tushanshu_logs | Torn away from home soil

Entry tags:

Torn away from home soil

Characters: Pepper Potts, Raine Sage, Yami no Bakura, and you!
Date: Throughout August
Location: All over Keeliai' specifics in the starters
Situation: It's hot and dry, but Pepper is starting to get comfortable with being here.
Warnings/Rating: None yet. Will be edited and marked in starters if need be.

A. Jade Dojo | Backdated to August 3 | Closed to Bakura

Pepper has been spending a lot of time at the dojo, either training with Gene or just coming by to observe or talk to Bakura. It's nice to have someplace to go other than home. His disappearance the previous month had been weird, to say the least, but she'd refrained from saying anything. Hard as she tries, Pepper can't seem to resist asking what happened. She also has a different request to make of him, and perhaps if she asks about that first it'll distract her enough to keep her mouth shut. ~~Not likely.~~

The way to the dojo is familiar to her now, and she heads there with a sort of relaxed determination on her face.

B. Sky Sector | August 8 | Closed to Raine

Raine has had the opportunity to fly as Pepper's passenger in the armor, but as cool as that is, piloting it is a lot better. Although she's a bit nervous about letting the half-elf use her suit, that's more a result of not knowing how to teach her properly than anything else. Pepper had spent months using the armory remote chair before stepping into a suit, so it wasn't that big of a leap. Fortunately, the armor's computer is pretty smart, so she's relatively sure everything will be okay. She's asked Raine to stay near home base just in case, so Pepper is waiting at home. Tony can be there in a heartbeat in the unlikely event of something happening.

C. Earth Sector | Late August | Closed to Raine

Pepper has been trying, she really, really has. She’s been here for almost four months now, and Tony and Gene are still dating. So she can’t just pretend it isn’t happening. She’s been working on the whole ‘being supportive’ thing like she knows she should, but when it comes right down to it, she’s still upset. It’s not so intensely awful now, sure, but man is it upsetting. And the reasons why it’s upsetting are confusing and painful all to themselves, and it’s dimming her usual cheeriness at times.

What she could really use right now is to talk to a friend, and normally that would be Rhodey, but he’s not here and that’s just more upsetting. The only other person she can think of that might understand, or at the very least be willing to listen without being clever and/or snarky in some way, is Raine.

D. Keeliai | Throughout August | Open to All

Pepper has more of a set schedule, sort of. She spends part of her time with Skulduggery a few days a week, and sometimes does Guild work. She’s spending more time in the Wood Sector, since she goes to the dojo a lot, too. It’s a nice area, calming, which she wouldn’t have expected since she’s not much of an outdoorsy kind of person. Of course, she’s also in the Sky Sector, often checking out the new shops that open seemingly once a week. She needs to maintain her shopping skills, after all. After her jaunt with Raine last month, she’s also taken to flying around the city at times, usually at night.

E. Central Sector | Before August 10 | Closed to Bakura

Of all the people Pepper ever thought she would get to go shopping with, Bakura was not one of them. And yet, here she was, going to meet the dojo owner to search for cards. It wasn't exactly a spree, and there would be no shoes or clothes involved, but it's still a shopping trip. She's excited regardless. Granted, this simple exercise is the first step on what might be a very dark road, at least for a while, given what Bakura said about a test. In the meantime, though, this ought to be fun.

OOC: If you want a starter hit me up at plurk.

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Today, Bakura had moved his usual weapons maintenance outside to the covered veranda that ran the width of the building. Except instead of trying to escape the patches of sun, he'd taken up residence in one, one leg folded comfortably to provide a steady rest for the curved sword he was currently sharpening. Despite the heat of the day, he seemed perfectly comfortable where he was. A whetstone made long, smooth passes over the blade's tapered edge, with a familiarity that spoke of having done the task many times before.

"Hello biahbenat," he greeted, when he saw Pepper approach.

To be frank, Raine hadn't even realized it was an option; the armor seemed to have been crafted for one person, and she'd hardly expect to be able to wear even one of Colette's guards and have it fit the same way. But evidently either she was close enough to Pepper in size or Tony's technology was eminently adjustable or some combination thereof, and it had not taken Raine much thought at all to say yes.

So they set a date, and Raine showed up on Pepper's doorstep at the appointed time, knocking twice before taking half a step back. A thought occurred to her, and she tipped her head back to look up at the sky, wondering if Pepper would happen to be up and about.

It was Raine that answered the door, and she spared only a moment to blink bemusedly at Pepper before recognizing that something was a little off. She didn't question it yet, though, only stood back from the door a pace to let her guest in. "Hello, Pepper," she said. "Come in. Would you like some tea?"

She was assuming it wasn't an emergency, as there was a pointed lack of screaming or babbling, but Pepper didn't look quite as cheerful as she normally did, and that was cause for some concern.

Not for the first time, Pepper notices that it suits Bakura to have a weapon in his hands. He looks completely at ease. Maybe being from Egypt meant this kind of heat was his natural habitat or something.

"Hi," she replies cheerfully. The name he's given her is pleasing to the ear. "Nice sword. How do you know how to use so many different weapons?"

It's not one of the questions she's come here to ask, but it's related to one. She's seen him spar with a few different weapons during her visits, and even when he's just doing maintenance each appears to be an extension of his own body.

Looking up, as it turns out, is a good idea. Pepper is zooming around above the house, doing somersaults and spirals and dives, whooping with glee. Her HUD alerts her to Raine's presence on the doorstep, so she stops mid-roll and looks down.

Grinning, she returns to the ground next to Raine and retracts the face plate.

"Ready to fly? You are so gonna love this," Pepper says happily.

Thankfully, Raine answers instead of Solomon. That would have been all kinds of awkward. She gives the half-elf a small smile and slips past her into the apartment.

"Uh, sure, that would be great." Despite the heat, tea sounds like a good idea, even if it just gives her hands something to do.

She looks around the apartment a little, taking in the decor. It's nice, and it feels like an actually home, not just a living space. Suddenly, she starts to question coming over.

"Sorry, I should've sent you a message or something. I can come back another time if that's better," she says, backpedaling.

Arno wouldn't call himself vain exactly, but he DOES enjoy checking out the shops himself, especially the newer ones where sellers might be inclined into giving him bargains, or they're quick to offer items on sale. It's one of these sales that has him wandering around Sky sector today, debating over a few pairs of gauntlets displayed in a window. The nicely embroidered pair, or the more practical, cheaper set?

"So many possibilities." He mutters, mostly to himself, barely noticing the girl in the street there until he's nearly bumped into her.

"Ah sorry, Mademoiselle, where ARE my manners?"

Raine watches Pepper's landing carefully, looking at her movements more closely than she has before. "I believe so," Raine says when the faceplate opens, and it's almost calm, but the opportunity at hand is too exciting and unique for her to be anything like completely calm. She smiles at Pepper, bright, cheerful.

She doesn't quite bounce, but it's a near thing.

"All right, what do I need to do?"

"It's fine," Raine says, a little dismissive. She's already heading into the kitchen, doable only by dint of the fact that no one who knows better is currently home, but she does pause to glance back and give Pepper a moderately quizzical look. That's some rapid backpedaling. Pepper is usually fairly forthright; what could prompt that? Is she nervous?

"Don't worry about it," Raine adds, a little more reassuring now, and reaches for the fridge. "You're not interrupting anything urgent. Iced tea, or hot?"

His native country was definitely contributing to his appreciation for what most people would deem oppressive heat (as it conversely made him particularly unsuited for the deep cold of winter). He gestured for Pepper to join him on the veranda if she wanted, although he wouldn't judge if he chose a shaded spot.

And before she even sits, she's asking questions.

He doesn't mind.

"The dojo came with quite a selection when I took it over, but this is a new addition. As for how, I grew up in a time where they were commonly used unlike today, that make them easier to access. And a lot of weapons share similar styles of fighting. If you can fight unarmed, picking up a staff isn't a big stretch to learn. If you can use a knife, a sword follows a lot of the same principle. There are plenty of weapons I'm not familiar with, though."

Ones that were more "medieval" in type, for example -- maces, much heavier long and broadswords, and others -- he'd had no exposure to. He could possibly use them, in the sense that he wouldn't injure himself if he tried, but he wouldn't trust himself with them in a fight if it came to that.

It seems like the best way for Pepper to meet people in Keeliai is by bumping into them, because it keeps happening. A majority of them have been some kind of charming, and all of them have been entertaining. The French accent is new, though.

"How should I know? I don't usually let mine walk off without me." Not that she necessarily uses them all the time, either. "I can probably help you find them, though. I'm a detective. Okay, I'm not a detective yet, but I work for one," she says, amused.

Raine looks like she's about to start jumping around with excitement, which Pepper can relate to. She actually had jumped around when Tony showed her the armor for the first time.

"Well, first I need to get out." Pepper gives the computer a command and portions of the armor retract, while others open, so that she can step out of it. The armor remains standing, and it's possible to see the inside. "And then you get in. If you put your arm in first it'll put itself on you, actually.

"It responds to voice commands, like 'Engage thrusters' and whatnot, and there are buttons inside the gauntlets you can use to fly and fire repulsors and stuff with more control. But," she adds, "I turned off the firing capabilities for now. I got the computer set up to give you a kind of walk through. It's also got autopilot in case things go horribly wrong," she finishes brightly.

Pepper has never been the best at keeping her emotions hidden, but Raine is giving her a Look that suggests she's being rather more obvious than usual. It also confirms that Raine was the right person to come to, as bad as Pepper might feel about coming over unannounced.

"Iced, please," she replies, glad that it's an option. Before Keeliai, Pepper was more of a soda drinker, but tea has been the go-to beverage here. She ought to make some iced tea of her own. "You have a nice apartment."

Pepper sits at the invitation, next to him but not too close so he has plenty of room to continue sharpening the sword. She does, however, want to be able to watch what he's doing.

"I hadn't thought about it that way," she muses, although now that she does think about it, that's kind of how she learned to use the armor. She looks at him with barely contained excitement, and there's a moment's hesitation. "Would you teach me? I mean, not just how to fight with weapons, but like, how to take care of them?"

She might not ever be able to learn summoning, but this was something she could do. It seems useful, and Pepper has little interest in other practical endeavors. Besides, there was a war coming and cultists sneaking about, and in case something went wrong, she wanted to be able to fight without the armor.

Right. Arno's laughing at that, both delighted and reminded of another redhead who said things like that, to his face, and hadn't been all that concerned about it either.

"Oh I like you." he has to conclude then and there, flashing her a smile. "It may be a lost cause, I have to warn you. I'm told they've been gone for quite some time. Arno Dorian." he added, offering a hand.

The question surprises him enough that his hands pause mid-pass along the blade, and he looks up at her in startlement before he nods, the wry pucker of a grin pulling at his expression.

"You're unusual, you know. Of all people who've come here wanting to learn to fight, to learn to use a weapon, you're the first one who has asked about taking care of them outside of their use? I wouldn't have expected that from you; I see I was wrong."

There's no mocking when he says he hadn't expected that type of request from Pepper, and neither is there any shame in admitting his error. It's good to be surprised for the better, now and then.

"Which did you want to learn on?"

"Thank you." Raine locates the pitcher, then glasses in quick succession, pours iced tea for both of them since she's already there. One she offers to Pepper, the other she sets on the kitchen counter for now. "Solomon did the bulk of the work in locating it, and in bargaining as well." Her smile's a fond little expression, for a multitude of reasons. "Though I did insist on the sector."

They had three people in mind, of course, but even that recollection is a little softer now.

"What brings you here?"

It's amazingly exciting. It's very close to magitechnology, in fact, but so far as Raine can tell with none of the deleterious effects on the magical environment. The sheer scope of it is astounding, as is the fact that something like this exists. And that Raine gets to ~~experiment with~~ experience it firsthand? It's marvelous.

Although Pepper's description of 'repulsors and stuff' leaves something to be desired, the computer setup is promising. "A wise idea," Raine says, of both the autopilot and turning firing capabilities off for now. "All right. How precise do the voice commands need to be?"

In concession to the heat, she's begun to leave her jacket at home lately, which means the only other necessary pause is to lean her staff against the doorjamb before moving toward the armor. The entire thing gets a careful visual once-over, mostly on principle, before Raine puts her arm in as instructed.

Oh, yes. Very charming.

"Pepper Potts. Nice to meet you." Pepper takes the offered hand and shakes it. "Most guys don't get into shopping enough to be that distracted; it's all 'hunt shirt, kill shirt, bring shirt home', you know? What are you looking for?"

She will take any opportunity to go shopping.

The fact that she's managed to surprise him is something Pepper thinks she ought to put on her resume. She's also glad Bakura didn't think she was joking.

"It's cooler than trying to take care of my armor, if Tony would even let me," she says by way of an explanation, shrugging. Tony's technology is masterful but extremely complicated, and her strengths don't lie with engineering. Having a greater depth of knowledge of traditional weapons seems pretty awesome compared to spending hours reading technical manuals.

"Um..." She hasn't thought ahead that far yet. Her experience with swords hasn't exactly left her enamored with them. Swords seem too violent. If she has to fight someone without the armor, she doesn't want it to be easy to kill them. And given that she's already learning to fight unarmed: "A staff," she says firmly.

She takes the offered glass, sipping at the tea.

"Solomon does have particular tastes," Pepper says, returning the smile with a little more enthusiasm this time.

At Raine's question, the smile fades and she stares down at the glass, uncertain of how to phrase this or where to start.

"It's kind of... It's weird, living with Tony and Gene. It's a lot more than weird actually; it's like we've got a flock of awkward hawks ready to descend at any moment to peck our eyes out."

Fortunately, the suits are run using ARC technology and and electricity, zero magic whatsoever. Pepper would agree that it is endlessly amazing.

"Um, not super precise. Tony has it programmed to understand humor. Well, his humor at least," she adds, "but it's pretty responsive. Fire boot jets, engage thrusters, same idea."

As Raine put her arm into the suit, it shifts, clicking and whirring until it fits itself around her. The faceplate closes, so she should be able to hear the computer greeting her, and the repulsor activators against her palms. The Heads Up Display should start walking her through basic operation of the suit.

"I'm going to be totally hypocritical here and say you should just stay with hovering," Pepper says, pulling out her phone. She has some control over the armor with it, but it's mostly just for monitoring.

"That IS a shame." Arno shakes his head. "I think men have lost the art of it. Of course, there are more interesting things than shirts to be found here. I'm eying..." he nods toward the window. "Gauntlets. Maybe boots. I DO enjoy shoes." Of course he does.

"Do you have any advice, maybe?"

Arno, you're like music to her ears. An entire symphony in fact. She was in a good mood before; now she's downright thrilled.

"Oh my gosh, you have no idea how long I've waited for someone here to ask me that," Pepper says, beaming. "Shoes are my favorite."

Raine is reasonably sure Solomon cares more for style than she does. Which is, to be fair, not saying much.

For a moment Pepper's simile throws her, Raine wondering where hawks came into the problem; she's put in mind of the common monsters around Iselia, where a bundle of cantankerous feathers dropping from the sky is more inevitability than idle speculation. Then she processes, puts together that Pepper is actually talking about an atmosphere and not literal hawks.

They're all from the same world, all ostensibly friends. Perhaps it's something Tony and Gene don't think about, but which is unresolved for Pepper? It would follow, given her relative newness to Keeliai. "Gene gave me the impression he'd done things he wasn't proud of," Raine remarks, neutral. "Is it that, or the fact they're seeing each other?"

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