[ MINGLE ] FORGE AFTER HOURS

[nonstopnarcissist]

WHO: Tony Stark
WHERE: South Village Forge
WHEN: January 8th
OPEN TO: Smitherns (Thor, Brigitte, Annie Cresta, Siefer), Plus Ones, Passers by, and Friends! Anyone, really, come on down.
WARNINGS: Language, discussion of canon typical violence probably, drinking?

---

THE HEARTH

With the bulk of the work and chores done for the day, the heart's banked down to a tolerable level rather than steel meltingly hot, positively cozy. Tables are cleared of metal filings and shavings, the floor is swept, extra chairs and seating or overturned crates serve as places to kick back and enjoy the warmth. A large kettle of tea is kept brewing all night, another of coffee, and a jug of cool water for those thirsty with no real requirement RE flavor. There's a rack for coats and scarves when people don't need to be quite so bundled up, and space cleared enough for milling about, tossing ideas back and forth, or simply relaxing. Arguments happen at The Debate Wall, not by the fire.

THE FOOD

It's an eclectic spread- a pot of stew, some crusty bread, frittatas, a few large, simple cheese pizzas, bottles of wine, and whatever other food the Smitherns or their Plus Ones chose to bring. It's a bit of a potluck, food spread out on one table for perusal, plates waiting and a bin for dirty dishes. Tony will scrub up at the end of the night. By the fire there's a waffle iron and as many toppings as they could find for waffles- jams, zalpaca butter, dried fruit, preserved peaches. Serve yourself or sit and sample!

THE CHILL OUT CORNER

For the more introspective or anyone taking a break from The Debate Wall, there's a comfortable chair tucked in the far corner where the light isn't as bright, the sound not quite so loud- and in this chair sits a young Peacat, a smaller pot for tea, and a few books. Elton's a friendly sort and will chirrup to lean for pets or simply sit on a lap and purr, offering calming, quiet company.

THE DEBATE WALL

Scrubbed clean for the night, the wall opposite Tony's Scrawled projects, equations, rules and definitions- currently marked only with a few notes RE proper charcoal use 'It's for the wall, not your hands, not anyone's clothes', the large space cleared for marking out or drawing out- well. Games, hangman, tic-tac-toe, sketches, or debate points. The only other rule listed is 'If you're going to pick a hill to die on, cite your references'.

Comments

Tony

[nonstopnarcissist]

Hosting!

A good host minds their guests- he's cleaned up a little from the day of work, scrubbed his hands clean, combed through his hair, made sure he didn't smell like ozone and metal, but it's a casual get together more than anything else. After being taken by the spine and shook pretty hard the month previous- he's better. Still weary in the slump of his shoulders and the darker circles under his eyes- but they're not as bad as they were. Tony's smiling, laughing, teasing. Inviting people in for a little warmth and ideas. He tops off glasses of wine if anyone's drinking, pats shoulders, and points everyone to the waffle station Rhodey's manning because- honestly? Nothing seems to make the man happier. Every new visitor gets a smile and a wave in to sit and chat, and everyone gets asked the same three questions. "What do you think we need in the village? What kind of problems have you been noticing?"

And the most important: "Which is better, pancakes or waffles? I've got a bet going."


The Chill Out Corner

Glad as he is to have everyone (and he is, it's nice to have company, a full gathering of people talking about ideas, how to make them, how to solve problems, tossing inane, frivolous inventions back and forth like it's a sport- he needs a moment to breathe a little. When no one else is settled there Tony slides into the chair, scooping Elton up to settle against his chest, the peacat's head tucked up under Tony's chin as he purrs. It's a familiar, soothing sound by now. A few minutes of this ad slowly stroking Elton's fur and feathers? And he'll be ready for another round of hosting.


Wildcard

Got something else in mind? Hit me.

Hosting

[firacrux]

Tony looks like he's in good spirits, and he's a familiar face. So Seifer abandons his hiding corner of safety to use Tony as his hiding corner of safety, mostly so he can sneak over to grab a snack. There's stew, how could he resist stew? He didn't know how to cook much just yet so his contribution had been a large pile of pancakes to battle Rhodey's waffles.

A battle he will not officially lay claim to. "Oh no, boss, I know better than to answer that one. You want me on Rhodey's shit list?" He teased back. Using the excuse of Tony to sidle closer so he could snag himself one of said waffles. He likes his pancakes but he eats them all the time. "What about you?"

[nonstopnarcissist]

"Donuts." Easy. When in doubt, pick a third option. He reaches out to clasp Seifer's shoulder (though it's less out and more up, fuck the kid is tall) and give him a friendly shake. "And as long as you don't bring up Puerto Rico and Spring Break of 87, you're fine. The rest is all posturing anyway, he's all fluff."

Wrapped around steel but- that goes without saying. "The fact you brought pancakes is hilarious though, let me tell you. He's going to be laughing about it all night.'

Hosting!

[skyward_eyes]

Frankly, Nida hadn't expected to be addressed by this person. By anyone here. He hadn't even expected to b here. But here he is, Seifer already having disappeared, posed with three questions. And since this guy was apparently the one behind the food today (yes, Nida's watching out for Seifer told him that this guy was Tony Stark and the chief blacksmith), he was going to answer.

"First, waffles. Crispy surface, space to hold your syrup, and a versatile food because you can go ahead and put jam on it, gravy and the like. In fact, while a pancake is easier to make, a waffle iron is a far more useful tool too. You can make brownies in it."

Lesson of Garden he had learned. He could make brownies in a waffle iron. Good news. The other ones actually get Nida to pause and think more seriously.

"Meat is a problem," Nida answered immediately. "A barn isn't enough for our current population. Not something you can deal with. But it means that there needs to be a larger intake of meat. Not just fish, you need red meat. Which means hunting. Which means hunters. And you can't take everything down with a bow and arrow. Especially since there are apparently giant boars. There needs to be boar spears, maybe crossbows, items for taking down larger prey. Though from my understanding from Seifer, asking for something like a spear, much less a halberd like I use."

Hosting

[loyalrebel]

Malik blinks at Tony before shrugging at the first two questions, and at least has the grace to swallow what he'd just eaten before speaking.

"The first two depend entirely on what the long term goals are here, though a library of things besides manuals would not be a terrible idea." He admits, giving up on eating for the moment to simply roll his eyes at the question of pancakes and waffles.

"Neither is an acceptable breakfast food, but if they are as part of a dessert... still neither. Brownies are superior to both."

Wildcard

[to_defend]

7 had wanted to talk to Tony about making a shield - she's been trying to keep an eye open for discarded or natural objects that might work, but it was harder in this world and this size to just cobble something together, she'd found.

What she wasn't expecting was to find the forge in such spirits. She looks about, then wanders in and tries to find Tony.

"Hey, do you have a minute? Or should I come back later?"

Chill Out Corner

[313_248_317_60]

Peace, quiet, and the comfort of a beloved pet. What more could anyone want amidst a stressful social gathering? Probably not the shadow that falls over Tony. Or the voice that comes with it: calm and deliberate with just the faintest shadow of contempt.

"What a... charming gathering."

It's Connor, of course. But the unit standing over Tony looks entirely undamaged, no stiffness or slight lag to mark a wound. While he's donned the black wool coat provided in the backpacks, the front is unbuttoned, revealing clothes in a dark navy blue.

Cold eyes inspect the seated human, flicking from the recently-cleaned hands to the animal pressed up against him. To the hairline scar across Tony's face, and onwards. All points of data for analysis.

"I'm told you're the engineer?"

[rebornpaladin]

Shiro felt a little strange essentially crashing a party in a community as small as the village, He recognized more faces than he didn't, but he was only actually looking for the one. He found it looking particularly introspective and perched on top of what looked like a peacock and a cat mixed together, which was only weird because it was an amalgam of animals Shiro knew, and not some totally new alien life form.

He paused at the threshold of the demarcated space, appreciating the quiet of it, and lifted his hand to gently wrap his knuckles against the wall.

"Sorry for the intrusion, but - Tony Stark?"

Hosting

[notyourrookie]

He isn't entirely sure how he'd ended up here. He'd only made a periodic trip to the most inhabited village, and there's been light and warmth and someone inviting him in and now there's some kind of party and it's hitting him as he looks around, that he really doesn't remember how to do this. How to... be around people. In a non violent revenge-fuelled way.

There's swiftly a mug of tea pushed into his hands, and there's the sound of relaxed chatter. It would be cosy if it didn't make discomfort prickle down the back of his neck.

He drags himself back to the man who'd invited him in, focusing on the question. "Waffles. With fruit and syrup."

Time Out Corner, you mean

[sundr]

Loki hadn't planned to come to this. Regardless of how welcome Thor is here or how well he's allied himself one more with Stark, this is Stark's domain. Loki isn't so foolish to think that these doors would be warmly open for him even if their last meeting in the bunker hadn't gone disastrous in all the ways it could have.

He hadn't planned to come, fine with ignoring the Avengers as a whole as long as it suits him to, but curiosity, as it often does, got the better of him. After all, there's no greater time to get a look at the inside of the forge than at an open invitation gathering to decide whether or not establishing connections here is as important as he unfortunately thinks they might be.

Given the limits they're all working inside, Loki can reluctantly concede that it isn't a terrible operation Stark has put into effect. Smith work and forges are hardly Loki's area of expertise but there's an order here inside the hints of chaos this kind of work breeds that shows clear forethought and as much as he'd like to, Loki doesn't actually doubt that Tony knows what he's doing.

So he does his circuit, taking in what he can of the forge and the people inside of it, only really pausing in front of the board filled in with the tasks Stark and those who help him here are preparing to undertake, before inevitably Loki finds himself before the man himself.

"You've certainly established yourself here nicely." He's helped himself to a rather healthy serving of wine, which he brings to his lips for a long sip as his eyes shift to the iridescent shine of the creature in the other man's arms. His eyebrows twitch upwards. "Took "domesticable" as a challenge, did you?"

Hosting

[assemble_the_lovbacken]

"Pop Tarts," Thor rebuts with ease and confusion, as though this isn't even a question worth taking up his time. Although he'd very much enjoyed the pancakes he'd had during his first foray on Midgard, Pop Tarts had quickly and inscrutably taken place as winner for choice of sustenance. Just the name makes Thor's mouth water, and he's quickly downtrodden that he's got no such product to whet his appetite for them.

"Although Rhodey's waffles are a very close contender," he adds, offering a fond glance in the man's direction before looking back at Tony.

"As for problems in the village, I don't think any of the ones I've noticed are ones that can be solved with a forge and some hammers." He sighs wistfully, adding, "hammers," with a sad twinge to his voice.

Hosting

[fishermansweater]

Finnick had chosen coffee to start his evening with, though he'll switch to wine later mostly out of partygoer's habit. The coffee, though, is a genuine rarity here and his small supply had long ago been exhausted. So he's feeling warm and contented when Tony stops by, and he greets the questions with lazy smile.

"I'm fond of waffles, especially with coffee."

All three -- the two breakfast foods and the coffee -- were luxuries in Panem, luxuries that he as a victor could afford, but that he still hasn't forgotten were once largely out of his reach.

There is a more serious question there, though, and there's an answer that's been on Finnick's mind for a while.

"I've been thinking it would be an idea to try to build or repair some small boats. They'd be useful for fishing, but we could explore further if we could use the lake and rivers better."

Nida | OTA

[skyward_eyes]

Lost Here

When it comes to it, this wasn't where he'd planned to be for the night. What he had planned was hanging out at the house, pointedly ignoring everything he should be thinking about. Shouldn't be thinking about. Don't worry about it, not important. What was important was that when Seifer had knocked on the door and said effectively 'get dressed loser, we're going out.' With nothing better to do and a promise of food, Nida had followed. All the way to what he had personally marked as forbidden territory: the forge.

And with Seifer pretty much ditching within moments of arrival, Nida was left looking around, trying to figure out what was going on. What were all these tools? Who were all of these people he hadn't really met any of them? What is he even doing here? Seifer, Hyne he can't believe he is going to say this, come back.


Story Time

The thing about a forge is that it gets him to thinking, mostly about the things that come out of places like this. It makes him think of a junk shop, usually run by people who managed weapon creation. His fingers run across an ingot an smiles.

"Seeing things like this makes me remember when I had to replace my first halberd. Always be careful with your weapon when fighting Grendels I guess."

Lost Here

[alittlelonger]

Rinoa was only a little bit behind the other two. She was told it was happening, but she wanted to clean up some things and feed Julia. She noticed Nida acting a little strangely that day but hadn't pushed yet. After their conversation before, and her conversation with Seifer, she'd been pensive and quiet too. The perils of being in a situation without constant distractions or things to do meant thinking too much.

Still, she came into the forge wearing her customary blue, having intended to try other colors after talking to Bobo at the party but she was a creature of habit in the end. She saw Nida on his own for now and smiled, walking over and poking at his arm. "It's cool down here, isn't it? I've only been once." She wanted to see what Seifer was up to, and it was interesting, if not really her thing.

Story time

[fishermansweater]

Finnick is here partly out of curiosity to see the people Annie's taken up working with, but also because most of the time, he's good at working a room of people. But he's been quieter than he usually might, still a little preoccupied at the thought of the countdown that had shown up on his watch and the unsettling vid that had then appeared. But he's got his party face on, and that means he's smiling, drinking (though careful to seem to be drinking more than he is; that's a habit that still hasn't died) and keeping an observant watch on the people around him.

Which is why he hears the comment about halberds and is immediately intrigued. Halberds aren't unknown in Panem; they'd shown up in past years in the cornucopia in the Hunger Games, but the Gamemakers preferred simpler weapons, a spear or an axe, not both combined. After all, the tributes weren't supposed to have any training before their reaping.

"Being careful with your weapon is always a good idea, but I haven't met many people who'd choose a halberd to fight with."

Malik

[loyalrebel]

Debate Wall 1: Dragons vs Bears

The problem with giving Malik a place to pose the question to a group and a wall to put tallies on is that he's going to use it to attempt to prove one point here.

His handwriting is fairly impeccible as he puts three list headers up: 'Dragons', 'Bears' and 'Both'.

"Dragons are an interdimensional rarity compared to other dangerous creatures. Bears are more a more common occurrence to be wary of. Multiple people from the same reality only count once for the dragon and bear counting."

Food

When he's not engaging in vigorous debate with people at the debate wall, Malik's taking careful part of the offered food. He inherently can't eat quickly without a table or friend to hold a plate for him so he mostly just hangs by the table with a habitually wary eye on the gathered group.

"Ah, sorry. Am I in the way?"

Wildcard

Want to strike up a debate? Malik will engage with pretty much anyone, or back up someone's point on a matter.

Re: Malik

[skyward_eyes]

"You realize that the vast majority of people here are from a place called Earth. Apparently the same one. Which means you're really going to have to analyze whether people count as from the same reality," Nida said, reaching past Malik to tally for dragon. "I think you're taking my point beyond the logical. I think you might have a minor obsession with dragons. Do... you have dragon envy?"

Yes, Nida is willing to tease in this particular instance.

Debate Wall oh lord

[constructionzone]

Tony's broken out the wine for this occasion - Rhodey has his suspicions as to why - so once he's handed off the waffle station to someone he trusts not to set the batter on fire and to understand the correct ration of bacon to batter for the Rhodes family Brinner classic (it's Bruce, obviously) he wanders in the direction of shit talking.

His look is more than vaguely skeptical as he takes a sip of red wine. "If your reality has only one or the other, do you count as an unreliable source for this debate? You might say that that which you don't know is always going to seem more dangerous than what you do." Rhodey wouldn't necessarily agree, but his particular view on things isn't really the point.

Seifer

[firacrux]

One for Rhodey:

At some point, after his talk with Tony, Seifer couldn't help but do precisely what he was told not to do. After all you don't bring up a potentially humiliating and yet hilarious story involving alcohol and bad decisions unless you absolutely want someone to go ask about it. Which he is doing now, by sidling up to Rhodey manning the waffle machine.

Don't hate him for his pancakes Rhodey, someone had to bring the second half of the argument to the table. "So, Rhodester, got a question for you. Tony mentioned a Puerto Rico and Spring Break of 87. What happened that got him all defensive about tequila?" He grinned at the older man, eager for the tale. Seifer loves storytime.



The Hearth- OTA:

After obtaining a hot bowl of stew Seifer moved to settle by the fire with a cup of coffee. It's a rare treat he can't get much of anymore. Hyne does he miss Garden's awful, oil consistency coffee. Probably the only thing he misses out of Garden that's not his posse. He's keeping a wary eye on the debate wall, not really wanting to engage in arguments about bears versus dragons or anything of that sort. He'll just enjoy the show from the safety of his chair, observing the people milling around. And especially the doors. There's always a part of him that's paranoid.

Maybe he'll work on sketching up some project ideas while everyone else talks. Seifer's not the chatty sort himself, he's content with keeping watch and listening in like a creep while the others socialize. It's weird, being in an environment that's so casual like this. With so many people, and no one silently judging you the whole time. As it turns out he's really bad at this socializing thing.

The Debate Wall - OTA:

Alright. He lied to himself. Eventually he rustled up the guts to go poke at the wall. Rather than paint any particularly earth-shattering arguments he just drew up a quick schematic of a gunblade, then underlined it. And left it at that. Just leaning beside his rough draft of Hyperion, sipping on another coffee. He's going to take advantage while it's up for grabs. Come on, they can't say the word, but Tony never said he couldn't draw one. Let's see who among their engineering-minded can come up with a better design that's less taxing on the wrist. He's dreadfully curious to know.

Wildcard - OTA:

Anything else? Hit me up!

[constructionzone]

A lifetime as friends, and some lessons Tony Stark still hasn't learned, Rhodey thinks as he spreads shredded theoretical potato and onion onto the waffle iron and smashes it into an epic latke waffle. "He brought up Puerto Rico, huh," he says with a slow smile. "Did he mention the twins, or just the tequila? Because the twins were sixty, seventy percent of his problem there."

A good story has to be stretched out, so Rhodey busies himself with getting the plate and spatula ready for the potato waffle. "Gloria and Steffi were there names." This bullshit only works because Seifer's from dragon moon monster land and therefore has been deprived of the musical stylings of Latina adult contemporary sensation Gloria Estafan.

hearth

[whipshots]

Seifer's taken quiet refuge by the fire and started sketching -- a little bit brooding, a little bit out-of-place, but Brigitte soon swoops down on him with impunity. She's been floating cheerfully around the forge mingle, far more in her element than at the formal party, but she still gravitates naturally towards the people she knows a bit better. She pulls up another chair for herself, settling into it with legs tucked neatly beneath her, bowl of stew balanced against her knee. Even social butterflies need a break, sometimes.

"What're you working on?"

Kat ✵ Open To All

[mediumhoodie]

WAFFLES

Kat hadn't planned to stay for very long. She had wanted to check in with Tony and talk about some of the projects she had wanted to help him with. Then she saw that there were waffles and all other plans went firmly out the window. She missed the city, the fast food and the 24 hours dinners. Waffles had always been the best part about her late night missions and she was going to indulge now that she had the chance.

Once she had her waffle, she sat near the fire but out of the way, and ate.

It was like heaven on a crispy slotted desert.

CHILL OUT

Kat had stood at the debate wall but there were a lot of things that she didn't have a good reference for. She had the mind for mechanics but some of her ideas were an overly simplified approach to what would otherwise be a complicated problem.

So she kept Elton company and listened to the soft buzz of those gathered nearby. She flipped through the books and eventually found herself incredibly focused in a book that described basic static properties and constructions. It helped fill in the some of the blanks and she had fantastic company.

WILDCARD

I am up for anything!

Waffles

[firacrux]

The food line is always a good place to be. Seifer had made a couple snack trips, one for a legitimate meal and another few mostly to pester Rhodey who was being left alone far too nicely. Waffles are a great incentive to stay, you know what else there is?

"You should try the pancakes too," He advises with a smirk. Okay he's just trying to sell people on pancakes being also awesome. The waffles will win, they will always win, but pancakes soak up the syrup so nice and they are good. He thinks anyway. Perhaps he is biased because they are his.

Closed thread: Connor-60 and Loki

[313_248_317_60]

Connor had inspected what passed for manufacturing facilities. Had a... revealing chat with the proprietor. He'd even managed to acquire some confirmation of human's claims. While more recent work and traffic muddied the trail too much to properly reconstruct the scene, there was plenty of evaporated thirium throughout the premises.

No biocomponents, but if Stark was making use of his predecessor's parts, he doubts they would be out on display. He'd acquired the evidence he needed, and even a few possibilities to investigate next. Really, Connor meant to be long gone.

But there was something... pressing at his processors. A sense of lightness. A strange warmth, biasing his calculations towards the favorable, regardless of the numerous concerns. He'd run no less than seven diagnostics since he first noticed the malfunction, and not a one gave any indication of its source. Did Stark do something to him? Even that suspicion is... difficult to focus on. To consider with the proper weight.

Fingers curl just slightly at the android's side as he stares ahead—apparently, at a blank section of workbench. Thirium stains aren't visible to a human eye. Still, even a human could detect the upward twitch of Connor's lips. It's followed immediately by a frown—which in turn smothers under a perfectly expressionless facade. Only the steady spinning of his blue LED reveals any sign of agitation.

He's working perfectly.

90000000000000000000000000000000 years late I am SO sorry

[sundr]

[I FULLY understand if this is too late for you to want to mess with and you'd like to handwave instead]

Loki isn't sure what Stark expects. Backhanded compliments and the offer to see what he can do to dismantle a particularly intriguing puzzle aside, Loki's investment in the situation at hand ebbs and flows directly proportional to his interest at any given moment. Stark knows that they owe each other nothing, certainly not enough for Loki to put any great effort into throwing himself before a situation that has a nonzero rate of injury unto himself for virtually no gain, but--

But it is a puzzle all the same and Loki has been dreadfully bored.

At a distance the machine would be easy to mistake as human if not for the unnatural stillness it stands with. People, as a general rule no matter what shape they take, are a study in movement, of habitual ticks and fidgeting tells, and there isn't any machine in the universe, no matter how impressive the replica, that can convincingly play to the lie that it could possibly be truly alive.

Though, Loki will concede as he moves closer, rounding a group of people he doesn't recognize in favor of lazily drifting near as if this thing before him isn't his target, that it appears remarkably less sinister than Stark had attempted to lead on.

"I see I'm not the only one bored to madness." His tone amicable, undercut by a thread of playful empathy as if this machine could possibly be in on any joke Loki had to tell, and he brings his glass of wine up towards his mouth. "One would think that that a little effort would be extended to bother advertising a party in the first place, but I suppose there's only so much to be expected with Stark involved."