maskormenacelogs | I’ve traveled all this way for something

WHO: YOU.
WHERE: Eden East's cruiseship
WHEN: Saturday February 15th, around 5 PM EST
WHAT: Registration in motion... among other things.
WARNINGS: None anticipated; let us know if this should be edited.

" The new frontier of which I speak is not a set of promises -- it is a set of challenges. It sums up not what I intend to offer the American people, but what I intend to ask of them. It appeals to their pride, not to their pocketbook -- it holds out the promise of more sacrifice instead of more security. But I tell you the new frontier is here, whether we seek it or not. "
( from jfk's speech "the new frontier," 7/15/1960. )

The sun hasn't set yet and the temperature hovers somewhere just below 70 degrees this evening; imPorts, both recently arrived and not, will have been escorted to this event so that they can meet each other, have a good time, and of course officially state their registration status. Or lack thereof. It's your decision, they emphasize, even though the unspoken "but" is always there.

It's an elaborate spread, certainly much more elegant than last time. Eden East herself, elegant in her backless champagne-colored dress, meets and greets each and every imPort as she flutters to and fro. She'll find you and chat for a few moments, shaking your hand and complimenting your dress. She'll know your name, and she'll have an entourage of aids and cameras following her wake. Captain Holiday, in contrast, maintains the energy of someone who feels out of place holding the Swear-In ceremony somewhere so extravagant. As imPorts arrive he tells them where to be for the ceremony part of the evening, but that they are free to enjoy themselves until then and after.

( Please state your character's official status -- REGISTERED or UNSETTLED -- in the subject header of your thread. Characters who are UNDECIDED may be contacted later in the week for their decision via their IC contact post. )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Of many things Nelson could understand it was Anna's sentiment, and even more so her expression of it. He was guilty of stress-eating and chocolate could be a particular vice -- all that had kept him from helping himself to anything tonight was his own concern over getting motion sick once the boat began to move.

"Sorry," he said to her, an expression of sympathy. He was a clean-cut, non-threatening sort of man; it was not disingenuous. "None of us are supposed to be, but as far as I know the only way home is simple luck of the draw. It isn't all bad."

There was nothing untrustworthy about a person with a love of chocolate. That wasn't a deep thought Anna had gone to after years of contemplation, or even one she consciously recognized. It was just a gut feeling. So (closed lip, so as to not show her current bite of brownie she was rapidly swallowing) Anna offered a wavering smile at the greeting.

"Oh, no. It looks like an amazing kingdom- and, you know, normally I'd be so for this. Getting out of the house isn't really something we do back home. But it's just a really, really bad time and-"

She caught herself. Manners, Anna. She offered a hand, ladylike.

"And you're stuck here, too. I'm Anna. Of Arendelle."

"Kingdom may not be the word, but--" He stopped himself, offering his hand in return and shaking hers politely. Nelson could always appreciate someone with manners. "Nelson Gardner. Of... uh. Where's Arendelle?"

What he should get used to is hearing about cities, or countries, or whatever else that might not exist as far as he's concerned but do, in a greater more multi-versal sense, but he still hadn't. There was nothing especially unsettling about Anna, though, so it wasn't enough to shake him yet.

"And what's the particular trouble? You may as well let yourself enjoy it, as far as I know we may be here for a while yet," he added. "... But whatever's at home should wait."

"We kind of fell into an eternal winter?"

That awkward smile was apparently around to stay as she gave a small shrug of 'hey, what can you do? things happen' to accompany that confession. And that handshaking thing gets a funny look, but, really, who is she to complain about other cultures?

"But we can fix it. Magic isn't bad, you know, just misunderstood. And slightly withholding."

Going way too personal there, Anna. Back to that first part.

"But Arendelle is- well, it's Arendelle. Honest, I don't know where we are right now, really. I've never heard of any United anything...so directions are kind of out."

Nelson's brow furrowed, perplexed by how casually she remarked upon something like an "eternal winter" (which frankly, to him, sounded like the beginning of the end of the world) and wondering a little dismally that if they all had to be stuck here, why they couldn't at least all come from places that made sense?

Magic, no less. His smile grew uneasy but stayed in place.

"The United States of America," he offered, because it was simplest. "A splendid country indeed, I'm sure you'll make yourself right at home. Home away from home, as the case may be. You must appreciate the warm weather, then."

After another moment, he added: "I find magicians tend to think of themselves as misunderstood. Mostly they're odd."

"She's my sister."

Anna didn't mean for the reply to be defensive, but it was pure instinct. Elsa deserved to be defended, and protecting family was simply a knee-jerk reaction. But she knew he didn't actually mean harm. Or thought so, anyway, even if she was looking at him through slightly narrowed eyes now.

"And we're all magicians now, aren't we? Powers and incredible abilities- that's what they claim."

"Oh. Your sister?" Misunderstood, slightly withholding? Nelson could note his accidental misstep but determined not to stumble any further, because family troubles were messy enough without clumsy outsider intervention.

So, more carefully he proceeded: "A little bit of space might give you perspective," he offered, more for her own peace of mind -- if they couldn't get back by their own volition, sometimes it helped having goals. At the next mention of magic his eyebrows rose up his forehead. "I might not call it all magic, but, uh, yes... the abilities. It is true, however incredible. But you're... used to that, maybe."

"Not as used to it as a I could be."

Say, if Elsa had mentioned anything. Ever. But she just gives a shrug at that, her knee-jerk defensiveness sliding easily off her shoulders. It wasn't fair to react like she expected people to know, it wasn't like Arendelle even existed here.

"Sorry, I was, ah, sheltered? Yeah, sheltered covers it. Growing up. So the whole magic thing is taking a little getting used to..."

And a thought visibly occurs.

"What can you do?"

She's a little odd. But Nelson can forgive oddness in some cases, such as when it's otherwise harmless. People have their quirks, after all.

"That's what I've had to do, get used to it. It isn't simple in the least, considering that there might be all kinds of things that exist that you've never even thought of before, let alone encountered," he said, smiling faintly before he hesitantly helped himself to a small square of fudge to delay answering for just a couple of moments.

"It isn't what I do so much as-- well. It's like a radio in my head," he said finally, a little slowly. "Mostly I try to ignore it."

I’ve traveled all this way for something

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