driftfleet | video + action || the first

Entry tags:

video + action || the first

Who: Howard Stark and YOU (I'm sorry)
Broadcast: Video Transmission, Fleet-wide.
Action: The Marsiva
When: Now

[ howard begins by painstakingly peeling himself up off the surface of the deck. this is a familiar position for him so he's not overly worried, smoothing back his hair as he rises unsteadily to his feet. he blinks heavily a few times, expecting his eyes to be heavy and for the customary knock in his head to follow. nothing happens. he feels remarkably alert, actually. wait a second...

the hairs on the back of his neck raise up, triggered by that eerie feeling of being watched. ] If this is a ransom demand, you're going to be sorely disappointed. [ it's not directed at anyone, scarcely above a mumble, he doesn't know anyone can hear him yet. howard steps towards the viewing ports, sticking his hands in his pockets and wondering what form of trickery this could possibly be. very advanced and very clever, surely, but just as frustrating. ]

I must admit, I'm impressed with your holographic technology. I could almost believe I were really in space... if we weren't at least a few decades off from such an advancement anyway. [ unless, they aren't. that disquiets him, smugness dropping from his tone as he continues to look around, but his voice only grows smaller. ] ...Hello?

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Aren't you just a gift.

[She's less than half-joking. Considerably less.]

Oh, a few minutes at most. I'm afraid, with this being our first stop in a commercial area since I've been here and my account frozen, I haven't much of anything for getting ready to go out as I'm used to. Thank heaven I wore a dress the day I left Eudio, or I'd be at a complete loss.

[ a woman who gets ready quicker than him is... well, any woman. but it's still welcome ok. he takes a second to preen bc why yes he is a gift!!! and he can tell she isn't wholly poking fun. ]

I think I know how you feel. How the heck does a cat get by with one suit and one pair of shutters? [ thank god he remembered his sunglasses when he got kidnapped??? the kidnapping back home that is. oh god but his robe... one pair of shoes. one set of suspenders. this is cruel and unusual punishment . ]

And you know the importance of a good image. You really must tell me when you're from, though, I don't think I've ever heard someone use "cat" in quite that way before. Or "shutters." I'm not even sure what shutters are meant to be, if they're something you wear.

[It could also be cultural, since he's American. Probably a mixture of both. For all that it's quite charming, she has to wonder how often they'll need to interpret their own speech for one another.]

But you still haven't got a patch on me. Think of makeup alone. I'm really at a loss here. Nearly ready to leave, but at a loss.

[ he also has howardisms on top of liking slang terms so yeah... yeah. yeah. plus he lives on the east and west coast. what the fuck is he talking about half the time no one will ever know. ]

War is out and color is in, in, in. 1946, babe-- Celeste. [ he really should be better at that considering. but oh well. he got caught up in the moment. ] And I may not wear makeup, but I have a set of cufflinks for every day of the year.

[ he's like the kanye west of his time, what do you want from him. also he totally wears makeup for press conferences and shit shhhh ]

[She's not entirely sure, but after all that, she's at least wondering if she's about to meet a genuine fop - "fop" would be outdated even for his standards, but the shoe seems to fit. What an incredible man.]

1946. Good lord. I mean, I have met people from earlier, but it's still hard to imagine. It was 2015 when I left for Eudio and the technology was about on the same level there. [She's trying to take the revelation seriously, but everything else he said just makes her lips twitch so hard.] Maybe you do understand the struggle, though. I was getting close to a dress for every day of the year when I lived in Eudio, but I also worked in a clothing shop, so who could really blame me?

And I've already met a man eighty years into the future, but 2015 is still a damn sight later than I'll ever see. [ if you only knew son :'| ]

That sounds like the opposite of something I'd assign blame for. [ he surrounds himself with well dressed peeps, even if he has to do the dressing them himself. ]

Well, that's a depressing way to look at things, isn't it? Undoubtedly true, unless there are some major advancements toward immortality for all, but surely you can put a brighter spin on it.

[She flashes a bright grin and disappears from the video feed, but just in time to meet up with him right outside the Marsiva, wearing her one dress with black leggings and and her customary cherry-red combat boots. She'd give anything for the thigh-high lace topped stockings and suspenders she'd worn to really promising dates in Eudio, not to mention any sort of makeup at all, but she'll have to let her natural beauty do the talking this time; people have said she's got it, whether she believes them or not.

In any case, the lack of her usual warpaint and uniform just means that she's making up for it with extra outward confidence (or the appearance of such), a swagger in her step and all 5'7" of her posture upright and proud. Her chin's even tilted slightly upward as she looks him over, like she's got nothing to lose and he's got everything to gain.]

Howard. It's a pleasure to meet you properly. [She holds her hand out, very curious to see if he'll go all the way with his image and kiss it or if that's old-fashioned even for him.]

[ he blinks as the feed dies out, but then he's spinning around to greet her and... oh. alright. that sure is an outfit. howard briefly takes her in, up and down, and though it's strange to see women in his time without a dash of lipstick and mascara at least, he certainly can't find any fault in her appearance.

taking her hand primly, he does indeed stoop to brush a soft kiss against the back, perhaps more because he thinks she expects that than anything. he does so enjoy living up to expectations. ] The pleasure is entirely mine.

[She's not sure what to make of the once-over, but then again, women did dress quite differently in the 40s. And quite smartly, too, she rather covets the suits even if she's sure she couldn't pull one off. All things considered, she thinks the light kiss on her hand and the twinkle in his eye bode well.

(She's also got a tattoo on her inner left wrist, which her short-sleeved dress leaves exposed. Probably not something he's used to seeing on young women either.)]

You really are a consummate charmer. You don't miss a thing. Shall we? I haven't been out and about much here, but I can think of one place that might suit. [One test left: does he offer his arm? If so, he really will be right out of a classic film, and she might swoon a bit internally.]

[ he notes the tattoo too though he doesn't speak up about it. everything about her from her hair style down to those garrish army boots is unfamiliar to him, but he finds himself intrigued all the same. ]

Now you're cooking with gas, doll. Lead the way. [ howard doesn't offer his arm if only because he doesn't know where they're going, though he does deliberately bump his elbow against hers as they start out in case she might want to take it upon herself to drag him along. ]

[She's more than glad to take his arm, with only a light tug as she directs him from the landing dock toward the station proper. She's already in love with the glitz of it, all the lights and the action, even if she hasn't been able to partake in much of anything yet.]

You do know you're going to wind up with a good number of handprints on your face if you keep that up, don't you? [Her smile up at him is perfectly disarming and innocent.] I may find it charming in a quaint sort of way, but not all modern women are as understanding as I am.

[ he goes easily wherever she goes, enjoying the easy contact for the time being. ]

I know plenty of Modern Women, Celeste. [ ALL CAPS okok. ] Suffragettes don't bother me. So long as they don't mind overlapping. [ handprints. he's accustomed to the slap in his time too as you might imagine. ]

Suffragettes. [It's repeated with something close to awe, that evidence of how far apart in time they really are.] Good lord. Well, at least you've some practice, they've always sounded like a very fierce lot.

[After a bit of a stroll, with a silence between them that feels companionable, she speaks up again.]

Oh really, you know I have to ask. Exactly what is it that makes you so important? I've already met royalty here, to say nothing of the varying pantheon of holy and not-so-holy beings in Eudio, so you needn't worry about intimidating me.

You have no idea. [ and really, he's starting to get that she doesn't. like, at all. ]

Now you're putting me on the spot. [ he's anything but abashed by it though clearly. ] And I'm almost offended I didn't make it into the history books.

[ though okay lets do this. ] I'm an inventor, an innovator. A proprietor. All of that is a lot of words to say I aided the war effort. I'm thinking about going into movies next. Particularly, directing. ...Did you say holy beings?

Well, I suppose I should thank you, then. I can't imagine growing in England would've been much of a lark if World War II had gone the wrong way. [She tilts him a little smirk.] And you can hardly imagine that English history books would say all that much about the American heroes, can you?

[She's curious about what he did, what sort of inventions and innovations he was behind, but then she gets totally distracted by talk of movies.]

Directing? But you look exactly like a classic film star, why wouldn't you act instead? [Whoops, she missed the part about holy beings.]

True enough. [ all his besties are british, he can vouch for this. ] And you're welcome, of course. Just doing my civic duty, is all.

Oh, no. There's no cleverness at all in acting, my dear. If I'm going to prove that successful films are anything less than a compressed algorithm to play on the emotions of the masses, well. Then it's the director's chair for me. [ it's ok he got distracted too ]

"A compressed algorithm to play on the emotions of the masses." Goodness, you have got a way with words. I won't deny how many films are obviously exactly that, but you're speaking to someone very passionate about film, so I'd tread carefully.

[She gives him one of her sharper, more wicked smiles.] What is it you've got to offer that's so lacking in 1940s cinema?

Howard Stark, obviously. They won't see me coming.

["What have you got to offer?"

"Me."

She lets out a cheerful laugh, shaking her head.]

You are an absolute delight, Howard. I'll have to brush up on my cinematic history when I get back, make sure I haven't missed you - we're not likely to be from the same universe, but there can be surprising bleedthrough between them.

I know, right? [ his mustache twitches helpfully. ]

Please do, and report back.

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video + action || the first

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-->action yo

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