3004/Post Yoga Brunchies

Post Yoga Brunchies
Date of Scene:	20 August 2020
Location:	Delicious brunch place on the Upper East Side
Synopsis:	Two pairs get together for delicious brunch!
Cast of Characters:	Pepper Potts, Janet van Dyne, Tony Stark, Steve Rogers

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Pepper Potts has posed:
Yoga Wednesday. It's become, in the short time the 2 ladies have been doing it, almost sacrosanct. HOMER can set his timing to it, or rather, he's the one that sets Pepper's alarm to it, reminding her that her social calendar is, in some cases, just as important as her business. Mostly. Okay, not so much but with only a couple of exceptions.

Leaving the small club, the day is shaping up to be a rather clear, bright and pleasant one in the city. Sun is shining, the sky is blue, and stepping out onto the sidewalk, Pepper's putting sunglasses on. She's dressed in 'covered' active wear, her face is clear of most but the barest hints of makeup and red hair is tied up in a pony tail. She carries her gym bag with her, and holding the door behind her, she waits for her friend before the door is closed.

"I am going to need to stretch that one out," she laughs mock painfully to her friend. "I.. didn't think I had muscles there."

The little bistro that is hit almost as religiously after yoga isn't far; a couple of blocks, a couple of easy walking blocks. It's quiet, quaint, off the beaten path, and serves.. healthy things. Lots of them.

As the pair walk, Pepper's animated, perhaps her post-exercise high. "I am looking forward to their goji-berry smoothie..."

Janet van Dyne has posed:
"You've got no one to blame but yourself," Janet chides Pepper. "The guru said, 'use the alternate posture'. You can't just jump into those advanced poses without pulling something." Pepper's look is decidedly low-key but Janet doesn't leave the studio until she's put on at least some photo-ready makeup and heels; her only jewelry is a pair of large loop earrings and a familiar patriotic necklace dangling in the hollow of her throat. An attendant hustles a respectful few paces behind the women, carrying Janet's gym bag.

She shares Pepper's enthusiasm, and she stretches her legs a bit to match Pepper's slightly longer stride with a loose-hipped brisk pace. "I'm kind of feeling strawberry banana today. Maybe a little acai for some extra kick," Janet tells Pepper. She glances at her phone, walking and texting with a flash of her thumb, and then tucks it back into the waistband of her yoga pants. "Give it another week, Peps, you'll be able to touch your elbows behind your spine in no time."

Tony Stark has posed:
Everyone knows that the key to a good inconspicuous Avengers disguise includes a baseball cap. Something about the hair. Sunglasses are a really good touch, as well.

Stark is not at all wearing his, despite being kindly offered one. Why? Well. It'd mess up his hair, and Tony's hair is at an all time fabulous disarray of rogueish handsomeness at the moment. Product in it ensured it stayed that way. So a cap was out.

And Tony in Tony's tech sunglasses just makes him /more/ apparent, even if his other attire is casual semi-athletic. Which meant that they got seated immediately at a wonderful table, but also meant any attempt to be subtle is out the window. Still, Tony was able to direct for them to have some privacy at this beautiful balcony table: and given as much time as they'd like to relax and preview menus while they awaited the women.

Tony has the head of the table hear the iron wraught balcony railing, and one arm is draped onto it while he pats his palm on the surface of the closed menu, drumming his fingers. In his balcony hand he has the edge of the ballcap, hooked onto a few fingers: just a toy to fiddle with, at this point, but not wear.

If Pepper and Janet were wondering where the boys are -- it's probably where the staff is trying to pretend to not keep looking.

Steve Rogers has posed:
The bistro's a nice little place, Steve decided once he arrived. They were escorted to a table and settled in. He, in his Dodgers baseball cap, looks like just another broad-shouldered blond waiting patiently with his glass of water -- maybe some home-fitness junkie with the place's reputation and his build.

"...Tony, you're supposed to wear the baseball cap, not flick it about like some cat toy," he says drolly to the genius-inventor. No sunglasses for the Captain. Of course, there's the inevitable reaction from some of the tables because Tony himself is recognizable by most of New York City's population.

Of course, this automatically shifts suspicion upon Steve and, with equal inevitability, someone's going to recognize him as well despite his Baseball Cap of Civilian Disguise.

Still, Steve refuses to ditch his hat. He's in a plain heather-grey tee-shirt and jeans as things stand, perhaps dressed a little down for the place, but hey, he's got his charming smile going for him when it matters. He hasn't ordered anything, but does keep giving the menu mildly-perplexed glances.

What the hell is a goji berry?

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper laughs ruefully and not a little self-deprecatingly before she shakes her head. "Still, it's a little more fun than being beaten up by Happy for a couple of hours a week." Though, she still does that- who knew the PA worked out?!

Gesturing to a spot down the block, it looks like the girls are on their way towards their final destination. They're not too obvious... there's only one other in the retinue. Janet. Can't carry her own gym bag?

A mirthfilled grin rises to her face and brows rise, "I think that might be the first time I didn't hear 'can I have a martini with that?' come out of your mouth." She's teasing, but it's all in good humor.

Once they arrive at the little bistro, it honestly isn't that hard to find those waiting for them. Just look, yes, for the place where everyone is looking/not looking. For that spot where the owners and hostesses don't seat the other guests coming in. It must be something in their manner, in the way they walk towards the balcony that gives the staff the impression that yes, they'll be seated there, thank you.

As Pepper approaches, her teasing smile set for Janet turns into something a little warmer, fonder, shifting to the affectionately happy, "And there they are."

Janet van Dyne has posed:
"Liquor before five's a bad habit, Pepper," Janet says with a haughty uplift of her slender chin. "Unless it's a bloody mary, but really that's just a pureed smoothie. If you think about it."

If Janet's aware that their treatment is exceptional, it doesn't show in her face. A beeline towards Steve and Tony's table, her attendant dutifully hanging back a few paces and finding somewhere unobtrusive to linger while Janet and Pepper join the gentlemen.

"Hi boys, thanks for saving us a table," she bids them. Janet plucks the hat from Tony's hands as she walks around the table, and leans down to give Steve a firm and slightly-too-PDA kiss, before she scoots her chair closer and seats herself next to him. Tony's cap is pulled down over her brow and she tilts her head way back to look around from under it.

"How's this? Are we incognito enough for Steve's taste? I can probably get my hand on a wig if it'd help," she inquires of the others.

Tony Stark has posed:
"I fail to see the purpose of stealth; look at this table. /Wear/ it?" Scandalous. Tony began to snicker, but then the ladies are coming over and Janet has lifted the hat from his possession. He doesn't mind, but the wheels turn quickly, and Tony passes a sneaky, playful look at the oncoming Pepper. Tony waits for Janet to sit, and just after the PDA, Tony reaches over to snare /Steve's/ hat.

"Just a moment," Tony says flippantly, casual, and flags down the staff member that was trying to subtly take a picture of the balcony table. The phone is only fumbled a little bit. "Table by the door, there's a kid. Tell him it's from Captain America, who definitely is sitting in here," Tony instructs smoothly, handing off the hat.



That done, it brings Tony's attention across Pepper with a slyness, and then shamelessly to stare at Steve pointedly. He rolls his tongue along inside his lower teeth, a laugh contained.

Steve Rogers has posed:
Steve's eyes rise from the menu he's still perusing as if half of it were some unfathomable language he'd not yet learned. Ah, familiar faces and silhouettes both in the women approaching. He sets the menu down and makes to rise by how he shifts hands to the arms of the chair, but Janet is brisk and decisive as always. With Tony's hat stolen and himself give a kiss which lingers a second more than polite, the Captain then blinks as he sits back in his chair again.

The razz about a wig has him giving his other half a smirk and squint. "Missing a pair of big sunglasses, <<Seillean>>," he notes with a fond exasperation.

However, his own hat goes missing a half-second later and then he's giving Tony a look very nearly betrayed. A hand rises to pat down his mussed wheat-gold hair as he watches his beloved Dodgers hat disappear for...what is arguably not such a terrible reason. He still gives Tony one of those signature Long-Suffering Sighs in return for the genius-inventor's attention.

"Surprised I didn't get to autograph it first. He'll be happy for it. See if he shows up at the table to see who else is here."

A smile for the red-head across the way now. "Pepper, good to see you."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper makes a face at the thought of a bloody mary, her nose scrunching. "No, no thank you." There's a lot of waste of perfectly good ingredients there.

While Janet takes all the 'precautions' that the rich and famous may take to pretend they're being incognito, out of the four of them, the redhead is probably the least known, the least remarkable. A woman who is 'always there', but unseen. She is all too familiar with the antics of her friend, and through the hat-stealing and brief PDA of the couple, her features warm even further as she watches Tony steal the hat and repurpose it.

When Tony's attention is back at the matters at hand, Pepper reaches to set a hand on Tony's shoulder as she finds her seat and puts her gymbag down and at her feet. Before she sits, however, her green eyed gaze shifts towards Steve, her own greeting on her lips.

"Steve. It's good to see you too." Here, she plays on a conversation the pair had earlier in the week. "Have you noticed? She may actually go for the smoothie." Now, she sits down, not worrying about any difficulties about hiding behind hats, scarves, wigs... and she even removes her sunglasses.

"This place is one of my favorites when I just want to stop and get something light."

Janet van Dyne has posed:
Janet just smiles sunnily and keeps one hand on the brim of her purloined hat, though she does tilt it back so it's more framing her face than covering her brow. "No, now you've got me thinking about bloody mary's," Janet informs Pepper. She looks over at her aide and extends a hand, fingers snapping in a premptory way; her valet hustles over and discreetly slips two single-serving vodka bottles into her hand.

"Y'know, Tony gets it," Janet tells Steve. Fingers rest on his forearm with an affectionate sort of possessiveness. "You can't manage a brand if you're not seen in public. We'll get a couple candids from the wait staff, they'll post them on the Instagram, this restaurant gets a ten percent bump in profits for the next week and we've got a permanent table on standby. That's why I always get reservations at Le Cirque," she says with a sagacious nod. "Bribe the chef outrageously and he'll always keep the table open for you."

Tony Stark has posed:
"Yes, you did miss an opportunity for an immediate autograph... but we'll probably get a visitor in a bit, and you can make it up to him," Tony supplies helpfully, orienting as he talks to observe Pepper seating herself by way of using his shoulder as a prop.

"Light, huh," Tony echoes of Pepper, and offers her his menu after flipping it open. "What would I like?" he asks her, in a relaxed way, but also a little playfully edged. This is entirely normal for them; for Tony to rely on his personal assistant to manage things like this. He's just directly referring to it, which is less normal.

Tony then lowers the menu and leans aside to Pepper, close by her ear, "I DO get it. .....How is it you don't carry vodka for me?" Tony questions in a stage whisper. It's a /little/ bit close, he 'frowns' at Pepper a /little/ too much. He relaxes out of it, though, in a 'forgiving' way, by moving his arm to drape on her chair some. He may or may not be aware he's even doing it, his attention moves to a noise his phone made, though he uses his free hand to tap the side of his glasses, skimming a bit of information on the orange HUD there. It's mostly subtle, but distracted.

Steve Rogers has posed:
"Noticed a thing or two," the Captain confirms for Pepper, wearing a smile now just that touch conspiratorial. "There're some good smoothies on here. Might have to try one myself, maybe the..." He picks up the menu again and considers it. "...tahini-tumeric with the matcha." Dubious, he sounds, as if he's half-tempted to ask about a simple black coffee and some peanut-buttered toast.

After Janet's palm lands on his arm, he reaches to rest his own atop it. Back and forth his thumb moves almost soothingly along the back of her hand. She mentiones Instagram and there's a subtle snarky mumble from the man still considering the menu: "Hmm...hashtag yoh-loh." Still, a nod of agreement from him along with a faint smile; he's seen this wisdom in action at Le Cirque.

"Yoga went well then?" he asks of the two women in general, glancing up at Pepper and then over at Janet.

Pepper Potts has posed:
And there it comes, the disappointment. Pepper's brief frown is tinged with amusement still; some things just don't change, even when the mixers come into play. "Janet, not this time. C'mon," and she shakes her head at the valet. Not hers to 'command', mind, but sometimes a little 'tough love' is needed? "Later, okay?"

The lecture on branding, however, gains a headtilt from the PA. Brows rise in a soft expression of 'oh?' before she glances back towards Tony. She does a pretty good job at helping the brand! Right? It's just a quick look, however, before she's back to that topic at hand, and she chuckles, the sound a little breathy. "I've never really had too much problem, really." Having 'Stark' behind correspondences and missives and requests really does open a great deal of doors. She's learned that over the years and has taken full advantage of them; for Tony's benefit.

"Tip the chef and he'll always be sure he does his best." Bribe. Tip. Tomatoes, tomahtoes.

Brows raise again at the theatrical whisper regarding the vodka, and she laughs, her expression one of affectionate .. discouragement. Or is it deflection? "Because you don't need it," is quipped lightly. There's a light in those green eyes, the way she just looks at him, even as he is pulled away briefly by the phone.

When Steve tries to make sense of the menu, Pepper returns her attention to the rest of the table. "Do you trust me? I'll find something that won't leave seeds in your teeth. Protein, without being too heavy. Promise." This is, as she said, her favorite spot.

"And.. I think it did. I was telling Janet that I found muscles I never thought I had." The sound is a touch rueful, but pleasantly so. "It's nice having the two of you meeting us here after, though. Makes the pain and suffering worth it." No pain, really.. or rather, no real suffering!