revivalproject

Entry tags:

Burden

WHO: Tony and OTA??, though a few people are getting mentioned (Kaz, Jon, Cayde, Ronan?, Bucky?, this is already falling apart)
WHERE: Around Temba where all of those people can be found
WHAT: Tony's delivering gifts again
WHEN: A little while after the Eyepocalypse
WARNINGS: There could be talking about the event-related trauma in here, but none of that to begin with.
NOTES: You can interpret this as catching Tony at any of these places to interact with him, or just find the package and text him later, or not respond at all and just know you have this thing in your life now. I'm not your boss, surprise me. You may also intercept a package that isn't for you, unless the rightful owner tags in here first and claims it. Fight.

It wasn't like he was getting much sleep, so Tony had plenty of time to work. He had some apologies to make, first and foremost, and only some of the construction was like rocket science. It was the deliveries that turned out to be challenging. Most of the Iron Man's helmet was finished, too, before he was making his reluctant way through the city, D.A.T.A. bumbling along behind him to cover more ground quickly and let Tony retreat again before he lost his nerve. It wasn't like the blood wasn't already on the ground.

None of the packages were very big, easy for the robot to carry and wrapped neatly in scraps of what felt like toasted paper, which crumbled under too much handling. Small, brass tags fixed them together, bearing the name of their recipient to be found at their doorsteps.

...at the Bloodsport
A soft, squishy package labelled with KAZ. Inside, laid carefully on top of each other and smudged slightly in the ash of the paper, is a pair of black gloves whose texture is closer to vellum than leather. Maybe its this thinness that lets the wearer sense so easily through them, and interact with touchscreen devices. Its not at the sake of durability, though. A knife will leave a mark, but that's not how you're getting through these gloves.

...at the library
A small, cylindrical package labelled JON. To different people, this might look like a high calibre bullet, or a gold tube of lipstick. It's a sleek electric lighter, though. No patterns on the case.

...at the clock tower
This package clatters slightly when it is moved, which might be worrying because it only has the explosive hazard symbol on the label. If it is handled gently, you'll find a pair of generously heavy dice inside. They're slightly oversized, and feel like they might be solid iron all the way through. Every time they are rolled, they always turn up on an ornately stamped pair of feathers in place of snake eyes.

...at the theatre
Another squishy package, though this label just says 'FOR NEXT TIME'. It's another pair of black gloves, though these ones don't cover the tips of the fingers or the thumb at all, and there seems to be a distinct weight to the knuckles. They cover most of the way up the forearm, like they might be part of some kind of...superhero costume...

...at the hotel
About the size of a chocolate bar, and labelled JAMES. That black vellum-looking material has been formed into a small, stiff domino mask. Its eyes are darkened with some kind of glass. Try it on, and it will prompt you to pair with your communication device, and suggests vaguely on this HUD 'TRY ME'.

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Keith... [Like he's trying to remember it, all while watching the wolf warily, clearly not too keen on getting close. Or maybe that was the mention of Tommy, who is just as likely to set Tony up for some trouble.

He's not expecting the advanced dog toy angle, and very briefly his grin seems genuine with surprise before he has it perfectly schooled to nod seriously.]

Easy. Not a problem. What's in it for me?

[What does that smirk mean? It's a mystery.]

[When Kosmo noticed he was being watched, he wagged his tail a little, but didn't make much of a change in his posture beyond that. He was reacting to Keith's vibe.]

Uh... [Keith frowned a bit.] I don't know. I mean, what do you think it would take to make it?

I guarantee you, the going rate for a Stark original is outside of your budget.

[Obviously. Tony does not look like this is up for debate.]

You don't even have an offer? Is this how you treat everyone around here, or is there something about me that told you I put out for free? Don't answer that. Come on, put something on the table, we'll work from there.

[Keith frowned at the first comment, his brow lowering in frustration. Tony's budget quip had struck a nerve, and the young pilot crossed his arms in defense.]

Well, gee, Mr. Stark. I guess I could always go find a money tree. [He took a sharp breath in through his nose, visibly trying to keep his temper at bay, and let it out slowly while not looking directly at Tony for a moment.]

Since you clearly know what the price actually is better than I do, maybe you should make the first move on a 'number', since us poor kids don't always understand how that works. [Keith knew he was being petulant, but he truly didn't know what he could offer. He wasn't some super smart engineer or computer genius like Hunk or Pidge to help get the town up and running again. He was a fighter, a pilot, a mechanic... and he was used to getting the short end of the stick from people who thought they were better than him. And it stung... even after all this time, it still stung.

But he pulled a hand free, waving it for a second to stop Tony from immediately answering.]

Look, I'm not looking for some sort of charity thing here. If you want payment, fine. But there's not exactly any currency here. What do you honestly expect from me?

[As though he can't fully tell that Keith is peeling paint, he very casually corrects] Tony, please.

[And as Keith continues, Tony does a very poor job of looking shocked, delicate hand to his chest for this frustration he is receiving, expression landing somewhere closer to bored. It cracks with a wicked smirk, barely holding back a laugh at the gesture to get him to stop talking. It's not clear to him what exactly he said to get Keith riled up so quickly, but it is a fun surprise that it is so easy.

He lets his glasses slide down his nose to peer inquisitively over the frame and flicks a finger between them as though to ask if it was really okay for him to answer now, the gesture too fast to be genuine as he starts talking before Keith can react.]

Have you considered a warm shower? Always helps me relax.

[He mirrors Keith's gesture, don't talk yet, that was an annoying freebie.]

Well, your highness, I understand if you haven't heard this yet, there isn't someone gracious enough to make sure everyone is informed, but there is no currency here and the money trees haven't grown yet. I know, intolerable, but us plebes who don't have everything handed to them have devised an incredibly clever system, you're going to love this, very charming; it's kind of a you show me yours, I'll show you mine thing. Now, not to worry, I'm sure even someone in your position has talents, we just have to find out what those are.

[The fact that Tony continued along the same line, reversing everything back on Keith to make it sound like he was the rich snob now instead of the poor person who couldn't afford something just kind of made things worse. The pilot's shoulders hunched up in a show of frustration.]

Fine. [He snapped the word out, his hands tightening on his arms. The fact that there was some physical distance between them was kind of a blessing because Keith hated being bullied, and was likely to strike out with a punch at this point.] What do you want to know? Because, really, if it's such a big deal, then I'll just do without it. It was Tommy's idea, mostly, and he suggested to come to you, but I could always just tell him you were a jerk about it and not bother.

Oh, he already knows that, believe me.

[There's not way Tommy didn't expect Tony to at least be a little bit of a jerk, and it's honestly surprising that Tommy didn't take his chance to liberally warn Keith. He never seemed to miss one. This only continues to be curiously funny for a moment before Tony's smirk is fading slightly for a new questioning expression, head slightly tilted this time. How many different ways did he have to ask before Keith figured it out?]

I'm trying to find out what you can do, sweetheart. If you don't know either, that's not a problem, but I don't know why you think it's me you should be angry at over it. I just got here, this wasn't even in my schedule.

Hmph.

[Keith narrowed his eyes slightly. Well, point in Tommy's favor, then.]

I'm not angry at being asked what I can do. I'm angry at the stupid way you asked. If you want a favor in return, then just say it. You don't have to be a jerk about it by implying first that I'm too poor for you taste and then reversing it to say I'm a selfish spoiled rich kid. If you want to be a bully, at least pick a consistent line first instead of going back and forth. [Keith huffed a little.]

I'm a pilot. That's what I have here, but we all know that can change. I'm a pilot back home. And I'm good at fighting. [Keith posture shifted into something more self-conscious now.] I don't know what else I can offer. [He looked away from Tony, his confidence issues playing havoc with his head for a second.] I mean, I guess I'm an okay mechanic. I restored and maintained my dad's old hoverbike back home. I don't mind trying to build something like this on my own, if I really have to, but it would be nice if someone better at it than me was willing to help. Plus, I don't know the Agrii tech all that well. I was never my team's engineer or anything... that's not what I'm good at.

[Keith had a hard time giving himself enough credit.]

I didn't mean to imply anything.

I assure you that it's true, declarative, fact.

[Was that necessary? Definitely not helpful, but Tony seems to be enjoying himself still, not yet bothered by any of these accusations that Keith has for him. Maybe together they can come up with a really good one.]

Listen to that, now we're getting somewhere. Early stages of development, but at least the ideas are flowing. Good at fighting, that's pretty well narrowed you down, gosh, you do a lot of that here?

Right sure. Then why bother keeping this conversation going? If your 'prices' are so high, then clearly I won't have anything to offer anyway.

[Keith leaned against the side of the ship.]

Just forget it then. [He crouched down, focusing more on Kosmo for the moment.] I'll figure something else out.

[Keith didn't take teasing well. He had a bad history with it, and Tony was just hitting too many nerves. He was done.]

That's great, that way we can both pretend you were ever going to in the first place. Very savvy. I bet that works on most people.

[Tony can see why he's been hanging out with Tommy, they have some habits in common.]

Good luck with your dog. Thing.

[He's not sticking around to argue this kid into some kind of functional self-confidence and already calling this over his shoulder as he's sauntering away. He knows where to find Keith now, though, so it's only about a day before a new package shows up outside of the ship. This one isn't wrapped, and clearly Tony did not infer the spelling correctly because the name is printed directly on the strange, silver ball: COSMO. It's about the size of a baseball, perfectly smooth outside of the embossing and surprisingly heavy, and ringed with a flat disk like Saturn's belt. A mechanic might figure out that these pieces are electromagnetic, and just a little momentum sends them spinning together a long way. Careful how hard you throw, because you might be chasing this toy for a while.]

[Keith just leveled a silent glare at Tony's back before holding Kosmo's head in his hands for a moment. The wolf looked inquisitive, almost concerned for the mood change in Keith. He sighed to himself, finally speaking once he was alone.]

So much for that idea. Gotta wonder about Tommy's recommendations. [He rubbed the wolf's head and then stood back up to head 'home', his original destination when all this started. Kosmo followed easily enough.

He found the toy when he came back again to check on the ship in a couple of days. It definitely had some heft to it, and he could feel how it spun when he gave it a light toss to test it. He put it on the table in the mess area of the ship and stared at it for a while, trying to figure out how he felt about it after how things had gone down.

Finally, he just texted.]

So what do I owe you? Bodyguard duty in Sh'Ka or something? Or flying you back and forth for the next month or more?

[Since it had been made so clear that it wasn't free... Keith wasn't the type to not pay what he owed.]

[The answer comes unnaturally fast, and just as rapidly one after the other]

What changed?

I'll keep it in mind. Keep your schedule open.

You'll be at the top of my list.

[Keith frowned. He hated uncertainty.]

I should probably ask you that. I never said i wasnt going to pay what i owe. What made you decide to make it

I never said I wouldn't.

I told you you were getting angry at the wrong person.

[Keith glared at the phone again.]

Whatever. Just let me know when where and what.

[He wasn't going to get into this again. Whether it was a fact or not, it was a sore spot, and Keith knew he didn't handle things that hit on his childhood like that well. It was better just to remove himself from the situation before it started again. Deep down, he knew it was completely Tony's fault that he had issues in that area, though the fact that Tony kept pushing the same button even after Keith had gotten angry kind of kept the Avenger on the hook in Keith's mind.

It takes a little while, but there was another follow-up text.]

Thx.

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