[Open Post] ..Tuesday afternoon..

[lanselos_du_lac]

Lancelot feels that things have been a strange mix of tumult and routine. This is probably because they have. But today, so far, is routine in all respects. His day has proceeded apace through his usual steps -- drills, tending to Rivelin, coffee, lunch with Susan -- and the afternoon is now stretching out before him in a very satisfying way. He feels good, settled.

And so it is that he's in the café, reading (or mostly reading), with more coffee at hand. Given that he seems to be splitting time equally between having his eyes on his book and gazing out the window, he will not be bothered if anyone comes to chat.

Comments

[ravkanwitch]

"Good morning," Nina says as she enters, a habit she's probably picked up from Sagramore; she's on the hunt for a very specific type of coffee that can only usually be found in the café. "Lancelot, right?"

[lanselos_du_lac]

He glances up, smiling, "Aye. You've the right of it, Nina."

[ravkanwitch]

She starts looking through some of the cabinets. "What are you reading?"

[lanselos_du_lac]

"Oh-- trying to learn about theater and plays."

[ravkanwitch]

“Oh? Is that because of the questionnaire Susan and I put out or is it a happy coincidence?”

[lanselos_du_lac]

There's a quick, bright smile, "Susan spoke to me of plays-- I did think of it with the questionnaire."

[ravkanwitch]

She’s found the coffee now and has figured out how to work the coffee maker. “What kind of plays are you interested in? I watched a lot in Ravka - where I’m from - and I’ve done a lot of acting… but not in plays.”

[lanselos_du_lac]

Lancelot chuckles, "I don't know what kinds of plays there might be. These are new to me. I know what Susan has said and what I saw at the talent show. I was hoping I might understand more of how they work."

[ravkanwitch]

“Oh, you saw my performance!” Nina laughs, with a little toss of her hair over her shoulder. “Janet told us that was from a movie, not a play, but that both use scripts. Did you want any of this coffee? I can make extra.”

[lanselos_du_lac]

He nods, "I did-- and I do. That would be nice."

[ravkanwitch]

It’s a nicer brand of ground coffee but it’s probably something sweetly flavored like salted caramel (sorry Lancelot). Nina adds more grounds and water in before starting it. “I think I like theater because of the allure of— pretending to be someone I’m not. I love losing myself in a character.”

[lanselos_du_lac]

"Why is that?" This is genuine curiosity, not a prying sort of question or judgment.

[ravkanwitch]

"It's not that I don't like myself," Nina explains, while waiting for the coffee to brew. "It's-- it's a challenge. I like understanding other people and other viewpoints. I love languages, so it's fun trying to speak and move in a different way."

[lanselos_du_lac]

"I see," though he's not entirely sure that he does. He looks thoughtful.

[ravkanwitch]

"Hmm. Let's see," Nina considers. "Who do we have in common? Who do we both know fairly well?"

[lanselos_du_lac]

"You mentioned Susan," with a smile. "We are close."

[ravkanwitch]

Nina catches something in that smile, just a glimpse, but she doesn't say anything. "Susan," she thinks, tilting her head. "I've only spoken to her a few times before we started our project together, but she's so much more proper than I am and she keeps her emotions close to the chest-- or at least tries to." She tilts her shoulders back, emulating Susan's posture, and schools her expressiveness into something more solemn and refined. She does try to affect an accent that's more refined as well, but she's not sure if it carries through the translator. "Much like this," she says, with a hint of a smile that carries just enough warmth.

[lanselos_du_lac]

Lancelot laughs softly, "Aye, 'tis much like her. Is this what you mean?"

[ravkanwitch]

Nina nods. "Acting... and watching theater... it transports your mind."

[lanselos_du_lac]

"It's fascinating to think about," still smiling. "We've not much like it, in my own time. Or at least, none that I've seen."

[ravkanwitch]

"Do you have musicians at all? Many of the smaller villages in Ravka don't have the ability to put on plays and shows... but they still have traveling musicians who tell tales and sing folk songs in the local taverns."

[lanselos_du_lac]

"Aye, we have musicians, and folk songs, and that sort of thing. But nothing like what Susan described."

[ravkanwitch]

“Hm. I was going to say that it’s similar… just bigger. It’s all just telling a story.” She snaps her fingers. “That’s what I love it about! Story-telling. Acting is telling a story about someone else. How they act and who they are.”

[lanselos_du_lac]

Lancelot looks thoughtful, "I can understand that, I think."

[ravkanwitch]

“We’re all just stories in the end— and I mean that figuratively and not literally,” she adds, with a nervous little laugh. She’s heard the rumors.