helios-serpentine

[helios-serpentine]

She didn't take the tablet, didn't drink, didn't accept his help. No - Flora pushed his hand away, and another twitch went through the his arm, spilling some of the water. Helios cursed under his breath, his panic obvious. "If I need it, someone can send it to me," he argued, voice growing agitated. "You need this more than I do. Flora, please- Please just take it." He still held the pill and the bottle, close enough for her to accept.

Flora didn't.

Instead, she leaned her head back until she caught his gaze. Something in his chest clenched painfully at her wince of pain. However, the aches on his body extended from the lumps and the tightness in his chest to his whole body. And all just because of a few words from her. He should have been glad about her request, and yet-

I-I can't handle the pain, Helios.

He squeezed his eyes shut.

Y-you have to kill me. M-make it s-stop, please..

"No," his voice cracked, broken as he shook his head. Everything hurt. "No, please, just- Take the painkiller. It'll help, okay? I promise, it'll help, Flora."

Flora rested her back against Helios' chest. Her head leaned on his shoulder as she tried to relax. Her whole body was trembling from the burning pain. The lumps on her skin began to change colors and swell even more. "I-I must be sweet t-to them or something. Or t-they think I'm super cool." She said with a small laugh which then turned into a wince as even laughing was painful. Slowly she opened her eyes and looked at the tablet that was close to her face. Weakly she lifts her hand up and push his hand away, shaking her head. "I-I'm not taking that. It's not going to help a-and you may need it later on." The girl was delusional but not that delusional. She was in bad shape. Covered in many stings and knew it would take a miracle to fix her back up.

She tried to adjust herself to be more comfortable, but she let out a small painful cry. She couldn't move. Everything hurt. At this point she would only slow Helios down even if she could somehow get up. She looked up at him, her eyes meeting his which caused another wince. "I-I can't handle the pain, Helios." Flora started. "Y-you have to kill me. M-make it s-stop, please.."

#helios / interactions #flora #134

[helios-serpentine]

The snort he let out sounded a little exhausted too. We're not dogs. Or, I'm not. I don't know about you. "I don't know," he admitted, more quiet than before. "I hope I'm not. But sometimes we can't change the things we were raised to be." He cracked the shell of the fruit between his fingers, beginning to peel it off. Once he was done, he bit off a piece and chewed. "Cornered or the one doing the cornering, don't you do what you have to do to survive?"

"fuck the purpose." Nettle wasn't even going to pretend that whatever goals the capitol had mattered to her. they didn't. not in the slightest. they all had their purposes, but some were stupid. and Nettle was okay with calling the bread and circuses here stupid. "we're not dogs. or, I'm not. I don't know about you." She did more than sit and stay for the capitol. Even if she did run when the cannons fired and kill when expected. She wasn't an animal. She was a person in a corner. and there had to be a difference there.

#helios / interactions #nettle #134

[helios-serpentine]

"Maybe that's better," he joked with a dry chuckle. "Less chances to be disappointed if you're not expecting anything." Helios had expected too much. Of this, of others, of himself. Perhaps that could be his downfall. He forced the thought from his mind. No use in dwelling on things he couldn't change, only do his best to prevent.

Suddenly, there was squeaking. Faint at first, but louder the next moment. Calli came to a sudden stop and Helios only managed a step further before he stopped as well. Her grip on his hand tightened. Helios's spine stiffened in alert. "What's that?"

Helios didn't go into specifics, but perhaps there wasn't a need to. Perhaps it was impossible to truly prepare for the Games, to expect the unexpected, regardless of how much training they'd received. Cress had made all the preparation in the world and she'd still come out the other end changed. Helios still seemed himself, felt himself, at least for the moment, and maybe that was something to be valued before it inevitably changed, too.

When the question was turned back at Calli, embarrassment crept up, warming her cheeks, offering one reason to be grateful for the dark. Still, she answered honestly. "I don't know if I imagined anything." Her foolish indignation and envy hadn't made much room for that. "But this isn't all bad, right? I mean, worse than how it started, sure, but I suppose I should be grateful to still be standing." Her trainers and classmates back home probably hadn't expected her to go this far. Olivine likely hadn't.

The wind picked up, which was curious. They were still sheltered, protected from the rain, but it appeared that they might be close to an opening, to the other end of the cave. Calli was about to ask if Helios thought the same, but was distracted by something else; squeakings--like the ones she'd heard with Flora. Her hand gripped Helios' tighter as her steps drew to a halt.

#helios / interactions #callisto #134

[helios-serpentine]

"Hm," he mumbled, chewing one of the nuts. "All of this has a purpose. Even the tributes being wined and dined like kings and queens." Helios lifted one of the fruits, rolling it between the tips of his fingers as he looked at it a little absentmindedly. "Experiencing what the Capitol has to offer, and then being starved. A well fed dog is complacent. Loyal, but picky. No need to eat anything they're given when they already know they'll have a choice. A starving dog will do anything to quell that hunger. Nothing sharper than the teeth of the desperate."

"Yeah." It wouldn't be games changing for him, but being dehydrated sucked. Nobody deserved it, and she could fix it for him. They were both going to die, but neither of them had to suffer. "Bit of a let down. Feels kind of mean of them to let us all try capitol food before this." unfair. taunting. still, she took a bite of the fruit, smiling into it. "Tastes like home."

#helios / interactions #nettle #134

[helios-serpentine]

The wasps seemed to fly off, gradually but surely. Some remained, but not for long, following their swarm back to wherever their hive brain led them - or wherever the Gamemakers told them to go. Perhaps they were satisfied with what had already transpired. The stings on Helios' neck and arms already burned enough to have a sweat break out on his forehead, to have nausea start roiling in his gut, and he'd only been stung by a fraction of what Flora'd had to endure.

Helios fell to the ground, sitting now and holding Flora against his chest. He let out a shaky chuckle, even if it felt watery and less than joyful. He felt his arms twitch ever so slightly, the pain coming in quick, sharp waves. "They probably really loved you," he said, equally shakily. "It's okay," Helios nodded. "You can sit, you can rest." She must have been in so much pain. Her skin was covered in lumps, turning from red to purple, even in the darkness, even in the rain. "Uh," he winced as he moved his hand from around her torso, reaching for one of the pockets on his pants. "I got a- I got a painkiller tablet. You should take it." He somehow got the tiny packet out of his pocket, the water canteen was more difficult to free, but he managed. He ripped open the packet and held the tablet in a shaky palm, protecting it from dissolving in the rain. "Come on." Helios held the tablet up to her face. "Take it."

Flora desperately tried to get the paper wasps away from her. It was sting after sting the next hurt worst the last. Though she tried to remain calm, the girl squealed and whimpered as she tried to get the wasps to stop. The girl began to feel herself blacking out. Dizziness was overcoming her and she was feeling sick. Knowing nothing about these kinds of mutts, she was unsure if it was from the mutts itself or just a reaction to the pain that ran through her body. Feeling herself sway a bit, she was prepared to fall to the floor until she realized Helios' had his hand on her. The next thing she knew, he pulled her backwards out of the swarm.

The wasps seemed satisfied and flew off once Flora was out of the center. Slowly, she lifted her trembling arms and hands to see the damage that was done. Almost every inch of her skin was covered with a painful, swollen lump. Weak, she leaned against Helios, trying to manage the burning pain she had felt all over. "E-either they really l-loved me or they w-were mad at me.. W-what do you think?" She winced and took a deep breath in, doing her best to hide how much pain she was in. She was fine. This would pass. She'd get over it. "I-I need to sit d-down."

#helios / interactions #flora #134

[helios-serpentine]

"Yeah," he snorted, derisive. "I can imagine. You knew so little you threatened a career with death. Do you want to be the coward who doesn't follow up on what they promise?"

She was afraid again, or so it seemed. Now, Helios was fueled by genuine desperation. He had no bit of his mind left to wonder whether it was obvious in the tremble of his hands. Perhaps it had nothing to do with that, anyway. The stings of the wasps still burned. He took an erratic step closer. "Really? You're going to run?"

"I only said it 'cuz I thought you wanted to hear it," she countered, slowly getting to her feet. "You can imagine I didn't know much o' anythin' at the start o'this all."

Maybe he could be talked to. There was something halting about him, something off. "Look, I don't think nowsa good time for either'a us to be here. Storm's just finished, things are... weird. Maybe you just go along down tha mountain and I'll continue up it. How's that sound?"

#helios / interactions #mercuria #134

[helios-serpentine]

Helios made the smallest of displeased sounds as she let go of his hand to skip ahead. She seemed to be excited about whatever idea she had, and that was at least a little bit distracting for Helios. A distraction from the pain that sat so deeply anchored in his chest, barbs hooked into his very bones. "Are you sure?" Helios asked, managing a humorous chuckle. "We're so busy with this baby, how will we possibly deal with a second one?" The doll island was at the very least far away from here, where all he could think about was watching Callisto die in the Oasis's lake, while his own wounds began to heal.

All of a sudden, Flora stopped in her tracks. Helios was about to ask, mouth opening to speak, when a loud buzzing rose just ahead of him, all around her. His brain caught up too slowly, not immediately realizing what it was. But as soon as Flora screamed, he understood. Angel was dropped, head first into the muddy ground, but the doll was the least of his concerns. Helios surged forward, towards a flailing and yelling Flora. He tried to wrap an arm around her waist to pull her out of the cloud of insects, felt some of her hits at the wasps meet his shoulders, his arms, but he merely grunted and pulled her backwards.

Some of the wasps found him as well, his arms and his neck, painfully burning stings coaxing pained sounds from his throat as well.

"Everything's going to be okay.. I promise." Flora smile at him as he squeezed her hand before taking off in a random direction. She was silent for a moment, trying to think of anything to break the awkward silence. It was obvious, but grief and emotions was not something Flora knew how to handle well. Everything was unserious to her.

"Oh! I have an idea!" The girl said letting go of his hand and skipping ahead before turning around to face him, walking backwards. "Let's go back to baby doll island! Surely there's still tons of shelter there. And.. maybe we can adopt another baby while we are there! Now that sounds like a great time, huh? Positive, up lifting, cool times." She held the baby doll in her hands closer before turning back around. The rain was difficult to see through and at this point, she was walking blind. A couple more steps and she felt her foot kick something, causing her to stop in her tracks. For a moment, she was unsure of what it was. Whatever it was, it made a clunking sound as it hit the ground three times. Suddenly, she heard loud buzzing erupt around them. The item she had kicked was a nest filled with paper wasps.

The girl froze for a moment, though it wasn't like it had mattered. It was already too late. The swarm of paper wasps began attacking Flora, stinging her all over her body. The girl screamed and dropped her baby doll, using both hands to try and hit the paper wasps off of her. Though that only caused her hands to also get stung.

#helios / interactions #flora #134

[helios-serpentine]

There was truth to what she was saying, and Helios hated it. It wasn't even specifically Slate. It had been Calli, too, before he'd regained some of his sense. Callisto had made a mistake, and Helios could not in good conscience let her pay for it. Perhaps, if it were down to the two of them Helios would die for Calli. But he wasn't going to throw his chances, his life, away at the distant prospect that that might be the case.

But it wasn't specifically Slate. Had it been anyone else in Slate's shoes, someone getting more praise and care and support than Helios, he would probably have been jealous of in the same way. Just.. Slate was more intertwined with his life than Helios would have ever liked, and it was driving him mad with annoyance.

"Oh fuck off," he icily spat back. "Does it fucking matter who he is? In here, it's all the same. We're all fighting not to die." Some more serious than others, but that was not a point he needed to reiterate.

"I'm your competition," Bram hissed, her arm held up between them, his fingers wrapped around her wrist. "I'm your enemy. Aren't I? You, the loyal Career, eager to please the Capitol's regime; and me, faithful companion to Meta Morphic? You have no idea how many seeds have been planted. But here's something I will tell you, Helios--" Her eyes shifted over his face, a slow scroll, lingering at each defining marker along the way. "Neither of us will be alive to see the trees."

He released, but Bram refused to move, to break. There was something she was looking for, something in him that she needed to cleave away. And as they stared at each other, gridlocked, Bram felt it click into place. He doesn't seem to be the type to be any more than he is. "That's why you hate him," she scoffed, nodding absently, eyes wide with discovery. "Of course. I can't believe I didn't see--"

And then she was laughing. Dryly, without humor, in the way war taught her to turn empty. "You're jealous of him." It felt so glaringly obvious now, so plain to see. "You're bitter that I would die for him, and you're wondering...why him? What's so special about Slate Skylar? What about me?" Her head tilted, brows dipping. "You really don't understand who he is, do you? You have...no clue how important he is?"

#helios / interactions #bramble #134 #helios being triggered emoji that bramble hit the nail on the head

[helios-serpentine]

When their lips connected, the world slipped out of focus, and all that really remained was Flora. Helios shuffled a little closer, his boot coming to settle between hers. One of his hands slipped lower to find her waist and tug her impossibly closer. Holding her against him while a soft summery breeze floated around them, the sounds of the waves rushing as a gentle undertone as the sun dipped lower and lower.

Finally, he pulled back. Not much, but just enough to catch his breath as his forehead remained pressed against Flora's. Helios hummed softly. "How's that for a first kiss?"

Flora couldn't help but let out a small giggle. She wasn't sure if it was just from happiness, excitement or maybe just nerves. Either way, it was all good vibes. Everything around them turned golden, though Flora didn't look around. Her eyes didn't leave Helios' features, still taking them all in.

When their foreheads rested together, she slowly closed her eyes. With her other hand she gripped onto his shirt lightly , keeping him close to her. Finally, his lips met hers and she returned the kiss, feeling her heart beat faster. All this time she had been okay with not having her first kiss. With not having this sort of connection with someone.. Being okay with being alone. Now she realized what had all been kept from her. Though she wondered if she would've wanted to spend this moment with anyone else. This felt special, even with it being in the middle of an arena.. but maybe it was because it was with Helios and not some random kid from school like most peoples' first kiss.

#helios / interactions #flora #134

[helios-serpentine]

Perhaps doing this alone would have put less strain on both their bodies. Helios's muscles were screaming at him to lose the added weight of Bramble's body against his, but he simply grit his teeth tighter and pushed through. No one had ever claimed trying to save someone's life was easy or comfortable. The words they'd spat at one another during their fight whipped through his mind on a near constant loop, but Helios focused on the here and now. And in the here and now, he wasn't going to let Bramble die.

Finally, finally - There was something solid there. Soft and unstable, but no longer choppy water that aimed to drag him under instead of buoy him upwards. He slipped once on the sand, but once he'd found his footing, it was much easier to progress forward. The water still pulled at him, but he took a tight hold of Bramble's hand and pushed against the force. At least they were getting somewhere now.

Her head turned, and she squinted through the violent sheets of rain, making out the shape in the distance. Okay. They could get there, couldn't they? Bram drew in a breath, fighting to keep her head up and her lungs dry, forcing her body to move in a semi-coordinated fashion toward the shallow space ahead. In the surging wake, she was pulled under and pushed back up, over and over, swallowed and spat back out until she felt entirely washed up. But she tethered herself to Helios, the two of them yanking against the other, joints and muscles aching. But holding, still holding, tight.

Until, at last, after what felt like an eternity, she felt something semi-solid beneath her feet. It wasn't dry land, but they could -- at last -- stand up.

#helios / interactions #bramble #134

[helios-serpentine]

Helios sat down next to Nettle, leaning his back against one wall of their pitiful little shelter. It worked, for now. But it was groaning and cracking underneath the pressure of the water ever so slightly. There was no telling how long this would be lasting for. "Thanks for the tip," he said, honesty coloring his tone. "I haven't had time to think of something like that until now-" In the middle of all the drowning Bramble and him had been so busy with. "But.. yeah, good thought. Thank you." Nettle didn't have to nudge him in that direction, but she had. And he had no reason not to express gratitude.

Softly, he snorted as he looked down at their sad little selection of food. "Yeah. I don't know what I expected in the middle of the Hunger Games, but somehow I'm still a little disappointed," he joked.

fruit. she could tell, even with the shells. Maybe it was a skill being from eleven produced, the ability to identify a fruit anywhere. Maybe it would taste like home. She traded her nuts for some fruit, and they sat together. She unscrewed her canteen, full, before offering a tip. "when it's empty, leave it uncapped while you walk. it's raining pretty hard. filled it right up." perhaps it was scary, how fast the water was pelting from the sky. but at least it was one logistical perk.

"quite the potluck."

#helios / interactions #nettle #134

[helios-serpentine]

Bramble's hand flew at his face, and it would be as surprising as everything about her was, had he not sort of expected it with his mean comment. His reflexes kicked in, hand shooting up to catch her wrist before she could outright smack him across the face. Her hand still hit his cheek, but far less severe than it could have been. "You have the choice to try and life," he snapped back. "You've decided against it. It doesn't matter how far you get. In the end, there's only one person who lives, and you've made your view pretty clear on who you want that to be." And Helios didn't understand. If he had a wife in here with him, he would fight for her life. That was who he would sacrifice himself for. Not a nobody from Twelve who fought for a losing cause.

"You're fighting for something that will fail. If you're planting a tree and the seed never sprouts, no one will be enjoying any damn shade." Helios let go off her wrist, scooting away a bit to settle on his knees. He winced at the pain that once again shot up his leg. I feel sorry for you. Helios let out a laugh, cold and derisive. "Keep your pity. I'm not the one who needs it."

He found himself shrugging, half-hearted with resigned acceptance. "He doesn't seem to be the type to be any more than he is."

Bram's brows merely lifted. "Yeah, not like you." The message was pretty obvious, pretty fucking clear. "You weren't reaped." But Helios was pushing it, pushing Bram to her limit, his selfish entitlement spiking, hitting her at just the right time: Not volunteer me and my wife to die for some guy. Bram's hand flew, cutting through the air between them, smacking him broad across the cheek with fresh vitriol. "Keep Nettle out of your fucking mouth," Bram hissed. "You volunteered. You did, knowing the risks. You had that choice. We didn't." She stepped back, staring at him like he was a stranger. An enemy. "Look around, Helios. There's only a handful of us left. You think I'm not fighting? Do you want to compare cannons? Do you want me to fight you?"

She didn't understand this investment, this insistence that she strive for victorhood. But the notion that it was a waste? "I knew you wouldn't understand," Bram huffed. "You can't fathom that anything is more important than your own life. You have...no idea what it means to fight for something bigger than yourself, and I-- I feel sorry for you. That must be so lonely." He was getting mean, and so was she. Bram wasn't making a rash decision here. She wasn't casually throwing away her life.

"He doesn't get to be Just Slate," Bram shrugged, throwing her hands up. She'd told him as much during training. "We all have to play our part."

#helios / interactions #bramble #134

[helios-serpentine]

He pursed his lips. Perhaps it was not entirely surprising that she thought of him that way. Who wouldn't? He was a career, Academy elect for these Games. But things were already going so awfully off script this time, how much worse could they possibly get the next? "You don't know me that well, but I hope you can trust me enough to believe me when I say that this time will be the last time. I'm not keen to do anything like this again."

A voice called out. Annoyingly familiar. Helios suppressed a sigh. He stuffed the last bit of the fish into his mouth and came to his feet, shaking the sand off his pants. He truly did not want to stick around when Slate arrived, and possibly the rest of the little alliance with him. He wasn't in the mood for a fight. "Right," he muttered. "I'll see you around." The last bit she'd added was left off. Better that then manifesting that one of them would end up dead within a day or two. Helios walked off, spine stiffening when he heard voices come closer to the spot he'd just vacated. He didn't look back.

"Yes." It was a simple answer. An admission that Bram thought this hunger was insatiable, not because Helios was truly ravenous, but because there was no substance to the Games. No sustenance to this prize. Winning hadn't done anything good for Alder, or Cress, or Cat. But Helios didn't understand that. How could he? She couldn't very well tell him without giving the whole thing away. "I don't think we know our own limits. What we're capable of, what we're not. But I do know that when you put something up on a pedestal, it'll never measure up in real life."

There was a rustling at the treeline, the sound of her voice being called. Slate. Bram swallowed, wiping the back of her hand against the corner of her mouth. "You should go," Bram instructed, pushing herself up. "But, uh...I'll see you around, if we both live long enough."

#helios / interactions #bramble #134 #fin.

[helios-serpentine]

He shook his head quickly in lieu of using words. Opening his mouth too much in this dumb storm seemed to be useless anyway. Useless and painful for his lungs. Keeping her close with one arm, his other hand rose to swipe wet strands of hair out of his eyes as he looked wildly form side to side. There were the outlines of two islands visible even through the curtain of rain. He nodded definitively in the direction of wildly whipping palm trees. No sand, but there must have been at least some ground to stand on somewhere, even if not entirely dry. "That way," he forced out between clenched teeth. "There."

Bram was spitting up water, half salt and half rain, which left an odd taste in her mouth and burned her eyes. If there were more of them left in the arena -- more outer district tributes, anyway -- there would have been more cannons, she was sure of it. As it was, she was barely staying above. Bram thought of Merc, of how she couldn't swim, of how that wasn't the way she was supposed to use her life.

"How the fuck do we find land?" They could barely see beyond the other. Visibility was almost nonexistent. They were positively, unquestionably fucked. "Where was... Where was the sandbar?" If they could find that, maybe they could stand.

#helios / interactions #bramble #134

[helios-serpentine]

Even as her arms wrapped around him, Helios kept his hands in the air for several moments longer. Something in her touch shook him loose, shattered a very carefully built wall that Callisto's death had made so fragile already. Helios squeezed his eyes shut and his arms sank, wrapping around Flora in turn as tears finally welled over and spilled out onto his cheeks. Thank the gods there was rain to hide his grief. Not from Flora, though. She could see it perfectly well. He hugged her tight. For a few moments, he'd take the comfort she offered, even if he knew he didn't deserve it.

She pulled back, and Helios took a few shaky breaths to compose himself. It wasn't that easy, but he would try his hardest. "Yes," he quickly said. Helios took her hand, giving it a soft squeeze. A 'thank you' he couldn't quite bring himself to say out loud. "Let's find some shelter."

Flora tried to read his expression in the pouring rain. Though, after he said they couldn't help her, it confirmed her worries. She felt her heart sank at the thought of Calli being dead. "Helios.. I am-- I am so sorry." Flora said as she hugged Helios tight. Calli and her hadn't been that close, but Flora really had enjoyed every time they were around each other. From making flower bracelets on the floor of the training center to almost getting eaten alive by bats in the cave. Also the relationship between Calli and Helios was unknown to Flora, but they were from the same district and they had seemed pretty close. At one point she had even thought they were dating.

Flora looked up at him, rain drops hitting her face. "Should we go find shelter?" She asked him, deciding it was best to change the subject. "As much as I love standing in the rain, I'm really starting to feel and look like a wet dog. Shall we?" She asked with a smile on her face, reaching her hand out for him to take it.

#helios / interactions #flora #134

[helios-serpentine]

Don't matter. Rain or shine, we care. Helios couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him. It wasn't mean or malicious, just exhausted. "Yeah, I've heard that before." To a gut wrenching degree. Helios looked at Nettle a little differently, too, now. Bramble had been right - he didn't understand. But now, instead of angry, it made him sad. Devastated, for lives that no one was fighting for.

"Ah," he muttered, stepping a little closer as he reached into his pocket for a handful of fruits he'd collected the night before the storm had hit. They had a hard shell, but some of them were still a little cracked. Fine, but a little worse for wear. With his other hand, he produced a half full canteen of water. "There we go. We have ourselves a potluck."

Nettle shrugged, looking out at the rain. "'don't matter. rain or shine, we care." That was eleven for you. if she showed up drenched and cold to any home in eleven, she'd leave dry and in new clothes. even threadbare ones. what there was was shared. and that was why free eleven would win. They took care of each other, and there were too many of them for that to go unnoticed.

"Still don't have moonshine, though. I've got..." reaching into her pocket, she pulled out some nuts. only four of them, saved for dinner. and a water bottle at her side. after a second, she transferred two to one palm, and held out the other. "what about you?"

#helios / interactions #nettle #134

[helios-serpentine]

"I don't know," he admitted, quick, hasty breaths against the water cascading down, swirling all around them. "But we'll have to find out. Get some place shallow, or find actual ground. We can't stay here forever." Helios cast his gaze skyward, before quickly lowering it again. He blinked rapidly, trying to get the water out of his eyes. "This won't let up any time soon."

She didn't want to need him. She didn't want to need anyone. But when he grabbed her, pulling her closer, Bram couldn't help but feel the rush of relief overtaking her, like the waves that lapped over her face, rushing above. "Is there--" They were treading, fighting against the waves, fighting to stay tethered together. "Is there any land left?" If there wasn't -- if the rest of their arena would be this violent storm with them washed away in the sea -- then it would all be over quickly.

#helios / interactions #bramble #134