InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "DRAGON OF THE DARKNESS FLAME!"

Tony Stark (notyourplayboy) wrote in somerealityrpg,
@ 2020-08-09 20:19:00

Current mood:	accomplished
Entry tags:	!open, active: tony stark

Tony & Open

NAME: Tony Stark & Open
WHERE:Trampoline Park
WHEN:Saturday, Aug. 8
WARNINGS: His mouth

There had been a lot of change in Tony's life in a few short months. The biggest adjustment, of course, was the birth of his baby boy, but he'd also lost a lot in a short amount of time. First Rhodey, then Happy, and, finally, James. The losses frightened Tony. What if he vanished? He'd miss yet another kid growing up. What if Pepper disappeared? What if he lost another kid? Tony wasn't sure he could bear it. Still, Peter's birthday celebration was a joyous occasion and he wouldn't ruin it by letting on anything was wrong. No, instead, he cracked jokes and made his way through the party guests to say hello and make sure they had everything they needed. He didn't plan to stay long; the family had Monday's dinner, but today was about Peter's friends (in Tony's mind anyway).

(Post a new comment)

machinesrus
2020-08-10 09:27 am UTC (link)

Even with the come-and-go nature of the party and the fact that there was another one going on back at the apartments it seemed like there were a lot of people there. Sam had noticed it last year, too - Peter was a popular kid. He and Tony combined were even worse, like a hurricane of congeniality and extroversion. It wasn't that Sam was particularly introverted, but at times like this when he stopped and looked at how many people had turned up, he certainly felt like he was a lot more self-contained. The idea of trying to maintain that many relationships at the level he used to be capable of was exhausting. The idea that he did, in fact, used to be capable of it made him feel uncomfortably aware of himself, like he'd gotten up in the morning and put on his own skin like a costume.

A Special Forces background probably constituted an unfair advantage at laser tag, but considering the type of people the Entity liked to collect he figured he was hardly the only one, and he played through a couple of games before bowing out to grab something to drink. He was just setting his cup down when he spotted Tony moving his way through the crowd, and he lingered longer than he might have otherwise to wait for him to get through. "I'm always amazed this place is still standing when we're done for the day, the number of superpowers we can pack in one room." He wasn't intimidated by the powered and enhanced set, not when they'd been background noise to half his life and proved themselves just as fucked up and flawed as anyone else, but he sometimes wondered what it was like to grow up that way in a world that wasn't built for it. "Everything going okay?"

(Reply to this) (Thread)

notyourplayboy
2020-08-10 08:36 pm UTC (link)

Tony grinned at Sam's declaration about the powered set. He was so used to it by then that he hardly gave it a thought, but it was sort of funny when one stopped to think about it. "I should have donned my suit," he said, smirking. "I could really give these kids a run for their money then." He ignored the question about everything going okay. It was Peter's birthday weekend. Everything was awesome. "Having fun then?"

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

machinesrus
2020-08-10 09:01 pm UTC (link)

"I don't think that's the kind of lasers they're talking about, man." He could well imagine it though - short of building his own suit there was no amount of armor that would help him if he got shot in mid-air, but some of the others were both powerful and reckless enough to find something like that fun.

He didn't miss the omission, but he was enough of a private person himself not to push it - for now, at least. Instead he tucked it aside with a slightly raised eyebrow, shifting a little more of his attention away from their surroundings and towards Tony. "Can't complain. It's a nice break from the lab."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	notyourplayboy 2020-08-11 02:39 pm UTC (link)
	Tony nodded. He worried about Sam sometimes, but he couldn't say he didn't understand the need to get away from people and be alone in his lab at times. "Glad you are here," he told him, a sincere expression written all over his face. There were only a few really good friends from their first days left. That wasn't lost on Tony. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

machinesrus
2020-08-11 08:23 pm UTC (link)

It could have come across as small talk, an empty phrase that didn't mean anything beyond the need to fill a gap in conversation. There was a note of sincerity in the comment though that by now, more than a year after turning up here, he was learning to appreciate without being too suspicious of the motives behind it. He shrugged a bit rather than dismissing the intent behind the words, willing to make the effort since it was Tony. "Well, you know how it is. He's a good kid though. I never knew what mine was like."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

notyourplayboy
2020-08-11 10:19 pm UTC (link)

"He is," Tony agreed. He didn't realize it, but his eyes and tone softened when he spoke of Peter. He couldn't help remembering how he'd lost him; his birthday just drove that point home. "I can't believe this is his second birthday here," he added. "It makes me..." He paused, but then shrugged. "You know. It makes me worry how much longer we're all here for." So much for not bringing down the party.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

machinesrus
2020-08-11 10:33 pm UTC (link)

It was a subject that was never very far from anyone's mind, and Sam and Tony both had more reason than most to be concerned given what was due to happen to each of them. Sam didn't know whether Tony took any small comfort from the fact that he'd be leaving behind people who remembered him; if he did the emphasis was probably on the 'small' rather than the 'comfort'. With someone else he might have deflected, but hell, who else was going to get it?

"It doesn't seem very... sustainable," he admitted, voice dropping a little so that anyone nearby wouldn't be disturbed by the conversation. "The amount of turnover we've had in a year, considering how much longer some of the people here could live, doesn't match up." He wondered sometimes whether all those difficult long-term plans of self-improvement were even worth it, but that was a thought he didn't vocalise.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

notyourplayboy
2020-08-11 10:43 pm UTC (link)

Tony sighed and made sure to keep his voice low so no one could hear. "There has to be some pattern we are missing." Frustration crossed his face, but he quickly rubbed his temples with his hands. "I'm not leaving," he said, the trademark Stark stubbornness coming out. "My family...we lost enough." He thought not only of his family at home, but the members missing in Goodland. "And you are not going anywhere," he decided. "We just need to really figure this shit out. I can spend my days doing that. They don't need me much beyond signing papers at SI at this point." Pepper ran a well-oiled machine. Plus, he wasn't all that interested in designing the next best thing; he'd rather crack Goodland's code.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

machinesrus
2020-08-11 11:08 pm UTC (link)

Sam had, honestly, been a little lukewarm on the investigation over the last few months, a combination of a blow up fight when people had started questioning his motives and the urge not to look a gift horse in the mouth. Finding a way to definitely stay, though... it was a very tempting prospect, he could hardly deny that. "Most of what I have is back from when we were looking at sending people back. All about locating where to send them. Not that useful, really. I'd want to know what the people who've stuck around so long have in common."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	notyourplayboy 2020-08-11 11:16 pm UTC (link)
	"Agreed," Tony said immediately. "There has to be a common thread." He winced. "Desperation maybe? No future?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	machinesrus 2020-08-12 02:40 am UTC (link)
	"Maybe not for Freddy," Sam pointed out; as far as he could tell the kid had plenty for him back home, including what his mother would have once called a whole passel of other siblings beyond Mary. "Us, Natasha... Laura and Nico, I think?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	notyourplayboy 2020-08-12 04:18 am UTC (link)
	It took a second for Tony to remember Freddy as Peter's friend. "Oh, Freddy," he said. "Yeah, he seems like he has a home and a future. Maybe the exception to prove the rule?" It was a bleak explanation, but also a desperate one. Tony needed something to connect the dots. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	machinesrus 2020-08-12 09:50 pm UTC (link)
	Sam was never sure he liked that explanation for outliers, but hell, they didn't exactly have much to go on. It was at least more scientific than the ideal that the Entity just had favourite dolls, which was the theory his mind kept coming back to. "That or something genetic or biochemical, maybe. That would be easier to measure, at the very least." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	notyourplayboy 2020-08-13 05:52 am UTC (link)
	"Good luck getting everyone to agree to testing," Tony said. Slight bitterness tinged his tone, but he was a scientist first; he knew the importance of data, even if he understood why people balked at the idea. He shook his head. "But, let's get you back to the party. It is about the kid today." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

machinesrus
2020-08-13 11:01 am UTC (link)

Sam rolled his eyes at that. "Oh, I've learned not to even suggest it without a dissertation on exactly what information I'm collecting, what I'm using it for, and what my data retention and anonymity policies are." It was probably a little obvious how much the subject rankled; it had remained a sore point for his entire time in Goodland, a bad mix of his own hangups about the things he'd sacrificed to maintain his own scientific ethics and the often justified paranoia of people who weren't entirely normal. He could understand it, it didn't mean he had to like it. The reminder of where they were was fairly effective in stopping any further comments he might have made, though. "Yeah, true. It's kind of nice seeing them all having fun, even if it does remind me how old we're getting."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

notyourplayboy
2020-08-14 07:54 am UTC (link)

Tony knew what Sam was referring to; he couldn't blame him for the slightly acrimonious tone. He faced plenty of scrutiny in his own time; thus he understood the delicate balance between people's fears and a scientist's need for truth. He nearly destroyed the world with narrow thinking, but his motives had been good. Still, if no one ventured anything, nothing was ever gained, including knowledge. It could be Goodland's downfall.

Sam's joke pulled him from those dark thoughts. "Speak for yourself," he said, smirking. He ran a hand through his hair, which was mostly dark with a few silver strands poking through. "I just get better with age."

(Reply to this) (Parent)