71st_victor | (no subject)

Don't die.

There are bigger things at stake these Games, but the little voice in Johanna's head has been bred and born of a survivor's instinct awoken years ago. She's no victor by chance and even if these Games are about protecting a beacon for the people, the flare of instinct is kicking up a fuss as Johanna stands on the platform and waits for the countdown that will bring her back to the killing arena.

She knows what she's supposed to do. Of course she knows, no one can shut up it. Katniss wants Nuts and Volts and Johanna knows that while they might be victors, they're ripe for the picking in a field of killers like the one they're entering. Lucky, then, that Johanna's just as wild and wicked as the rest of them. There's going to be an axe, she knows that much, and once she has that in her hand, she's going to tear her way through the careers with pleasure.

Don't die.

In 10, 9, 8...

There's so many variables at play and Katniss better not fuck up. If she dies after they've gone to all this trouble to make sure their plans are in place...

7, 6, 5...

Johanna closes her eyes and stares upwards at the black disc covering the entrance to the arena. There's a mix of trepidation and the hint of fear in her body, but there's also something dangerous there. It's anticipation.

4, 3, 2...

And then there's nothing left to wait for as she rises and rises, pulled up like the victor she has onto her podium before she's let into the wild to kill again. She grins darkly to herself as she clenches her fists at her side and mouths 'one' as the disc opens and delivers her into the arena.

Which happens to be a very pristine looking hotel lobby. The only sign she's distressed is in her eyes. She presses her weight into her heels a little tighter as if to prevent the explosives beneath her from blowing and tightens her core as she crouches, hoping this isn't some new twist the game-makers have developed. "Hey!" she shouts, aware she's calling attention to herself, but fully aware that she's more than capable of handling anyone who comes her way. "Come and get me!" They can come to her.

Johanna can wait.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"We should try to figure out how the Capitol is planning to kill us," Katniss decides, setting her jaw. "And we should find weapons. There has to be something we can use in here even if it's not what we prefer."

Still, it just...it doesn't have the aura of sickly-sweet that the Capitol does, the air of it being too good to be true. It's just quiet and normal and Katniss wonders what that means.

"Let's keep moving about," Finnick agrees. He doesn't know if that will necessarily make them safer. This is a difficult arena. They are almost always exposed in some way. There are tons of hiding places. But it is a good idea for them to have a better idea of the layout of the hotel and to see if there are any weapons.

Finnick couldn't help but laugh when Katniss asked how the Capitol was trying to kill them.

"Sweetheart" he drawls. "They want us to kill each other. It's less messy that way for them." Snow didn't mind getting his hands dirty, but he preferred to obscure it as much as possible. Why get the blame for massacring some victors when they would readily do it themselves? He can only imagine how the Capitol would react if Katniss and Johanna got into a fight right off the bat.

Johanna gives Katniss a look that's hungry, one that says if they weren't in this alliance to rebel against the Capitol, she'd be more than happy to do exactly as Finnick describes. Sure, she might feel an itsy bit bad about it, but she's sure that would pass quickly enough. "It's a shame I feel like making a mess," she says flippantly, raising herself up to full posture as she keeps her attention on this strange arena around them. "As soon as I get my hands on something sharp, that is."

"If you want to go it alone, kill me right now," Katniss says defiantly. "There's no cover here and this isn't how I'm best in a fight. I can't pick you off from a distance. So just do it."

She shrugs slightly. "Or we can try to kill them instead."

Finnick suppresses a smile as Johanna purposefully goads Katniss. It is far too easy in many ways -- which is probably why he needed a bracelet just to prove that he could be trusted.

Still, probably not the best time for Katniss and Johanna to decide to get into a fight; that's something he has little interesting in seeing, because he suspects it would be the most violent thing he's ever seen and wouldn't end well for him. (And it doesn't help that Katniss' openly rebellious talk still sets him a bit on edge. There's no doubt that if they're in the arena, they've been found out by now. They've all been far too obvious. But he'd prefer to play the part a bit longer, until they have a better idea of where they are.)

"Ladies," he says, all bright smile and charm that would work on almost every other person except, he thinks, for the two women he's actually with. He rests a hand on each of their arms as he guides them forward. "Why don't we sort out where we are and leave the blood baths for later?"

It's a shame that Finnick occasionally has to be so reserved and so calm, because Johanna could really go for sticking something sharp in something living about now, just to take an edge off the lack of control she's been feeling since she showed up in this place. Still, staying alive would be a nice change. She turns on a switch, flashing Katniss and Finnick both a charming smile meant to win over victors and sponsors both (and it carries just the barest hint of that innocent little waif she'd pretended to be all those years ago). "For now," she agrees sweetly.

"For now," Katniss agrees. She's not very good at being charming. Half the time anyone liked her, it had been solely because of Peeta. Peeta's act was very good and Katniss thinks that's mostly because it hadn't been an act for him. Everything Peeta feels for her is the real thing, as scary as it is.

"We need to secure somewhere to sleep, somewhere that we can guard easily."