Chapter Text
“Sisters”: Alara
Alara Vox storms out of the Crimson Cut studio the second the cameras stop rolling without so much as a word to her co-hosts - or that mouthy little cunt they brought along to humiliate me. I won’t forget this. She catches a glimpse of herself reflected off the shiny metal door just before it slides open - And I’m sure the public won’t let me forget this! Gods above, I’m a fucking disaster! Selica yells something to her that she doesn’t bother to listen to just as she’s stepping across the threshold - No time, I have a job to do! And an escort to berate…
“Alara-a-a-a!” Don’t turn around, she feeds on the attention! She presses the call button again, urging the elevator to come faster - it doesn’t listen. Ismene flings both arms around the back of her neck, resting her chin on the top of her head. The smell of wine and bile on her breath nearly makes Alara gag - “You’re so short! I forget sometimes, we’re always sitting down when we-”
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?!” She ducks out of the grab and whirls around wearing the most furious look she can muster - Not hard, given her behavior the last week. “After all you’ve done to me, what makes you think you have the right?!”
Ismene laughs - “All I’ve done?” she puts a hand over her heart, feigning hurt with a smile still struck across her face - “I’d have thought you’d be thanking me. You weren’t doing a very good job of looking sympathetic on your own.”
“You made me look pathetic! How did you get ahold of that footage, anyway?!” Tears start to form at the corner of her eyes again and she nearly screams - Not now! The elevator doors fly open and she stomps inside, Ismene close behind - “and why are you following me?!”
“Just wait, I’ll show you-” Leaning against the wall to support her drunken stance, she starts to type on a datapad-
“I’ve had enough of your ‘mysterious mastermind’ act! Gods, this is more obnoxious than when you decided to speak in third person for an entire year-”
“Will you just look at this before you start your lecture?” she thrusts the device into Alara’s hands.
She recognizes the video immediately as the one Ismene had just shown the entire country - This is going to haunt me until the end of my days, isn’t it? - but it’s the view count that sends her reeling “How have so many people seen this already?!”
“Because I’m a talented marketer, of course!” Ismene takes a small bow - Alara rolls her eyes - ”And before you go and get all worked up about me ruining your story, read some of the comments! I don’t think you’ve been this publicly beloved since your own Hunger Games.”
Alara skims the first few comments, not quite digesting them - “I was never so much beloved, more an exciting upset-” She sees Voltaea’s name and stops - ‘@SeverinaSmiles 3:26pm; Just spent my whole monthly allowance on sponsor donations (I am so responsible hahahaaaa) Fully team #VoltaeaVictory now, they’re gonna be such good TV!!!!’ Curious, she clicks the linked tag and is immediately bombarded with a hundred posts just like it - They want her to win. A smile creeps in - They want to see more of us. One comment in particular catches her eye, and she can’t help but laugh as she reads it back to herself - You’ll be happy to know they bought your vulnerable act, my love - ‘@IceKitty42 4:11pm; Did you hear Voltaea’s interview though? I’m so happy 2 see Alara takes good care of her <3 #VoltaeaVictory, we’ll be ur new family, girl!’ I do take good care of you, don’t I? Better than they did back home, at least.
“Well?” Ismene’s snarky drawl snaps her back to the present.
Alara is in no mood for snark - “Well what?”
“Am I or am I not a better propagandist than you are?” Oh for fucks sake.
“Is this a competition for you?!” She tosses the datapad back at her co-host, who laughs at her frustration.
“Everything’s a competition here, Alara! I’ll remind you that you were the one who taught me that.”
“I… suppose I did. Didn’t I?” Alara clears her throat - But that doesn’t mean I’m letting you win. “There were still plenty of naysayers, darling, don’t get ahead of yourself.”
“They may not have anything nice to say- but they can’t stop talking about you, can they?” The elevator lurches to a stop near the ground floor and the two step out into the windowed hallway overlooking the control room.
Alara peers through the window, scanning the room for a very specific powder blue - “I was getting them talking just fine on my own, thank you-” before taking off towards the entrance.
“But now some of them actually like you!” Ismene stops her just before they enter the room with a hand on the shoulder- “Alara, you can’t be this petty every time I beat you at something.”
“I can, I have, and I will continue to do so until one of us drops dead - now let’s go give my escort a thorough lashing. I need at least one victory today.”
“So you admit I won, then?” The smug look of satisfaction on her co-host’s face tempts Alara to smack it off - But I’m exhausted, and she’s hardly worth the effort.
“Shut up.” She gives herself the last word on the matter and grabs Ismene’s hand, dragging her down the stairs onto the control room floor towards Orville. The other escort next to him - Gods, it should be a crime for someone that fashionable to slum it with Orville - tugs on his sleeve and nods in their direction to warn him before making a swift escape back to her own terminal. I’m not giving him a single second to breathe this time- “Orville!” She barks, and a dozen necks swivel in her direction - Not that I mind the audience. Perhaps it’ll help drive the point home.
The round boy scrunches his shoulders, turning around slowly to face her with a fake-innocent smile plastered on his face. “Alara, I was just about to-”
“If the end of that sentence isn’t ‘beg for you to forgive this colossal fuckup of mine’ then I don’t want to hear it!”
“I- I- ah-” He stammers uselessly-
“You disregarded every rule I laid out and blew gods-know-how-much of our sponsor account on something without consulting anyone on a gift for that fucking boy, while our actual contenders were stumbling around in the dark nearly getting themselves killed!” Alara points in the direction of District Seven’s terminal - the two mentors standing there exchange a nervous look, “Did you think to ask either of them about this? YOU’RE the one always going on about how we should be more cooperative with allied districts, but OH NO! Apparently that goes RIGHT out the window the second you have a favorite tribute to dote on!” She can feel every set of eyes in the room on her now except for Orville’s - “And now you can’t even look at me, you fucking coward!”
For the first time since she’s had the displeasure of knowing him, Alara sees her escort snap. Beet red, shaking, he lifts his gaze to meet hers with hate in his eyes - “You have some nerve accusing me of favoritism with how you’ve behaved with that girl!” It takes everything in her not to laugh as he raises a soft fist in what he seems to think is a threatening gesture - “My JOB is to make our tributes feel comfortable, regardless of if you’ve taken a sexual interest in them or not-”
Ismene grabs both her wrists and pulls her into a restraint before she can knock his teeth out, “Shhhhhhh. You’ve swung at too many Capitol folk lately, love, don’t forget what happened last time.” Alara lets her arm fall limp - Another round of court-ordered rehab might kill me at my age. Orville still leaps backward like he’s under attack and yelps.
Alara takes a long, deep breath to gather herself - Be smart about this. He’s handling the sponsors. Get Voltaea out safely, then you can pry this boy apart all you’d like. “Leave. I don’t want to speak to you again unless it’s life or death!” Orville looks stunned - but he quickly pulls it together, shuffling towards the stairs. As he passes her, she wrenches her wrist from Ismene’s grip and grabs ahold of his collar, tugging him within an inch of her and practically spitting - “Consider yourself very lucky that your job would be hard to fill this time of year. You won’t have that luck in the off-season. Understood?” He nods, and she lets him return to his cowardly exit. I’m going to end his whole career.
Ismene sighs contentedly behind her - “This was fun, actually! I should yell at my escort more often - she could use the discipline, I think. I still suspect she’s been watering down my wine somehow… Oh! Alara, you should come up for a nightcap, we could yell at her together!”
For a moment, Alara considers it - I could do with an outlet for all this tension… - Then catches sight of a familiar figure on the terminal screen and shakes her head. “I’m sure you’ll have a great time breaking her down all on your own, darling, but I have work to do.”
“We’ve been working all day, don’t be bor-”
Alara cuts her off - “You would be just as boring if you didn’t have four other people to do your job for you!”
Ismene giggles, gesturing in the direction of her own District’s station - “Who? Them?” She shakes her head - “They won’t let me anywhere near mentoring duties. Hands-on or otherwise. I think the only one who’s bothered to speak to me this year is Cecilia, and that’s only because she’s too polite to walk by without saying hello.”
Alara is taken aback - I’d always assumed she had a fairly lively social life with her fellow District victors, Selica certainly does. And if they’re keeping her from mentoring… “Hang on - didn’t you take all the credit for that girl’s victory? I distinctly remember you spending the whole off-season playing up your ‘new and revolutionary’ training methods.” Come to think of it, she never did go into much detail about what those were…
“I may have taken some liberties with the story of who did what…” Ismene floats over to the console, running a finger over the massive screen and tapping twice on the glass in the corner - “She’s on the move, by the way. Your girl.”
“Don’t change the subject,” Alara takes up at her side, the green-tinted figure of Voltaea and her obnoxious companion making their way down a scrap-strewn street. “Liar or not, I struggle to see their logic in sidelining you. You’re as much a victor as any of them! Likely more, given I can only remember one of their names-”
“Well, there’s S-”
She claps a hand over Ismene’s mouth, “Not an invitation to start listing them, darling, just an observation.”
Ismene pauses for a long moment after Alara drops her hand, “I mean… Can you really blame them for the way they act around me?” Ridiculous! What’s that supposed to mean?!
Alara scoffs, “Of course I can! It’s one thing when I go out of my way to upset you, that’s my JOB! It’s another entirely when some half-inbred District trash-rats think they can-”
“I don’t think you referring to everyone as inbred trash-rats is going to help us salvage our reputations-”
“Fine- but I still don’t like that they’re so cruel to you! And who just ignores someone like that?! I-” Alara stops herself from saying any more on the matter when she sees the incredulous look she’s getting from the woman next to her - Well… I suppose that does sound ridiculous coming from me. They both stand in silence for a few minutes, watching the slow march of the girls on screen towards - where exactly are they going?
She fumbles around with the touch controls blindly - I know there’s some way to unmute this - until Ismene finally breaks the silence and asks-“What is it that you’re trying to do, exactly?”
Alara groans loudly - “I’m trying to find the volume settings, but apparently they’ve hidden it in some stupid, godsforsaken place because I can’t seem to-” Ismene grabs hold of her hand, guiding it to the right-hand side of the screen where a volume slider springs into existence - “Well. That wasn’t a very intuitive spot, now was it!” She glares at the screen like it’s personally insulted her.
As soon as she hears Voltaea speak, her anger turns to tears - She’s fine! Get it together! She leans forward, letting her curls fall and hide her face. It doesn’t seem to fool Ismene, who lays a comforting hand on her back - At least she has the decency not to mention it this time. “-think it’s too much further, Coulomb said a mile at most.”
“Only a mile? It feels like we’ve been walking forever - carrying these back full is gonna suck.” Sarah holds up a large bucket, with what looks like a massive crack in the side patched with tape - You’ve found water then! Good girl, that’s critical - you’re right on track! Voltaea shrugs, leading the way forward towards what looks like a wrought-iron gate coming into view in the distance.
“Do you need anything? I’m going to call and have some wine delivered.” The sickly-sweet tone of Ismene’s voice makes Alara’s skin crawl - I don’t need to be coddled. Her stomach growls angrily at her, and the back of her head has started to throb - Though I suppose I could stand to have a snack with my next dose.
“Grapes? The red ones- but no seeds! I hate seeds.” Ismene nods and starts towards the phones - Oh! “And a cheese platter!” That should do it. As soon as it’s clear she’s occupied, Alara reaches into her dress and pulls a silver snuff bullet from under her breast. She’s still trying to sniff back the last few drips when her co-host returns and frowns at her.
“You know there’s less vulgar ways to take that stuff."
“I once saw you get so drunk that you passed out in your own waste on the floor of the studio, do not stand there and lecture me about vulgarity.” She turns back to the terminal, where the girls have pushed past the gate into a huge, fenced-in park area with an all-too-convenient pond at the center - There’s water, sure, but this place feels like a trap… I hope you know what you’re doing, darling.
“That’s why I stick to wine now- oh!” Ismene leans forward to get a closer look, then points at a patch of darkness on screen- “There! Watch there! Tell me if I’m seeing things– but I think someone’s following them.”
Alara squints at the darkness - I don’t see- wait- “There’s something moving- help me with the cameras, we need a better angle!” Heart pounding, she grabs hold of Ismene and squeezes her, trying to urge her to move faster - “Now!”
“I’m working on it, calm down-” Her fingers fly across the screen, flipping through menus faster than Alara’s eye can follow, until she’s pulled up a whole panel of cameras across the park. “Let’s see…” I can’t see anything, that’s the problem! “Here we go- there’s two of them.” She taps one of the feeds to zoom in - “Is that Selica’s girl?”
Alara recognizes the face immediately - “Shit, it is- we have to warn them!” Ducking behind a cluster of bushes some fifty yards away from her girl is Cymbria, knife in hand - with her sidekick in tow, it looks like, damnit! This time, she doesn’t bother to fumble around on the console on her own- “Get me back to the gift menu, I have a thought-”
Ismene rolls her eyes - “You could try please, it wouldn’t kill you.” - but she’s already pulled up the whole list of potential sponsor gifts before Alara thinks of a properly sarcastic retort.
She isn’t sure of exactly what she’s looking for until she sees it - a set of throwing knives - Hopefully you catch the hint, my love. “Has that girl ever actually thrown a knife? I thought you’d send another axe, she did quite admirably with it earlier…”
“It’s not about her using them, it’s about the message-” Alara hits confirm on her order, watching the screen intently for any sign of the drone - Gogogogogogogo, faster! The stims itch at the back of her teeth, fists clenching - “Is that it? No-”
“I’ve never seen you so impatient, and that’s saying something because you’re the most impatient person I’ve ever met.” Ismene types something at blazing speed- I don’t know how she moves like that drinking the way she does. “Here, you can watch from the drone view, it looks like it’s just peeking through the clouds now-”
Alara can’t bring herself to speak while she watches the drone descend, then drop it’s parachute - Oh for fucks sake, I said go faster, not slower! On the cameras, she sees Voltaea stop and whip her head upward, looking around wildly. The drone’s microphone barely picks up what she’s saying- “There’s a drone, I hear the buzzing-”
Another voice booms out -“I don’t hear anything-” The camera picks up Cymbria and her sidekick still crouched in the same bushes, watching- Good, they haven’t made a move, then-
“Shhh!” Good girl, don’t let her distract you- Voltaea positions herself under the falling drone, catching it by the parachute strings-
“What is it?” Sarah looms over her shoulder as she unravels the package, a set of four throwing knives in a pouch falling onto the pavement below.
Voltaea scoops them up, and pulls a knife out of the pouch with a frown - “Knives? But I’m not any good with them.” The way her girl looks straight into the drone camera when she says it - It’s like you’re talking to me, but- she loops the pouch around her belt -Damnit, you’re not listening!
Alara is just about to send another set when the obnoxious girl chimes in again - “Huh. Well, maybe they come in handy in a pinch, I guess?” She claps Voltaea on the shoulder, playfully, but Alara still has to bite back the urge to scream - You know better than to let her touch you like that - “Why don’t you ask your girlfriend to send us something useful, like something to carry all this water in-”
Oh fuck - She realizes at that moment a fatal flaw in her plan - I didn’t even think about the other tributes seeing the news, shitshitshitshit- “I don’t know what you’re talking about-” Voltaea stiffens, shuts her eyes, digs her nails into her palm - Don’t do that! You haven’t cleaned those all day!!
“Hey, come on, I mean…” Sarah shifts in front of her girl “You have to know it’s kind of… obvious, right?”
“You saw the news-” Voltaea drops to a crouch, covers her ears with her hands - Stand up, you idiot, before you get stabbed! - “I can’t believe she fucking DID THAT!” Now it’s her girl yelling far too loudly for comfort-
“Voltaea, you have to be QUIET!” Alara shouts at the screen and six heads swirl around to stare in her direction- “I hope you’re all enjoying the show!” Not one of them answers - That’s what I thought.
“Sparky, you gotta stand up-” Sarah grabs her hand and pulls a very reluctant Voltaea to her feet.
The contact seems to shock her out of whatever state she was in, because she takes a visible breath - That’s it, just calm down, “I think she might hate me-” After everything I’ve done?!? Gods above, I thought we were past all the insecurity-
“Look, I don’t know anything about this besides what I saw in the waiting room for private sessions, but I don’t think that’s it-”
“Ismene, change the cameras back - I need to check on their little stalkers-” Alara pauses for a moment, then adds - “Please.” with a grimace. Her co-host flashes a triumphant grin at her, then pulls up a small picture-in-picture feed showing the others.
“It looks like they’re still just sitting there- I don’t even think they’re talking-”
“Good, I have time to break her out of this nonsense-” What was it that girl was saying to ask me about? Oh, hang on- Alara flicks through her options and settles on a lined backpack designed to carry a few gallons at a time. Not exactly cheap, but… A quick glance at their alliance’s current account balance tells her that won’t be a problem - Gods! That’s almost twice what we had when I came in here! It’s your lucky day, darling, we’re apparently the talk of the town! Alara sends two of the packs, and another set of the knives - Hopefully you’ll listen this time-
Her heart sinks when she looks back and sees Voltaea in an unsettlingly tight embrace with her ally - I thought I told you not to flirt with her! They only break apart when Voltaea rips away, pointing at the sky - “I hear another drone!” her voice sounds choked, like she’s been crying. Something that tastes like bile and guilt wells up in her throat - Damnit, stop making me feel like that! I sent you what you asked for!
The package crashes to the ground with a loud thump just a few feet away from her girl, the parachute strings having tangled on the descent - they both jump, a sharp pang of recognition hits Alara’s chest - I remember what it was like to jump at every noise like that… damnit, I hate that you’re in there!
“What is it-” Sarah asks as Voltaea tears the wrapping off of the package, holding up one of the packs and checking it over with a growing smile on her face-
“I’m pretty sure this is exactly what you said to ask for, the inside feels like a rain jacket or something. I think this is watertight!” Voltaea wipes the last of her tears “Do you think she heard us?”
Sarah squats down next to her and pulls out the other pack, running her fingers along the inside - “I think you’re right, but it’s easy enough to check-” she stands, jogging to the edge of the water and scooping the bag full. She fumbles with the zipper on the top, spilling water all over herself in the process - but manages to get it sealed. “Okay, maybe more carefully than that, but -” She feels over the outside for leaks - “I think it’s good once you get it zipped up. I’d say she probably heard us.”
Voltaea pulls the knives out of the packaging with a frown - “She sent more of these- wait if she hears us…” Oh thank the fucking gods, please tell me you’ve figured it out! Alara can practically see the gears turning behind her eyes - then nearly jumps upright - “She must see something we don’t, we should move quickly-” Well… that’s at least a part of the message.
Voltaea grabs her pack, filling and zipping it while it’s still underwater. They still fill the buckets, but her girl insists on carrying both - “You need to keep that axe ready. Just in case.”
“Are you feeling any better yet?” Ismene asks, nearly sending her flying out of her own skin-
“Fuck me, I forgot you were there-” Alara swats her arm away when she goes in for a sideways hug- “I’m fine, but she’s not out of trouble yet. I still don’t trust this place- or those girls-”
“Which ones?”
“Any of them! They’re all a threat! I just hope she’s smart enough to keep seeing them for what they are.” Alara points at Cymbria, who starts moving at a crouch towards the side of the pond after the other two take their leave. “I’d especially like to keep an eye on this one- I don't know what she’s up to, but I don’t like it.”
“It seems like she’s up to the same thing yours is- looking for water. Though she’s gone about it a bit differently. Smart to follow a stronger group around, I think.” Ismene waves over the waiter who’s just arrived with their snack order, snatching the bottle of wine off the cart as soon as it’s in reach. “Thank you, just leave it.” She pops the cork, knocking back a long swig - “Here, you look like you could use this-”
“I’m still recovering from the last time we drank together, thanks very much.” Alara scowls at her, then snatches the bottle after a brief hesitation - “One drink, for the nerves.”
One drink quickly spirals into the two of them passing the bottle back and forth, Alara’s whole body feeling warmer by the minute - Maybe I earned a bit more than one drink for the sort of day I’ve had. “You know what I still don’t understand about this-” Alara pokes her co-host in the shoulder “-is why YOU decided to change your tune. A few days ago you were yapping about how you thought Voltaea was bound for death, then you get me drunk and sic me on her like a rabid dog, then you stalk us on our last night together - now you’re suddenly our number one defender?”
Ismene tenses after a long pause, whispers - “Do you know how lonely I was last year?” Alara stares at her, head cocked to the side - What? “Fuck, Alara, do you remember how lonely YOU were? You came to me after our last show of the season, blitzed out of your mind, sobbing about how you’d rather be dead than face another year of watching tributes die all by yourself-”
Alara shakes her head, a memory of her burying her head in Ismene’s lap on a rooftop, sobbing like a child, death seeming preferable to suffering a moment longer - No, that’s BULLSHIT, I’d never- “I did no such thing!”
“Oh shut up, you haven’t been able to tell me a decent lie in years! It was hours of this! And apparently trying to help you at your most vulnerable was some sort of heinous crime to you, because you just IGNORED me once you’d cleaned yourself up.” Ismene scoffs at her - “For a year!”
I’m not weak, you shouldn’t have tried to coddle me! No that, won’t help- “You could have gone to Selica-”
Ismene isn’t having it- “I did! And after she blew off every attempt I made to connect, all I got out of her was some half-assed advice to give you space! But you’d just gotten done telling me how you wanted to die! How was I supposed to feel okay leaving you alone?”
“You could have made public appearances!” Alara tries to reason with her - Anything to chase that pathetic fucking memory away-
“Oh, yes, and bare my heart to the Capitol? Not one of these people understands things the way we do. They haven’t lived it!” Ismene slumps back against the terminal, fighting tears - “I just missed you, and I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you! Even if you were intent on ignoring me forever… who else do I have? How could I let you go? So when it seemed like you’d finally found something that made you happy…” she wipes away the tears on her cheeks - “I just thought if I could be a part of things… if I could help you get what you wanted… maybe you’d spend time with me again. Like we used to, you know? I miss that more than anything.”
“You’re the most ridiculous person in the entire world-” Alara pulls her into a tight hug- “-and I can’t stand you! Stop sniveling and pull yourself together.” I… should be kinder to her. About the big things, at least.
Ismene sniffles, leaning over and burying her face awkwardly in Alara’s shoulder - “I love you too.”
Alara almost says something dismissive, but thinks better of it, and just says - “Alright, that’s enough-” while doing absolutely nothing to break their embrace. It's not until she catches sight of the terminal and realizes she doesn’t have eyes on Voltaea that she wrenches herself apart- “Can you-”
“Of course. I’ll pull up their trackers-” The map shows Sarah leading the way towards the tower, Voltaea in tow, almost rounding the corner onto the right block- “They’re making good time, I’ll see if I can get an angle closer to their campsite-”
Sarah comes into view first, axe at the ready. Voltaea, glistening with sweat behind her, seems less than enthused with her choice to carry the buckets now that they’ve nearly made it to safety - Always take the extra precaution, especially if those two make a habit of following you around! No sooner than she’d thought it, she sees a shadow moving on the street behind them - “Can you get a better angle on this?” She taps the shadow, and Ismene pulls up a nearby camera that shows Cymbria and her sidekick stalking just behind them. They duck into a building across the street from the broadcast tower and she loses sight of them - “I think those little rats are nesting nearby-”
Ismene flips through a few more cameras until she finds one showing the interior - a blown out mess of concrete, rebar, and busted furniture with a backpack sitting in the corner along with a few scavenged supplies - “It looks like it. Should we try to warn her again, do you think?”
Alara weighs it - “Not yet. Not unless something changes. It doesn’t look like they’re keen on making a move while they’re teamed up. She should be safe from those two as long as she sticks to that ogre she’s travelling with.” A grim thought crosses the back of her mind - Don’t jinx it - “I hope, anyway.”
“Please tell me you’re not going to stick around watching this all night.” Ismene finishes her first bottle of wine, and uncorks a second before passing it to Alara - “If you make yourself sick, you’ll be useless to her you know.”
“I…” She looks back at the feed, Voltaea climbing over the fence after stashing the buckets in the back of a busted truck - “Do you think she’ll stay put for a while?”
“I would, if I were her. They don’t need much of anything. Food, maybe, but-” Alara is already pulling up the sponsor menu again, and sends enough ration bars - the cheapest option she can find - for the whole group. I don’t want you making the excuse that you need to help the others, darling, so I’ll be generous this time. “Well then. I can’t think of anything else they might need for now, can you?” Alara shakes her head. “So-” Ismene grabs hold of her hand, “-Can we please go and have a nightcap? I’m dying to know all the details you’ve been keeping to yourself-”
“You’re really going to probe me for bedroom gossip after the day I’ve had?” Alara gives her an exasperated look, but her co-host just smiles - “Fine. But we’re watching the live feeds all night. I want to be the first to know if anything so much as smells like it’s going to happen!”
Alara spares one last look at the terminal, where Voltaea is bickering with her pet ogre again about something - It can’t be that important, all that girl does is complain to you - before grabbing the snack cart and heading for the door. And as far as Ismene goes… well. I don’t want to be alone.