ataraxionlogs | seventeenth jump;

CHARACTERS: any and all
LOCATION: Gravity Couches and beyond
WARNINGS: maybe some swearing, or even some violence, and more than likely some implied (and possibly explicit) nakedness.
SUMMARY: Another month, another jump, another round of new faces.
NOTES: Keeping up with the tradition and copy pasted like always from the last one

You wake up in darkness.

There's a breathing tube jammed down your trachea, and you're suspended in a tube of clear blue fluid. Upon registering your level of consciousness, the gravity couch drains the fluid surrounding you and retracts the breathing apparatus; the doors in front of you open, and you're deposited on the floor of a stark, sterile medical bay.

You are not alone.
There are others who have come before you, others who are awakening beside you. Some may be familiar to you, perhaps even friends. Others have much less amiable plans. Some are merely alien and inexplicable, but there are always those who might mean you harm.

After you catch your breath and your vision returns, you notice a number on the inside of your forearm. Maybe it's a familiar number. Maybe it means something. Maybe it's just a number. But the number—completely unique to you—is a tattoo, and it does not come off.

If you enter the room adjacent to the medbay, you will find a small locker with your number on it, surrounded by rows upon rows of identical lockers. Inside, you will find a few of your personal items, a communications device, and a ship's uniform in your exact size. The comms device is fully powered and connects directly to the ship's network; it's your only means of communication beyond physical conversation. Upon turning the device on, a neutral, automated voice will say, "Please take the blue lift to the passenger quarters." Any other attempts at communicating with the rest of the network are met only with static.

This is your welcome party.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ he's not sure why he comes back to the gravity couches after getting dressed. but as kazama gets dressed at the lockers -- slipping on his jacket and tying the familiar red bandanna around his throat -- something nags at the back of his mind. he feels like he's missing something, possibly someone, and right before he slips out into the hallways he decides to check in on the gravity couches once more.

of course, as soon as he does, he's quick to recognize the little figure crouched by the gravity couches, crying into her hands.

so the next moment, prim's going to hear the sound of quiet footsteps approaching, then feel an army jacket being draped over her shoulders (a little haphazardly, since he doesn't dare touch her when she's no doubt feeling scared and nervous in the first place, instead kind of gingerly dropping it on her). when she looks up she's going to see a tall, rather scruffy looking guy she might have seen speaking to katniss in the medbay before. kazama makes a conscious effort to avoid looking at her, eyes trained on the far wall as he clears his throat. tries to keep his voice from sounding too gruff and hoarse as he mutters, ] ... you're Katniss' sister. [ a rather poor attempt at succinctly explaining why he's speaking to her. he's still not looking at her as he asks, just a little more gently, ] Are you hurt?

[She's not as shocked by his approach and the jacket being put over her shoulders as he is by the first words that come out of her mouth. That gets her to drop her hands away from her face and stare up at him in shock. The tears don't stop flowing, but she makes no move to wipe them away. She shakes her head in response to his question, and manages to squeak out a slight verbal response.]

No, I'm fine.

[She bows her head again, allowing some more tears to fall, and she gives out a chuckle of relief. She's so glad she's here and not somewhere the Capitol can harm her.]

You know Katniss? [Her throat is hoarse as she asks this, and she rubs at her neck before gathering the jacket around her and standing up.]

Do you know if she's still here?

[ a small cant of the head. -- ah, perhaps that's why he's feeling something slightly off. come to think of it, he hasn't seen any trace of her around the ship, yet. and while he'd like to think that perhaps he's just missed her, maybe she's left the locker rooms quickly, that doesn't seem likely. eventually, he shakes his head. ]

Not yet.

[ he watches out of the corner of his eyes as prim stands up, keeping an eye out in case she stumbles or sways. considers, briefly, how to describe his relationship to katniss. acquaintance, not quite. friend, not really. he eventually settles on, ]

... we're allies.

[ pause, as he glances out towards the locker room. ] You -- weren't around, for a while. She was upset.

[She frowns, not liking the fact that she caused Katniss to be upset. She has to take several long, deep breaths in and out to control more tears from falling.]

I didn't mean not to be here. I'd never want to upset her. [Her voice cracks and she reaches up to rub at her face with the back of her hand.]

Thank you for being her friend. She doesn't have very many.

[ -- shit. he hasn't meant to upset her. kazama notices the way prim looks on the verge of tears, and he's visibly distraught for a moment. mumbling somewhat awkwardly, ]

It -- wasn't your fault. [ he would add, 'don't cry,' but that might just scare her more. he's never been that good at sounding reassuring.

so instead, he just awkwardly extends a hand to help her up off the floor. ]

[She doesn't hesitate in taking hold of his hand, and moves to stand up.]

I know, but Katniss doesn't deserve for anything to upset her here. Too many things do back home, and I thought that just maybe I'd be able to take care of her for a change. I didn't do a very good job at it.

[She pauses, realizing she hasn't said something very important yet.]

Thank you for stopping to help me.

[ he hefts her up carefully, still tactfully trying to avoid looking at her. as soon as he's out of here, he'll have to look for katniss, just to clarify if she's gone, or just hiding somewhere. ]

... just by being here, you put her at ease. You take care of her in that way. You did fine.

[ an awkward pause before he lets her hand go and glances towards the exit. ]

I'll -- let you get cleaned up.

[She glances down in the direction of the showers, and slowly nods.]

Thank you.

[She pulls his jacket tighter around her, and shuffles her feet a little.]

I'll find you at the lockers and get your jacket back to you. Or I can get it clean and dry and then bring it by your room sometime.

[ he's already turned to leave, and the question makes him pause. kazama answers firmly, ]

It's not urgent. Take care of yourself first.

[ -- maybe that was a bit too harsh. at least, more cold than he'd intended. there's a brief pause before he adds, feeling somewhat obliged to keep an eye on prim, ]

... my name's Kazama. If you're ever in trouble -- I'm easy to contact.

[She nods in understanding, making a note to get his jacket back to him as soon as possible. She thinks she'll find a treat on board the ship somewhere, maybe in the kitchen, to drop off as a sign of gratitude.]

I'll remember that, Kazama. And the same goes for you, if you ever need anything, be sure to let me know. Okay?

[ prim seems to be a sweet girl. too nice to have been through what katniss has been through. hopefully she'll be able to stay that way. looking over at her, kazama wonders briefly how much prim knows of the hunger games before giving a small nod. ]

Alright.

[ not that he'll ever take her up on that offer, but he does file it away at the back of his mind. ]

seventeenth jump;

grav couches!

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