Forum Thread

Ariel smiled a bit as both of her husbands kissed her, a worried look crossed her face when she heard the kids laughing in the other room. "What if. . .what if we get picked. What would happen to them?" The thought of all three of them being pulled and killed in the arena. . .that would give them a trip straight to the community home. She had seen the kids there, all the angry marks on their bodies, and the sweetest kids getting crushed like bugs. They wouldn't last five minutes.

---

Shiloh was mostly keeping her head down, trying not to make eye contact with anyone. She hated crowds, and desperately wished for the Reaping to be over. Of course, that might mean getting picked. But..her mind turned to the terrible, heart-wrenching thought that Ian might be picked. She forced herself to look at him, as he scanned the crowds, still keeping her protectively close to him. The whispers had died down now that they had found a place in the crowds, but there were still small glances every now and then. Before Shiloh could stop herself, her eyes drifted around the crowd, and as a few stepped away, she saw a few people in particular, gathered in a small group that glanced at her once. It shouldn't have made her as wary as it did. Normally, as long as she kept her eyes on the ground, or on Ian or her uncle, Shiloh didn't feel that sinking feeling. Ian noticed her attitude as her grip on his hand tightened, and her uncle saw her eyes narrow. He gave her a comforting squeeze of her shoulder, saying, "It's going to be okay, alright? There's a one in a million chance of you getting picked, and hardly.." he hesitated, exchanging glances with Ian, "hardly anyone knows about your close relationship with Ian. We'll go home, and I'll make rice soup, okay? That's your favorite." If Shiloh could smile, she would have. She simply signed with one hand, "I'm sure it'll be okay." Ian held her hand, raising his arm so that the only thing separating them was their locked hands. "I'm not afraid to say it, and now that we're here, I will. I love you Shiloh, and even if you are picked, I will volunteer for you." Shiloh let go of his hand, now her attention was on him. Before her uncle could stop her, she angrily signed, "You'll do no such thing! There is no way I'm going to let you volunteer!" Before long, the two of them were deep in a seemingly one sided argument, as Shiloh's uncle tried to stop them. Shiloh was getting frusturated, and seemed to be on the verge of tears. Seeing this, Ian swept her into a hug, mumbling, "I'm sorry. But I can't let you do this."

---

"Now now, dear. It will do us no good to think like that. Even if all of us were picked, we always have others we can trust to look after them." Sorrento pointed out, ever the voice of reason. "The chances of such a thing happening though is quite low. Out of every couple out there, were just three people. Our children are smart, they get that from you. You and Julian have been teaching them how to defend themselves, right?" By his side, Julian hummed in agreement, rubbing comforting shapes into Ariel's skin as he drew his spouses closer. It was a harrowing feeling of unknown and uncertainty but the family always had a way of pulling out of the most dire of situations.

---

The two finally approach the area where the Reaping will take place. Zahara's shoulders relax slightly, there was absolutely no way they could be followed by that mysterious girl. Right? With her mind distracted, she doesn't even notice a Peacekeeper grab her hand to prick her finger with a mechanical device. This time, she isn't able to curse internally. A long string of four lettered words drips from her mouth as she pulls her hand back. Her glare was hidden under her sunglasses. Oh how she wanted to rip them off, then attack this Peacemakers for-. The hand she was clutching was starting to shake. She understood that it was out of fear instead of rage.

Arms wrap around her shoulders. She allows these arms to guide her away from them and to take their place in front of the stage. A hand grabs her trembling hand and another cups her face. She blinks, recognizing the face of the boy. His adoring eyes were now filled with concern. "Are you okay?" He asks for the second time today. Her heart jumps in surprise and her stomach begins to fill with butterflies. She finds herself surveying his face- as if trying to memorize it, before her gaze falls upon his soft lips. No. She pulls back, just enough to break the trance. It wasn't butterflies in her stomach, it was dread. Her heart had skipped because it was expecting an attack. Finally, she was surveying his face to find weakness. Her excuses were nothing more than a harsh truth. She would never understand and accept love from anyone. To her, love was nothing more than a manipulative trick.
"I'll be okay when this is over." Another lie, but it seemed to be the most logical response. She turns her head towards the stage with a disheartened sigh.

A certain tone drew T'val's attention, a tone that was simply dripping with the liquid of lies. Turning her head, she spotted a girl, an odd girl, standing in front of a boy. The girl had stepped back, leaving the boy's hands to dangle as she spoke her lie. "I'll be okay when this is over." T'val couldn't help but shake her head, watching the poor boy beg desperately for his accomplice's attention. T'val nearly choked on her tongue, realizing quickly just how wrapped around the girl's pinky he was. It was a little sad, in all honesty. It didn't help much that the girl was a fairly bad liar. Turning her attention back to the stage before her, T'val tried to focus there. She didn't want to glance that way any more. She didn't realize that she had been rocking side to side, but she was. Her afterimages trailed after her, creating a terrible illusion that T'val was fading from existence, then popping back again.

Faith and Salvadore waited with the other couples within the throng of people, Lucky was also there comforting the golden colored Octoling, who was fidgeting.

Ariel nodded in agreement as she allowed Julian's loving arms to pull her closer, embracing the feeling of warmth and comfort. "Yes, we have taught them well, haven't we." Of course saying this wasn't going to make the uneasy quiver in her stomach go away like magic, but the comfort from her spouses did help some. She had another reason for her unease, but she would fully acknowledge this later. "Shall we go?"

---

"Let us." Julian agreed, gently squeezing his wife's arm and lacing his fingers with his husband. Sorrento himself gave Ariel a reassuring smile. They would tackle any problem that came their way together.

---

Jumping from person to person, with minor heated arguments springing up from time to time, Narukami's eyes wandered towards the stage. Over there, she could see a flickering figure, as if her eyes were playing tricks on her and creating afterimages. Interesting, she supposed but what really drew her attention was a couple closer to the stage. It was clear that one half of the couple was uncomfortable with her partner, shutting him down at every opportunity. Her body language screamed disinterest and Narukami found herself frowning. A part of her wanted to step in and help out but between people generally not welcoming a stranger butting into things and the sea of people between them, Narukami decided to turn back to her partners, loosing herself in the conversation as they each argued over which outfit in the enclosed area was the best

---

It was slow, almost too slow going for Ariel, but yet the time quickly came and they were lined up with everyone else, holding eachother's hands for support.

The mayor stepped forward and began his usual speech about the war and the dark times and how most of the earth and been swallowed up by water leaving behind little land for them to survive on. Then came the part everyone was dreading, the picking. Everyone took a collective breath as he headed over to the ball with girl's names. He reached his hand in and read off the slips one by one, calling each name.

(Everyone does their own characters, girls first then we'll jump back and do the boys.)

"Faith." Faith felt the color drain from her face.

"Go-" The green Ocotling stepped forward, giving the mayor a death glare. "Lucky."

"Ariel." Ariel couldn't stop her hands from shaking. No, this can't be-

---

T'val waited patiently, until she heard a cry of despair. The name had been... What was it? Lucy, it seemed. "I volunteer as Tribute." The mayor glanced down at her, muttering, "Very well." That had been surprisingly easy. T'val shrugged to herself, then glanced around. A pale face in the back made her choke slightly. If she'd been but a single name earlier, maybe she could have helped the poor soul back there. But she had hesitated. 'Don't hesitate again, else it'll be your demise,' whispered a little voice. T'val started towards the stage, her eyes trailing after a few others that were headed that way.

“Li Fei, Echo Darkstar.” They heard their names in the distance, so Echo teleported them right behind the mayor, stabbing a knife into their piece of paper, pinning it to the floor. “Arsloch—“ Li Fei swore, sticking her [you know which finger] at the mayor. The pair of them giggled, Li Fei bringing Echo into a hug. “Good job~” Echo replied in a sing song voice, placing a knife in Li Fei’s hair, “tying” it up neatly. “Weren’t you—“ “No, I volunteered privately in place of her” She responded, as Echo smacked Li Fei in retaliation. “You never told me” she hissed. “Oh shush” Lifei replied.


“Anyways, did you notice them? The love is.....kindling. I have no idea how it’ll play out, She’s trying to stamp out the flames, but it may only grow brighter” Lifei mumbled, tilting her chin towards Zahara, her eyes glinting with mischief, yet her mind clouded with suspicion

---

Yurei tensed up. "Every name that's called that isn't you or Mare means another year of safety." she murmured aloud. "Hm? Did you say something?" Mare Et Tenebrae asked. Mare was shoulder length wavy white hair, and two different colored eyes. One blue. One green. Yurei considered herself a tough person. But whenever Mare smiled at her, or heck, even looked at her, Yurei could feel her insides melting. She truly did love Mare, and when Mare agreed to be Yurei's girlfriend, Yurei was sure she would burst with happiness. "Mare Et.. Et Tenebrae." Yurei looks up in shock. She feels her hand slip through Mare's. Yurei honestly couldn't tell which one of them went Specter. "No. No. No!" Yurei stares at Mare, who quietly looks mournfully at Yurei but heads to her designated spot. Yurei pushes through the crowd of people. "I volunteer as tribute!" she screams, at the next opportunity. Mare looks up at her, horrified. The announcer looks at the peacekeepers. "Very well then." Yurei wastes no time, and throws herself into Mare's arms. "This is my fault. I asked you out." she whispers to Mare. "No. It was my decision. And I wouldn't change it for the world." Mare whispers back. Yurei feels a bizarre moment of happiness. She smiles at Mare, who thankfully, smiles back.

---

Sorrento's world careened to a stop at the mention of his wife's name, tongue drying and a pain flaring up in his chest. He had jinxed it for them, didn't he, mentioning how improbable it was that their names would be picked among the rest. It was like he was frozen, unable to move and only watching distantly as the proceedings happened. Beside him, Julian could only grip his hand even tighter, their pale faces drained of blood. This wasn't supposed to have happened, this couldn't have happened. It was an impossibility that the universe thought would be cruelly fit to speak into existence. Gently tugging on Julian's hand, Sorrento shakily brought his lips up to his husband's lips, a whispered plan spread between the two as both their eyes never left Ariel's still bewitching visage.

---

Clasping her hands together, Narukami tapped her intertwined thumbs against her forehead hoping to whoever could hear that none of her partners would be picked. They were all strong, extraordinarily so, but none of them could survive within that wretched arena. Perhaps she should have saved some of that faith for herself.

"Narukami Arashi."

Immediately four hands latched onto the knitted fabric of her jacket, as if begging her to stay within her happy little delusion where the five of them were still in that sunny kitchen, laughing and squabbling without a care in the world. The hands urged her to fall back into a bed where she couldn't even tell who's limbs belonged to who, entangled in one another and where the self ended and the whole began. But out of all of them, Narukami had always been the strongest as she gently pried off those clinging hands, shushing her distraught mates with a calm smile before squaring her shoulders. She marched impassively towards the stage with her back straight, chin up, and strides resounding with purpose as she had been taught when she first began modelling, exuding confidence with every step she took, betraying none of the turbulent emotions that raged within her. Standing on the stage itself made her sick as she stared at the four people who she had once thought of growing old with. Suo seemed the most distraught, eyes already red rimmed and lips quivering. Their youngest had always been the most emotional, she thought fondly as she etched each one of her friend's faces in her mind one last time.

Ah, smiles did really suit them better.

---

Ah, how intoxicating the air suddenly become. Zahara had purposely relesed her hold on that strange girl- who, to her delight, has been chosen, karma, so that she could sense the pain in the air. Misery loved company, and she was basking in it. She was like a dog rolling in it's own feces, what she was doing wasn't pleasant, especially to those who knew what she was doing, but she found odd enjoyment in it.

"Zahara Payne" the mayor reads, he hesitates, staring at her name for a moment before moving on and reading more names. Zahara doesn't move. Well, she wasn't really listening, so she didn't hear her name get called, but she wouldn't have believed it anyway. Suddenly, Peacekeepers march over to her to drag her onstage. She doesn't fight them as they roughly grab her and drag her forward.

"Zahara?" The boy asks. "No! Not you!" He leaps forward, heroically shoving a Peacekeeper aside to grab her hand. With a muscled grip, he manages to move her towards him.

"Oh no, not me! I don't want to die!" Zahara cries out with little enthusiasm. She grabs the hand holding her wrist and cups his face. "I know I just met you, but I- I-" she sighs, glaring at the Peacekeeper who still had a grip on her. "You guys are ruining the moment, come on, it's your cue to drag me away so he has to guess what I'm saying!" She whines. "You have little taste for drama" she grumbles. The Peacekeepers, finally snapping out of their trance, drag her away, and the two are forced to stare at eachother with a heartbroken look, one was more genuine than the other.

Zahara takes a spot between Echo and Li Fei. It was obvious she meant to break them up on purpose. She doesn't bother hiding her grin, she pops a lollipop into her mouth and triumphantly gazes into the crowd.

Echo simply stared at Zahara, observing her facial features, her body features, etc. she was memorizing their emotional profiles, physical, and in Mare and Yurei’s case, spiritual profiles. Meanwhile Li Fei lets out a maniacal giggle. “oh hiiiiiii~ I didn’t see you there? How’s it going?” She asks, politely, but with the slightest hint of psychopathy. “You interrupted my moment with my sister. I’m sad” she giggled, pouting, having more than four emotions all at once, as Echo sighed in slight exasperation at Li Fei’s antics

---

"Have I?" Zahara asks with feigned concern. She holds a hand up to her heart, her eyes softening. "My, my, I know how important a moment like this can be." With an apologetic look she steps back and raises a hand up at them. "Please continue, expose your weaknesses to us. Nobody is watching anyway." She fixes the both of them with an amused look. She knows an interaction like this will get her nothing but trouble. But she couldn't help herself. It's been so long since she had an actual conversation anyway.

Li Fei bows, in mock respect. She walks over to Echo, giving her a hug, before blatantly pointing to Zahara. “She’s a opponent, with the powers of emotional manipulation. She can also sense emotions, but can only do one at a time. She’s in a fake relationship, a fake school, but her partner seems to love her. She’s horrible at lying, that’s another thing” She states. Echo simply continues her staring, but acknowledges Li Fei. “May I have a lollipop?” She asks blandly.

---

"Oh, what a great guess! You were very close" Zahara purrs. "I can sense anyone's emotions, but only if they are negative. Any positives, I have to guess, just like any other person. I can only impact one person's emotions, but that works as a loophole, as I can use them to censor everyone else's negative emotions." She rolls her eyes. "Everything else is correct, I would say I'm impressed, but it's like you said, I'm bad at lying." She smirks and passes them each one lollipop. "Still, I feel obligated to reward you guys, good job!" She praises.

"Shiloh Farley." Ever since Shiloh had lost her voice permanently, her hearing seemed to strengthen. Sometimes, it was quite amusing, when a customer across the restaurant where she worked would ask Ian about the name of the cook, and when her name was mentioned, she would immediately take notice and poke her head out from the swinging door that divided the kitchen from the rest of the restaurant. But now, it only made the sound of her own name even louder, and the color drained from Shiloh's face. A tiny voice, that always seemed to be aware even in a state of panic, told her that they had done too good of a job. That she had convinced herself that Uncle Davis was right, that tonight she would go back home to the tiny apartment and sit at the old wooden table that had been there for years, sipping soup and striding through her uncle's bad jokes with her hand clasped around Ian's under the table. But that would not be the case. She had been picked. There was no going back home, no bad jokes, she normally hated the job of washing dishes, but tonight, Shiloh would give anything to feel the hot water running over her hands and the soft suds that seemed to get everywhere no matter what she did slide across the counter. She would give anything to be back home.

After her original panic, she registered Ian's hand raising, his mouth opening as he prepared to volunteer, to take her place. But while Shiloh would give anything to be back home, she couldn't go home with the heavy thought that Ian, the next-door neighbor, her closest friend, the one she had known ever since he was barely anything more than a bushy black head of hair and bright green eyes peeking out from behind his mother's skirt when they were kids, was battling it out when she should have been. Shiloh wouldn't be able to live with that. She grabbed his arm, and his attention was on her. Shiloh shook her head wildly. She tried to send a silent message, "No. No, you're not taking my place." Before he could do anything, she was already pushing her way through the crowd, up to the stage. Shiloh could feel the tears threatening to fall as she heard Ian screaming her name, as Uncle Davis held him back. Shiloh didn't look back, but she knew that her uncle's strong arms were holding him back. She could picture it, could hear the pain in her uncle's voice as he spoke unintelligible words to quiet him down. The Farleys always kept their heads down, never caused trouble. Shiloh didn't look back as she climbed the stage, taking her place. She stared straight ahead, silent tears falling down her face.

Her panicked thoughts were racing through her head, but she stayed still, the only signs of her fear her shaking hands and the streaks on her face, making little dark trails across the stark white bandages. That same voice, the one that was always aware, scoffed, said that she had a death wish. She could've just let Ian volunteer in her place, that he was strong, he'd spent years helping repair things, he was strong, fast, everything she was not. There was no way she was making it out of here alive. There was going to be no more nights with Uncle Davis, no more sitting on the roof picking out constellations, no more reliving her childhood as she smelled the soft fumes of stew wafting through the kitchen. She was selfish, throwing away everything good for what. A public death? Uncle Davis told her that she was special, but all she was was a cripple with a special power, making things that didn't last. Just like her. Her eyes fell on Ian. Soon, she would never see him again. There was no possible way she was making it out alive.

---

The pair took the lollipops gratefully. “Fanks” Echo replied, ripping the wrapper off and sucking the opposite end, the stick, while giving confused glances as people glanced at her. “Thank you, Zahara. You’re not from that....school are you? It’s just a cover act, right?” LiFei mumbled so only Echo and Zahara could hear her. Unwrapping her own, she stuck the lollipop into her mouth, biting at the stick, a nasty habit of hers. “You sound like a mom, though.” One of them remarked, though it was unclear who.

---

"Now, now you two, why would I reveal my dark secrets so early?" Zahara asks. "Let me answer your question by asking you this: do I really act like someone who has the ability to commit to a higher education?" Her smile falls when she hears the last statement. "Ouch, that's rather hurtful. Whatever makes you say that?" She asks rhetorically, she wasn't really looking for an answer, but that didn't mean she wasn't curious. "Let me broaden my question, do I act like someone who can commit to a higher education and a family?"