thing, as far as he's concerned.

[glaives]

The name doesn't wring any bells and in truth Hotaru isn't that surprised. He doesn't look Japanese after all, and even if he was, it'd be strange for him to know her. Perhaps she could have heard Setsuna-mama mention him, she half thinks when he mentions he's a doctor, and she perks up a little.

"A doctor?" But still she holds herself back, biting her cheek. Doctor's aren't supposed to hurt anyone sure, but Hotaru's had first hand experience in how little those words mean. Sure, her father had originally only wanted to save her, but in the end he had just drawn out her pain.

"Why did they put you in, doctor?"

[biomechatronic]

He doesn't like that he does know two people here. The idea of them in the Arena is heartbreaking.

"A doctor, yes." He nods, because he's clinging to that identity. He's a doctor. A healer, not a killer. Not that there's much healing around to do.

But that second question.... "I don't know. They must think it's...funny?" His dignity stings at the thought.

[glaives]

"What kind," she asks, just to keep the conversation going as she studies him. She's still not sure, all her instincts up and she wishes she could be Saturn, have Saturn's wisdom in her mind because she thinks that side of her would know what to do.


Hotaru pauses at his reply, biting her cheek. It was a silly question really, and she had half known the answer before he even spoke, "They're cruel people," she says finally, with more wisdom in her eyes than a 9 year old should possess.

[biomechatronic]

"I. Uh. Cybernetics. Neurosurgery. I made, uh, replacement parts for people. Legs, hands, whatever they'd lost." How the hell do you describe this in layman's terms? "I don't kill. I don't...it's everything I work against."

He nods. "They are. I don't understand how people go along with this." He offers one of the chocolate bars he's liberated from a candy store, as a good will offering. "And you? What about you?"