Santa Claus is coming to town

[afallenstar]

Who: Secret Santa participants, but also EVERYONE!
Where: Town Hall
When: Evening of day 24
What: Present giving! The Secret Santa reveal, and anyone who wants to have a christmas party is welcome to join too!
Notess: Party style thread guys, so go nuts. No order, everything is chaos, tag to your hearts content, feel free to break off into separate threads, and no spiking the punch! Also I think she's sort of mentioned it to a bunch of people but want to do me some lovely favours and handwave the actual name drawing? I will backtag if people want but it seems a little pointless to thread that out.


There's another message on the network that morning from Anna, just audio again. It's about as garbled as her first one regarding the Secret Santa idea, but for anyone who is listening closely enough they'll make out a few details. Namely this evening, town hall, and bring your presents before she shuts it off.

She's spent the rest of the day trying to do what she can to make the place look nicer. She's hardly got Christmas decorations on tap, but she's done what she can with what she has all the same. There's paper snow flakes up around the place, some of the food from her house placed in bowls to make it more party-appropriate, and it's no fir but she has relocated a small tree from the edge of the woods and placed it in the hall. Barely decorated, not even the right kind of tree, it's the best she can do with the resources she's been given.

Now all there is to do is wait for people to come.

Comments

[manofiron]

He can't appreciate Party's expression, or the bouncing, but he can hear it in his voice. That he likes the gift. That in this case, at least, Tony did well in his selection. It makes him smile, and soon that smile turns into a grin.

The hug is unexpected, and just for an instant, he tenses, uncertain. But he figures it out fast, what's going on and why, and he returns it with a hug of his own. Tony's a touchy-feely guy when he wants to be, and right now seems like an appropriate time to indulge in it.

"You bet. It's a date. Once we get you set up with a player, I'd love to listen to them with you. I'll even bring the refreshments."

[gloryisbullshit]

"Pfft! Just try to find something bagged. Or canned. I'mma master can-opener, and you oughta keep clear of fires." Party skitters free of the touch pretty quickly and goes back to admiring his fine gift, but he sticks close. He can talk lower a little closer. "Tell me you got you a babysitter or somethin tonight, you're not standin around all alone, huh?"

[manofiron]

"Good advice. Mostly, I've been sticking to liquid." And not, for once, the intoxicating kind. Tucking his hands into his pockets, he tips his head to the side. It's not really pointing, he has no idea where anyone else. "Not really a babysitter per se. But my Seeing Eye Bruce is somewhere here. I think. If he didn't cut and run the second I got distracted."

[gloryisbullshit]

"Bruce--Bruce Banner?"

[manofiron]

"The one and only." Is that patronizing? Or derogatory in some way? Tony doesn't know and finds himself hastening to explain. "He lives in the same house as me. Kind of the only one not currently suffering from some kind of weird malady. He was sort of drafted into making sure I didn't fall down the stairs and break my neck."

[gloryisbullshit]

There's a quick quiet, and Party frowns. "Yeah, I--he was talking with my brother.

"You know him? You--he's fine?"

[manofiron]

"I do. He comes from the same place I do."

There's something in those questions. It takes Tony a moment to figure it out. He doesn't have family, or really anyone that he has to look out for. But he thinks he gets it finally and gives Party a brief smile.

"I don't like doctors. Don't trust them, won't let them near me. But Bruce? I trust him. Completely. He saved a lot of lives back where I'm from, mine included, and he's the only doctor I'll actually let examine me. If there's a kinder, gentler man out there, I haven't met him. Except maybe Steve. Steve's kind of the epitome of Nice Guy."

[gloryisbullshit]

Okay. Okay, he gets that. He felt that, seriously, he did. But knowing doesn't keep him from sounding sour as he asks: "What about the other guy?"

[manofiron]

"Other... Oh. You mean the Hulk? Big green half-naked guy?" The way he smiles as he says it, one wouldn't think he's talking about someone dangerous.

"He's the one that saved my life. He's scary-looking initially, I know, and watching him go to town destroying tanks can be kind of awe-inspiring—" Most people would probably say terrifying, but Tony isn't most people. "—but the Hulk's a good guy too. He's had it rough, really rough, and I know he doesn't always talk a whole lot, but he's one of the best guys I know. And I'd trust him with the lives of those most important to me without hesitation."

[gloryisbullshit]

"But you're friends. Or you're his agent or something, fuckin goin on like that. I think you're biased."

[manofiron]

"Well, yeah. I mean, aren't we all biased about our friends? Most people aren't like wow, he's a douchebag, I'm so glad we're friends. But that's not—" Tangents. He always gets off on tangents. Clearing his throat, Tony pulls himself back on track.

"The Hulk isn't a douchebag. He's just, he's new to the world, sort of. He doesn't really understand it, and what he does understand of it is that people are bastards who hurt first and never ask questions later. He's got some rough edges, but so does everyone else. Total transparency, he's my friend and my teammate. But if he was as dangerous as that stupid woman made him sound, I wouldn't be advocating everyone getting to know him. Which is what I'm doing. Get to know him first, if you can, before you make a judgment."