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[ The video feed clicks on to show a now relatively calm Pepper, even if her mouth is set in a fairly thin line of mild discontent. Her hair is scraped back and tied in a neat bun, with her fringe still plastered a little wetly to her forehead, but at least she's clean now. She's been making regular use of the showers since arriving, just to make sure that every last bit of blue hideousness is washed away from her. For now, at least. ]

Now that everyone's had at least a bit of time to recover- [ herself very much included, even if "recover" is something of an overstatement ] -I might as well introduce myself, though from what I've been told, it appears some of you may already know who I am.

I'm Pepper Potts, an associate and coworker- [ this is still new, Tony, don't complain] -of Tony Stark's. [ The next words are a little practised, ones she's gone over in her mind and made sure that they're absolutely clear before speaking them. ] Not the same one from before, though. I have absolutely no memory of having been on this ship before, even though apparently I was, and I'm sorry to anyone that I might have met previously.

[ She pauses, briefly, before going on. ]

I just wanted to clear that up before any confusion took place. I think some of us have more than enough of that already, what with being on a spaceship and everything. [ The thought still makes her want to shudder a little. ] Thank you for your time, and I hope everyone's successfully washed off all of that awful blue stuff.

[ With a good natured, mild smile, Pepper shuts off the feed. She realises it's a rather mundane sort of addition to the network, but she'll leave revelations and interesting matters to Tony. She still isn't sure if she has the entire picture here - Tony has a curious understanding of what he should and shouldn't tell her, she knows this from experience - but god knows she will have it, one way or another. ]

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[ It's strange to hear someone call Tony "Anthony" in an entirely serious way, not like Justin Hammer said it, but with a level of appreciation. Pepper feels strangely warmed by this conversation already. It's no secret to her that Tony is absolutely capable of being a good person when he feels like it, but whatever his relation to Alayne is... it's good

There's hope for you yet, Tony Stark.

Mind you, Pepper is a little distracted by the thought of holding the esteem of Tony's heart, and though a slight pinkness floods her cheeks, she knows that they - they - can't have stayed a secret forever. Especially not if she, or a version of herself, was here before. ]

Tony is certainly a special person- [ in a number of ways, she thinks to herself, with personal amusement, but she continues softly: ] -and I- well, thank you. I hope I do.

It's a pleasure to meet you, Alayne. [ Her smile brightens also. ] He did, yes.

[ There is hope yet for Tony Stark here in space and there is also the promise of family, albeit a family not his own. Perhaps a strange fit for a man who dons iron armor painted in the colors of House Lannister and from a place not Westeros at all. But he bears he name Stark and so has adopted the house as his own; and the Starks — ever honorable, ever half Tully — have embraced him with both a duty and a fierceness, the likes of which is only seen in wolves. He may not be of their blood but he is of their name, and that is enough for Alayne and for Robb.

She watches with soft-eyed attentiveness as she watches Pepper fluster slightly. It's the barest suggestion of a blush but Alayne (ever observant) catches it quickly but makes no mention. Friends, she repeats to herself, then hazards. More than friends. Paramours, perhaps. Beloved. (The thought that Anthony would have such a companion makes her feel a sort of relief, for he is special but also strange and enjoys arguing with people.) ]

Good things, I hope? And— and have you need of anything? Food or a dress or— a small comfort from home? There is tea in the gardens and sometimes there are little cakes. Have you been to the gardens yet, Lady Pepper — I know you've only just arrived but I promise to you, they are lovely.

[ The thought that Tony has been welcomed into a family is something else that makes Pepper feel, well, a lot better about the fact that he's been here for so long. Family wasn't something that had ever been very present for him - "you're all I have" are the sort of words she doesn't just forget - and to her it doesn't matter if they aren't blood relations, if they're just tied by a name, because if that name leads to a good understanding and warmth, then it's good enough. It's more than some families have.

From what she has heard of Alayne, of Robb, all Pepper can say so far is that they are good people, and very strong, for how young they are. She can see it from speaking to Alayne, too. Chaos, death, screaming and all that aside, Pepper is relieved. Tony's time hasn't been spent too terribly here. As for her own relationship with Tony, that... that is up in the air, somewhat. There is kissing on rooftops, then there is arriving in space. The only thing Pepper knows for certain, one hundred percent, is that how she felt on the rooftop has not changed appearing here. ]

Of course, all good things. [ She listens to what Alayne tells her, makes a mental note of it all. Tea and cakes in space is a strangely charming mental image. ] I'm fine, for the most part, thank you- I'd love to see the gardens, though. Tony mentioned them, and it'd be a relief, in a way, to see at least a little bit of something normal. The ship isn't exactly the most colourful looking place, to be honest.

[ Alayne wants to ask Pepper about Anthony. About the place they come from and what the Starks mean there. It was obvious that his was world different from Westeros, or a land so far from removed from it in time that it bore little resemblance to the home that Alayne knew. Anthony made very little mention of it, though she'd been able to pick up swatches here and there. He'd suffered during his time there and had seen his share of war. He'd been graced with talent enough to be respected and ego enough to speak his mind, irregardless of the situation. He was very rarely humbled and, yet, his inclusion amongst the Starks here aboard the Tranquility seemed to humble him greatly. He didn't like to speak of his feelings. He was very intelligent.

And he was the last of his line.

Is he secretly sad? The question forms itself on Alayne's tongue but then is quickly swallowed down. (She suspects the answer, but only suspects.) There would be time for questions later. ]

You are not used to such a place either, then. There are those among the passengers that take to all the mental and hum much like a fish to water but— [ Another sheepish look of apology. ] —we Westerosi are not among them.

The gardens offer a color respite, though— [ She gives her head a modest dip. ] —there is no sun. Only light made by science. It is not the same, I'm afraid to say, but still — lovely, in its way.

[ There are a lot of things Pepper could tell Alayne about. Putting it lightly, Tony is rather an adventurous sort nowadays, and sometimes these are adventures that make Pepper's breath catch in her throat and sometimes they make her heart skip beats, but no one could say that he lived a boring life. Pepper's life, by extension, can be exciting too. Sometimes a bit too exciting, but she doesn't have much control over that. There are things she'd like to ask Alayne about too, about the "Westeros" that they come from. She'd like to find out what it was about Tony that made him humble around them, even though she already has an inkling.

It's a question that doesn't have a simple answer, nor a complete one either. As well as Pepper may Tony, there are still walls that she either has to break down or climb over, somehow. She has to. ]

Westerosi - of Westeros, right? That's where you're from. Tony's only given me the cliff-notes version. I won't lie, though, it's a little comforting to know there are people feel just as out of place here as I do, if not even more. [ Her expression becomes a little more gentle. ] I feel like we all need to stick together, if we have that in common.

I'll take what I can get. Artificial light is better than none at all.

[ More questions bloom, the more Pepper speaks. Alayne wonders what precisely Anthony said about Westeros and how he went about doing it — had he mused about it like some bedside tail, had he spoken in hushed tones, had he been curious? Or had it been simply the recounting of facts, the delivery of notes and names culled over conversation after conversation? (Alayne suspects the former.) She suspects because thinks she sees Anthony better than Sansa's brothers do, or perhaps has simply been shown more over time. That is the difference between how men and women interact, Alayne has learned; a softness comes when a girl lays dying and it is a man's duty to call upon her to ask if she is well. That is how Alayne came to know Anthony Stark — in the shadow of her own death once, then touched by the same sickness after. Times when she or he or both were vulnerable.

(You learn more about another person that way, but in turn they learn just as much about you. That is the trade, the delicate transaction that comes when you care about another person. And yes, perhaps Alayne cares for the southern Stark even though she is not a Stark at all.) ]

Westeros, yes. Known as the Seven Kingdoms as well. It is a great continent that lies to the west of the Narrow Sea. Its North is the seat of the great House Stark — that is how I first came to know Anthony. His name caught my attention and— [ She dips her head, modestly. ] —I suppose the rest of him held it.

We've no such ships where I am from, and men do not sail the stars. Sometimes I scarce believe the story, having not seen them myself. But Anthony — he has gone to great lengths to explain unfamiliar things to us. I hope you will be just as generous with your patience, Lady Pepper. [ Alayne lifts her eyebrows expectantly. ] I will do my very best to keep up.

[ A pause and then Alayne's eyebrows lower. She looks at the woman with the bright red hair and, for the briefest of moments, seems terribly sad. (Sansa had hair much the same. Sansa had Tully fire, but it was snuffed out.) But that instant comes and then it goes and then she is smiling again, warmly. ] I am glad that you have come.

[ Pepper knows about Alayne's situations, dying and not dying, she knows that Tony went through the sickness, she has gone through the process of freaking out and then quite gladly accepting the fact that Tony is now safe. She wonders, though, how Alayne does it. The girl has been through more than enough already on this ship, and Pepper can't imagine what her home must be like, and she's still so young. It's astonishing. It also makes Pepper's feelings on the ship itself a little less kind - not that they were particularly positive in the first place. She hates the thought that such young individuals have go through these things, that they have to learn to grow up so fast. ]

So I've been somewhat informed. Who'd have thought that people would be able to find common ground like that in a place like this, pulled from such different home? [ Sometimes Pepper can only roll her eyes when people speak well of Tony, because sometimes it's admiration of his sillier qualities, sometimes it's general arse-licking, and other times it's sarcastic, but so far, people here have spoken of him in a way that can only make her smile. ] He's good at that, keeping your attention whether you like it or not.

We might have some amount of space travel where I come from, but I'm not even slightly familiar with it myself. You and I are in a similar position, Alayne, so you don't have to worry about me losing patience. I doubt that I would.

[ It takes Pepper a moment to continue, because she's weighing up her answer carefully. She doesn't want to sound contradictory, but... she's glad to be here with Tony, at least. It would be harder without him, and she would feel guilty if he was here alone. Well, he's never alone, not really, because he knows people here and because he has his ways of always keeping himself surrounded by others, but- all the same. ]

I am too, in a way. This isn't ideal, but- it could be worse, I think, and I'm glad it isn't.

[ For the time being. ]

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