6543/Pepper's parties are always more understated

Pepper's parties are always more understated
Date of Scene:	13 June 2021
Location:	The Bouyance, Tony's yacht
Synopsis:	Nothing like a few glasses of wine and a trip on a yacht with a friend. That's how to celebrate a birthday!
Cast of Characters:	Pepper Potts, Amanda Sefton

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Pepper Potts has posed:
Birthdays. They come around every year, and every year, there's the question of whether or not it should be celebrated with noise, or quietly. With Tony, his 'quietly' is still quite noisy. For Pepper? Even noisy would be considered quite tame by 'Stark standards', that is, close to boring.

This isn't a special year; she's 32. There are no cards with cute quips about aging written for the time, nothing that would mark it as 'one for the books'. Nope.

That's not to say that Pepper isn't special. At least to some people, in varying levels and degrees. She's special enough, then, to be able to commandeer the yacht for a trip around Manhattan Island, though she didn't put out the money to turn the Empire State Building red and gold, like she had for Tony. Nope. No waiters wandering the decks, no music, no fireworks.

Just.. a great day under the sun, lying next to the pool that sits on the stern side, and a steady breeze across the decks as the boat slowly meanders on its path. Pepper is on a deck chair, a wide-brimmed white hat sitting on her head, her hair pulled up in a bun to stay off of her neck. She's lounging, and a stemmed glass of wine sits beside her, mostly gone.

"This is the sort of birthday gatherings I really wish Tony would enjoy." That's right, there's no sign of the SI CEO and boyfriend of Pepper. Not yet, anyway? "I tried with the last one. I really did." There is most definitely humor within those tones, coupled with the full belief that it would be an impossibility of the most epic proportion. Doomed to fail.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
No flashy party also means no party crashers. The only magical guest at this party has an invitation. Amanda is stretched out on a chaise beside her friend, a wine glass in her own hand. She's dressed in shorts and a tank top, a light shawl over her shoulders against the sun, and a pair of sunglasses on her nose.

"Yes, well, even if you'd managed it, I'm pretty sure those gremlins would have found a way in. The little bastards are sneaky like that. I'm actually surprised they were so audacious as to try illusion magic. That's not really in the gremlin wheelhouse."

Nevertheless, she chuckles. "But I will say... Captain America pelted by pate was a sight I won't soon forget."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper chuckles as the memory is replayed, and she rolls her head to the side, green eyes echoing that laughter. "Poor Steven," is followed by a quick headshake. "Well," is exhaled, "Tony is known for memorable parties, and even if it wasn't anticipated, I think he's going to be owning it." The fireworks afterward weren't all that bad!

The glass is briefly searched for, and she sits up a little more in her seat. On the water beyond them, as a tableau, are sailboats taking in the sun and calmish waters. The wineglass is found, and lifted for a sip before she lowers it with a soft sound. "You think so? I mean, maybe-" She scrunches her nose briefly in consideration, and exhales in a quiet breath.

"It's not? So.." her words come a touch slowly, "..where did they get it from? Any ideas?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda shakes her head, perhaps growing a trifel more seriously. "Who knows? It depends on what their goal was. I mean, really, it's just as likely to be Loki playing a prank as it is to be a serious attack." She doesn't know that one of the drinks the gremlins offered Tony was acidic enough to ruin the finish of the deck where he was working at the time.

"That said," she admits. "Benign illusions like that are a dime a dozen in the Undermarket. They may simply have acted on their own. I mean..." She gives Pepper a small, lopsided smile. "He's Tony Stark, Pepper. Even gremlins have to respect a technician like him. Purple with frustration, I'd reckon. It's not often a gremlin gets close to Starktech, I imagine."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Of course Pepper frowns at the name mentioned, with a quick look around to be sure that name doesn't mean 'summon'. After all, isn't there a saying, 'Speak of the devil and he oft appears'? "That'd be a really obnoxious, so," and she nods, "from what I know about him, I wouldn't put it past him." 'He' who shall not be named.

As for the gremlin drinks? There have been deck repairs, but it'd been chalked up to people not cleaning up after themselves after working!

Amanda's declaration of Tony just being Tony gains a chuff of a laugh, and her tones turn rueful. "Great," she begins again, "gremlin groupies too." Pepper shakes her head, "It's bad enough that I have to calm almost everyone down when something happens, but now add them to the list?" Her words drop a little lower, even though there's no one particularly near that could even begin to overhear it, "I thought I knew what I was getting into. But magic too, 'Mands? That is //not// something I can handle. Having to wonder and worry if the person Tony is talking to, dealing with, is actually who they say they are? I can deal with spies. They're honest and upfront about being devious and underhanded. You expect that. But that?" Pepper lifts the glass to her lips again, takes another swallow, before lowering it; the glass is empty.

"And that sounded really dumb."

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"Let me help," Amanda tells her friend gently. "I can ward the yacht. I can even ward the Tower -- or at least the Penthouse, if nothing else." She does chuckle softly at the idea of spies being 'honest' about being 'devious', but a couple of glasses of wine will do that.

She sips her wine, in fact, close to draining it. "I could give you the equivalent of a magic scanner. Hell, that's mostly what Patrick's become, anyway. I've been working on my artificing. He's been the primary beneficiary."

Pepper Potts has posed:
"I'm really not on the yacht much. I think maybe you and Tony could work on that scanner?" How could a marriage of magic and tech not be a bad idea? Really? "Warding the Penthouse would be.. amazing." Pepper nods her head at the word before she begins to rise to her feet. Another glass of wine is most defintely desired!

"More?" Pepper holds out her hand for the glass in anticipation of a refill. "I really miss Patrick, and I think I've almost convinced Tony to invite JARVIS back. He said he would, but I think he's feeling a little guilty about having to do something with HOMER." Maybe Amanda wants him?

"Artificing?" With or without the glass, Pepper barefoots her way to the closest bar (there are a lot of them on this boat!), and begins to pour the wine. "What is that?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"Just as well," Amanda says, as to the yacht. "Water makes maintaining wards extremely difficult. They have to be refreshed often." She shakes her head. "A lot of magic is thwarted by running water. Not all of it, mind. But a lot of the little things, certainly. Illusions usually wash away, in fact, when passing over water. But I imagine the technology on the yacht insulated the gremlins long enough for it not to prove a problem. It's their natural habitat, engines and machines."

She lifts her glass as Pepper offers the refill. "Mm. Please. Thank you." She adjusts herself to be able to follow her friend's progress across the deck. "I don't know what he'd do with HOMER." For that matter, she's really not interacted with HOMER very much. Not with any of the Stark AIs, really, aside from whatever it is that animates Patrick. "Patrick has become my doorman and assistant as much as anything else. He... learns very quickly. Surprisingly quickly, in fact." She's not really sure if that's normal or not. She's just never questioned it before. Because, well... Starktech.

As Pepper pours the fresh wine, she smiles. "Artificing is the art and craft of making magical objects and tools. So, wands, rods, staves, amulets... things like that. In Patrick's case, I've laid spells on him that let him transform. He never loses his mechanical nature, but he's not always the little bot. Often enough, he marches around like a little robot knight. He takes his duties to protect the apartment very seriously."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Amanda's glass is poured first, and as she pushes it lightly across the bar top, she's nodding at the information given her. In true Pepper-fashion, she's cataloging the information, ready for it to be used to best advantage later if needed. The answer to the question that would normally arise is greeted with that 'ah' nod of understanding. "I imagine that it's a lot like the magic they're used to? They draw some sort of power from all the tech on board?" Could also be what called to them too? Other than Tony being an irresistable target, that is!

"Patrick is amazing. He went from hidden, to slayer of snakes, to a serious watch... dog. Robot." Pepper pours her own glass next, and recaps the bottle with a little wine-bottle stylized plug. "I'm glad he's doing so well. And, well... I don't know why he learns so quickly. It could be the programming. I just don't think he'll ever talk, other than his whistles. That takes a whole different level." Though not a level that Pepper would discount. After all, Tony is always tinkering; making things better along the way. Discover something works well, and it becomes an upgrade that is passed along the level.

Pepper does laugh at the thought of Patrick transforming, and she nods. "Is he limited to turning into a couple of things, or are we talking about anything?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda nods, rolling off the chaise to her feet to pad over to the bar to fetch her glass. She leans against the counter. "I imagine they do." Gremlins are clever creatures, to be sure. "I mean, if I can draw power from the city just by attuning myself to the environment, I'd be surprised if they don't."

She takes a sip of the new wine and chuckles softly. "Oh, just the humanoid form," she assures Pepper. "He goes from his natural bot form to a walking, robotic knight, with a small shield and sword made of eldritch energy. I'd be afraid to give him more than that." Her eyes sparkle some with humour, though her lips pull wryly to one side. "If he could have any upgrade he wanted, I don't think it'd be speech. We understand each other well enough. No. I think it'd be wings."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper laughs at the last pronouncement, nodding her head in agreement before she takes another swallow of the newly refilled glass. "He was always jealous of the drones. I swear I heard a wistful whistle the last time they'd all gotten together." When Tony had landed on their balcony.

Pepper is ready to head back to the lounge chairs, and she begins the walk back slowly, waiting for Amanda. "So.. do you think we could lay a trap for them? Think we could get rid of them?" If this yacht was a lure, just imagine what other locations might be? "You don't think they'd be drawn to the Expo, do you?" The //last// thing she wants is something like what had happened at the party to happen there. "Maybe talk to Tony about defending against it?" How to make Starktech even better!

The yacht is moving into slightly deeper waters, and Pepper grabs at her hat to be sure it doesn't fly off and into the water of the river. Now that they're free from some of the smaller crafts, they can get a little more speed. It's an afternoon of just rest and relaxation!

"We should be back by Tuesday, at the latest. We're flying out to Paris for the weekend." Pepper's features brighten, finishing with a smile, "Without work."

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda walks with her, settling down in her chair once more as Pepper does. "I've occasionally entertained the idea of making him a mechanical dragon to ride, but I'm really not that good at artificing. I'd need a drone or something as a base, just to start and... well, it just gets more complex from there." She's not Tony Stark. She's just a damned fine illusionist.

She gives some consideration, though, to the question about the gremlins. "They can be evicted," she says. "It takes a bit of doing." And she might need to ask for help from a friend or two. "But... I don't really think they're infesting the yacht any more. The Expo, though... That's rather like throwing an all you can eat buffet in Yellowstone and not inviting the bears." She considers it. "I could talk to Tony, if he's open to it. Otherwise, I could just walk the vendor display areas for a couple of nights before the launch and lay down a ward grid. It might not be perfect, but it would still cut the risk."

As the speed picks up, she adjusts her glasses some and pushes her hair out of her eyes. "I love Paris," she admits. "I don't get there nearly enough. Which is funny, since it's only a portal away." Oh, the joys of being a gypsy sorceress. Crepes in Paris. Bratwurst in Berlin. Fish in London. Nightcaps in New York. All in one day. She does, however, arch a brow at the idea they're going without work. "Really?" Yes, she has every good reason to sound skeptical. Nevertheless, she smiles. "Well, good. It's about time you took something resembling a vacation."