Orb post - morning on the 10th (intro)

[fridgetothefire]

[Her hair is frazzled – enough to suggest that she’s lost, stressed, vulnerable; not enough to make her ugly, unsympathetically bedraggled. She wants to look innocent, harmless, deserving of good will. She ducks her head, smiles shyly. The view behind her is lovely, a wide blue sky and a distant view from the river. She's outside on one of the castle towers, perched nimbly on the edge of the wall.]

I can barely believe all this is happening. I mean – last thing I knew my brother was off to college, and now I’m in some kind of magic kingdom?

[Her disbelief isn’t too strident, just a little shaken, good-naturedly self-deprecating about her own adjustment.]

It’s probably not as different as it seems right now. I mean, human nature is the same everywhere, right?

[A smile, as though that's a good thing. There. She’s established herself as sensible and open-minded. People from a world similar to hers will think she's normal enough, thanks to the lie about college. Even better, if there's anyone here who looks down on humans like mutants do, maybe some of them will be arrogant enough and offended enough at being lumped together with them to reveal themselves by correcting her assumption.]

Comments

[shorterinperson]

How do they get them to do it?

[fridgetothefire]

Well, you just - I mean, you go to the little booths they set up everywhere and you mark the person you want in charge. Because you care, supposedly, who runs everything. And if you don't care then you don't go.

[shorterinperson]

You mark it? On a paper? But what about the people who can't read?

[fridgetothefire]

In Europe and America, almost everyone can read. But I heard that in India, where lots of people don't, they have symbols for the different groups that want the government to do particular things. So you mark the hand, or the wheel, or the tiger, or whoever you believe in.

[shorterinperson]

That's brilliant. And the whole system actually works? Absolutely mad.

[fridgetothefire]

[She laughs]

Well, it depends on what you mean by work. It's not perfect. But most people seem to like it.

[shorterinperson]

It would put an end to a lot of bloody wars.

[fridgetothefire]

You'd think, right? But it turns out sometimes people are just as awful in groups as they are one on one.

[shorterinperson]

It would have to put an end to murderous Dukes, at least... [ Those Dukes and their murderous intentions, get her every time! ]

[fridgetothefire]

Yeah, I guess it pretty much does that.