17573/A Spring Fling

A Spring Fling
Date of Scene:	12 April 2024
Location:	Last Exit
Synopsis:	Janet throws a costume party. It ... goes well?
Cast of Characters:	Janet van Dyne, James Barnes, Thor, Emma Frost, Valeria Richards, Scott Lang, Nico Minoru, Steve Rogers, Carol Danvers, Arisia Rrab, Jennifer Walters, Clea, Kate Kane

---

Janet van Dyne has posed:
Janet hasn't had a party in a while. Such things are always in the budget when you're obscenely rich, and given the events of the past week or so, people could probably use the break. Why is it a costume party?

Because she said so.

Thusly, Janet rented out the entirety of the Last Exit for the evening, hired some DJs, and set about to planning. The party, she decided, was open to all, admission being a suggested donation to a selection of animal rescues throughout New York. VIP badges were available, and handed out to her friends, fellow Avengers and anyone else she deemed interesting enough to hang out with. (That's all of you.) VIP benefits are a semi-private space to congregate, a nice view of the dancefloor and stage and, yes, an open bar. The caveat is that you must come in costume, and your Super Hero Duds do not count. Unless you're large and green and use them as part of the set dressing.

Janet herself is holding court near the bar, and her costume is, well, daring. First, it might take a couple looks to realize it's her, given the shaggy blonde wig on her head. And the bright blue contacts. The rest of it is, for her, simple. A daringly high cut white, long-sleeved unitard with a very recognizable keyhole cutout on her chest. (Whatever the unitard is made of is probably a trade secret because it's doing -fantastic- things to her chest.)Pinned to her shoulders is a short red cape that falls just past her hips. On her feet are blue boots with flared and folded tops, but the real one doesn't wear heels that high. Her gloves match the boots. Just don't look under the cape. It's very ... Street Fighter under there, if the drift is caught.

Currently, Janet has a drink in hand, something in a coupe that is pink, and she's glad-handing, or being glad-handed. It's hard to tell.

James Barnes has posed:
It'll be fun, Bucky, you should go, Bucky. If anyone but Steve had brought up the idea to attend this party, it would have been a hard no. As it is, Steve still owes him one. No one mentioned that the venue was a bad acid trip. But he's here. He showed up. He might as well stay.

At least Bucky isn't obscured in the shadows in some lonely corner. He's actually at the bar - feeling ridiculous in his black suit, red silk shirt, black cape and white half face mask. Completing his Phantom of the Opera look is a fake red rose in one white gloved hand.

Thor has posed:
Thor is loud as a regular tone, and mostly incapable of a proper whisper. So his loud 'tee hee hee', as he trundles in with his ridiculous inflatable costume is clear. He's FAR too big for it, but clearly does not even care at all.

It is an inflatable brown and green striped dinosaur, generally intended to cover all of a person. Generally. However, it is horribly misformed in the upper body and half-deflated due to being ripped in the back (Thor is ... broad), and the legs are around the level of Thor's knees. He's wearing camouflage sweats and a tee under it (as those things will help this situation of blending in, right?)

But the costume is caught on a doorway /already/ and the deep chuckles of the dinosaur's occupant shift into a confused grumble as he tries to loosen the tail without popping the whole inflatable thing...

And block basically the whole doorway. --- "My dragon does not FIT," Thor complains. He means the doorway, but that could be taken in a lot of other ways, too.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost has come in something slightly different than she usually does. Blonde hair has been concealed by a very high end, movie grade long red wig with strands of hair going down to her hips. Heavy mascara covered her eyes, lips heavily blushed up. Hair gently drawn over one eye. A corset cinched very tightly to her hips. A long, flowing and carefully sequinned red dress going down to her ankles slit up thigh high. Long purple gloves covered her hands, and high red heels matching the color of her violet gloves would click as she walked.

Valeria Richards has posed:
It was a costume party, but lacking a theme, Val Richards was not exactly flooded with ideas for what to wear. So when she finally turned up via HERBIE piloted Fantasticar, she went simple and basic.

Fantastic Four themed cheerleader.

This being a blue sleeveless top with white trim, a high almost turtleneck. The word FANTASTIC and the number 4 on the front. The skirt matches the top, the sort of sport and crisply pleated type you'd expect, with coverage mostly enough to not get her arrested. Which leaves her shoes in white, comfy wedge heeled hi-top sneakers, giving an illusion of being over six feet instead of her normal five feet and eight inches. Some white gloves with her wrist computer on her left, help fit the theme.

And with some light makeup and her long blonde hair in a high set ponytail. All that's left are the blue and white pom-poms, held at her side. Probably magnets doing the job there because carrying them around can get annoying.

Supergenius she may be, costume designer she is not. She has friends that can help her with that.

But it matches, and counts as a costume.

Now it's just a matter of not looking super awkward. "Sorry, about the costume. Brainfarts, you're looks great!" she beams to Janet the hostess. "Think Mom and the fam probably got caught up in hero stuff somewhere. Perils of the job." she adds with a goofy smile and a shrug. Extra goofy when Thor's dinosaur gets snagged. "I bet he says that to all the girls!"

Scott Lang has posed:
From the neck down, Scott Lang may not look dressed up. A sunset red Hawaiian shirt with a shock of blue from a bunch, shocks of yellow from the sun-tinted sand, various palm trees and other foliage bearing a yellow glow thanks to a sun that hangs high. And at the front of this is a big red hibiscus. It's sort of like someone took a stock photo from a Hawaiian pamphlet, a nice shot of a beach with a flower in the foreground and repeatedly printed it across the shirt. A simple pair of black jeans and shoes.

The neck up is where everything gets a little weird. A long haired dark brown wig rests upon his head, but that wig is LITTERED with curls. Stretching across his lip is a mustache, well kept and natural for this party. On his face sits a pair of big glasses, like someone took a pair of sheriff sunglasses and turned them into prescription glasses. Weird is clearly the appropriate word and Scott has a deep love of satire. He walks while humming "Another One Rides the Bus" by Weird Al Yankovic.

Scott looks at Thor stuck in the door. "You okay, big guy?" he asks. "Do we need to deflate you a little?"

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico Minoru heard about this party, possibly on a completely legitimate basis from the people in the event space. Because Nico Minoru, whatever the rumors that she got a GOVERNMENT JOB distributing GOVERNMENT WEED to address the Mutant Town epidemic of KIDDY GLAUCOMA, comes to places like this a lot.

It's natural. The place is isolated, grim, and has great acoustics.

Nico could have probably just worn stuff in her closet but one of her *many* skills as an *incredibly talented individual* is to do clothing design.

THEREFORE:

Up high her hair has been pinned down severely as best as she can do it to get it fairly flat. Don't look too close at the pinning on the back, but from the front or the sides it is an *approximation* of a bob, the lacquer-like level of glossy Product in it helping. Her makeup is corpse white and covers most of her upper body and shoulders; her lips have deep carmine-red lining and there are thin black triangles with single descending tear marks beneath each eye.

Down lower the main thing between the middle of her rib cage and her hairline are several diamond-shapes of black electrical tape cunningly applied. Just beneath that is a black leather bodice which has been ornamented with approximately sixteen million tiny silver sequins, which create deceitful visual unity with a black pleated skirt which has been cut into long narrow jagged triangles. Underneath that skirt: black-and-lilac striped stockings and calf-high platform Doc Martens.

As she enters the venue, Nico is also popping some gum. (Personal effects are concealed in a cunning fanny pack under the skirt. There is far too much dazzle going on to see it.) When she sees the dinosaur costume (though not its occupant) her gum-chewing pauses.

Maybe I misread the vibe, thinks Nico, before holding her head *even higher* to compensate.

Steve Rogers has posed:
At some point after the party has gotten a little further underway, a very familiar form enters the party with overt strides and a posture that only enhances his size and frame.

Blond, built, and beaming, a familiar Asgardian walks into the party wearing his normal Avengers costume. Thor's blue eyes take in the party. His voice is loud and brash as he announces, "Hail, friends and make welcome! The God of Thunder has arrived! The party may truly commence!" He swings Mjolnir about by its strap, the hammer's 42 pounds making a whirring noise during the brief spinning before he stills it and strides forward, switching his grip to the handle.

Thor's blonde hair is swept back, loose to ear and nape where it emerges from his Viking helmet. He wears a red cape, metallic but flexible jerkin, and leather gauntlets, but his heavily muscled upper arms are left bare. His dark trousers are tucked into well-worn boots. The overall effect is a sort of mashup of knightly, gladiatorial, and science fiction costuming, and yes, somehow he makes it look good.

In the lights of the club, it might take even those who know the famed Thunderer well to note that he's an inch shorter than normal. And something about the face might seem to be off as well if one were to not be caught up in the costume and the hair and the sight of Mjolnir. And perhaps the voice isn't quite perfect. Though the shoulders and chest and arms certainly pass muster.

'Thor' strides forward, spotting Bucky after a bit of difficulty and beginning to make his way over towards him.

Carol Danvers has posed:
Fashionably late.

That's absolutely what Carol assures herself she is as she streaks across the sky of New York, vectoring in from the North, and moving at a relatively leisure hundred miles an hour. Besides, she's totally fashionably late, she assures herself. Because she's late due to her fashion.

And she's almost positive her costume's not going to land. No one's going to get it.

She doesn't quite float into the club, stepping in smooth, confident... and with a certain amount of southern sass. But that only makes sense with her costume.

Carol's head is topped with a mass of brunette hair with a stark white streak, though after hr brief flight, there's a few locks of blonde peeking out before she can get things back in place properly. Really, aside from color, it's only when Carol strides in, brown leather bomber jacket over green and yellow full body suit that she realizes that while going to a costume party as Rogue is /just/ clever enough to make her snicker at herself... it's not really all that different than most of her 'work clothes'.

Still, she's made her choice, and she's throwing out waves to all and sundry, as she makes her way towards the bar with... well, not enough drive and determination to /really/ worry her friends.

It's fine. She's fine.

Arisia Rrab has posed:
Arisia has managed to score a VIP pass! She's not entirely certain HOW, but she's not about to look that gift horse in the mouth!

Showing up just a little late to the party, Arisia moves with confidence in her costume. Okay, so she might have cheated a LITTLE. The rules said supersuits were a no go if they were your own... but they never specifically stated she couldn't use her natural attributes as part of it!

Shoulder length blonde hair that has a thick braid wreathing her head at the crown, two thick locks styled to come to an angled point in front of two pointed elven ears. A short brown cape around her shoulders leads to a white high-collar shirt overlaid with a brilliantly blue overshirt edged in gold thread embroidery, apired with a white leather 'corset', a wide brown swordbelt around her hips, complete with the pouch on the back of the left hip and that little golden soop beneath it, then black leggings tucking into knee-high brown boots with some metal embellishments added.

It's Princess Zelda, Adventure Edition!

Or it's Arisia, working the elven features for her costume at least! She glances around the room, skipping the bar but heading for where the VIP section has been set up.

Jennifer Walters has posed:
Are YOU facing legal troubles? Do you need someone to fight for YOU?

Better call--

Somebody, literally anybody else! Because today Jennifer Walters, SUPER LAWYER is --

Jennifer Walters -- PARTY LAWYER.

Yes, Jen is here today, because there is no Janet van Dyne Party that she will -ever- miss. She's just that good a friend, and Janet throws just that good a party. And that's why she's gone all out today, sporting her trendy VIP badge accessory to complement a very traditional, very fitting costume for a woman who is giant, and green, and filled with the power of the judicial system: the Statue of Liberty, in all her robed, torch-bearing glory! She's even got the tiara! And the hairstyle, braided and everything!

Of course -- the -real- Statue of Liberty's robes don't have quite such a deeply plunging neckline (or any neckline that might dare to dive), and most architectural scholars would agree that the hip-high slit they sport is also possibly off-brand. Nor does Jen Walters smell of superheated pennies and other horrible smells best not mentioned (she smells -very nice-, thank you). But, well. You could say she's taking some creative...

/Liberties./

(ayyyy)

The gamma-irradiated gal is currently swift on the approach towards Janet to save her from her glad-handing and/or being glad-handled, a bright, toothy grin on her lips and torch all a-wavin' as she calls out, "Jaaaaaneeeeeet!" Closing in, she swoops lowwwww to give her fashionista friend a kiss on both cheeks before she leans back and flashes Valeria a thumbs up. "Hey, kiddo! You -both- look great. But -you-," and here, Jen redirects her attention on Janet, -critically-, "didn't tell me you were doing sexy super suit swapsies! Now I feel bad I didn't join in!"

Here, Jen frowns; her frown only deepens as she notices Captain Thor(merica). AND Captain Rogue. "Damn, everyone's doing the super-swap!" She plucks up her tiara, and briefly contemplates if Diana ever wore "oxidized copper"-green robes, decides there's no way she could manage that, and begins to ask if the bar stocks the -super booze- (the good stuff; the /Asgardian/ stuff) when--

Her green-eyed stare fixates on Thor the Inflatable Dino-God wedged into the door frame, sporting Real Dino Damage to his costume. She squints. Her lips purse.

"Uh," she begins, eloquently, to Thor's complaint. She has -so much- she could say. But instead, diplomatically, Jen elects for: "Hey, Thorasaurus Rex. You, uh. Need a helping hand there? Maybe a shrink ray, orrrrr...?"

Clea has posed:
Clea's not in costume. She is however dressed for a party in a sleek black gown with her alabastrine locks swept back from her face. Wong told her she needed to get out more. Needed to do more human things.

So here she was!

The sorceress is floating off the ground, because she's not making the effort to have her feet stick to the ground. It probably causes some of the party guests to avoid her but she's alright with that!

Janet van Dyne has posed:
Janet engages in what one could call 'Artful Disengagement'. The randos, who are likely obscenely rich industry types, get the air kisses and the promises to keep in touch as she slips free in a swirl of cape. Somewhere in the background there's a camera flash and now Janet's Whole Ass is posted on Twitter. (It's still Twitter, get stuffed, Elon.)

She takes a sip from her glass, stopping when Val approaches. The Fantastic Cheerleader gets eyed with the look of a Fashion Master, a thoughtful frown crossing her lips before she smiles. "A for effort, Valeria," she says. "Just keeping back from the line where I might have to tell your mother. Excellent work. Bar's open, help yourself," she says, punctuating with a heft of her glass.

She watches others arrive, the mighty Thorasaurus, Actual Thor (Original Character, Do Not Steal), The Phantom is over there. She squints a little at Arisia, not being a Hip Youth and therefore not getting her costume. Carol makes her stumble a little, biting her lip to stave off the giggles. She's heard the story, it's a very meta joke. And very funny.

Jen arrives, and Janet staves off the giggles to smile at her Very Tall friend. (Don't worry, Nico. Janet saw and approved of the almost gutterpunk ballerina thing.) "Well," she starts in reply. "I had another idea, but with all the Hydra crap, it slipped my mind. Besides," she says, gesturing to her falsely ample bosom. "I figured out a way for a unitard to make my-" Airhorn. "Look way bigger. Not all of us are Actual Power Girl, or ... vaguely slutty Lady Liberty."

James Barnes has posed:
Bucky's default facial expression is 'scowl'. There might be some out there that aren't even sure his face will smile. But it does. In fact he has to struggle to not spit the mouthful of bourbon he's holding all over the bar at the sight of Thor trying to be a dinosaur. Thor the Dinosaur. It even rhymes! For some reason that fact has him struggling all the more to swallow his drink and not spit it out along with a barked out laugh.

It's probably a good thing he was mid-drink. It would not do to have the natives knowing he can actually even laugh.

Finally he gets himself under control and flags down a bartender for another shot.

...and then Scott has to go talking about deflating and Bucky bites the inside of his cheek before he gives up and says, "That's what she said," it's crowded, there's a good chance no one heard it. Smiling and a sense of humor - albeit a lame one? Certainly he's been body snatched?

As Steve approaches, Bucky levels a /look/ in his direction. "Seriously, Steve?" he asks as his childhood friend gets closer. But he's actually wearing half of a grin, just one corner of his mouth ticked up, of course no one can see the other half. Maybe he doesn't think it's /all/ bad? Steve would see, that glint in Bucky's blue eyes and the fact that he's struggling to keep that half a smile from going full blown.

Down the hatch goes his second shot. It's a shame he can't drink them fast enough to actually matter. If that were the case, he might even get up and dance, if he could actually figure out the music.

Thor has posed:
Thor has chosen to ... try to just squish down, and drop out of the bottom of the trapped costume. It did take a little work, though, so it was a 'Nature Calls' Ace Ventura moment of trying to squeeze out of the inflated dinosaur-- except backwards. "I cannot see wherein the dragon has become snagged," Thor announces, when he's about halfway down, and on one knee on the floor. It now appears that head and one arm are inside a dinosaur. It's comical.

"That is Scott, is it? I can see by your selection of odd shoe. Perhaps deflation IS the answer, as I am not attempting to be a slain dragon as of yet," Thor agrees, waiting for Scott to help solve the issue from his better vantage point.

And then Jen's voice! "What do you suggest?" Thorasaurus answers Jen, also fully willing to accept that aid. And Jen can probably think of a LOT more comments now that Thor is half-emerged.

Still, if left as is, Thor has become some kind of Jurassic Park commando military man wrestling a dinosaur. Intentional though, no.

--

And then, someone else is being Thor?! And real-Thor is missing it? This will not stand! And he can't see, so there's a logical answer:

    "...../LOKI/...!" Thor thunders, instead, from the chest of the dinosaur inflatable. It's a familiar challenge. The voice is a mix of demanding, irritated, and somehow pleased. Thor is now sitting on the floor, mostly. He continues to attempt to fully wrestle free of the inflatable, then, wanting to see what 'Loki' is up to, exactly, by pretending to be him at this party. It may be seconds before the dinosaur ends up ripped open, based on Thor's grumble.

Emma Frost has posed:
Janet gets a very bright smile from Emma Frost. "I do feel like I've put in the most minimal creativity of anyone here. Your events do bring out the best of everyone at them, Janet. So congratulations once more for the level of inspiration and enthusiasm your gatherings beget." Emma has somehow already get herself a goblet of wine and is sipping from it.

"And do you want a level of privacy with all of us here so there's no interruption?" By which Emma meant offering to psychically blank out everyone that was not at the event or otherwise helping to cater it. Emma herself is rather relaxed. Van Dyne events are always worth coming to.

Raising her glass to.. Baby shark? she was so behind on the times.. And then laughing at the declaration of Lady Liberty. "Nothing that an excellent surgeon can't fix." And Emma happened to know quite a few of them.

Valeria Richards has posed:
This is where the pom-poms come in handy. Being grabbed and shook to encourage everyone else's costumes. This is what a cheerleader does. Bounce and be peppy. Maybe Val needs to be at least one more sheet to the wind.

"You know I could probably turn that torch into something functional in about twenty minutes." she offers her Aunt Jen. "Flamethrower or lightsaber?" options are always nice.

Jan's costume gets a wolf whistle as well. "Honestly. I think Jan and Carol wear their costumes better than the OGs.

The snap of cameras going off get an eyeroll. Being a celebrity daughter she's used to having pictures taken at non flattering angles of parts that everyone is complimentary of.

There's a few swipes of her fingers against the haptic holo-display on her wrist computer. And for the rest of the night somehow cameras just save nothing but entire black image files.

A little trick she uses when she spends time at the Hellfire Club.

No one needs to see anyone holding back Scott Lang's hair if he drinks too much and finds a large enough pot plant.

Scott Lang has posed:
Scott grins as someone recognizes him. And so, he starts to move around Thor. He looks for the thing keeping the costume inflated. "You're going to need more air on the other side, buddy," and then the air will begin to escape. Thor's voice booms, "LOKI!" and Scott holds his ear, "Just give it a moment and you can see The -other- you. Maybe it's you from a different dimension or timeline," he grins, just trying to find the right side. He's thinking someone's wearing a cheap Thor costume with padded muscles. So, he'll be in for a surprise. "It may not be Loki," he says and then moves out of the way once Thor is deflated enough. "Inflate, buddy," he says hopefully.

Steve Rogers has posed:
'Thor' makes his way across the room towards his oldest friend. On the way he pauses to make way for Arisia Rrab as she ventures through the party towards the VIP section.

Sweeping a bow to Arisia, 'Thor' tells her, "Ah, I had not expected one of Alfheim. May you enjoy your time among Midgaard, my lady." He'll linger for any response, before continuing to meet Bucky.

Bucky gets a harder clap on the shoulder than normally comes from Steve. But might not be unusual from Thor. "Ah, friend Buchanon. We shall make merry and make tonight... er... one for the annals," 'Thor' says with only a hesitation in picking his wording.

The loud cry of "Loki!" that rounds through the room draws his attention. 'Thor' strides towards the deflated dinosaur with exaggerated strides. "Ah, an excellent costume, sir. I had no idea Midgaard stocked Bilgestein costumes," he offers as he reaches out a hand to help the real Thor to emerge from the costume.

Clea has posed:
"What's your costume supposed to be?" Some poor drunk man wanders over to ask of Clea as he sizes up the floating woman.

It causes Clea to turn towards him, her eyes a bit owlish in the way they blink, "I'm a perfectly normal human." she tells him in a deadpan way.

It is enough to illicite a chuckle from the pan...then he realizes she's not joking and he puts his hands up and begs pardon before leaving her be.

Kate Kane has posed:
When Kate Kane wants to make an entrance, she absolutely can. And for the party tonight, she definitely decides to go all out. Her hair is a magnificent wig of red hair that's not too far from her natural color, save that this flows all over, fanning out behind her. Her costume is a form-fitting red bodysuit complete with a golden bird of prey on the front, as well as a golden sash tied around her waist. Her boots are also golden in hue, and she walks perfectly in those heels.

She grins at the rest, "Sorry I'm late, but I had to snack on a little star on the way over here." With that, she meanders over towards Carol, giving her a wink and a grin, "Hey sugah."

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico doesn't... /know/ people that much, and also, they are in costume. She sees the flow of things and wonders for a moment if the Thor she can see is like, actually Thor, coming in his work clothes. That would be kind of cool, if potentially against the spirit of a *costume* event. He definitely has an aura of authority to him, thinks Nico.

"Hey, great scene," Nico tells Janet as she comes nearby, dipping into a plie` for a moment. But then it is time to... look around and mingle. Which means she sees Clea floating.

Nico pops her gum. For a fleeting moment she regrets deeply having been chewing gum, but it took her mind off of wearing the outfit, even under a thin and foldable windbreaker. She ends up walking forwards, her boots jingling faintly from zippers in the back, and even though her *eyes* track after Clea, Nico ends up in the general vicinity of the VIP area as well.

"That embroidery is /amazing/," Nico comments (faintly mintily) to Arisia. "Like that has to be custom. That or you actually are an elf from Elfheim. Rivendell. I'm sorry, I'm getting the name wrong. I'm not even DRINKING yet," Nico concludes, eyes going wide.

James Barnes has posed:
Oh MY GOD. Once again, his response is, "Yeah, that's what she said..." It fits both occasions, truly. Watching Steve, Bucky can only manage to look befuddled. It's adding a little more to the 'acid trip' atmosphere of the room. He's yet to move from his bar stool. He's not quite at that level of proper socialization just yet.

He may be alone at the bar for the moment, but he doesn't feel /lonely/. He's actually content just to people watch. The entertainment here is better than anything he'd find on his television at least.

There's that full smile, half of it hidden behind his mask. Who could keep a straight face watching a rubber, inflatable dinosaur give birth to Thor - the real one. While the /other/ one is helping.

Thor has posed:
"The interior of inflatable dragons is ... most uncomfortable," Thor observes as he's freed from it. It also begins to re-inflate, since, well, Thor did follow Scott's instruction. But Thor's no longer inside it, so it's more like a weird dinosaur-balloon than a costume. He claps Scott's hand in thanks for the relese. Thor looks sort of sweaty and disheveled from the dinosaur costume fiasco, but bright and cheery as Steve makes himself known.

"AHA! A very well done compliment!" Thor declares of Steve's outfit, immediately moving to attempt a full strong embrace. Thor approved costume, now. Which follows with some poking and amused prodding of the pieces of it. Thor's charmed by the situation, now.

"When I first heard you, I thought of my brother. He oft likes to create problems in my visage," Thor asides to Steve, while rubbing a hand along his neck.

Carol Danvers has posed:
Once she's managed to breeze her way up to the bar, Carol is frozen. Locked by choice paralysis. Because while she would normally go for something on the rocks... she's not Carol Danvers. She's Rogue! That means any terrible drink choices she makes are in fact Rogue's fault. Much like everything awful. (That is a joke. Carol does not hold a grudge against Rogue... anymore. She's on the Christmas banana bread list and everything.)

Fortunately, ordering a garish mixed drink that looks like it contains more sugar than alcohol (Which is a lie. It contains an AWFUL lot of alcohol), she has time to flash a little wave to Janet and blow a kiss to the hostess with the mostest (Mostest skin showing, amirite?)

Thorasaurus gets a snort. 'Thor' arriving gets a choked laugh.

Her gaze sweeps around and takes in others and she's stunned.

"God. Avengers take costume parties /scary/ serious, don't we?"

And then she's flashing a grin to the arriving Kate, snapping and pointing, "Hey! Sorry I got here early, we probably should've coordinated. Tried to come up with a grand entrance."

Scott Lang has posed:
Taking Thor's clasped hand, Scott nods. A second later Thor is loose. "Welp. I can't unsee that image," Scott says after seeing that. Thankfully Thor doesn't attack Other Thor. Now, he can move into the party a little more properly.

Steve gets a bit of a side line from Scott, "Scarily. Verily Good," Scott holds out a hand to 'Thor. "How's Asgard treating you?" he smiles big and his hair bobs a little as he nods a head.

Valeria Richards has posed:
The DinoThor becoming a mom, gets some more cheering shakes of at least one pop-pom. "You can do this, such a proud mama!" Valeria yells out with a chuckle.

A nearby Clea and Nico get a playful snap point with the empty hand before it claims a passing flute of something pink and bubbly.

The arrival of Phoenix to compliment Mighty Woman gets a grin as well.

"Maybe the next theme for costumes should be X-Men. I think I still have some costumes from when I modeled for Vivian." she snickers playfully. "Don't know how well I could fill them though." because even girls that look like Valeria still have body image issues.

But at least she can give the Dino Mama a baby shower gift.

It's left holding the pom-poms while Val starts doing the rounds.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate grins at Carol, "Yeah, well, I got delayed anyway, but we can always leave together later, if you like." She winks again, then looks to the bartender, trying to think of what sort of drink a cosmically hungry avatar would want to drink... and decides on a screwdriver. Keeping it simple.

She looks over at the 'Asgardians' and shakes her head a little, "Do I even want to know... because I feel like an explanation would only make it worse." She grins and snap-points back at Valeria.

Clea has posed:
Clea feels like a stranger in a strange land, this was true of most times with the Faltine these days though. She looks over her teammates as the are dressed up like each other and other heroes and there is a bit of a smile before she looks down to her drink and then floats off to find a spot to sit down in a not crowded corner.

She does see Valeria and there is a lift of her glass to the young woman and a smile. She'd not seen her since she dated her godfather.

Jennifer Walters has posed:
"Gasp! How dare you!" gasps Jennifer Walters, hand to her lips.

"I'm a -super- slutty Lady Liberty!"

A second passes. She looks sidelong at Val. "Er. I mean. Valeria, the law is very serious. I am very serious." She has to at least -pretend- she's a good (unofficial) aunt. Family matters!

Which is why, when Valeria makes her offer, Jen pauses on the verge of accepting the offer, purses her lips, and says, "--Lemme think about it. ... Don't turn my costume accessory into a weapon of mass destruction."

And thus with that out of the way, Jennifer offers a stage-whisper compliment of, "Anyway, congrats, girl. Your" AIRHORN "look amazing," to Janet, she flashes her Very Small friend a grin and makes her way over to the freshly-freed Thor. She offers a little snort of a laugh and a salute to Emma before critically considering the Midgardian Dragon. ... Dinosaur. Dinodragon.

Who is now kind of half-emerging from the deflated Dinosuit like some sort of profound, abstract statement on how mankind inherited the world from their angry, saurian predecessors.

Jen lofts a single dark green brow.

She's got the perfect comment primed, locked and loaded, a real She-Hulk sassy classic. "Well, Thorasaurus, if we're trying to avoid property damage so I don't have to file any paperwork while suffering from a hopefully killer headache tomorrow morning--"

And then the man who has become a piece of truly thought-provoking avant-garde Jurassic Art bellows out /LOKI/, is promptly freed, and Jen blinks and takes one -entire- step backwards out of smiting range. After, she just takes a moment to consider the back and forth between Thor and his doppelganger (doppelgodder??). To appreciate the impressive play performance. And also to make sure no one gets smote.

"I gotta hand it to you," she remarks off-handedly to Captain Steve-Thor, "you are -really- committed to the bit." She is -impressed-.

Steve Rogers has posed:
'Thor' flashes a grin back over to Scott Lang in response, shaking his hand and then 'Thor' clasps the forearm of Thor. "Thank you," Steve Rogers replies to Thor at the comment about the well done compliment. "As it was intended," Steve says, those true blue eyes matching the honesty in his tone.

Looking down at his costume, 'Thor' gives a tug on the paldrons and then fingers the material of the cape. "I have to say," Steve adds thoughtfully, "the cape is rather becoming."

As Jennifer Walters, the green Lady Liberty, comes over to make her comment, 'Thor' turns to greet her with a growing smile. "Ah, it is good to see you here. At these festivities. We must dance later, the Midgaard dances. The boogie and the woogie and..." 'Thor' turns to Thor and Scott to ask, "What is the one with the mirror ball and the wide-legged pants?"

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico Minoru observes the birthing of the Thunder-god from the Bowels of the Air-Inflated Wyrm of Deth, leaving them with Double Thor. (What does it mean?)

"So yeah, drinking," she comments to Arisia. Valeria gets a finger-gun of response which manages to not look too forced.

("Is that actually Loki though. You have to tell me if it's Loki." It's not clear who Nico is asking this of, exactly... Arisia? Valeria? God? Jen (who may have God's number)?)

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol rolls her eyes at Kate as she sips at her terribly sugary alcoholic concoction and snorts out softly, "Held up at work? Or held up at /work/?" Eyebrows pop meaningfully. Daringly even. Because really, what's the point in being a costumed crime fighter if your friend can't ask you about it like it's some sort of scandalous thing?

Her eyes flick over and she shrugs helplessly, "I mean, I don't think trying to figure out the reasoning behind every costume's always a good idea... in fact, it's probably /usually/ not a good idea. I was like ten seconds from coming as a Street Fighter character until we got to talking..."

Carol slowly frowns. "...I didn't cancel that costume order. THAT'S what that... delivery... notice...."

Her head snaps around, "Janet! I need you to throw another costume party!"

James Barnes has posed:
Bucky was sitting down there, but he did get up and move 'over there'. That puts him just a little bit closer to the actual party. Close enough to at least hear most of the conversation, even if he doesn't actually join in on it yet, other than to help Thor-Steve... Sthor? Theve? It's a 'shipping nightmare - "Disco! It's disco!"

He gives the bourbon a rest and moves to just cola.

This is Bucky trying.

He might even offer that smile and a nod from time to time if he makes eye contact with anyone. Too bad it still only looks like half a smile with that mask on.

Janet van Dyne has posed:
It may be true that Janet is showing the most skin. Then again, she -is- dressed as Power Girl, so it kind of goes with the territory. Not that she seems uncomfortable with it, but luckily Val's little trick ensures that only one picture of her ass is on Twitter. From today.

"Right, right. Super Slutty Lady Liberty," she agrees with Jenn. "Only you could pull it off. Anyone else would just be failing to live up to what it could be." She pauses. "After all, you're just naturally statuesque."

She should be fired from a cannon for that pun.

Carol's abrupt snap-point makes her jump. Luckily her glass is ... gone? Wait staff, surely. Or an intern. "What? Oh. Yeah. Of course. Easy." She smiles, and there's a twinkle in her contact lens blue eyes. "Gotta prove I can outdo Shaw at his own game."

Uh oh.

Emma gets a polite nod, but Janet is mingling and flowing through the crowd. That cape isn't hiding anything when she moves, either. Oops.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate chuckles, "/Work/, of course, Carol." She grins and sips her drink, and gives Carol a wry look, "Street fighter costumes? I think I can make something work there..." She glances over at Jan, "And I definitely second the call for another costume party."

She does wave over towards the Asgardians, laughing a little as they definitely seem to be getting into character. Then she looks back towards Carol, "Honestly, I'm really glad for a break to let the hair down. Or out, in this case." She chuckles, shaking her massive mane of red hair with a wry expression.

Thor has posed:
"You had fun items made," Thor continues, lifting Mjolnir off of Steve's side, unhooking it deftly. It's cheerful fun to see this fan-made version. ...And not unusual to Thor, really. He's seen other versions, going WAY back in time, of other 'fans'. "It is very convincing," Thor judges. And then promptly holds it out and up.

There's a crackle, a burning smell, as blue lightning fluxes through Thor's eyes, across his cheeks slightly, and fluxes into the handle of the poor prop.

Yes, that was the smell of burning leather grip. And a jolt of electrical static hops out of the oddly-conducting end of the hammer and leaps to a light overhead. A SPACKKKKKK of broken bulb fires off.

"Oh," Thor says, quickly, and puts the item back onto Steve's person. "Do be mindful, it does not convey power very well," Thor comments. It's only a little hot and slightly burned. That's almost like a Thor autograph, though!

Thor smears off bits of burned leather down his shirt. He isn't embarrassed, more lightly mollified. And can answer Nico Minoru directly, loudly, whether she wanted him to or not. "It is not mine brother Loki. It is another sort of mischief." Well, a SORT of God answered her.

Arisia Rrab has posed:
Arisia offers smiles to everyone, though the comments of Alfheim and Midgard have her looking a touch confused, glancing around to see if maybe someone will explain it to her. In the end, she shrugs and offers a faint grin, "Ah, actually.. Kingdom of Hyrule? Princess Zelda, from the Legend of Zelda? My friend said it was a good look for me." She lifts a shrug and chuckles, "Afraid I'm not much of a video game person to know the difference."

To Nico, she blinks, both brows raising, "Oh, no, I don't drink really. Well, water. Juice. Soda. I'm not a fan of alochol." She doesn't mention that by her species' reckoning, she's not old enough to drink!

Scott Lang has posed:
"No clue," Scott shakes Theve's hand. Bucky answers the question before Steve can, "I was going to guess something disco themed. Not the embodiment disco," Scott just observes everyone for a moment. "I'll leave you two to get acquainted," Scott says trying to see where he could go. Maybe a not so crowded place. His pale green eyes just look about taking in the scene before slinking off to a corner for a moment.

Valeria Richards has posed:
It's entirely possible that Val may end up setting Jen's accessory to do both. Plasma is a very versatile state of matter.

The trick is will it end up setting the building on fire.

Probably,

But that would also likely get a lot of lectures about not thinking things through despite the admirable good will behind it.

A weapon of mass destruction is more a thing you bring ahead of time.

"Carol, I'm sure you would have made a very sexy Blanka!" she says playfully. She'd been forced to play with Franklin more than a few times. "Cammy would look great too. But kind of obvious. I lament no one will have the thighs for Chun-Li. That includes you Aunt Jen! Sensational as those really, really long legs are!"

Steve Rogers has posed:
Steve Rogers , or 'Thor' or Theve as the case may be, replies to Arisia as he hears her, "Oh yes. Video games. Little figures on the picture screens that run about in merry games. Some game of gallantry. And grand theft. I am acquainted with them," he says in best Thor-fashion, giving the young blond woman a smile.

As Thor takes Mjolnir from Steve's belt, the latter opens his mouth to say something as he's gesturing towards the very authentic looking hammer. And then the electricity crackles and the hammer is left lightly smoldering as Thor returns it to Steve's belt.

Cap waits until Thor's attention is elsewhere to actually express what he was about to say, quietly enough Thor won't catch it. "Yes, I asked someone with pictures of one on an Avengers fan site where I might get one for a costume. And he offered the use of it," Steve says as he lifts up the mildly scorched hammer, and wonders how difficult it will be to replace.

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico gazes as the dinosaur-birthed Thor reveals himself to be, yea, the Thunderer himself or at least a reasonable facsimile thereof. Her mouth doesn't quite hang open but it's kind of... *slack*. As if she's considering the full gawp but doesn't want to *commit*, especially after the explosion.

"I am really glad to hear that," Nico tells Thor, in small letters.

In more ordinary letters, Nico answers Arisia. "Oh, yeah -- I mean I could tell, it's just really great stuff, it's like you came out of the game. You don't? That's cool, I'll have one for you! Hold on!"

Nico turns towards the bar. "Yeah, vodka? Like, triple. Whatever you have, just, please, I need to stress manage now." Her elbow rests on the bar and she leans against it, twinkling faintly from subtle movements of the body which are only visible BECAUSE of the approximately ten jillion sequins on her dress.

Valeria mentions a 'Sexy Blanka' at the point when Nico is given her drink. Nico, who is unfortunately well informed on the cast of Street Fighter, downs about half of it at a go before (very faintly) wheezing.

Clea has posed:
Clea seems to be content to sit in the corner and people watch. While her costume was normal human being, she was far from it. The violet eyed woman gives a look over the Avengers that are in attendance and then takes a drink of her wine before she looks down to her phone for a moment.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost would glance over at Janet and raise her goblet up and over in a toast. Emma herself is playing it subtle for once. In such august company, why would she want to draw attention to herself? She has a rather relaxed smile on her, even as she seems content to oddly enough play the wallflower for the festivities. But this is for the Avengers, and so she sees no need to overstep her positioning.

James Barnes has posed:
Bucky's brow furrows slightly when, while just people watching, his gaze lands on Clea. Well, doesn't that look like a kindred soul or something. He flexes his gloved left hand, little nervous 'tic' of sorts and pushes himself to his feet.

There was a time, some ninety odd years ago, that Bucky Barnes would have enough courage to approach three women at one time and the charm to make each of them feel like they were the only one in the room. That was a long time ago.

He gets within earshot of Clea and then stops. One step closer and he asks, "Using that thing as a social shield or getting an important text?"

Then he even holds out the fake red rose that came with him as part of his costume.

Thor has posed:
Thor reacts to Nico Minoru's small letters as if they were in bold type. "INDEED," Thor answers, brandishing the word like a greatsword. They AGREE!

"I have only recently partaken of video-games. My reflexes improve each time, the Titans assure me," Thor adds of video games... but he's distracted, for the minute, by remembering his highly inflated costume. It's sort of floating and tipping over, since he just left it going. "Forgive me, my dragon seems to be ready to slay," he jokes, returning to the inflatable dinosaur to drag it out of the way of the party -- incidentally over toward where Scott is trying to wallflower, to take a minute himself to decide if the costume is wearable or best to just let it be FREE to float around instead. He is leaning toward the latter, as he does want to partake of drinks, and the costume will block that.

And so, like the bad decision of every Jurassic park movie, he allows the dinosaur costume to float off into the party. (Inflated) life finds a way.

Jennifer Walters has posed:
The 'Thor' that is certainly not Steve suggests a later dance, helpfully listing possible Midgardian dances to groove it to. With each suggestion, Jennifer's brows lift.

Boogie. Lift.

Woogie. Lift!

The one with the mirror ball and the wide-legged pants. The greatest lift!

She's trying very hard not to laugh. So hard. Look at how her lower lip trembles, how her shoulders shake a bit, how her first comment starts like this, "pffffforrrr sure, Thunder God, for sure! It'd be my honor." She's doing a -very good job- of keeping a -straight face-.

She's really not sure if this is Steve showing his age or -really- committing to becoming the Mighty Theve and it's -killing her-.

"But -first-, I should get a drink or two, remember just how we Midgardians discoooohhhhh wait Thor wait I mean the other Thor wait I mean--"

CRACKLE. SPACKLE. POP!

Lady Liberty stares on in muted mourning as godly thunder burns through exquisite leather crafting. She scratches her cheek. Looks around, assesses damage.

"Well, just some light bulbs, they can't get mad over a few measly light bulbs, right?" she asks herself. Inner Jen just shakes her head in response at her attempt to be responsible at all tonight, and provides this inner monologue of wisdom:

'Be more drunk already!'

"You're -right-, inner monologue." And with a firm nod, Jen pivots with a flurry of dangerously-slit skirts, wiggling her fingers to the Two Thors. "You two are awesome today! Pretty please don't burn down the venue! I'm asking in my Nice Hulk Voice!"

And with this, she makes her way back to the bar, flagging down Janet as she goes. "Power Jan, -please- tell me you made sure they carry the super strong stuff, so I can handle your terrible puns! I mean amazing puns! --Wait. What's a Chun-Li?"

Terrible, Jen. Just terrible.

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol sighs and gives her... entirely cheap and storebought Rogue wig. (Marketed as 'Sassy Southern Spitfire' at your nearest Spirit Halloween) "Well, originally my entire plan was to go for something blonde, but I figured Supergirl was a little ridiculous..." Because dressing up as Rogue with their history is so friggen normal.

Shoulders rise and fall, "I also thought about Power Girl, but like... I just wore /my/ hip-revealing one piece costume like a week ago. It's not really a costume party if you've dressed the same way in the last week." Says the heroine who was definitely dressed up in a red and blue jacket over a red and blue bodysuit not eight hours ago dealing with a HYDRA robot that's been filed away in one of those boring Avengers and SHIELD files that never make the news.

Valeria gets a half-hearted narrowing of Carol's eyes, "Oh no, I am /not/ going as Blanka. Green body paint? People will think I'm just trying to show up as Jenny, like they did some kind of crossover with Street Fighter and the Avengers or something." Her eyes roll at the sheer /audacity/ of such an idea.

Arisia Rrab has posed:
Arisia grins at Steve's explanation of video games and bobs a nod, "Exactly! I'm glad someone is! I had to have them explained a few times, and I'm still not sure I entirely get it. But the costume is nice! And I love yours! Though, uh..." The hammer is glanced at with its scorch marks, "Maybe... maybe they'll think it's cool? Like.. the actual Thor zapped the hammer?"

THen there's Nico, ordering a lot of alcohol and her eyes widen a touch, though the mention of the costume has her smiling brightly, "Thank you! I made it myself. I had to go to a few differnet stores to get all the material, but I think I did a decent job of it. And at least I know my own measurements, so the tailoring wasn't difficult."

Clea has posed:
Clea was not expecting to hear Bucky and there is a look up to him and a gentle smile, "James." she greets him. "A social shield mostly. Master Wong tells me that it helps with blending in." she muses to that.

Then her eyes focus on the fake rose that is held out and she reaches out to take it, "Thank you, this one won't die." she tells him in a quiet tone. "Did you want to join me? I'd offer a dance, but I am not sure how to dance to this..." she motions up to the speakers.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate chuckles, "Jen, if you want to be Sexy Blanka, I will absolutely loan you this wig." She gives Carol a wry look, "Honestly, I was thinking you'd make a great Cammi, if we're doing that. Though there's not too many great options for gingers, so I'd probably have to wig it again."

She shakes her head, "I don't really have time for video games, but my nephews do enough of them that I catch on through osmosis, really." She also gives a nod and grin towards Arisia and Nico, noticing some people that she doesn't immediately recognize.

James Barnes has posed:
"You should work on perfecting your scowl," Bucky points out helpfully. He's joking, mostly. But that half smile reaches his eyes.

...and then he laughs. It's short, not over loud, more a chuckle than anything. "I mean, seriously, what /is/ this? Sounds like something used as a tool for torture than it does music." Chuckle or not, he's serious about that. This is /not/ music.

He settles down next to Clea and says, "These things kind of suck, yeah? Feel like you have to show up because it's what you're supposed to do, but then once you show up, you feel... out of place?"

Steve Rogers has posed:
Steve Rogers probably doesn't jump to how an actual fan might view the scorched hammer as rapidly as Arisia does. But it seems a quite possible thing as he nods slowly. "Verily then. Sooth. I shall, speak to him. Anon," Steve replies before shaking his head and laughing at his own ability to stay in Theve character fully enough for the length of the sentence.

He hangs 'Meltnir' back on his belt and then turns to the party to join in with others on a night of celebrating.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"If I can't set the place on fire, you can't do it. At least now you can totally do the 'No you are not drunk, there is two of us!' gag. she jokes to the Thors.

Carol gets a smile. "So Zangief then!" she suggests and totally laves out Rainbow Mika.

"At least you got Mighty Woman down, Sugah!" she adds with a wink and a giggle. "And a great Doctor Grey. I've seen the way those two look at each other!" she adds playfully including Kate in said wink.

At least by now Val might have finally had enough to drink to be a bit more open with joking and or flirting type stuff.

Not that's she's great at either.

But she tries.

"I can probably make a functional fake Mjolnir too." she adds and hmms as her brain goes on science nerd tangents.

Janet van Dyne has posed:
"Of course there is, Jen," she says with a smirk. "I knew Thor was going to be here. I found someone selling the Asgardian stuff. It was expensive," she says, reaching up to pat her friend on the arm. "You're worth it, though."

It's then that something tickles her ears. Talk of something she is an expert in that isn't getting large or shrinking.

Making clothes.

Somehow, Janet has a drink again. It's like someone deposited it in her hand as she moves through the party with expert timing and grace, only to pull up on Nico and Arisia. She looks between the two for a moment, her gaze full of the criticism of a professional. Nico gets the once over first, her head tilting one way then the other. "Daring. Bonus points for electrical tape pasties. Minus points for an obscene amount of sequins. Still. Quite good. Risky. I like it."

Then her discerning gaze falls onto Arisia with the same intensity. This time she even reaches out, heedless of consent or personal space, to finger at the material and embroidery. "I have no idea what you're supposed to be, but did you make this yourself?"

Clea has posed:
Clea scrunches up her face in a faux mean way, "No, that's not it." she shakes her head. "Pouting doesn't work either." she adds. "So work on scowling, got it." she grins to Bucky.

"I mean, I've been a live for a while and I've not heard much like this. Then again we don't have a lot to choose from when your imprisoned." she sighs to that.

"I think it is nice to support your teammates and friends in things. Big parties are not my thing." she agrees. "Mostly because I feel like a stranger in a strange land." she explains. "Yes, very much like that." she agrees with him.

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico raises her half-empty glass to Jen as she comes nearby. (It's half-empty because she is gothic as shit.) "Chun-li," Nico says, deliberately, "is the /strongest woman in the world/ of street fighter," she says the second part more quietly, "because Street Fighter is like martial arts movies and stuff. They don't bring in a lot of realistic stuff? Like I think there's something with psychics or something."

Sip.

She raises her glass at THOR!, and then swallows what was in her mouth.

THEN! JANET - VAN - DYNE. "Oh thank you!" she tells Janet, before grimacing into the smile that was threatening to bloom for a moment, but she recoups. "Yeah - haha - I heard about this last minute so I couldn't really prepare!"

Nico is about to say something else but then Janet's baleful eye turns onto Arisia. Nico opts to drink more liquor.

James Barnes has posed:
"Here, like this," Bucky offers before his face falls back into that trademark Buckyscowl. Even when just giving a demonstration, it's enough to make people walk the other way. Dude's a little scary.

But his expression softens, not into a smile, just no longer scowling.

"Me too," he quietly agrees to /all/ of it, everything from being imprisoned without choices to supporting teammates, to big parties being the epic suck most of the time and being a stranger in a strange land.

"There is one place that I go where it's not so hard to ... " He draws out that out just a little as he tries to figure out what to say next, "... where it's not so difficult for me to relax a little in a crowd."

Arisia Rrab has posed:
Arisia doesn't seem to mind or even really notice being manhandled. She watched Janet with Nico, blinking a bit at the critique before getting her own turn in the crosshairs. Flashing a smile, she nods, "I did! The emroidery wasn't AS intricate as I'd hoped to make it, but I'm afraid like my friend here, I simply ran out of time." As to the question of 'who', she grins, "Princes Zelda, ruler of Hyrule.. and largely a side character in the Legend of Zelda. It's a video game? Apparently there's been like... five or six that have come out since the 80's. I wasn't sure, but my friend said it would be perfect."

The ears are too natural to be fake, the golden skin a little too on the mark to be foundation or paint. And the hair really is hers! Just.. styled. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Van Dyne, I've been trying to get a gig booked with you for weeks!" Which means she's also a model. Not surprising, she has the appearance for it!

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol blinks at Kate slowly, "Cammy? Really? I was going to go as Guile. Grow my hair out and everything. I mean, we're both in the air force, I can /totally/ do the flash kick... and his theme goes with everything..."

Carol sounds entirely serious about this for like... a solid three seconds. "No! Of /course/ it's Cammy! I was going to risk... well... okay, I wasn't actually going to risk frostbite for the sake of my costume. But still. I /thought/ it was going to be daring..."

Carol is definitely not calling out anyone on their costume choice for daringness. Carol is definitely not pretty sure if a picture of Janet's costume has been posted online that Twitter is currently melting down.

She grins and snap-points at Nico, "Ah! but the parties you don't prepare for are the best ones. Or the worst ones. It all depends on whether or not the cops get called." She takes a long sip of her colorful drink, and more than half its layered rainbow hues have vanished. "Well, okay, actually, the difference between the best parties and worst parties are if you can skedaddle before the cops show up. ...Without powers or a SHIELD badge or whatever. It's cheating if you use diplomatic immunity or powers."

Carol Danvers, icon of responsibility.

Clea has posed:
When Bucky does his trademark scowl Clea raises the rose to gently boop him on the nose. "That's terrifying." she tells him. "I'll have to practice it. There's a lot of gravitas behind it." she explains. If she was the Russian judge she might hold up a 10 in this instance.

She listens to him though and gives a bit of a curious look, "Where is this place?" she asks him. "Or is it secret?" she adds the question.

James Barnes has posed:
Startled by the sudden nose booping, Bucky pulls back a little too quickly. He doesn't snarl at least! He's just still not a fan of people being in his personal space like that. He sucks in a breath, lets it out slowly and makes sure there's no lingering 'upset' in his voice when he replies, "No, not a secret. Friend of mine from way back owns the place. It's called The Corral."

Country music isn't Swing, but it's better than whatever the stuff this place is playing.

He cracks that half grin again and adds, "Gravitas is the important bit. Also, you should cross your arms over your chest. Like this..." He demonstrates.

Anyone listening might, or might not, be shocked to hear that Bucky /knows/ what he's putting down when he goes all scowly and arms crossed. 'Stay away' vibe is intentional.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate blinks at Carol, then laughs as she does the dramatic reveal, "Sheesh, Air Force, you had me worried for a second there." She pauses, then leans in, whispering something quietly to 'Rogue' as she then straightens a bit, her grin going a bit crooked.

Janet van Dyne has posed:
Janet's face hasn't changed from her look of intense analysis. Though she does sip her drink. This one is Jen Walters Green. Who knows what it is. "For a rush job, you did very well." Her gaze finally leaves Arisia's clothes and she locks eyes with the gold skinned alien. "Is that so? Nothing's crossed my desk," she says with a bit of a frown.

She reaches into her (currently impressive) cleavage and pulls out a business card, handing it over to Arisia. There's just her initials and a phone number. "That's my direct line. Call me during business hours and we can get something set up."

After handing the card over, she just flits away, back into the crowd to mingle.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Then I'm out. Being a princess of Latveria only gets you so much immunity. Pesky US citizenship. Valeria von Doom balks at being arrested. Valeria von Doom has the best lawyer nepotism and money can buy!"

There's a wink towards Jennifer while the skinny if tall looking blonde cheerleader impersonates her Godfather. Down to the fist shaking.

"RIIIIIICHARDS!" she adds because it has to be.

"Carol, can't you survive in space? I doubt you'd ever have to worry about frostbite. Or cutting glass! Though hot stuff tends to cause that just as much!" she adds some extra playfulness there.

Clea has posed:
Clea immediately regrets that decision. This is why you don't watch movies to learn human gestures! "I am so sorry." she states quietly as she grips the rose in her hands, if it was real and had thorns she'd definitely be feeling it.

"The Corral? Do they have animals?" she asks him. The important part, animals.

She looks to him as he does the arm crossing and she follows suit...but she looks no where near as intimidating as Bucky. She just looks like she's copying him.

She hears Valeria doing the Doom impression and laughs though before she looks back to Bucky, "Do you think I need to be more intimidating, I thought the fire aura took care of that.?" she muses.

Jennifer Walters has posed:
Jen receives one (1) arm-patting.

Jan receives one (1) one-armed hug.

"Damn right I am," declares Jen Walters, giving her smaller friend a mighty, affectionate squeeze. "You're my favorite Power Girl, Janet van Dyne."

With that, she relinquishes Janet to unleash her all-powerful fashion might upon Nico and Arisia with little more than a teasing jeer, "and my favorite Power Ass!" after her. With that, the Gamma Gal situates herself at the bar; uncertain the stools can actually support her Hulkian weight, she just sort of gingerly leans against the counter and order some mystically-intoxicating spirits to be used in a horrifically fruity cocktail.

(seriously, the thing is -bright bee yellow- and the glass it comes in is clearly meant for multiple people to share; Jen Cares Not).

It's only when her harrowing drink slides her way that she hears the rundown on the legend of Street Fighter's most thunderous Thunder Thighs. She blinks; turns her attention to Nico; blinks again; squints at her costume. And then her eyes widen. "--Oh! Like those arcadey games!" she declares, with the dawning revelation of someone who has never set foot inside an arcade or played a single fighting game in their life. "With M. Bison! And the punchy guy, Balrog!" She, truly, knows nothing. Exhibit A:

"Oh, mannn, now I remember. The movie! That was -awesome-."

Judge her not for her sins.

Still; as she realizes and as Nico is accosted for fashion evaluation, Jen frowns. "--Hey. What's wrong with my thighs??"

Ultimately, she heaves a world weary sigh at not being able to match up to the Legend of Chun-Li, and returns to her drink. She only pauses as Kate offers up a suggestion. Her head tilts. "Blanka? That was... the angry little green guy, right? Hmmmmm." She considers this. Scratches her cheek. Recalls how he looks, with the shirtlessness.

"... I think me wearing a costume like that would require a party with a higher ESRB rating," she murmurs, in what is clearly a joke(?).

She returns to slurping her drink.

Slurrrrrrrp.

"Val, you're not building a replica of a godly weapon of war. I am not explaining to your mom that you built a godly weapon of war because we got you hammered on God Punch. I'm just not."

Slurrrrrrrp.

"And I -am- the best nepo-lawyer, -thank- you."

James Barnes has posed:
Bucky's laughing quietly along with, "Well, there's a mechanical bull." Then he explains properly. "It's a bar actually. Country Western. Better than what they play here even if it's not in my top five."

He lifts one shoulder in a shrug. "Depends. I don't like it when..." Once again he pauses, struggling with the words. "... I just don't like it when people ... when they come at me, talking all at once, getting loud. I don't like being singled out in meetings. I don't like feeling like I'm under a microscope." He clunks his left arm against some nearby surface, but not with enough force to cause damage. "I could just go with short sleeves, but then that draws too much attention. Easy to just look like I'd rather kill a person than talk to them?"

Arisia Rrab has posed:
The compliment has Arisia over the moon and beaming brightly, "Thank you!" She touches the hip pouch with the little metal swoop underneath it, "This part gave me some real issues at first, but I managed to work it out. The embroidery was probably my favorite part. Though the leather piece took some finessing that was fun, too!"

Accepting the card, she looks it over, then smiles, "I'll make sure to call on Monday. Thank you!" But Janet is already drifting off to mingle elsewhere, leaving one very excited Arisia in her wake!

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol rolls her eyes and sighs out, "Listen, just because I /can/ survive in space doesn't mean I enjoy being all easy breezy... longstanding series of costumes to the contrary or not. You'd be surprised how warming thigh high boots and a sash can be." And the rest of that rainbow drink disappears in a single swallow. Oh, old Carol. You could have drank enough to keep up with this party.

Her hips swivel as she spins to deposit her drink back upon the bar, though it does mean with Kate close, there's a bit of a bump and jostle, though it's surely not too much for the redhead to handle.

And then she's eying Kate and lifting an eyebrow, "So, did you like... get an Uber here or something? Fancy self-driving car? Do you need a lift?"

Sure, Carol's not mentioning the lift will be of the entirely manual variety, but hey, she's a trained superheroine. She knows how to carry someone so they don't wind up looking and feeling like a sack of potatoes. Mostly.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate laughs softly, "I could definitely use a ride home, Carol, if you're offering." She grins at Carol, knowing all too well what she means, and not seeming to mind the idea one bit, as she looks perfectly fine with the bump and jostle, rolling easily with it as she spins around on her barstool. "Wouldn't mind getting back a little early..."

With that, Kate finishes off the screwdriver, then lightly hops to her feet, "Seriously, you're a cosmic avatar and you couldn't have practical footwear?" She snickers at herself, then she waves towards the rest of the group, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do... which, admittedly, is a pretty short list."

Clea has posed:
"What's a mechanical bull?" Clea asks Bucky. Clearly she's never heard of one. "Is it something you have to fight?" she looks excited at the prospect. "Oh I know what a bar is, Clint took me to play darts one time and he taught me how to swindle people for ice cream money." she laughs.

"Everyone likes to put mics and cameras in our faces...like we aren't human. Or well...I'm not so I guess they can do that." she shrugs her bare shoulders to that.

"Sometimes it does seem easier." she states. "But some of us are stubborn and will continue to try to communicate." she grins to that.

Nico Minoru has posed:
"Well, true," Nico remarks to Carol Grey. "Like the after-party is the real party anyway, right?"

"Yeah exactly," Nico tells Jen, before finishing off her drink. ... about games or about her thighs???

After this -- Janet leaves Arisia over the moon in her wake. "My only comment was gonna be, other than that," Nico tells Arisia, enunciating a little through the fog of a triple vodka, "that you should like... use more contrast in a darker room like this. Even if it's not perfect, in ordinary light, it'll pop. You know? Pop." She makes a gesture with one hand, which makes her dress sparkle unnecessarily.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"I have worn Mom's Malice costume a few time. so yes. I'm aware of what thigh highs can do." Val attests herself.

She won't ascertain the ability to cut through sheets of glass though.

"It was robot driven, and it also flew." Val does point out with her ride.

Even when she's sober, Val is not that great a driver or pilot. Sometimes being a genius does not always bequeath the skill or temperament to wrangle Midtown peak hour traffic.

There might be more funky weapons of mass destruction as a result.

"You ride it, then someone dials up the speed, and it throws you off." Valeria answers to Clea, swinging an arm over head, like she's whirling a lasso. "Yee haw. Then people laugh." then there's more superweapons.

James Barnes has posed:
"Actually it's something you ride and it's even better," Bucky replies. Yeah, he kicks that bulls ass on the regular. "Swindle playing darts or shooting pool?" He's done both. Bucky definitely isn't as All American Good Guy as his best friend.

"This is a bar," he points out with a broad gesture around the club. "It's just a different type of bar. I doubt they play darts or shoot pool here." He's not entirely certain what they're supposed to do here? Thrash about like beheaded chickens to that earsplitting sound that's supposed to be music?

"People often look at me like I'm the boogie man that's going to climb through their window at night and eat their babies," he adds with just a little roll of his right shoulder. "Might as look like what they assume, it's just easier."

He reaches up to pull that stupid mask off. "Anyway, I'm gonna go find Steve-Thor, Sthor... Sheve?" ... "...and let him know I'm heading out. You practice that scowl now, you hear? It'll come in handy."

Bucky winks at Clea stands. "I'll see you around, I'm sure."

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol sighs and rolls her eyes dramatically, "Listen, in space, high heels are like casualwear and I didn't want to look out of place, okay?" And then she hears the words 'mechanical bull' and Carol's eyes widen in terror. Or maybe not terror. Listen, maybe she's just moving a little quicker to make sure Kate Kane gets home at a responsible time because she's SUCH A GOOD HEROINE.

And then Carol's falling into step alongside Kate and tossing out waves and little good-byes and all those good things... and also, with more and more blonde spilling out from that wig, she sighs and tugs it off... and hangs on it on the nearest suitable hat rack or whatever. Someone'll find a use for it.

Besides, she only borrowed the /jacket/ from the genuine article.

Arisia Rrab has posed:
Looking over at Nico, then back to her costume, she chuckles, "Possibly? But I wanted to stick as close to the costume in the game as possible. And I do think it has plenty of contrast. Brown for the cape and boots, black for the leggings, white and bright blue for the tunic, cream for the leather, and gold accents all around in the embroidery. If I'd gone much brighter, I would have risked looking *garish*." Arisia looks back to Nico with a shrug and smile, "It's certainly more color than I'm used to wearing!"

She's not wrong. Her particular GL 'suit' has never really followed the traditional form. She enjoys standing out, after all! But that's a discussion for another time.

For now, Arisia is happy to sip on her sparkling water and soak in all the atmosphere, watching all the people. She doesn't know anyone here, but it's fun to watch!

Clea has posed:
Clea looks between Valeria and Bucky and there is a smile, "I would like to see this." she tells them. "We were playing darts." she tells the assassin.

She gives a look over to him and there is an understanding look in her eyes, "Well...I do not look at you like that, James." she tells him. "Thank you for chatting with me. I appreciate it." she tells him with a soft dip of her head to him.

Then there is a smile at his wink, "Stay out of trouble." she tells him.