august rushes by like desert rainfall | open, with starters

[wrathfulkhan]

Characters: Eyebrow Squad Gene, Jackie, Deon, and you!
Date: Throughout August
Location: Keeliai and the rest of the shell
Situation: August interactions for Eyebrow Squad.
Warnings/Rating: None initially, but subject to change.

A. [Gene] House Iron Dragon | backdated to July 18 because I'm a rebel and I can do what I want | closed to Pepper and Tony

Gene is quite intimately familiar with Tony's birthday - being that that's the date he'd accidentally the alien apocalypse, and all. He's determined to get Tony a better sort of present this year now that they are on speaking terms (and considerably more than that). And he has enlisted Pepper to craft a small surprise party for Tony, because he has had absolutely zero experience with birthday parties whatsoever.

So he has a present, but he's a bit at wit's end trying to deal with this strange animal known as a 'party'. Luckily, Pepper's got his back.

B. [Gene] Sky Sector | early August | open

Gene's seemed pretty preoccupied as of late - though with things in Keeliai being how they are, who could blame him? His mood's brightened considerably since leaving Zeshora in their wake, though, and he's back to being as chipper as he usually is. Which is to say, not especially, but at least he won't bite your head off if you look at him the wrong way.

He's taking down notes from time to time, but if you try and read over his shoulder, you may not be in luck. Unless you can read Mongolian script, of course. Hey, some people here can read Chinese, and a whole lot can read English. There are some notes he'd rather keep to himself instead of sharing with any nosey parker lurking somewhere over his shoulder.

C. [Gene] House Iron Dragon | mid-August | closed to Tony

Oh look, an arrivalversary party.

Gene just can't seem to avoid the damn things these days - birthday parties and now a (small, personal) party to celebrate the anniversary of his and Tony's arrivals in Keeliai. Tony arrived a year ago (or two) and Gene arrived two years ago (or three), and as a result Gene at least is one of the longer-tenured Foreigners around.

He doesn't feel very special as he sits at the table in the kitchen, waiting for Tony to wake up.

D. [Gene] Raine's House | mid-August | closed to Raine

Anton's advice had been welcome, but Pepper was still...well, Pepper. And Raine knew more about Gene than almost anyone, so he'd decided to pay her a visit and beg ask for advice. He's arrived at the home she shares with Solomon, and hopes the necromancer isn't in, mostly because he just does not have the mental energy for dealing with Solomon right now. He knocks, a little unsure all of a sudden.

---

OOC Note: If you want another starter, please hit me up over at Chatvert and I'll pull something together for you! :>

Comments

[wrathfulkhan]

"Neither, it's that I don't," Gene says bluntly, doing his damnedest to shut down that line of thought. No way he's dancing. Nuh-uh. No.

...not because he doesn't know how, of course! Ha ha! What sort of martial artist would he be if he couldn't dance at all? Just. Dancing. Him. Other people. No. The closest he gets is sparring, and he prefers it that way.

[lasergrenades]

"We shall see," Pepper says ominously, putting her hands on her hips for a moment. She surveys the room and is happy with the result. All that's left are the disco lights and the music.

"When will Tony get back? Soon, right? That cake isn't going to eat itself," she sings as she heads towards her room to retrieve the suit. A moment later she returns, the armor hovering behind her until it settles into the living room. She presses a button on the front and the projector, last used to show off Fury's authoritative mug, turns on to fill the room with swirling, sparkling lights.

"I am the best party planner ever."

you'd better have made him a stupid party hat, pepper

[highprofilerichkid]

And speak of the devil - there's the sound of the front door opening.

Tony doesn't pay as much attention to the date in Keeliai as he did at home - there's no real need to. And he doesn't check his smartphone compulsively anymore. So, while he'd made passing note of the date of his birthday as it approached, today, the occasion has honestly slipped his mind.

But he can tell something is up even before he steps into the living room, since the disco armor light show is visible from the foyer (and possibly from space).

"Uh— guys?" He pokes his head around the corner.

[wrathfulkhan]

Gene freezes when Tony pokes his head around the corner, aware of how silly this all must look.

"Ssssur...pri...se?" he says finally, trying to smile.

Nnnnailed it.

she has now

[lasergrenades]

"Surprise!" Pepper yells with more than enough enthusiasm to make up for the fact that there are only two of them and there was definitely no hiding behind furniture involved. "Happy birthday!"

She grabs something off a counter as she moves to give Tony a near-flying hug, and as she let's him go she secures a red and gold paper cone ringed with curling ribbons and a pompom of more ribbon on top to Tony's head.

There are two more on the counter, one each for Gene and Pepper, to match their respective armor. Pepper holds the black and gold one out to Gene.

"I swear if you put this on just for the cake I will not take pictures," she manages with a straight face. she will totally take pictures.

perfect

[highprofilerichkid]

Another "Uh..?" is all Tony has time to get out before Pepper tackles him.

He laughs and hugs her back, and when she puts the stupid hat on his head, he accepts it with good grace. "You threw me a birthday party?" He's blushing a little, but also smiling: he's really touched. (And surprised: though, honestly, with Pepper around, he really should have seen it coming.)

Even though Pepper has only just released him from her hug, he pulls her into another one - and Gene, too, this time. "I love you guys."

[wrathfulkhan]

"Ehherp," Gene says when he's pulled into the group hug. Still not his thing, Tony.

"Happy birthday, nerd."

[lasergrenades]

Group hugs are still hugs, and Pepper Potts loves hugs. It's also a convenient opportunity to try and balance Gene's hat on his head, although the key word here is 'try'.

"Duh, of course we threw you a party. It's your birthday." She beams at him. "That means we are by law required to have some kind of celebration, and cake must be consumed," she adds authoritatively before descending into giggles. "Seriously though. Cake."

If there is one thing Pepper loves more than hugs and Tony, it's food.

[highprofilerichkid]

Fortunately for Gene, Tony doesn't hold them captive for long, since Gene is doing his Cat Reluctantly Tolerating Unsolicited Affection impression.

He isn't above allying with Pepper to get the dumb hat on Gene's head, though.

"Nice. That's a good look for you." He grins. "Nerd."

Tony takes another, more thorough look around the room: banner, streamers, paper lanterns, disco lights... "You guys really went all-out." He is touched and impressed. "I never really thought about birthdays, here, since everybody's timelines are all mixed up, you know? I just got lucky that my dates almost matched up. We're going to have to decide when to celebrate your birthdays."

[wrathfulkhan]

Gene adjusts the hat so it sits at a jaunty angle. (It still looks stupid. He has resigned himself to the stupid hat. Although...there are better places he can put it. LATER THOUGH.)

He laughs. "Yeah, Pepper, when do you want to celebrate your birthday?" On the subject of his own birthday, though, he remains silent.

[lasergrenades]

Pepper adjusts her own hat, giggling slightly.

"Well, from my perspective it should be my birthday this month, but I think I can wait until October here so that we're all on local time, or whatever." Satisfied with the hat, she trots to the fridge to retrieve the box containing Tony's cake. "It's all an arbitrary system based on solar cycles anyway. We're just lucky this planet is about the same as Earth."

She successfully extracts the cake box and carries it to the table, trying not to snort with laughter every time she looks at Tony and Gene with their hats.

[highprofilerichkid]

"Do you think you can wait that long?" Tony teases. (Please say yes. He hasn't figured out what present to get yet.)

"What about you, Gene?" Tony realizes with a start that he doesn't actually know when Gene's birthday is. Oh, crap. That is a major strike on his Boyfriend Card.

It's hard to be too distressed about that, though, because the cake has made its appearance, and it looks delicious

[wrathfulkhan]

Gene gives a start, as though he's surprised to be asked about it.

Only one thing to do: redirect.

"It's not important," he demurs, and turns his attention to the cake. "Where'd you get that from, Pepper?"

[lasergrenades]

"Well, I think I can count the Rescue armor as birthday present for at least a year, so another couple months doesn't really matter," she says to Tony. Pepper is busy retrieving plates and forks to eat the cake with, so she misses Gene's physical reaction.

"It is too important," she counters airily, grabbing a knife to start slicing. "It means more cake. Oh! Wait, we need the candles."

She takes a moment trying to locate them, and makes a triumphant noise when she does.

"The confectioner's shop where they make the psuedo-chocolate was willing to try making Earth birthday birthday cake," she adds cheerfully, by which she means intense vanilla funfetti batter (the kind that ice cream flavors get named after) and begins to apply a fire hazard to Tony's cake.

[highprofilerichkid]

"Phew," Tony says, grinning. He'll still get her a present anyway, though.

"Yeah, Gene, more cake. The most important cause." He gives his grumpy boyfriend a playful nudge.

Tony 'ooooh's appropriately as the candles are lit, and beams at Pepper and Gene.

"So what should I wish for?"

[wrathfulkhan]

Gene nudges Tony back, though not too hard. "I can get on board with more cake."

He shrugs. "Whatever you want."

[lasergrenades]

"Well, then we're gonna need a date. How else am I supposed to tell the confection people when the cake has to be done by?" she asks Gene.

When all else fails, use logic.

"It's your wish," Pepper teases. "But if I had to make a wish I'd wish for a closet full of shoes, which is totally not your style, so I don't know, a new set of tools? Your laptop? One of the other suits? Ooh, no, even better. Real chocolate." She grins. "But this'll do for now," she adds, gesturing to the cake.

[highprofilerichkid]

"Maybe I should wish for the Large Hadron Collider," Tony says, trying and failing to keep a straight face.

Birthday wishes are, like other superstitions, not something Tony believes in, but it's a fun tradition anyway. So he picks his wish, closes his eyes and takes a dramatic deep breath, and blows out the candles.

Once the candles have been extinguished, Tony starts picking them out in preparation for the cake cutting. He holds the icing-covered handful out to Pepper and Gene like they're drawing straws. "Who wants to lick the candles?"