A Day at the Movies

[failbender]

Who: Closed to Zuko and Belle
What: Zuko and Belle are perplexed by the Capitol's taste in cinema
Where: Centurion Cineplex
When: Week 2
Warnings: REALLY WEIRD somewhat semi-nsfw video link

It looked like a typical theater. There were rows and rows of seats all facing a center stage, and the room was somewhat dark so as to focus attention on the main event.

But instead of a stage there was just a massive screen of some kind and on it was - a play? Except without anyone actually being there to act it out in person. Somehow it was pictures but they were moving and there was sound just like in a real play.

"Huh," he said under his breath, actually impressed for once, not knowing that he was destined to see such technology later in his lifetime. (Provided he ever got home, that is). He actually liked the theater quite a bit, but only when they weren't completely butchering it. When he and Azula had been younger and still played, they had sometimes acted out the final duel from Love Amongst the Dragons.

Of course Azula always made him be the Dark Water Spirit and that was never fun. He'd always had to be the bad guy.

The moving pictures changed to something just...weird. Really really weird. Something that looked more like moving drawings than a play, with giant blue people and half-naked people and...

"What."

He felt compelled to say it out loud despite thinking he was alone. Because it was just...what?

"Who would actually watch this?"

Comments

[bravebargain]

Belle entered to the movie theatre without really knowing what it was. Theatres in her own world looked quite different; the one back in her own village was rather small and simple and nearly forgotten, as the most of the villagers held little to no interest in literature or plays-- and then she had seen drawings and pictures of grand halls in Paris where only royals and important names were allowed to attend to.

In fact, she was only seeking for a new and safe place to stay over the night-- and perhaps a familiar, friendly face.

But she could recognize the place right after stepping inside of the hall. The way how all seats were lined from up to down reminded her from the old amphi theatres she had read about. And the big screen was more like a disappointment to her than a surprise, she had seen something alike to it back in the capitol. It was a shame really, that they would rely on such artificial pictures instead of real, live-actors.

She settled down on one of the chairs in far-left to rest and followed the film they were playing without actually paying too much attention to it, slowly falling to a state where she was half-asleep and half-awake. She was, however, snapped out from her comfortable trance quite soon as she heard someone speaking out loud.

She couldn't recognize the young man in the dark and she decided to play it safe by hiding. He sounded very displeased with the current film, so maybe he would leave soon? But as she tried to quickly duck behind the seat in front of her, she accidentally dropped her bag on the floor with a loud clang as the book, bottles and other objects inside of it hit against the ground.

[failbender]

He could have just left. That was always the thing he had to consider: was it safer to fight or run? Would the person that might be there hiding stay and leave him alone or give chase the moment his back was turned?

He was unnerved by the fact that he hadn't even seen them. They must have been ducked down in the seats when he walked in. That was what made him decide to actually look around - for all he knew, this was someone hunting him and it might be better to face them now than have them continue following and ambush him later.

He unsheathed his knives, quietly but still audibly, and starting to walk up the aisle towards the exit, keeping some distance from the seats, leaning slightly to try to see if someone was hiding in them, waiting to strike.

For a moment, he kept silent, not wanting to give away any advantage but he couldn't get Aang's words out of his head:

"This isn't like the war back home! This is a lot of people who are scared and hurt, just like we are! We can't treat each other like monsters or murderers, because that's exactly what the people who put us here want us to do!"

Ugh, this was so stupid. It was so, so stupid, why was he even giving them a chance? It was probably someone out to kill him like some already had tried.

"Or it could be someone you wind up provoking more than you need to. Fear can sometimes be a more dangerous motivator than malice." The words in his head sounded like his uncle's. They always did. "Remember, my nephew, the man who always goes looking for a fight will always find one."

He didn't have to resort to thoughtless provocation. Chances were that if he went on the attack whoever was in here with him might attack back because they felt cornered rather than because of purposeful ill will.

"Whoever you are, I know you're here," he said, voice clear and firm, but he tried to make it not sound menacing. "If you attack me, I'm not holding back, but I'm not going to hurt you as long as you don't try to hurt me."

[bravebargain]

Belle peeked a little from her hiding place. Her eyes widened at the sight of the blades and she pressed her hand to her mouth to prevent herself from gasping out loud. The idea of the stranger being armed hadn't even occurred to her, which was exceptionally foolish of her. The stress and sleep deprivation was really getting to her.

Her heartbeat fast and loudly like drum as she kept crouching behind the seat while the young man walked through aisle. She tried to crawl backwards to hide herself better to the shadows but it was no use. The film that was playing on the screen cast such bright light to the entire hall, making it hard to find a shadow big enough for her. There was no way out, no escape for her. All she could do is wait for him to pass and hope that he had good intentions.

The wait felt like the longest moment of her life, even though a minute had barely passed when young man suddenly called out for her.

For a second or two she thought of his words. There wasn't really any other choice for her than to show herself, was there? Even if she decided to stay still in her hiding place he would no doubt find her. And there was no guarantee that he would be merciful if she didn't cooperate with him.

Just when the stranger was only two seat rows away from her, she slowly stood up, holding her head up as she tried to hide her uncertainty.

“I am here. I don't mean any harm.” She spoke with gentle and calm voice, hoping that she was right to trust this man.

[failbender]

He turned to face her, holding his knives at the ready.

Those were some huge, round eyes. That was the first thing that popped into his head, mostly because it was still strange to him that people had round eyes at all. But the girl's eyes were big and very brown, something he could see even in the dim light, and even though her features were a little strange, she was nevertheless very pretty.

And that was pretty much when the lever flipped in Zuko's head from capable warrior to super awkward teenager because this was not an attacker or some dangerous challenger.

This was a pretty girl.

He had no idea what to do next now that he didn't have a fight on his hands.

"Uh."

He was still pointing his knives in her direction and it was pretty clear she was unarmed. She definitely didn't really look the fighting type. You could usually tell in how people carried themselves. Her body language was screaming spooked villager rather than soldier or Bender. So he lowered the knives just slightly.

He wasn't ready to put them away yet, in case she pulled some hidden weapon, but there was no need to terrify the girl.

"Hi?"

What else did you say in a situation like this?

[bravebargain]

A wave of relief washed over her as he faced her. She was safe, she could see that. Even though his blades were still pointed at her, there was something in his demeanor changed that told her that this man would not attack her.

Belle relaxed her tense shoulders and even felt bold enough to offer him a smile, to reassure him that she was harmless. After all, he must be just as confused, tired and scared as she is.

"Hello." She answered, giving him a small nod but not moving otherwise.

[failbender]

Right, so. Okay. Random girl. Did he talk to her? Should he just leave? Would just nodding at her and leaving be weird? But wait, she said hello, so maybe he should say hi back.

Except he already said hi.

"Uh, I'm just going to put these away," he said of his knives, re-sheathing them, "and as long as you don't attack me I won't take them out again."

Starting with a gesture of peace was a good thing. So now did he stay or...?

His instincts told him to not waste his time talking to anyone and run but his other instincts, the ones that became instinct without him realizing, told him that the girl looked kind of scared and that anyone in this place that was scared deserved a little kindness.

That was what his uncle would do in a situation like this, he was sure of it. He'd talk and be kind and put them at ease, especially in a place that wasn't kind at all. He always said those little moments made life worthwhile, and that seemed especially true in a place as horrible as this.

He'd never really been good at that kind of thing but after scaring her, it felt like the right thing to do, so he tried.

"So...hi." He paused. "Wait. I already said that. Uh." Okay, so, he had no idea how to do this but honesty was a good fallback sometimes. Not always, given how painfully blunt he was on occasion, but sometimes. "I have no idea what I'm saying right now because this is a really weird situation, uuuuh, but my uncle would probably tell me to be nice after I scared you. So. I'm being nice. Right now."

Urgh, no that sounded just as stupid. Introductions? Maybe introductions would be less awkward?

"What's your name?" he asked. "I'm Zuko."

[bravebargain]

"I won't do anything. I promise." She raises her hands so that he could see them and be sure that she wasn't hiding anything. Then she began to take slow steps towards him.

The closer she got the better she could see him. Of course, the first thing she takes notice of is the huge scar covering nearly half of his face. How could anyone miss something like that? Her eyes widens a bit from both shock and worry, but before getting as far as asking him about it Belle realizes something. That scar didn't look fresh, if anything it looked rather old, something he must have gained before coming to arena.

"It's nice to meet you Zuko. My name is Belle." She said, smiling fondly. It might not be proper but his rambling sounded rather amusing. While he looked like a fierce warrior from those ancient stories she read about faraway lands, there was something very sincere and even sweet in his struggle to find words.

“Your uncle sounds like a wise man.”

[failbender]

She was looking at his scar. Many people did, given how noticeable it was, and usually they displayed a whole range of emotions. For some it was knee-jerk disgust over seeing a deformity, for others it was intimidation since it was a particularly menacing-looking scar, for some it was a strange kind of morbid curiosity, and for others it was pity.

The pity was annoying but at least it was the reaction grounded most in kindness and empathy so he tolerated it more than the others. As long as people did't try to touch it, anyway. That always made him angry. Who went and just randomly touched someone else's face?

He tried to ignore Belle's expression and keep the (very awkward) conversation going.

"He is," Zuko said, "I'm glad he's not here but at the same time I almost wish he was. He always seems to know the right thing to do." He cast his gaze to the floor, expression thoughtful. "It's easy in a situation like this to get caught up in anger and fear."

His eyes darted back up to hers and his expression went soft, almost as if he trying to communicate apology for how on guard he'd been earlier without having to say it.

"Uh, anyway..."

The movie on screen caught his eye, with the strange blue people and tiny humans, and he pulled a face again just like earlier, suddenly immersed in it again.

He gestured at it.

"This just keeps getting weirder the longer it goes." He gestured a hand at it. "You'd think if they had a way of making something like this they'd actually make something good with it. Like plays or using these pictures that look like moving paintings to tell stories you wouldn't be able to do with normal plays. They could do whatever they want with moving paintings without worrying about having to do special effects like on stage."

He was much more comfortable in social situations when he had something to complain about.