We're Riding Solo

[digthefuzz]

Who: The crew of the Huntress and any visitors!
Broadcast: Nope!
Action: The Huntress!
When: From now-ish until later-ish?! Go nuts!

[Time to get away from the icy ravages of the planet? Or see what happens when the Huntress tries to make the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs? All your threading needs are here!]

Comments

[steeledskin]

[ she witnesses his pause, and does her best to read it. to untangle what it means, and what he might think, and in which ways he might already be dismissing her. she is not offended; were she anyone else, she would dismiss sansa stark as well. ]

You must know a great deal about these things. [ she answers -- half-solemn, and half-curious. ] To speak of them with such certainty.

[falconing]

I have a ship of my own -- like this.

[ it pains him deeply to even compare the two, but... it's easiest when someone has no idea what a space ship is ]

Someone's gotta repair it when it breaks down, though I usually have Chewie to help me.

[steeledskin]

[ -- what sort of name is 'chewie', she wonders. short and affectionate. odd. ]

These have been my first. [ she confirms his suspicions. ] Ships -- like these ships. I've been on proper ships, before.

[ it might be the wrong thing to say. proper ships. the panic over her potential mistake shows in her eyes. ]

[falconing]

[ if han is offended, he doesn't show it. but han is good at reading people, and he sees the fear in her eyes.

what in the hell has this girl gone through that she's so scared? ]

What's a proper ship look like to you?

[ it's a genuine question, almost encouraging. ]

[steeledskin]

Wooden. [ she wrings her fingers -- hesitant. ] With masts, and billowing beautiful sails.

[falconing]

[ man. certain civilizations and planets still use technology like that, but not very many anymore. not with the intergalactic community. ]

So sea travel?

[ antiquated and ancient. ]

[steeledskin]

[ sansa nods. ]

I've not spent much time on our ships, either. [ she appears vexed. ] And when I did, I got awful sick.

[falconing]

You can get that way on ships like mine, back home, too. Some people aren't used to the warp drive.

[ han has lived on these ships his entire life, so he's more than used to it. ]

I can tell you I've never been on a ship like that, so we're on even footing.

[steeledskin]

[ she almost laughs. even footing? as if such a thing could ever exist between herself and him -- whoever he is. he exudes something she fears she'll never possess. ]

They're not all that exciting, if I'm honest. [ ... ] And they smell awful.

[falconing]

So do a lot of the ones back home.

[ lightly, and he pauses before extending his hand, to shake. ]

Han Solo. What's your name?

[steeledskin]

[ with moderate uncertainty, she watches his offered hand. her fingers twitch. handshakes are different things in westeros -- they herald the sealing of deals and treaties. they are a man's way of communicating.

worse yet, she's not comfortable with how much closer she would need to step in order to touch his fingers. so -- instead -- she gives her head a tiny shake and drops into a polite curtsy. it will have to do. ]

Sansa. [ she raises her chin; she must take pride in her name again. ] Sansa Stark.

[falconing]

[ aha. no shaking of hands. han withdraws it, and says nothing about the curtsy. immediately, anyway.

princesses. sigh. ]

... nice to meet you, Sansa.

[ pause ]

Where're you from?

[steeledskin]

[ very early on, she'd learned she does not need to be specific when it comes to answering this question. the broadest and vaguest answer she can provide seems to satisfy plenty of people in the fleet. ]

Westeros, Captain. The Seven Kingdoms.

[falconing]

[ sounds

boring af ]

I take it it's a lot different than the planet we just stopped off at.

[steeledskin]

In parts, yes. But I know lands in Westeros where it snows even in the middle of a long summer. [ ... ] Our castles are bigger, I think. And our markets more bustling.

[falconing]

Snowing in the summer, huh.

[ sounds like hell, to him, though han spends most of his time in space and darting from planet to waystation to planet. ]

Did you grow up in a castle?

[steeledskin]

Yes. [ she wonders how much is safe to tell -- sansa has barely discussed the particulars of winterfell with anyone. and she knows nothing of this man, aside from a name and an occupation. ] In the North of our lands. I've not seen it in some time.

[falconing]

[ definitely a princess. ]

Sorry to hear that.

[ though snow sounds like the opposite of a good time. ]

Sounds like we're all in the same boat, though.

[steeledskin]

You needn't apologize. [ her nose crinkles. sansa nearly smiles -- because she likes wordplay, and captain han's comment about their same boat tickles her fancy. ] I never minded the snow.

[falconing]

The last time I was on a planet with a bunch of snow, I almost froze to death.

{ and he had to shove luke into a tauntaun ]

So I think I'm all set on wandering through the tundra for the next fifty years or so.

[steeledskin]

[ oh, she laughs. near-death isn't a laughing matter, really. but the way he tells it...! ]

You ought to have worn a cloak. Fox fur.

[falconing]

Something tells me that wouldn't have been as helpful as I would've wanted it to be.

[ but laughter, familiarity, is a good start. all of these traumatized kids, jeez. ]

It kind of soured me on the experience of snow for awhile.

[steeledskin]

You must like summer. [ ... ] Our last summer was nearly ten years long.

[falconing]

I like the comfort of climate controlled space ships.

[ air conditioning and heat, thank you. ]

-- and ten years?

[steeledskin]

Yes. Ten years. A long one. [ she smiles -- and almost laughs. but the way she talks about it suggests that it's not so long that it strains credulity. ] But winter's started. And they say a long summer makes for a longer winter.