hellhouse | (no subject)

I have never worn anything that shows my body like this. Always gowns, always modest. The only person who has ever seen me in less than a full gown aside from you is...well, was my lord husband. No one living has ever seen me in less than a gown other than you, now.

( Sansa looks down at her clothes, tries to decide if she's all right with them. She has to fight here and she needs to think like Arya, not like herself. Arya would choose these clothes. )

It will take some getting used to.

I mean, it's less fabric than a gown but it still covers you really well, you know? Don't worry. That's still modest by most standards, Babes.

[ He gives her what he hopes is a reassuring smile, then, because it seems like she could use one and he still owes her one. ]

I think there's some hoodies around here if you want something to cover your arms more?

[ Jared belatedly processes that past tense and the reassuring smile shifts into something more sympathetic. ]

I'm sorry about your husband... [ ...awkward. ]

Edited 2019-06-28 01:28 (UTC)

I'm not sorry about my husband. He was a cruel beast and deserved his death.

( Sansa leaves it up in the air as to how Ramsay Bolton earned his particular death and the manner in which it occurred - no need in rehashing all of that. )

As to the clothing, I will adapt. Survival means adaptation, after all.

[ ...even more awkward...

For a moment, he just kind of looks at her, because he's not sure how to respond to that. ]

Well, okay then.

[ He's good with leaving it at that. ]

If it makes you feel better, you look good in that.

( Sansa is used to people complimenting her but this catches her off guard because she's not used to being in trousers and she's not used to being anything less than a lady and a queen. Here, she's trapped like everyone else. She smooths her hands down her jeans and nods once. )

Thank you. I still feel as if I'm wearing nothing but if this is the nothing women are supposed to wear, then I shall wear it. To adapt is to survive.

I think the least of the adapting we'll need to do is get used to the less than desirable clothes they put us in here. Baby steps, though, I guess... You'll get more comfortable in it maybe after you've been wearing them for a while and get used to the way they feel. You're really not showing much, though, I promise.

[ It'd be really nice if she were, but he's smart enough not to say so. ]

I don't want to keep you or anything, so if there's anything else you want to take so you have more options to put together outfits, please take whatever you want. The leggings might be good for sleeping in, actually. I have a feeling you won't like wearing them like pants, even though lots of women do.

You're not keeping me from anything, Jared. Truth be told, I don't like being alone here. It reminds me of...other times in my life when I was not as safe as I was as queen. I would rather have the company.

( If it's weak of her to admit it, so be it. Sansa doesn't think it's weak to be afraid of this place. )

[ Admittedly, it's a little bit surprising to have someone imply that he makes them feel a little safer just by existing in the same space. Nobody's ever said that before. He's still not sure that she's making a great choice, since he's been basically useless, but he's certainly not going to complain. ]

You can stay. I don't care, I just don't want you to feel like you have to or whatever.

I am a queen, Jared. I don't do anything I don't want to do, trust me. I just feel as if we ought to stay close to one another and protect each other. I don't like this place at all.

( They'd been trapped in that greenhouse for what felt like an eternity, after all, and Sansa hasn't felt such fear since Ramsay. She doesn't want to feel it again any time soon but it would have been worse if she were alone. )

I would tend to agree with you. I don't want to be, like, up each other's asses every minute of every day, or anything, but generally knowing where each other are so that we know whether we ought to worry that something's wrong if the other is gone for too long or whatever, or knowing that there's safety in numbers when it's time to go to sleep, or something. That'd be good, in any case.

[ Besides, it's not like he's the type that's going to fight a hot girl saying she wants to share space with him. Sure, there's two beds, but they don't have to use both all the time, right? Maybe he'll get lucky. God, he hopes he gets lucky. That would at least make being trapped in this fucking hell hole at least a little bit worthwhile. ]

Edited (fucking tab+space) 2019-06-30 18:47 (UTC)

I think I would notice if you were in that particular place, Jared. We'll share the room for now so we can have a place to account for one another and check in. I'd rather this than be separated. We can use these devices at other times, I suppose.

( They're not the most useful, as she cannot see everyone's faces, but she can see most of them now. )

[ He can't help it. Jared barks out a surprised laugh at her response. ]

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't...I didn't mean that literally, Sansa. I just meant I don't want us to be in each other's business every second. Like, we can stay in this room and we check in with one another but we don't have to be with each other 24 hours a day, was all I meant.

...does that make more sense?

Yes, of course. I'm going to have to learn how to speak like you if I'm going to blend in. I think there's more people like you here than are going to be like me. There's a man from Westeros here, a man named Sandor, but that's the only person I've seen.

( Adapt, or die. That's always been Sansa's life and she's adapted as much as she can. She can do this too. She sits near him, drawing one leg beneath her.)

Have you seen anyone from home?

You don't want to speak like me. I'm pretty fluent in douchebag. But I can help you understand what people mean when you're trying to translate those kinds of figures of speech, if you want.

[ Jared's eyes widen a little. ]

You know that guy? Is he always like that?

[ Then he shakes his head and shrugs a little. ]

No, I don't really have a whole lot of people back home to find around here, anyway, these days. Unless the people I play X-box with count, but I've never met them in person so I wouldn't know if I ran into them anyway.

Sandor has protected me before and fought for me before. And yes, he is always like that. You just have to get over it, I guess, because he'll never change.

( Sansa laughs a bit, covering her mouth. )

I shouldn't speak ill of him. He'd put himself between danger and me every time. He always has. I've known him since I was a girl.

I'm not tellin' if you don't, Babes.

[ Jared smirks at that a little at the way she's covered her mouth like she's not supposed to be saying what she's saying and she's liberated herself a little more than she'd expected to. ]

That's cool that you had somebody like that. I guess my brother would probably be that guy for me if he wasn't too busy being that guy for America as a whole.

[ He's always been bitter about Kevin being in the military. Kevin's his brother. Jared needs him. America can rely on someone else's brother. ]

Sometimes our duty takes us away from those we love. We don't love them any less, naturally, but we have a duty to be something greater than ourselves. I have often had to sacrifice my personal wants for duty and I've had to sacrifice my personal comfort to aid my family. It depends on your motivation.

( This is something that doesn't require her to be from the same world as Jared - she thinks these sorts of troubles plague anyone. )

My motivation is to make the world as good as it can be for all those in my kingdom, including my family, so that without me they'll still have a good life. Perhaps that's your brother's motivation. No less frustrating for you, naturally, but perhaps that's what he thinks.

[ Jared sucks in a breath, setting his jaw a little to keep from responding. He wants to let Sansa finish, but he's heard this all before. Different words; same sentiment. He's had the conversation with his parents. He's had the conversation with Kevin. It never makes him any less bitter about the whole thing. It certainly doesn't help that Jared's never been a proponent of the military and he thinks the current war is stupid. Kevin running off to join them wasn't ever going to work for Jared. ]

He bought the party line that Uncle Sam was feeding everybody. [ He lowers his voice into a mockingly low timbre. ] We have to fight the war on terror, boys.

[ Jared shrugs, then, shaking his head. ]

Doesn't really matter. You did what you had to. He's doing what he thinks he has to. I'm stuck in this shithole anyway, so it especially doesn't matter.

Perhaps not, but it doesn't change how you feel. Even if he's fighting for a good cause, you're entitled to your feelings on the matter.

( Sansa spends too much time pushing down her own feelings for the good of the realm and it's been a long time since she's even allowed herself to consider her own wants and desires. )

It affects you in a way too.

[ Once again, Jared shrugs. He's not a fan of talking about his feelings, largely because they make him feel vulnerable in a way he doesn't particularly ever like to feel in front of other people. ]

Yeah, it does, but what I feel or think about it doesn't change anything, so it's kind of a waste of time to think too much about.

[ He clears his throat and looks away, moving away from her and back toward the wardrobe where he'd found the clothes. ]

Did you get grab everything you wanted, Babes? Before other people start coming in for stuff?

( Sansa doesn't want to pry further into Jared's personal feelings and relationship with his family so she lets the subject drop for the moment. Perhaps not the most delicate way she's handled something but he seems solicitous, still, so she seems to have not done so terribly. )

I did, yes. Thank you for letting me have the first choice of things. I am quite tall so sometimes it's difficult to find things that aren't too short for me.

Cool, good. Yeah, of course. Hopefully if there's a wolf in sheep's clothing in this house with us, me putting the offer out there so openly will keep us in his or her good graces, but I wanted to make sure you were able to get out of that pink nightmare sooner than later.

[ He pauses, getting to his feet and stretching. ]

I'm gonna go look for food. It seems like the house isn't moving around as much today if you were able to find this room so fast, so I'm going to take advantage while I can. I'm getting hungry. You want me to try to bring something back for you if I can find anything? You stay and save the room for us?

I am hungry, yes. I'll stay here and await your return in case the rooms change again. I know you don't think we ought to spend all our time together but I am concerned about the nature of this place. I hope my company isn't so terrible that you won't tolerate it for a bit.

( Sansa says it with a bit of a smirk. She tries to be as amenable as she can, truly, but it is a mask for her fear. This place reminds her of having been trapped in Winterfell with Ramsay. No torture, no, but she feels evil emanating from the walls, a sinister chill that permeates everything. She wants the company. )

I mean, I don't want to spend every minute together, but there's safety in numbers and I think it would be better for us both if we at least touched base on the daily and kept an eye out for one another at night. Plus yeah, this place moves, so I'll never find this room again without help. It works if you stay here and I can come back with food.

[ As he moves toward the door, he grins, rolling his eyes. Jared looks over his shoulder and smirks at her. ]

Besides, Babes, you're about the only person who'll put up with my shit for more than a couple of minutes without getting bored. I kind of have to keep you.

[ With that, he slips out into the hall only pausing to poke his head back in and say quickly, ]

If I'm not back in an hour, send in the cavalry.

[ before disappearing again. ]

( Sansa doesn't know what calvary to send, considering their numbers are few here in the house, but she waits as she's been bid. She may be a queen now and beholden to no man but she isn't so taken with her title as to not listen to reason - that would be the fallacy that spelled doom for House Targaryen and House Lannister and she refuses to have it be the end of House Stark.

She stays perched on one of the beds and when the door pushes back in, Sansa is quick to stand, going forward to meet Jared. )

Here, let me help you with the food. It'll be easier with another set of hands.

one more ftb from you could probably do it?

insufferablysmart - 2019-07-28 14:56 (UTC) - Expand

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theladyofwinterfell - 2019-07-28 21:21 (UTC) - Expand