Cormac points at Fiona and her parasol. Then he remembered his father taught him a little about “manners” that the Inners thought were important. No need to make a bad first impression, he supposed.
“Ma’am, what is that thing? Does it keep you warm?”
Fiona had been watching the beautiful snow lands go by-it was sort of calming, really, how it went on and on forever-when the short and wiry Rimer man (Rimen? Riman?) spoke up to her. While it was too cold for a proper blush, the corners of her mouth dimpled in her traditional smile. She held the parasol out to show him the length of it, though this was entirely unnecessary.
"Er, yes. It does. Indirectly. It's called a parasol or an umbrella. It sort of...unfolds like a flower...?" She stopped and thought to herself for a moment, frowning slightly. They probably didn't even have flowers in the Rime! She didn't quite babble-her voice had a sort of peaceful equity to it that made her nice to listen to even if you didn't really get what she was saying.
"Forgive me, sir, I'm being terribly insensitive. It pops open like a cork in a bottle. Then it makes a sort of canvas cover between your head and the sky. Like a tent! Only you carry it. And it keeps the ran off your head. So you don't get wet and cold. It rains a lot where I came from. Of course there's more snow than rain here, but what is snow, but cold rain, right? Anyway, carry an umbrella and hope for sunshine, that's my philosophy.
Well, I'd love to show you how it works, but if I opened it here someone would probably get poked in the eye or...somewhere else. The mechanism is quite clever, spring loaded, it's new-they just invented it, I'm sure. Like I said it pops open really quite quickly. Well, it's no surprise they don't have them all the way out here in the Rime, and no reason that you'd know. I was surprised myself when I bought it. And I was happy to explain it to you.
...Anyway, It's nice to make your acquaintance you, Mr...?" She wasn't quite sure if they shook hands in the Rime. Was there secret signs you made? Perhaps you flashed a certain icon or piece of clothing? Some of the clans in Camelon required short phrases in ancient tongues...
She set the parasol to rest on her shoulder, and her short (and well manicured) fingers fluttered on the handle with acute upper class anxiety. Not unlike how a gunslinger might treat their favored weapon in a duel.
Cormac nods along politely, not really paying too much attention. A couple of questions and he ends up with a lecture on weather and how the thing worked.
She asked for his name though. Father always said the family name was important, but the family was dead and Cormac was in no great rush to join them. There were a few Rimers in the compartment, and he didn't know if the Inners knew anything about the people they slaughtered. Better safe than sorry, he guessed.
"
My name is Cormac, Ma'am. he said, with a respectful nod in her direction. He then realised his father didn't teach him much in the way of manners, so he plowed on.
"Uh... what's your name?" The Rimer girl picked up the slack Cormac left, and then the conversation took a most bizarre turn, causing Cormac to frown in confusion.
"
Why would you want to keep the sun off you?"
