14819/Poolside Chat

Poolside Chat
Date of Scene:	01 May 2023
Location:	Avengers Mansion - Rooftop Pool
Synopsis:	Bucky, Natasha and Steve gather for some time off
Cast of Characters:	James Barnes, Natasha Romanoff, Steve Rogers

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James Barnes has posed:
It's mid-afternoon and as things get a little warmer and warmer in New York, people like Bucky Barnes, who's used to the cold enough that a little warm weather is practically tropical, start using some of the nicer facilities of the Avengers Mansion.

At the moment, he's doing laps in the water back and forth. He doesn't really have a 'lounging' setting; rather, James tends to go full-throttle in general, and swimming is no exception. Besides, his metal arm is waterproof.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
And Natasha is busy over by the side of the pool. She has out of all things a large power harpoon that she's tinkering with. On occasion she would go to add in another projectile to it, and then fire it down into the bottom of the seale,d reinforced pool. The projectile would penetrate to varying degrees in the pool bottom, even as she would take some notes while speaking to herself in slow Russian.

The half dozen large harpoons embedded in the bottom of the pool like it was Moby Dick might be strange, even by Natasha's 'I need to figure out how to kill it better' standards.

James Barnes has posed:
Eventually, Bucky has taken to using the harpoons embedded in the bottom of the pool as a sort of obstacle course. So he pulls himself out of the pool, dives back in, and then swims from one end to the other, weaving around and through the harpoons. It's entertaining at least, but it does run the risk she'll forget he's there and shoot him with the harpoon gun.

Or maybe just do it on purpose. Russians are crazy.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
If she did forget, then it would just mean that Bucky had become so invisible as to blend in with the background totally, the ultimate showcase of stealth. Just put him in a giant icecube and hide him in the Arctic regions for decades.

The next harpoon shot goes off - but admittedly not close to him. It seems to go further over into the rather reinforced material that the bottom of the pool is hardened with. That could be a good thing (for Nat) or a bad thing (for the pool).

James Barnes has posed:
Bucky finishes the lap and pulls himself out of the pool again, looking over at her. "So what exactly are we trying to accomplish here? Is there a submarine mission I don't know about coming soon?" He keeps his legs in the water, hands on the edge of the pool.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would shrug, "In the Savage Land there's the potential for some of the.. More hostile aquatics to be mutated to more dangerous forms by Brood infections. Engagements are likely going to be within fifteen meters of depth, the pool makes an acceptable testing ground to see how smoothly the projectile goes through the currents."

James Barnes has posed:
"Ugh, the Savage Land. Tropical nightmare, from what I've heard. I've never been, though." He shakes his head and then looks down into the pool, then back at her. "Okay but what if the harpoon goes too far and then you flood the mansion?" It's a rooftop pool, after all. That being said, he looks more amused than worried.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would shrug, "Then it means that Stark's armoring is insufficient and I'm doing him a favor by showing his calculations are off in how much stress it can take." She does have all the angles covered. "The local fauna is infected with alien parasites that want to consume all bio-matter." And do so by taking already horrific mutated abominations and making them.. Moreso!

James Barnes has posed:
"Oh boy, I'm sure that Stark's gonna love that," Bucky says with a laugh. But he doesn't really want to argue her logic. It's not his money. Though if she does break the integrity of the pool, it might flood Wanda's room and his stuff in there with it... but eh. "I'll pass on the _further_ mutated creatures, thanks. Once-over mutated is enough."

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha goes to pause in reloading her harpoon gun. "I'm sure that Ms. Maximoff has worse things to worry about than merely ehr room flooding. And if Stark's structural integrity can't contain simple environmental damage, then it's clearly in need of recalibration."

James Barnes has posed:
"I'm not sure shooting harpoons into the bottom of the pool can be considered 'environmental damage', Nat," Bucky says, still sitting at the edge of the pool and looking super amused at everything. "But hey. You do you. I tried to stop you." When? WHEN?

Steve Rogers has posed:
Not that long ago a Quinjet had come in, using VTOL capabilities to descend towards the mansion once it was clear of the tall buildings in surrounding Manhattan blocks. It had come in for a landing at the hangar entrance at the other end of the mansion.

And now the pilot emerges at the top of the stairs. Steve Rogers is wearing his costume and carrying his shield, with a large pack of supplies dangling from one hand. Including a rifle, which he doesn't go out with very often. He came back from the Savage Lands on a different, later flight than Natasha, but looks like he's just arriving.

"Well, this looks better than giant bird droppings," he says as he views the pool of warm water. "Nat, trying to flood anyone's room in particular?" he asks.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would shrug over at Bucky, deadpan. "Stark has said that his structural reinforcement can handle anything." Stark likely has not in fact said such a thing, nor implied that the place is that reinforced. It does make an easy dodge.

"Steve." Natasha would give a nod over to him. "Testing out some modifications in case the next.. Encoutner we have in the Savage Land is with an aquatic."

James Barnes has posed:
"I think she's trying to prod Tony until he snaps," Bucky tells Steve, still looking amused at the entire thing. "She's been shooting it for like fifteen minutes. Nat, Tony didn't like, stand you up for a date or something, did he?" Now he's just giving Nat shit.

Steve Rogers has posed:
Steve sets down his pack and leans his shield against it. Then crosses his arms. "Mmm hmm. Can handle anything. But not Mjolnir punching through the roof. Or, the wall to the Rec Room. Or the Training Room. Or the kitchen - and don't get me started about why he needed it to make toast. And then there's Hulk," Steve says, eyeing Natasha.

"Also I think that's my room underneath where you're shooting, Nat."

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would glance over at James. "Twelve and a half. And you were treating it as an obstacle course for three of them so you were enjoying it." the two would bicker. "Exactly, and this device is so far beneath any of those that it shouldn't be an issue whatsoever. If it can't handle simple things.."

Steve Rogers has posed:
His things set down, Steve goes over to one of the phones. Yes, he could just speak aloud and JARVIS would know, but he still does things like pick up phones to call the staff unless he's actually intending to talk to the AI. "Yes, it's Steve, up on the roof. Would you be able to bring up something to drink. Juice would be fine. Thank you."

He hangs up and then goes over to where the towels are. He wets one in the little shower for washing off the chlorine, and then uses it to wipe down his face after the long flight back from Antarctica. "Admittedly, a flame thrower wouldn't be a bad idea. Though not sure how to make that work underwater."

James Barnes has posed:
"For underwater torches you need both the fuel and the oxidizer to be supplied artificially, since there's no oxygen underwater, but it can definitely be done. There are underwater torches, the problem you'd run into for a flamethrower," Bucky says, considering, "is _distance_, since the oxidizer would need to reach further underwater."

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would nod at Steve, "Depending on chemical composition, somewhat. But normally rather inefficient. There are more effective ways to make something burn underwater." And probably best to -not- ask about the way that the chemical composition of such things were done.

Nodding over at Bucky.

Steve Rogers has posed:
Steve Rogers crosses his arms again once he's off the phone. "Well, we don't know how it spreads underwater either, if it's even able to. It would be nice if saltwater killed it though so that was one avenue of escape we wouldn't have to worry about," he says.

He unzips his costume, pulling it down to his waist, leaving him in just a t-shirt underneath. A member of the mansion's staff shows up with a pitcher of grape juice and a glass of ice. "Thank you," Steve says with a grateful smile as he sets it down. "So, Bucky," Steve says, "What's new with you? Been a while since we were able to catch up."

James Barnes has posed:
"Not much. Mission here, mission there, downtime in between. Spending time with Wanda." After decades of mind-controlled service and then a few years of focusing on 'the job', it seems like Bucky is finally learning to simmer down and chill out. "We had a nice birthday party for Yelena not long ago. Surprised her with it." He smirks at Nat.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would nod at James, "Yes. It can't have surprised her that much as she left you alive at the end of it." Yes, Natasha is proud of the younger girl that has somehow ended up her protege. In the very, very straneg way they have of reinforcing one another's idiocyncracies. "It's good that you've found an alterantive path to the one that you were on."

Steve Rogers has posed:
There's a gentle smile that grows as Steve listens to Bucky, and gets to the parts that indicate he's finding a way to have a good life. "That's great Buck, I'm happy for you. My suggestion is if you found someone willing to put up your mug, that you probably should stick with her," he says to Bucky. Though Steve's face isn't what it was in the old days before the Super Soldier program, that little gleam in his eyes at tweaking his friend hasn't changed.

He pours himself a glass of the grape juice, and checks with Nat and Bucky if they want any. Steve lets out a sigh as he takes a sip. "I really should have stocked something cold in the plane before the flight back," he says, bringing the cold glass to his forehead for a moment.

James Barnes has posed:
Bucky shrugs and smiles. "Yeah. Mostly just trying to keep myself out of trouble that I'm not sent directly to." Not to say that there's any success in that, but he tries, at least. Slowly, Bucky pushes himself out of the pool the rest of the way, standing up and dripping a bit. "Not as exciting as you guys hitting the Savage Land, but like I was telling Nat: hard pass."

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would shrug, "You have to take some time to figure out your place in life. You're allowed." She would not look wistful. Any of that sort of sensation in her didn't survive beyond her first decade. She'd long since mastered the art of faking it though.

"I'm sure that you've found all sorts of separate trouble at the side of Wanda."

Steve Rogers has posed:
Steve takes a long sip of the grape juice. "Oh I don't know Buck, you might have enjoyed it. Had Logan riding along in a sidecar on the motorcycle. It was like old times," he says, then takes another sip.

Lowering the glass after he says, "Well, even older times than us. Had a dinosaur trying to bite us. A big one. Was pretty fast too," he says. "T-rex I think they call it?"

James Barnes has posed:
"Yeah, maybe. But I'm more of a snow-guy now a days," Bucky jests, despite having just been swimming around, so clearly he enjoys it. "All right. I gotta hit the showers, you two." He grabs his towel and tips his chin up at them. "Lemme know if you want to go for some beers later. Or vodka, if you're haughty about it," he teases Nat.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would smirk over at James, "At the point you can stand more than a few dozen, then we can go to the Asgardian Embassy, Barnes. And do remember in the future to stay still, Steven. They track you by motion." Steve's possibly limited knowledge of T-Rexes would at least cover that yes, they could make out things staying still..