All Things New [Pre-Mission Catch-all]

[worthallthis]

Who: Bucky Barnes AKA Soldat, with open and closed prompts
Where: Each prompt will have a car listed
When: Kazoo 2 - 6
What: Dancing, cooking, clothes, and board games
Warnings: Amiable disassociation, possible discussion of trauma


I. New Steps - Gym car, OTA

Unlike Devero, Soldat doesn't announce to the whole train that they're also here for some dance teaching. Theirs isn't specific to the ballroom dance of Cassie's, though, and continue well after the dance night. Theirs isn't ballroom at all, in fact, because though Soldat is capable of doing a waltz, it's way more boring than the Lindy Hop.

A number of friends are specifically being dragged down to the gym car (or the music car, if the gym car is taken) to learn at different times during the week, but anyone can stop by and notice there's swing music from the 30s and 40s playing in there, and get a free lesson. Or just a spin around the car. This is safe touch, they can do this with a smile, even with strangers.


II. New recipes - Kitchen and storage car, OTA

Soldat is excited by their new job. Not only are they cooking meals, they're in charge of mission prep meals. Even when the dining car is stocked with plenty for breakfast, lunch, or dinner-- and there are snacks out in a couple main spots around the train-- they're still in the kitchen putting together food that will keep, food that will store well in arm bands without making a mess, and food that's easy to eat on the go. They've got the recipe for lembas bread now, so they're experimenting with that (and maybe trying to make it come in different flavors; everybody needs a little cocoa in their bread, right?) as well as better granola bars and fruit bars and nut-and-chip mixes. Finger foods and meat and veggies baked into little hand-held pies (that one takes a lot of tries to get right).

Anyone who comes by gets accosted. Gently. "Try this for me? Let me know if there's enough spice?" or "Does this look cooked enough to you?" or "Hey, do you like cinnamon?"

Somebody clued them into the goddamn bear carcasses, too, so they spend an afternoon baffledly trying to apply the vaguely-remembered means of dressing meat off a body they learned in the war... on rabbits... to something as big as a bear. They commandeer a table in the kitchen for it, once one is pulled from the team's arm band. Sarge winds up contributing a lot, including coming out a few times, grousing the whole time in a thick Brooklyn accent: "Are you shitting me, Soldat. You really couldn't figure out how to deal with the shoulder joint on your own? Really? Fine, Jesus, fine. Let's just make it quick. It's not like I like being out here, or anything."


III. New Wardrobe - Merwen's cabin, closed to Merwen

They're finally done altering all of Merwen's train-standard clothes. It took a solid week of fitting in cutting, sewing, and hemming, but it's ready just in time for when they expect the next mission will come. They come to her sleeper shortly after the morning wake-up call, hoping she's still there, with their arms full of a bundle of orange clothes: ponchos and skirts, loose dresses, and warm socks shaped best for her feet with floppy sandals that lace up her ankles made from the remains of the standard hiking boots.

"Merwen," they say with a little smile. "I have your clothes."


IV. New Passtimes - Games car, closed to Raven and one other CR at a time (multiple threads fine!)

Raven promised them board games, and by hell they're going to learn board games. Monopoly (awful; apparently they're still Soviet enough to hate capitalism), Railroad Tycoon (this capitalism game is slightly better, but the pictures make them weirdly nervous), Risk (very fun but very long), Life (baffling but amusing), something more obscure... take your pick.

Soldat drags in a different friend every game, always someone who they think would benefit from learning how to do something new and (hopefully) fun. Otoha, Thanatos, Prisoner (with bonus Renee if she wants), Yoite, and even Steve can all get an invite. All people they think have a hard time with "fun".


V. New Idea - Wildcard

Soldat's pretty easy to find, for anything else anyone might like to bug them about. Find them in the kitchen car most of the day, with a break in the middle for a midday nap in their sleeper. Find them in the music car experimenting with trying to connect their tablet to the ICP to download cleaner copies of their own music collection. Find them taking half an hour to sit in the greenhouse car and pretend it's actual sunlight, or taking an hour in the standard car listening to people's quiet chatter and letting the little ghost figurine bob along the backs of the seats in front of them, or making their daily patrol of the train from front to back. They're always happy for company.

Comments

IV

[bakegarasu]

Otoha is dragged in and looks around at the board game selection. He looks... a little confused.

"I've seen a few of these games before, but not played them."

[worthallthis]

"I haven't, either," Soldat says, looking for Raven to see which of the games she's picked today. "We're here to learn how. You and me."

[bakegarasu]

"... Why?" This seems... weird. Childish. He's not sure hwo to feel about it.

II

[fivemilesdeep]

Ryo is on his way to the kitchen - there's a new ingredient this month, and he figures he might as well take a crack at the new recipes. The pudding had worked out well enough, and it's his team's turn to cook anyway - might as well get started, right?

He's not surprised when his Sense tells him Soldat is in the kitchen - it seems Soldat spends a good amount of time there regardless. What is a surprise is the voice when he opens the door to the kitchen. It looks like Soldat, and his Sense tells him it is Soldat, but that does not sound like Soldat.

Also, he's definitely attempting to do a two-person job by himself - one that Ryo has helped with in the past.

Um.

He hesitates for a few moments before speaking up. "Do you- want help with that?"

[worthallthis]

"I would abso-fucking-lutely like help with this. It's huge." Sarge tamps down a little on the accent, but he can't help from sounding more expressive, more vehement, than Soldat ever did. Oh well! (Just don't go talking to me outside our head if someone else is in here. Fine, fine, you and your secrets.) "You know how to deal with a carcass this big? I know how to dismember it, sure, but getting the actual meat off is harder than it fuckin' looks."

[fivemilesdeep]

It still doesn't sound like Soldat, but sometimes people act differently when they're frustrated, right? And maybe things are different on the world Soldat is from-

And he had accepted the offer for help.

"Kind of? I helped the last time Inigo and Tidus butchered one of these." He ties his hair back and pushes his sleeves up, fishing a knife from one of the drawers. "I think it'll be easier with an extra set of hands."

I. New Steps - Gym car, OTA

[yondu]

He wasn't going to take Soldat up on this initially. Dancing was always more of a Peter thing or a 'his crew' thing, not a him thing. But he's bored and he needs something to do that's not getting stuck in his own damn head. Because he's living there, and the more he stays there, the more he hates.

He's still kind of hesitant coming into the car, turning in place to check out the area, gnawing on a toothpick as a way to fidget.

"Alright. So, this is sort of an old style of Terran dancin'? Right?" He calls out.

[worthallthis]

"Yes. From seventy or eighty or so years ago. Though I've been told it had a revival at some point, so it's still kind of being done." They start the playlist on their tablet and it down against the wall, lantern next to it, as a slower but still cheerful jazz tune starts to play.

They hold out a hand for Yondu. "I'll show you four steps first, then we can put them together."

[yondu]

He clumsily puts the toothpick in his pocket and puts his blue hand in the offered one, swallowing down some performance anxiety. He's new, he's not even human, he's allowed to be terrible at this at first.

Yet another good reason to hope Peter Quill never shows up and calls him out.

"Show me what to do. I'm better at trial and error than just hearin' how to do it."

[theimpatientone]

Merwen answers the door, still rubbing the sleep from her eyes. For a moment she blinks at Soldat and their armful of orange cloth; she'd managed to put the thought of clothes and the likely situation of having to wear them out of her mind, for the time being.

"You... Come in, come in."

She flings the door open wide to invite them in; fortunately, her roommates have already left. "You really went to all this trouble for me?"

[worthallthis]

"Of course. It's not as nice as the stuff I made you before, I didn't have any really soft fabrics to work with except the pajamas, and none of them have any nice floral patterns, but I remember your measurements so these should be okay at least, and--"

They realize they're rambling out of nerves, not a thing they do much, and clamp their mouth shut, looking sheepish, as they set the bundle onto Merwen's bed. From there they lay out each piece for her to see. "They're not perfect. Nothing would be, I know. But they're as comfortable for you as I can make them."

[theimpatientone]

Merwen runs a hand over the clothes curiously. "You went to a great deal of effort," she says, her voice soft.

It wasn't necessary. As unhappy as she would have been, she would have survived having to wear heavy (in her perspective, anyway) clothing for a little while. But here is Soldat, who she hardly knows, who is willing to do all this for her.

And she's felt more than a little isolated here, since she arrived. So maybe it isn't a surprise that suddenly she's come over all misty and is wiping at her eyes. "Thank you. I don't know why-- thank you."

New Steps (as much as I want to do a kitchen prompt why do I always pick foodie prompts with Soldat)

[fightcreamsundae]

Cherry had heard rumor that there were dancing lessons taking place on the train, taught by Soldat. It didn't take her very long to find the lessons, but Soldat seemed to already have their hands full so she kept herself to the side and watched.

It was clear by the expression on her face alone that she was absolutely enamored by the dance and she wanted to learn, but she was too polite to interrupt or cut in. Her ears were up and alert, her tail twitched with excitement, and her hands held together and clutched to her chest to help contain her energy. She would very patiently wait for him to finish with everyone else they were teaching, then she would approach with starry eyes.

"Mr. Soldat!" Feel free to ask her not to call you mister, Soldat. "Hi! What's that dance called, the one you've been teaching? It's so different from the dances I learned for Ishgard!"

[worthallthis]

They need a break, themselves, so it's going to be a minute before they can actually teach her anything. They're not out of breath, or visibly tired, but they hit a limit on how much they can touch someone. That's basically the way lessons end.

They send their friend off for some water, slumping against the train car's wall for a moment, and only after she's bounced right up do they give Cherry a small smile. "That's called the Lindy Hop. I learned it a long time ago. It's my favorite dance, and I know a bunch."

[fightcreamsundae]

Soldat's small smile only served to make Cherry's excited smile grow. Truly she seemed to have limitless energy.

Her ears rose and wiggled a little as they explained they knew a bunch of dances. "Really!? Like what else!?"

She doesn't even give him a chance to answer quite yet. "I know the Ishgardian waltz because Ser Aymeric himself taught me it, then the Gridanians have a waltz, and Mr. Scaeva taught me the Garlean waltz, and Mr. Kha's taught me some of the traditional dances of the Xaela on the Steppe - for some reason he was really particular in teaching me one that they do for weddings(?), and I know a, um, stepdance, and I know some traditional Doman dances..."

She trails off as she seems to try to think if she knows any others.

II

[flatteries]

It's like Inigo has some secret bear radar.

Of course he doesn't really. But when he enters the carriage and notices the very familiar bear corpse there, one of the things he hunted all the way back in Irivar, of course Inigo is just here for it. Especially when he notices the person standing next to it seeming to struggle with thinking about where to even start on this thing.

".. hey," Inigo says. A little quiet and perhaps a tad awkward at first, considering their other slightly awkward conversation - but he quickly tries to smile after. Tries to brush off the thought. "You know, you could've just asked me to come over and help with this, you know. I did the other ones as well."

[worthallthis]

It's clear from the little smile that Soldat is not feeling awkward, at all. "I didn't realize you'd butchered the other ones. Sure, come help."

They look back over the bear, admitting, "I've only ever field-dressed rabbits and squirrels. Stuff to roast over campfires, on the road."

IV Games

[controlsthedie]

When Soldat asked Thanatos to come with him, he hadn't expected they'd be going to the games car. Thanatos hasn't spent much time in the car at all. At most, he shifted in there looking for an escape and no other reason to return. There was otherwise nothing of interest for him.

Finally, he has to ask, "What are we doing here?"

[worthallthis]

"We," Soldat says with confidence, "are here to learn how to play a game. Raven promised me she'd show me how, and we need more than just two players." And also Thanatos needs to learn more things to do for fun.

II - I know our last thread isn't done I do what I want :V

[helborn]

... Okay so the guy sounds different, but that's Soldat. Probably. He heads over to the guy and the bear, looking a little amused. "Need a hand?"

... Maybe that's rude to say to a guy with a metal arm.

[worthallthis]

Sarge snorts something mostly amused, rolling his eyes. "You say that like I ain't heard it a hundred times, there, pal." But he's also amiable enough when he adds, "Come on over. You know how to butcher a bear? Or just wanna hold a paw up so I can cut somethin' off?"

IV

[comefadeaway]

Yoite seemed a bit uncertain as he lingered in the doorway of the games car.

There were a lot of games, to him, and he had no idea how to play any of them. He wasn't even sure he wanted to. He was confused.

However, Soldat had invited him and they made it sound enticing enough. He just wasn't sure what to expect, so he lingered, observing from the entrance.

[worthallthis]

Soldat is at a table with Raven, a game all set out and ready to play, but they're craning their neck around, looking for Yoite every few seconds. As soon as they spot him, they wave vigorously. No reason to shout, but waving ought to catch his attention. Come on over, kiddo!

catch prisoner pouting :v

[runsfast_rollsfar]

Prisoner's stuck himself in the garden car off in some corner where he isn't in the way of any particular path normally walked. His normal lively and magenta flame was replaced with a smoldering black flame that was almost more akin to smoke than proper fire. His journal seemed to be nowhere near him - must not be feeling chatty.

He was definitely pouting, and he was pouting by stacking rocks. This was something he usually could only be found when he grew profoundly bored, but he was today years old when he found that there was something calming about it too. The movements were forcibly slow, careful, as he picked out a moderately sized smooth, stone that was pretty flat and carefully placed it atop the stack he was working on. He must have placed it too roughly as it wobbled and toppled.

So, he started again.

[worthallthis]

"That looks a lot less active than you usually like," Soldat comments, drifting over. They hadn't exactly been looking for Prisoner... but they also hadn't seen him much lately, and spotting him makes them want to come over and at least say hello.

They drop to a crouch on the other side of the fallen rock pile. "Everything okay?"