[Console] (Video) ❅ The First

[stonebird]

(She waits until she is sitting primly in a chair, her back straight and her hair braided neatly over one shoulder. Appearance is everything - or so she has learned time and time again. No matter how uneasy she feels, she cannot show it. Alayne Stone won't break.)

I am new to the kingdom of Keeliai, but I have been well-informed. (A small smile - one which doesn't reach her eyes - follows before she continues:) My name is Alayne Stone and I am from a world called Westeros. Should my world sound familiar to anyone, I am eager to speak with you.

(Though perhaps not meet. The fact that is standing on her own hasn't escaped her. She no longer has Littlefinger's protection.

The next part is strange to word, so she decides to just say it.)

Is it true that we are on the back of a giant turtle? I find that hard to believe. Even the largest of turtles are not spacious enough to hold a world, surely?

(What happens when the turtle turns the wrong way?)

Are there other creatures of such a considerable size? I should like to avoid the predators.

(The turtle should avoid them too.)

There are items which I will eventually need. Where might I procure them? Is there a market and some sort of currency?

(Yes, she knows she needs to focus on the things she can control. Otherwise... Otherwise...

She will lose the hope she has been able to retain.)

Comments

[stonebird]

(As he speaks, she closes her eyes and lets the words wash over her. She will have to take time and think them over, but her over-all impression is that this world isn't much different - aside from the turtle, the different people and the magic - from Westeros. Political upheavals and living amongst suspicious, potentially violent people isn't anything new.)

Thank you for taking the time to explain. I will do what I can to aid you in regaining what you lost. I do not plan on being a nuisance. All I require are the necessities.

(Pants or shirts simply won't do. If she must, she will seek fabric and make her own dresses.

Her pale eyes grow thoughtful and she frowns.) Are resources limited for the Kedan by any chance?

[highprofilerichkid]

Um, yeah, sure. Don't worry about it. [He's a little thrown by how formally she talks. Being warily polite is pretty normal reaction to the situation, though. Definitely better than freaking out. Or, uh, immediately running off to beat the shit out of the first person you recognize from your world. Ahem.]

And yeah, resources are scarce all around, but it's a lot better than it was during the war. There's a whole lot more agriculture and industry all over the turtle.

[stonebird]

The Kedan's reaction to foreigners could be due to the lack of resources. People become insular when they feel a need.

(She has watched the poorer people struggle in King's Landing. She was even been attacked by them because of Joffrey's negligence.)

[highprofilerichkid]

There's not even forty of us, [Tony says, a little grumpily. Resources aren't that scarce.] Mostly I think they're just pissed about how the war was handled. Even though we were kidnapped to fight their war, and we won it anyway. Seems a little petty, if you ask me.

[stonebird]

Perhaps they have experienced want before. Their fear is interfering with their logic and, after a year, they stopped thinking of you - the foreigners - as people.

(It doesn't have to make sense. Large crowds operate on instincts alone.)

Pettiness is a human trait.

[highprofilerichkid]

I guess so. [Tony's a little taken aback. It's easy to feel persecuted and victimized as a foreigner, but it's true that the kedan have had plenty of their own problems. Alayne just got here, and she's already defending the kedan - it's a small but sharp reminder to Tony that the world doesn't always revolve around him. He needs to be reminded of that pretty regularly.

He doesn't bother pointing out that the kedan aren't technically "human." Her point is valid, and that kind of pedantry isn't his style.]

Anyway, [back to slightly more comfortable territory,] if you, uh, need someone to show you around the market, I'm free. I can show you where to get the basics and then find Anton to get you set up with a room here.

[stonebird]

(She strove to understand the needs of those in King's Landing - even if she couldn't do anything about them. It's all part of training to be Queen, though that isn't a goal she is pursuing currently. She isn't sure what she wants anymore - beyond safety and a place to roost unmolested.)

I would be grateful for the tour. Where shall I meet you? (The sooner she can have some stability, the better she will feel.)

[highprofilerichkid]

Cool. [Tony smiles warmly.] I can come meet you. Where are you?

[stonebird]

I am within the city, near the market, I believe. I did not travel far when I arrived. (Assuming everyone arrives in the same place?)

[highprofilerichkid]

[They don't, actually, but—] Just stay right there, I'll pull up your console's location and meet you in a sec.

[The feed clicks off, and he shows up in person about five minutes later.]

Alayne? [He grins, waves, and approaches.] Hey. My name's Tony Stark, by the way. Sorry, I didn't introduce myself over the console.

[stonebird]

(While she waits for him, she rises from her seat and smoothes over her gown. Her heart is beating uncomfortably fast and she has to clutch her hands together to keep them from shaking.

But then he arrives and he looks as nice as he sounded over the console.)

... (The beginning of a smile curves her lips until she hears his surname. Stark. Oh.) I'm relieved to have met someone as knowledgable as you, Lord Stark.

(His name rings oddly in her ears, but she purposefully pushes back the emotions.)

You had no reason to be patient with me.

[highprofilerichkid]

[That startles a chuckle out of him.] Whoah, there's no "Lord" in there. The employees at my own company don't even call me "sir." Tony's fine. And seriously, it's no problem.

You ready to go? I think I managed to scrape together enough cash to at least get you started. [Maybe not enough to buy more fancy gowns, but enough to by some extra pairs of underwear, at least. There is nothing more poignantly inconvenient and demeaning about being poor in an unfamiliar place than having to wash your only pair of underwear in the sink every night.]

[stonebird]

Tony...? (First names are not something she is accustomed to and they sound odd on her tongue.) Thank you.

(She gives him a little curtsy, biting her lip.) I spoke to Mister Shudder and he said he has extra fabric and sewing supplies. I know how to put all fabric to good use.

(There is no such thing as spare or wasted fabric - even in Winterfell.)

[highprofilerichkid]

Are you going to make your own clothes?

[Dang, that's impressive. Tony's learned to patch up simple rips and holes, and he's not actually terrible at it (he has the dexterity for much more precise work than sewing, after all) but making clothes from scratch? He wouldn't know where to start.]

[stonebird]

I plan to. I am practiced with a needle and thread. (She has made dresses before. In fact, the one she is wearing was made by her.)

[highprofilerichkid]

Nice. I can make a suit of power armor, but I have no idea how to make a shirt. [He shakes his head and grins self-deprecatingly. He can't cook, either. He is not, shall we say, domestically skilled.]

I can still take you to a good seamstress if you want, but if you've got your wardrobe under control I guess I'll just give you a tour of the market.

[stonebird]

Power armor? What is the difference between regular armor and power armor? (Her skills are mostly domestic. She has spent her life preparing herself to be a important, noble lady.)

I should like to see their shop. I like finding new patterns and new ideas.

[highprofilerichkid]

A couple gigajoules per second, [Tony replies lightly. And unhelpfully.] I'll show you later. [He would love (L O V E) to show off his armor, but from the way she talks and some of the stuff she's said, Tony's starting to think she's from a time point in her world that is relatively far in the past, compared to him. He doesn't want to freak her out with crazy tech right after she's arrived. He can get a little what's a tactful way to say "dangerously over-invested" enthusiastic when he's joking around, but he's not mean-spirited, and he's not going to bust out the armor just to try to catch her off-guard. She's a little stiff, and he can't get a good read on how well she'd take it.]

Okay, the shop I know is just a couple blocks from here. Come on.

[stonebird]

(She stares at him caught between laughter and amazement. Gigajoules? Did he make up that word?)

What do these...gigajoules...look like? (Oh she feels silly saying that word. What is technology, Tony?) Do they sparkle in the light?

(Joules = Jewels.)

Seamstresses are not always available in my world. That's why young women are taught how to sew.

[highprofilerichkid]

[Tony lets out another surprised laugh. You know, even if only by accident... she's not completely wrong. A whole lot of that energy output gets used for stuff that gives off light.] I guess they do.

Clothes get mass-produced in my world, so not a lot of people know how to sew by hand anymore, [he explains as they walk.] And if I asked Pepper to hem my pants for me, she'd probably punch me. [The conjecture is entirely good-natured: Pepper would be well within her rights to punch him, and he would respect her for it.]

[stonebird]

(She laughs along with him, covering her mouth with her hand. Loud, boisterous laughter isn't very lady-like.)

Your armor must be costly. (His next words amaze her and she nearly stops in her tracks.) How is that possible? How can they ensure their clothes fit properly?

(Measurements must be taken surely?)

Who is Pepper?

[highprofilerichkid]

It is. [Also very true. Not that Tony has ever in his life had to worry about how much something costs.]

The clothes get produced in all different sizes. You can still get things hand-tailored, but people usually only do that with formal wear and other expensive clothes. And Pepper is one of my best friends, back home.

[stonebird]

(She lifts her skirt delicately, her heels hitting the pavement with soft clicks. The crow feathers that decorate the top of her gown shimmer in the light and the chain that is hanging around her neck swings slowly back and forth.)

The peasants could benefit from such a production. (It's something to think about.) You must miss her.

[highprofilerichkid]

Yeah, it makes clothes cheaper, I guess. [He's all for technology making people's lives better - that's sort of his raison d'etre - but industrialized clothing production is a little mundane for him.

He's silent for a couple seconds after her next comment.] I miss her a lot, [he finally replies.] And Rhodey, my other friend. And my dad. I really miss them all. But I have friends here too, and Gene, and... The way things are set up now, we lose our memories of this universe when we go back to our own. I want to go home, but it's really hard to leave everything here behind when you know you'll forget it all and never be able to come back.

[stonebird]

Clothing is a high commodity in the winter. Without it, many of the lower class freeze. (It's not something she turns a blind eye to; it bothers her.) I'm not certain I miss anyone...

(There is a pause, an intake of breath.) ...except Father.

(Yes, Alayne would miss her father. Sansa misses her father too, but she knows that feeling is fruitless.)

My situation is much easier than yours. I'm sorry you have to make such a choice.