entrancelogs | as high as honor

Entry tags:

as high as honor

Who: Members of House Arryn & any visitors!
Where: Ninth Floor
When: 04/09 - 04/13
Rating: PG-13
Summary: The ninth floor of the mansion now belongs to those loyal to House Arryn. This is a mingle log for House interactions and also for anyone who cares to pay them a visit. ~~No Boltons or Lannisters allowed.~~
The Story:
The ninth floor may not have much to offer in terms of valuable territory, containing nothing so sought after as the kitchens or the library or the diner, but it is still outfitted proudly, covered in blue banners bearing the falcon that signifies House Arryn.

The floor contains only eight occupied rooms, and for the most part the House has been known for its neutrality -- which isn't to say that some of its members don't have other Houses they support or violently oppose.

Those of House Stark or House Barartheon are free to visit, whereas those of House Bolton and House Lannister may not receive such a warm welcome.

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Oh, yes. I've only been here a few weeks. It's a very curious place. I'm trying to learn as much as I can about it before it sends me home again.

[ She smiles up at him. He's very large, but then he's not quite as large as Hagrid, so she doesn't think much of it. It's well within the realm of human-large. ]

My name is Luna Lovegood. It's nice to meet you.

[Something about the girl's platinum blond hair and her wispy voice gives her this ethereal quality, like maybe she's more than just human. Steve can't quite put his finger on it, but he's not going to start off with any rude questions either.]

Nice to meet you too, Luna Lovegood. I'm Steve Rogers. [Steve extends his hand toward her to shake.]

Depending on how it decides to keep you, you may have a lot of time to learn all about it. [As much as they're ever allowed to learn, anyway.]

Do you mind if I ask what kind of House affiliations you have back home? [He's cutting to the chase, but it's important that everyone in House Arryn is on the same page.]

[ Her handshake isn't quite that of a floppy fish, but it's certainly no more firm than one would expect from a young and somewhat distracted girl. ]

I have many friends in Baratheon, but I don't fancy myself at odds with any of the houses if I can help it.

[ She's honest and open, not looking for a fight and not looking to fight other people's personal squabbles for them. ]

[Baratheon is a House that they seem to be well connected to. Darcy is in that House, and Tohru's friend Saki is there too, which is why they've been granted permission to use the diner even though it's on their floor.

Steve can't say that he minds Luna's approach to it. If she would rather not declare anyone an enemy, then that's probably for the best. She'll stay out of trouble that way, and the last thing he needs is someone so young getting hurt because he's busy stirring up trouble with the Boltons and the Lannisters.]

House Baratheon and House Stark are the only ones that I consider myself loyal to. I have friends in them too.

[He pulls his hand back and folds his arms over his chest.]

Which is convenient, since they flank us. But right now I'd like to learn some more about you.

[Steve glances up and down the hall. It's awkward to just stand and talk here, but going but to one of their rooms would be out of place too, and they don't have many common areas on this floor.]

Did you want to go down to the diner, maybe? [He can pretty much always eat.]

[ Luna flashes a smile. She likes the diner, because it reminds her of banquets at Hogwarts, and she often prefers to eat with company, even if she doesn't have friends around. ]

That sounds lovely.

[ She's never been shy when it comes to talking about herself and maybe she can learn a little about him, too. It's clear that he's not a wizard, but Luna's taken to really enjoying learning about all the muggles here. ]

[While Steve may be abandoning his post, so to speak, it's not like anyone asked him to patrol the floor like some kind of sentry. It's something he does for his own peace of mind as much as anything else, and he's pretty sure he can leave it for the time it takes to grab a bite. He's gotta eat sometime.]

Great.

[Steve doesn't hesitate to lead them down the stairs to the Baratheon floor. This isn't a place that he's nervous about being. He doesn't quite feel at home here, but he does feel that he's a welcome guest. From the sounds of it, they're throwing yet another party in one of the larger rooms, but Steve avoids that and heads straight for the diner.]

So, Luna, what should I know about you? [He turns his head to look at her as he walks, and when he's reminded of how much shorter she is, he also slows his pace too.]

[ At first, she has to scurry a little to keep up, but she doesn't mind. It's nice of him to slow down, though. He really is quite large.

He asks interesting questions, too, and she takes a moment to think about the answer to what she sees as a very heavy and personal question. Perhaps her thoughts go a moment too long and for a beat she's silent before she responds. ]

I live with my father. He's the editor of the Quibbler. It's a wizarding newspaper where I'm from.

[ Before she can go on, her own question slips out. ]

Are you human?

Edited 2015-04-24 03:50 (UTC)

[It definitely has the potential to be a heavy and personal question, but Steve had kept it vague so that Luna could answer however she chose.

He's guessing that she means that she lives with her father back home, since chances are he would have seen him by now. A wizarding newspaper, though, that's a new one. But before he gets the chance to ask about that, she comes out with her own question, which is blunt to say the least. Enough that a laugh escapes him as he slowly nods.]

More or less. I... had an experiment done on me which enhanced my strength and speed and a lot of other things to above human levels, but I was born human.

[And he still considers himself human, when it comes down to it.

When they reach the diner, Steve gently sets his hand on Luna's back to steer her toward the open door.]

[ Given how Luna had lost her mother, she's not one to question why people might experiment, on themselves or otherwise, but she wonders why anyone would bother experimenting with that. It seems almost silly from her perspective. ]

Did it hurt?

[ She turns curious eyes on him as they move into the diner. He has a kind face. Of that much she is certain. ]

[It's a question Steve's been asked before -- by Bucky, no less. He uses the same answer now that he did then. It's not the truth, but he doesn't need to share that with someone like Luna.

He hadn't wanted to share it with Bucky either, though Steve imagines he saw right through the lie.]

A little.

[Steve realizes that Tohru has prepared some food and left it out for both Baratheons and Arryns to partake, so he finds a couple of plates for them and hands one over to Luna.]

Looks like it's self-serve today.

[On the menu are some chicken salad sandwiches, which look delicious, and Steve doesn't hesitate to place two of them on his plate.]

[ Luna watches him curiously, wondering what a little might entail, but even her boundaries aren't completely nonexistent. Instead, she helps herself to half a sandwich and chooses a well-lit booth to slide into. ]

My mother used to experiment with magic, but she never experimented on other people.

[ Her voice is very serious, but she looks almost reverent as she bites into her sandwich. ]

[Steve takes the seat across from her.] So you weren't kidding about the wizarding thing, huh?

[It's not like Steve is immediately against the idea of experimentation. Science is the road to the future, the only way that they're going to progress, and so in theory it's a good thing.

But when people are dragged into it, when they become collateral, that's when he takes a serious issue with the entire idea.

Luna had mentioned living with her father, but not her mother, which either means that there had been a separation -- or her mother isn't around anymore. Steve's not sure he should probe too deeply into that.]

What kind of experiments? [He takes a sizable bite of one of his sandwiches and chews quietly while he awaits her reply.]

[ It's so funny to Luna that they can be in a magical mansion that seems to pull them out of space and time and the muggles here still keep asking after magic as if she's made it up. Then again, she's used to having to explain things to people who don't quite believe her, so she's used to it. ]

I'm not sure what she was trying to do. I was only nine.

[ She doesn't even remember what words her mother had spoken because she hadn't paid them much attention until it had already been done. ]

Whatever it was, it was very bright and I think it might have been very helpful if she'd managed to perfect it.

[The implication in all this is that her mother never had managed to perfect the process, and Steve can really only think of a few reasons for why that would be.

He doesn't pry.

Instead he thinks over what he should ask next as he works at his sandwich, but so far Luna doesn't seem like she'll pose any issues when it comes to his House loyalties.]

What kind of magic do you use? [From what Steve has worked out, there are many different kinds, and he wouldn't assume that magic from one world would be the same as that from another. Luna may be young, but she may also have skills that could benefit House Arryn in the future.]

[ With a sudden grin, Luna shifts in her seat, sitting up straighter and leaning her elbows on the table. ]

All sorts, but my highest marks are in Charms and Care of Magical Creatures. I know a lot of useful spells. Is there something you need help with?

[ She knows a lot of defensive magic, too, of course, but it's nothing that she could really teach to muggles. It's nice to help people when she can, though, and she's offered help to a lot of people here already. ]

[The fact that Luna looks so genuinely thrilled by the idea of being able to help with something is heartwarming, and yet another good sign. Steve finds himself smiling around his sandwich without even realizing it, though he shakes his head.]

Not with anything in particular, no. I was just curious about what you could do.

[Though he's still a little unclear on that. There are magical subjects? Care of Magical Creatures is straightforward enough, but...]

What is Charms? Sorry, you're gonna have to humor me a little here.

[ That gives Luna pause and she stops eating. She could give him a textbook definition, of course, but that's not a very good explanation for someone who isn't familiar with magic to begin with. ]

It changes the properties of an object. Here, I'll show you.

[ She pulls out her wand, thin and elegant with its floral handle, and waves it at the salt shaker with practiced ease. ]

Wingardium Leviosa

[ The salt shaker begins to float a few inches above the table. ]

[Before Steve can agree or disagree, Luna goes ahead with the demonstration. It's a harmless enough trick, so he doesn't particularly mind, but he can't quite stop himself from reaching out to wave his hand through the air underneath the salt shaker, searching for invisible wires.

There are none, of course, and he retracts his hand.

It's really no stranger than the way that Thor's hammer is bonded to him and him alone, right? Or all of Loki's shapeshifting tricks.]

And I'm guessing it gets a lot more complicated than that. There's a whole school that teaches you about this stuff?

[Well, it's better than people being left to their own devices with it. Steve continues to eye the salt shaker as he has another bite of his sandwich.]

There are many schools in my world for witches and wizards. Hogwarts is only one of them.

[ Though the way she speaks of it makes her reverence clear. She's proud to be a student at Hogwarts. ]

We learn all sorts of things. Our society is somewhat mingled with the Muggle world at times, but we keep our magic a secret. It seems silly to keep it a secret here, though. You're in a magic realm, so you're aware of it already.

[ Slowly and carefully, she lowers the salt back to the table with a soft clink. ]

[Hogwarts is a pretty weird name for a school, but Steve chooses not to question it. There's another word Luna says that grabs his attention more readily.]

Muggles? [His head cants to the side slightly.] Is that what you call people who can't use magic?

[It would be pointless to keep it a secret within Wonderland, it's true. Come to think of it, everything that Luna's been talking about reminds him of some details that James had given Steve about his brand of magic -- although that had mainly revolved around him being able to turn into a stag. He had mentioned he was in school, though he hadn't specified what kind.]

Is there a reason that they can't know about it?

Edited 2015-05-14 14:40 (UTC)

[ Luna nods at his first question, looking pleased that he seems to understand what she's talking about. ]

I think it's for their protection. There are a lot of dangerous magical items and spells that could hurt someone in the wrong hands. An enchanted item in the hands of a Muggle could be much more dangerous because they wouldn't have the right tools to control it.

[ She takes a quick bite of her food. ]

It's probably also to protect us, as well, though. Wouldn't you think?

[That all makes a lot of sense. The only "magical" item that Steve's had a lot of interaction with is Loki's scepter, and that had been enough to throw their entire haphazard team into disarray and almost brought down a helicarrier in the process. He can't even imagine what some other enchanted items might be capable of.

Although Luna's second point catches his attention, and Steve gives her a sharper look, like he's realizing just how clever this girl truly is.]

I think you're right, yeah. I've seen what people do when they have an interesting target to experiment on.

[A lot of humans wouldn't be able to resist the urge to find out what makes someone "magical." Steve's expression darkens as he sets his sandwich down on his plate, his appetite put off at least for the moment.]

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