sixthiteration | Test Drive 20 (August & September)

→ Holds and applications are always open. Holds are required for all applications.

→ Choose one of the scenarios below or make up your own. Feel free to try multiple scenarios.

→ Write LOGS or TEXT prompts, or both.

→ THERE ARE ONLY THREE RULES FOR THE TDM:

1. It has to take place in the 6I universe.
2. It cannot be the character's arrival into the game.
3. Please only test new characters who do not have a version in the game. Our cast list is here.

→ TDM threads cannot be used to meet AC, but if the character is accepted into the game and both players agree, you may keep the CR.

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Prompts

Happy anniversary, villagers! Buckle up!

HEAT WAVE - Poor you. All you were trying to do was get yourself a little something to eat from the kitchen at the inn. Maybe you cooked it up yourself (The inn does, after all, have an electric stove — FANCY!), or maybe you just grabbed some leftovers. By accident or on purpose, you ended up with way more RED SALT in there than you maybe should have, and this is no ordinary seasoning. Whether you like things eye-wateringly spicy or not, it's August, you're sweating buckets, and it's only getting worse.

SKUNK DRUNK - Isn't that just the way? You're out and about, minding your own business, and you get sprayed by a BROWN SKUNK. The good news? It doesn't stink like a normal skunk. The also possibly good news, depending on who you ask? You're now in for about 5 hours of being very, very friendly. (Just remember to keep the test drive PG!)

BRAIN CANDY - Whether you made it to the anniversary party or not, you've gotten your hands on a piece of leftover candy from the big bash. Careful, though, these treats are more than meets the eye: Whatever COLOR it was, you've now taken on the associated personality traits. (Not the power, just the traits.) At least it only lasts 10 minutes.

WILDCARD - Choose your own adventure. Maybe play powers roulette.

Texts

All characters are fitted with a smart watch-like device on their left wrist, which they can use to send text messages to other villagers.

- Texts may only be 140 characters long
- No video or voice, text only
- Display names may be changed by characters on the fly, but anyone can tap to see someone's real full name

Please list your CHARACTER NAME, CANON & PROMPT in your SUBJECT LINE.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

A respectable, companionable distance. He tilts his head in her direction, smile blandly civil because- his memories of her are from a fair way's back. Seeing her when he can look her in the eye is- a little jarring. But the force of her charisma is as it was when he'd been a kid; even now there's a part of him in quiet awe.

"Well-" His shrug's noncommittal, a fluid thing shaking loose from shoulders to wrists, bobbing his line. "He probably would've caught more fish if I wasn't such a fidgety kid.

Though-" He says "The judo did save my a- skin more than once so. I'm glad he did."

"I'm sure his not catching fish had far more to do with the fact that he was a butler and not a fisherman, no matter how much adventure struck him," Peggy notes wryly, though as she regards Tony, there's the unasked question. After all, it's not Howard or her that had taken Tony fishing, so how much can she really criticize.

"He practiced with Ana quite frequently before I got to Los Angeles," Peggy shares. "There was a certain awkward position, a crouching turtle? Or tortoise. All I know is, I thought Ana would have my head, but the woman is very understanding."

"I'm an engineer, not a fishmonger." He snorts a laugh, but he's able to pull a fish up on the line anyway. Cheating, honestly, and he's not about to say how or why. The fish goes in the bucket and his baitless, lure free line goes right back into the water for round two. "Back then, and a little still, I was convinced he could do anything."

He, Ana, and Peggy had been his personal heroes. More real to him than the nebulous Steve Rogers- more approachable for how he was never, ever expected to live up to their example. No expectations hanging overhead save that maybe he try to sleep at a decent hour and not make too much trouble. A futile effort, but- fond memories all around. "Understanding and endlessly patient- was she always like that?"

"Engineer yourself a fishing line, then," Peggy quips, giving Tony an amused smile as she settles just a little closer as she digs out her own rod and the lure, setting the knife to the side for when she does catch something (not if, but when). "Honestly, I think Mr. Jarvis could do anything he put his mind to. He was a great ally to have in the field."

"Understanding, endlessly patient, and terribly kind. Kinder than I deserved," is what Peggy says firmly, because the guilt of what happened to Ana is fresh enough, though Peggy thinks that she'll never outgrow that. "A hugger, which I am not, but capable of great feasts and wonderful outfits."

"Solid mentor to have back home, too. He let me work on the cars with him to keep me out of trouble." He'd always loved machines but being allowed to observe firsthand, to help? That was a formative memory. There's a pang under his sternum like there always is, always will be when he thinks of J the first- and a fresher one when he thinks of J the second.

Hearing more about Ana, now- she's not a vague memory so much as an endlessly maternal font of affection his Mother didn't always have the time to show. Always present, pleasant, and never afraid to steer him right when J couldn't get through to him. "To her endless grief I never did get the hang of cooking. So. I'll probably need a hand with these after I've cleaned them. I think. Cleaning is a thing, right?"

Peggy can't help the awful laugh that comes out of her. "Oh god, I hope not all the cars," is what she has to say about that, because if poor Tony had to find Howard's bloody ceiling mirror in the car, she can only imagine the question Mr. Jarvis had needed to field.

"Lucky for you, one of the first things I was taught here was to clean fish," she says, holding up her knife to wiggle it. "I learned from an actual sailor, so I think that ought to count for more," she can't help but boast, as if that truly makes any difference. "We can have a proper fish fry, if we get enough."

He has to think for a moment before a similar cackle is startled out of him. "Oh god, that one? Yeah I- J tried to spin it as a way to keep people from reading secret messages while riding with Howard?"

Or something like that. Something clandestine by way of spies and secrets rather than his old man being a horny bastard when he was younger. Since he'd bought it hook, line, and sinker- he can't really say it didn't work. Still giggling he wipes at his face, his eyes- glad for this. Something close to old memories that doesn't sting so much. "If you think you can put up with me being a fidgety ass, think you could teach me?"

Tempered by years as it might be- the look hasn't changed much. Wide, warm eyes, raised brows, a soft, almost shy smile. Hope that's warier, now, than it might've been thanks to Howard and Obie and life but. "Please."

Because he remembers you damn well ask politely if you're going to ask Miss Peggy Carter anything.

"And here I had mild hopes that Howard would at least have the bloody sense to remove that when he had a child," Peggy sighs, but then, this is Howard. He probably simply forgot and then poor Jarvis had to come up with that ridiculous excuse that didn't even make any sense.

How she would have loved to see him stammer that explanation out, though, she thinks it would have given her amusement for a whole week. "I'm used to Starks being fidgety and arses," she assures. "This will be easy."

She laughs, warmly this time, when he asks 'please', and that earns him the remainder of the space crossed as she moves her line over. "Someone taught you manners, so you're not fully without hope."

"Jarvis, Ana. My mother when she had the time." All his bad habits, honestly came from Howard and Obie. "You, once, when I was being a particularly stubborn little shit."

The details are vague but the notion remains: You ask, you ask politely, and you accept the answer you're given. He might not always remember step one but usually if he does? He manages to follow through. Most of the time. About forty two, forty three percent of the time. Sort of.

Peggy laughs at that, but there's a sadness in this one. She's not exactly the maternal type, she knows, so she can only imagine how that much have gone. "Well, I'm glad someone was around to do it. Mr. Jarvis did have impeccable manners, but then, he was an excellent butler and I would expect nothing less," she says warmly.

"How much of the village have you scouted at this point?" she asks him. "And what have you learned?" She wants to know, mainly, if he knows about the last iteration of him that had been here.

"So far? Just the immediate area, the forge, the fountain. Once I get some kind of system set up for projects and plan out the next month of 'how to advance tech to a tolerable level' I'll poke around a little more." As soon as he knows what kind of resources and help he'll need, what kind of development he's even capable of with the tools at hand- and how much time that'll take.

A lot. The answer is a lot no matter how he slices it, but.

"Not much? I've been keeping to myself a bit." Lurking and listening, not outright engaging. He was-

In a bad way. When he arrived.

"You know, for some of us, this technology is perfectly reminiscent of our childhoods," she feels compelled to point out, even if Peggy had lived in a far nicer house when she'd been a girl. As far as the technology goes, though, it's not like it's a great leap from what she'd grown up with.

"You were here before, did anyone tell you that?" There's no point hiding it, she thinks best to get straight to the point when it comes to this.

"And while I respect your fortitude and everyone's Keep Calm and Carry On mindset that's been doing fantastic for keeping- well. Everyone carrying on? I need a long term project or I will lose my mind." To suddenly not have the weight of the planet on his shoulders, to not have the Avengers as broken as they were, SI, Pepper, Peter, Happy, Global Superheroing Politics and-

His lips press thin as he tries to take a few slow breaths through his nose. He's been doing better for awhile now, he is not going to have an attack in front of Margret Motherfucking Carter. No. He refuses. Tony's shoulders roll in as his left arm starts to tremble- he shifts his grip on the line to massage his wrist, like that'll still it. "I need to keep occupied. An idle Stark is just a recipe for disaster."

A beat.

"...Huh. Really? Did I leave any notes behind?" Multiple timelines, universes- maybe the other him- yeah that's. Going to take a bottle or two of scotch or something scotch adjacent to handle in depth at a later date- maybe the him before the him that's now helped or. Whatever.

She keeps her gaze on him and she doesn't blink as she gives him an unflinching stare, narrowing her eyes and wondering if she ought to say anything about the behaviour he's displaying. It seems clear that he doesn't want to talk about it, but she's not planning to forget it, so she makes a mental note to approach it later, allowing him to move on.

For now, at least, but she's not going to guarantee that it won't pop up in another conversation. "As far as I know, no, but that's how I knew who you were. It was lovely, having you here," Peggy says and she means that, completely. "From what I gather, I won't get to have this with you for at least two decades at home."

Oh good they're ignoring it. He knew he liked her for a reason- though the odds of her ignoring it forever are slim to none, he'll just have to burn that bridge when he gets to it. A moment, two and he's pushed past the- everything to focus on now. Fishing. Water, fish, pleasant complicated company.

The simple life.

Ha.

"Huh. Lovely's not a thing I often hear applied to me." It pushes past the lingering maudlin thoughts, his lips curling into something small and private. "You're pretty busy trying to keep Howard in line and run Shield but- We talk, sometimes. Or you talk and I try very hard to pretend I understand everything."

"Technically, you don't exist where I come from and any child of Howard's instantly earns some adoration," Peggy says, because god knows Tony would have had to put up with quite a lot, growing up. She hopes that she could have at least helped with some of that.

"How much did I tell you?" she asks warily, wondering what stories Tony has that she's lived through and god, how bad are they?

It startles a snort of laughter out of him, nose crinkling, eyes screwing shut for a moment as the tension rolls away. "Because he managed to have one and not strangle it, or because he was such a difficult person?"

Both are pretty well appropriate, honestly.

"Uh-" His head rolls back, hand loose on his line as he tries to remember. "Well- Bits and pieces of the 'your father was accursed of treason so I had to clean up his mess' which always ended up with Jarvis chiming in to drag Howard more rather than defend him." A beat. "Whenever Howard overheard it'd be one of the few times I remember him laughing."

"Because Howard was one of my best friends and any child of his deserves as much affection as a person like me could muster," she says, not giving the joke life, because she doesn't think it deserves it. What is deserved right now is the fact that Tony is here and she's pleased to see him again.

She shakes her head as Tony recounts it. "He trusted me, which did mean a lot. Unfortunately, he wasn't entirely honest with me. Once he started doing that, things got much better."

"It was plenty." More than he expected from one of his personal heroes. "You can muster a lot if you're inclined."

Even if he was a brat of a kid with too many questions and not enough patience to sit for all the answers. "Really? Howard Stark, dishonest? Never- well. That's not fair to you, I guess. Whoever he was- is- when you know him? Not the same guy that panicked when he remembered mortality is a thing and realized he needed an heir."

Or at least that's always what he assumed to be the case, but he never did get a chance to know him as his own person, not really.

Edited 2018-08-30 00:20 (UTC)

If she's inclined sounds like a compliment and an insult all at once, but she'll take it. Honestly, it could be so much worse, so best to simply take the win where she can. "Perhaps it wasn't an outright lie so much as hiding the truth," she clarifies, because the whole of her mission had been a lie in order to get Steve's blood and Howard should have known better than to lie to her about that.

"He lied to me to fix his mistakes," she says, grave and serious. "I hope you can tell me that the Howard who became a father was better than that man?"

If he wasn't being a little shit? She was more inclined to be affectionate- the variable is, as ever, more Tony than anyone else and he tries to mark his self awareness on that front. Whether that comes across accurately depends on the day and the person. "No, no. A lie of omission is still a lie. It can still fuck you up."

Language, Anthony.

He shakes off the ghost of Jarvis the first, eyes flicking back out over the Lake. "One lie, one secret? Can break plenty. Trust me." One lie? Can break...everything. As hard as he's tried to move past it, Peggy's indirectly tangled up in all those emotions. Hard to explain away his disquiet. "Honestly? Couldn't say. I'd have to know him to be able to tell you that and we never really got that chance."

Peggy feels another great wave of anger at a man who isn't even there with them. She wants to slap Howard again or perhaps punch him, but if she sees him, she thinks she'll let the moment speak to her about what might fit best.

"I lie, too," she points out. "I was a spy, that was my whole business." She even lied to her friends to make them feel better or to make them feel worse, depending on the day and the mood. "This is a new place, though. We can leave all the lies behind us. What do you say?"

"Not to me, not back then." A beat. "Or at least you were better at covering it up. I didn't really learn to spot that stuff until I was eight or nine."

A little young to be learning how to read people but- he didn't get along with most, boarding school was hell, and Ty was a dishonest little fuck from the getgo. Sharks in the water were a constant but- home? Home was alright. "I made you pinky promise to not. Even if it meant you wouldn't spare Howard's dignity. Or Jarvis'."

And he'd protest but- it was "Fresh start for a new, exciting world? I think I can do that."

It all sounds like she had a decent relationship with Tony, which is so good to hear. She'd only begun to understand it the last time that he'd been here, so learning more is...

Well, it's a relief. She works on the line to adjust it in the water, giving him a fond smile. "I promise, even here, that if you want to know truths about Howard or Mr. Jarvis that I am more than willing to tell you about them." Her own truths will come, but might not be as easy to give. "I'm simply glad to have you here. It's a bit like home for me, as well."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Test Drive 20 (August & September)

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