enter if you dare (i'm kidding we're 80% approachable)

[theroadwarrior]

Who: Crew and visitors for the Starstruck!
Broadcast: None!
Action: The SS Starstruck
When: March! And, y'know, until the next mingle too.


[EVERYONE GET IN HERE AND MINGLE AND STUFF OKAY.]

Comments

[fuga]

[ The voice makes her pause, hesitating for a moment before she twists and turns, tilting her head to look at him. Her head is covered with the hood of her robe and her eyes are dark as she gazes at him, hesitant and uncomfortable before she leans away and presses herself against a wall. It's obvious that she is not entirely pleased to be around company and she ignores the urge to flee, standing tall instead. ]

Yes.

[lord_wizard]

[It isn't enough to tell him whether she's a visitor, an intruder, or someone new, though it's true that few people display much pleasure at being on the fleet in general. He doesn't get any closer, quietly trying to ignore the small, vicious part of him that exults in the fact that she seems to be afraid of him. It's been a long time since he's had that particular effect.]

Are you looking for something or someone in particular?

[He tries to make it sound diplomatic, but the note of tension is hard to erase completely]

[fuga]

No. I awoke here.

[ She is no fool, and she stands a little taller, more than prepared to defend herself. She might well be without her knives or sharp, edged daggers, but she has nails behind her black gloves and teeth to tear at her own skin. She has no fear, not when it comes to strangers that might dare threaten her; she has dealt with them in the past. ]

I know none aboard this vessel.

[lord_wizard]

[He wasn't trying to frighten her. In point of fact, the manner of her appearance startled him far more than the reverse, but he's come to the realization that he thinks of the Starstruck as his, and thus, deigns to feel more than an ounce or two of protectiveness when it comes to strangers.

But most of the cause for alarm evaporates at her admission. Her poise makes him unwilling to relax entirely, but it's not uncommon for many to be anxious on arrival. It's forgivable, as long as she takes it no further]

Ah...so you are new. Forgive me for assuming the worst. It's a bad habit.

[He dares a small smile, just to see how she'll react]

[fuga]

[ There are worse habits to have, and Lauralae has seen them often in her own time, her own world. It's strange to say it as she has, as if she was no longer in a place of her own or a realm she recognised, but she knew that was the truth now. This was not her home, and she would not find solace until she accepted that fact.

It was a shame she had a hard time accepting true change.

Instead, she moves and makes herself appear smaller, quieter, nodding her head as the man before her speaks. She tilts her head just so as she does, lifting her nose higher so she can scent the air, to see if she can find anything from him, but nothing appears different from most others she had seen so far.

This one was simply talkative. ]

There is no need for forgiveness. [ And he wouldn't get it from her anyway. ] Assumptions are made when one does not know what they see.

[lord_wizard]

[Talkative is an apt observation on her part. It's a skill that comes naturally to him as much as it is a defense. Just as she adjusts her posture he adopts a new one of his own - relaxed, casual, and non-threatening as possible. It's diplomacy for now, but the ability to intimidate lies right on the other side of that coin.]

True, but some allowances can be made for experience. In this case, the fact that we had recent vacancies in our roster would imply we were due to replacements. [The rate of which tends to vary. The instinct to suspect malice predated the fleet, however.]

I imagine you may have questions. [It's a gentle smile he gives her, knowing that was likely a foregone conclusion, but some people took to the fleet more easily than others, depending on where they came from before]

[fuga]

[ She prefers to keep her silence, and there's something obvious about that, in the way she handles herself. Her head tilts as she gazes, ignoring the way that he seems casual and relaxed, even if he wants to appear non-threatening - she's not stupid enough to think that appearances can always show just who someone is. ]

I see. [ She frowns, watching. It's obvious that Lauralae doesn't want to be here and she keeps close to the wall, prepared to change and shift to flee away and find her own place, to hide in the cover of darkness as a wolf if she has to. That, too, would be noticed, she's sure, but...

Finally, she finds her voice again, dark eyes trained on his features. ] I have asked them.

[lord_wizard]

[Few people who didn't know him from home would suspect him of being dangerous, thin and foppish as he appears, but experience dictates that in the fleet the assumptions can veer any which way. Likewise, he isn't ready to assume one way or another about her.

It's clear she's introduced herself to the network, which is a small weight off his shoulders as explaining the fleet goes. That left introductions, as unfavorably as their meeting had gone thus far.]

Good. Then all that is left is to welcome you to the Starstruck, such as it is, if anyone has not done so thus far. My name is Felix. [A slight bow, still causally watchful of the cloaked woman, but perfectly polite.]

[fuga]

[ Lauralae does no more than sit and watch, her gaze dark and certain before she bows her head and gives herself a moment. Her senses are still alert and prepared, her jaw tightening before she forces herself to look up again, sure and certain, not allowing herself to see any weaknesses.

She is not going to waste her time here, at least, and she's glad for that. Tilting her head up, she nods, once, sharp and almost deadly in the way she handles herself. ]

It has not been done. [ She frowns, still, bowing her head. ] I am Lauralae.

[lord_wizard]

[At least she makes the effort at formality, even if distrust is written all over her. He wouldn't ask that of anyone new to the fleet. Wouldn't, in fact, ask that of anyone at all.]

Welcome, Lauralae. I hope you don't find your time here too onerous.