SEMI-CLOSED. i'm a slow learner.

[unprays]

Who: sansa stark (unprays) & various
What: sansa does rounds after the whole kidnapping thing, and also deals with her father going back to stasis.
When: late march, possibly also early april
Where: both olympia and wyver
Warning(s): your standard game of thrones warnings apply, along with all the warnings you could think for the previous event.

( starters in the comments! if you want one, hit me up on plurk @ celen or send me a PM and we can plot something! or just wildcard me, that works too ♥ )

Comments

[beatupgrass]

[The response, over the device, is hesitant.]

Shit. I don't think I've ever figured out where the actual door is. Hang on.

[There's silence on the other end, and then Sansa is left standing at the base of the canyon, staring up at the many, many grand, ivy-covered manors, equally difficult to get into.

When it seems like it's dragged on too long, a rope ladder drops from the balcony right in front of her, and Rocket calls down.] Okay, screw it. We'll find the stupid door later. Just hike up your skirts, princess.

[Yes, there's clearly nothing wrong with asking a lady of means to basically gird her loins and climb a rope ladder. It is a very necessary skill, and he will happily introduce her to Gamora so she can add to her list of skills.]

[unprays]

[ there's a pause on her end, too, and then quiet, muffled laughter — of course. she probably should have expected it.

the silence lasts and lasts, and she starts to wonder whether maybe he's gotten lost while trying to find said door, when the ladder drops down and dangles in front of her.

this, she thinks wryly, she probably should have expected, too. ]

... how long is the climb? [ it's a legit question, but she's eyeing the ladder with a similar way as to one might eye a wild horse, or perhaps a live snake. she's climbed a rope ladder exactly once, and it was from a boat to a ship... and it was difficult. granted, she isn't the same girl she was then, and Ocelot's training has given her more strength that she had... but she's not quite sure it's enough.

and so she procrastinates. ]

[beatupgrass]

About fifty feet, give or take. [He doesn't seem all that concerned about the possibility that she might not be able to climb it. She's a capable woman as far as he sees.]

If you're worried about fallin', I can fly behind you, but I can't carry you.

[unprays]

Fifty... feet.

[ right. right. she can do this.

(can she do this?)

Sansa draws an unsteady breath and nods to herself. she'll have to. ]

That's alright. I... I'll be okay. [ she grips the ladder with her hands and steels herself. there's just one rule: don't fall. and so she starts climbing. ]

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket climbs up on top of the railing, perched precariously in a position that brings his more animal nature to mind- it's just not a position one expects a bipedal creature to maintain for long periods. He's not hovering behind her, but at least he's keeping an eye on things.]

One rung at a time, Sansa. Consider it a stamina exercise. This place is gonna turn you into a hardass yet.

[unprays]

[ it's by far one of the strangest things anyone has ever said to her, and the sheer absurdity of it all makes her steely, concentrated exterior crack as laughter bubbles up, tilts the corners of her lips into an amused smile. ]

I'm not quite sure what that means, but from how you're saying it, I'm taking it to be a good thing.

[ and perhaps it is the laughter, the light feeling that comes from the fact that Rocket believes she can do this that gives her the strength needed to climb the rest of the way up. ]

[beatupgrass]

What? A hardass? Hell yeah, it's a good thing. It means you're tough and people can't mess with you.

[He hops off the railing and lets her get up onto the balcony before leading her into the Guardians' home, which is... Well, it's very clearly lived in. What would have been a lovely home under the care of people who actively care about such things is a mess, though a much more scattered mess than a smaller place would be. At least a person can move freely.]

Whelp. Here we are. You want a drink? We got beer and I think a fancy bottle of wine that Quill's savin' to woo Gamora with, but, let's be honest, that's gonna be a disaster.

[unprays]

You're right. That is a good thing. Just not something I ever thought I'd be described as.

[ her legs are shaking slightly as she follows him, but she's not about to faint or fall down, which she counts as an accomplishment. Arya would have done this in a heartbeat, climbed up with no trouble at all. so would Jon, and Robb.

but she did it, too. maybe not as easily... but she did it.

as she looks around, she wonders whether they have anyone to clean the place... and if she'd not been raised as a lady, she would take to cleaning it all herself. ]

How does one woo a girl with wine? That's stupid. [ that sounds like a very bad idea, so she fully agrees with Rocket on the disaster part, even if she doesn't know the people in question. ] ... if you have water, that's alright.

[beatupgrass]

Comin' right up. [For someone who has never had to play host in his life, he does an impressive show of it, even if he is gruff. Something about Sansa, much like with Mantis only in a different way, makes you soften some of your rough edges in her presence. He isn't sure he likes the impulse, but he isn't chasing away the source so there's that.

He returns a moment later with a glass of water and a beer for himself and climbs up into one of the chairs after handing it off.]

And to answer that loaded question- I dunno. Humanoid courtship rituals are weird and messed up to me, but I'm sure the wine wasn't the only part of the plan.

[unprays]

[ she takes the offered glass, and immediately gulps down about half of its contents — who knew climbing a rope ladder would be such hard work...

there's something about the way he talks about humanoid courtship rituals that makes Sansa laugh lightly, wryly. ]

Where I come from, anyone who is born a lord or a lady is told who to marry, for power, for wealth, for good connections. I think you're right when you call any courtship rituals weird and messed up.

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket snorts derisively as he takes a swig of his beer.] They do that on other planets too- the real persnickety, uptight ones. It sounds like a recipe for disaster and gettin' stabbed to me. People who actually like each other can get all stabby when they're in close quarters, much less people in that situation.

[And somehow he understands the entire political structure of Westeros without ever having been there.]

[unprays]

... sometimes, I wish you'd have traveled to my home. It would have been much more bearable.

[ having him there, probably stabbing everyone who deserved it. ]

[beatupgrass]

'Cause everyone who tried to push me around or come at me would probably be dead or robbed? That's about how things go with us. [He gestures to the room.] We do a good turn for the galaxy, we fight Celestials and genocidal maniacs and racist, fascist scumbags, and we make money doin' it. And we've kinda learned that we can do that anywhere, now that we're stuck here.