fh_trips | Backpacking Trip: London Below, Sunday

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graduate backpacking 2010

Backpacking Trip: London Below, Sunday

Weather Report for London Below: cool, dark, and tunnely. Funny, that.

[OOC: Open! Ping in OOC for your happy floating NPCs, and chat is fhbelow.]

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Funny thing about Earl's Court: it's not actually in the Earl's Court Underground Station. Except when it is. No, no, this isn't more Floating Market stuff. The Earl holds court in a train, and it's always on the move.

If you've got a recent timetable about you and catch it at the right time, though, it's not very far from the entrance to Door's house at all.

"I suppose you lot want to see his Grace," the rather short herald in rather run-down armor says tiredly as the group approaches. Beyond him is a car draped in dusty brocades, lit with a faint pinkish glow, and populated with figures in stately but threadbare garb, not a one of them looking under sixty years old.

"I'm not sure why Halvard's always so worn-out," Door whispers. "It's not as if many people do visit." More loudly, and more politely, to him, she says, "By your courtesy. We're not seeking an audience as such; I only wanted to show my guests the Court and the Lost Property Car."

Another long-suffering sigh. "Right, then. Who shall I announce to the Earl?"

Door gave him a look, a bit frazzled, a bit fond. "I'm still the Lady Door of the House of the Arch, just like the last hundred times you've seen me. And my companions are..."

[OOC: Sound off! If you want an impressive-sounding title, go for it. You miiiiiight get some mockery from the Earl's jester, though. If it's a day that ends in Y.]

"Dinah Lance. Of New Gotham," Dinah said, then grinned. Why not? "Also known as Canary." Since that seemed to be evolving into her codename, without her mom's modifier on it.

A sour-looking cave-cheeked fellow shook a staff festooned with Barbie-doll heads in her direction, then leaned over to the Earl. "A bird on a stick is here to see us, your Grace."

Edited 2010-06-07 01:18 (UTC)

"A bird on a --- ohhh." Dinah had the urge to stick out her tongue at the jester, and just barely managed not to. Tweety everywhere.

Yes, those are Long Johns he's wearing under his robe, and yes, those are London Underground badges studded around his eyepatch, and yes, he's a good 3/4 senile. Have trying to hold a conversation with him! Very likely "helped" along by Tooley, his dour-faced jester.

"Halvard! Refreshments for our guests! We can't let Lord Portico's...sorry, which one are you again? Anyway, we can't let them go hungry!"

No, of course they can't. Which is why Halvard sighs, takes off his helmet, and walks to the glowing vending machine at the end of the car. He gives it a kick, then a punch, then your refreshments spill out into his helmet.

Enjoy your ice-cold cans of Coke, bacon-flavoured crisps, and Time-Out bars.

It's the next car down, and stuffed to the ceiling with everything you could ever imagine being lost on public transport. Or... really any form of transport, because who loses a ship's figurehead on the Tube? The stuffed and mounted eagle, well, maybe. The suitcase full of false teeth, a bit more understandable. You might even find something you've lost on a journey somewhere; the oddest things seem to find their way here, from the oddest places, not all of them in London Below.

Francine decided it was just the herald's height that had him constantly staring somewhere below her chin as he led her back to the Lost Property car, because... well... most men who looked there for other reasons actually smiled? This one just looked vaguely depressed and nostalgic.

He was polite enough, anyway, and three minutes later, she was staring at a three-legged pink and purple My Pretty Unicorn that she'd lost on a flight back from Memphis when she was seven, and, "My duffel bag!"

Which was a bit squished under a box that said Surgically Sterile Colostomy Bags on the side, but nothing within seemed to be missing or damaged.

The trip to Earl's Court was hardly mandatory; you were welcome to laze about the house, explore the rooms you'd been shown already, or meet up afterwards to talk, eat, and sleep.

Ingress seems to have made tomato soup today, and toasted cheese sandwiches.

Edited 2010-06-06 23:31 (UTC)

Relax and read a book. Perhaps Deadly Vestments: A History of Inept Military Couture by Antonia Fremont, or The Affair of the Second Goldfish by Ariadne Oliver?

It is for swimming. And ignoring the fact that someone once died in it.

For relaxing, sleeping, taking a bath in a clawfoot tub, the usual.

Ping here for Door and Ingress, the Earl's thread for his Grace and Tooley. Richard and the Marquis may or may not be wandering about. (Assuming the Marquis would like to be smoked like a kipper. The Earl holds grudges.)

Random Neverwhere factoid #2: Earl's Court is the only setting in the mini-series that was filmed on a set. The rest is all on location.

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Backpacking Trip: London Below, Sunday

Earl's Court - Afternoon

Earl's Court - Getting In

Re: Earl's Court - Getting In

Re: Earl's Court - Getting In

Re: Earl's Court - Getting In

Earl's Court - Talk To The Earl

Earl's Court - Refreshments

Earl's Court - Lost Property Car

Re: Earl's Court - Lost Property Car

The House With No Doors - All Day/Evening

House - Dining Room

House - Library

House - Pool

House - Bedrooms

OOC