Darcy is only half listening to you. JSYK. (halflistening) wrote in incompletedata, @ 2017-09-27 12:56:00 |
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Entry tags: | marvel: mcu: darcy lewis, marvel: mcu: matt murdock, star wars: canon: bail organa, star wars: canon: poe dameron |
Who: Darcy Lewis, Matt Murdock, Poe Dameron, Bail Organa
When: Day 4, evening
Where: Cave E
What: Meetings? Meetings.
Rating: G
Status: log, in progress
Trigger Warnings: Hunger Games
Well, one thing was for certain - being dragged around the arena by someone with eyes certainly made traversing the caves and passageways a lot faster. They weren't necessarily running but up until Matt had a guide literally take his hand and lead the way, he'd almost forgotten that he used to take every stride with confidence that he wasn't going to be stepping on something that might kill him. The fact that nothing seemed to be able to get Darcy down was really one of her virtues that he'd come to appreciate over the time he'd spent with her. Maybe she was keeping a lot of her negativity inside - Lord knows just how much he was keeping inside - but living from one moment to the next, taking everything in her stride and trying to make the best of it really put him to shame. The cave that had been full of bat cries was eerily quiet. Must have been that time of the night when they'd taken flight to go hunting. This retracing of his steps felt familiar up until they passed the point he entered the cave system in. Then his footsteps became a little more uncertain and he reached out with his free hand relying on the trusty wall for guidance. When he felt the vibrations of low voices accompany the faint scent of sulphur in the air, he stopped. "Freddie wait," he whispered, yanking on her hand. Yes, he knew her name was Darcy, but the nickname seemed to have stuck. "Someone's up ahead. Be careful." Darcy’s eyes widened when Matt pulled her up short, but she bit back the surprised squeak that threatened. If there were people, there could be a fight. She was not about a fight, at all. Of course, there was at least a good chance that the people up ahead might not be looking for a fight. There was only one way to find out. She sighed and shrugged off her backpack. “Why don’t you hang back here and I’ll see if I can see who it is without being noticed. If it looks like someone stabby, we’ll go somewhere else. Like maybe the cornucopia.” "We shouldn't go back there," he replied. It had been a complete shitshow on the first day and he didn't want to risk Darcy getting hurt. He'd rather take his chances with whoever was here. At least in a cave he could hear the echoes and position people and obstacles around himself a lot better. Out in the open they were sitting ducks. He hated that she had to go ahead to scout, but they didn't have a choice. "Stay close to the ground. If you have to make a run for it, come back this way." He'd ignore the first set of footsteps and lunge at the second. Hopefully she'd make it out of the ensuing scrap. Darcy grinned and nudged Matt before handing him her bag. “Don’t worry, I got this. The sneaking around class was one of the ones I paid attention in.” She hadn’t been terribly good at it, but she’d paid attention. That was a start at least. She stuck to the wall of the cave, depending on the lack of light and the shadow the wall itself cast to keep her hidden until she got close enough to hear voices. What she heard she wasn’t overly familiar with, so getting closer still was something she’d have to do. Poe was indulging himself far too frequently in the hot springs, he knew - it was a vulnerable position, half naked and soaking wet and one strong-armed enemy away from drowning. But there were so few joys, here. Almost none. And he wasn’t going to waste his time or his energy spoiling for a fight that thus far had entirely failed to materialize. Bail had his knives, and the two of them had an understanding. He’d been so deeply relieved to realize he’d found himself with a man who shared his values (although not surprised, considering who he was - who he’d raised), and his priorities. He was prattling now - quietly, at least for him - about the one time he’d almost gone to Coruscant, which he’d somehow turned into an eight-minute story, and he wasn’t overly concerned about attracting attention. If someone wanted to get at him? He’d deal with it. If someone wanted his spot? Well, they could - His eyes flew open, and he lifted his head from its (not awfully comfortable) resting spot. He’d heard something, he was sure, in the passage leading to their chamber. Subtlety wasn’t his strong suit, least of all here and now; his sudden silence would no doubt telegraph to their eavesdroppers that they’d been noticed. He glanced at Bail with a nod of his head, his eyes widening: did you hear that? Honestly - he was lucky he hadn’t put the man entirely to sleep. Bail didn't mind the conversation, one sided though it was. It surprised him however that Poe didn't ask him to share stories of Leia as a young girl, though it pleased him that he didn't all the same. When Poe stopped talking abruptly, Bail's attention snapped toward the inclination of Poe's nod. He held up his injuries hand and took hold of one of his knives with the other. Just in case. Since there was no way that whomever it was approaching them wasn't aware that they were present - sounds in this chamber echoed and carried easily - Bail cleared his throat. "Who goes there?" he asked. Well, shit. Maybe she should have paid closer attention in the sneaking around classes. Or even practiced more rather than play on the trampoline. Darcy refused to regret her trampoline time, though, because she'd made a friend during it and Audrey was awesome. She straightened and cleared her throat as she stepped out of the shadows and into a more lighted area. Maybe she should have brought one of her glow sticks along, but it was too late for that now. “Hey, my dudes. I'm Darcy. I, uh…” Well, it had worked with Matt. “I come in peace?” Poe had started climbing out onto dry land at Bail’s first address; his pace slackened a little when their visitor announced herself instead of charging in with a club. Still - he reached for his shirt, wary. “Yeah, well - that’s about our speed,” he said, doing his best to make her out in the dark. He didn’t know everyone as well as he’d have liked to, even on this short list of unfortunate souls, and the low light really didn’t help. “I’m Poe Dameron. We’re not looking to hurt anyone, and - we don’t have a whole lot of food.” Volunteering Bail’s name seemed like something he should leave up to him. He didn’t mind company, or sharing a camp with someone who needed it, but if it was someone going marauding, he’d just as soon they realize they were better off being on their way. Matt didn't realise he was holding his breath when the vibrations in the cave walls stopped abruptly. They must have noticed her. Shit. He crouched down, stayed right next to the wall and approached slowly, praying that they'd start talking again and that he'd recognise at least one of the voices when he got close enough to hear. Darcy's voice was higher-pitched than the others, carrying high in the air, but whatever she was saying or trying to negotiate was muffled and distorted by the echoes. He didn't recognise Poe's voice, but he recognised the name. He was the shepherd trying to herd the wolves on the network before they were transported here. His name was also next to Bail's, which meant they were from the same squad, which meant- "Freddie," Matt called out as he straightened up and stumbled out into the open. He almost slipped on a patch of wet ground and reached out, preventing himself from crashing into the wall when his hand found it first. It was possibly the most awkward entrance anyone had the pleasure of witnessing. "Ow. Don't hurt him. It's the boyfriend." Darcy jumped when Matt called out for her. She was not expecting him to creep up like a creeper that way and then crash into the cave wall, so she was definitely concerned at his entrance. “Oh my god, are you okay?” she said, hurrying to his side. She started patting his arm, looking for injuries presumably, but really it was just a panic response. “What boyfriend? Who boyfriend?” Whoa, whoa. Too much hands grabbing touching feeling from out of nowhere. Matthew cringed, became very tense and retreated even further against the wall like it was some sort of 3 piece couch that could swallow him whole in the crevasses. "The Senator's son-in-law," Matt stated matter-of-factly, having made a half-dozen assumptions about the nature of Poe's relationship with Leia. He'd kept his voice low but with the way noises carried throughout the cave, Poe and Bail would have heard him loud and clear. Matt's hand had balled into a fist as he tried to pull his arm back away from Darcy. They must have looked like one of those comical travelling buddies they make entire TV series about. Bail arched an eyebrow at Poe and mouthed "son-in-law?" with a slightly amused expression on his face. That was something he hadn't heard yet and while he had a strong feeling Matt was mistaken, he also couldn't be one hundred percent sure. "Mr. Murdock," he said, clearing his throat. "Is that you with - Darcy and Freddie? Are there three of you?" Poe had relaxed enough to start getting dressed in earnest - unless this was a pretty skillful hustle, they weren’t in a lot of danger from this duo (trio - whoever they were). He pressed his lips into a line and gave an exaggerated eyeroll in silent response to Bail’s question - and was deeply grateful that the light level didn’t allow anyone to see the sudden and dramatic shift in color in his face. Not that there was anything to be embarrassed about - not that it wasn’t skirting around the truth - not that it wasn’t completely fine - not that - All right. This was not the time. Bail seemed to know the other party lurking in the shadows, and he didn’t seem alarmed. That was all Poe needed to know. “Come on in,” he said, grabbing his boots. “The water’s fine.” The handfuls of mushrooms, not so much. “Are you all right?” “Senator?” Darcy stage-whispered that to Matt, looking back and forth between their new friends. She put two and two together, though, and figured the older man was the Senator, and that made Poe the son-in-law. Okay, that was making more sense. “I still have so many questions. Is he the son-in-law or the boyfriend? Or is he the son-in-law and the boyfriend? Is there some serious Maury Povich levels of intrigue here or am I completely misreading this?” She stepped away from Matt then, who was cringing still anyway, and smiled over at Poe and Bail. “It’s just Darcy. Freddie is just a nickname, I guess, so no, just two of us.” "No he's- obviously he's going to marry the daughter and- ugh. Nevermind." Matt licked his lips and stood motionless until Darcy had stopped touching him for a few seconds, and then he visibly relaxed. He wasn't keen on going into the synopsis of what could be a Days of Our Lives season with the two gentlemen standing right there. He could have assumed that Poe was talking to Bail, but he wasn't sure until Bail actually spoke up. Matt's face lit up when he heard Bail's voice and he stepped closer tentatively towards the two of them. "We're fine," he spoke up. Matthew might not really know Poe, but he's come to trust Bail Organa. "How are you two holding up?" Bail cleared his throat again. "We're fine as well." He decided that he would take the time later to “I broke my wrist the other day, but Phasma set it for me,” Darcy said, taking her backpack back from Matt. No need for him to hold it if she wasn’t trying to ninja around in the dark poorly anymore. “I think the ties on my MacGyvered splint need to be tightened a little though, now that the swelling is going down, so if someone wouldn’t mind helping me with that, I’d really appreciate it.” Darcy tried her best to be helpful and personable, but their food situation wasn’t the best- even with Matt still refusing to eat, so she didn’t mention the half-can of peaches she’d saved in her bag. “I think we’re okay with water… There’s a creepy ass room that you can get to through a cave on the other side of the one with all the bats in it that has drinking water and a working toilet, but there are way too many zombies like… shambling and moaning and stuff. No way did I want to stay there for longer than we did, even if it is marginally comfortable and has a toilet.” She had a hard time not being chatty on the best of days, but she was nervous and still a little hopped up on the syrup from the can of peaches. “But I remembered smelling some sulfur or something when I was camped out not too far from here after the mess at the cornucopia, so we thought we’d come over in this direction. Do you mind if we hang with you two for a while?” “Of course,” Poe said, finally softening more or less completely. “I’ll look at it for you.” He tucked that little tidbit away - Phasma wasn’t dead yet - and sat on one of the drier outcroppings in the room. Field medicine was something he had a little practice with, but generally with the aid of a modern medkit - nothing like what they’d been working with here. Still, simple mechanical stuff he could manage without twisting someone’s arm off. He trusted his gut more than was often advisable, and he had a good vibe off Darcy, and Bail seemed to know his way around the other guy - so, he figured, they were all right. The thought of any place comfortable made him perk up and pay attention, but it didn’t sound as though it was really worth the trip. She wasn’t selling it too hard. “We haven’t stayed anywhere but here, really. The last time I went exploring, I - well, I don’t really want to go exploring anymore.” The less said about those fucking holes in the wall, the better. He didn’t want to encourage anyone to go looking, in case they had that kind of streak of perversity. “Have you run into any trouble? I mean - with anyone?” Plenty of people had been less than enthusiastic about his proposal to band together, but few of them had expressed any menacing intentions. That had been then, tough. This was now. It was odd for Matthew to be this close to the smell of sulphur and not feel the tingling itch in his nose or the sting in his eyes. If the total blackout wasn't so debilitating, he could get used to this. He moved very slowly towards the sound of Poe and Bail's voices, perching on the edge of a big boulder once he thought he was close enough to have a proper conversation. "Not really, apart from the first- the brawl at the start." Maybe Matthew wasn't a good judge of these things though. So far he'd been getting by on kindness and pity. "We're a mixed bag of trained killers, recreational fighters and civilians. There are people here who would and could do anything to get out of this place alive." As much as Matt thought Darcy was better off with these two people, convincing her to part ways with himself had proven to be nearly impossible. And he didn't want to weigh anyone else down. "We need to come up with some sort of plan. Take the rational approach while we still have it in us." Ordinarily Matthew would have just taken out the people whom he knew would happily take someone else's life without batting an eyelid. Put them somewhere they couldn't hurt other people. But he wasn't in a position to do that and he wouldn't ask that of anyone else. "Have we uhm... do you know if we've- lost anyone yet?" Bail shook his head. "I'm not sure if everyone made it out of that initial bloodbath alive or not. I've heard people here and there but I've no way of knowing if they are other ones of us or tricks of the cave. You're both welcome to rest here for a while with us," he said. “I know of at least one death,” Darcy said, her voice quieter as she moved toward Poe so he could check out her splint. “I can’t remember his name. He was the blue, furry guy.” She’d tried not to think about the way he’d charged toward her and Mimi, but that roar had been hard to ignore. Had he been attacking? Had he been coming to her defense? She thought she remembered him not wanting to fight, so she liked to think it was the latter. “I haven’t heard specifics, either,” Poe said, turning his attention to Darcy’s wrist, inspecting the makeshift splint to make sure he knew the terrain before trying to move it. “Plenty of injuries, it looks like. But maybe not so many people getting - well. Whatever it is they get, here.” He wouldn’t call it death. He didn’t believe it. And as he began to make a slow, careful adjustment to Darcy’s splint (which for all his efforts couldn’t be entirely smooth, because no one had seen fit to equip them with basic medical supplies) he spoke deliberately, his eyes pinned down to his work: “I don’t know what kind of plan we can make. I don’t know how to stop this. If the only way is supposed to be to hurt people - then there is no way. That’s it. I’ll sit here until they knock me out and wake me up in some other hellhole, I guess. We don’t have a choice.” ‘Sit here and wait to die’ didn’t sound like much of a plan to Matthew. But what else was there? Nobody really knew what was happening, what the ‘end-game’ was, and they were powerless against what was looking to be the inevitable conclusion to this ‘experiment’. His shoulders slumped as he seemed a little defeated, the fight seeping out of his veins. He shouldn’t be thinking back to Rocket’s offer of killing him quickly and painlessly, but the offer was a lot more tempting now than it had been however long ago their encounter was. “If you don’t mind, we’ll take you up on your offer and stay for a while.” Matthew’s hand curled into a fist atop his thigh. One day, one minute, one moment at a time. That’s just how they were going to have to get through this. |