Gathering: Summer Party

[concierge]

Outside of the Nexus Hotel, waiters and hotel staff had begun to set up the umbrellas and the tables in the middle of the day. Soon, it became clear that something was happening in the shadow of the Nexus. White tablecloths were draped on the tables and drinks and food were brought out with the help of several waiters and servers, staffing tables with hot and cold foods beside bartending stations. Summery drinks in bright, neon colors are laid out one by one and soon, the afternoon light casts a radiant look on the scene.

Music plays faintly in the background and a note at the front desk invites all the Nexus guests to head outside and join in on the summer party, which promises to continue going as long as there are people to stay and continue keeping the warm atmosphere rolling.

On the lawn, social games had been set out -- lawn bowling, croquet, and tables were set up with chairs for anyone who didn't quite have the will or the spirit to get into such games. Soon, a small number of people had begun to mill around, but as with all parties, there's always room for more.

Comments

[armedagainstlove]

Athos still remains blank, waiting for any of the words she's speaking to register properly. The whole of it sounds mad to him and he's not entirely sure what to make of it, but as far as he knows, the stars above are merely that -- lights in the sky. "And what year might you be from, then?" Perhaps that will shine better light on this whole scenario.

[weighted_reality]

Arthur raises an eyebrow, effecting a man whose idea of getting his hands dirty is a cheap manicure.

"You really know how to flatter a man."

[seeorseem]

"I thought you liked our repartee," Eames replies, sipping at his drink with the casual air of a man who's so used to this environment that he settles back into it without even thinking. "I can flatter you properly, if you like. I'm good at that, too."

[powerof_water]

"I'll work on it. I know a few shielding spells to keep me hidden from divination," Adam said, musing out loud. "So in theory, I might be able to do it. It's something to keep in mind."

[royalunderachiever]

"Yeah, I can't deal with how I swing back and forth," Adrian said, sobering just a bit. "I don't want...I don't want to be a drunk but sometimes it's just easier to be a drunk than it is to deal with my feelings."

[on_your_right]

"Don't know. I've never been cut out to be a spy," Sam says easily enough. It's true. He's always been true to himself even if everything else is crazy and he doesn't know how people like Natasha can do it, can completely change themselves.

"Romanoff would know."

[vampire_shield]

"We can test it pretty easily, and without a whole lot of risk," Bella offered. "If it works here, and I can't find your scent, it'll work there, too. I just..."

She ducked her head a little. "If it does work, and you do come with me, don't get disgusted or anything, okay?"

[sage_alchemist]

And that, Sydney thought, was the basic truth of it - here and at home. She knew that he worried about not being able to heal her if she needed it, and potentially losing her if the worst happened and he was left powerless. She also knew that about half of that was rationalization. The problem was getting him to see that, and she knew from experience that never went over well.

"But you do need to deal with them. You know that, right?"

[weighted_reality]

"You? Flatter me? Are you sure either of us could condescend to such a thing?"

Shifting in his seat, Arthur lets his knee bump against Eames and pretends it to be a mere accident.

[shes_biochem]

"We have the Cavalry," Simmons says, not sure May wants her name to be distributed around to strangers, even those who actually know the world that they're a part of. "I've only really ever heard stories about Romanoff. Obviously Agent Coulson knows her, but I'm a bit down the classified levels than he is."

[seeorseem]

"I can be a very good boyfriend when I elect to be," is his offended reply, though the smile on his face is playful and full of mirth. "I think you might be terrified if I were to do that. I don't know that you expect such things of me."

[weighted_reality]

"Oh can you now?" Arthur asks, turning over his hand as an invitation for Eames to take it. "And when did we say we were? I think we need to have a meeting, Mr. Eames."

[the_allmother]

"Lady Natasha," Frigga echoed warmly as soon as Loki was done with his introductions. "It is a great pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Quietly, Frigga wondered if Loki knew this women from outside the hotel or if she was someone whom he met inside it. It was difficult to tell as she had certainly met some people who knew her sons from before their arrival at the hotel. It seemed as if there were a high concentration of individuals from their world and time, but as to why that was, Frigga wasn't certain.

"You're from Midgard, my dear?" Frigga inquired, closing the distance between them so she could rest a gentle hand on top of Natasha's.

[65th_victor]

"Well, don't drop him," Finnick answers wryly, a teasing smile on his face as he closes the short distance between them, carefully transferring Tristan into the cradle of Johanna's arms.

"Just support his head," Finnick instructs, his tone a little more serious, his hand still lingering near his son's head. "And he should be okay." Finnick answered, looking back up at Johanna, the second part half intended to be a continuation of his sentence, half intended to be in response to the last thing Johanna had said.

[powerof_water]

"I'm not going to be disgusted. You are what you are," Adam said, "And I would be kind of a jerk if I didn't understand that when I'm asking to come see you in your element."

[royalunderachiever]

"Why? All it does is hurt," Adrian said darkly. "All it does is make me feel useless and inadequate and feel like there's nothing I can do to escape it. But I have to have it, it's a part of me, so I'm stuck trying to occasionally numb it."

[on_your_right]

"I don't know that much of anyone knows about her," Sam admits. "I think I only do because of a couple lucky circumstances and the fact that she and Steve needed to crash at my house for a little while."

[vampire_shield]

"Okay, then. We'll see if we can make it work." Bella nodded, smiled, and then raised on her toes to kiss him. "Thank you. For saying that."

[sage_alchemist]

How she wished she could show him the Adrian she'd known before the Alchemists took her, with his emotions leveled out. But she knew telling him would do about as much good as their one drink a day pact had done - which was none at all. He had to come to that decision on his own, just like he had in her timeline. Besides, she knew what he had to give up to do that, and even though she'd loved the even tempered Adrian, guilt nagged at her over his sacrifice.

Instead, she sighed and nodded. "I know."

[sixsciencecredits]

Darcy was very carefully honing the art of not shouting "Holy shit" when she was blown away yet again by her circumstance, but some instances proved to be more difficult than others. Grace wasn't something she had been naturally gifted with, but then she also didn't want to be known as the annoying, too-excitable girl, so she was working on tamping back her more natural inclination toward exclamation. But again, it was difficult.

Therefore when she tamped her reaction back to a wide raising of her eyebrows at Crowley's delivery of his species, it was a monumental feat of will. She cleared her throat, then took a long drink as she turned that over. She'd never been an expressly religious person, so she had not given much thought to there being demons. Knowing that 'Gods' existed like Thor and Loki was easier for her to swallow in that, as explained through Science, Thor and his brother almost fit the technical definition for an alien as opposed to some sort of deity. She wasn't sure where or how the specifics worked, but neither Thor nor his brother had made her think for an instant that Satan was real, while this person spoke of him casually.

"A devil," she said, finally. "Huh." She wondered then if she should be exercising some sort of caution while speaking to him - devils were notoriously tricky, all the songs she could remember about them said so - but his approach had been casual enough for her to think he hadn't appeared with the sole intention of eating her soul for breakfast. "What kind of devil?" Then, after a beat, "Crowley. There's a song about you, I think."

[nebaritralk]

Year, she has learned, is something like a cycle. "That depends what calendar you're asking about," Chiana retorts with an amused, sharp, brief grin, shifting on her feet again and watching him all the while. "Nebari? Peacekeeper? Scarran? Or there's this culture on a small moon I visited recently, they always say it's cycle 0. 'Only live in the now,' that's their motto. I quite like it." Even if they took it a little too far, at times.

[whattingawhat]

Buffy took a sharp breath, holding it for a moment when Nick revealed what his friend was doing. Her brow furrowed as she tried to put aside her personal opinions on what was going on and apply her experiences in a helpful way.

"Okay." She let that breath out in a sigh. "I understand why you're worried. I would be too, but if she's agreed...I think you just have to keep an eye on both of them. Is she an adult?"

Because whether those things mattered in Nick's world or not, she didn't know, but they mattered in hers.

[malachai]

"That's a matter up for debate," Nick sighed with another run of his hands through his hair. "It's kind of complicated. Physically, she's about nineteen, maybe twenty. Her body is anyway. Wanderer's...she's an alien. So she doesn't see things the same way a human would. As I understand it, she's only been human for about a year, maybe a little more now."

[shes_biochem]

"I'm sure that was an exciting bit of socializing," Simmons remarks, eyes wide at the very idea of having the Black Widow and Captain America over to entertain. It's practically a wild dream and here it is, having happened to Sam. "You're a very kind man to have let them in," she says firmly.

[seeorseem]

Eames laughs warmly and takes hold of Arthur's hand, following along with the other drink in his hand. "Well, if you insist, I'd hardly want to disappoint you," he murmurs, voice low and rumbling over the words. "After all, you do keep me striving for better."