[ OPEN ] ❝ and i don't want to talk about the world ❞

[punshots]

Who: Prompto (punshots) & YOU
What: October catchall, with open prompts for part 1 of the event!
When: Right the heck now!
Where: Around Olympia
Warning(s): sad boy...but none probably?!


I. MARKET DISTRICT.

[ He's there when the bomb goes off.

Not within range to be affected by it, but as a member of the royal guard, Prompto's very assignment is to patrol the market district. Facing down Victarion after he'd killed a man there the week previous had been harrowing enough, given him too much to think about, too many questions to ask about himself and what he was even doing in the guard in the first place. This latest attack is nothing short of a slap across the face.

Not that he lingers on how it makes him feel - he hardly dwells on it. As always, he's feelings are shuffled neatly aside, even when reaching out to his friends - his brothers - to make sure they're okay in the aftermath, only to find his messages rebounding. Noctis, Ingis, and Gladio - all three, in stasis once more.

He's not equipped to deal with this devastation right now, so he doesn't. He bottles it up, sets his jaw, and goes to work. This bomb went off on his watch, so...he has to find the people responsible, right? Of course he does. It's what...Noct would have done.

So he'll be doing the following:

A. Assisting with clean-up. The bomb has made a terrible mess of things, and these merchants in the market district are people he knows well by now. He knows their names, their families, their hopes and dreams, and something like this is nothing short of devastating for many of them. He can't replace what was infected, but he can at least help clear away what's no longer fit to sell.

He approaches with a hefty (just the adjective, not the brand, Hefty TM Reynolds Consumer Products, Inc.) trash bag that's already pretty swollen with infected goods, wearing gloves and a respirator provided by the Institute. For acting as a literal garbage man, he looks pretty chipper. ]

What's the word? [ He gestures to whatever goods they're sorting through. ] Think they'll pass biohazard infection?

[ Isn't this fun? He's having the time of his life. He's fine!

B. Investigating the area. The crime scene itself is the obvious place to start looking for clues to track down the persons responsible for the attack. Word spreads quickly through the guard that they're looking for individuals tattooed with an "M" on their wrists, so he'll address anyone still lingering nearby, looking over his shoulder and hiding his mouth with his hand - he's very...stealthy... ]

Hey...sorry to bug, but - did you happen to see anyone leaving this area around bomb o'clock today?

[ Yep. Still fine! ]

II. CHASING CRIMINALS.

[ Evidently, his investigating does turn up some promising leads, and Prompto is hot on the heels of one of those suspected associates, which he tipped off with his presence far too early and gave the woman a generous headstart. He's pursuing on foot, leaping between vehicles and over stalls - sometimes more gracefully than others - and if he weren't caught up in this, if this weren't so personal for him, he'd probably take a moment to appreciate the fact that he might kind of look like a badass right now.

But he doesn't allow himself that much, and he pursues the suspect to a tall, threadbare building that looks like it might collapse with a single gust of wind. The woman starts to scale it, and, okay, that looks pretty cool, too, but he's come this far. He's not about to lose her trail now.

So he grabs the closest person, frantic as he turns them to face him: ] How good are you at climbing?

[ And then adds, a moment later after glancing between the building and whoever he's grabbed: ] I'm super sorry about this!

III. TENDING THE ILL.

[ If you didn't know any better, you might think Prompto some sort of crazed, overly-enthusiastic delivery man the way he carts around the city on a bike with a basket filled with soup containers. Where did he get a bike? He probably let a kid hold his gun so he could borrow it for the day. It's not important.

Anyway, that's just what he's doing, zipping across Olympia and ferrying the ambrosia of all illnesses, chicken noodle soup, to his friends - and hell, even one-time acquaintances - in need. He'd been quick to contact just about everyone he knows as the news of the sickness spread, to make sure they were okay, and depending on their response, he tabulated them for future reference. That future reference is now, and he's ringing doorbells, dropping off soup, and by and large wearing a much more genuine smile than he has for days.

It's...hard not to, when he's helping people, even if they might not really need his help.

He can also be caught in between stops, catching a breather on lesser-traveled corners, pulling out his camera to flip back through his photos. He has to go back a considerable way before he reaches his pictures from Eos now, a fact which is so bittersweet it has his eyes glassy, but he grins reflexively at the smiling faces that greet him on the little screen.

With a quiet sigh, he murmurs: ] Hang in there, guys...

IV. WILDCARD.

[ Have something else in mind? Hit me up! I can also be reached on Plurk at retroscape for plotting! ]

Comments

[daemonized]

[Ardyn is already seated in the carriage, the brim of his hat obscuring his gaze, though it certainly isn’t hiding the way he grins when he hears that awfully familiar voice ring in his ears. Prompto can try his hardest to switch seats, but it’s already too late — the cab jostles forward in that telltale way it does when it’s begun moving, and now he's figuratively imprisoned within this lengthy carriage ride with Ardyn.]

Don’t tell me you’ll be complaining the whole way.

[He adjusts his hat, so that he can look at the young man properly.]

This’ll be a dreadfully long trip if you do. Surely we can talk of something more amiable to pass the time instead?

[A notion is so ridiculous that it can’t be anything more than a facetious joke.]

[punshots]

[ Okay, he's far from perfect and leaves a lot to be desired, but truly, truly, what did he do to deserve this.

But the carriage is in motion now and unless he opts to throw himself bodily out the window and walk all the way there - a choice which is more appealing than perhaps it should be - he's going to be in for a very, very long ride.

So with much reluctance, Prompto drops back into his seat, arms crossed with a petulant look as he tips back his head and sighs dramatically. ]

What if I do tell you I'll be complaining the whole way?

[ Because it's very likely. ]

- You know what? Fine. Fine! [ THIS IS FINE. ] What, you want to play twenty questions or something, then? I spy, maybe?

i'm so sorry for the delay!!

[daemonized]

[While Prompto is the petulant child, Ardyn is just the man who looks endlessly amused at his expense, which likely isn't all that reassuring to the other, anyway. He can't help it, though -- just look at the reaction he garners from him. As if he were trapped in an enclosed space with a predator.

(Maybe that metaphor is apt, though.)]

I spy with my little eye... a young man that needs to learn to not be so loud in the face of those trying to enjoy a peaceful ride to Wyver.

[Ardyn Izunia, talking about anything peaceful is a joke of the highest caliber.]

Though... twenty questions. That might pass the time in a more interesting manner, if the idea pleases you.

don't even worry about it!!

[punshots]

Ha ha. [ Yeah, a real high quality joke, and one that has Prompto unapologetically rolling his eyes. Really, as if he's the one who's going to make this ride problematic.

His arms remain tightly crossed, even if his palm is itching to reach for his gun just - just in case. He hasn't forgotten how his last meeting with Ardyn ended. It makes the promise of long carriage ride with the man even less bearable, but short of upending himself through the carriage window, there's nothing he can really do about it now. Maybe he can just pretend to fall asleep... ]

Okay - whatever. But I get to go first.

[ Twenty questions is better than whatever other topic of conversation they might stumble onto, undoubtedly. He does not have the energy for that. So if he must pick his poison, twenty questions it is. ]

[daemonized]

[Twenty questions with Ardyn Izunia, ladies and gentlemen. If anything else, Prompto can at least be promised an entertaining carriage ride. That, or maybe he should just pretend to fall asleep for both their sakes.

Ardyn pretends not to notice the way the other's hand is twitching for his gun, and instead just gestures vaguely in his direction.]

Very well. Then start.

[punshots]

[ Okay, so they're doing this.

Prompto slouches down in his seat, knees bouncing as he glances out the window again. He's trying to think of something so entirely mundane it's easy to overlook - he'll actually make some effort to try and make this difficult for Ardyn, and if he happens to stump the man, then all the better. ]

Let's see...okay, I've got it. Ask away.

[daemonized]

[Well. Here they go, then. Start with the basics:]

Is it alive?

[punshots]

Nnnnnnnnope.

[ He pops the P, no hesitancy in his answer. ]

[daemonized]

[is it lunafreya

Prompto are you going to give exaggerated answers like this the whole time.....]

Is it larger than a car?

[punshots]

[ I HATE THIS

And yes, probably. ]

Definitely not. Two questions down!

[daemonized]

[how has it come to this]

I can count, Prompto. [He pushes down the thought that surfaces, wondering if this is actually going to be more trying for him than Prompto when they reach question twenty.]

Is it larger than a breadbox?

[punshots]

[ It's anyone's guess, really. ]

Nah. [ Helpfully: ] Three questions down!

[daemonized]

[hm.

Ignoring the fact that Prompto is apparently going to count how many question they've gone through the whole time, he continues.]

Is it a man-made object?

[punshots]

[ You agreed to this, Ardyn... ]

In a...way, I guess.

[ What an informative answer. ]

[daemonized]

That's not exactly helpful.

[Criticisms for the answer giver!!]

Is it biological?

[punshots]

Nooooo.

[ But from the way he says it, it sounds like he might not be 100% sure.

He's super good at this. ]

[daemonized]

Are you even sure about the nature of whatever it is you're thinking about?

[Prompto. Why are you so bad at this.]

And that doesn't count as one of the questions, by the way.

[punshots]

[ are you really surprised though... ]

I'm not at liberty to answer that!

[ Read: no, he's not. He reaaaaally shouldn't have picked something...abstract...why didn't he pick, like, a dog or something. This game is going downhill fast. ]

[daemonized]

[Well it's not like Ardyn gives Prompto all the credit in the world or anything... but no... he's not surprised...

At any rate, Ardyn almost rolls his eyes. At least this is a bit of a clue that it's something probably either something overly complicated or an abstract notion that wasn't really suited for this game to begin with. Or both! He wouldn't be surprised if it were both.]

So then that's a "no". [GODS...] Don't tell me it's something like an emotion, is it?

[punshots]

[ (Surprise: it's both.)

Prompto's own misgivings are clearly written on his face as well, brows flat as he grumbles to himself. ]

Is that one of your twenty questions? [ A beat. ] Ooooor am I just trying to...mess with you?

[ He presses his fingertips together and arches a brow in the World's Worst Poker Face. YOUR MOVE. ]

[daemonized]

[Bluntly:] You're awful at this. I hope this isn't how you spent your idle time on your little extended roadtrip across Eos back home.

[He can't even imagine???]

But no. My question is this: is it in sight of us? Right now?

[punshots]

Tch. Maybe you're just not as good at this game as Noct and the others!

[ No, no, Ardyn is right. He really is terrible at this. With an apprehensive, sidelong glance: ]

Yyyyyyes?

[ IN A MANNER OF SPEAKING. ]

[daemonized]

[HOW IS HE SUPPOSED TO BE AT ALL CONFIDENT IN YOUR ANSWERS WHEN YOU REPLY LIKE THAT?]

Is that a question or an answer? Either you can see it, or you cannot.

[punshots]

[ He holds up both of his hands, palms out. ]

Okay, okay - no - it's not visible to the naked eye.

[ That's more of an answer than he should give, but maybe he's just hoping this game will end now... ]

[daemonized]

[This is a terrible game please help them both stop suffering

Even Ardyn can only take so much.]

Is it your indiscernible lack of skill for playing games like this?