(Untitled)

[dream_departed]

Aya has always thought calling it the Tower of London was totally misleading. It isn't one dark tower on hill, it's fortress.

The line leading down to the torture chamber stretched across the court yard. Aya turned to the left in time to watch the beefeaters change guard.

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[x_ginta_x]

Ginta was practically choking just looking at the beefeaters and started rubbing at his neck. "Don't know how they can stand to wear those ruffly things. Ugh."

Eventually the two make their way to the beginning of the line. One of the beefeaters greets them, announces that he'll be guiding their tour, and begins to usher them through the old stony chambers. The guide started with some of the simpler implements, pointing out a pair of iron shackles used to hang people from their hands. He mentioned that when those put in the shackles were tall enough to have their feet touch the ground the dirt beneath was dug away, leaving them to dangle painfully. Ginta rubbed at his wrists now, momentarily distracted from imagining the discomfort the ruff must cause in favour of imagining what those shackles must be like.

[dream_departed]

"It's just tradition. There are other guards that wear hats made out of real bears. And bears are endangered here."

Aya looks at the devices with a cheerful and enthusiastic interest. "Torture seems really ridiculous as an interrogation technique to me. Who wouldn't say anything the interrogator wanted to hear with molten lead being poured on you?"

[x_ginta_x]

Ginta nods, looking at an Iron Maided whose spikes had gone dull with age. "And if they really couldn't bring themselves to spill the truth I imagine they could just lie about something similar to what they wanted to hear."

It was just then that the guide was explaining a few such incidents where people who were enemies of those tortured had the finger pointed at them and were later found to be innocent. He also went into some of the finer points of what the torture contraptions did. Ginta couldn't understand a word.

"Um," he whispered to Aya, "is he saying anything interesting?"

[dream_departed]

"Exactly."

Aya looks at Ginta. Her eyes soften. She says, "No." in a way that means Yes.

There is a fish and chips booth near the area where the tour groups exit the torture chambers. The fish and chips come in a styrofoam container rather than being wrapped in newspaper.

"I'm starved. Would you like something to eat?"

[x_ginta_x]

"Hm, that's an idea. Er, I don't know very much to start off with. Are there some basic things I should know like 'where is the' 'what is the' ...and I guess since it's a shop, 'how much is the'?"

[dream_departed]

Aya helpfully provides the proper English pronunciation.

"What are you going to buy?"

[x_ginta_x]

Ginta repeats after her exactly as he can manage. When he's done he feels rather proud of himself, despite completely mangling the pronunciation.

"I'm not sure. I can't think of anything I need... maybe some foreign sweets. I can bring some to the kids and see how they like it. Is there anything you want?"

[dream_departed]

"Sweets. Hm."

Aya-chan carefully enunciates, "Strawberry flavored lube."

[x_ginta_x]

"Uh, heh, well..." Aw, look, you've made him blush.

He looks over the toy she seems enamoured with. "Huh, kind of looks like the metal people I've seen around the Nexus. Only difference being that this one doesn't stand... I don't think. Then again, I don't know how to work it, so it might!"

[dream_departed]

"That would make it even more fun. But they just drive around in it." A moment of practicality takes over. "It runs on petrol, so it probably wouldn't be a good idea to take it to your world, since refueling could be a problem. ...Maybe we could get it for them if they start to visit my world or the Nexus more!"

[x_ginta_x]

"Yeah, not much good in my world at all. And... hm. I'm not sure what they'd think of it since I don't think they've seen anything like it," he said, unaware of the fact that Kai had somewhat befriended a giant robot at this point already. "It might be best to introduce them to things like this before actually buying it. Do you think they'd keep this kind of thing in the store long enough that we could come back to it?"

[dream_departed]

"Absolutely." She looks at her boyfriend, whom she loves. "Did you still want to buy the sweets?"