[There there... Luke will let her cry as long as she needs.]
Right, exactly. [He was just going to compare it to a stage's set but this works better tbh. Y'all's worlds are SO wild. Fortunately, he's gone to LARPing theme parks before, so he can roll with it.] It takes a little practice to get used to it, but you can make it anything you'd like inside these rooms. Even these pillows aren't real--they'll disappear as soon as we turn it off. Or, uh--cancel the spell.
[She's working on drying it up, dutifully dabbing at her eyes and slowing her breathing. Bless his patience.]
I see. I understand. I feel so stupid. I— [She lifts a hand, then abandons the gesture.] I have seen illusions like that before. But, I was alone, and I can't cast those kinds of spells anyway, so when the briars came I thought they must be...Oh, I'm such an idiot.
[Covering her eyes once more. Luckily it's just chagrin this time.]
Of course there'd be something like that. The things in this place...they don't make sense to me. But they serve all the same purposes. It's like someone took apart the world and built it again, with all the blocks in the wrong places.
Hey, no--don't feel stupid. Trust me, if I woke up in your world one day, I'd be scared and confused too. I wouldn't know how anything worked. [Granted, he's very adaptable, but. Still. There are definitely no wizards or spells in Stellis.
He listens a little longer, letting her get it out. It's impossible not to let his gaze drop to the briars, but he's careful not to touch them.]
To be honest, a lot of it is strange to me, too. It's not quite as bad, but some things... it's like they've been moved a little to the left. Like this room--there are artists who've used something similar in their exhibits, but those are all predetermined, like a set of paintings. It's not something anyone can do with a few little taps. [Except ToT is set in 2030 so they probably have rampant generative AI but we don't need to think about that hellscape.]
[She's starting to suspect she's out of her element in more ways than one. He'd probably find her world all too simple once he knew what was at the heart of it.
Rosamund listens attentively. It helps, truly. Her breathing has evened out and she isn't sniffling as much anymore.]
That sounds nice. An artist would make good use of a thing like this.
[Shhh listen they don't have to acknowledge that, okay, they can pretend he would be just as confused and freaked out as her.
Anyway, he lifts his wrist, pulling up the I.R.I.S. display and angling it for her to see.]
See right here? If you move your hand like this... [He swipes horizontally--] and then tap this, right here, you can send a t--a letter. The other person should receive it right away. If something like this happens again, send one to me, okay? I'll come find you, wherever you are.
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Yes? [She says through a sniffle.] Mummers would come perform at feasts all the time.
Are you saying it's just an illusionary spell? For entertainment?
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Right, exactly. [He was just going to compare it to a stage's set but this works better tbh. Y'all's worlds are SO wild. Fortunately, he's gone to LARPing theme parks before, so he can roll with it.] It takes a little practice to get used to it, but you can make it anything you'd like inside these rooms. Even these pillows aren't real--they'll disappear as soon as we turn it off. Or, uh--cancel the spell.
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I see. I understand. I feel so stupid. I— [She lifts a hand, then abandons the gesture.] I have seen illusions like that before. But, I was alone, and I can't cast those kinds of spells anyway, so when the briars came I thought they must be...Oh, I'm such an idiot.
[Covering her eyes once more. Luckily it's just chagrin this time.]
Of course there'd be something like that. The things in this place...they don't make sense to me. But they serve all the same purposes. It's like someone took apart the world and built it again, with all the blocks in the wrong places.
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He listens a little longer, letting her get it out. It's impossible not to let his gaze drop to the briars, but he's careful not to touch them.]
To be honest, a lot of it is strange to me, too. It's not quite as bad, but some things... it's like they've been moved a little to the left. Like this room--there are artists who've used something similar in their exhibits, but those are all predetermined, like a set of paintings. It's not something anyone can do with a few little taps. [Except ToT is set in 2030 so they probably have rampant generative AI but we don't need to think about that hellscape.]
Here--can I show you something?
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You might be surprised...
[She's starting to suspect she's out of her element in more ways than one. He'd probably find her world all too simple once he knew what was at the heart of it.
Rosamund listens attentively. It helps, truly. Her breathing has evened out and she isn't sniffling as much anymore.]
That sounds nice. An artist would make good use of a thing like this.
[She nods at the query, waving him ahead.]
By all means.
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Anyway, he lifts his wrist, pulling up the I.R.I.S. display and angling it for her to see.]
See right here? If you move your hand like this... [He swipes horizontally--] and then tap this, right here, you can send a t--a letter. The other person should receive it right away. If something like this happens again, send one to me, okay? I'll come find you, wherever you are.
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She looks between his eyes, searching. Then smiles, giving his hand a tender squeeze.]
Thank you, Luke. That means so much to me.
And you do the same, okay? Anything you need. Anything at all.
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[He won't but she doesn't need to know that]